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3.13 AVERAGE
3.13 AVERAGE
britgirlreading's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Misogyny and Violence
Minor: Domestic abuse and Stalking
rebeccakb's review against another edition
3.0
An entirely different mystery from Ann Cleeves. I liked the story and think the characters will be interesting to see over the series.
obsidian_blue's review
4.0
Drags here and there still solid
There's a lot about birds so be prepared for that. I enjoyed reading about George and Molly. Definitely will read book #2.
Full review:
So this was interesting. This is definitely Cleeves getting her feet wet with mysteries. Some of the descriptions are overly long and you start to get bored a bit here and there because the flow of the book sometimes just starts and stops. But I love the idea of a husband/wife mystery team and I thought how Cleeves wrote George and Molly was interesting.
"A Bird in The Hand" follows retired George Palmer-Jones. George used to work for the Home Office (doing very decidedly mysterious things) but feels a bit bored these days. Think an elderly Sherlock Holmes that's married. His wife, Molly, is also retired from social work and feels a bit restless. When George is called upon to solve the mystery of a birder named Tom French he feels himself interested despite himself. George is a birder and knows the ins and outs of it and some of the same people that Tom knew. It seems easy enough for him to make inquiries.
I loved George and Molly together. She's his Watson in a way, much better with people than George is. And though we hear mention of the two's children and grandchild, they are never seen. Instead George and Molly are able to just be and investigate with no issues. I liked their takes on the people they meet and the mysteries they unravel.
As I said above, the flow stopped and started, and there's so much talking about birds that after a while my brain started to tune it out.
The other characters in the book were interesting, Tom French reminded me of another character in another series that Cleeves wrote, that honestly ended up dead for almost the same reason it seems.
The ending was interesting and I didn't guess the murderer at all.
There's a lot about birds so be prepared for that. I enjoyed reading about George and Molly. Definitely will read book #2.
Full review:
So this was interesting. This is definitely Cleeves getting her feet wet with mysteries. Some of the descriptions are overly long and you start to get bored a bit here and there because the flow of the book sometimes just starts and stops. But I love the idea of a husband/wife mystery team and I thought how Cleeves wrote George and Molly was interesting.
"A Bird in The Hand" follows retired George Palmer-Jones. George used to work for the Home Office (doing very decidedly mysterious things) but feels a bit bored these days. Think an elderly Sherlock Holmes that's married. His wife, Molly, is also retired from social work and feels a bit restless. When George is called upon to solve the mystery of a birder named Tom French he feels himself interested despite himself. George is a birder and knows the ins and outs of it and some of the same people that Tom knew. It seems easy enough for him to make inquiries.
I loved George and Molly together. She's his Watson in a way, much better with people than George is. And though we hear mention of the two's children and grandchild, they are never seen. Instead George and Molly are able to just be and investigate with no issues. I liked their takes on the people they meet and the mysteries they unravel.
As I said above, the flow stopped and started, and there's so much talking about birds that after a while my brain started to tune it out.
The other characters in the book were interesting, Tom French reminded me of another character in another series that Cleeves wrote, that honestly ended up dead for almost the same reason it seems.
The ending was interesting and I didn't guess the murderer at all.
michelle_deeter's review
adventurous
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Complicated
2.5
The book was written in 1986 and it did not age well. Learning about the birding community is interesting, but some of the comparisons were misogynist or racist. I just found it disappointing overall.
dbevvers63's review
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
I struggled with the tempo of the book, it tended to meander too much into character conversations and to be honest I lost the focus of the story. An early Ann Cleeves novel and I think she has developed a lot as an author since this book.
aspygirlsmom_1995's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
emlo's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
An early Ann Cleeves, not as good as her later books. The characters were intriguing but not that well developed. The mystery was OK but the ending fell flat for me.
igarrioc's review against another edition
2.5
Not my favorite Ann Cleeves book. If you need a basic murder mystery to read on a rainy day with a cup of tea, this is for you. But if you haven’t read them already, I would start with her mysteries set in Shetland. They’re more atmospheric and have more interesting plot twists.