The Mermaid of Black Conch

A Love Story: Costa Book of the Year 2020

Monique Roffey author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Peepal Tree Press Ltd

Published:2nd Apr '20

Should be back in stock very soon

The Mermaid of Black Conch cover

'Monique Roffey is a unique talent and most daring and versatile of writers' - Bernardine Evaristo

March 1976: St Constance, a tiny Caribbean village on the island of Black Conch. A fisherman sings to himself, waiting for a catch – but attracts a sea-dweller he doesn’t expect. A beautiful young woman cursed by jealous wives to live as a mermaid has been swimming the Caribbean Sea for centuries. And she is entranced by the fisherman and and his song.

But her fascination is her undoing. She hears his boat’s engine again, follows it, and finds herself at the mercy of American tourists. After a fearsome battle, she is pulled out of the sea and strung up on the dock as a trophy. The fisherman rescues her, and gently wins her trust – as she starts to transform into a woman.

  • Winner of The Costa Novel Award 2020
  • Winner of Costa Book of the Year 2020
  • Short-listed for The Goldsmiths Prize 2020

ISBN: 9781845234577

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: unknown