This is the second book in the Feathers and Light series. To summarize how the first book (Feathers and Light) ended, in Sorche's words... "I ended up on a mountain in the dark with a god who was trying to kill me. I either blew her to smithereens or blasted her off a cliff. I'm not sure which. After that I was in some kind of trance and when I woke up, Sophia dropped it on me that she and most everyone else in her neighborhood were gods, that my friend, Brighid, is a god, and that my mom and dad and sister, Harper, are all demigods, or maybe gods. And worst of all, I'm some kind of; super-demigod."
In Reluctant Gods, Sorche, Harper, and Brighid struggle with the fact that they are not just normal kids. To help them, Sophia teaches them the art of Patience. And Enya-Queen of the Gentle Folk, the Fairies-encourages them to embrace all the experiences the upcoming year will offer. Well, and both Sophia and Enya tell them that in the end, they may just have to "wing it".
Given her previous experiences, Brighid quickly accepts that as an ancient Celtic god, her jobs include giving hope to those who are fearful or anxious, and offering creative inspiration to all who seek it. But she is warned that because there are so many humans needing her help, the greatest danger she will face is burnout; if she tries to go it alone, she's told, she'll be done before she's thirty.
As the youngest of the three, Sorche is the most open to new and "unusual" experiences. Because of that, she is able to perform technically impossible weather modifications to save their town from wildfires, to heal a friend dying of cancer, and to teach a theoretical physicist that immortal gods don't just disappear when they're forgotten. At the same time, she does all the things that a normal ten-year-old, fifth grader does.
And then there's Harper, the most reluctant of the three... the one who really just wants to be normal. But after a year of challenges, as she turns fourteen, she resolves to accept as her new normal all that she has been given, to take control of herself, and to move forward.
While Reluctant Gods is filled with adventure, it is also an exploration of what it means to be growing up. It is a tale emphasizing the importance of family and community. And it is a tale of self-empowerment.
