Perry’s characters, while diverse and clever in their own way, are something I’m mixed on. The swallows have gone, but down on the saltings swans menace dogs and children in the creeks.’ On Aldwinter common the oaks shine copper in the sunblast the hedgerows are scarlet with berries. ‘On turns the tilted world, and the starry hunter walks the Essex sky with his old dog at his heels. Every description is exquisitely crafted in a way that allows you to wallow in Essex’s coastal landscape, with scenes of dreamlike renderings presenting nature at its best:

The glowing reviews and accolades that this book has received attest to the skillfulness of Perry’s atmospheric writing. While he is determined that the rumours are a result of moral panic, the ongoing troubles in the village challenge his views, and an unexpected friendship develops between Cora and Will both rewarding and destructive to those around them. Meanwhile, the local vicar William Ransome is fighting a losing battle against the rising fears of his parishioners. When she learns of the Essex Serpent, a mythical sea creature said to be responsible for a mysterious death in the remote village of Aldwinter, her curiosity piques and she sets off in the hopes of discovering a new species. The story centres around Cora Seabourne, a young widow and keen amateur naturalist who decides to travel away from London with her son and female companion. Such is true in Sarah Perry’s Victorian novel, The Essex Serpent – an exploration of the human mind and self when faced with the complexities of love, society, and belief. Relationships, in all its forms, can be fickle things, constantly surprising us in ways that we don’t always want or expect. This book has just been awarded Fiction Book of the Year at the British Book Awards

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