Sugar Birds

Cheryl Grey Bostrom

• Publisher: Tyndale Fiction
• Year: 2023
• eBook ISBN: 9781496481658

A captivating coming-of-age novel about survival and redemption, set in the rural beauty of the Pacific Northwest.

NORTHWEST WASHINGTON STATE, 1985

For years, Harris Hayes has taught his daughter, Aggie, the ways of the northern woods, where she sketches nests of wild birds as an antidote to sadness. Then her depressed, unpredictable mother forbids her to climb the trees that give her sanctuary and comfort. Angry, ten-year-old Aggie accidentally lights a tragic fire and flees downriver. She lands her boat near untamed forest, then hides among trees and creatures she believes are her only friends—determined to remain undiscovered.

A search party gathers hours after Celia arrives at her grandmother's nearby farm. Hurting from her parents' breakup, she also plans to run. But when she joins the hunt for Aggie, she meets two irresistible young men who compel her to stay. One is autistic; the other, dangerous.

Ideal for fans of Under the Magnolias by T.I. Lowe, Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, and The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, Sugar Birds is a layered, riveting contemporary story set in the breathtaking natural world—where characters encounter the mending power of forgiveness, for themselves and for those who have failed them.

"A true page-turner . . . An engrossing tale." – Kirkus Reviews

• 2022 CHRISTIANITY TODAY'S BOOK AWARDS: Award of Merit – Fiction
• 2022 ACFW CAROL AWARDS: Winner - Debut Fiction
• 2022 IPPY AWARDS: Gold Winner - Best First Book, Fiction
• 2022 CHRISTY AWARD FINALIST - First Novel
• 2022 NAUTILUS AWARDS: Silver Winner - Fiction/Large Publishers
• 2022 INTERNATIONAL BOOK AWARDS: Winner - Inspirational Fiction and Cross-Genre Fiction; Finalist - General Fiction, Literary Fiction
• 2022 NEXT GENERATION INDIE BOOK AWARDS: Finalist - General Fiction/Novel
• 2021 AMERICAN FICTION AWARDS: Winner - Literary Fiction, General Fiction, and Cross-Genre Fiction; Finalist - Religious Fiction
• 2021 BEST BOOK AWARDS: Winner - Inspirational Fiction; Finalist - Cross-Genre Fiction
• 2021 FOREWORD INDIES: Silver Winner - Religious Fiction; Finalist - General Adult Fiction
• 2021 READER'S FAVORITE AWARDS: Silver Medalist - Inspirational Fiction

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Praise for Sugar Birds
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Epigraph
• Photo Insert
• Chapter 1: Aggie: Mama
• Chapter 2: Aggie: Rubble
• Chapter 3: Celia: Detour
• Chapter 4: Aggie: Flight
• Chapter 5: Celia: Hawk
• Chapter 6: Aggie: Hunger
• Chapter 7: Celia: Hooks
• Chapter 8: Aggie: Search
• Chapter 9: Celia: Burnaby
• Chapter 10: Aggie: Secret
• Chapter 11: Celia: Bones
• Chapter 12: Aggie: Shotgun
• Chapter 13: Celia: Paint
• Chapter 14: Aggie: Prowler
• Chapter 15: Celia: Hoe
• Chapter 16: Aggie: Poultice
• Chapter 17: Celia: Ants
• Chapter 18: Aggie: Itch
• Chapter 19: Celia: Kiss
• Chapter 20: Aggie: Hounds
• Chapter 21: Celia: Playground
• Chapter 22: Celia: Blanket
• Chapter 23: Aggie: Friend
• Chapter 24: Celia: Color
• Chapter 25: Aggie: Pi
• Chapter 26: Celia: Cabin
• Chapter 27: Aggie: Cache
• Chapter 28: Aggie: Lie
• Chapter 29: Celia: Speed
• Chapter 30: Celia: Mother
• Chapter 31: Aggie: Contact
• Chapter 32: Celia: Casket
• Chapter 33: Aggie: Bait
• Chapter 34: Celia: Funeral
• Chapter 35: Aggie: Surprise
• Chapter 36: Celia: Drive-By
• Chapter 37: Aggie: News
• Chapter 38: Celia: Eagle
• Chapter 39: Aggie: Junkyard
• Chapter 40: Aggie: Wolf
• Chapter 41: Aggie: Game
• Chapter 42: Celia: Creature
• Chapter 43: Aggie: Help
• Chapter 44: Celia: Reunion
• Chapter 45: Aggie: Scars
• Chapter 46: Celia: Dreams
• Chapter 47: Celia: Millie
• Preview of a New Novel by Cheryl Grey Bostrom
• Discussion Questions
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author