Very slow start. It took me half the book to understand what was going on. I was lost about what the story was about . Once I finally figured it out (around chapter 15) It turned into a nice story. I would recommend reading it.. Don't give up on it.. #NetGalley #ARC

Welcome to amazing Mallow Island, home of the marshmallow, the incredible dellawisp birds, and some unique, quirky characters that are sure to linger in your heart forever. There is definitely magic in the Dellawisp complex where a young 19 year old from an unfortunate childhood meets people that gradually become her family. Each resident has their own unique story that serves to bind them together as the reader learns more and more about their lives and also their secrets. There is magic in the air, particularly in the form of Pigeon.
Sarah Addison Allen brings these unique characters to life as they walk off the pages and into your life. They brought a full range of emotions with them…trepidation, anger, jealousy, abandonment, fear, hatred, love, wonderment, and hope are only the first emotions that come to mind. The words flowed so smoothly and I never wanted to leave the Dellawisp complex.
Many many thanks to Sarah Addison Allen, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for affording me the delightful opportunity to read an arc of this incredibly moving story.

Mallow island, a cute quaint town outside of Charleston South Carolina, is the home of The Dellawisp, an apartment complex named after the famous birds is houses. When Zoe comes to go through her deceased mothers apartment, she starts making friends with the locals. A chef, a runaway, the landlord, the mysterious older woman, they all have a story. There are even some ghosts thrown into the mix who are visiting a for their own reasons.

This book isn’t my typical cup of tea. I’m not huge on character development stories. This one kept my interest more than others, I think maybe because I actually enjoyed the ghosts point of views. Each person had their own struggles that made them unique. I enjoyed how each story came together.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin Publishing for this eArc. Other Birds is out now, go get your copy!

Zoey has recently left her father’s home to go to college. She has moved to a condo she inherited from her mother on Mallow Island, South Carolina. She meets all the weird neighbors and absolutely falls in love with the place. But, can she heal and overcome her past?

I fell for Zoey on the very first page. She is so young, but yet, she has some wisdom about her and she is so full of kindness. She is just one of the many characters which create this lovely story. I loved them all! They each bring their own tragedies and insecurities into this tale but they also bring their strengths.

No one does magic like Sarah Addison Allen. I have loved this author since her very first book and if you have not read her…you are missing out! All her books have characters which are damaged in some way or another. And there is alway just a touch of magic which just helps everyone see where life is supposed to lead them. This book tops the list!

Need a book which will make you smile and tug at your heartstrings…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

4.5/5

Other Birds is a book that will stick with me for a long time. A strong cast of characters all meet one another at an off the beaten path condo complex and share their lives and troubles with one another. It’s a book about creating your own family, letting people into your life, and letting go of the past.

There are some magical/supernatural components in Other Birds. Quite a few ghosts hang around the Dellawisp complex. I felt a similar vibe to Under The Whispering Door. I almost wished there were more supernatural components with the setting and dellawisp birds. Each character was well developed, however, the jumping from character to character in the middle of the chapters lost me a few times. I enjoyed the unique storyline and learning how each characters past made them who they are. Very unique novel with a great emotional theme!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for granting me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Sweet story. Not enough happens though until the very end, and it wasn't enough to redeem it in my eyes.

https://robinshelley.com/2022/09/02/other-birds-by-sarah-addison-allen/

SEPTEMBER 2, 2022 BY ADMIN
Other Birds by Sarah Addison Allen
Robin’s Rave Reviews – 2022

Sarah Addison Allen fans have waited patiently for seven years for a new book since she took time away to deal with personal and family needs. Other Birds, her newest novel, was worth the wait. For readers new to SAA, each book she writes has a unique magical realism element or two.

By page two, I already admired Sarah Addison Allen’s skill for painting beautiful word pictures.

“Zoey nodded, distracted now because the small sea island had just appeared on the horizon and she didn’t want to miss a moment of it. It was rising from the marshy coastal water like a lackadaisical sea creature sunning itself, not a care in the world.”

The Setting
Fictional Mallow Island sits off the coast of Charleston. A popular novel set there, written by longtime resident Roscoe Avanger, as well as the island’s history of making marshmallow and candy, draw tourists to this small community. From the sales of his book, Avanger bought an old building, called it The Dellawisp, and renovated it into five condos. They surround a courtyard full of noisy, thieving, dive-bombing birds of the same name as the complex. The quirky characters who live here begin to bond after the death of one of the tenants.

The Cast
LizBeth is a paper hoarder and the old lady busybody, who spoils everyone’s fun. Her sister Lucy is a recluse. Henna artist Charlotte is running from her past, believing she can never settle or it will catch up with her. Executive chef Mac is grieving the loss of the woman who took him in and raised him, who fed cornbread to the island’s poor children, and who taught him that making and sharing food is love. Frasier is the building manager, often found with a Dellawisp named Otis sitting on his head. And Zoey, the most recent tenant, has just graduated from high school. She inherited the condo and hopes to learn more about her mother there. Zoey is the magnet that attracts the other tenants and bonds them together. Now add a touch of magical realism by adding ghosts (not scary ones), cornmeal sprinkled over Mac every night, doors seeming to unlock themselves, and an invisible pigeon to the mix.

These characters have all been broken and are burdened with secrets, but in time, they create a family. They help each other let go of the past to focus on a better future.

Other Lovely Quotes

“The building revealed itself to be like a geode—rocky on the outside but sparkling with unexpected decadence inside.”

“The mist was moving like someone taking a deep breath and blowing it away.”

“The sudden quiet made Charlotte’s bedroom feel as if it had been plunged underwater. Even the small glass ball ornaments she’d hung by fishing wire from the ceiling gave the impression of air bubbles floating to the water’s surface.”

“Some customers didn’t like when books were marked, like it was a crime against literature. But Zoey thought it was a far greater crime to forget passages like this, so beautiful they made you breathless.”



Other Birds was a charming, light read. If you’re looking for something different and haven’t read Sarah Addison Allen, pick up Other Birds. If you read and enjoyed The Kindred Spirits Supper Club by Amy Reichert (see my review from last fall), you’ll like Other Birds.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this book. The review above states my honest opinion.



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Discovering the Dellawisp, an old horseshoe-shaped building on an island off the coast of South Carolina, and the Dellawisps, birds from the island. Many amazing characters make this a magical book, well worth the read!

I really wanted to be enchanted and swept away by this book but it just fell flat for me personally. Somewhere at the 30% mark I just lost interest and struggled with wanting to pick it up. Eventually I finished and the ending was good.

There are hints of magic to come from the very first line, as : "The empty wicker birdcage beside her began to rattle impatiently."

The empty birdcage is occupied by Pigeon, Zoe's invisible bird. Zoe, at 18, will be starting college in the fall, and in her last summer, she has travelled to Mallow Island to live and work in the condominium left to her by her mother. There, she will act as a catalyst for several love stories and the development of a found family among the residents of the complex. I thought this line was a perfect metaphor for Zoe's effect on the people around her; "Everything around her was suddenly stitched together by unseen threads, as thin as gossamer."

I was completely surprised by the final chapter of this book, but it was a totally fitting ending to this lovely story.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

t took me awhile to get into the story of "other Birds" but once I became invested in the characters and the ghosts of the story I could not put it down. A mixture of magical realism, and the pain of being a forgotten child are mixed together in these pages. The other theme that plays throughout is food as love and caring for another. The characters in the story are all tied together by a mysterious apartment house in Mallow Island - an island off the coast of South Carolina. The story begins with Zoey Hennessy coming to the "Dellawisp" to claim her mother's apartment, which has held in trust for her since her mother died twelve years ago. Not long after she arrives, one of the long time tenants, an older woman named Lisbeth Lime, dies. The caretaker of the building, a man named Frasier, hires Zoey to go through Lizbeth's apartment to clean it out - Lisbeth was a hoarder. Zoey begins to befriend the other tenants, Charlotte, who is on the run and suffering from a mysterious heartbreak, a young chef named Mac who creates magical meals with cornmeal inspired by the woman who took him in as a young boy when he was homeless, and Jane - the mysterious reclusive sister of Lizbeth Lime. Of course all of the characters have tragic backstories, but will love and magic heal all wounds? Welcome back, Sarah Addison Allen - I have missed you.

Sarah Addison Allen is one of my favorite authors. Her gentle, lyrical prose and soft magical elements are so soothing to the soul. I have been eagerly awaiting this novel, but unfortunately, this one fell a little flat for me.
Zoey, a recent high school graduate, moves into her late mother's apartment on Mallow Island, where she meets a trove of characters who each have their own mystery and trauma surrounding them. As Zoey tries to learn more about her late mother, she realizes she doesn't know much about herself, or how to really be an adult. Her neighbors, whose stories we learn bit by bit, of course help Zoey understand how to live and how to love.
There was not as much magic realism in this book as her past ones, and I think that is why I felt it a little lacking. Zoey seems too naïve, and to me, it seems the instant friendships were forced just to get the plot moving. I still enjoyed the book for its beautiful language, but it won't stick with me.

This title just didn't work for me. Given the promo, I'd thought this would be a title I would love, but it all felt a bit twee and not really fresh.

Really sweet found family story for a group is misfits, entangled with secrets and ghosts.

It took me awhile to get hooked but breezed through it once I did. I recommend this to any fans of Sarah Addison Allen and those looking for a genuinely sweet story with a bit of magic.

Pure magic as only Sarah Addison Allen can do it. A story of the families we leave behind, the families we choose, and the ghosts that never leave us.

Sarah Addison Allen is the absolute queen of magical realism! I loved the characters in this book and they will live in my heart forever! Zoey has moved to Mallow Island and to the condo her mother left for her. There she meets her neighbors. All the neighbors are lonely and have secrets. Zoey gets to know them all. I wish this book didn't end! I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Sarah Addison Allen returns at last with a haunting tale of loss, love and framily. As with all of her novels (and I believe I’ve read all she’s published), this book is beautifully written, with well developed characters and masterful world building. Indeed, the story deftly transports the reader to picturesque fictional “Mallow Island” near Charleston, and the “Dellawisp” haven of condos for a bevy of misfits (at least as they perceive themselves). While in various senses the quirky tale is imbued with hope, for me its lasting impression is somewhat dark, somber and sad. Still, this story is not to be missed by fans of the author and Alice Hoffman, and perhaps those who love the books of Heather Webber and Karen Hawkins as well. Three and a half stars, rounded up due to the quality of the writing. Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the complimentary ARC. All opinions are my own.

I know that I am not the only fan who has been eagerly waiting for Sarah Addison Allen’s latest novel, Other Birds. I found this author’s previous books to be magical, special, and enticing. Other Birds did not have the same feel as the author’s other works. I did not find myself drawn into the story. The tale is told from several point-of-views (the residents along with a ghost or two). The story meanders from one character to the next. I enjoyed the descriptions of Mallow Island as well as the apartment complex with the lush foliage and unusual birds. There is an assortment of characters who have issues. There is one trying to run from her past (that never works), one who has someone they are not ready to let go, estranged sisters, a young woman looking to bond with her deceased mother, one who wishes to escape the island, and the caretaker of the condos. It is an offbeat cast of characters with some of them having unusual quirks. Before Zoey arrived at The Dellawisp, the residents kept to themselves. Proximity along with some strange occurrences slowly bring the residents together. The residents begin to bond and slowly get to know each other. They each have something they need to get past (hoarding, mental health issues, child neglect, sexual assault, a cult) before they can move on with their lives. There is your biological family, and then there is the family you create which is what we have in Other Birds. It happens in a way that is slightly unbelievable. The magical element was different (I do not want to say too much and spoil it for you). I did not feel that the characters were fleshed out (there were too many of them, so they all suffered). I was never able to get into this book (I tried). I felt Other Birds lacked substance. There are various unrelated storylines along with a mystery or two. I felt that the ending to Zoey’s story was lackluster. The mystery resolution is rushed and incomplete. While Other Birds is my least favorite book by this author, I am looking forward to Sarah Addison Allen’s next magical tale. Other Birds is a unique story with an enticing island, bizarre birds, a fragrant tree, an abnormal mystery, quirky residents, and past pains.

Full disclosure, I am a huge fan of this author and was thrilled to see her publish a new book, and it did not disappoint!
Zoey Hennessey moves to the charming coastal town of Mallow Island after her mother passes away. She arrives to claim her deceased mother's apartment at the Dellawisp, a lovely community of five apartments. The apartments are named after the Dellawisp birds that live in the courtyard among the apartments. They are mysterious little birds, almost as mysterious as the residents.

On the very night that Zoey arrives at the Dellawisp, one of the other residents dies, and the circumstances are mysterious. This mysterious death brings a few residents together, and they get to know each other and form friendships. Each of them has interesting and beautiful stories that slowly unfold. Add in some interesting twists and a few ghosts, and the story takes on that magical realism I love so much.
This is one of those books that is difficult to put down!

I loved this book and simply adored all of the unique characters that made it so enjoyable!

Before starting college, Zoey sets off to Mallow Island to claim her deceased mother’s apartment. There she meets an eclectic group of neighbors who each have their own peculiar stories; two estranged sisters (one of whom never leaves her apartment), a henna artist on the run, a lonely chef, a famous writer, and to my surprise, three ghosts. The more Zoey gets to know them the more interested she in in the history of The Dellawisp and how these people came to live there. They are all harboring secrets but have their reasons for keeping them, and Zoey might just be the one to get them to open up to one another. Zoey is a bit quirky herself, but I loved her effortless ability to bring people together when they needed it most.

Highly recommend!

*Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this book to review.*