This is a character driven book. I'm not sure I would call this a traditional mystery--many of the "mysteries" are more about people and the reasons behind things than it is a "who done it", but the characters were so intriguing that I didn't mind that the series title (Mysteries of Sparrow Island) wasn't as descriptive as some might think. I also cared about Abby's character enough to care about her passion for birds.

The traditional "who done it" mystery isn't introduced until later in the book, possibly making it seem a slow starter to those looking for the traditional mystery genre.

It will be interesting to see how Henry's relationship with Mary progresses and if Hugo and Abby will develop more than a professional relationship.

I first suspected, then guessed that one of the characters might not be dead long before it was revealed that that was the case. This is rare for me as I'm usually thrown off by the red herrings that mystery authors insert into their works. I was still interested enough to keep reading to see what happened though.

My only complaint is how this book ended. It's obvious that they want you to buy the next book to see if the response is what you think it will be. ( )