‘Birdcage Walk’ is the last novel by the incomparable Helen Dunmore who moved between subjects and periods with ease, setting the dramatic minutiae of people’s lives against the huge social events of the time. War, spies and, in ‘Birdcage Walk’, the French Revolution and how its impacts on a family in Bristol.
The novel opens as a walker and his dog discover a hidden grave in the undergrowth of a derelict graveyard. He reads the inscription to Julia Elizabeth Fawkes but subsequent research finds no information about her. This is followed by a short night-time scene in 1789 of a man burying a body in woods. We do not know the location, his identity or that of the body. How are these two things connected? For the first half of the book, I forgot these two short scenes until growing menace made me recall it and read faster.
It is 1792. This is the story of young wife Lizzie Fawkes, new wife of Bristol builder John Diner Tredevant and daughter of writer Julia Fawkes. Diner, as he is known, is developing a grand terrace of houses on the cliffs at Clifton Gorge, a development for which he specifies the best, borrowing against the potential sales. He is not keen on the company kept by his wife’s mother, seeing them as seditious socialists agitating in support of the French revolutionaries. He is aware of the potential cost to England, and his ambitious development, if the trouble in France turns into war. Lizzie is torn between two worlds, loyal to her Mammie and cautious about Augustus, her step-father and political pamphleteer, but aware her husband is under financial pressure. Diner is derided as a capitalist by Augustus and his writer friends. But Lizzie is proud, she chose her husband and remains loyal to him. But that loyalty and her young impressionable love for him are challenged. As news from Paris gets grimmer, Diner’s mood darkens. He must lay off workers, creditors chase payment, and he has night sweats. Insistent that independent Lizzie is his now, that he owns her and everything of hers, he is almost overpowering in his need to keep her close. She begins to fear he is having her followed and so disguises herself as she walks about town, lying about her visits home. And then there is the mystery of Diner’s first wife, Lucie, who died in France but of whom he does not speak. Lizzie fears he still loves Lucie.
This is a gently-written novel about tumultuous times in Europe, when the shadow of the unknown and fear – from the horrors in Paris to Diner’s secrets and his dark brooding nature – cannot be escaped. When the moment to run arrives, will Lizzie recognise it? If she does run, where to and who with? And will she know if she is running towards more danger? This is an expertly-written historical novel, rich in period detail, although the title is mentioned fleetingly and not referred to again.
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Gosh I loved this. Elegantly written and so captivatingly entertaining. Highly recommended.

This novel is well-written. Nice descriptive passages with well-developed characters.

However, as others have mentioned, the story moves slowly and is rather boring. While this story is set during the French Revolution, the revolution itself is only addressed through a handful of letters and one first-hand telling. The reason I chose this book was to learn more about the French Revolution. If this is your intent as well, look elsewhere.

“There must be love, even if it destroys us”

Death, fittingly and heartbreakingly stalks the pages of Helen Dunmore’s last book. The author, whose work gave so much pleasure over the years to many, had terminal cancer, and Birdcage Walk would be her final novel.

Birdcage Walk has a slightly curious structure, meant, I think, to take us away from obsession with what happened next, and to keep us aware of where we are heading towards.

A man of today, recently bereaved, looking in some ways for distraction and a way to fill his time, becomes interested in an old gravestone which hints that it belonged to a writer, of whom there is no record. He begins to look at an earlier history of Bristol (the setting of the book)

The gravestone belonged to a woman who was not just ‘a writer’ but a revolutionary thinker – the time is that of the French Revolution. The narrator of this book is her daughter, Lizzie. Her mother, Julia Fawkes, might almost be another Mary Wollstonecroft, and her second husband, Augustus, another Godwin. Lizzie, though, is not married to a revolutionary poet. Her husband John Diner Tredevant is in his own way a visionary : one ablaze with the idea of building, property and capital.

Dunmore’s book is a book of ideas and ideals, a book of strong and conflicting relationship, and also a thriller – though I suspect the reader will identify quite early where things are heading

Visions of a better society for all based on those heady, revolutionary ideas which rocked the stability of society in this country and in France are set against the ideas of order and security. And the creeping in of doubts as some of the initial idealism of ‘liberté égalité fraternité’ – not to mention sororité - meets the fact that a revolution is rarely bloodless :

“I could not explain it even to myself, that a man might set in motion such a lever and put an end to the world that lived inside another’s head. It seemed so monstrous and yet it could be done so easily. It made killing as simple as pouring a cup of water, There was no danger to the killer, or necessity to wrestle with a fellow creature who would fight for his life as hard as you fought to extinguish it” …….

“Think of it …To kill another human being is like crossing a river by a bridge which is then swept away behind you. You can never go back again”

The central relationship in this book is that between visionary Julia Fawkes and her beloved daughter. Lizzie has fallen for a man who may not be worthy of her, and wants a conventional, obedient wife rather than the free thinker she has been raised to be. This is also a novel about how love can break, as much as make, a person.

“I saw clearly now that it was not so easy to step out of the life which held us. No matter how far we went, we would take with us not only our selves but all the ghosts of our lives.”

The novel is also one which is full of psychological tension. There are several ways an author might choose to create tension, each of which can work well, if properly done. Duncan means the reader, I think, to make the links pretty quickly between a shocking event which is described very early on in the eighteenth century section and who the people involved might be. So it is not the reader and their direct need to know ‘what happens next’ which is the setting on the tension knot. Rather, we are immediately lobbed the ‘something major happened’ in order that we should solve that ‘something’ Our tension is rather for the central character in the book, how they change, what changes them, and how they will make the connections as they come to understand what we already are sure of. It’s an empathetic tension she is creating

One small cavil, but not enough to want to dock a star. The first person narrator of the historical section is not fluent in French. Yet, there is a conversation which takes place entirely in French, where she faithfully can recount everything a French speaking character says, even though she only picks out a couple of forcefully spoken and repeated words (which she asks someone else to translate) I have no problems with the forcefully spoken and repeated words but would defy anyone, spoken to a language which they were pretty lacking fluency in, to be able to make sound and memory sense of it! A moment which felt inauthentic, and jarred.

Finally, in a poignant afterword, Dunmore explains her fascination with small, hidden lives, and their effect on history, and her intention in this novel – which she began before knowing her own terminal diagnosis

“Only a very few people leave traces in history, or even bequeath family documents to their descendants. Most have no money to memorialise themselves, and lack even a gravestone to mark their existence. Women’s lives, in particular, remain largely unrecorded. But even so, did they not shape the future? Through their existences, through their words and acts, their gestures, jokes, caresses, strength and courage – and through the harms they did as well – they changed the lives around them and formed the lives of their descendants”

I received this as a review copy from Netgalley, and read it during my 2 month reviewing absence. It was with pleasure that I read it again, as I did want to be able to write a review which expressed my pleasure in the book, properly

#BirdcageWalk by Helen Dunmore is the story of a marriage set into the context of the French Revolution and its impact on England in the 1790s. In the afterword, the author explains that the book is in part about that which we leave behind. "I wanted to write about people whose voices have not echoed through time and whose struggles and passions have been hidden from history." This message takes on an added significance because this book is now her last published work. Ms. Dunmore sadly passed away in June, 2017, at the age of sixty four. The legacy of her work lives on.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2018/01/birdcage-walk.html

Reviewed for #NetGalley

This is my first book by Helen Dunmore and I really enjoyed it. An atmospheric and haunting story with wonderful period and setting details. Primarily a character driven story so while not a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat story there was an undercurrent of tension brewing. The writing was beautiful and although I have more to read by the author, I am sad that this will be her last.

I have really struggled with this book. The writing was good, the descriptions of the times were informative, but I found it boring.
The story didn't fill me with excitement, I finished it purely out of respect for the author.
Sorry.

Helen Dunmore has written a wonderful literary novel set in London during the French Revolution. Well developed characters and a unique perspective kept my interest; even though the plot doesn't show up in the first half of the book.

Character Study
The first 200 pages are a character study led by our lead gal, Lizzie, and her view of the world. There is virtually no plot at all during this portion of the novel. Instead we learn of Lizzie's marriage, family, class and more.
I found it very interesting to have our leading lady caught between the ideologies of her family and those of her husband. With a mother that writes pamphlets and prose in support of the Revolution and eventual take down of the French King, it's understandable that Lizzie has a very independent view on politics. However her husband does not necessarily agree. As a true capitalist in a class society it becomes difficult for Lizzie's husband to accept that the Revolution is a good thing as it hurts his investments. We are lead to see Lizzie's unique thoughts and both perspectives on the French Revolution, even if from a safe (non-bloody) distance in London.

Plot
It takes about 200 pages for Birdcage Walk to have some real plot. Once we get into the real story, and not just the characters and their setting, we are then treated to a fast paced mystery that Lizzie is caught in. I enjoyed the overall writing style and setting much better than the plot. I was more intrigued by Lizzie as a character than anything else. If Lizzie had been a boring, stuffy Londoner I would not have enjoyed this near as much.

Overall
Those who love historical fiction and character studies will likely enjoy this novel. If you're hoping for a book with intrigue and mystery then I recommend you pass; otherwise the first half of Birdcage Walk will possibly suck the life out of your reading enjoyment.
This was my first Dunmore novel and I'll certainly look to read more by her.

A personal spin on the events of the French Revolution, this is a compelling historical novel by an author who knows the genre well. I found some of the minor characters a bit disjointed and maybe unnecessary, but the period detail and the intriguing characters made it worth the read.

Poignant, Ominous, and remarkable descriptive!

Birdcage Walk takes us back to Bristol in the late 1790s when France was full of unrest, war was on the horizon, and the British people struggled with impoverishment, scarcity, impending disaster, and financial ruin.

The prose is expressive and raw. The main characters include the maternal, independent, supportive Lizzie and the jealous, iron-fisted, ruined Tredevant. And the plot, although a little slow in the middle, is laced from start to finish with an underlying feeling of despair and a real, palpable bleakness as the ongoing drama, social strife, economic uncertainty, marital tension, and increasing violence unravels.

I have to admit that even though Birdcage Walk is not my favourite novel by Dunmore, it is still a beautiful, haunting tale that highlights her talent of writing historical fiction that moves, informs, and leaves a lasting impression. The passing of Dunmore earlier this year is certainly a tremendous loss for the literary world and to quote from the inscription on the grave of her fictional character in this novel, "Her Words Remain Our Inheritance."

As her final book Birdcage walk is a good example of her skills and style. Dunmore has always been good at reimagining history, period detail and at convincing characterisation, and this tale of love and the sacrifices and life choices we make is no different. Set against a backdrop of the uncertainty caused by the French revolution as the backdrop to a family drama of sorts, but one filed with is a sense of tension and unease, as we are drawn towards what we expect to be its inevitable conclusion. As a fan of Mary Wollstonecraft , it was nice to feel the shadow of the Wollstonecraft's and William Godwin's in this book. This is their time and anyone with even a passing knowledge of the lives of Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley will not need to looks far to see them reflected strongly in the characters of Julia and Lizzie (as well as see some of William Godwin in Augustus, and Mary Claremont in Caroline Farquhar). Certainly going out on a high, Dunmore's Lizzie Fawkes and John Diner Tredevant will live on.

Having seen a review for this book in my newspaper I had high hopes for it, and delayed reading it until I knew I'd got some time when I could sit down and read it without being disturbed or distracted. Initially I thought I was going to enjoy it, but I'm afraid it didn't progress as well as I'd hoped and I found it very slow moving. It was definitely atmospheric, the background of the French Revolution and its impact on Britain was excellently portrayed. Ultimately, however, I felt the characters let the book down, the main character, Lizzie wasn't strong enough and her husband, Diner, although a nasty, controlling man, wasn't enough of a villain. The other characters in the story were somehow peripheral to it and we didn't get to know them well enough.

Birdcage Walk is not what I expected. I was expecting more tension, more suspense, more action. Instead, it is a very understated story. There is very little action. What little there is leans towards the anti-climactic. The whole novel is very...British...in that not much happens and when something does happen, it leaves you underwhelmed.

Some might say that this simply means it is a thinking person's novel, but Ms. Dunmore leaves very little for readers to ponder. Most of the novel occurs in Lizzie's head, as she questions her divided loyalties and scrutinizes her husband's actions. This means Lizzie does our thinking for us. Making things worse, there are large pieces of the puzzle missing, so as Lizzie frets about something - which she does a bit too often - we never understand the entire context. Her mother and stepfather are enlightened thinkers, but we never truly understand what this means. Frequently, Lizzie references something in her past, something we can only glean through brief and incomplete sketches. Thus, we never truly get to understand Lizzie, her relationship with Diner, or her dreams and aspirations.

The one thing that kept me reading the novel was Ms. Dunmore's prose. From the opening prologue, I was swept away by the beauty of her words. Her descriptive passages are exquisite. Thankfully, given how much of the novel revolves around the gorge and its views, there are lot of them. This keeps a reader's interest when it would be so easy to quit.

If Ms. Dunmore's character-building were as excellent as her prose, Birdcage Walk would be a much stronger novel. Sadly, weak characters and a humdrum plot make it a snoozefest of a novel. The bloody revolution in France is a distant terror. There is no mention of Lizzie's radicalism, and given her upbringing, we have no idea what drew her towards a more traditional relationship like her marriage with Diner. We never really get to know Lizzie at all. When you don't u

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I love historical fictions so this book jumped out at me and I wanted it to be as great as it sounded and so many reviews sounded wonderful. While the writing was well done, the character development was so dry and sterile that I felt a complete disconnect to any of them. It evoked very little emotion or sympathy for a historical period during the French Revolution that was full of turmoil. I would have liked to have connected with the characters or felt some empathy towards them but I felt nothing to the point that I almost DNF it.

This is a wonderful book by a writer who is sadly no longer with us. The novel is set in Bristol at the time of the French Revolution and follows a group of radical writers, thinkers and poets as they try to live by their principles. the main character is a young woman who tries to break free and marries a man with history and secrets that are slowly revealed. A real page turner and perhaps the best book I have read in 2017.

Blog review will be available from 3pm (UK time) on 21.11.17

I recieved a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange of an honest review. This book is set in 1792 and is set in the area of Clifton near Bristol. Lizzie grows up with a mother who is an author who has lots of artist friends poets and political activists included. This book later moves onto Lizzie's marriage and the fears of schemes leaving them bankrupt. The ending leaves much unanswered but I did enjoy the menacing feel this book had throughout. I have been told that Helen's books are either love them or hate them type of books so feel free to give this one a go and make your own conclusions. This one is for fans of historical fiction for sure.

I love books that are set in historical England. I always learn things from them. I was a little lost when at the beginning because I wasn’t familiar with what was happening at that time period.

The story began with a contemporary narrator who found Lizzie’s mother’s grave. He wants to learn more about Julia but there isn’t anything documented about her. Then Lizzie’s story begins. I wish the first narrator was revisited throughout the story. I enjoyed his part, while he searched for information on Lizzie’s mother.

Lizzie’s mother, Julia, was a feminist. She believed in fighting for women’s rights. This was nice to see in a historical setting, though I have to wonder how realistic that would be during that time.

The story was narrated by Lizzie, but I didn’t feel connected to her. She did things that didn’t make sense and she couldn’t even explain herself. I found her annoying most of the time.

The story was very character driven. There wasn’t a lot of plot happening. In the last quarter of the book, the story picked up when some drama happened. But I didn’t find it exciting for most of the book.

I found this book a little disappointing. It just wasn’t exciting enough for me.

Set in 1792 Bristol, Birdcage Walk by Helen Dunmore starts with the murder of a woman. It then meanders along like a delightful historical fiction novel, following the daily lives of Lizzie – newly wed to property developer, John Diner Tredevant – and her family. Her mother, a prolific put dirt poor political pamphlet writer, her revolutionary but bumbling stepfather and their fiercely loyal servant and Lizzie’s former nanny all live in a couple of rooms in a boarding house.

As the French revolution turns into a violent bloodbath, Lizzie’s mother falls pregnant and the bottom falls out of the Bristol property market, Diner’s behaviour becomes increasingly erratic and the novel shifts into gothic horror territory.

The transition is handled masterfully by Dunmore. This is a deeply political and feminist novel wrapped up in domestic noir trappings. Even strong female characters struggle to work around the bonds and limitations of a society which viewed women as the property of their husbands, and abandoned mothers (as Lizzie’s mother was) as undeserving of assistance. Women are subjected by male will and their own reproduction systems as the poor are subjected by the aristocracy.

This is, however, a novel that doesn’t beat you around the head with politics. You can read it as a political tract, or you can read it simply as the story of a young woman struggling to come to terms with the reality of marriage, separation from her childhood home and the tumultuous political and economic times. It’s equally brilliant on both levels.

The language is wonderful. It’s light and quietly humorous at the start. As the novel progresses the language and imagery becomes much darker as the lines between reality and unreality blur

Fans of Sarah Schmidt’s retelling of the Lizzie Borden axe murders, See What I Have Done, will also love Helen Dunmore’s Birdcage Walk.

This is Helen Dunmore’s last book, but the first one of hers I’ve read, although Exposure is sitting in my Kindle waiting to be read. It’s historical fiction, although I think it’s mainly a meditation on death and the legacy we leave behind. And that is most poignant as although at the time she was writing the book Helen Dunmore didn’t know it she was seriously ill and she died earlier this year. She was the author of 12 novels, three books of short stories, numerous books for young adults and children and 11 collections of poetry.

As she wrote in the Afterword:

I suppose that a writer’s creative self must have access to knowledge of which the conscious mind and the emotions are still ignorant, and that a novel written at such a time, under such a growing shadow, cannot help being full of a sharper light, rather as a landscape becomes brilliantly distinct in the last sunlight before a storm. I have rarely felt the existence of characters more clearly, or understood them more deeply – or enjoyed writing about them more.
I was completely absorbed in this book as I read it. It’s written beautifully and poetically, moving slowly as the details of Lizzie and Diner’s marriage come sharply into focus. Birdcage Walk was first published in March 2017, so I’m coming a bit late to reading it and the drawbacks of that are that I’ve seen several reviews and have realised that (like many books) there are mixed opinions about it. I’ve seen criticisms that the pace is too slow, and that much of the plot is given away in the opening chapters. But I felt the pace was just right for the story and the subject matter, and I think the opening chapters set the scene and the theme of the book – that is, that life is transitory, that the individual vanishes, as it were, that no record is left of the lives of many of past generations, despite the effect they had on the lives of their contemporaries.

The Prelude reveals that Birdcage Walk in the present day is a paved path between railings with pleached lime trees arching overhead on their cast-iron frame. But back at the end of the 18th century it was where Diner had started to build a terrace of houses with fantastic views over the Avon Gorge (before the building of the Clifton Suspension Bridge). When war was declared between Britain and France in 1793 this had a disastrous effect and like many builders and developers, Diner’s building work slowed and then ceased as he went bankrupt.

The novel shows the effect of the French Revolution on England through newspaper reports and letters, which I thought was effective casting light on the contemporary scene and showing the horror of what was happening across the Channel. The main focus, however, is on Lizzie. Diner’s repressive and jealous nature comes increasingly to the fore as his building work decreases, and the tension between him and Lizzie soars, accelerated when she discovers what had happened to Lucie, his first wife. The sense of foreboding and menace present in their marriage pervades the whole novel.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic for providing me with an ARC copy through NetGalley.