April Book of the Month - Emma recommends... Mere - Danielle Giles

Emma recommends... A completely absorbing yet unsettling tale of a declining convent sitting on the edge of a mere, where seemingly everyone and everything has secrets – including the water. The gorgeously folkloric feel is undercut as a growing crisis at the convent holds you gripped with tensions between Christian beliefs and traditional practices, as well as a struggle for power at the top. The claustrophobia – as the convent becomes even more isolated from the outside world and relationships inside collapse – is almost unbearable, punctuated only by a moving and tender sapphic love story. Brilliantly capturing both the strangeness of the past and the common humanity that binds across time, this one is perfect for fans of Matrix (Lauren Groff), The Western Wind (Samantha Harvey), The Essex Serpent (Sarah Perry), and For Thy Great Pain Have Mercy On My Little Pain (Victoria Mackenzie).

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Norfolk, 990 AD. Deep in the Fens, isolated by a vast and treacherous mere, an order of holy sisters make their home.

Under the steely guidance of Abbess Sigeburg they follow God’s path, looking to their infirmarian, Hilda, to provide what comfort and cures she can. But when the mere takes a young servant boy, Sigeburg’s grip falters and Hilda quickly realizes this place holds secrets darker and more unholy than she can fathom. Then proud Sister Wulfrun, a recent arrival to the convent, has a vision: a curse is upon them and change must be brought. Is she saint or serpent?

To Hilda, Wulfrun is a signal bolder and brighter than any fire set – one she cannot help but follow...