The Bird Woman

by: Kerry Hardie

Published by: Little, Brown

Reviewed by Jennifer Peacey

The Bird Woman is a richly detailed and emotional novel about a woman facing up to her past, her heritage, and her fears.

Ellen is married and living in Belfast, drifting from day to day and
attempting to move on from a painful past that includes the death of her baby and a subsequent nervous breakdown. When she meets Liam, a
visiting sculptor from the South, she experiences a strong sense of
connection and exiles herself in order to be with him.

As Ellen attempts to fit into the isolated rural life that is Liam's, she finds that her Northern Irish Presbyterian upbringing is a barrier between them that is exacerbated by the appearance of her strange healing powers. Ellen soon realizes she is unable to suppress her powers and struggles to come to terms with what it means to be a healer, and all the ethical and religious questions that it raises. During this time she befriends Catherine, an ex-nun and friend of Liam's, who becomes a source of support and advice until a terrible secret is revealed that threatens Ellen and Liam's marriage

When Ellen is summoned home at the request of her dying mother, she boards a bus alone and begins a journey that will take her both farther away from and closer to Liam than she has been since they first met. It is only through this distance and the events that occur when she arrives back in Belfast that she begins to question her choices and actions, and to see how they have affected those that she loves the most.

The Bird Woman skilfully addresses topics such as estranged families, loyalty, beliefs, and the Irish troubles without becoming overly sentimental or apologetic.

Armchair Interviews says: In this second novel, Kerry Hardie has written a haunting and atmospheric character-driven account that pulls you into the deep end.