Yiannis is a poacher, trapping the tiny protected songbirds that stop in Cyprus as they migrate each year from Africa to Europe and selling them on the black market. He dreams of finding a new way of life, and of marrying Nisha, who works on the island as a nanny and maid--having left her native Sri Lanka to try to earn enough to support her daughter, left behind and raised by relatives.

But Nisha has vanished; one evening, she steps out on a mysterious errand and doesn't return. The police write off her disappearance as just another runaway domestic worker, so her employer, Petra, undertakes the investigation.

Petra's unravelling of Nisha's last days in Cyprus lead her to Nisha's friends--other maids in the neighborhood--and to the darker side of a migrant's life, where impossible choices leave them vulnerable, captive, and worse.

Based on the real-life disappearance of domestic workers in Cyprus, Christy Lefteri has crafted a poignant, deeply empathetic narrative of the human stories behind the headlines. With infinite tenderness and skill, Songbirds offers a triumphant story of the fight for truth and justice, and of women reclaiming their lost voices.

Utterly beautiful and mesmerising. A very poignant novel about the power of the human spirit and deep deep love.Also, an eye opener in regards to foreign domestic workers in Cyprus that was sad and shocking and unfortunately based on a facts.

Kinedi's Female authors bookbox #2

Happy reading

Picked out of the Bookbox for Yogiberri.

Going to Yogiberri

Very happy recipient of this book during a birthday visit from the lovely Poodlesister.

Compassionately told and very informative as to how poorly some of our fellow sisters are undervalued and mistreated.