Review: When Cicadas Cry, Laura Miller

One moment. One moment can shape our entire life.

That’s all it takes.

But what I didn’t know when we locked eyes that first time was that every moment we shared was just another moment leading up to that one that would forever change the course of our lives.

It was the moment that I knew he knew. It was just a hunch, a feeling, a soft whisper to my soul. But it was in that moment—that one, life-altering instant--that I knew I had lost him.

When Omaha native Ashley Westcott suddenly shows up in Remington Jude’s small, Missouri town, she’s the talk of the town. When she leaves abruptly one day, the rumors fly. But only Rem knows why she left, and he’s not talking.  

It's always a real joy to get to talk about one of Laura Miller's books, not only because they are really good ones, but mostly because you can't keep your mouth shut after reading them — not for too long at least.

When I first read A Bird on a Windowsill I went to a state of awe, happiness and thrill regarding the way she deals with the writing stuff. I don't know how she does it, but she has this kind of power that makes the most beautiful feelings to blossom through her words. So, yes. I became an obsessed fan with her work. I seriously love her books, and I also relate so much to those small town characters she creates, because I was born and raised in a small town as well. The only difference is that I'm a brazilian small town girl.

Now here I am trying to share how it was my experience reading When Cicadas Cry and I'm scared to hell that this review or any other one will never live up to her stories. That's why I'm not going to say much. We can't say much about something that already speaks for itself.

In this book we are introduced to Ashley Westcott and Remington Jude. We also get to know a small town Missouri called Ava and its people's habits. And it was fun, because the story already starts talking about rumors, I mean small town rumors. If you live in a town, I bet you know what I'm talking about. Life can be a prankster most of the times, and it has definitely decided to come into sight aiming on Ashley and Rem. They've met a while ago, fell in love, made happy and worthy memories, but then, in the blink of an eye she's gone, and Rem just ended up forgotting how to live and how to be himself. All those moments come beautifully wrapped in Laura's heart melting and passionate narrative.

When Cicadas Cry is a story about love and its great power of hurting and healing. It's about loyalty in its pure essence. It's about moments and what it takes to get your whole life changed by them, and how powerful they can be. It's also purposefully about the painful ones, because they are what it takes to make you ask yourself how worthwhile they were and how much they deserve to be lived.

And if you ask me right now, "Laira, was it?" I'd totally answer, "Yes."

Laura Miller lives in Midwest and is the national bestselling author of Butterfly Weeds, My Butterfly, By Way of Accident, For All You Have Left and A Bird on a Windowsill. 

Catch up on her new stories on lauramillerbooks.com. Or you can always say hello to her on social media. Make sure to follow her on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.