#BirdsOfWonder

[pets-birds]

Mystical Birds | Guardians of Enchanted Realms

[lallawandavi]

Nuthatch🐦 Light✨ Shades🌫 Reflections💧 #birdsofwonder . . . . . #nuthatch #birdwatching #illustration #drawing #ink #colouredinkdrawings #nature #rspb #birds (at Nottingham, United Kingdom) https://www.instagram.com/p/B05SR1QFACq/?igshid=1x58e48m3yhrg

[bookish-thinking]

Review: “Birds of Wonder” by Cynthia Robinson

The body of a girl found in a field affects a whole community, as everything and everyone is connected in some way, and the crime investigated has far-reaching impact and touches a few difficult subjects. This debut novel had a lot of potential, but ultimately disappointed me.

But let's start with the positive, which did dominate the first four fifths of the book (hence 4/5 stars)! In a dense narrative spanning just three days, Cynthia Robinson combines atmospheric scenes with great character portraits, while neither overburden the action. The potential for conflict, both internally and between the characters, was palpable everywhere, the air basically crackling with it. And while the characters are not exactly likable, they did carry this story. All had distinct voices and brought the narrative forward without giving anything away. The book also greatly discussed and brought forward the injustices of rape and abuse culture, the foster care system and child pornography. There was an overarching bird metaphor woven into the plot, which was obvious but not overbearing.

Now on to the less great aspects: if the setting is indeed supposed to be the Ithaca, New York, which has roughly 30.000 people, then I felt that the "small town" vibe was too exaggerated. It became a romanticized plot point with no connection to reality. Also, I found the solution to the crime to be way too simple and felt that there was too little detective work done. So much more could have been made out of the great topics mentioned above! It certainly was not a book full of the usual tropes, but this is not the right way to avoid stereotypes either, because it fell flat. The ending then felt sugary, or even, dare I say it?, lazy. It was just too simple. I would have liked a bit more of a bang for a story that carried so much potential in its topics and cast of character.

~ I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book and all opinions expressed above are my own.  

“Birds of Wonder” was published yesterday, February 20th. 

[thepsychopathicpanda-blog]

Owl's skill. Almost smacking you in the face, but then not. #owls #birds #birdsofwonder #avian #animals #animalkingdom