This is the third in the Venery series by Suanne Laqueur and since it is part of a series, I won’t talk much about the plot, for fear of giving away any spoilers. But I will tell you in detail what the author made me feel with her words!
I discovered Suanne Laqueur in 2018, when I requested an ARC of A Charm of Finches, the second in the Venery series. And boy, oh, boy, how I fell in love with that book and the characters! Javier, Alex, and Val became so close to my heart, I don’t even know where to start! But I realized that it was the second in the series a tad bit too late, just as I realized that you could read it on its own too. Reading the first one only gave you extra insight into the minds of the characters.
When I saw that the third in this series, A Scarcity of Condors, was available for request, I immediately snapped it up. And what a wise decision it was!
A Scarcity of Condors is the story of Juleon ‘Jude’ Tholet, whose family fled Chile to Vancouver, Canada, in 1973 when he was just a baby, after his parents suffered atrocities at the hands of Dictator Augusto Pinochet’s armies. But Jude’s worries weren’t over. Him trying to figure out his sexuality results in a horrid case of bullying and harassment, which makes the Tholets flee yet again; this time, into America.
The past comes calling and when this happens, Jude finds himself spiraling. But when this past holds hands with past of his parents as both come crashing down on the Tholet family, it seems like everything is at stake, and that everything is about to be lost. What the Tholets decide to do, and what Easter eggs the author has placed in there form the story.
And oh my god. I finished this book at 5 in the AM and I was not okay. That’s the most basic thing I could say, but it’s true! I let out such a startled yelp when I realized what Suanne Laqueur was on about that it made me grateful that I was the only one in the room. Oh my, that revelation that dawned on me had me bawling at an ungodly hour and posting an Instagram story demanding of the author, “How dare you make me feel things?” What an idiot I am! But Suanne Laqueur was kind enough to laugh it away. I’m still a little sorry, Suanne. You know I love your writing!
To be honest, I am so in love with the characters from An Exaltation of Larks and A Charm of Finches that when they didn’t appear in the first half, I was a little disappointed. It was also that the book dragged a little while being repetitive. But I now wonder if the reason I felt that it dragged was because I was waiting for one of the earlier characters to appear? They didn’t, so, I cannot do anything about it.
The gut-wrenching stories, though! Be it Jude’s or his father’s or his mother’s – they will clench at your heart and make you want to gather all of them and squish them in one giant hug. You’ll want to make their pain go away. All you want to do is fill their lives with love. Don’t get me wrong, their lives have love – they love each other after all. The familial love is almost painful to see, if you know what I mean. But I mean I wanted to see that romantic love that I’ve been seeing in all of Suanne Laqueur’s books so far.
I’m actually speechless at this book because I think Suanne Laqueur outdoes herself with each book she writes. I don’t know what else to say because the emotions that Laqueur puts into the books will hit you between the eyes, come at your heart, pull out your guts, and knock you off your feet, all while giving you a warm embrace that you will melt into. You will willingly give yourself up to everything that the Venery series has to offer you. Read one book and the next book will have you come running at a mere crook of a finger. These books are THAT addictive!
I don’t know if I’ve sold this book and this series to you, but you should definitely give the Venery series a try, because if you do start it, remember that A Scarcity of Condors lies in wait for you, waiting to tackle you with a love you didn’t think you’d feel!
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Until next time, keep reading and add melodrama to your life. 🙂
The Melodramatic Bookworm 
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