Monique Roffey – författare

Author of The Mermaid of Black Conch, Rathbone Folio Prize 2021 longlisted, Winner of the Costa Best Novel Award 2020 & Winner of the Costa Book of the Year 2020August Chalmin feels the weather like no one else.A large awkward recluse, with bright orange hair and sun-shy eyes, August hides himself away behind the counter of a Shepherd's Bush deli. One winter's day two things change his life forever: his mother's ex-lover Cosmo shambles back into his life, and he discovers a rash on his arm which looks like frost. A rash which is frost.As Cosmo raises questions about August's identity, August finds himself changing with the seasons, in a journey that takes him deep into his past and to the very centre of his soul...

Author of The Mermaid of Black Conch, Rathbone Folio Prize 2021 longlisted, Winner of the Costa Best Novel Award 2020 & Winner of the Costa Book of the Year 2020Gavin Weald lives with his six-year old daughter Océan and their dog Suzy in a newly rebuilt pink house. It is only a few months since a devastating flood swept through their home, with heartbreaking consequences.Gavin is trying desperately to carry on, but wakes each night to his daughter's cries and his own fears for the future. So one day he does the only thing he can think of: he takes his daughter and his dog down to the marina, to his old boat Romany which hasn't set sail in years, and embarks upon a voyage to make his peace with the waters. They set sail into deep open ocean, watch fish and dolphins leap from the waves, and head for the Caribbean archipelago that Gavin longed to explore as a younger man, before he fell in love with a woman and moored his boat for what he thought was the last time.Now Gavin has a new reason for wanderlust and an unexpected crew, who are about to discover the full power and majesty of the sea. A miraculous journey awaits, new sights and wonders - but it will take more than an ocean to put the memory of the flood behind them…Praise for Archipelago:'There's a warmth to this book, an exuberance and a wisdom, that makes the experience of reading it feel not just pleasurable but somehow instructive. It's funny, sometimes bitingly poignant. A brilliant piece of storytelling' Andrew Miller, author of Pure, winner of the Costa Book of the Year 2011

Escape to the ocean with the entrancing, unforgettable winner of the Costa Book of the Year – as read on BBC Radio 4.‘A daring, mesmerising novel… A modern myth’ Maggie O’Farrell, author of HAMNET‘Not your standard mermaid’ Margaret Atwood, author of THE HANDMAID’S TALENear the island of Black Conch, a fisherman sings to himself while waiting for a catch. But David attracts a sea-dweller that he never expected – Aycayia, an innocent young woman cursed by jealous wives to live as a mermaid.When American tourists capture Aycayia, David rescues her and vows to win her trust. Slowly, painfully, she transforms into a woman again. Yet as their love grows, they discover that the world around them is changing – and they cannot escape the curse for ever… ‘Bighearted… A world that it is a pleasure to live inside’ New York Times‘Sensuous, beguiling, wondrous… A striking achievement’ Sunday Times‘A fiercely modern mermaid story’ The Times‘A unique talent’ Bernardine Evaristo, author of GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER‘Gorgeous… I was enthralled, enchanted and moved’ 5-star reader review‘A tale of love, the sea and a mermaid… Perfection’ 5-star reader review

Four women spark a revolution on a Caribbean island – the exhilarating new novel from the Costa-winning author of The Mermaid of Black Conch.‘If The White Lotus were a modern feminist thriller, this would be it’ LALINE PAULL‘Brilliant. I loved it’ SARAH WINMANEarly one morning, at the close of St Colibri’s carnival, a young female steel-pan player is found dead beneath a cannonball tree. It is a discovery that will transform the lives of everyone on this Caribbean island.As the days pass, the shocking event draws together new allies: Sharleen, Tara, Gigi and Daisy. In a community in which violence against women is overlooked time after time, the group find themselves compelled to speak out – and to act.But they could never have foreseen the consequences of their courage… READERS LOVE PASSIONTIDE‘Exhilarating… it’s a blast, with sharp, smart humour’‘What an amazing book this is… This story will stay with me for a very long time’‘A powerful book… really moving’‘Filled with anger, unity and love’‘This was fantastic… five stars’‘Moving and gripping’‘Roffey’s world-building power is evident on every page’ GUARDIAN‘A resounding testament to the rebellious spirit of Caribbean women’ SAFIYA SINCLAIR‘Will keep you reading all hours... unforgettable’ GLAMOUR‘A vital novel… Fiery, funny’ DIANA EVANS

Escape to the ocean with the entrancing, unforgettable winner of the Costa Book of the Year – as read on BBC Radio 4.‘A daring, mesmerising novel… A modern myth’ Maggie O’Farrell, author of HAMNETOn a quiet day, near the Caribbean island of Black Conch, a mermaid raises her barnacled head from the flat grey sea. She is attracted by David, a fisherman waiting for a catch, singing to himself with his guitar. Aycayia the mermaid has been living in the vast ocean all alone for centuries.When Aycayia is caught and dragged ashore by American tourists, David rescues her with the aim of putting her back in the ocean. But it is soon clear that the mermaid is already transforming into a woman.This is the story of their love affair, of an island and of the great wide sea.‘Not your standard mermaid’ Margaret Atwood, author of THE HANDMAID’S TALE‘Bighearted… A world that it is a pleasure to live inside’ New York Times‘Sensuous, beguiling, wondrous… A striking achievement’ Sunday Times‘A fiercely modern mermaid story’ The Times‘A unique talent’ Bernardine Evaristo, author of GIRL, WOMAN, OTHERVINTAGE EARTH is a series of books that reveals our ever-changing relationship with the environment. These are stories old and young, set in worlds real or imagined, that allow us to explore our connection to the natural world. Transformative, wild, surprising and essential, these novels take on the most urgent story of our times.

Four women spark a revolution on a Caribbean island – the electrifying new novel from the Costa-winning author of The Mermaid of Black Conch.‘Vital, enraging and brilliant. I loved it’ SARAH WINMAN‘Beautiful and important’ SAFIYA SINCLAIREarly one morning, at the close of St Colibri’s carnival, a young female steel-pan player is found dead beneath a cannonball tree. It is a discovery that will transform the lives of everyone on this small island.As the days pass, this shocking event draws together four women. There’s Sharleen, a journalist with an eye for the real story. Her childhood friend Tara, a pink-haired, straight-talking local activist. Gigi, the ‘notorious’ founder of the Port Isabella Sex Workers Collective. And Daisy, first lady of St Colibri, who is haunted by a disappearance in her own family decades ago.In a community in which women’s voices are often silenced and violence against them is overlooked time after time, the group soon find themselves compelled to speak out – and to act. But even they could never have foreseen the consequences of their courage…READERS LOVE PASSIONTIDE‘This was fantastic… five stars’‘Exhilarating… it's a blast, with sharp, smart humour’‘A powerful book… really moving’‘Filled with anger, unity and love’‘What an amazing book this is… This story will stay with me for a very long time’‘Moving and gripping’‘A must-read’‘I loved this book’‘Roffey’s world-building power is evident on every page’GUARDIAN‘Will keep you reading all hours... unforgettable’GLAMOUR‘Sensual, ferocious… If The White Lotus were a modern feminist thriller, this would be it’LALINE PAULL‘The spirit of carnival itself is in the writing… Electrifying’JASON ALLEN-PAISANT‘A vital novel… Fiery, funny’DIANA EVANS