The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore

Two star-crossed lovers from feuding clans meet; both families are traveling performers in California’s central valley.  Lace’s Hispanic family, the Palomas, swim in mermaid exhibits in the river; all the women are marked with a pattern of scales. The French Corbeaus dance in the tallest trees clad in beautiful wings. Cluck has feathers growing from the nape of his neck and a clawed hand deformed by his sadistic brother. Lace has been warned that his kind are pure black magic and a touch from them can kill.
When Cluck rescues Lace from a disastrous chemical explosion, his touch instead immerses her in his world and an enchanting relationship begins. This is magical realism at its best.  The writing is heartbreakingly exquisite.
An old feud, a new love, a long buried secret, a flash of mermaid tails, a flutter of fairy wings infuse this tender story with the power of fear, love and honesty.

Tessa's Picks, 6-7th grade, Romance, Contemporary Fiction
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