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Snake Ropes

3.57 of 5 stars 3.57 · rating details · 145 ratings · 42 reviews

Set on an isolated island off the Scottish coast, in a community run by women who are in awe of a mysterious structure called the Thrashing House, the novel is narrated by two teenage girls in very different circumstances. Mary is doing her best to protect her younger brother, Barney, as the island' s sons are mysteriously disappearing. Morgan is scheming to escape the pri...more

Hardcover, 352 pages

Published May 10th 2012 by Sceptre (first published 2012)

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Jan 20, 2013 Blair rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, ghostly-and-magical, read-on-kindle, 2012-release

Snake Ropes is Jess Richards' debut, and it's one of the most original, exciting first novels I've read in quite some time. Set entirely on an extremely remote island somewhere off the coast of Scotland (the exact location is hinted at but remains obscure, much like the time period in which the story takes place), it depicts a tiny community sustained by traditional trade with the 'tall men' who visit from the mainland. While one interpretation might see this as simply an old-fashioned and super...more Snake Ropes is Jess Richards' debut, and it's one of the most original, exciting first novels I've read in quite some time. Set entirely on an extremely remote island somewhere off the coast of Scotland (the exact location is hinted at but remains obscure, much like the time period in which the story takes place), it depicts a tiny community sustained by traditional trade with the 'tall men' who visit from the mainland. While one interpretation might see this as simply an old-fashioned and superstitious society, there are hints of real magic. Mysterious (and apparently dangerous) ropes are bundled up and left on the beach without explanation, ghosts are seen and the voices of the dead heard, an owl with a woman's face acts as a harbinger of doom, and above all there is the dominance of the Thrashing House, an ancient building where liars and criminals are sent to have the truth 'thrashed out' of them. The narrative switches between two teenage girls living in circumstances as different as one could find in a place like this. Mary, born and brought up on the island, lives in a cottage with her father and creates 'broideries' for a living: she is preoccupied with protecting her three-year-old brother, Barney. Morgan, part of the only family not native to the island, is kept under lock and key by her troubled mother in a house encircled by a giant pink fence: obsessed with fairytales, she dreams only of escape.

The island is a fascinating place, and not just because it seems to possess magical qualities. It appears to be an almost entirely female-dominated society, with women portrayed as the decision-makers, the political leaders, and the only ones able to enforce the island's 'law' by sending wrong-doers to the Thrashing House. Women are taught to read and write (and almost all of the island's own legends involve women only), but men are not, and indeed they are often implied to be virtually useless. (When Mary's father is sent to the Thrashing House, this is reinforced by his physical transformation - becoming a literal embodiment of uselessness.) At the beginning of the story, boys are vanishing from the island, but despite some instances of personal anguish, this issue is largely brushed under the carpet and treated as if it doesn't really matter - Mary is repeatedly told she should just forget about Barney.

Each girl speaks with a unique and distinctive voice. Mary's incorporates elements of dialect (although it is still easy to read) and is rich with the history and culture of the island. Morgan's is ostensibly more intelligent, but the way she interprets her surroundings highlights her lack of experience with real life. Both display sparks of humour, cleverly placed to diffuse the rather bleak atmosphere created by the island's isolation and the lack of opportunities for its inhabitants, and the girls' ignorance of the world at large makes for moments of both pathos and amusement. Discussing 'main land fashions', Mary observes that 'a few years back... the tall men wanted jumpers full of holes called the grunge, but now them want cable or ribbed'. Meanwhile, Morgan ruminates that (in fairytales) 'the arrival of the prince is at best suspicious, and at worst sinister'. Although she isn't without an ability to question the logic of happy endings, Morgan's whole world is seen through the prism of the tales she has spent her life reading, and she can only make sense of her experiences outside the family home by turning them into myth-like stories. Upon meeting Mary, she asks seriously of Barney's disappearance: 'Have you looked carefully at animals? He could have been transformed - into a mouse, or a rat, or a bat, even a small cow?'

The significance of myth is illuminated most powerfully in how each girl chooses to deal with her suffering. Morgan portrays herself, in both thoughts and words, as the central character of a fairytale, someone who must escape, who will be rescued. Mary hears Barney's voice whispering to her through a shell, and later sees her 'shadow self' appear as she struggles to deal with the aftermath of an attack. Ultimately, language proves crucial in the resolution of every thread of the plot. The women punish those held in the Thrashing House by 'stripping away' their name, chanting it until they have 'no words to hide behind'. Mary dispels her pain by writing of her experiences and refusing to let herself name what has happened to her, and therefore refusing to let herself be defined by damage. Morgan unravels the mystery of Mary's past, long banished from memory, by unlocking the secrets hidden inside a diary.

The real genius of Snake Ropes is that the author plunges you into a quite fantastical world yet always maintains a sense of realism strong enough to keep you anchored to the story. Full of fascinating layers of meaning, and blessed with two thoroughly sympathetic protagonists, this is an excellent debut. There is little wrong with it, and my only real complaint would be that the pacing sometimes doesn't seem quite right - although I found the story engrossing, I wouldn't say I was compelled enough to keep going back to it at every opportunity, or that I couldn't stop thinking about it. Maybe I felt this way because the narrative is sometimes a little too fragmented: alternate chapters are narrated by Mary and Morgan, the chapters are fairly short, and the two don't come into contact with one another for quite some time. Despite this minor flaw, this is a book that deserves to be hugely successful and widely read - and I really hope it is. It's accomplished, evocative and totally unique, and Jess Richards has been firmly added to my growing list of authors to watch closely in future.(less)

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Apr 12, 2012 Emma Shortt rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I would never have picked this book up in the shop, never. It's far from what I'd usually read and I'm always a bit suspicious of books dubbed 'literary delight', 'evocatively beautiful' etc. So it was with a bit of a frown that this came out the review envelope. I thought I'd give it a few pages and if it was as boring as I suspected I'd leave it at that.

The first page threw me, I won't lie. The author has a very unique style and I thought, at first, that it was going to put me off. I was wrong...more I would never have picked this book up in the shop, never. It's far from what I'd usually read and I'm always a bit suspicious of books dubbed 'literary delight', 'evocatively beautiful' etc. So it was with a bit of a frown that this came out the review envelope. I thought I'd give it a few pages and if it was as boring as I suspected I'd leave it at that.

The first page threw me, I won't lie. The author has a very unique style and I thought, at first, that it was going to put me off. I was wrong. In no time it becomes par for the course. You anticipate the style and before long you just take it in. Oddly for me, because I'm not keen on books that insist on this, I actually enjoyed it. It gave a real richness to one of our heroines, Mary. I say one because this book is filled with heroines. Morgan who has the opposing POV fascinated me. There are parts in her inner narration where I was swept into this place with her and it took my breath away. How did the author find those combination of words, I found myself wondering. How?? I don't even need to tell you what I mean, because when you read it you will know instantly what bits I'm referring to. There are other characters, such as Morgan's mother who intrigued me, and Mary's grandmother--I adored her. The book is just chokablock with these strong female figures and they're all somehow so believable.

The men however do not fare as well. If there was any weakness in this story it is here. The male characters were simply there. They didn't add to anything or detract from it, they were just there...well all but one, but he was so loathsome I shan't waste my writing time on him.

The story itself? Well it was a strange blend of fairy tale and real life, all swept together and made utterly believable. Jess has created this little island, quite literally, filled with characters that automatically become so real. And the twist? Well I was filling up as I read that bit, my heart clenching and my fingers tightening on the page.

So how wrong was I? Boring? Far from it. And no doubt you're wondering what the heck I'm talking about? Style? Twist? Huh? Well I'm not going to tell you because if you read any book this year it has to be Snake Ropes. It simply has to be.

You'll be left wanting more, desperate to drop back in five years down the line to see how Mary and Morgan are faring. I can guarantee it. (less)

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Feb 28, 2013 Justina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The reason I rated this book with only three stars, was because it took almost a quarter of the book for me to really get into it. And yes, after a quarter things started to be more up-beat, a little interesting, but it still had it's dull moments.

That's really the only complaint I have about this very unique novel, although I did find the context a little hard to understand. Is it in the future, past? Where did these people come from, how did they get here? Maybe those questions aren't suppose...more

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Mar 09, 2013 Sharon Cataldo rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, post-apocalyptic

I had to push through the first page, the voice of Mary with her uneducated speech was a bit annoying first and I thought that a whole bok on the first person with that grammar would spoil the enjoyment, but once through that first page, I couldn't put it down! Told through alternate voices, Mary and Morgan are young women in their late teens living on a remote island. Mary lives with her father and brother making a living on trading her broideries with the tall men, traders from a less primitiv...more

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Jul 18, 2012 Jane rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Step inside this book and you will find yourself on, a wild island, far from the Scottish coast. It is a world apart, where people live as people in isolated communities have for many centuries. They farm, they fished, and they make things that they might trade with passing travellers.

Those travellers came often, `tall men in black coats' from the mainland, and yet the islanders never left. I wouldn't want to leave, even though I might be a little scared if I stayed. Jess Richards has created a...more Step inside this book and you will find yourself on, a wild island, far from the Scottish coast. It is a world apart, where people live as people in isolated communities have for many centuries. They farm, they fished, and they make things that they might trade with passing travellers.

Those travellers came often, `tall men in black coats' from the mainland, and yet the islanders never left. I wouldn't want to leave, even though I might be a little scared if I stayed. Jess Richards has created a wonderful world; real, alive, magical and strange.

It is the stories of two young women that bring it to life.

Mary was born into an island family, but her family is shrinking. First her mother was lost to her, and then Barney, her beloved infant brother. She knew he was still there, she heard his voice in the world around her, but she couldn't see him. What secrets was her father keeping from her? Had the tall men taken him? Or was he in the mysterious Thrashing House, a building every bit as sinister as its name suggests? She had to find out.

Morgan was born on the mainland, but her parents ran away from something, and they fled to the island. They built a fortress and they raised their children behind barricades. Morgan, and her younger twin sisters could see out, but they couldn't get out.What was her family doing on the island? What might there be outside the barricades? She had to find out.

And so two stories are told in two voices. They work together and balance each other beautifully. And, of course, they meet

I was wonderfully torn, by the writing and the storytelling. I wanted to linger. To luxuriate in beautiful prose, as light as air, rich with wonderful images, wrapped around so many intriguing ideas. But I also wanted to keep turning the pages, I wanted to keep hearing those two wonderful voices, and I wanted to uncover those secrets, answer those questions every bit as much as Mary and Morgan.

I was caught up, completely and utterly. The stories flowed perfectly. The twist, when it came, was devastating. And the book as whole is quite extraordinary.

There is magic - a child's toy speaks, an embroidered bird takes flight, a key has a mind of its own - and it illuminates serious themes - pain and healing, the roles women play, the consequences of keeping secrets - so very, very effectively.

You could just read a wonderful inventive story, or you could stop and ponder the many things it says so very eloquently as well.

I can see the influences - Angela Carter and Margaret Atwood are, quite rightly named - but I can also see that Jess Richards has absorbed them and then moved on to create something of her own that is quite unique.

It is an extraordinarily accomplished debut novel, and I am thrilled at the prospect of what she might go on to write in the future.(less)

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Mar 13, 2013 Cassandra Lewis rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Caroline Denby

Shelves: fiction, favorites, read-again

I enjoyed this book, which deals with powerful themes in an interesting manner, using magical ideas to explain genuine psychological issues. I read it in two long sittings because I couldn't put it down, though I admit to finding Mary's story more engrossing than Morgan's, who seemed, to me, more plot device than genuine character.

Both girls live on an imaginary island, through which the author has created an unusual world that I found it remarkably easy to immerse myself in, especially consider...more

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Mar 29, 2013 Garry rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Thoughts crash around in my head, all fighting to be chosen... (p216)

My first thought as I review this book is that there was a hell of a lot going on. It was almost as if the author had a million and one concepts floating in her mind, threw them on the ground like a set of pick-up-sticks, and then picked them up and carefully placed them on the pages of her first novel. It's not the novel is incoherent - but it is perhaps a little too busy.

The book begins with two stories:
(1) Mary lives on a...more

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Feb 07, 2013 Celeste rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book could use a trigger warning for (view spoiler) — I probably wouldn't have read it had I known where the story was going to go, and especially not that (view spoiler). But that wasn't my only problem with it. I really enjoyed a lot of the ties to Scottish mythology/folklore, and would probably like a collection of thes...more

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Apr 10, 2013 Lee Razer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism

The story of two teenage girls on a very remote Scottish island incorporates a good deal of myth and magic and is fairly enjoyable if you like that sort of thing (I generally do), but it has some problems.

Mary lives with her Da and 3 year old Barney after her mother died in the recent past. They survive by trading Mary's embroideries and her father's fishing catches to the "tall men" who visit their island and trade them food, candles, and other items. When Barney becomes the latest in a string...more The story of two teenage girls on a very remote Scottish island incorporates a good deal of myth and magic and is fairly enjoyable if you like that sort of thing (I generally do), but it has some problems.

Mary lives with her Da and 3 year old Barney after her mother died in the recent past. They survive by trading Mary's embroideries and her father's fishing catches to the "tall men" who visit their island and trade them food, candles, and other items. When Barney becomes the latest in a string of boys to disappear from the island after the tall men have visited, Mary is driven to try to find him, and in the process remembers some harrowing repressed memories.

Morgan lives with her parents and sisters behind a 13 foot high fence which is always locked closed by her mother. They are the only non-natives on the island, having fled from the mainland. Her mother is deeply troubled with anxiety and persecution complexes, and Morgan reads fairy tales and dreams of escaping her prison. When she gets out, she runs into Mary and sort of bumbles around the island, acting as a witness to developing events.

Fantastical elements include the Thrashing House, a building which a tree on the island formed itself into on its own initiative and which kills anyone put in there, transforming them into a physical object with symbolic meaning. The island's women, the power brokers, use it to punish transgressors and criminals.

Mary is able to recall the memories of people who have previously held metal keys when she has those keys in her hands. Also one of the main characters of the novel turns out to be a Selkie and abruptly disappears when she finds her lost seal skin and returns to the sea, presumably losing all interest in the mystery of the missing boys. Bye then.

Problems include dropped plot points. A couple of instances are provided of women seeming to go mad because the Thrashing House key has disappeared and no one can get in to the bell tower attached to it to ring the bells which are said to take away the dreams of the sleeping. No bells means no escaping dreams, which is a problem? But then that's dropped and we don't hear any more about that idea. Nevermind.

The missing boys are traded for by the tall men, who take them to the mainland for... some reason. I don't know why. Seems odd they'd give up trading goods out of benevolence so the boys could go get educated in larger society, it runs counter to their cold business like approach, but that seems to be the best argument presented. Doesn't make much sense.

I was also bothered by how this island could exist in such isolation. We're not told what time period this is, but clues are given that indicate it is pretty close to the current day. The island may be remote, but it's not unknown... islands off Scotland aren't exactly well hidden... the tall men trade with it and sail around, so word would get out. Some of the boys from the island went to the mainland. So... how can there be total absence of things like tourists, and national government, and such? I doubt very much any mainland government would leave law and order on the island up to women putting people into a Thrashing House that kills them as the means of maintaining law.(less)

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Jun 03, 2012 Pamela Detlor rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Snake Ropes is a haunting work of fiction. Jess Richards delivers an original, page-turner, for her debut outing!
Set on an isolated island off the coast of Scotland, the community has no desire to leave their little slice of the world. Their means of survival is self-sufficiency and the monthly trades they make with, “the men in black coats,” from the mainland.

“No-one here goes to the main land, and no-one wants to. Our boats aren’t strong enough, we dun know the way, them can’t understand us, w...more

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Jun 13, 2012 Brittany rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: People who enjoy folk tales

Shelves: dystopian, fantasy, fiction, literary-fiction

How I Came To Read This Book: I think those folks over at Harper Collins talked about it on Facebook or something. It sounded intriguing so I got it from the library.

The Plot: The book is told from two alternating viewpoints, both of which are young women living on a mysterious island in a dystopian / fantasy near-future. Mary Jared is sixteen years old and afraid for the safety of her brother, Barney, when other young boys on the island go missing - purportedly traded to the men that come in fr...more How I Came To Read This Book: I think those folks over at Harper Collins talked about it on Facebook or something. It sounded intriguing so I got it from the library.

The Plot: The book is told from two alternating viewpoints, both of which are young women living on a mysterious island in a dystopian / fantasy near-future. Mary Jared is sixteen years old and afraid for the safety of her brother, Barney, when other young boys on the island go missing - purportedly traded to the men that come in from the mainland with goods to sell. When Mary finds herself quite alone, she tries to find answers using her special gift - the ability to hear memories embedded in metal. Morgan is eighteen and also living on the island, but in a locked-up 'safe house' with her family, the island's 'educated' undertakers that arrived from the mainland many moons ago. Morgan's head is constantly buried in books, her only escape from her very small and Cinderella-esque world, and all she wants to do is escape and see what's beyond the monumental fence surrounding her place. The two girls stories eventually collide, as they both seek freedom from whatever's been dragging them down. There's SO much more to it than that, a lot of folk tales and ghost story stuff, but that's a high-level overview.

The Good & The Bad: This is an interesting little book. I vacillated between being genuinely engrossed and at times, a little freaked out / terrified, and being kind of bored and feeling like the book was labour-intensive to get through. The opening chapter really dictates whether you'll enjoy the book - Jess Richards' has a very specific style, particularly with Mary's colloquial island dialect, and it's Mary that she cares about. While I generally found Morgan's story more engrossing to begin with (probably because it was easier to get through), by the time Morgan and Mary crossed paths I started to question why Richards had even included her. Morgan's chapters are almost always half or a third of the length of Mary's, and most of Morgan's activities - once she's aware of Mary - serve to advance Mary's plot. In fact, the end of Morgan's story is actually pretty ambivalent about what spells freedom to her, whereas Mary, despite her low-English, comes off as the intelligent, focused one.

That's a general theme to the book actually - feeling like a fish out of water and seeing some ugly truths you've been hiding from yourself as a result. There's also a huge theme of storytelling. Morgan fully believes in stories and anticipates the whole world is just a psychology case waiting to be shrunk, or a fairy tale waiting to be given a happy ending, and once she gets a chance to experience them firsthand, she comes off woefully naive (although vaguely kick-ass thanks to her ability to speak with ghosts). Mary's chapters are constantly peppered with two types of stories - memories and the legends that dictate the rule of the island, which is said to be haunted by some witchy sisters known as the Glimmeras, and has a creepy punishment chamber known as 'The Thrashing House' that only leaves 'the truth' of someone once they've disappeared.

Altogether I'd say I liked this book. I'd actually give it something closer to a 4 than a 3, but I felt like one too many things didn't contribute to the core of the book's plot, and it got a little literary and scattershot for me. There was an overall vibe created by the story, but there were also a lot of dangling threads that I would've liked to see sewn up. I still have plenty of questions...

The Bottom Line: An interesting if sometimes overwhelming story.

Anything Memorable?: Nope.

60-Book Challenge?: Book #26 in 2012(less)

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Mar 26, 2013 Meera rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really struggled with this, and the way it was written was very disjointed and a little pretentious. It tells the story of a remote island through two teenage girls' eyes, Morgan and Mary (they each get alternate chapters). I found it difficult to get the context of the island - is it set in the past (as the community is very primitive and relies on trading things they make and is very superstitious), or is it meant to be set in an apocalyptic future? The main storyline is mixed with diversion...more

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Apr 24, 2013 Claire rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

"Snake Ropes" is one of the most beautiful books that I have had the pleasure of reading. The prose is lush, and although the language of the Island takes a little getting used to, Mary's narrative is so compelling that it is more than worth the effort. In fact, the Islanders' language contributes greatly to the story as it conveys the nuances of a distinct culture.

Mary and Morgan are fascinating characters. Although Morgan is the elder of the two girls, she often seems younger in spite of the h...more

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Mar 25, 2012 Melanie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was lucky enough to get a proof copy of this beautifully written book. Jess Richards writes of an island that is 'off the map' - a world with its own language, myths and culture, and where the landscape is not just vivid but alive in the most alarming of ways. This is a wonderful dose of magical realism, rightly compared by the publishers with the work of Margaret Attwood and Angela Carter, about a strong matriarchal culture where the women make important decisions in the mysterious 'Weaving R...more

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Jul 08, 2012 A.K. Andrew rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Snake Ropes really is an exceptional novel, both in its stylistic uniqueness, but also in managing to successfully combine narrative and myth - real or imagined - while at the same time dealing with some really intense issues.The fact that it ostensibly starts as a relatively "simple tale of simple folk", & then turns out to be anything but, makes the reveal of its brutal events have such an impact. I was really impressed how the author managed to subtly, but consistently, keep up the tensio...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Shannon White rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As the cover states, this book is wildly original. If you're one who reads between the lines, you may take that to mean "a tad bit whacked" and decide to pass. I wouldn't do that if I were you....

Snake Ropes is definitely something different. If you are an avid reader and growing tired of the usual fiction fare, this is a great choice for you.

With a strange dialect of a faraway land, the tale of Mary and Morgan is told. Interwoven with short parables, the story is mysterious as the reader seeks...more

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Mar 01, 2013 Teresa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2013

I felt a strong aversion to this book when I started it because I just felt the strange dialect and reviews referencing wonderful writers such as Angela Carter were just going to make this a gimmicky overworked lot of nonsense. I'm also suspicious sometimes when something gets too many good reviews as if it is a case of the Emperor's New Clothes. Nevertheless I persevered as something in me wanted to believe in this book's possibilities and I was in the end rewarded with a wonderful read which h...more

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Apr 10, 2013 Mary rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2013

"The tall men in boats are coming."

Mary Jasper lives on a remote island in a community run by women. Their survival is dependent on the tall men who come from the mainland to trade food and supplies for handmade goods. The tall men are taking more than handmade goods, however; boys from the island have gone missing, and when Mary's little brother disappears, she vows to find him. She enlists the help of Morgan, another girl on the island who has led a very sheltered life under the watchful eye...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Michael Harling rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This, in addition to being a pretty book (I have the hard cover edition with intertwined snakes and ropes on it) is also one of the more bizarre stories I have ever encountered. This surprised me, because I chatted with the author while waiting for a train and she seemed a perfectly normal person.

However, Ms Richards has managed to create a truly quirky world populated with frighteningly convincing characters, bags of back story and a raft of dark secrets. The language of the island world threw...more

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Jan 06, 2013 Renee rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads

* I received a complimentary copy of this book through a First Reads Goodreads giveaway. *

What is this book about?! Good question! The book cover says that the story takes place in a dystopian setting, but when I was reading it, it thought it was taking place in a time long ago where people relied on trade for survival. It felt very much like M. Night Shyamalan's The Village, and I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, but it just isn't like that in the end.

The story itself is very dark. The...more

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Mar 13, 2012 Ancestral Gael rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Ancestral by: Amazon

Shelves: fiction, a-vine, folklore, myths, fantasy, fairytale, reviewed

Why did I read it? The synopsis was so intriguing, and I could not find a single review for it anywhere.

Synopsis : In its essentials, boys are going missing from an island community, but, I prefer the following passage to describe this work:

Jess Richards' stunning debut will show you crows who become statues and sisters who get tangled in each other's hair, keys that talk and ghosts who demand to be buried. She combines a page-turning narrative and a startlingly original voice with the creation...more

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Apr 26, 2013 Nigel rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I read Cooking With Bones first which I loved and so had to read this one. I don't think I've ever read anything quite like the work of Jess Richards before. She writes in such a wonderfully rich way her books are a joy to read. Set on an island, those who live there are isolated but traders come from the mainland to exchange local products for mainland goods. A boy goes missing while the traders are there and this book is about the boy's sister Mary and her attempts to find him. That really is...more

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Feb 28, 2013 Patty rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I appreciated what this author was trying to get across. She very well created a feeling of being trapped or ensnared, and her choice of language really supported that. Even the people on this island were weavers, knitters, embroiderers, fishermen - all using threads and ropes to ensnare fish and images. There was also a frisson of the supernatural and the gothic in this book, which I enjoyed. However, I feel like she couldn't get a cohesive story out of these elements, and the story unraveled i...more

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Jun 20, 2012 Brett rated it 4 of 5 stars

A wonderful debut, which weaves myth, magic and allegory into a beguiling tale. While I don't feel that it succeeds on all levels (a bit more realism in the relationships between characters would have helped to anchor the more poetic elements of the tale, for me), it is a daring first novel and I applaud Miss Richards for her efforts. I will certainly look forward to reading more by this author.

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May 25, 2012 Cathy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I pieced this book up at the airport and thoughly enjoyed it.
It is a different style of writing and approaches the internal issues of the characters in a more physical way.
Loved how the island was run by women! It should always be this way. plus the main characters never give up! Sometthing we can all learn to do.

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Nov 26, 2012 Danika Armstrong rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love a good book about dystopian societies and this one delivered. It was full of intrigue and kept me turning pages throughout. The characters are endearing and pull you in despite the phonetic, accented way of writing. Would highly recommend!

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Feb 27, 2013 Georgia rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A very interesting read. Found it a little difficult to get into the plot as the majority of the writing is a stream of consciousness however i find Richards imagination refreshing and there were lots of unexpected twists! Thoroughly entertaining :)

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Jul 21, 2012 Lynn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The concept and story were good. I was thrown by the author's dialect for the people leaving on the island. Rather than drawing me more deeply into the story, the use of words like 'hims' kept pushing me our of the world. I struggled to get through it.

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Dec 15, 2012 Hillingdon Libraries marked it as awards-promos_2012

Shelves: costa_awards, awards2012

Find this book at Hillingdon Libraries

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Apr 06, 2013 Madeleine rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-for-hipsters, read-2013, speculative-fiction, things-we-believe, sea-creatures

Super creepy, but intriguing and intelligent. Not a light read. At all. Random at times if you don't realize that a lot of the mythology stuff is apparently rooted in Scottish folklore. Also, a volcano off the coast of Scotland? Really?

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HarperCollins Can...: Snake Ropes	2	30	May 14, 2012 10:12am

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About Jess Richards

Jess Richards was born in Wales in 1972, and grew up too fast in south west Scotland where she watched the ferry boats going to and from Northern Ireland. She left home at 17, went over the border to England, and lived for a year in Carlisle, before moving to Devon. She gained a first class degree from Dartington College of Arts when she was 21, then after brief stints busking and carrying on in b...more

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