Nothing is accidental or optional in this jewelled clockwork egg of a book... Hoban is a hugely skilled, moving and endlessly entertaining writer.

A poignant and engaging fable of ownership and surrender.

He mixes wild invention with subtle observation... the resulting tale reads like a downbeat, offbeat Faust for the tawdry, lottery-playing 1990s.

Worth rejoicing in ... a banquet of whimsical delights. Each Russell Hoban book is surprising ... but you also know what you're getting, which is curiosity, wonder and a world-encompassing empathy.

We love everything Jane Fallon writes and this might be her best yet!

Fallon's trademark warmth and humour is very much to the fore with this tale of friendship gone badly wrong

Takes us on a deep dive into the emotionally murky waters which exist between protagonists Lydia and Georgia . . . I adored it

Ingenious. Her eye for detail, compressed emotion and the absurdity that lurks beneath what people say to each other, is unerring. Worst. Idea. Ever. strengthens her claim to be one of our very finest comic novelists

Funny, insightful, sharp, wicked, brilliant - Jane Fallon at her very best

Jane's talent lies in understanding human behaviour . . . Another winner. You won't regret it

Fallon constructs a nail-biting situation and has us turning the pages at speed . . . Fraught and fabulous, pacy and persuasive

A razor-sharp tale of friendship and secrets

Highly recommended

Praise for Jane Fallon

Intelligent, edgy and witty

Chick lit with an edge

I LOVE her books. She always delivers a fabaliss read

A romcom with attitude

Magical touches blend with precise realism in this bittersweet tale of a mermaid trying to put the sea behind her... What makes the novel sing is how Roffey fleshes out these mythical goings-on with pin-sharp detail from the real world, as Aycayia, hidden away in David's bedroom, navigates the perils (and pleasures) of life on land

The Mermaid of the Black Conch arrives bearing tragedy and beauty. Monique Roffey has created a new myth for an age of ruined oceans. She continues to be one of our most exciting new Caribbean voices

Arresting... where can Aycayia [the mermaid] be most free, asks this truly original novel, deftly weaving myth, feminism, humour and social realism

With easy prose and the tantalising story of a mermaid loved and feared in equal measure, [Roffey] draws the reader in... A book for our time

Monique Roffey is a writer of verve, vibrancy and compassion, and her work is always a joy to read

Monique Roffey has a sharp, original way of looking at the world... an arrestingly poetic story

[Monique Roffey] is the most adventurous of writers and The Mermaid of Black Conch does not disappoint... this is a strange, haunting, original and memorable novel about Aycayia, a mermaid from deep history who is entrapped and taken out of the sea... This is a novel packed with layers of meaning around womanhood, alienation, masculinity, toxic attitudes towards women, and inter-female rivalry, as well as love, compassion and the search for home

Monique Roffey is a unique talent and most daring and versatile of writers. I never know what to expect and I'm never disappointed

The Mermaid of Black Conch is wonderfully written, with both soul and intense drama - it glistens almost, like the mermaid! I love its all-round charisma and also its great compassion for both humanity and the natural world

An extraordinary, beautifully written, captivating, visceral book - full of mythic energy and unforgettable characters, including some tremendously transgressive women... It is utterly original - unlike anything we've ever read - and feels like a classic in the making from a writer at the height of her powers. It's a book that will take you to the furthest reaches of your imagination - we found it completely compelling

A fiercely modern mermaid story... Roffey subverts the fairtyale... The narrative is interspersed with poetry, journal entries, recollections and passages that give insight into various characters' perspectives; this entertaining novel, like Aycayia [the mermaid], is itself a shape-shifting curiosity.

I would definitely recommend The Mermaid of Black Conch...a bittersweet love story between a beautiful young woman cursed to live as a mermaid and a fisherman... a joy to read, brimming with memorable characters and vivid descriptions... a hugely entertaining and thought-provoking novel

Roffey doesn't limit herself to simple romance, but delves into themes of corruption, prejudice, ecology and more

Magical

The novel is a unique Caribbean fable that takes the familiar story of a mermaid abruptly thrust onshore and brings it to a new place. It reads like the work of a novelist in command of her material and focused on using a mythic 'then' to speak to now

A lyrical love story about a mermaid and a fisherman, but equally, transformation and ancient ways. It's exquisite

[A] beautiful book... Roffey's writing is lyrical and filled with magic, but there is plenty of bittersweet realism to ground it

A very beautiful, haunting book