Title: The Essex Serpent
Author: Sarah Perry
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 416
Rating: 4/5
Summary:
Set in Victorian England in an Essex village that is engulfed in rumours of a mythical creature roaming the sea, this is a story that centres around two people who fall for each other, but not in the conventional way.
Review:
One of the most loved books I'd heard of from last year, I had sky high expectations for this book.
And it was a very good book indeed. It explores the balance between science and superstition, as well as friendship and romantic love, and it does this beautifully. It's wildly atmospheric, slightly creepy in parts and wonderfully eerie, as well as having a certain warmth to it.
The writing is astounding. It's beautiful, it sets the scenes vividly and you truly feel transported back in time in all ways; not just with the setting, but with the people and the themes as well. It's all very well crafted. And the characters! They're superbly conceived, fully fleshed out and I found most of them fascinating to read about. It's an exciting book as well, though I will admit some of the subplots struggled to keep my attention through the entire book.
I do think my expectations were slightly too high though and without being able to pinpoint what's missing, it's not a new favorite. It's up there though, with the better books I've read and it really is a must read if you like historical fiction.
You can get this book at Waterstones in this particular edition, or in another edition at The Book Depository*
You can read more about it on Goodreads
Author: Sarah Perry
Published: 2016
Language: English
Pages: 416
Rating: 4/5
Summary:
Set in Victorian England in an Essex village that is engulfed in rumours of a mythical creature roaming the sea, this is a story that centres around two people who fall for each other, but not in the conventional way.
Review:
One of the most loved books I'd heard of from last year, I had sky high expectations for this book.
And it was a very good book indeed. It explores the balance between science and superstition, as well as friendship and romantic love, and it does this beautifully. It's wildly atmospheric, slightly creepy in parts and wonderfully eerie, as well as having a certain warmth to it.
The writing is astounding. It's beautiful, it sets the scenes vividly and you truly feel transported back in time in all ways; not just with the setting, but with the people and the themes as well. It's all very well crafted. And the characters! They're superbly conceived, fully fleshed out and I found most of them fascinating to read about. It's an exciting book as well, though I will admit some of the subplots struggled to keep my attention through the entire book.
I do think my expectations were slightly too high though and without being able to pinpoint what's missing, it's not a new favorite. It's up there though, with the better books I've read and it really is a must read if you like historical fiction.
You can read more about it on Goodreads
*AFFILIATE LINK
