No, she thought: no, I cannot.' The story seeps slowly like the creeping tide of the estuary and those looking for a gripping read or a supernatural thriller will be disappointed. 'You are a solipsist, Mrs Seaborne - can you really not imagine that I might take a path which differs from yours and be happy walking there? 'And has Essex yielded any fossils? I saw in the papers some new species was unearthed up on the Norfolk coast after a winter storm: sometimes I think we must be walking on shoals of bodies without realising it and all the earth's a graveyard.' The locals believe the Essex serpent is responsible for a drowning and other mysterious events and an eerie atmosphere is created that has varying impacts on our characters. It's not long before she learns of the Essex serpent. Cora is searching for fossils and loves being in the outdoors enjoying her newly discovered freedom. The Essex Serpent is a slow moving meandering novel, with the characters orbiting around each other. The narrative soon moves to Essex where Cora meets the local vicar William Ransome and his family in their little community.

This historical fiction novel begins in London 1893 where we meet recently widowed Cora Seaborne and her son Cora's companion and Cora's Doctor friend and his colleague. I received this gorgeous copy of The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry for Christmas last year and decided now was the perfect time to read it.

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