Ever since Shell's mom died, her dad has been a completely different person. Their family is struggling to get by since he dropped his day job and started taking up collections for the church. But when a new young priest, Father Rose, comes to their town, Shelly can't help but wonder if he is meant to make everything better. And then Shelly's relationship with Declan Ronan gets out of control, and soon she has a new secret to deal with.A Swift, Pure Cry was a good story, but only that. It read quick and kept my interest throughout, its arc was well done, and the characters were mostly developed (though I found myself questioning some of them). But I felt like there was something missing, because by the end of the book, not much had changed from the beginning. I wanted more on Father Rose, who's character just kind of drops off. I wanted more mystery. I wanted more of a struggle.
So, though the book is nice and the cover is okay, A Swift, Pure Cry is interesting and a heart-wrenching story, but I wouldn't re-read it. I think, however, you'll have to read it to decide, because I could see some people loving it (and some hating it). I just got stuck in the middle :)
Rating: 3 Stars.
Clean?: Sexual banter and allusions, nothing explicit (Dowd just skips right over it, thankfully)
