almond_cheese 's review for:

The Naming of the Birds by Paraic O'Donnell

4.0

challenging dark slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

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This is a dark tale, and O’Donnell doesn’t shy away from showing the evil lurking in us.   It’s a sequel to The House on Vesper Sands, which I have not read but has been on my TBR. It was fine, for me, as a stand-alone but I’m sure I would have gotten more out of it if I knew the history and backstory. 

There’s an Inspector, Henry Cutter, and a Sergeant, Gideon Bliss, living in London and solving crimes in the 1840’s. There are a string of disturbing murders with a history that goes back decades. Bliss teams up with journalist Octavia Hillingdon to find out what is going on before there’s another victim. 

Haunting and mysterious, at the core was the question of Justice and how it is served. Who is truly good and who is evil? Can the victim also be the perpetrator? At times almost theatrical in style, this slow paced thriller really came together at the end. To be honest, the middle was less thrilling to me and I considered not finishing it. But I’m really glad I stuck through it until the end. There was a slow build up and a thoughtful finale. Worth the read.