The lovely Cat Winters joined us over at the blog to talk about the inspiration for this novel and writing about women in 1918: http://thebookgeek.co.uk/308.php




Wow. I thought this was fantastic - one of the best books I've read in a long while.

When I think of 1918, I think of a world torn apart by war. I think of trenches and Kaiser Willhelm and a general fear that your father, husband, brother and/or son will never make it back to you. When I think of death in 1918, I picture a bleak image of More...

This book is set in the year 1918, but feels quite Victorian in its immersion in spiritualism and séances. The author's note at the end confirms her interest in that era, as well as in the epidemic of influenza that killed 50 million people worldwide towards the end of the first world war. In the Shadow of the Blackbirds is certainly steeped in her research of both those eras, and the mash-up of time periods and genres work together beautifully, with historical drama, ghost story, and mystery al More...

The Nocturnal Library: Guest post by Cat Winters, 10 Ways I Researched the Past for In the Shadow of Blackbirds. Stop by to read it and enter to win a hardcover copy from The Book Depository.

Some books should be sold with a companion novel, a cheerful, nonsensical one people would read immediately after the main story to lighten up their souls. If there was ever a book that left me in urgent need of some cheering up (and a cup of spicy hot chocolate), it’s this one. But would I change a single t More...

Spoilers are hidden under spoiler tags.

What would you do if the ones you love are in danger? What would you do if the ghost of your beloved sweetheart comes back to haunt you?

Would you be willing to risk your safety-your life, even-just to find out the truth beneath it all? Would you have the courage to help him rest in peace?

Actual rating: 4 - 4.5 stars

In the Shadow of Blackbirds is a mix of mystery, paranormal, superstition, romance and tragedy.

After reading all the praises for this book, I w More...

4.5 stars

“…between the war and the flu, no one’s going to escape being haunted. We live in a world so horrifying, it frightens even the dead.”

The thought of a widespread health disaster is enough to terrify me, even today, where medicine and science is at its most advanced. Cat Winters’ debut standalone is set during 1918, the year of the infamous influenza outbreak, and the final moments of the First World War. It is a horrific period of time – one that is difficult to truly forget, despite ha More...

In the Shadow of Blackbirds is a dark and beautiful story that had me on the verge of tears.

The story takes place in 1918, during the time of the Spanish influenza. Our plucky and intelligent heroine Mary Shelley Black has never believed in ghosts, that is until her first love tragically dies in battle and returns as a traumatised spirit. Shocked beyond belief Shelley is determined to find out the true cause of his death.

It's clear that Winters has done her research, she paints a bleak and drear More...

I just finished re-reading this book. You can read my new book recommendation for it below :) And at the bottom I have posted links to my old review, and my new rec on my blog.

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I'm not sure I have words for how perfect this book is. I just finished reading it for the second time, and I cannot wait to read it again and again. It's just stunning. The writing is perfect. And really beautiful. Cat Winters writes really well, and I cannot wait to read more from h More...

You guys are most definitely in for something special with this. ;) More tk.

Interview with Cat Winters

Review is also on my blog My Friends Are Fiction

The Story:
I learned about the Spanish influenza and World War I in school; reading about the number of people who lost their lives in text books. But, I must admit it never felt real to me- just words that didn't resonate. While reading In the Shadow of Blackbirds I was able to really grasp the fear and horror of this time period in American history. Winters' words and descriptions are so powerful I could taste and smel More...

A copy of In the Shadow of Blackbirds was provided to me by Amulet Books/Netgalley for review purposes.

'Stay still. Smile. And summon the dead.'

Mary Shelley Black is a sixteen year old girl living in a war ravaged world. After her father is arrested she is forced to flee and stays with her Aunt in San Diego. After losing her father and finding out that her childhood love, Stephen, has lost his life in the war, Mary Shelley struggles desperately to cling to a reason to continue living when she's More...

Originally posted on www.serendipityreviews.co.uk
As soon as you hold this book in your hand, you feel an eerie presence about it. There is something rather dark and Gothic about the presentation, that only grows upon you as you flick through the pages. Every few chapters you come across an old black and white picture that will shock you a little. Each photo represents events from around 1918 and show how America dealt with the Spanish influenza epidemic that swept through the country killing mil More...

In 1918, where a war torn earth was on the verge of a great misbalance, outbreak of a deadly plague frightened the human and ghost alike-the epidemic Spanish Influenza. It scares me to think what it was like back then when humanity was on verge of eradication. Not the Influenza but also in the war ravaged world, many lost their loved ones in the terrors and trenches of World War I. Every single glimpse of it we can picture while reading In The Shadow of The Black Birds. There is no doubt the aut More...

I absolutely loved this book. I've been struggling to find a good book for a while now... And I was pleasantly surprised how good this book was. I was a little suspicious when I first saw the book, it did not seem like a big stand out for me. But the intriguing plot had me hooked since page one. This book never fails to keep the reader on their feet as it weaves you through a very complicated situation, almost never stopping to let you breathe.

The experiences that Mary Shelley goes through are More...

This review and others are posted at Read, Rinse, Repeat.

1918 is a scary time in American history. We are at war with the Germans, a people portrayed as closer to animal than human, while at home, we battle an outbreak of the deadly Spanish influenza: "Children dropped dead from the flu, boys got transported out of the country to be blown to bits, and the government arrested citizens for speaking the wrong words." Mary Shelley's father is one those arrested, and she's shipped off to live with h More...

I have to admit that I was uncertain about reading this book, I was unsure if it was something I really wanted to read and it took a while for me to get around to reading it. I am so glad I finally did pick it up because In the Shadow of Blackbirds is really quite impressive.

It takes place in America during World War 2 and is largely influenced but the Spanish Flu Epidemic that was rampant at the time. Being British my history lessons tended to revolve more around the plague where disease is con More...

There are so many reasons to love this novel, but my top three were the pitch-perfect spooky atmosphere, the romance, and the mystery.

Atmosphere: Winters really makes 1918 California come alive. You feel the fear of the Spanish Flu, the uncertainty brought about by the war and the desperation of the people who went to the spiritualists to find out about the well-being of their loved ones.

Romance: I fell hard for this novel because of the connection between Mary Shelley and Stephen. By the time t More...

I finished the whole book in one night. Just an amazing book in every way. I look forward to reading more of this new author's work.

* By far, the best book I've read all year.

The cover of this new book set in 1918 is enticing as are the other black and white photographs that are placed within the narrative. There are intriguing photographs of spiritualists, men in trenches during WWI, and images of citizens wearing masks to protect themselves from contagion. Sixteen-year-old Mary Shelley Black has fled her Portland home for San Diego where her aunt lives. While her father is on trial for following his conscience, her aunt works hard to forget her own losses. While ne More...

I'm always on the lookout for new plots and time periods, and this book about a 16-year old girl living through the Pandemic of 1918--the Spanish Flu--during World War I, and the Spiritualism craze, peaked my interest. Mary Shelley Black moves from Portland Oregon to San Diego to live with her maternal Aunt Eva, after her father is jailed for anti-war activities. When she learns her childhood crush and good friend Stephen Embers died in the trenches in France, an act of desperation leaves her wi More...

I have to admit that what drew me to this title was the cover. In the Shadow is a great read. It is a historical novel with a touch of paranormal that is devoid of zombies, but imagines an end of the world situation that was very real. In 1918 a flu was killing by the thousands all over the US at the same time our boys were dying in trenches in the European theater of WWI. It examines the spiritualistic activities of the society: seances, spirit photography, and experiments to weight the soul at More...

This historical YA novel has three key elements that made it unique: San Diego setting, flu pandemic, and ghosts. Sold! Throw in a WWI element and I was hooked. Mary Shelley Black (get it, Mary Shelley?) is sent to live with her Aunt in San Diego after her father is arrested for treason, her mother long since passed. There is a spiritualism craze in the country, not unrelated to the war and flu. I thought this was fascinating, that there was a huge surge in ghost hunting, ghost photographs, et c More...

Looks like it is a fabulous read. Saw in on BookList Online

Apr. 2013. 304p. illus. Grades 9-12.

REVIEW. First published April 15, 2013

In the Shadow of Blackbirds.

Winters, Cat (author).

Apr. 2013. 304p. illus. Abrams/Amulet, hardcover, $16.95 (9781419705304). Grades 9-12.
REVIEW. First published April 15, 2013 (Booklist).

Winters’ debut ropes in the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918, WWI shell shock, national prejudice, and spirit photography, and yet never loses focus from its primary thesis: desperatio More...

I wanted to read IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS because of the creepy cover and evocative title. I didn't really know anything about the story when I began. But wow, what a story it is.

Mary Shelley Black travels to live with her Aunt Eva in San Diego after her father is imprisoned. The First World War is in full swing, the young men going off to war and many never returning, or only returning in pieces. But not all is peaceful at home, because in 1918 there was a major influenza outbreak. People ar More...

Huge points to "In The Shadow of Blackbirds" for originality, I don't think I've ever read anything quite like it. The setting is the year 1918, Spanish Flu is raging, grief for the many lost in the Great War is overwhelming, and fear is rampant. A belief in spiritualism takes over the grief-stricken, making them the prey of a variety of con artists. Any sort of criticism of the war is taken for treason and harshly dealt with, spreading even more fear. And the flu has such presence that it nearl More...

Keith for www.bigbooklittlebook.com
Copy provided by publisher in exchange for an honest review

The story begins with a long train journey from Portland to San Diego. Mary Shelley is moving to live with her aunt because her father was arrested and her mother had passed away some time ago. The train stinks of onions (widely believed at the time to prevent flu), and everyone is hiding behind their masks, mortally afraid of every cough and sneeze. Mary Shelley passes the time reading letters from her More...

Review by Beth

In the Shadows of Blackbirds is set in 1918 and immediately I think of World War One and trench warfare. It didn’t even cross my mind to think about the Spanish influenza epidemic yet it did cross Cat Winter’s mind and this novel centres on this, as well as the spiritual photography obsession which also gripped the times.

This novel is far from happy or pleasant, it’s packed full of horrifying events, morbid tales and basically shows 1918 for the terrible year that it was. It’s an i More...

"The day before my father's arrest, I read an article about a mother who cured her daughter of the Spanish flu by burying her in raw onions for three days."

So begins In the Shadow of Blackbirds. The reek of onions follows you and Winters fills this atmospheric story with the colors of bodies turning purple and black from the flu, the smells in hospitals and veterans' homes and the smell of people with onions around their necks and the sight of people with salt stuffed in their noses and wearing More...

I thought the description of the book was absolutely fascinating and was really excited to read it but unfortunately it didn't live up to my expectations. yes, the sense of drama and suspense is super thick and almost tangible and you certainly wan to keep flipping pages, but I found myself taken out of the story at times because of the weird mix of supernatural and possibly realistic. My favorite parts ended up even being those that were realistic, but even those were hard to keep faith in. The More...

Mary Shelley lives at a very difficult time. After she arrives in San Diego to live with her aunt, sixteen year old Mary realizes that southern California isn't any different than Portland: World War I is still raging and the Spanish flu is sneaking into everyone's lives, one way or another. When she gets word that the boy she loved and sent off to war has died, suddenly the spiritualism she's been mocking takes on a different meaning. In a world where photographs tell false tales and the horror More...

I was given this book by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. I award this book 3.5 stars.

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters takes place in 1918, a time of war, terror, and desperation. WWI is going on as well as the Great Influenza outbreak, and our nation has taken on an almost dystopian landscape. The star of this book is Mary Shelley, aptly named in this sort of Gothic book, who has travelled to live with her aunt after her father is thrown in jail. She is in love with a boy, More...