Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  On the Fly

SERIES:  Rail Riders #4

AUTHOR:  Nicky James

PUBLISHER:  Self-Published

LENGTH:  308 pages

RELEASE DATE:  March 14, 2022

BLURB:

Everything is changing.

When her core group of freight-hopping friends start settling down, Willow is left adrift and all alone to ride the rails.
She can’t quit like everyone else. For eight years she’s been on a quest for answers about her past, and LA is where she suspects she’ll find them.
With a serial killer still loose on the rails and no one else to ride with, Willow’s lifelong best friend, Billie, insists on coming along.
Riding with Billie is a dream come true. They know each other inside and out, and Billie’s presence in Willow’s life has always kept her grounded.
But Billie has always had strong feelings for Willow that go beyond friendship, and Willow has always insisted on keeping things the way they are.
Why mess with a good thing and risk losing the one person who keeps Willow grounded?
Can Billie prove to Willow that she will be there no matter what, that she will never let go no matter how bad things get?
As secrets from Willow’s past unfold, their relationship is tested and hard choices must be made, but sometimes the only way to move forward is to make a decision on the fly.

** On The Fly is a best friends to lovers, female/gender fluid romance. Billie uses the pronouns she/her and they/them interchangeably. It is the last book in the Rail Riders series and should be read in sequence for full enjoyment. **

REVIEW:

Have you been wondering what draws Willow to Los Angeles every winter? The excellent On the Fly gives you that answer, and it’s not the warm weather. Nicky James grabbed my attention on page one and I was intrigued to discover Willow’s secret. Come along as Willow returns to Los Angeles one last time seeking the answers to dull the ache deep inside her. Circumstances keep Willow from traveling alone – Fish, the CP Rail serial killer, is still on the loose and she promises Dodger she won’t travel alone. To ensure her safety, Billie, Willow’s childhood best friend, begrudgingly joins Willow on her freight hopping expedition from Toronto to California.  

This is a childhood friends-to-lovers story combined with an equally as important mystery that goes hand in hand. It’s not overly romantic, but it is the story of Billie’s profound, unrequited love of many years. It’s a love she’s willing to sacrifice when she has to make a decision to save Willow from self-destruction, even though Willow will hate her for her actions. And it’s a love eventually reciprocated in full by Willow.

Willow and Billie were both outcasts growing up together. Willow was bullheaded, moody, defensive, and didn’t like to be told what to do. Billie, well, she was just different and didn’t fit into societal norms. She’s gender fluid, meaning that some days she identifies as a woman, while on other days it’s as a man. She presents more androgynous or masculine. Willow accepts her friend in any form and has never questioned it. She herself is pansexual so attraction defies gender or binary constructs.  

Willow is a tough cookie, and as her story unfolds, you’ll see why. She won’t even open up fully to her “brothers” Dodger, Killian, and Tyler, even thought they exist in a judgment-free zone and support her 100 percent. She’s struggling with the changes to her found family as the guys’ priorities change. They’ve all met their life partners, have given up their lives as rail riders, and are spreading out across Canada. Willow feels she’s not only losing her friends but the only family important to her.  

Willow shares only so much with Billie, too, her search for answers keeping her partially closed off. They’ll never be truly close until Willow can let go of her obsession, complete her quest, and find her truth. For now, she’s haunted by it. Tormented.  

Once in L.A., Willow is impulsive and mercurial in her moods. L.A. hardens Willow and Billie doesn’t like it. She is unnerved that Willow has a whole side to her Billie doesn’t know. She has to fight the urge to be protective and possessive, which Willow hates. But as Willow’s obsession takes hold, her behavior becomes riskier and she retreats into herself. Billie doesn’t know what to do.  

There were two times I got emotional during this read. Billie’s turmoil and sacrifice was one of them. The other moment involved a side character who stole my heart and made me laugh. Ms. James wisely utilized comic relief to break up the heaviness of the plot. Another secondary character is, um, bizarre in the most entertaining way. Wait until you meet him! Tyler called him strange, which is the understatement of the century. It’s like calling the sun hot. Billie’s uncle and his husband – with their unconditional love – provide depth and interest, too.  

I enjoyed On the Fly a great deal. Billie is engaging and heroic; the guys are entertaining, as always; and Willow is a survivor, written true to character – bristly and closed-off – but once you understand her, you’ll see she’s a victim of her deteriorating mental health. She’s undoubtedly a caring, devoted friend to Billie and the boys. This is not a typical romance but that’s not a bad thing. It’s a story of deep love that rises above all else to unite two characters who need each other like oxygen. And there’s an absorbing mystery to uncover, also. Even if you don’t think you’ll like a F/GF relationship, give it a try like I did. This is a wonderful read and a worthy end to the Rail Riders series. It brings closure to all of the character arcs. I’m very sad to see the end of Rail Riders. I’ve loved traveling along the tracks with this family of four – now eight – and being a part of their adventures and romances. Sniff, sniff. 

RATING: 

BUY LINKS: 

Amazon