This is one of those rare books I totally fall in love with and know I will be buying at least three hardcovers when it’s published. Not to mention all the easy promoting I will be doing. What a beautiful story filled with gorgeous descriptions of the woods, the island, the cottages, the characters and especially the birds. Crows are important to my family. Our mother kept them fed and watered especially in the cold Wisconsin winters. I love the layered story lines of the characters and their strengths and weaknesses. Just a lovely read that I am thankful to have a chance to read and share with others.

This was a marvelous read. The melding of two totally different women, dealing with life issues on their own, into a gratifying friendship is beautifully done. Just like her previous novel, The Music of Bees, I immersed myself into the idiosyncrasies of a a breed of bird that doesn’t get much recognition for their smartness, their family bonding, and their ability to communicate. What amazing creatures they are!

I highly recommend this book. See if you don’t find yourself looking at crows in a different light. I did.

I wanted to love this book, but sadly, it was not for me. The story didn't interest me after a few chapters of birds communicating. I can see how some will love it though. The cover is gorgeous. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Three stars.

This book is about exactly what the title says: crow communication. If there’s anything you want to know about how crows communicate with each other, this is the book for you!

Having thoroughly enjoyed the story of human characters in The Music of Bees, I was eager to read another book by Eileen Garvin. Yes, there are human characters in Crow Talk, but they’re not the point of the book. The whole point of the book is about how crows (birds) communicate.

The plot (involving people) moved very slowly. It was repetitive and, quite frankly, boring. The reader was told the same thing, multiple times and often using the same words. The book is long. Was there a climax? Not really. It just droned on to the end and suddenly the light shined, leopards changed their spots and everyone lived happily ever after.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I did finish it, but only because I had enjoyed The Music of Bees so much.

I appreciate what the author was trying to do with this book but for me it was a little too slow paced. I love nature but have a hard time reading descriptions of it so I had a hard time engaging.

I absolutely adored this book—from the gorgeous PNW setting to the characters and critters that inhabit it—I wasn’t ready for Crow Talk to come to an end.

Really looking forward to this book being out in the world next spring!

Thank you so much to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️½

Content Warnings:
- 1 f word and a handful of Irish curses
- Loss of a parent

I have mixed feelings about this book. I thought the writing was good, and the emotions of the characters were relatable, which I found refreshing. I also enjoyed the friendship and the many bird facts woven throughout. I did find parts of this book to be dragging, confusing, and hard to stay engaged. This book time jumps a lot, I found Anne's POV to be confusing, and I would catch myself having to back up and reread to get back on track of what was happening in the present time. Frankie also had time jumps, but I found it much harder to keep up with Anne for some reason. I felt some of these jumps could have been omitted as they were not always necessary. The folklore chapters did not interest me at all, and I did not find them relevant to the story. The last 45% of the book is when I really got into it and couldn't put it down. Truly, the best part of the book was the later part. Overall, I found this book to be slow and slightly disappointing. However, I would still recommend Crow Talk to others looking for a heartfelt read of life, loss, and friendship.

Thank you, NetGalley and Penguin/Dutton, for the opportunity to read and review this ARC copy.

Eileen Garvin does a fantastic job with writing this, it had everything that I was hoping for when reading this. I enjoyed getting to know the main characters and enjoyed that they felt like real people. It had a beautifully done concept and worked well overall.

A slow, but engaging read . Unfortunately due to time retstraints I read this book quickly, but it is really a book to take slowly and savour along the way. I suppose this book is about grief , but it is also about relationships with family and friends and communication .Both Anne and Frankie have their own far reaching problems in their work and personal lives when they meet each other iat a remote location inWashington state. This book is written from each of their viewpoints in turn . The writing is believable and thoughtful . Descriptions of the wildlife and countryside interesting and well done.
Thanks to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. I hope to reread this book sometime

I was to vacation to the shores of June Lake! I love a good read that makes you feel like you are right there within the setting descriptions. As an animal lover this was such a heartfelt read!

Thank you Netgalley!

CROW TALK is a well-crafted women's fiction story about resilience and healing. As the main character, Frankie immediately engages the reader with her quiet grief. When Anne and Aiden show up, the plot really gets going. This is not a fast-paced or action-filled story, but readers looking for an introspective story about the healing power of nature and human connection will enjoy this one.

I also enjoyed the facts about nature (especially crows) and folklore.

The setting is vividly portrayed.

The ending wraps up things nicely and provides a satisfying conclusion.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary e-galley; all opinions in this review are my own.

Crow Talk by Eileen Garvin is a moving story. A journey toward hope, healing, and rediscovering joy.
The writing was great, the storyline was perfectly weaved. I could feel every emotion as the character was, almost like I was going through everything with them.
A wonderful little story of love, grief and friendship.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Dutton for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

Brilliant! Crow Talk touched a part of my injured spirit that needed to be touched. Thank you, Eileen Garvin, for weaving this lovely tapestry of feeling. I loved the way ornithology and mythology were used in the story. Excellent read.

There was a lot of narrative distance, which does not engage me personally. It was easy to read but it wasn’t the most gripping. I stopped after chapter 1 (4%) I don’t see it going over as well with our readers.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for the ARC.

Gosh, I really loved this book! I’m always attracted to books of the heart, those books that delve into the thoughts and actions of deeply human characters and leave me feeling like I understand a little something about people that I didn’t before. This book hit me in all the right places!

Eileen Garvin’s powerful writing drew me right in to Frankie’s quiet agony. She’s a deep thinking young woman dealing with a life that’s been upended by the stark realities of the world. Who can’t relate to that?

Frankie’s captivated by birds and has retreated to her family’s beloved lake house in the Pacific NW to tie up loose ends on her thesis about owls but also to deal with her life that is spinning out of control. Yet once there, her solitude is interrupted by Anne and Aiden, a grieving mom with a young son who has concerning developmental delays. Both women are looking for hope and healing, and the balm of nature and friendship gives each of them strength in unique ways. I immediately wished for my own lake house to retreat to and do a little birdwatching (or probably just read more books!).

The story kept me avidly turning pages and I enjoyed Garvin’s fluid intermingling of facts about crows, folklore and music. Crows are way more interesting than I ever realized! Garvin cleverly shows us the complex world of these highly intelligent and social birds and how it informs and mirrors the human struggles of her characters. I had to relay to my husband all the fascinating tidbits about crows as I read along!

This is a well-written book that was a joy to read. My only reason for 4 stars rather than 5 is that while it’s a good book and well worth reading, I wouldn’t say it’s a masterpiece or one I would read over and again. The conflicts wrapped up a little too neatly for me and I wanted the tension with secondary characters to be explored and played out more thoroughly. I would happily recommend Crow Talk to friend’s looking for a an interesting, heart-warming read!

*This ARC was generously provided to me by Penguin Group/ Dutton Books in exchange for my honest review!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the opportunity to read Crow Talk by Eileen Garvin.

I love this book.

I cried, I smiled, and loved the hopefulness I felt for these lovely characters. The writer helped me feel like I was right there in that beautiful serene little corner of the world.