A review by bibliokyra
Birds of Wonder by Cynthia Robinson
4.0
Birds of Wonder is a magnificent genre-bending work of literature set in a small art and wine enriched town in upstate New York. One morning English literature teacher, Beatrice Ousterhout, is walking her dog along her neighbor's property. Her dog smells something and they discover the lifeless body of Amber Inglin, the talented teen girl and orphan who was cast to play The Duchess of Malfi in Beatrice's upcoming play. Quite shaken, Beatrice calls her daughter, Jes, who happens to be a detective and is named P.I. of the case. Jes is a tough, broken soul and spends her free time sleeping around to fill a void within her. The body was found near the mansion of Amber's boss and local vintner, Liam Walsh, one of the married men Jes had an affair with. Among the suspects are Liam, one of his workers, Amber's troubled foster siblings and a neighbor who was the last person seen giving Amber a ride home. Jes is determined to find the murderer but becomes side-tracked by certain bodily desires and her personal deep-seated beliefs.
The story consists of a handful of narrators and is incredibly character-driven but remains easily digestible. All of the well-developed character's flaws and dark thoughts are on full display which makes the majority of them unappealing and some, downright vile. It was interesting to see how the relationships and lives in the town are all woven together. From the beginning, Jes expresses a great amount of hostility towards her mother and treats her terribly. Towards the end of the novel, the reason Jes resents her mother is made clear. Beatrice's mental state seems to be deteriorating as she chooses ignorance and naivety. One of the suspects, Edward, is a disturbing middle-aged artist who tends to view women as objects. His character was revolting and pulled together the timely theme of women being treated disrespectfully, speaking to the #MeToo movement. Covering the span of a few days, the six absorbing narratives are strung together and examine how each person is affected by the death of this young woman.
As I read on, I realized the relationships between the characters were the main focus of the novel and the mystery aspect took the back burner. This fact does not make the story any less intriguing and I flew through the book. Robinson kept me compelled with the "whodunit" of Amber's murder as she introduced and developed each complex character. There are so many thought-provoking layers to this story. A fascinating dialogue of ornithology and art is intricately woven throughout. This novel is about broken spirits, the mistreatment of females across the world, family issues and relationships falling apart. Most importantly, it's about people coming to terms with who they really are. Without spoiling anything, I was relieved that the ending of the book was not picture-perfect but ended just how it was supposed to. If you are broken, only you can fix yourself. No one else can do that for you.
Robinson's prose was fresh and poetic. I look forward to reading more from her in the future! I highly recommend this novel for anyone who appreciates well-rendered characters and gorgeous writing. Thank you so much to Smith Publicity & Cynthia Robinson for my copy. All opinions are my own.
The story consists of a handful of narrators and is incredibly character-driven but remains easily digestible. All of the well-developed character's flaws and dark thoughts are on full display which makes the majority of them unappealing and some, downright vile. It was interesting to see how the relationships and lives in the town are all woven together. From the beginning, Jes expresses a great amount of hostility towards her mother and treats her terribly. Towards the end of the novel, the reason Jes resents her mother is made clear. Beatrice's mental state seems to be deteriorating as she chooses ignorance and naivety. One of the suspects, Edward, is a disturbing middle-aged artist who tends to view women as objects. His character was revolting and pulled together the timely theme of women being treated disrespectfully, speaking to the #MeToo movement. Covering the span of a few days, the six absorbing narratives are strung together and examine how each person is affected by the death of this young woman.
As I read on, I realized the relationships between the characters were the main focus of the novel and the mystery aspect took the back burner. This fact does not make the story any less intriguing and I flew through the book. Robinson kept me compelled with the "whodunit" of Amber's murder as she introduced and developed each complex character. There are so many thought-provoking layers to this story. A fascinating dialogue of ornithology and art is intricately woven throughout. This novel is about broken spirits, the mistreatment of females across the world, family issues and relationships falling apart. Most importantly, it's about people coming to terms with who they really are. Without spoiling anything, I was relieved that the ending of the book was not picture-perfect but ended just how it was supposed to. If you are broken, only you can fix yourself. No one else can do that for you.
Robinson's prose was fresh and poetic. I look forward to reading more from her in the future! I highly recommend this novel for anyone who appreciates well-rendered characters and gorgeous writing. Thank you so much to Smith Publicity & Cynthia Robinson for my copy. All opinions are my own.