Secrets at the Aviary Inn

She arrives in York with a boyfriend, a backpack, and a photograph her mother never explained.

Within twenty-four hours, the boyfriend's gone — and Sophie Groenveld is alone in a foreign country with no money, no passport, and nowhere to turn. What saves her is a stranger's kindness, a job offer with no questions asked, and an inn unlike anything she's ever seen.

The Aviary Inn is beautiful and faded, presided over by the quietly enigmatic Ava Roxtoby — a woman who tends her birds with tender devotion, keeps the world at a careful distance, and carries her grief the way old houses carry their history: silently, in the walls. Sophie, who's always been drawn to other people's stories, cannot leave her alone.

As the summer unfolds, Sophie follows a thread of clues through the cobbled streets of York, the quiet of the Lake District, and the long-buried history of wartime London — slowly realising that the connection between herself, Ava, and that unexplained photograph runs far deeper than coincidence.

For readers of Kate Morton and Susanna Kearsley — a warm, immersive story about the secrets families keep across generations, and what it costs to finally tell the truth.

Some secrets protect us. Some imprison us. And some, when finally spoken, set two people free.

"Satisfyingly predictable in the best possible way." — NetGalley reviewer ★★★★★

"Addictive... engaging prose." — Kirkus Reviews

"Beautifully written with a gentle, reflective tone... emotional depth and heartfelt moments." — B&N reviewer

A CIBA Somerset Prize Finalist & Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist 2025 — from the award-winning author of The Art of Enchantment