The Naming of the Birds
by Paraic O'Donnell
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Pub Date Jan 07 2025 | Archive Date Dec 31 2024
Tin House | Tin House Books
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Description
Then, the murders begin. The first to die is the elderly Sir Aneurin Considine, a decorated but obscure civil servant who long ago retired to tend his orchids. If the motive for his killing is a mystery, the manner of his death is more bewildering still. The victims that follow suffer similar fates, their deaths gruesome but immaculately orchestrated. The murderer comes and goes like a ghost, leaving only carefully considered traces. As the hunt for this implacable adversary mounts, the inspector’s gloom deepens, and to Sergeant Bliss, his methods seem as mystifying as the crimes themselves.
Why is he digging through dusty archives while the murderer stalks further victims? And as hints of past wrongdoing emerge—and with them the faint promise of a motive—why does Cutter seem haunted by some long-ago failing of his own?
To find the answers, the meek and hapless sergeant must step out of the inspector’s shadow. Aided by Octavia Hillingdon, a steely and resourceful journalist, Bliss will uncover truths that test his deepest beliefs.
Hypnotic and twisty, Paraic O’Donnell’s The Naming of the Birds will ensnare you until the final pages and leave you questioning what matters most—solving a case or serving justice.
A Note From the Publisher
LibraryReads votes are due by 12/1/24.
Advance Praise
"The Naming of the Birds is something very special: meaty, dark, exuberant, full of complicated people doing difficult things in terrible circumstances, and gesturing mutely towards love. I recommend it to both those who love Victorian Gothic, and those who usually run a mile from anything described as that but enjoy having their preconceptions confounded." -Jon McGregor
Available Editions
| EDITION | Other Format |
| ISBN | 9781963108033 |
| PRICE | $28.95 (USD) |
| PAGES | 336 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
Susan M, Reviewer
This is the sequel to The House on Vesper Sands and It was just as good if not better. We are still following Inspector Cutter and Sergeant Bliss along with Octavia. In this book they are trying to solve the murders of prominent people that were involved in deaths of children in an asylum in 1872. The Naming of the Birds by Paraic O’Donnell. 4.5 stars
Bitsy M, Librarian
I enjoyed this book. It was perfect for the spooky season. It was a dark and twisted gothic read that I enjoyed very much. I thought the author did an amazing job through characters and story line. I look forward to reading more from O'Donnell. I will definitely be recommending this book to others.
Thank you Net Galley ARC
Reviewer 1152334
The Naming of the Birds is the second book by the author Paraic O'Donnell featuring the verbally bombastic Inspector Cutter and his awkward, timid Sergeant , Gideon Bliss. I loved the first book, The House on Vesper Sands and you should definitely get your hands on it as well if you missed it. In this second book, Cutter and Bliss become caught up in an investigation of a series of ritualistic slayings of some of the British Empire's most prominent elder citizens. The chilling case is doggedly pursued by Cutter, whose colorful dialogue is highly entertaining even if it does go on at some length at times. Sergeant Bliss whose mind is sharper than his reflexes more often than not, joins in as well as fearless newspaper reporter Octavia Hillingdon. The trio will unearth a shocking history of cruelty, brutality, depravity, and madness that define the very word Empire itself. The definition of Justice is perhaps more elusive.... I loved this book. The author has a wonderful gift for dialog and his characters truly come alive like flesh and blood from the page. I do occasionally want to tell Inspector Cutter to shut the hall up and felt as a reader that the story was bogged down in his Minolta at times. The conclusion of the book quite honestly left me stunned and awed by the power of storytelling. No are facts history book can do this, no matter how shocking and grim those facts are. Only powerful storytelling can knock the breath out of you in this way. Although the events of this book are fictional, they are True.
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