When Mockingbirds Sing

Written by Billy Coffey

Narrated by Gabe Wicks

Nine-year-old Leah's invisible friend seems harmless enough. . .until she begins to paint the future. Suddenly, the townspeople are divided between those who see her as a prophet and those who fear the danger she represents. Caught in the middle is Leah's agnostic father, who clashes with a powerful town pastor over Leah's prophecies and what to do about them.

Leah is a child from Away, isolated from her peers because of her stutter. After her family moves to Mattingly, she begins painting scenes that are epic in scope, brilliant in detail, and suffused with rich, prophetic imagery. When the event foreshadowed in the first painting dramatically comes true, the town takes notice.

Leah attributes her ability to foretell the future to an invisible friend she calls the Rainbow Man. Some of the townsfolk are enchanted with her. Others fear her. But there is one thing they all agree on—there is no such thing as the Rainbow Man.

The town minister is unraveled by the notion that a mere child with no formal training may be hearing from God more clearly than he does.

While the town bickers over what to do with this strange child, the content of Leah’s paintings grows darker. Still, Leah insists that the Rainbow Man’s heart is pure.

Then a dramatic and tragic turn of events leaves the town reeling and places everyone’s lives in danger. The people of Mattingly face a single choice: will they cling to what they know . . . or embrace the things Leah believes in that cannot be seen?

• Supernatural standalone novel 
• Other books by Billy Coffey: Snow Day, Paper Angels, The Devil Walks in Mattingly, and In the Heart of the Dark Wood

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: Sep 2, 2014
• ISBN: 9780718033132

Billy Coffey

Billy Coffey's critically acclaimed books combine rural Southern charm with a vision far beyond the ordinary. He is a regular contributor to several publications, where he writes about faith and life. Billy lives with his wife and two children in Virginia's Blue Ridge Mountains. Visit him at www.billycoffey.com. Facebook: billycoffeywriter Twitter: @billycoffey

Reviews for When Mockingbirds Sing

[lcjohnson1988_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Title: When Mockingbirds SingAuthor: Billy CoffeyPages: 336Year: 2013Publisher: Thomas NelsonMy rating is 4 stars out of 5.Billy Coffey’s two novels titled, The Devil Walks in Mattingly, published in 2014 along with In The Heart of the Dark Wood. When Mockingbirds Sing is not as exciting to me personally as the other two books. The other two tales have tons of action, adventure and suspense that tend to keep me glued to the book more than the slower building storyline.This story is about a little girl who has a speech impediment and tends to shy away from crowds plus her parents don’t seem to be getting along well. Only little Leah can see a figure she calls the Rainbow Man who sings to her. No one else can see what she describes or refers to when she tells others about Rainbow Man. Another obstacle for Leah and her family in the small town is that they came from outside the town of Mattingly, which can make fitting into the nuances of a small town challenging.Perhaps because I read Billy Coffey’s latest work, this one didn’t really hold my interest as well or the way the beginning to the story starts. Whatever the reason, it still made for an interesting tale to read and think about what the author might be trying to convey in the book’s themes. I felt like I was dropped into a story without much leading in the way of how Leah and her family got to this town.I will keep this novel on my shelf in my personal library to read again in years to come. A lot of my time while in the story was trying to figure out who the Rainbow Man is supposed to represent and why is Leah the only one who sees and hears him? For me, I prefer action, suspense, thrillers with some mystery, but this tale just didn’t seem to flow or make sense to me.Like all reviews on books it depends on a lot of variables and the person reviewing the book. I can see why reviews are from one spectrum to the other. Readers seemed to either love it or thought it was okay at best. All I can say is the latest books written by Billy Coffey are much better and very captivating! Coming this August from this author is a novel titled, The Curse of Crow Hollow. Will you be reading this latest from the author’s pen?Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[theeccentriclady · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I am only giving this a 3 because after just finishing this book I am not overwhelmed with any great feelings of anything. It kept my interest but all along the way I kept wondering where the story was really going, I kept waiting for a deeper hidden meaning that would provide an "aha moment" I kept expecting to feel more moved than I was. I do not feel it was a waste of time but I was hoping for more. I would recommend it if magic, faith, questioning life and small towns are your kind of thing.