Feathertide
Author: Beth Cartwright
Publication Date: 30th July 2020
Goodreads | Waterstones | Amazon
Rating: ★★★★☆
*ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
A girl. A secret. A life-changing journey.
Born covered in the feathers of a bird, and kept hidden in a crumbling house full of secrets, Marea has always known she was different, but never known why. And so to find answers, she goes in search of the father she has never met.
The hunt leads her to the City of Murmurs, a place of mermaids and mystery, where jars of swirling mist are carried through the streets by the broken-hearted.
And Marea will never forget what she learns there.
Feathertide is an enchanting, magical novel perfect for fans of Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus and Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale.
Feathertide starts with Marea’s birth in the ‘whorehouse’ where her mother Leman lives and works. After giving birth Leman discovers that the baby is covered in feathers, a trait inherited from a man she met when visiting the City of Murmurs. While she is growing up, Marea is hidden away in the cellar to protect her from other people.
Every year on her birthday Marea is allowed to leave the house. On one of these outings she discovers the The Boat of Floating Freaks and Oddities and finds there are others like her but that they are ostracised and ridiculed by society.
As she grows up Marea longs to find her father, a mysterious bird-like man whose name is unknown. On her 17th birthday Marea decides she wishes to leave and travel to the City of Murmurs to find her answers.
Feathertide is an enjoyable read with an intriguing plot and interesting characters. I really enjoyed the concept of the Sky-Worshippers who appeared to be half-human half-bird. The romance and story between Marea and Elver was also great, although I did end the book still wanting to know more about Elver.
While the book was a fun read, sometimes the plot was a little slow-moving and filled with long descriptions that were pretty but somewhat unnecessary. I would probably have given the book three stars but the last 10% just blew me away and was so amazing that it largely made up for some of the issues I’d had earlier with the story.
I don’t really understand the comparisons to The Night Circus and The Bear and the Nightingale. Feathertide is quite different to both of these books and it’s possible that this description may lead people to have higher expectations which may lead to disappointment.
Thanks for reading this review and let me know what you thought of Feathertide in the comments.
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