A whimsical escape into an alternative Venice where there is kindness and a sprinkling of magic. This is an YA/adult book that will appeal to the child within. The imagery is cinematic and it would make such a beautiful film...

This is a truly beautiful book in which the reader is transported to a magical place. The setting in which the main character Marea is introduced, is an unusual one and although this is where she finds the warmth of maternal love it is also the place which forces her to fly the nest in order to discover the truth about her very unusual bird-like characteristics. The language is quite beyond anything I have read in a long time. It had me reaching out for a pen to jot down some beautiful phrases which I wanted to remember long after I had finished reading the book. Quite apart from it being a fascinating story about self discovery it it is a book which is rich in language and will leave you dwelling on beautiful images which the writer has conjured up.

I’ve been trying to find a book like this for a long time and this story has finally arrived on the tide it seems for me. Early on in the book the writer appears to pick you up and cradle you in the safety, beauty and warmth of her language as she takes you on the journey of feather tide. To me it feels like I’m held comfortably by the writer as I drift and explore Marea’s life on the magical current of time and fate. I feel it is a story and world that will stay with me in a warm and beautiful way.

I could not put this book down, it is moving, evocative, haunting and beautifully written. I read it as soon as it came out and even though I have read other books since I am still drifting back to the City of Murmers. The story is subtly layered - If you read one book this year let it be this one! Excellent.

A Girl. A secret. A life-Changing Journey. Maréa was born covered in feathers, and kept hidden away from prying eyes in a crumbling whorehouse that plays coy with its many secrets. She has always known she was different, an outcast but never known why. To find such answers to her growing list of question, she goes in search of the father she never knew. A hunt that leads her to the City of Murmurs - a mysterious place where jars of mist are carried around by those with a broken heart. And Maréa will never forget what she finds there..... What unfolds around Maréa is a world she has only ever known exists in the fairy tales her mother told her as a child; cities of mist, someone who isn’t of this world, a big-hearted bear of a woman willing to help in her quest. But as Maréa uncovers more of this ethereal world, finding people who may have answers and someone who could help her connect with those truly known to her as family, she will have to make decisions that could be just too heavy on the heart to ever make. Just how much does Maréa wish to unearth about herself as she desires more than just seeing her father for the first time? This is a beguiling, beautifully crafted gem of a book which had me reading late into the night when the mist would feel like it was creeping underneath my door and would envelope me into its intoxicating tale of family, loss, love, and self identity. The world building is on point and I feel like there could easily be a follow up as I want more of this gorgeous world and it’s colourful characters! I loved this book as it is escapism at its most page turning worthiness, encouraging the reader to be true to who they really are! Remember, no one can truly gain back time that is lost.... can they?