At first, I found this novel so hard to follow that I almost gave up on it. I'm so glad I didn't.
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.
This book is not going to be for everyone. If you like books that are slower, character driven, throw you into the world with very little or no explanation as to how it all works, then The Brides of Rollrock Island will be for you.
Rollrock Island was bleak and isolated with but a handful of families who'd lived there forever. Few left and even fewer came to visit.
When you read a Margo Lanagan book, you expect it to both confuse and enthrall you. And THE BRIDES OF ROLLROCK ISLAND delivers that head-spinning, gut-churning, fizzy-brained mixture of "what in the world is going on?
Originally reviewed at:4.5/ 5 starsI read The Brides of Rollrock Island waaayyy back in August.
The back of the book says we see the deepest of human cruelty, but also of love. Wrong: there is no love in this books.
SUMMARY -On the Island of Rollrock, Misskaella is ridiculed. She is pushed aside, teased, but also unnoticed.
Out of all the mythical creatures out there, I think one of the most magical and haunting is the legend of the selkie. The Brides of Rollrock Island by Margo Lanagan treats these beautiful, mysterious creatures with the respect deserved.
Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.I often describe urban fantasy novels as "dark" when there's violence and pain, loss and mourning.
This is one of the most uniquely woven and bizarre novels I have ever read. Wonderful in its unusualness, stunning and breathtaking prose come together with one of the most imaginative stories I've encountered.
Melancholy. If I had to capture Margo Lanagan's The Brides of Rollrock Island in one word, melancholy would be the one.
I was confused for most of the book. It kept switching people so fast I couldn't keep up.
I could not put this book down. Margo Lanagan entranced me with her words like sea witch pulling a woman from a seal.
