An emotional roller-coaster with a satisfying finish. A Sky Full of Love by Lorna Lewis proves that with the love and support of family, it’s possible to overcome anything.
A Sky Full of Love Review
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Author: Lorna Lewis creates complex stories in which characters must navigate life’s complicated circumstances, including infidelity, infertility, betrayal, and the power of forgiveness.
Themes: love, betrayal, forgiveness, resilience, the power of family and community, the nuances of grief and trauma, rebuilding your identity after trauma, and the beauty of second chances.
Representation: and OWN voices story, BIPOC characters and author, mental health representation for PTSD, anxiety, and infertility
Content Warnings: kidnapping and sexual assault
Synopsis
After being abducted and held captive for fifteen years, Nova Lefleur’s wish for freedom finally comes true, and she’s reunited with her family. Yet, a lot has happened within the fam over the past fifteen years. Like how her younger sister Leah has married Nova’s husband, Quinton, and is the stepmother to her daughter, Skye. Will the family survive these secrets, or will the truth threaten to push Nova away?
Craft & Style
In terms of how A Sky Full of Love was written and its themes explored, it exceeded my expectations. The way Lorna Lewis discusses the darker themes regarding Nova’s abduction and the abuse she endured was handled with care and grace. She manages to provide you with enough context to understand her atrocious experience. She doesn’t give excessively graphic details. The primary focus is Nova’s emotional and mental state after her rescue and how she never lost hope, no matter how small, that she would be reunited with her family.
The pacing of this novel was a mix of slow and medium as Lewis explored both Nova’s and Leah’s POVs. I do question the choice to feature Leah’s narrative in third-person omniscient and Nova’s in first person. The switch in narrative styles does, at times, make the story feel a little imbalanced, but it doesn’t prevent enjoying the meat of the novel.
Emotional Impact
This novel excavated my emotions as I felt so many various things. I disagreed wholeheartedly with Leah’s actions and thought processes. At the same time, I understood her feelings, fears, and pain points. I felt for the woman, a psychologist, who was overly reactive and at times petty toward Nova, who was in a tough spot following her rescue.
Nova’s reactions and consequent emotional dysregulation, anxiety, and PTSD tracked with what she experienced, and I felt her family didn’t show enough patience with her recovery journey as they tried to skip this necessary part of her healing.
Quinton was also frustrating because he should’ve been honest and upfront with Leah about where his head was and how he felt. Furthermore, his whole ridiculousness towards Lance really tried my nerves. Seriously, my guy, you’re mad about an injury from playing high school sports?
Yet these complex family dynamics made the story so engrossing that I didn’t want to put it down. I loved how each character in this novel had to work through their own trauma to support Nova better and work towards healing and becoming a family.
Representation
First things first, this novel is starring Black characters and written by a Black woman in a genre where Black stories and authors, especially those who are indie or from less popular publishing houses, get overlooked in favor of Black stories where narratives regarding “Black Struggle” and strife are centered. And while these stories are necessary, and Lord knows I love them, I’m down. It’s so refreshing to read Black contemporary fiction that explores trauma without centering it around race.
While we’re on the subject, when it comes to books about trauma and the nonlinear journey towards healing, I feel this provides excellent representation. It shows the mental health struggles that come with recovering from a traumatic situation like Nova’s. It also highlights the importance of family involvement in the healing journey and the need to create supportive environments.
Notable Strengths
Where this novel shines is in how Lorna Lewis develops Nova’s character and in its beautiful exploration of themes of trauma and a family’s unbridled resilience under fire. Nova was arguably the strongest character in this novel. You’re able to connect with her intimately as you understand her trauma and the ways it’s colored her perception of the world around her, including her family.
Lewis’s choice to use a first-person narrative with Nova, allowing that intimacy to develop, enables you to connect with Nova. The novel’s themes were thoughtfully designed, focusing on both Nova and Leah and how the past fifteen years had impacted them in vastly different ways. Nova, with her abduction and living in captivity, and Leah, with her grief and infertility challenges.
Potential Hurdles
Some challenges you may experience with this novel include differences in narrative structure and a lack of depth in Leah and other supporting characters. Told in two points of view, Nova’s and Leah’s, we see the complete picture from Nova’s limited time in captivity to her release and reunion with her family and the events afterward.
However, the choice to use Nova’s point of view in first-person narration and Leah’s in third-person omniscient felt disjointed, which is probably why I connected with Nova more than Leah. Could this be the author’s intention? Maybe, but it still felt a bit jarring, and I struggled to feel much empathy for Leah and understand her motivations as she came across as petty and selfish much of the time.
Additionally, Nova’s mother, her daughter Skye, and her ex-husband, Quinton, lacked depth in the roles they played in Nova’s life and story. Could including their points of view provide much-needed depth and clarity? Definitely, focusing the story strictly on the sisters and taking these additional family members out of the primary narrative may have better supported the themes and ending.
Deeper Reflections
Overall, this story’s theme regarding this family’s resilience was heartwarming. I loved seeing how, despite the difficulties, they didn’t give up on one another and kept moving forward. They never gave up on one another and rebuilt their family in a way that made sense for them, and for the new future they were stepping into together.
Rating & Who I’d Recommend It To
This novel is perfect for readers who enjoy complex family dynamics with a touch of messiness, but it finishes off with a heartwarming conclusion.
Join the Conversation
When it comes to Black contemporary fiction, which themes and topics do you wish were represented more? Spill in the comments below.
If you’re looking for Black representation in contemporary settings sans the Black struggle, check out my review for one of my favorite reads of 2025, Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson. Ebby is a character who will bring you to tears and inspire you.
