I loved this book, I couldn't put it down! I loved the fact that it was written in two parts - the past and the present and the way that the story came together by reading each part. The storyline was well thought out and I was surprised that this was a debut novel as it really was a great read. 

I loved the characters in the book; Robyn (Little Bird) and her brother Kit (Christopher) are our two main ones but there are also some outside characters that we get to meet and know. I loved the ending and I would love it if there could be a sequel to it but I'm not sure if we'd be able to have one that would be as brilliant.

I was quite disappointed with this book, and nearly didn't finish it. It is told in 2 time frames, 1976, when Robyn was 10 years old, and then 1988. She and her brother, Kit, have come back to their empty family home. Something bad obviously happened previously, and they want to try and solve the mystery. However, the story is very disjointed, and the author doesn't want to give anything away too soon. I felt this didn't work, and much of the narrative I found quite tedious. But in the end, I was curious enough to want to finish it.
Thanks to NetGalley for a preview copy.

The story was great. A long time ago when she was a child bad things happened. The effect on her brother and herself was not a good one. It has effected her until present time. Her brother has tried and is trying to move on, but it seems as if Robyn will not let go of the past until it has told her all its secrets.From the beginning you realise that her sibling knew more than he let on. He was protecting his rather vulnerable sister, whether it was a good thing or not in hindsight maybe not but at the time he and his mother thought this was best.The story was set in a small town where memories remained forever. Despite all this, the story did not hit  me very much though it had such a lot of potential to be really good. The main thing was that the story felt incoherent and did not flowlike it could have.

A fantastic book with some twists and turns that I was not expecting. It is very well written and I would like to read more books by Maraianne Holmes in the future. The book was written from Robyn’s perspective and she immediately drew me into the story. What I really liked was how some of the book was set in 1976 and some in the future. I especially enjoyed reading about her childhood which in some ways related to my own when certain things were mentioned like the Lido and Spangles. Therefore it seemed to make it even more relevant to me. The underlying story kept me guessing all the way through and it wasn’t until right at the end of the book that I realised what had happened. It is a book about loss, love and bravery and through Robyn’s eyes I was able to see how her mother’s behaviour had influenced her and her brother Kit’s life and the sacrifices she made for them. It was one of those books that I didn’t want to put down until I had finished it. Thank you to Netgalley and Agora Books for letting me read this book.

I was not able to finish reading this book.  I got about a quarter of the way into it and it still didn't grab my interest.  I am not saying it's a bad book, it's just not one for me.

I struggled with this book. I found it confusing at times and the story didn't really hold my interest in spite of seeming to have lots of things that I like in a book. The narrative is set in two time frames, 1976 and 1988. In 1976, Robyn and her brother Kit are living with their mother Jemima and her partner Matthew. Their lifestyle is somewhat chaotic with Jemima providing refuge to victims of domestic violence but they seem to be happy enough until one day a man in a cowboy hat speaks to Robyn at the local Lido. This starts a series of events which end in tragedy. Twelve years later, Robyn and Kit are back in their childhood home looking for someone. But the locals are hostile and Robyn is keeping secrets from her brother. 

The main problem for me was Robyn. I didn't find her to be either a sympathetic or likeable character. She seems to be one sandwich short of a picnic and her actions can be downright stupid and wilful. She moans endlessly about Jemima, Matthew and Kit keeping secrets from her yet has her own secrets which she is far from willing to share. I'm also not at all sure why it is set in 1976 and 1988. I don't have a problem with this but I didn't get a sense of the time though one or two pointers are put in - one of the characters eating a Zoom ice lolly for example. Much more of this was needed to give a real sense of the period. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.

This was a very interesting book, it definitely wasn't what I was expecting but that is why I like it! I loved the setting and I love it when characters grow throughout the book. I was able to really understand the main character and her families secrets.. Such a great read, moments of suspense as well!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Robyn returns to the town she lived in as a child with her older brother, to try and make sense of events 12 years before, the story is told flitting between 1976 and 1988.  Her mother helped women escape domestic violence, which could be linked to the mystery they're trying to solve - Robyn's information is partial, and based on her understanding as a child.  The reader often realises more than she does, although as certain key events run in parallel it's easy to see how a child was confused, leading her to make some disastrous decisions.  

The ages of characters don't always seem to quite add up - Robyn certainly comes across as much younger than the 21 she is supposed to be in 1981, and Michelle as a bit older than the 11 she is initially described as.  I kept forgetting she was that young as she consistently came across as being around 14/15 instead.  

It's well-written and engaging, despite Robyn being a little infuriating at times, with a good sense of foreboding and mystery.  The clues do help you to work some bits out slightly ahead of Robyn.  I think it would make a good book club book, and definitely one for people who like family mysteries.

I really enjoyed this somewhat brutal story about small minded and violent people in the hot summer of 1976. Robyn and Kit are largely left to fend for themselves while their wayward Mum brings home waifs and strays. Something terrible happens which their older selvescome back to the same town to make sense of. It's very gripping.

The story was a very good one. A long time ago when she was a child bad things happened. The effect on her brother and herself was not a good one. It has effected her todate. Her brother has tried and is trying to move on, but it seems as if Robyn will not let go of the past until it has told her all its secrets.

From the beginning you realise that her sibling knew more than he let on. He was protecting his rather vulnerable sister, whether it was a good thing or not in hindsight maybe not but at the time he and his mother thought this was best.

The story was set in a small town where memories remained forever. Gosh it reminded me of villages in my country where what someone's grandmother did was spoken as if it happened yesterday. 

Despite all this, the story did not come alive for me very much though it had such a lot of potential to be really good.  The main thing was that the story felt disjointed and did not flow very well.

I struggled with this book, took me quite a while to get in to and felt the story just plodded a long, felt there was a lot of unnecessary telling you things but not really telling you things, it did get wrapped up satisfactorily at the end and it just about held my interest for me to finish it, I preferred the past to the present, but all in all not too bad a read

I struggled to read this book because I just couldn’t get into going from the past to present every other chapter it seemed.  Who are Kit and Robyn or Rose and Ray?  Who or who will be the victim and victims?  While a decent read with the secrets and haunting some will enjoy this book.  This book was given to me for an honest review.

Robyn and her brother are returning home after twelve years and Robyn wants to know the whole truth.  She wants to know about the secrets of her parents and those surrounding her.  While the reader is reading about her diving in the past, the book also goes into the past to give the reader the whole view point and what Robyn lived and maybe what she is seeing through different eyes.

I always love a story with a past and a present.  For me the two timelines seemed muddy and confusing.  I had a note sheet and I still felt like I was all over the place and couldn't keep things straight - this is strange for me and thus was really frustrating.  

I liked Robyn and her brother as characters but I couldn't get connected to them.  I can connect to unlikeable characters and want to know their journeys but I just couldn't with these two.  

I was bummed that this book didn't live up to my expectations, I wanted so much more from this.  It didn't turn me off completely from the author, I may have to try another from her.

This was a great debut novel, had me gripped throughout and really would recommend it to anyone that likes a suspense filled book, I really hope the author writes a lot more, the characters were really intriguing and just brilliant.

This novel is told across two timelines - one in the baking hot summer of 1976, when Robyn and her brother Kit spend their days at the park and the Lido, relatively carefree until the arrival of the mysterious stranger whose appearance so agitates their mother, and one in 1988, when Robyn and Kit return to the village they had fled, determined to find out the truth about what happened. The problem is, the reader is none the wiser as to what they are even trying to find out about. In many ways this works well because it adds to the suspense of the novel, but it was also sometimes frustrating and made it harder to engage with the characters as you had no idea what their motivations were or what they were even trying to find out. 

For me, the parts on Robyn’s childhood were much stronger - really well written and atmospheric, with a sense of unease that built steadily throughout. The 1988 parts felt a bit more rushed, and the dialogue could be a little bit clunky here and there. I think that was probably because there was so much that the author had to hold back from the reader. 

Despite this minor criticism, it’s a real page turner and the pacing was good.

This book is about a past that nobody wants to unravel including the town residents. It's a slow, suspenseful read. There's touching affection and intimacy between Robyn and her brother Christopher (aka Kit) after the trauma of their half-forgotten childhood. I love the way Kit, and some other characters refer to Robyn as "Litlle Bird," What the book portrays so well is the anguish youngsters feel trying to evaluate the words and actions of adults. I recall from my childhood overhearing fragmented conversations or seeing things I didn't understand. Children are super-sensitive to atmospheres. Throughout the book, there are mysterious one-liners and actions to interpret. What went on all those years ago when Kit and Robyn were young?  Twelve years later Robyn is determined to discover the truth. Kit is less motivated, and Robyn is convinced he knows more than he says. The build-up of suspense is high and taken to a new level; the imagery is superb with its fascinating attention to detail. The trustworthiness of the town's characters is dubious, but Robyn is a feisty girl and determined to solve matters. Who is the man in the cowboy hat? What does he want? Thank you to NetGalley and Agora Books.

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is in badly written, it’s just not all that thrilling or psychological. Definitely more of a period piece women’s fiction book. You might like it – but that’s not for me

A Little Bird Told Me is Marianne Holmes' debut novel and it is truly stunning. The story is narrated by Robyn and switches between the summers of 1976 and 1988. Seeing the story unfold through the eyes of a child, one trying to understand the confusing behaviour of the adults around her, makes the mystery all the more haunting.

The relationship between Robyn and her big brother Kit is one of the many strengths of this book. His memories of the events that led to them having to leave their home are much clearer than Robyn's, but he is unaware of the secrets and guilt that have preyed on her mind ever since. 

The writing is beautiful, and I found myself rereading paragraphs for the sheer joy of revisiting the images the words portrayed. The characters step off the page and draw you into their tale; I felt the children's apprehension, their fear as things spin out of control and their world turns upside down. 

An intriguing mystery that had me hooked from the beginning and guessing to the very last page. 

I'd like to thank Agora Books and Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

3.5🌟

‘Besides, if you were one half evil, wouldn’t you want to know about the other half?

In the scorching summer of 1976, Robyn spends her days swimming at the Lido and tagging after her brother. It’s the perfect holiday – except for the crying women her mum keeps bringing home.
As the heatwave boils on, tensions in the town begin to simmer. Everyone is gossiping about her mum, a strange man is following her around, and worst of all, no one will tell Robyn the truth. But this town isn’t good at keeping secrets…
Twelve years later, Robyn returns home, to a house that has stood empty for years and a town that hasn’t moved on, forced to confront the mystery that haunted her that summer.
And atone for the part she played in it.’

This was a book of two halves for me. The first half felt frustratingly slow at times, I’m glad I persevered though as I enjoyed the second half more and was satisfied with the ending. I would read more from Marianne Holmes as she has a pleasant lyrical style of writing. She portrays the frustration a child feels when they aren’t told what’s going on in their life – that not knowing the truth can cause dangerous speculation and placing blame where it doesn’t belong. It is a good debut. 

Thanks to Agora books and NetGalley for this ecopy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Marianne Holmes and Agora books for the chance to read an ARC of this novel.

From the description - Besides, if you were one half evil, wouldn’t you want to know about the other half?

Review - It’s the summer of 1976. A heat wave means perfect weather for swimming at the Lido for 9 year old Robyn (Little Bird) and her brother Christopher (Kit). The only things spoiling their perfect summer is their Mum bringing home women in tears and the town gossip about it, the bullies that mercilessly tease her, the mysterious appearance of The Man in the Cowboy Hat. Then something happens that summer. Something that changes the course of Robyn and Kit’s lives forever. Something Robyn feels she must atone for before it’s too late…..

The story switched between 1976 and 1988, when Robyn and Kit return to the village to solve the mysteries surrounding what happened and so Robyn can right her perceived wrongs. In ‘76 she is a child on the cusp of adolescence, trying to figure out adult secrets and behaviours while also learning who she is. Her sense of frustration and mistakes she makes as a result of childish naivete often left me wanting to shout at Robyn "don't tell him that" or clue her in but it was great for the story and you felt your heart break with hers as the adult Robyn is filled with deep regret for what those mistakes now mean. 

The bond between Kit and Robyn and the intricacies of sibling relationships, are pivotal to this story and are well written. The author weaves the layers of the story elegantly and reveals its secrets in piecemeal; teasing you with the promise of a revelation then ending prematurely so you're left trying to decipher it's meaning. 

I was so excited to be approved for this book. The premise was intriguing and I loved the fact that it was the chance to read a debut novel. There’s a thrill of the unknown, the possibility of finding a hidden gem of a story and a new voice who you just know you’ll follow the rest of their career. Just reading the introduction to the author started the book with a smile and the sense I was about to read something special. The letter from the publisher solidified those feelings and I wasn’t disappointed in hoping I’d find all those things. I will definitely be reading any future novels by this author. A wonderful book.