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Sea Hearts

3.8 of 5 stars 3.80 · rating details · 1,219 ratings · 423 reviews

'Why would I? People are uneasy enough with me - if I start bringing up sea-wives, they'll take against me good and proper.'
'It could be secret.'
'Could it?'

On remote Rollrock Island, the sea-witch Misskaella discovers she can draw a girl from the heart of a seal. So, for a price, any man might buy himself a bride; an irresistibly enchanting sea-wife. But what cost will be...more

Paperback, 343 pages

Published February 1st 2012 by Allen & Unwin (first published January 23rd 2012)

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Aug 03, 2012 Reynje rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: australian, cover-loving, dual-or-multiple-pov, read-2012, under-the-sea, books-that-linger, writing-envy

4.5 stars

”Was she beautiful, the sea-maid? Fair strange, Doris had said, and I thought that was a fine assessment.

Fair strange. I think that’s a fine assessment of Sea Hearts too: beautiful in, or for, its unusualness.

It’s proving extremely difficult to review Sea Hearts (titled The Brides of Rollrock Island in the US) in isolation, and not hold it up against Lanagan’s previous novel, Tender Morsels. Though I read the latter earlier this year, I still haven’t been able to wrangle my thoughts in...more

28 likes · like · see review

Dec 25, 2012 Keertana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc-galley-and-first-reads, books-that-linger, kick-ass-heroines, aussie, beautiful-prose, wishlist

The Brides of Rollrock Island is one of those novels that left me with the thought that there is no possible word in the English language that could even attempt to summon up the strange, ethereal, and mystifying experience that is chronicled in this book. As my first venture into Lanagan’s world, I have to admit that Brides simply blew me away, leaving me utterly breathless. It is a slow, intriguing tale that often reminded me of Darwin’s An Origin of Species, since, in many ways, Lanagan seems...more

17 likes · like · see review

Nov 26, 2012 Stacia ~ Mistress of Mediocrity rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Stacia ~ Mistress of Mediocrity by: Buddy read w/Joan, Rebecca, Amanda and Crystal

Shelves: young-adult

If you have any expectations of what this book will be like based on the cover, throw them away. You won't find a dreamy, romantic, fairy-tale retelling here.

It's more like this type of crazy business going on...
darkfairytale

Recipe for a twisted, dark fairy tale :

1. One crazy witch
2. Stupid men who think with the wrong head
3. Seals (I'm being serious, the actual sea creatures)
4. Blank-eyed women who are willing to serve their men Stepford-Wife style.

Confused yet? Trust me, I was confused for the first coupl...more

37 likes · like · see review

Dec 03, 2012 Savannah Leigh rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The back of the book says we see the deepest of human cruelty, but also of love. Wrong: there is no love in this book.

If you like the last episode of Twin Peaks, you'll like this book. That's not exactly a good thing. This novel takes 'cerebral' to a whole other degree.

First off there's a difference between throwing your reader into a novel's world no holds-bar and throwing a reader into a world and not caring if they understand what on earth is going on. Only half way through the book will you...more The back of the book says we see the deepest of human cruelty, but also of love. Wrong: there is no love in this book.

If you like the last episode of Twin Peaks, you'll like this book. That's not exactly a good thing. This novel takes 'cerebral' to a whole other degree.

First off there's a difference between throwing your reader into a novel's world no holds-bar and throwing a reader into a world and not caring if they understand what on earth is going on. Only half way through the book will you begin to even become comfortable in the world, about 200 or so pages in, which is not a good thing. Not that I don't mind books not having a layman character that I can relate to in ignorance of what's going on, but I would like some explanation of what the hell is going on.

You basically shouldn't read the first chapter of the book. There's no purpose to it, in all honesty. The language, the actions of the characters have no impact on the story and serves only to confuse the reader.

As for the rest of the novel...it builds up...sort of, and has no real climax. Like a meal of rice and milk, there's no flavor besides the novelty of the world. Men can pay a witch to bring women out of seals that are beautiful and magical. They all fall in love with them and kidnap them to their houses driving their real women away form the island because their husband/fiancees/sons are resorting to affairs and adultery to have these seal-women. The witch does this because everyone on the island was a horrible human being anyway, so this is her revenge because the seal women are depressed to be away from the sea even as they have children with their new husbands.

That's the book. There's nothing else to the story, and there are no likable characters. There are character's you feel bad for and you want to see victorious, but they are, in the end, either corrupted or loose. At one point you think a male character who will resist the witch, but no. He fails too.

The author seems to just loathe men. And while I'm against man-hating posing as feminism which permeates through literature like wild fire, I find it insulting that the men of this island get no punishment. Oh, after the "climax" they feel sad, sure. But that's it. They're free to go on with their lives. I can see where sorrow could be enough of a punishment, but the author is too focused on her flowered language and imagery to actually portray some kind of human emotion.

That's really all it is, pretty without emotion. The language is lovely, and reading it is like eating candy, but it makes to sick after a while when you try and clutch for some sort of plot or reason to keep reading.

This is my first novel by this author, and while I like her writing style I'm hesitant to read another by her, award winning or not.(less)

9 likes · like · see review

Dec 03, 2012 tee rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: e-pube, australian-author, witchy, to-buy, favourites

I have a million books to read (exaggerated but probably not far off) and yet the other day, I couldn't pick one of them - nothing was jumping out. I wanted to read about the ocean but it had to be magical. It needed to be witchy but not precious or twee. There was nothing that I owned remotely like this and just after I had given up, I stumbled upon a book recommendation for Sea Hearts (as The Brides of Rollrock Island is called here in Australia).

Too good to be true, surely. It sounded like e...more

4 likes · like · see review

May 03, 2012 Laura rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012, australasia-oceania, female-and-queer-issues, spec-fic-imaginary-life, magic, male-main-character, myths-fairytales-retellings, 6-stars-out-of-5

I have always liked stories about witches. Real witches, not just monsters in stories told to scare children. They fascinate me: their strength, their outsider status, ostracised by society. Did they become a witch and then become an outcast, or did their outcast status drive them to witchcraft? What does witch mean, other than an insult for a strong or independant woman, or a woman who is just different from everyone else.

Miskaella was born looking different from the other girls on Rockroll is...more I have always liked stories about witches. Real witches, not just monsters in stories told to scare children. They fascinate me: their strength, their outsider status, ostracised by society. Did they become a witch and then become an outcast, or did their outcast status drive them to witchcraft? What does witch mean, other than an insult for a strong or independant woman, or a woman who is just different from everyone else.

Miskaella was born looking different from the other girls on Rockroll island. She was short and heavy, without their prettiness. And she 'hearkened back' to their shameful history. She was an outcast. When her powers began to develop, even her mother could not look at her the same way. While her motivations in creating the brides may have been selfish, and revenge driven, you can understand her motivations, all that she has lost and never had. This is the kind of character I like, a woman who you can understand, care about. She is flawed and unbeautiful, and so deserving of happiness, it makes me sad. It is fascinating how she becomes what they labelled her as.

A couple of generations on and everything has changed. Not just Miskaella, shaped into a mad, vengeful old witch, but the town itself. Now the normal women are the outcasts.

With a narrative told through a collection of characters, Lanagan paints a vivid picture of small island life and the strange magic that makes it a place apart. There is sympathy for all the characters, including the sea wives who have no choice in the matter. Everyone loses from the bringing of the sea wives. But in the end, life goes on.

Maybe it was right to punish the women by initially bringing the sea-wives (although probably not) but what about all the future pain it causes? Is revenge ever justified?

This is a story about magic that looks at the human cost, showing how the characters lives are changed by what happens. There are many fairytales and old stories about birdwives, swan maidens, squirrel wives, selkies, etc. but often they are about a man getting the woman as a reward for his cleverness or trickery, never about what it is like for them to live together, or how the woman feels about it. Sea Hearts looks at the consequences.(less)

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Apr 02, 2012 Larissa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: own

When she was little she knew she was different, she just didn't understand how she was different. There were those in town who would whisper as she passed, others with courage would openly scorn her but most would simply turn away as though she were never there. That is till one day when the world opened up to her, her secrets were exposed and she performed magic; she called forth a maiden from the sea.

When he was younger he had never noticed the obvious, how all the mams on the island were the...more

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Apr 12, 2012 ~Tina~ rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: cover-crazz, bookers-tour, aussie-reads-2012, read-2012, young-adult, mermaids-selkies

This is one of those books were I'm completely clueless of what I could possible say about it. So I'm gonna keep this short.
While I may have struggled with the writing style, I still thought this was beautifully told. Margo Lanagan has a way she set this story. It reads like a mythical fairy tale. It's whimsical, vibrant and almost poetic, while it's characters felt haunting, fierce and achingly real. But with that said, I have to admit, I still struggled with the way this was told. I'm usually...more

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Dec 21, 2012 Rayne rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: arc, fantasy, mermaids-or-sea-folk, there-s-romance-in-there-somewhere, victorian-or-period-tale, you-have-disturbed-me, young-adult, 2012-favorites

This novel is breathtaking. Lanagan's prose is gorgeous and lush and evocative. So articulate and lovely, the novel flows smoothly and seductively because of its writing and its dark atmosphere. This novel is not for everyone. Not only does it move slowly, but some themes might not sit well with some and others might not like how frank and raw the novel is, but I strongly recommend this one for YA readers looking for an intelligent, heart-felt read with real substance and that actually contribut...more This novel is breathtaking. Lanagan's prose is gorgeous and lush and evocative. So articulate and lovely, the novel flows smoothly and seductively because of its writing and its dark atmosphere. This novel is not for everyone. Not only does it move slowly, but some themes might not sit well with some and others might not like how frank and raw the novel is, but I strongly recommend this one for YA readers looking for an intelligent, heart-felt read with real substance and that actually contributes to the genre. A gorgeous setting, breathtaking writing, sensual suggestions and contemplations about humanity and love and loyalty and feminism, this novel is simply fantastic.

Review originally posted at http://www.mycutebookshelf.com/2012/1...

I must say, right off the bat, that Lanagan is one of the best writers I've encountered in recent years and that this book is probably one of the best books I've read. Having said that, I am sort of obligated to tell you that this book is definitely not for everyone. Some parts are very, very slow; the prose is complicated to follow sometimes; the characters are not exactly likeable; the plot unfurls at a turtle pace; and there are some themes that people might not like reading about. I can understand why someone people would feel indifferent about this book, but to me, this book was gorgeous.

Like I said, Lanagan is one hell of a writer. Her prose is lush, evocative, articulate and lovely with imagery and the novel flows smoothly from point to point because of her incredibly ability to write. I sometimes spent several minutes looking at one particular sentence because it was just so gorgeous. The mood is set right from the start and Lanagan constructed one of the most powerful atmospheres I've ever read. It is seductive and mystifying with just a peek of darkness showing itself amidst it all. It is very difficult not to feel riveted by the magic of the world she created.

This novel has about 4 or 5 different narratives in it, dividing the book in several parts telling the story of one particular character. I loved the characterization of each character, the profundity of each psychology, but these are not characters you might remember fondly. I think that's the real beauty of this novel: the raw honesty behind each character is without parallel in YA. Lanagan was almost painfully honest in her portrayal of human emotion, of desire and ambition and revenge, and even in the passion of love, which is not always a good thing, not in this novel. There are also many, powerful messages on feminism in this novel that I absolutely adored, but there is a great emphasis on the workings of the human mind and heart. She is absolutely frank in her portrayal of human nature and I can see some readers recoiling away from that, but I thought it was breathtaking and refreshingly honest.

There's magic and mysticism and fantasy all throughout the novel and it is so beautifully integrated with the realism of the times the novel is set in that it is nothing short of stunning. Honestly, the novel moves slow, sometimes very, very slow to the point of being slightly boring, but there's too much beauty in this novel for me to be bothered by it. I truly believe this novel will appeal more to older YA readers who want intelligent and well-constructed reads with less focus on insta-love connections or adolescent drama.

This is a breathtaking novel, nothing short of gorgeous in its execution and construction, a beautifully honest examination of human nature and what we call love. This novel is not for everybody, but if you find you like what I've described above, I am sure you will definitely find a fantastic novel you will remember for a long time to come.
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Apr 09, 2012 Kerri Turner rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: favourites, fantasy, australian-authors

I love nothing more than coming across a book with an interesting idea, that actually manages to live up to that idea. I thought this book did that in spades.

The concept, although reminding me strongly of Stepford Wives, was made unique by the almost fairytale-like aspects to it. And the way it was told left me constantly wanting to know what happened next - which is why I flew through reading this in about three days. The way it is written is just beautiful too; descriptive, without being heavy...more

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Feb 19, 2012 Sean the Bookonaut rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have been captivated by Margo Lanagan’s skill as a writer since I read her short story Singing My Sister Down. I don’t recall any other short story evoking such emotion before or since.

I discovered Tender Morsels last year and that was another powerful display of skill, this time in novel form.

Sea Hearts continues this showcasing of her skill, with language and narrative. Reading Lanagan is like watching the world through aged glass. The world and its characters are identifiable but there is...more

4 likes · like · see review

Aug 30, 2012 Kate Forsyth rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fairytale-retelling, fantasy, historical-fantasy

I first read Margo Lanagan a few years ago, when Garth Nix pressed a copy of her short story collection Black Juice upon me at a writer’s conference. ‘You must read this,’ he said.
‘But I really don’t like short stories,’ I said.
‘You’ll like these,’ he answered. And he was right. One of the stories in particular really haunted me – ‘Singing My Sister Down’ was a strange, dark, heartbreaking and yet beautiful story which recounts the last hours in the life of a young woman condemned to death by dr...more I first read Margo Lanagan a few years ago, when Garth Nix pressed a copy of her short story collection Black Juice upon me at a writer’s conference. ‘You must read this,’ he said.
‘But I really don’t like short stories,’ I said.
‘You’ll like these,’ he answered. And he was right. One of the stories in particular really haunted me – ‘Singing My Sister Down’ was a strange, dark, heartbreaking and yet beautiful story which recounts the last hours in the life of a young woman condemned to death by drowning in a tar pool. We don’t know where or when the story is set, and we only gradually learn some of the reason why. What is striking about the story is the language, which was so unlike anything else I had ever read I was mesmerised. Margo Lanagan’s voice was bold, inventive, and filled with mystery.
I loved it.
So did the rest of the world. Black Juice ended up being a Michael L. Printz Honor Book, winning two World Fantasy Awards, the Victorian Premier's Literary Award, a Golden Aurealis Award, and a Bram Stoker Award nomination.
Phew!
So when I heard a few years later that Margo had written a novel, I was keen to read it. My interest sharpened when I learned that it was a retelling of the ‘Snow White and Rose Red’ fairy tale. You all know how much I love fairy tale retellings!
I finally read her novel Tender Morsels last year (about three years after it came out) and this is how I reviewed it:
This is a truly extraordinary book, and one that lingers in the mind for a long time afterwards. The language is astonishingly good – bold, original, unexpected – and the story itself takes all kinds of surprising directions ... It’s only occasionally that I finish a book with a real sense of awe, but this book delivered me that. If you haven’t read it yet, read it now. Then let’s talk about it. I’m dying to talk to someone about it!
Tender Morsels was a controversial book, dealing as it did with incest, rape, and revenge, and I certainly found some of the scenes hard to read. What I loved most about the book was the firecracker language, and that sense of strangeness and mystery that Margo seems to do so well. It went on to win a World Fantasy Award too, and was named a Michael L. Printz Honor Book as well.
Now Margo has a new book out and I could hardly wait to get my greedy little hands on it. It’s about selkies, I was informed. I love selkies! If you don’t all know how much I love selkies, well, you should be able to guess.
Sea Hearts is wonderful, in all senses of the word. It’s a dark, moody, storm-wracked book of love, longing, desire, and wickedness. Its central character, Misskaella the sea-witch, is one of the most powerful fictive creations I’ve read in quite some time. Her story - and that of the selkies and the men who covet them – is heartbreaking in its sadness, yet also so hauntingly beautiful, so filled with the sweeping rhythm of the sea, and pierced here and there with shafts of light, that the lingering feeling is one of awe and wonderment.
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Mar 25, 2013 Cristina rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: everyone, fans of dark fairytales

Shelves: cover-love, so-damn-pretty, read-in-2013, favorites, in-my-dreams, young-adult

I don't really know where to begin with talking about this novel. I have never read anything by Margo Lanagan, but have been wanting to for some time. Seeing as I have a penchant for tales that involve the sea and magic, when I first read the synopsis for this book I knew that I wanted to read this book straight away. Only trouble was - I made the mistake of ordering it on Fishpond, instead of waiting for the September 2012 US release of it under the title, The Brides of Rollrock. It wouldn't ne...more I don't really know where to begin with talking about this novel. I have never read anything by Margo Lanagan, but have been wanting to for some time. Seeing as I have a penchant for tales that involve the sea and magic, when I first read the synopsis for this book I knew that I wanted to read this book straight away. Only trouble was - I made the mistake of ordering it on Fishpond, instead of waiting for the September 2012 US release of it under the title, The Brides of Rollrock. It wouldn't necessarily have saved me a whole lot of money, but when the first copy took a month to ship, and then never showed up, and I had to wait even then another month for them to allow me to put in request for a new copy sent...I basically waited months & months & months for this book, because I had already purchased it, though it was being sold at my local bookstore. I saw it several times and almost got it, but I am honestly so glad that I waited because the Aussie version, which is titled Sea Hearts is so much more beautiful and fitting in its cover art, design and titling...in my opinion. I love my copy.

Anyways - to discuss the content of this book is going to be painful for me. Not because it is sad or awful, but because it is so beautiful and powerful and it crept so deeply inside of me, I do not know how to discuss it or review it. Suffice it to say, I did not find any flaws whatsoever in this story or in its delivery. The story, which is told over a few generations from varying perspectives, takes place on the remote and quaint island of Rollrock. Misskaella, a young witch, realizes that she can retrieve from the heart of a seal, a woman...a sea-wife, a gorgeous and well-tempered woman who will immediately fall madly in love with the first man she sees. After a lifetime of being trodden over and disregarded by her siblings, peers, and parents, the witch uses this power as a sort of revenge over the people of Rollrock. And so begins the tale. . . . .

One thing that greatly stands out to me about this novel, is the lack of a villain. From the various points of view, you come to know how the arrival of the sea-wives affects everyone on Rollrock for many, many years: first, wives & daughters...and later, husbands, fathers, sons. And despite so much turmoil that comes about, you cannot blame the witch Misskaella, because through her narration you have come to know her and understand her. In this book, the line between right and wrong, good and bad, is completely obliterated and every character is left raw before you, so human, so imperfect, and so real. This book describes human emotion, and specifically revenge, pain, love, ignorance and desire in ways that few books I have read have even come close to. I think that the strongest bit of the story is probably that which is told from Misskaella's point of view - but I must say that my favorite is that of Daniel Mallett. However, I fell in love with every character, I felt their pain and their desire and I felt that I knew their heart.

Another thing that cannot go without mentioning about this book: the mythology. This story is a fairytale that Lanagan could not have simply created...she must've travelled to the darkest, strangest depths of the ocean...the parts which go unseen by sunlight and humans and scientific reasoning and there, she caught it quickly in a mason jar and ran away home. I imagine she put that mason jar on her nightstand and there it glowed like a firefly, and she sat in the dark and stared into the light, and slowly came to understand the buzzing sound it emitted for language, and that is how she came to know this tale. I cannot fathom that a person created this world and these people of thin air, they are too real and too true!. This story, wild and unrelenting in its vibrancy caught me completely off guard in its originality and atmospheric detailing. The island of Rollrock became a place in me, a state of mind, and I let myself be carried off on icy waves to snowy hills and rocky beaches, warm in the summers...I saw cottages adorned with sea-like plants and shells and sea glass on windowsills... and oh, I'll dream of raven-haired, long-limbed women crying under blankets knitted from seaweed for a long time I think.

If you have not read Lanagan and want to, read this. But really just... READ THIS. whoever you are, whatever you're thinking of... READ THIS BOOK.(less)

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Sep 24, 2012 Mickie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Haunting and beautiful and just the kind of tuck-in tale for adults that I've come to expect from Lanagan. A bit dark and unexpected. I smelled like the sea when I was finished reading it.

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Nov 10, 2012 Wendy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I think I would like to stay in this world almost forever.

This book isn't as difficult or challenging, emotionally, as Tender Morsels--or in structure, either. But it is engrossing and rewarding, and for all its "lyrical"ness, moves quickly without obfuscating. Each narrator in turn endeared him- or herself to me, so that I hated to leave each one behind, but quickly got caught up in the new one.

One thing that puzzles me, that I'd have to pay attention to on a reread: I had thought the book was...more

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May 22, 2012 Maggie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Maggie by: Laura

Shelves: aussie-authors, books-for-challenges, witch, favourites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Absorbing book about the vengeful activities of a witch living in a community which had been cruel to her as a child.

Growing up she had been teased and tormented, then later acknowledged as being of use to the towns menfolk. Her ability to draw forth young women from a colony of seals increases her value to the men who abandon their wives and families to marry the young seal wives who bear them sons. Where are the daughters? Read and find out. As the years go by the community flounders leading t...more

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Apr 05, 2012 Astrid rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: australian-women-writers, reviewed

Margo Lanagan is the only author I've missed class for. I couldn't stop reading this book. And when I did, I had to write. I haven't written in my journal with any abandon in a long time, but Lanagan's prose is so raw and creative that I had to create something when I finished Sea Hearts (As it's called in Australia).
I realise that Lanagan has crafted this novel. All novels are edited and rewritten. But the language is so unique and feels raw. There's no other way to describe the waves of the l...more

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Nov 26, 2012 Rebecca Espinoza marked it as could-not-finish · review of another edition

Buddy read w/ Amanda, Stacia, Joan, and Crystal. :0)

This is not a bad book. The writing is actually really good. It just wasn't for me. :0)

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Jul 01, 2012 Book Bazaar rated it 4 of 5 stars

Margo Lanagan writes dark fantasy that is beautiful and twisted. This is a gorgeous story full of the sea and the desires of men. We still have copies of this and a book of Lanagan's short stories to give away as a freebie with each copy - get in quick!

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May 05, 2013 Katie Herring rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really liked this novel's idea: a town of women who are from the sea... brought to land by a witch.

But unfortunately, the author, I believe, did not do a good job explaining the plot. Usually I am a huge fan of multiple character POVs in a book, but in this one, it was way too confusing. It was the present, the past, the future, the past, the future, the present, and back again. I was very lost at times. I also didn't know who was speaking, yes, the name was said in the beginning, but I had n...more

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Jul 11, 2012 Rubixzoo rated it 5 of 5 stars

Where does one start in detailing the beauty and awe of Lanagan's writing? I've been a bit in love with Lanagan's style since I first read Tender Morsels two years ago. She has this rawness about her prose, a certain gut-punching quality that leaves you winded. In Sea Hearts we are thrown head first into the small Island community of Rollrock, steeped in full and heavy seaside descriptions and gloom. The young Misskaella, ugly and out of place, takes her isolation to the sea where she learns tha...more

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Jan 14, 2013 Miz Lizzie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: animals, anger, britain, fairy-tale, folklore, fantasy, gender-issues, magic, mermaids, young-adult

On Rollrock Island, Miskaela, a young witch, returns the scorn of the island men by drawing seal wives out of the sea. The beautiful docile seal wives are irresistible to the men. Soon all the men are craving such wives (or mistresses) and as they become beholden to Miskaela for getting seal wives for them, the (human) women leave the island en masse. As in the traditional folk tales, it is the children who ultimately find a way of breaking the spell and returning balance to the island. The stor...more

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May 29, 2012 Kirstyn McDermott rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: writer-and-the-critic

Sea Hearts is Margo Lanagan writing at her very, very best. The prose is both lyrical and visceral, and the story is a masterful extrapolation from her novella of the same name. Even having read the novella, with its similar base plot, the novel brought with it many unexpected moments -- some delightful, some heartbreaking. If this book doesn't end up with a whole swag of award nominations, there is something seriously wrong with the world.

For a more in depth discussion of Sea Hearts, please li...more

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Nov 13, 2012 Heather added it · review of another edition

Read all my reviews at http://www.flyleafreview.com

I read The Brides of Rollrock Island waaayyy back in August. Originally this book was supposed to be a readalong with my blogger friends Jen at Jen Ryland/ YA Romantics and Heidi at Bunbury in the Stacks. But a tropical storm got in the way of things, I lost power and all that stuff, and the three of us ended up reading at separate times. We did have a little email discussion afterwards and they both wrote stellar reviews of the book.

I have a h...more

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Apr 27, 2013 prk rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Miskaela grew up on Rollrock Island, scorned by the other children and adults for her differences, her magic. When she discovered she could draw beautiful and desirable maidens from the seals, and the men of Rollrock Island would pay handsomely for a sea bride (or mistress), she was more than willing to do so, for a suitable price.

As a result, all the Rollrock Island men end up with sea wives or mistresses, keeping them on land by locking up their seal coats. These sea wives bear their children...more

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Apr 24, 2013 Alicia rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is not put together in the traditional story kind of way. The book in general is about Rollrock Island, where a witch is able to summon very beautiful and obedient wives out of seals. She does this as vengeance for things which you will learn about if you read it.

From a literary point of view, it was a good read. It was written intelligently and each section (they're not really chapters) is told from the perspective of a different person on the island at a different time. Through the...more This book is not put together in the traditional story kind of way. The book in general is about Rollrock Island, where a witch is able to summon very beautiful and obedient wives out of seals. She does this as vengeance for things which you will learn about if you read it.

From a literary point of view, it was a good read. It was written intelligently and each section (they're not really chapters) is told from the perspective of a different person on the island at a different time. Through the person's limited point of view, you see the drama unfold one section at a time, though it can be hard to get a feel of how much time has passed or what the character's connection is to the drama as the section changes.

I did have a hard time getting a feel for the differing personalities of the characters portrayed. The information about Miskaella (the witch) is probably the most varied, though I had a difficult time understanding her continued vindictiveness toward the villagers as the generations passed and they were at least respectful, even if they didn't like her. She didn't give them much to like.

The other characters felt somewhat flat and I didn't have much sympathy at all for the men, who turned out to be spineless cheaters. They weren't completely flat though, as the characters did act in believable ways, even if the main characters all seemed to share the same perspectives. Even though their names and ages changed, it felt like the same narrator throughout, except the section from Miskaella's POV.

This leads me to why I didn't really care for the book, though. The characters acted in believable, but mean and selfish ways. There are good people out there in the world. Why can't a book about believable people have them acting in nice ways? The only person in the book that did something good was Daniel and even that was a little sketchy.

The reviews said it was a book that was both heartbreaking and heartwarming. Got the heartbreaking. Check. Heartwarming? Still looking for it.

Anyway, it's an interesting read if you don't care if husbands are cheaters, if kids don't live by the good morals their parents set for them, if no one forgives anyone, and there is no character growth to speak of. Why does this kind of stuff become hailed as literature? I am not sure. (less)

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Apr 11, 2013 Andrea rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: surprisingly-awesome, australian-and-nz-authors, great-writing, made-me-cry, mermaids-selkies, re-read-potential

As I closed this book, after re-reading the last paragraph again and again, still weeping in an undignified mess, a quote by Emily Brontë came to mind:

“I've dreamt in my life dreams that have stayed with me ever after, and changed my ideas; they've gone through and through me, like wine through water, and altered the colour of my mind.”

This haunting and nearly perfect book was that kind of experience for me.

Stories of selkies – beautiful sea-maidens who emerge from the bodies of seals and ever-a...more

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Apr 07, 2013 L. E. Armbruster rated it 5 of 5 stars

Sea Hearts. What can be said about this romantic, tragic fantastical tale that would do it justice?

I was, at first, bemused to say the least by the romantic scenes between Miskaella and a sea-male (male transformed from the bull of the herd) and particularly the way in which this was captured with such expressive diction, as per the genre. “I clung to his smooth neck, breathing in the heady, salty warmth of his skin” (p70)…I roamed over him, exploring the hills and vales of him, the roads and to...more Sea Hearts. What can be said about this romantic, tragic fantastical tale that would do it justice?

I was, at first, bemused to say the least by the romantic scenes between Miskaella and a sea-male (male transformed from the bull of the herd) and particularly the way in which this was captured with such expressive diction, as per the genre. “I clung to his smooth neck, breathing in the heady, salty warmth of his skin” (p70)…I roamed over him, exploring the hills and vales of him, the roads and towers, with my small plump work-red hand, wondering at all his different degrees of hairiness and smoothness…” (p71). This imagery, and sense of longing and tenderness were remarkable, and clearly placed Lanagan’s story amongst its popular peers such as that of Twilight. Further, and as a particular recurring motif for Lanagan, the gothic darkness and solitude and suffering, that permeates everything of Rollrock, is bound by the intense wind, cold and isolation of the ocean: the novel opens in a clouded, “poisonous day” and closes with Trudle’s “snow-streaked gale” (p343). These pathetic fallacy elements, all too familiar to the description of places like Forks in Twilight and the English marshlands in Eyre, serve to emphasise the exquisite sadness and tragedy of the collected stories of this unfortunate people. Misskaella, the witch and binding character, whose coming of age and eventual death is captured across multiple narratives, is a melodramatic heroine herself. She is painfully aware of her difference to others “It was grotesque. I would have none of it. I was an unhappy pudding and I would not pretend otherwise” (p60) And so takes her position as outsider with resigned grace.

But the magical element of the sea-wives is possibly one of the most unnerving fictional metaphors I have ever read. It felt like a clear attack on the vapid senseless beauty of popular media, a direct message to young females that gender stereotypes that hearken back to the 50’s are now literally alien to our world, but Lanagan uses her fictional, almost Irish/English turn of the century historical setting- reminisnet of Eyre- (conveyed by the old world charm, the diction “mams” and “babs”, the fashion- Misskaella’s boots and high neck gown and skirts”) to serve as an ironic base for this commentary. In fact, I couldn’t help recalling my first haunted reading of The Stepford Wives each time I happened upon another subservient sea-wife.

By the end of the novel, I felt I had been on several journeys and was compelled to turn back to the first image of the witch by the sea and the children collecting the sea-hearts just to reacquaint myself with Misskaella as I had first seen her. I was left with a sense of unsettled disquiet. I felt no denouement for her character, especially with the passage that depicts the three tiny shirts that were to be buried with her. “I mouth the name, but no sound comes out. Three babs. Three boys. Noone is to know.” (p341) The gothic darkness of three children who have been swallowed back into the ocean, and a women who was never understood, to be superseded by another, equally estranged, bears little hope.

This is a truly captivating read that surprises you at each page turn.(less)

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

The Brides of Rollrock Island is one of the most dense books I've read in a while. The story itself was a bit confusing at the beginning, there's just a lot to take in and know within the first few pages. But after re-reading it, and slowing down my pace, I couldn't get myself to put the book down.

The organization of the book, isn't what I'm used to. Instead of being divided into chapters, its divided into a few sections, each titled with the person's name, who that section follows. Each of thes...more

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Mar 23, 2013 Amy Sherman rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya-lit-reviewed

What is there to like?
A lot!
▪ First, the language blends and balances lyricism and colloquialism in its dialogue and first-person narration beautifully.
▪ I love that the story shifts in perspective as a means to show the progression of what happens on Rollrock through the generations: the before-, the as-, and the after-it-happens. It’s a skillful, yet genuine way of accomplishing the next point that is so well done, namely…
▪ …the way that the reader is slowly able to piece together what happen...more

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Sci-fi and Heroic...: 2013 Ditmar Awards announced	2	9	May 03, 2013 05:37am
The Stella Prize ...: Sea Hearts review	2	3	Apr 07, 2013 05:20pm
YA e dintorni: The brides of Rollrock island	85	24	Mar 04, 2013 01:16am
Huntsville-Madiso...: Staff Picks: The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan	4	11	Nov 13, 2012 07:19pm
Sno-Isle Mock Printz: * (Our) 2013 Honor Book: The Brides of Rollrock Island	2	8	Oct 30, 2012 06:54pm
Mock Printz 2014: Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan	10	59	Oct 14, 2012 11:22am

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About Margo Lanagan

Margo Lanagan, born in Waratah, New South Wales, is an Australian writer of short stories and young adult fiction.

Many of her books, including YA fiction, were only published in Australia. Recently, several of her books have attracted worldwide attention. Her short story collection Black Juice won two World Fantasy Awards. It was published in Australia by Allen & Unwin and the United Kingdom b...more

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Quotes from The Brides of Rollrock...

“I felt freed to please myself, to find my way as I would, in a world that was much vaster than I had realized before, in which I was but one star-gleam, one wavelet, among multitudes. My happiness mattered not a whit more than the next person's - or the next fish's, or the next grass-blade's! - and not a whit less.” — 6 people liked it

“How different other families were, the shape of them, the things they presumed, the children that grew up in them.” — 6 people liked it

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