Song of the Sea
Set in the 1290s, Song of the Sea was inspired by the Mermaid of Zennor legend and relates the enchanting and atmospheric story of Thomas Carrow. Living an isolated existence on the hill above the Cornish village of Zennor, Thomas is shunned, feared and rejected by the villagers below. Alone, save for his dog Shenty and Bersaba, the wise woman, Thomas Carrow’s loneliness is heart wrenching, but a chance discovery on the beach one morning changes his life irrevocably.
The reader will find the start of this novel meticulous in its detail and extremely slow, but I think this is deliberate on the part of the author as the well-devised pace manages to truly impart the harrowing loneliness of Thomas Carrow – and this is essential as the novel unfolds. Edwin Page’s words are beautiful, eloquent, absorbing, and in places this novel is utter literary perfection. It is rare that I am surprised by a novel’s ending, but this one took turns that I did not foresee, and became a novel I just could not put down.
Although set specifically in the 1290s, I found it had a timeless quality to it that could have seen it played out in any period. A very beautiful and extremely well written novel that I highly recommend.
