BIRDS OF PARADISE by Oliver K. Langmead – Review

I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Birds of Paradise by Oliver K. Langmead
Published by Titan Books on April 6 2021
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 368
Format: eARC
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: Another beautifully written, carefully crafted tale from Oliver K. Langmead, Birds of Paradise is an imaginative glimpse into what became of the Garden of Eden.

Oliver Langmead is such an underrated author and he needs a wider audience. Every time I read one of his books I’m reminded of how talented he is, and I’m so happy I have another opportunity to rave about him! I’ll have to admit I was a bit hesitant about Birds of Paradise when I heard it was about Adam and Eve, since I’m not that keen on religious themes and stories. But if you’re like me, don’t let that stop you from reading this book. Langmead does use some Biblical imagery at times, but mostly this is a poignant and heartwarming story about friendship and loyalty, beautifully written.

The story revolves around Adam—yes, the first man—and his very long life after he was cast out of the Garden of Eden. In the present day, Adam finds himself reluctantly pulled into a quest to find and gather pieces of the original Garden, scattered all over the world and hiding in plain sight. After running into his old friend Rook—who runs a law firm with his brother Magpie called Corvid & Corvid—Adam agrees to Rook’s odd request: to locate Magpie and find out why he’s spending so much money. Adam’s journey to Edinburgh, Magpie’s last known location, leads him to a miraculous discovery. Magpie has been scouring the earth, looking for scattered bits of the Garden of Eden, and buying or stealing them to rebuild the Garden, now located in an abandoned sports arena in Manchester.

But Magpie’s latest target—a beautiful rose that never dies—sets off a series of events that could threaten their carefully preserved existence. The rose in question is being held by a man named Frank Sinclair and his wife Ada in their large complex, tucked away in an impenetrable greenhouse, and that’s not the only piece of the Garden that Frank has acquired. Along with their loyal friends—Crow, Butterfly, Pig, Owl and Crab—Adam and Magpie find themselves embroiled in a war to save the last miraculous pieces of the Garden.

Adam is such an interesting character, although I’ll admit it took me some time to warm up to him. His character comes across as apathetic and uninterested in everything that’s going on around him, but little by little the reader comes to understand that Adam is much more complex than that. The story is told from his point of view, and Langmead dips back into the past to show various points in his past, how he fought in wars and survived, how he moved from continent to continent, always searching for something and trying to remember what happened to Eve. And in fact, Eve’s existence is an ongoing mystery. She’s not part of this story, but Adam is forever tied to her, since they exchanged hearts many years ago before the Garden was destroyed (and I mean they literally exchanged hearts!) Adam has many such hurts and mysteries that he’s trying to figure out, and he describes each one as a thorn burrowing into his skull. These “thorns” are part of the reason Adam seems so bitter and sad, and I longed for those times when he would break out of his grief, even if only for a moment.

And then there are the “birds of Paradise” from the title, Crow and Magpie and the other birds and animals, who added so much to this story. Each animal can change to a human form and back again, and in this way the animals have been able to lead interesting lives by integrating themselves into society. But they’ve only survived so long because they keep their true identities a secret. The relationships between them were so wonderful and sweet, and each one wormed their way into my heart for different reasons. Magpie is the jolly one, always upbeat and funny and positive. I absolutely loved his personality! Crow has a sad backstory and only one leg, and I loved her as well. Then there is Butterfly, who is just what you would expect: colorful, flighty and delicate. Butterfly and Pig have a wonderful relationship, and I loved her devotion to Pig, especially when things get tense later in the story. But not all of Eden’s creatures are still alive, as we find out. Adam is shocked to see Ada Sinclair wearing Fox’s fur around her neck like a scarf—which is the trigger for much of what happens in this story—and we learn of other animals who met their own fates throughout time (more thorns in Adam’s painful “crown”).

I do want to address the Biblical themes in the story, which were beautifully done. I am not religious at all, and I have never read the Bible all the way through, but of course I recognized many of the stories. Langmead infuses Birds of Paradise with such gorgeous imagery, like Adam’s metaphorical crown of thorns. There’s another scene in the story that evoked the tale of Noah’s Ark, but my favorite recurring theme was that of the garden, and how Adam is the original gardener, having been created inside a garden, after all. Throughout his life, Adam creates many gardens, collects seeds and is always trying to make things grow. He reminisces about past events that had an impact on him, like the time he first met Pig because of a peach tree and why the Garden’s cherry tree is so special. Adam imagines that all the seeds he’s collected will be spread across the land by birds, as as way to keep his Garden alive and continuously growing.

But despite these themes, the story itself isn’t religious, so please don’t be turned off by any of the things I’ve mentioned. Adam has become jaded over the years, and he sees God as nothing more than an absentee father of sorts. Ironically, it’s Frank Sinclair who turns out to be the religious zealot, while Adam has seen how awful the world can be and merely wants to live a quiet life among his trees and animal friends.

The story is full of quiet, introspective moments, as Adam delves back into his memories and tries to make sense of his life. This made the beginning very slow to take off, and it wasn’t until about a third of the way in when Adam meets up with Magpie to start the quest that I really became invested. Langmead throws the reader into the deep end without much explanation of what’s going on, but I’m so glad I stuck with the story because the payoff was so good. Adam appears to be a mild mannered man, but he’s also full of rage and unexpected violence, and I was not prepared for some of the scenes in this story! By the end I could really appreciate how well Langmead balanced those quiet moments with bursts of exciting action.

The ending was both emotional and heartwarming, just the kind of ending I love. Langmead wraps up all his loose ends, and yet there is a sense that there are many pieces of the Garden still out there, just waiting to be found. An unending quest, I guess, that brought a smile to my face. That sense of wonder in a book is such a rare delight, and I’m not surprised at all that Oliver Langmead captured it perfectly.

Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.

Check out more Oliver Langmead books!

My review of Dark Star

My review of Metronome