The Mermaid of Black Conch
The spellbinding winner of the Costa Book of the Year as read on BBC Radio 4
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- 37,99 zł
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- 37,99 zł
Publisher Description
Escape to the ocean with the entrancing, unforgettable winner of the Costa Book of the Year - as read on BBC Radio 4.
* PRE-ORDER MONIQUE ROFFEY'S NEW NOVEL, PASSIONTIDE, NOW *
'Mesmerising' MAGGIE O'FARRELL
'A unique talent' BERNARDINE EVARISTO
'Wonderful' BRIDGET COLLINS
'Brilliant' CLARE CHAMBERS
Near the island of Black Conch, a fisherman sings to himself while waiting for a catch. But David attracts a sea-dweller that he never expected - Aycayia, an innocent young woman cursed by jealous wives to live as a mermaid.
When American tourists capture Aycayia, David rescues her and vows to win her trust. Slowly, painfully, she transforms into a woman again. Yet as their love grows, they discover that the world around them is changing - and they cannot escape the curse for ever . . .
'A bittersweet love story . . . A joy to read' BBC News
'A fiercely modern mermaid story' The Times
'Wondrous . . . A striking achievement' Sunday Times
'Not your standard mermaid' MARGARET ATWOOD
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Roffey (The Tryst) spins a vivid phantasmagorical fairy tale based on a pre-Columbian Taino legend. In 1976, a white Floridian banker and his son take a fishing expedition off a fictional Caribbean island called Black Conch. Instead of a marlin, they hook a mermaid with Indigenous complexion and tattoos. The father imagines selling her to a museum or to Sea World. David Baptiste, a dreadlocked local fisherman who has previously serenaded the inquisitive creature, looks on in horror as the men stick her with a gaffing hook and knock her unconscious. That night, David cuts her bonds and takes her to his home. He means to return her to the sea as soon as possible, but while she is lying in salt water in David's bathtub, she transforms into a young woman and the two become lovers. It turns out the mermaid, whose name is Aycayia, is not only in danger of being returned to the Americans by the authorities, but is subjected to a 1,000-year-old curse. As Aycayia acclimates to life on land and she and David fall in love, the pair must navigate a host of perils and determine if there's a future for Aycayia outside the sea—and, if so, what it would be. With a lilting patois and rollicking prose, Roffey evokes the Antillean settings, characters, and culture. This makes for an entrancing siren song.
