Sticky Reads: Kyland by Mia Sheridan

Kyland

by: Mia Sheridan

New Adult Contemporary

Dirt poor. Hillbilly. Backwoods hick. Mountain folk.

Tenleigh Falyn struggles each day to survive in a small, poverty-stricken, coal mining town where she lives with her sister and mentally ill mother. Her dream of winning the college scholarship given to one student by the local coal company and escaping the harshness of her life, keeps her going.

Kyland Barrett lives in the hills, too, and has worked tirelessly—through near starvation, through deep loneliness, against all odds—to win the Tyton Coal Scholarship and leave the town that is full of so much pain.

They're both determined not to form any attachments, but one moment changes everything. What happens when only one person gets to win? When only one person gets to leave? And what happens to the one left behind?

Kyland is a story of desperation and hope, loss and sacrifice, pain and forgiveness, but ultimately, a story of deep and unending love.

Kyland is another winner by Mia Sheridan! I absolutely love her stories and characters and have now added Kyland and Tenleigh to my list. This story is many things: it's sweet, inspiring, but also filled with sorrow and despair. The story takes place in Denville, Kentucky. After a tragic mine explosion the town continues to suffer from poverty, lack of jobs and some of the most basic daily amenities. Kyland and Tenleigh aren't dealing with the normal things a teen typically is concerned with. They are both quite mature for their age and this is due to the many hardships they have endured in their young age.

"And I had to wonder, should a seventeen-year-old girl be so tired? Just tired down to my bones....weary in my very soul?" ~ Tenleigh

Both Kyland and Tenleigh are prepared to graduate from high school and hopefully earn a scholarship that will allow them a way out. They each have dismal home lives and deal with some heartbreaking situations. Many times both Kyland and Tenleigh's stories broke my heart. But through the sadness I also found it inspiring. They form a friendship, connection and bond that turns into love. But that doesn't change the current situation and the ultimate goal of breaking free from the town that has held them down so long. Kyland is slowly losing the battle to not form any attachment or connection to Tenleigh. She has a pull on him that won't let go.

"I couldn't afford to feel the things I felt just watching her. More to the point, I didn't want to." ~ Kyland

It's a beautifully written story that I loved. Ms. Sheridan has a gift of creating stories that play vividly in your head. I could picture this story, the places, the mountains and also felt the sadness, despair and hope of the characters. This is a story of survival and it captivates you until the very end.