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The Parliament has a lot of potential with a fantastic premise but for me the character PoV really crippled it. This follows a group of people trapped inside a library as a swarm of flesh eating owls hovers outside, about 3000 based on the count by the characters themselves. Threaded throughout is also a YA story, almost fable in tone about a Queen who doesn’t have a voice saving her kingdom.

There were moments in this of fantastic gore, that lead to and helped the initial tension. Nothing like seeing a woman ripped to shreds by a swarm of tiny owls to setup the stakes in the beginning of a book. However the book tapered off after that for me. And I have no doubt it’ll do so even more so for casual readers. Truly the only thing that kept me going besides the the YA story within was my concern for the kids trapped with the adults, and that’s because of my overly empathetic concern for children. Not everyone is going to feel that way. After perhaps the 40% mark there is very little tension or attempt to build up the stakes and it’s very obvious.

Additionally our primary PoV character, Mad, is so awkward and stilted that it killed the story we had left. Thought trapped in this library I honestly remember more the constant obsession and flashbacks to a (granted very traumatic) event in her past that shapes her present with another character trapped with her. Just, it was a bit too much. Perhaps with a stronger writer it would have worked better but here it was frankly frustrating and deeply off-putting. It goes without saying the romance that was tied to this was completely unbelievable and bland.

I feel like there were a lot of nuggets of gold here: the YA story within the story, the moments of gore, and a few of the dialogue lines between the teens. Unfortunately so much of it fell flat as board besides that. I can’t say I super recommend it? Unless you just super feel drawn to it, it might be a pass for me.

3 out of 5 Flesh-Eating Owls

This is one of those books which can't quite seem to figure out what it wants to be and, as a result, doesn't really manage to do any of them in a way that works (for me, at least). It's a low-key horror book, with murderous owls literally ripping people to shreds, while there are also other speculative elements involved as people try to figure out what's going on and what's likely to happen. One thing it does quite well is the character work for the teenagers, who feel pretty realistic, while it also has a less impressive novel-within-a-novel as our protagonist tries to use the favourite book from her childhood to keep those teenagers from running riot.

The basic premise of The Parliament is that our main character, Madigan, has returned to her home town and makes a living doing science clubs - to be honest, this town is the last place she wants to be, as there's history between her and a number of the people we'll meet in this book, and then the murder owls turn up.

The author evokes the claustrophobic sense of a bunch of disparate people trapped together but since we're never really given an explanation for the phenomena itself, it falls a bit flat for me. I just found some of the characters downright annoying, with a deeply predictable romance sub-plot featuring heavily on that list - personally, when someone likes to crack bad jokes all the time, I would probably be imagining how to shove him out to the murder owls, not fantasising about getting together with him.

All in all, I'm not sure I would have bothered finishing this book if it weren't for the need to review it - there's parts of it I really liked but I found other elements either tedious or annoying, neither of which are qualities I look for in a book I want to go back to later.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, via Netgalley. This is my honest review of the book in question.

The owls are not what they seem…

(Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

“The Silent Queen”, the story-within-a-story fairly tale was beautifully written and I loved Alala and everyone else. It was dark, tragic, emotional, colourful. Why couldn’t this story have been published separately, developed even more? (Inconceivable! Sorry, I couldn’t resist.) I would read it with pleasure!

As for the main story, “we are trapped in this library with thousands of homicidal owls outside, help” – I couldn’t connect with it. I’ve read and watched too many similar things before (minus the owls). The writing and the characters would have had to be exceptional to be seen in this crowd of cultural memories. So, I was bored, exasperated and scared all at once. The writing was bland and the characters were made in the same mould as those in countless other books on bestseller lists. I rolled my eyes and didn’t care about any of the trapped people, except for the kids. The kids were nice.

To me, it looks like the book is trying to violently hammer together two pieces of a puzzle that don’t fit. Why must we once again use this plot device where the characters in a book are reading a book that the reader also gets to read? I kept turning those pages, though – because murder owls *are* scary.

Nash’s bad jokes were just about the only thing that I really liked in the owls part. “When do you go to the dentist? Tooth-hurty!” “Want to hear a joke about pizza? Never mind, It’s too cheesy.” Me: hoot, hoot, hoot. I am easily amused ;)

I was pleased with the ending (or rather, both endings). And I’ve just realised that I managed to have myself a Halloween read, which is unusual for me. You always get something out of books :)

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free e-book!

2,75⭐️

From my perspective "The Parliament" would make a great, cozy movie/mini-series, as it's very dialogue driven type of story. It works as a concept, but not really as a book. I couldn't quite devoted my whole attention to the story. For the bright side, I really enjoyed kids' characters and how they were written. There was care put to that. And I don't find rest of them bland, quite the opposite – it's a mix of interesting backgrounds and motives. It just didn't work as it wished it did.

3.5 stars rounded up. I initially adored the author's voice and the style of writing. They gave nice little insights into each character that revealed so much. The book's approach of alternating a fairytale being read to children with what was going on didn't work for me. Unlike Princess Bride (the book it is compared to) these two stories share similar percentages of the book. In PB we clearly have the main story then insights and quick views into the "real world". I didn't find this fairy tale added much to my experience, but I'm sure others will quite enjoy it. I found many of the characters to be stereotypes. Also, I just couldn't get past the poor crayfish, Jolene, being kept out of water for so long and having that situation addressed as if it was perfectly natural for that animal. Thank you to NetGalley and Tor.com books for the ADC.

In The Parliament by Aimee Pokwatka, Chemist Madigan Purdy is trapped in a library with a group of tweens. When tens of thousands of owls descend on the building, tearing at anyone who steps outside, Madigan is tasked with keeping her students safe and distracted while they seek a solution to their dilemma. Perhaps they'll find the inspiration they seek in her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen.

I had a difficult time getting invested in this book. The premise sounded promising in that it reflected Hitchcock's The Birds and The Princess Bride, both films I really enjoyed. I felt this story fell a bit flat in that regard. I was hoping for more intense, dramatic survival scenes.

I probably was not the audience for this particular book. The idea sounded promising, but for me, it didn't hit the mark that I was hoping in how the story was described.

#NetGalley @tordotcom

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for giving me access an ARC of The Parliament.

When murderous owls keep adults and young kids stranded in the library, Mad is tasked with keeping everyone safe, while they find a solution.

I really wanted to love this book but in all honesty I was bored and I was just pushing to get through it. I really disliked the cut between present day and the story being read out to the students and honestly, a lot more could have been done with this idea. What would you do if you were stranded in a building for days on end? After exhausting all avenues of escape, eventually, probably nothing. In real life, this would be damn boring.. and unfortunately this boring'ness flowed into the book.

2.5 stars from me

I was intrigued by this book, it was described as The Birds meets The Princess Bride, with murder owls.

But honestly, it just wasn't for me. There was nothing technically wrong with the book. I just didn't really connect with Mads and I found myself really struggling to pick the book up.

I can absolutely see how some people would love it, but I'm not that person.

This was a pretty interesting and unique book! It was a mix of a few genres but I would say the most prominent was fantasy. I would have loved more horror but the little bits it had were great.
I really love when books have a story within them so I enjoyed that element. The characters were well written and I liked that beyond the “murder owls” this was actually a story about friendship.

the book within the book is pretty bad, could use a lot of tightening up. but the rest was pretty solid, very engaging, and mad is a pretty good protagonist. a bit preachy at times, but then again I'm not sure if there is a way to approach these types of topics without a little preachiness

Amie Pokwotka’s The Parliament delicately interweaves an original fairy tale into a story about overcoming trauma, specifically trauma related to school shootings of the past and a new-and-present danger of swarming owls who threaten to attack. Characters in The Parliament are unique and multi-faceted; Pokwotka's use of dialogue never comes across as stereotypical or canned. Each character possesses qualities that contribute an individual perspective to the narrative. The protagonist Maddie, also known as Mad, is usually a recluse, after witnessing a school shooting at the age of 11. She comes to the library to share her vast wisdom of chemistry with an eclectic group of sad and lonely (but also curious and quirky) schoolchildren. However, in the process, she finds herself cast in the role of protector. As it turns out, Mad’s particular brand of scientific know-how and her unjudgmental approach bond them all together. Harper, one of the young girls, recently witnessed the death of a brother. Quinn, another, is processing gender identity. Together with the remaining adults in the library, Mad and the children strategize how to escape the “murder owls” and survive. Meanwhile, Mad reads the children snippets from a fairy tale that symbolically represents the impact of silent trauma and how important it is to speak about it in order to find healing. The main storyline and the fairy tale's storyline provide relevance to the personal and community trauma present in society due to school shootings and loss. Both stories remind readers that dialogue and empathy open the path to community healing over time.

Sadly, the parliament really was not the book for me. Although this was advertised as similar to Hitchcock's 'the birds' and 'the princess bride' I couldn't see wither of these and I just couldn't connect with the plot of the characters. I feel like maybe I just wasn't the audience for this as the writing was good bit I just didn't really understand what was happening which took away from a lot of the enjoyment.

The Parliament by Aimee Pokwatka
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mad agrees to teach a class at her hometowns library but during her first class thousands of owls suddenly converge on the building, trapping everyone inside and killing anyone who tries to leave. Suddenly stuck trying to keep her students safe, despite having no experience with children (let alone pre-teens) Mad begins reading The Silent Queen, one of her favorite childhood books that helped her when she was her students age. The novel proceeds to switch back and forth between the library and the world of The Silent Queen, both stories of hope, grief and the courage to help others.
I had a lot of mixed feeling about this books. I was very invested in Mass storyline in the library and the owls were truly terrifying. I enjoyed her interactions with the kids as well as her having to be around Nash, someone she was very close to growing up. While I felt like this section of the book needed to commit a bit more to either being whimsical/fantastic or realistic (some of the choices both of those inside the library and those outside seemed kind of crazy to me) I was constantly wanting to know what would happen next and enjoying what I was reading.
The Silent Queen section of the story I did not enjoy as much. I felt like it wasn’t as fleshed out and I found sections confusing at times and often has to reread passages just to understand what exactly was happening. I feel like we could have just had some summarized passages about this story through out the main library plot and could have gotten the same message.
I would recommend this to anyone who likes “creature” stories like The Birds, this will totally be up your alley!

Thank you to the author, publisher and netgalley for this arc in return for my honest review!

Check out The Parliament on January 16th 2024!

This is a book about a group of people who got stuck inside a library as thousands upon thousands of owls descend on the library and attack anything moving outside of the library. It's a simple but fascinating premise, made even more fascinating by the fact that almost half of the book is a fictional middle grade/YA fantasy book that the main character liked, and one that happens to be in the library, so the people who got stuck there read the book too, as they're waiting for the owls to go away.

Aside from the owl stuff, it's a book about a lot of things, from connecting with people who you think you've betrayed, to facing your traumatic past (and how to navigate a currently traumatizing present event). There's always something going on even if the characters are just waiting for the birds to go away.

And then there's also the side story which is the main character's favorite childhood book, which is the book titled "The Silent Queen". This is a part of the book that I thought would drag the book down, but at the end, it really didn't. Sure, there are some things about it I would personally change, but as a whole, it worked as a companion to the main story. It never feels forced, and there are clearly good reasons why the author bothered to include it in the book the way it is.

If there's one more thing I didn't think was done perfectly is just the fact that sometimes, it feels a bit difficult to differentiate between one character and the other, just because of the amount of people stuck in the library, but that's not that big of a deal, Overall, still really enjoyed it and one that I would recommend to anyone looking for a thrilling story.

Such an interesting premise with people stuck in a library while murderous birds and flocking outside the building making it impossible to leave. I, however, got a bit bored about halfway in. I though it lost a bit of its momentum, and I didn’t connect with the characters much.

"The Parliament" is a novel with horror and fantasy elements written by Aimee Pokwatka.

The story follows chemist Madigan Purdy, better known as Mad, returning to her hometown to teach a class to middle schoolers at the local library. When tens of thousands of owls descend on the building, ripping and tearing at anyone foolish enough to go outside, Mad is tasked with keeping her students safe and distracted while the others present look for a solution to their problem. Inexperienced in dealing with curious and responsive teens, Mad begins reading to them her favorite childhood book, "The Silent Queen," found among the shelves. However, what they hoped would be a temporary situation continues to drag on, quickly worsening. With food and fresh water in low supply, the denizens of the library will have to find a way out, and soon, but the deadly owls do not seem to be in a hurry to leave.

This book pleasantly surprised me! As a lover of "The Birds" and "The Princess Bride," I was intrigued by the blurb that describes it as "The Birds meets The Princess Bride." I admit I started reading expecting the story of a group of unfortunates, suddenly stranded in a library by a group of murderous owls, forced to fight to survive and escape. But it was not so! Or rather, the killer owls are there, with victims and various aggressions, but the book does not stop at just that. No, "The Parliament" is a story about loss, trauma, remorse and guilt. It is a story about affection, friendship and love. It is a story of growth, courage and recovery. It is an intense and compelling tale, at times macabre and claustrophobic, that surprised and conquered me completely!

I loved the writing! Evocative, lyrical and at times gory, characterized by vivid descriptions and effective dialogue, it kept me glued to the pages! I loved the more horror parts, in my opinion handled very well. Yes, the plot is about killer owls, and no, they are not present just as embellishment. The owls attack, peck and tear, with some particularly bloody scenes. I felt the tension of the situation, the oppression caused by a closed place surrounded by threats. Likewise, I enjoyed the more fantasy part, with this sort of tale within a tale, which convinced me with its fairy-tale tints mixed with a darker component. I think the author did an excellent job in handling this mixture of fantasy and horror, to which is added a more emotional and deeper part. It is a rather dense prose, full of scientific anecdotes, perhaps not exactly easy to follow. Personally, I enjoyed it quite a bit and was very satisfied.

The plot definitely surprised and intrigued me! As mentioned above, I was expecting a horror story and that's it. Instead it turned out to be much but much more! Basically, the book is a kind of tale within a tale, with two stories taking place simultaneously. On the one hand we have Mad and the denizens in the library, besieged by aggressive crows. On the other hand, we have the events of Queen Alala, protagonist of "The Silent Queen," the book Mad reads to the kids to keep them engaged. The first tale is the one with more horror traits, while the second is the one with more fantasy traits. The chapters of both alternate during the reading, in a way that I found quite skillful. I cannot talk about the second narrative strand because I'm afraid of making spoilers, but I enjoyed it very much. Moreover, the book deals with serious issues such as grief, trauma, guilt, with an intensity that touched me quite a bit. It is a story full of emotions, of feelings, with the presence of gory scenes. I admit that I was moved at certain moments, as well as felt anxiety about certain situations! It is a storyline that convinced me from beginning to end, without moments of boredom or heaviness. I warn that not all questions in the book are answered, several mysteries remain as such, creating a cryptic atmosphere that in my opinion suits the text.

I really liked Mad, the protagonist with her third person pov! Mad is a chemist, returning to her hometown to teach a class to middle school students at the local library. Suddenly attacked by thousands of aggressive owls, she finds herself trapped in the facility. Mad is an introverted, shy and reserved person who struggles to relate. Socializing often makes her uncomfortable, so much so that she prefers to spend her days at home, eating pizza safely in her living room and watching TV, rather than interacting with others. She doesn't know how to console people, doesn't know how to support them, and certainly has no idea how to deal with teens. However, soon Mad finds herself protective of the kids in her care, so much so that she is willing to do anything to protect them. Beneath her insecurities, Mad is a loyal and sensitive person scarred by deep traumas. A person immersed in a sea of pain and remorse, which constantly threatens to suffocate her. Mad is a character I enjoyed a lot, for whom I was moved repeatedly, characterized by an excellent growth path.

Queen Alala, protagonist of the tale "The Silent Queen" with her third person pov, grabbed me a lot. I can't say anything more specific, but she really impressed me.

The secondary characters satisfied me! Not all of them are equally deepened, but overall I found them functional and efficient. I especially enjoyed the teens and Nash! I confess that I don't expect the presence of a little romance component, however I enjoyed it very much!

All in all, this is a book that pleasantly surprised me and that I recommend to those who want to try to read something particular!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

for the life of me, i could not figure out this novel at all. it's marketed as hitchcock's <i>the birds</i> mixed with <i>the princess bride</i> — both films i am familiar with. however, i was completely lost the entire time. mad is some kind of childcare worker when the owls (a group of owls is called a parliament) start attacking. the owls are ready to kill for... some reason. interspersed throughout the story is a princess-fairytale book that mad loved to read as a little girl.

and that's all i have to say. the writing has moments of being really insightful (like when mad holds a wounded child and knows it is too late), but most of it is just unintelligible. the way the novel ended was absurd to me. and the forced stupid jokes? yikes.

this novel had potential, it just needs some major editing and some plot development. like <i>why</i> owls? nothing is ever really explained.

thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Parliament.

I wanted to read The Parliament the moment I read the premise.

I really liked Hitchcock's The Birds when I first saw it at an age I shouldn't have been watching it and the premise of The Parliament was right up my alley.

I didn't know a group of owls is called a parliament, though a group of crows has the best name.

There are scenes of terror and blood so readers with sensitive stomachs should be aware.

First, I wasn't a fan of Mad; I understand she's been traumatized as a child after surviving a horrific school tragedy, and has never been the same since.

But, I didn't connect with Mad, nor really care about her.

Second, in the beginning I enjoyed the excerpts from The Silent Queen, but then found it distracting from what was happening in the present.

Third, there's a romance-y angle when Mad's crush and eldest brother of the school shooting victim from the past is also trapped in the library with her.

A romance or even a hint of a romance isn't required in every book, nor did I believe it moved the narrative forward.

The writing was good, but the characters were unmemorable (I forgot who was who), the pacing dragged at times, sounded repetitive, especially when we're in Mad's head.

I did like how the author gives the readers a look at the survivors of the parliament attack in the future.

The Parliament wasn't scary (not to me but it takes a lot to spook me) and is really a story about survival, resilience, and teamwork.

This is a fascinating, deeply imaginative blend of genres and ideas. The character building was deep and immediate, and the world was so strange and disturbing from the beginning. (The murder owls really come into their own within the first couple of chapters, so beware if you have issues with gore.) The interspersing of the protagonist's favorite YA/children's fantasy book was such a cool idea as well, and the way everything thematically threaded together was stunning. I didn't love everything about it, but I'm so glad to see weird things like this coming out and getting hype.

Oh my gosh, I loved this book so much. The Parliament has it all – some fantasy, a little bit of horror, lots of fantastic characters, an original plot … and murder owls. So many murder owls.

The Goodreads blurb describes this book as “The Birds meets The Princess Bride,” which is really an odd combo and left me kind of baffled as to what to expect. I mean, I might've imagined a owl hooting out “Never go in against a bird of prey when death is on the line!” as he pecked out someone's eyes, but that's about it. (Turns out I was way off base with that one.) What I definitely wasn't expecting, however, was for it to be such a heart-warming tale of friendship and love and bravery. There are definitely some horror-y parts – murder owls are not to trifled with – but it's also so much more than that.

There are really two stories at play in this book – Mad's fight against the owls at the library is interspersed with chapters from her favorite childhood book, The Silent Queen. At first I was slightly irritated that Queen Alala's adventures were getting in the way of me reading the “real” story, but over time this second storyline really grew on me. I loved the characters and their determination to improve the situation in their kingdoms no matter the personal costs.

Mad's storyline was also tremendously enjoyable in a “filled with murder owls” sort of way. The main characters were sympathetic and likable, and I really loved the way that Mad came into her own as far as taking responsibility for the children was concerned. I also thought that her relationship with Nash was so sweet and realistic, and I'm normally someone who hates romance in novels. I'll never admit to it in real life, but I might've even gotten a little teary-eyed at the end.

Really, this was just a well-written and original book and I can't think of a single bad thing to say about it. After all, “[Owls] cannot stop true love. All [they] can do is delay it for a while.”*

Many thanks to NetGalley and Tor Publishing Group for providing me with an advance copy of this book to review.

*Yeah, yeah, I know it's a bit of a stretch, but I was a few keystrokes away from typing out “Hello. My name is Owlo Hootoya ...” so consider it the lesser of two quote-mangling evils.