The Shadow Bird is Ann Gosslin’s intriguing debut novel and a book that is provocative, powerful and hard-hitting from the opening pages. It follows protagonist Erin Cartwright who is a psychiatrist employed by a New York clinic that specialises in treating young girls when she is requested to evaluate the case of an upcoming parolee, and his fitness for release back into society, who was institutionalised after he apparently slaughtered his mother and sisters and charged with triple murder at the tender age of seventeen. But during her time talking to Timothy Stern she comes to the realisation that he likely isn't the one who murdered his entire family and believes there has been a miscarriage of justice. She decides to do some sleuthing to see what information or evidence she can find to back up her theory but she discovers that she must face what happened in her past if she wishes to get to the bottom of Stern’s possible wrongful conviction. Is Erin willing for her secrets to be revealed in order to exonerate Stern?

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this tense and exciting thriller from the get-go as we are introduced to the damaged Dr Cartwright who is a great protagonist with more than a few flaws making her relatable and believable. I really hope Gosslin turns this into a series as the fact that we have such an engaging lead character and the endless possibilities for plotlines given she is a psychiatrist would make for a fantastic series; I know I would definitely pick them up. There are lots of twists and turns with some of them admittedly being quite predictable, especially to those who read this genre a lot. That said, I don't think it spoiled the story as much as it probably should've. However, some of the twists were surprising to me and the authors clever use of misdirection was executed well. It's atmospheric, suspenseful and a slow-burner and it was easy to immerse yourself in the story. Secrets, lies and dark pasts come to the forefront and are slowly revealed as the narrative progresses. I look forward to more from Gosslin. Many thanks to Legend Press for an ARC.

Erin Cartwright is a psychiatrist, asked to evaluate Timothy Stern ... a man who murdered his mother and two sisters almost 30 years ago. He has been in a maximum security psychiatric facility ever since.

But his particular facility will be shutting down soon. The powers that be would like to place Stern in his father's home instead of transferring him to another facility.

Erin will make the final decision deciding his future.

What Erin discovers is that she knows Timothy Stern. Her brother and his friends were bullies of the first order way back when ... and Stern was a popular target.

But the memories she has, she'd rather keep to herself and keep them well hidden. She's not who people think she is .... and she highly suspects that Stern is not responsible for his family's murders.

This one drew me in immediately. Little by little Erin's younger life is revealed. She does, indeed, have secrets... and when those secrets are let loose, it turns her evaluation of Stern in a much different direction than she thinks possible. It's a page-turner with twists and turns that lead to a totally unexpected conclusion.

Many thanks to the author / Legend Press / Netgalley for the digital copy of this psychological thriller. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. I had a very difficult time getting into this book. I felt it contained too many story lines and nonessential information which made the story feel disjointed and difficult to read.

Three months into her new role as a psychiatrist at a clinic in New York, Erin Cartwright is asked to evaluate the case of a man who murdered his mother and sisters at the age of seventeen.
Found not guilty by reason of insanity and held in a maximum-security psychiatric facility for twenty-seven years, Timothy Stern is now eligible for release. Upon learning the crime occurred in the same village she once visited as a child, Erin is on the verge of refusing to take the case, when a startling discovery triggers memories she’d rather keep hidden, and a suspicion the wrong man is behind bars.

This book took a little while to get into. However, even though it was slow at first, it was worth the read. There were some twists that kept me guessing and I enjoyed that.

The author’s writing flowed and made it easy to read. The chapters were not long and made it easy to keep up with the overall plot. I would recommend this book to other readers.

Full of chills it's a riveting read that is hard to put down. From the flawless plot to the characters that stick with you to the mystery that you absolutely have to solve this is an edge of your seat book that will have you reading late into the night. Happy reading!

From the depths of Nicole’s Book Cellar (Instagram.com/nicoles_bookcellar):

Book: The Shadow Birds (Release Date: July 15, 2020)

Author: Ann Gosslin

Genre: Thriller, Suspense, Mystery

Rating: 4 ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Positives: I liked the main character, Erin. She was somewhat of a broken spirit but persevered through a lot of family issues and abuse. I also liked the unreliability of her memories and judgement. It gave the story more depth.

Negatives: It was sometimes a little too descriptive to where I zoned out and had to reread certain parts. A few parts seemed a little repetitive and drawn out.

Recommend?: Yes

Plot: Erin, a psychiatrist, with a dark past has been asked to assess Timothy who was accused and found guilty of killing his sisters and mother. After twenty-seven years, he may be able to leave the psychiatric facility as long as Erin finds him competent to leave.

The story follows her journey to see if Timothy is sane enough to live outside the prison he has known for over two decades. As she reviews the case and does a little sleuthing, she begins to worry if he is guilty. She also becomes concerns because the story is triggering some packed away repressed memories of her childhood.


Thoughts: I enjoyed the mystery of trying to figure out if Timothy was really guilty or if he was setup. It seemed very clear who the killer is but it may surprise you. I really tried to figure out what Erin’s past was and although there are some clues left alone the way, I missed some of them.
Final drinking thoughts: I didn’t really get the tie in of the birds and the title. I do think you may figure out some parts of the story but there are some reveals that are like oh okay that is what happened. It isn’t a wow moment but I liked it, nonetheless.
Thank you to @NetGalley @LegendPress #AnnGosslin for the advanced copy of #TheShadowBird
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I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It was fast-paced and quite gripping! I found the plot to be very intriguing and it kept me guessing throughout the book. I highly recommend it!

This is a well-written traditional whodunit about a criminal psychologist treating a man who was institutionalized for a brutal murder years ago. During her treatment, Dr. Cartwright begins to suspect that her patient may not in fact be the killer, and starts discovering things about her own past as well.

Though the book was well-written, I found it to be very slow-moving compared to similar thrillers of this type. Not a lot happened in the first half of the book and Dr. Cartwright, while written just fine as a character, did not interest me too much psychologically in the first half. I also was not invested enough in her to be too interested in her own family drama. I might not have stuck with the book much longer but things began to take a turn about 60 percent of the way through.

The ending of the book was good, but overall there were not enough thrills to keep me fully engaged. I would give it 3.5 stars - nothing wrong with the book at all, but just failed to engage me.

Thanks to NetGalley, Legend Press and the author for the advance copy to read.

This one was slow are first and a little bit confusing with all the different characters but overall I really enjoyed it. Lots of twists and turns and suspense. Erin Cartwright is the main character and is a psychiatrist. She gets assigned to work with Timothy Stern, who is charged with the murder of his mom and sisters. He has been living in a institution due to a plea of insanity. Erin is trying to investigate what really happened but she has secrets of her own that she is dealing with as well. Great read, highly recommend it. Thanks to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book.

This was a decent book that had some good twists and turns. It gets off to a slow start, but the mystery was interesting enough that I kept reading.

A bit of a slow burn, but one that I for the most part enjoyed. It didn't have as many twists and turns as I hoped, but the main character was believable and I did really enjoy getting to know her backstory. I would totally read another book about her as I did enjoy her as the main character.

The romance felt a little bit thrown in there for something extra, but wasn't awful.

All in all a good thriller.

An atmospheric crime mystery that gave me Shutter Island vibes. A psychiatric hospital in the middle of a thunderstorm. A twenty seven year old triple murder. A doctor treating mentally ill teenagers with secrets of her own. A brilliant debut.

I loved The Shadow Bird. There was a lot going on, but everything tied up nicely in the end. I never struggled to keep track of all the different story lines. Dr Erin Cartwright was the perfect lead. I believed her inner struggle and her private investigation of Tim's case. Unfortunately, I had the ending pegged early on but this was still a joy to read.

Thanks to Legend Press for providing my review copy via Netgalley.

3.5 Stars

I had a hard time getting into this book, it was slow going but yet it captured my attention because I wanted to know the answers. The introduction throws you off and you keep looking for a place to tie it together. It eventually comes, but still seems a little disjointed. That's not to say that this story isn't engaging. Even though it takes place in an asylum for the criminally insane there are things that are relatable to everyone. I like to believe that, given the opportunity, people would rather do the right thing. There is always more to someone's story, it's the back story that make people interesting and helps us understand someone. Most people are hiding something, and most things can be forgiven by others sooner than we forgive ourselves.

The beginning was slower, then it changed to a book I couldn’t put down. You won’t want to either. Pick up this book, ponder the questions it brings up. I liked the characters, and it held my interest even though the story got a little convoluted, and not everything fit into place. I enjoyed it, though. It's a good mystery, but also an interesting character study and peek into what drives some people to act the way they do. And how looks are almost always deceiving.

Thank You NetGalley And Publisher for this amazing ARC!

This book had me up until the wee hours of the morning trying to finish this book!
It's such a fantastic read, full of twist, page turning mysteries!
I could not put this book down for the life of me.
My first ever read from Ann Gosslin and she did not disappoint.

Erin Cartwright is a new psychiatrist at a clinic in New York.
She is asked to evaluate the case of a man who murdered his mother and sisters at the age of seventeen.
He was found not guilty by insanity, and held in a maximum security psychiatric facility for twenty-seven years, Timothy Stern is now eligible for release. When learning the crime occurred in the same village she once visited as a child, Erin is on the verge of refusing to take the case, when a startling discovery triggers memories she’d rather keep hidden, and a suspicion the wrong man is behind bars.

AMAZING!!!!!!!

I tend to rate my books based on how absorbed I become in the story and how invested I am in the characters. In the case of this book, Ann Ann Gosslin delivered.

The Shadow Bird is the debut novel of Ann Gosslin being released on July 15th. Anything with a psychological premise grabs my attention and while this storyline was a tad bit predictable, there were still a few turns that I had not foreseen.

Erin Cartwright is a psychiatrist working in a facility treating young girls when she is called to do a volunteer case assessing a man for release from a psychiatric ward. Timothy Stern was convicted of killing his mother and two sisters when he was seventeen. Decades later when Erin is evaluating the patient, she finds that Timothy is from her hometown and she is drawn back into the lies and secrets that lived there.

The story largely follows Erin’s character with several quick glimpses into Timothy’s past. I always enjoy that style of writing- receiving tidbits of scenes and events that leave you trying to piece together the puzzle. The mystery of Timothy’s character drew me in trying to determine if he did it, if he didn’t do it, and simultaneously rooting for him as a good guy but being wary that he is essentially evil.

I’m looking forward to more of Ann Gosslin in the future!

While I have tremendous respect for anyone who has the perseverance to write and entire novel, THE SHADOW BIRD badly needs some work. It is clearly written by an author from the UK, although it is set in the U.S. And while one of the man characters has spent a great deal of time in the UK, she is not the narrator. Therefore, the continual use of British, rather than American terms, is distracting and makes the novel less believable (i.e., jumper for sweater). It is particularly distracting when Gosslin has American characters use British expressions (like calling someone a "wanker."). But more troublesome is the pacing. this is supposed to be a novel of suspense, but the novel just plods along, never increasing the suspense. Golsslin clearly has talent but this book clearly need a few more drafts before being released.

Doctor, heal thyself.

Erin Cartwright is a psychiatrist at a hospital for girls who has her own troubled past. Now the past that she has tried so hard to hide and ignore has caught up to her during a criminal case she's asked to advise on.

This was a good psychological suspense book, predictable at times, but overall, the writing pulls you through. I liked the Erin character, even with her many flaws, they didn't seem completely out of place for someone with her history and job description. She definitely has her (many faults,) but they were believable. And I really liked Timothy's character, even though it was clear from the beginning that he wasn't where he should be, nor was he going to be placed somewhere he should be.

The romance thrown in there was fine. Not great, and mostly served as a distraction since it didn't really further the mystery part of the book, but it at least had a purpose in the end.

It would be interesting to see if the author ends up continuing with the Erin Cartwright character in a series or leaves this as a stand-alone. If it's continued, I would definitely read them.

Thank you to NetGalley and Legend Press for providing me with the arc of this book. It has not influenced my opinion.

So let me start by saying, Ann Gosslin will be foolish if she does not start a series of books following the many pursuits of Erin. As a protagonist I enjoyed her greatly and love love love me anything to do with a psychiatrist/psychiatric ward, so her job there works wonders for me and I think there really is something there about following her case studies on many of her patients.

Okay, now onto the actual book at hand. I thoroughly enjoyed this read and found myself time and time again trying to work out the ending, putting this person or that into the firing line as murderer. I got it right.... but I had also changed my mind 20 times so my 6th attempt maybe was right... but by the end I was wrong again haha.

Lies, secrets and hidden pasts all come into play in this beautiful debut from Ann Gosslin. We follow Erin as she is tasks to give a psychiatric evaluation on whether or not Timothy, a man found guilty of murdering his mother and 2 sisters, is now stable enough to re enter the world. But is there a conflict of interest in Erin’s forgotten secret past? Is Timothy guilty or has the wrong man been sitting in a psychiatric facility for the past few decades for no reason?

All in all, this book had me hooked throughout, I enjoyed it so much and thank you to legend press and netgalley for my ARC

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Lots of twists and turns in this captivating whodunit. The book is amazing.

“If thunder had a human face, this would be it.” The Shadow Bird, a story of a damaged psychiatrist and the patient she is sent to evaluate for release, is a fast, very tense read. So many layers, and pieces to this puzzle, and even though I was pretty sure I knew, turns out it was only half of the picture. At times, I was very frustrated with Erin, her fear is palpable throughout, and she does one or two things that definitely cross the line, given her position. Still, I kept turning the pages, desperate to find out how this tale would end. It’s rare I finish anything in two days!! Excellent read, highly recommend!

P.S. Thanks to NetGalley, for the ARC. @legendpress #netgalley #theshadowbird