Set in dual timelines from the 1880s and 1930s, this is a wonderful tale of intrigue, deception and betrayal.
Our protagonist is called in to try and track down treasure hidden is a very gothic, Scottish castle. There are multiple plot lines about family and what we are prepared to do for it.
I did feel the exploitation of the natural world may have been overdone a bit. It felt to me a bit like being preached to, but that is very subjective. Otherwise I found this very satisfying and unique in my experience. Thanks to Netgalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this. All opinions are my own.

I know why the caged bird sings ★★★★★

Left penniless by the Wall Street crash, explorer and botanist Emily Blackwood takes a commission at a Scottish castle cataloguing reclusive Henreich Vogel’s taxidermy collection.

However, Henry’s true motive is a fifty-year-old mystery which involves his missing brother Charles, deceased sister-in-law Hester, a bird of paradise, and a lost treasure.

When Emily finds Hester Vogel’s diary, she begins to suspect she was murdered. As the story unfolds – two brothers, a menagerie, a woman afraid for her life – Emily finds herself drawn into a treasure hunt which might put her own life at risk.

A beguiling and intelligent tour de force with compelling female characters and a haunting mystery.

The birdcage library

The highest form of love is indistinguishable from liberty

In 1932 Emily Blackwood, an adventurer and plant collector, is employed by Heinrich Vogel to solve a puzzle.A treasure is hidden in his remote Scottish castle and he has employed her to find it. Her excavations take us back several years to New York and a young woman called Hester caught between two brothers and the family business of supplying rare animals to homes and show business. As Emily follows the clues to discover these torn out clumps of pages from their hiding places around the castle, she starts to piece together her extraordinary story. However, she also starts to question her host, the isolated place she’s staying and whether or not she is safe within it’s walls. As Emily solves the clues and we race towards her final conclusions I found myself anxious and thoroughly addicted to Freya Berry’s intriguing and puzzling mystery.

I also found myself rather spellbound by the a book because it features one of my rather macabre favourite things - I have to admit that vintage taxidermy has a strange fascination for me and the quirkier it is the better. Victorian tableaux with their anthropomorphised animals really do make my heart flutter. Rationally, I know it’s horrible and undignified for these beautiful creatures but I can’t resist. This book is set at a time when killing these beautiful living creatures and posing them for the collections of rich men is huge business. The Scottish castle has it’s collection, but we are also taken back a few years to Heinrich Vogel’s youth when he and his brother were the source of all these wondrous creatures. In one example, sourcing a vast collection of hummingbirds for an exotically themed gathering for the great and good of New York Society.

Emily rather reminded me of another incredible heroine, botanist Alma Whittaker in Elizabeth Gilbert’s wonderful novel The Signature of all Things. I loved that she wasn’t like other women in society, diverted by dances and adorning themselves for the marriage market. She is an academic and sets foot in places across the world that many men haven’t yet reached, never mind the supposed fairer sex. That said, he biggest adventure is trying to be acknowledged for her expertise within an academic system that’s firmly a patriarchy. It is a lack of funds that put Emily in Vogel’s orbit, when he hears of her employment cataloguing the Rothschild’s butterfly collection. He feels that only the intelligent and ingenious Miss Blackwood will do as he wishes to catalogue his own incredible collection of taxidermy creatures. It doesn’t take long for Emily to discover a more intriguing task though. Heinrich Vogel’s sister-in-law Hester famously threw herself to her death from the Brooklyn Bridge. From an old book entitled The Birdcage Library, Emily deciphers clues that lead her to the remains of Hester’s diary and her words pull Emily into a past filled with clues, explaining all that happened to the Vogel brothers and Hester’s relationship with them.

Freya Berry uses her historical knowledge perfectly. it enhances and grounds the story within it’s time, using real people and places to anchor Hester’s story until it feels like part of history rather than fiction. The world she describes is so rich, alive with sound and colour, creating an all round sensory experience for the reader. I felt like I knew this world inside out. As many of you know, the birdcage is a potent symbol for me, one that I have tattooed on my body as a reminder to never let anyone put me inside one again. Here Freya Berry uses it as a metaphor for the way society and wealth keep women from living the fullest lives they could. A cage is a cage, even if it’s a gilded one. The women in New York society may have money enough to adorn themselves with the feathers of birds of paradise, but they would never have the freedom that Emily has had to travel abroad and see these birds living in their native habitat - something infinitely more valuable than wearing them as a hat. Despite having a central role in the Vogel’s business operations, Hester is soon relegated to the parlour when her brother-in-low returns to New York. The business is going in a different direction, as her husband pursues the kind of fame and fortune earned by Barnum. Her creativity, business acumen and financial know how are sidelined and she finds herself bored and dissatisfied. Her distraction to this rejection is catastrophic.

As Emily gets closer and closer to the final parts of Hester’s diary, she realises that the repercussions of what happened in New York are still playing out, but now she is in the middle. I was actually starting to be scared for her safety. This novel is the perfect combination of historical novel and mystery, with just the right edge of gothic darkness. Freya Berry has created two interesting and intelligent heroines in Hester and Emily, and I was enthralled by their stories till the final page. I hope you will be too.

In 1932 Emily except employment in a crumbling castle in Scotland, but finds that not only the job, but the employer is certainly not what she was expecting. Told in dual timelines this novel is both a gothic delight, and a mystery/treasure hunt rolled into one . The characters are definitely not what they seem and you are never sure who you can trust. Although a slow burn with all its twists and turns and oppressive creeping dread this book certainly keeps you intrigued and it’s one of my favourite of the year so far. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARRC of this novel in return for an honest review.

The Birdcage Library is an absolute triumph. It hooks you from the first sentence, drawing you in to this intricately layered world. with a mysterious and twisted plot that just begs you to keep reading.

A gripping story about Emily Blackwood, a young adventuress and plant hunter.
A gentleman requests she catalogue his vast collection of taxidermied creatures before sale. Emily finds a ruined castle, its owner haunted by the memory of a woman who disappeared five decades before. And when she discovers the ripped pages of an old diary, crammed into the walls, she realises a dark secret lies here, waiting to entrap her too...
A wonderfully moving tale, I couldn’t put the book down.

I loved the dramatic start to this gothic tale, with an incredible opening sentences. I love a dual timeline as we follow Emmy, who has been employed to catalogue a collection of stuffed animals, and Hester, whose diaries Emmy finds and reads. I enjoyed the treasure hunt of the present, interspersed with Hesters story. I found myself fully invested in both characters stories.

One of my favourite books so far this year. I have seen it described as 'a spellbinding novel of hidden clues and dark obsession' and I thought this was an entirely apt description. The book is set both in the 1930s, when Emily, an explorer takes on what she understands to be a cataloguing job in a remote Scottish castle, and in the United States in the previous century. What happened in the 19th century has longlasting repercussions that continue to echo in the later century. The clues that Emily follows are clever - although sometimes I had to suspend disbelief. There is a vague sense of menace and unease which added to the slightly gothic feel of this book. I found myself rushing home to read it each evening.

Emily doesn't really want to go the Scotland and does not relish cataloguing taxidermy in an ancient castle in Scotland. However, after finding The Birdcage Library, Emily embarks on a journey of discovery.

Cages in all their forms dominate this novel about identity and loss set against the backdrop of an imposing castle in Scotland filled with secrets. I quite enjoyed this novel. I enjoyed the mysteries contained within the story and the idea that the castle itself was like a puzzle box to be unlocked. I also really liked the scope of the novel with parts set in New York and London as well as Scotland. The market for live wild animals in New York society was both fascinating and horrifying and made an interesting parallel with the castle full of taxidermy in Scotland.

I do feel that the novel is a little busy at times with side plots that sometimes mask the main thread of the story: Emily's struggles with her past and the mystery of the Birdcage Library. I found myself losing my focus a little which was a shame because the main story is fascinating.

A gripping story full of secrets, gothic tropes and featuring and interesting heroine.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

A historical novel written over two timelines. The writing is beautiful but the narrative pace is very slow and it took me a long time to absorb the story.

The Birdcage Library is a dual-timeline historical thriller, set in both 19th century New York and 20th century Scotland. Emmy Blackwood, a botanist, has accepted a job in a crumbling Scottish castle to find a valuable diamond, but first needs to discover what happened to the previous proprietor Hester Vogel years before.

There are lots of cryptic clues, hidden secrets, clandestine identities and danger in this novel. I was desperate to find out what happened to both women and was rooting for a happy ending for each. I also learned a bit about exotic birds and plant hunting!

A satisfying and entertaining read, well worth anyone’s time.

The Birdcage Library by Freya Berry

I thoroughly enjoyed this and could not put it down. Complex plot lines, a number of mysteries to solve with some unexpected plot twists thrown in what more could you want?

In 1932 Emily is employed to search for a long lost treasure in a spooky castle on an island in Scotland. During the course of this she finds Hester's diaries and endeavours to find out who murdered Hester back in 1882. You get an insight into the then world of animal exploitation, through the capture of endangered animals for the public's pleasure and the occupation of taxidermy. But there is more to this than Hester's murder and the hunt for treasure as we see deceptions around identity with some characters masquerading as some one else for reasons that come alive in the book.

Emily, is an explorer adventurer finding new plant species and has a tragic back story of her own. Hester is trapped in situations she cannot get out of through wanting to help those closest to her first her father then her husband never quite finding the freedom from the gilded cage around her.

There are references and glimpses of real people in this fictional tale PT Barnum, Mamie Fish, Hyatt Frost and Lord Rothschild, which also gave the story real interest. The characters were well drawn and the various plot lines kept the interest high.

A thoroughly entertaining read. I will definitely read Freya's first novel and any others she writes.

Thank you to Netgalley for a preview copy.

This was such an interesting read! I found myself so engrossed in the story, the characters had such incredible arcs, and I can't wait to follow this author's journey!

This is a really good read. It is a slow burn to start with but once you get into it you just can’t put it down.
It has it all a mystery, a detective story and a love story combined with a gothic tale of love and greed.
It will take you on a long journey and puts a different perspective on love.
Can’t recommend it enough

This was such a good book. I love historical fiction, especially when it is about eras/ situations that I previously knew nothing about and this was definitely one of those books. It was so well researched and so compelling in its narrative that not only did I love reading it but I felt that I learned too. A really enjoyable read and perfect for any fans of historical fiction.

The E-Book could be improved and more user-friendly, such as links to the chapters, no significant gaps between words and a cover for the book would be better. It is very document-like instead of a book. A star has been deducted because of this.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

I ADORE A GOTHIC MYSTERY! And this one didn't disappoint. The dual time-line (Emmy Blackwood 1932 and Hester Vogel late 1800’s) was brilliantly constructed and both POVs had me hooked. The plot was tense and the treasure hunt was so exciting, I couldn't put this one down.

While the writing style is a bit slower-paced that I usually go for, it only added to the feeling of tension, oppression and dread. I would also say that the castle felt like a character in its own right because, at times, I felt like it was looming over my shoulder as I was reading the novel!

This is one to read for those who enjoy historical fiction with gothic motifs and a totally immersive plot!

This is simply a very good book indeed.
Innovative and original, the expanding plot is addictive and strong enough to ensnare any reader. The premise and plot is very engaging and the construction of the book is very clever overall. I loved the different perspectives, timelines and sense of mystery.
I'm grateful for the publishers to allow me to read this book ahead of publication, as it was a pure joy to read. No spoilers included, but only to say that story is very strong, readable and very fun to read.
This author is very competent and creative and I hope she receives all the acclaim and success that she clearly deserves.

A 5 star read - loved this book. Dual timeline story based back and forth between the US and a remote castle in Scotland. Great characters, clever plot and beautifully written. Lots going on to keep the reader hooked to the very end. Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC

I loved Freya's Dictator's Wife so I had high hopes for this one. It didn't disappoint. A slow burn of a book. It's cleverly told and a gothic mystery. The language is lyrical and the atmosphere is claustrophobic. Adored it!