Reviewed by Annika

TITLE: Blackbird in the Reeds

SERIES: The Rowan Harbor Cycle #1

AUTHOR: Sam Burns

NARRATOR: Chris Chambers

PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio

RELEASE DATE: May 15, 2018

LENGTH: 5 hours, 43 minutes

BLURB:

Devon Murphy has never believed that there were fairies at the bottom of the garden, but when he’s in an accident on his way to his grandmother’s house and comes face to face with the biggest, baddest wolf he’s ever seen, he’s forced to reconsider. When his grandmother asks him to look into a string of suspicious accidents, he finds a much bigger mystery to unravel. From his childhood best friend to the too-attractive deputy Wade Hunter, everyone in Rowan Harbor seems to have something to hide. Devon has to get to the bottom of it all before the accidents turn deadly. Contains mature themes.

REVIEW:

Blackbirds in the Reeds is the first book in the Rowan Harbor Cycle series. Set in a small town where everyone knows everything about everyone, and newcomers are looked upon with suspicion – even 10 years after moving to town.

This book is told from Devon Murphy, POV and starts off when he is returning back to his hometown, Rowan Harbor after being away for many years. He’s never felt as home as he does in this strange and quirky town, never felt like an outsider. He doesn’t quite make it all the way to his grandmother’s place but swerves off the road to avoid hitting a deer. Not only is he a little banged up, he comes face to face with the biggest wolf he’d ever seen, and an eerily smart one to boot…

After escaping the wolf, getting patched up and getting a good night’s sleep, his grandmother introduces him to Maria, one of the “newcomers” in town. The two forms an instant friendship and I had a blast listening to them, their friendship was genuine. It might have been instant, but it was real. Only problem is that Maria has had more than a few too many near fatal accidents recently and Devon promises to look into them. After all, losing his new friend is not on his agenda.

There are a few things that I couldn’t quite figure out though; like, did Devon know that the paranormal world existed or was this completely new. At times he seemed totally oblivious, I’m not talking about him knowing about himself or the town but in general, and in the dark and at other times it felt like he’d been in the know all his life.

I loved the secondary characters, the humans, Jesse the best friend and let’s not forget Oak. They added some flavour and depth to the story and made the town come alive a bit more. It’s going to be interesting to see how Devon brings the humans and the town together so that one side can stop being afraid – both refreshingly and ironically it’s not the humans running scared – and so that the humans can start feeling included.

I’ve been very lucky lately in finding wonderful narrators to listen to and Chris Chambers is definitely one of them. He was perfect for this book. His voice fit the town, the people and the overall feel of the book. He brought feelings into his words and made Rowan Harbor and its inhabitants come alive. I am definitely looking forward to listen to more of his works in the future.

Blackbird in the Reeds was a good start to a new series; it was not perfect but holds a lot of promise with an interesting world building and good characters. It didn’t really have the feel of a complete novel – nor an incomplete one as such. It felt more like a “This is how it all started…” kind of book. And I liked it; I want to know more about these characters and what happens next. So the story of Rowan Harbor is far from over and I’m looking forward to listening to Jesse’s when Wolf and the Holly is released.

RATING:

BUY LINKS: 

Tantor Audio

Audible

Amazon