The Visitors

by Simon Sylvester

Nobody moves to the remote Scottish island of Bancree, and few leave - but leaving is exactly what seventeen-year-old Flo intends to do. So when a mysterious man and his daughter arrive at isolated Dog Cottage, Flo is curious. Who would willingly choose to live in such solitude? The man's brooding handsomeness is extraordinary; and there's something unusual about his daughter Ailsa that Flo cannot help but be drawn towards. But people aren't only arriving on Bancree, they are disappearing too. Reports of missing islanders fill the press, and when a body washes ashore, suspicion turns to the strange new outsiders. Convinced of their innocence, Flo is fiercely determined to protect her friend. Could the answer to the disappearances, and to the overwhelming pull of her own heart, lie out there, beyond the waves?

Genres: Mystery, Fantasy, Fiction, Scotland, Young Adult, Thriller, Contemporary

368 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 29, 2014

About the author

Simon Sylvester is a writer, teacher and occasional filmmaker. Raised in Scotland, he now lives in Cumbria. His debut novel, The Visitors, was published by Quercus Books in 2014. His sort stories have been widely published in magazines, journals and anthologies.

Reviews

[Adina ( back from Vacay…slowly recovering) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Try The Visitors if you want to read something similar to Neil Gaiman, without sexual assault allegations attached to the author. I read this novel part of my TBR cleaning project. I am not sure how this got there, probably due to the similarities with the above mentioned author, who used to be one of my favourites. It took me 11 years to start it and I am glad I finally did.

Flora, a 17 year old girl, lives on the remote Scottish island of Bancree. Her boyfriend, as many others, left the place to study and live on the bigger island. Angry and bitter, she discovers with surprise that someone actually wants to live on her island. Two strangers, a father and daughter, just moved into the long abandoned Dog Cottage. Flora befriends the other girl, while also trying to find out why they would come to that remote place. Meanwhile, men are disappearing without a trace and nobody knows what happened to them. Flora is more and more absorbed by a project about selkies, mythological women who can turn from human to seals. What is the connection between all three plot lines? Read and you shall see.

The Visitors is a blend between mystery and fairy-tale at its heart, but also a novel about friendship, loss and storytelling. I enjoyed the atmospheric writing, the descriptions and even the slow build-up.

[karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

there's a sustained haunting quality underlying this novel with a white-noise hum that kinda shivers underneath your skin even after you've finished reading. it's a scottish coming-of-age gothic novel with both fantasy and mystery elements which i know sounds like someone getting a little too greedy at the plot store, but i'm telling you, it works.

part of it is the setting. you give me a sparsely-populated, non-tropical island story with a teenage girl yearning for more life than the geographical isolation and technological fickleness that makes up her world and you got poignant covered. you add mysterious disappearances and dark mythology, and the spookiness is stirred in. and there's not much i like more than poignant spookiness.

here we have flora, seventeen and restless. she lives on the scottish island of bancree with her mother, her stepfather ronny, and their baby jamie, where the tapwater runs thick with peat and flora has to take a ferry to the mainland each morning to attend school. her boyfriend richard; whom she has known her whole life, is a year older, has just left scotland for university in bristol, and has promptly broken up with her. since richard was one of the few teenagers who lived on bancree, and all of her school friends were made up of his older and now departed crowd, flora is completely alone entering her final year of high school.

she's not angry about the breakup, but she is angry that richard is living the life she wants so badly for her own - new people, new experiences, and all the glamorous mistakes of young adulthood.

My anger wasn't for Richard. That was only a fleeting thing, a distraction. And it wasn't even anger. It was jealousy.

Going out with him was an escape - my route to freedom, a cord that connected me to the world outside. Richard had cut that cord, and I felt robbed and hollow, the cavern of my stomach writhing with tiny, wormy things. Frustration, envy, sadness. It should have been me who'd escaped into a new life, drinking in bars and meeting new people. It should have been me doing the breaking up. The dumping.

but flora soon has plenty of distractions of her own: she is assigned a research paper on the history of the selkie myth, several bancree men go missing, including a close friend of ronny's, and she meets ailsa, a girl of her own ago who has just moved with her father to dog rock - a location even more remote and foreboding than bancree. the two girls develop a fierce bond, despite the air of grief and mystery that surrounds ailsa and her father, and the lines between reality and fantasy blur as the tension surrounding the missing persons cases escalates and the very future of the island is uncertain.

there are a lot of strengths to this novel. the descriptions of the sea, the island, the weather, the wind - they're fantastic and they make for a clear, well-defined setting as interesting as any of the characters.

the coming-of-age elements are also superb. flora's desire to start her adult life is palpable, and her frustration and future-dreams are effective and moving because they live inside such an articulate, intelligent and capable girl, not just some wistful dreamer.

sylvester writes flora's family dynamic very successfully, in all its delicacy. flora's is a loving family, but she feels the teenager's sense of being in the way; that there's no place for her in her mother and ronnie's "new" family with jamie. the fact that the house is so small that flora's leaving will actually improve their living conditions is something flora acknowledges as a practical reality and not a personal slight, but as much as she wants to leave, there are always conflicting emotions wound around major life changes, and sylvester does an excellent job of layering them all in and still maintaining some of that melodramatic adolescent angst:

Crossing to the Co-op, I strolled the harbour edge, weaving between the mooring posts, looking down into the water. It was tinged turquoise and astoundingly clear. Clusters of weed hung russet in the wash. Tiny fish flickered around a hanging hawser, long-forgotten and now without a purpose, thick with barnacles and slime. For those little fish, that hawser was a universe. I knew how they felt. My shoes scuffed on the old stone blocks that edged the harbour.

flora's research into the selkie myths is also a strong component to the story, and there are several great discussions about the nature of storytelling and tradition and the origin and development of mythologies over time, and the conflict between oral tradition and the written word. most of these occur between flora and izzy, who lives on the beach and is a sennachie, or professional storyteller

'Write up the bones of it, if you must. Get the basics of it for your homework. But don't write the whole thing like I told it you. '

'Why not?' I said, confused

He huffed a bit.

'Look,' he said, 'this might sound daft to you, lass. But my stories are about the telling and the hearing, not the writing and the reading. They're all for talking out loud. They're about this, and that, and this,' he said, pointing haplessly at the sky, and the sea, and the cracking fire. 'If you write them down, they'll lose some of the magic.'

'I don't get it.'

'It's like this. If you put a bear in a cage, what do you have?'

'A bear?'

'No. All you have is a cage.'

the disappearances, although technically the most dramatic aspects of the book, are actually pretty much just backdrop. there are definitely repercussions and they have importance to the story, but the center of this stage is reserved for atmosphere and setting; it's immersive, chilly, filled with tea and jumpers, and flora shines as a character in her growing awareness of the world around her, her inner landscape, and her her resistance to letting go of wonder

'What's wrong? What can't you handle?'

'I'm not sure, Miss. It's just so…dark. It's all so negative.'

'The selkie stories?'

'No. They're just daft. It's history itself, Miss.'

She smiled, blandly, and shook her head.

'I don't follow.'

'There's no more mystery,' I said, blurting it out. 'There's no more magic.'

She traces her fingers over the front sheet.

'I heard the stories,' I said, 'and I was hooked. They were really exciting. I was hooked, Miss. I wanted to know more. And now, I've analysed them, and contrasted them, and explored them, and explained them, and now … the magic's gone, Miss.'

Frowning, she thumbed through the report.

'It's hollow,' I said. 'It's all so empty.'

Fragments of words echoed on the whiteboard. Nothing survived entire.

'That's all part of growing up, Flora. You know that, don't you? You must know that? It all goes in the end.'

'I'm not sure,' I managed, thickly, 'that I want that for myself.'

it's just sheer loveliness. it's sensual, occasionally erotic, and a wonderful, wonderful fantasy story. i will definitely be looking out for more by this author, even if it's just more about flora and ailsa. selkies optional.

come to my blog!

[Arie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Startlingly good.

I came across this debut novel completely by accident, searching for a similarly named Lee Child book – this is worlds away from Jack Reacher. Drawing deeply from Scottish folklore and myth, in singing prose that is compulsively readable, Sylvester has woven a fantastically dark tale that is equal parts thriller and fantasy. The supernatural aspects in the story were a surprise, the cover blurb having suggested a far more straightforward story, but I really enjoyed the way Sylvester incorporated his own take on traditional tales. In fact, that’s a huge understatement – as the story drew on, I became more and more captivated, leading to a very sleepless night from being unable to put the book down.

Flora is a fantastic main character. Though stereotypical in description (outsider, no one understands her but there is something indescribably special about her, "not like other girls" etc, etc) the whole adds up to far, far more than the sum of parts. She is more than capable of looking after herself, but also readily makes mistakes.

Most unusually, her life doesn’t revolve around the “love interest”, and though love – and obsession – are important themes throughout the book, it is never formulaic. The same could be said about the entire plot: though it should have been predictable, it rarely was. Even when revelations were made that I expected, they were made in such a way that they became utterly shocking.

Like its ocean setting, The Visitors is beautiful, cold and relentless – and completely mesmerising.

On a second read:

The second time through and my opinion still holds, though memory had made more of the mystical elements and so it was slightly surprising to see how delicately the line between reality and myth is woven through.

[Algernon · Rating 4 out of 5]

‘There’s no more mystery,’ I said, blurting it out. ‘There’s no more magic.’ [...]
‘I heard the stories,’ I said, ‘and I was hooked. They were really exciting. I was hooked, Miss. I wanted to know more. And now, I’ve analysed them, and contrasted them, and explored them, and now ... the magic’s gone, Miss.’

Growing up in the Hebrides islands isn’t easy. Isolated from the mainland and constantly swept by the wind and rains of the Atlantic, these islands nevertheless hold a particular romantic alure and a sense of danger that capture a writer’s imagination. yet seventeen years old Flora only dreams of escaping from her home on Bancree immediately after finishing school. A school assignment leads her to a study of local myths and legends, and in her mind this is linked to a series of people disappearing or becoming lost at sea. Reality and imagination get mixed up in this sort of crime investigation and modern fairy tale.

At the top of the slope, the town opened into a panorama. Pretty houses painted in pinks and pastel yellows lined the harbour on three sides.
Another snow globe. It felt so tiny.

I have always loved the sea and the promise of adventure beyond the line of the horizon, but as I grow older I realize I grow a little weary of the strong Mediterranean sun and of its crowded beaches and that I prefer the loneliness, the pale light and fog, the mystery of the northern shores. Many of my recent literary picks are set in Iceland, or on the coast of Scandinavia [Camilla Lackberg, Peter Hoeg] or even here in the Hebrides [Peter May, Tana French]. Simon Sylvester turned out to be the sleeper hit of my summer reads, sleeper as in having waited for years on my wishlist because its author seemed obscure and a bit of a one-hit-wonder. Only the mention of Neil Gaiman in some recent review reminded me I already have Sylvester’s book on my shelves.
The story is not without some clunky parts and some awkward moments, it’s a debut novel after all, but the atmosphere and the characters I found compelling, maybe even memorable. Time will tell if this good impression will endure.

>>><<<>>><<<

When did you stop believing in fairy tales? Like dragons, and Santa Claus and true love?
For Flora the moment comes when her childhood companion turned boyfriend finishes school a year before her and can’t seem to wait to go away to university and to a new life without her. Her last year on Bancree and going back to school are hell in this context, but a couple of new developments offer some relief.
Most people, especially the younger generation, are keen to abandon Bancree, its hard work, its poverty and its old-fashioned traditions, so it’s rather curious and abnormal when a couple of strangers decide to move to Bancree and live in an abandoned croft on an even smaller island in the middle of the local harbour. A handsome father and an introverted daughter the same age as Flora who like to keep to themselves and who feed the local rumour machine with outlandish speculations.
The two teenage girls become friends against the world, but the mystery surrounding the presence of these visitors grows instead of being dispelled. In Flora’s mind they becomes intertwined with the study of selkie stories she does for a school project.

‘Every shennachie worth his salt knows a selkie story.’
‘What’s a shennachie?’
‘A storyteller of the oldest sort. He collects stories as he wanders, and tells them from memory. He keeps them stored nice and safe up here,’ said Izzy, tapping his temple.

Izzy is another visitor to Bancree, an old beachcomber and wild man who shuns the company of his peers and prefers to live alone on the beach in an improvised shack.
Between Izzy’s tales by the fireside and the books she takes out from the library, Flora’s imagination is saturated with imagines of seals that turn into seductive men and women that are either yearning to return to their underwater realm or plotting to drag some innocent with them beneath the waves.
The borderline between reality and dream becomes blurred, and the mysterious visitors become suspects of being supernatural beings. But how are they connected with the recent drownings and disappearances all over the islands? Could there be something less magical and more sinister at work here?

Born from the spirits of drowned sailors, born into sadness. Caught for ever between the land and the sea, tugged both ways and always torn, hands outstretched and gripping tight to both identities. Pulled both ways by the tide.

Flora herself is pulled both ways by her growing affection for the new girl and by her unwonted attraction to her brooding father. The bloody and sad stories told by the local shennachie [or seanchai according the wikipedia] are feeding the fire of the young girl’s obsession. But Flora is also a kid at home in the modern world with mobile phones and internet, a goth rebel with a cool head on her shoulders in a crisis, who knows that she needs to grow up and deal with facts, even as her mind is filled with images of ancient creatures with bloody hands and fascinating eyes.
Moreover, some of those old myths turn out to be downright sexist:

I realized with a start that selkie men were never captured – only selkie women. Seal men gave their affections gladly to craven, submissive human women. But for the selkie women, their love was held ransom by only the boldest human men. I flicked through my notes. Regardless of the story, that held true in every case. Selkie girls danced in the surf as though in a shop window.
The selkie myth was a suppression of female sexuality.
I didn’t like that at all.

In the end, the author got tangled in his own plot twists and lost me a little with the late reveals, but he kept true to the spirit of the old tales and to the gloomy, melancholic vibes from the start of the novel. The comparison with Neil Gaiman no longer appears as a marketing gimmick, and the final impression is not of a murder/mystery experience but of a well told tale about the importance of fairy tales even for grown-up, exactly the same point Gaiman is putting across in most of his works.

Wonder. That was the heart of it all. The magic of the world, the grace of the sea, the theatre of a story. The shadow race of clouds on hillsides on sunny days. The kestrels that hover, loop, hover. The seals that watch us from the sea, dipping once and gone.
What are we without dreams?
What are we without wonder?

I wish Simon Sylvester would come back with more tales like this one, but so far he seems to prefer short stories published in magazines.

[TL *Humaning the Best She Can* · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderfully gothic/dark tale with elements of mystery, thriller, and even magic sprinkled throughout the story. The synopsis does the book justice yet doesn't at the same time, to say any more than what was said would be to take some of the magic away from the story.

I love myths and legends of Ireland and Scotland... there's just something so fascinating about reading these tales. Each story is different in its own way, many with life lessons and undercurrents of menace and peril.

Selkies is one I haven't come across much in regular fiction novels, and after reading karen's review and the summary, this shot to the top of my "must get as soon as possible"list. When I finally had the funds to get myself a copy, needless to say... :-D.

It is a steady-paced book, unfolding each event in its own way and content to wrap you in the story slowly and lovingly (right word?). The writing reminded me of Susanna Kearsley and Kate Morton, very atmospheric and character-driven. Even the setting itself is a character, feeling as alive as the people who inhabit it.

Bancree could almost be a town that time forgot, in a way. It has the modern conveniences but I was left with the sense that the town was... waiting for a lack of a better word. Waiting for what exactly, not sure. People were content in their lives, going about their daily business.
There was also a slight air of unease when a certain citizen was around, even Bancree itself seemed to disapprove.

Izzy's stories were a highlight for me, dark and sad some of them were but there was still that 'magic' aspect to it that has you thinking about them long after.

Ailsa and John I loved... John was a damaged man, trying to keep the pieces together and Ailsa was damaged in her own way as well, but going about her life the best she could.

When something comes to light about a certain someone I was taken aback completely. Looking back it makes a morbid sort of sense but at first he was the last person I would have suspected. Gives me chills thinking about it now, how this person spiraled downwards and no one saw it for so long.

The way a certain part ended broke my heart but it was beautifully handled... Mr Sylvester, my hat off to you.

The last couple paragraphs in the book.. not to overuse a word but... simply beautiful and poignant. I had to read them more than once.

It is to the power of the writing that had me believing in the magical aspect of the story while not quite believing it as well, if that makes sense. There was one moment too where it seemed it almost could have gone that way...

Won't say more as I might accidentally spoil something :)

It won't be for everyone but I do believe this should be given a try.

[Dale Harcombe · Rating 2 out of 5]

‘The island seemed so safe until people began to disappear’ the cover says. That is enough to get the curiosity going. The cover is also a drawcard.
The island is Bancree and the story is told from the point of view of 17 year old Flora, (Flo) who can’t wait to finish school and leave the island. Her boyfriend has just left the island for university. Around the same time, a man and his daughter Ailsa move to the area and take up residence in the area in Dog Cottage. That is unusual since people never move in, but only out of the area.
I rather enjoyed the early part of this story and I liked the stories of selkies which were interspersed throughout. The writing was atmospheric and sets the scene of this rather bleak island well. Flo doesn’t fit in at school but her and Ailsa strike up a friendship, even though Flo feels there is something rather strange about her new friend and her father.
I was curious to find out where the story was going and what exactly was happening. Further into the novel it became more violent with a fight, an attempted rape and murder. Use of the F word also became more prevalent. My interest started to wane as the book got stranger. Yet, I couldn’t quite put it aside either, as I still wanted to see how it turned out. So, I kept going, despite this not really being my kind of read. There will probably be plenty of people out there who will enjoy this novel. Though I enjoyed certain aspects, at the end, I was left feeling unsettled and edgy, almost wishing I had never started the book at all. Others may react differently though. It will really depend on personal reading taste.

[Book Riot Community]

I don’t know why this book felt so perfect for autumn and cool weather and grey skies and my current melancholy, but it was perfection. Beautifully blending moody teenage angst, Scottish island life, mysterious disappearances, and selkie mythology, Sylvester’s novel is the best new(ish) book I’ve devoured in months. I found myself angry that work and sleep were disrupting my progress. I wish there was more. I wish the story went on forever. I want to sink into Flo’s life and never leave the comfort of her tales. Achingly, dreamingly stunning.

–Brandi Bailey



from The Best Books We Read In October 2016: http://bookriot.com/2016/10/31/riot-r...

[Anmiryam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stayed up far too late last night to finish this -- there was a cup of coffee consumed mid-afternoon which contributed to my reading prowess, but the majority of the blame belongs to this compelling and engaging novel. I'm betting a lot of other people in the US will have the same experience, as many UK readers have already, when the book hits the shelves this winter.

The pleasures here are myriad. Chief among them is a compelling and smart teenage narrator, Flora, who despite her insight has blindspots and immature impulses that lead her to some very poor decisions. Very poor indeed -- and her foolishness is all the more irritating because of how alive she is and how much Sylvester makes us her partisans.

At seventeen, with her mother and her partner consumed with their new baby, Flo is ready to leave Bancree, her tiny Scottish island as soon as she finishes school. Indeed, as the novel opens her long-term boyfriend is leaving for school in England and her sadness at his departure is born more of envy at his breaking free while she is still stuck than from romantic longing. For all her desire to leap into the next phase of her life, and despite her impatience with the bleakness and isolation of island life -- described with here with unsentimental clarity tempered by love for the intrinsic beauty of the landscape -- Flo is attuned to the seductive mysteries of land and sea in her small remote corner of the Hebrides. A school project on myth, and the chance discovery of a slender volume of stories about Selkies, pull at her. Her fascination leads her to collect more tales from a local beach combing storyteller and even her aging and rambling grandfather. Sylvester manages to make Flo's fascination with the tales, which are both haunting and horrific, a reflection of her own teetering moment at the edge of adulthood. Flora knows Selkies are the fantastic embodiment of that sailors and seafaring communities invented to make sense of the loss and loneliness of their hardscrabble existence, yet there is a part of her that is hoping the magical beings are real.

The focus of her yearning turns towards the only incomers Bancree, an island that is bleeding people, has seen in a long time. A father and daughter have just taken up residence on Dog Rock, a small ledge with a single cottage several hundred yards off of Bancree proper. Ailsa becomes the first friend Flo has had besides her ex-boyfriend. Aisa's father, John, becomes the object of Flo's fantasies. But, why are they here and what connection do they have to the island men that have gone missing over the preceding months?

No spoilers, but Sylvester does a stellar job at mixing his various themes and plot threads into a cohesive and page-turning novel. It is at once a thriller and one of the best, and least maudlin, coming of age novels I've read in some time. Flora and the events that tip her into adulthood will intrigue adult readers, perhaps more than many teens, though I know quite a few who will find Flo a kindred spirit.

[Book Addict Shaun · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I was offered the chance to review this book I was immediately intrigued. The cover is absolutely stunning and would definitely capture your eye in a bookshop. With eye captured you then read the blurb and are drawn in even more. I know some people don't like blurbs, or even to be told a little bit about the plot but it's very rare that I go into a book blind. I have to at least have some idea about the book before reading it. A book such as this probably wouldn't be my usual read but I'm all about taking a chance and it is absolutely worth it when it pays off.

What we have here is one of the most original, breathtaking and atmospheric novels that I've read in a while. I keep repeating myself with each book but I honestly have been extremely privileged to read some excellent books this year and we've only just hit August. The island of Bancree is as creepy as it sounds, I certainly wouldn't want to move there and if I'd been brought up there I would be looking to make my escape as soon as possible. Someone who does live there and is planning to leave is Flora (Flo) but then a mysterious man and his daughter move to the island. Flo is drawn to the daughter as there's something not quite right about her. Add into the mix the fact that residents of the island are disappearing and our story really gets going.

Flo despite being a teenage girl wasn't hard to connect with and relate to especially as growing up a lot of my friends were female. There are crime fiction elements to the story concerning the missing residents but it's so much more than that. Crime for me usually just comes in the form of your bog standard detective novel, however this book features stuff I've not read about before and wouldn't ordinarily choose to, for example mythology however I actually really enjoyed that aspect of the book despite not expecting to. With incredibly drawn characters and a gripping story this is a book you won't want to put down.

As said earlier the book is extremely atmospheric. If you read this book under the covers by torchlight it would be like you were on the island itself as you forget the world around you. It is addictive reading and a read in a couple of sittings book. I'll definitely be looking out for more from this author in the future especially as this is a debut novel and reads as if written by someone who has been writing books for years. Fantastic stuff that I urge people to pick up.

[Linda Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful book loved reading it and sorry it had to end but end it did and what an ending so come one and all and get this wonderful book you will be better for it fantasy, adventure and love all in one book I am happy to recommend this fabulous book to all my friends and how ever I can so got get the book you will be pleased you did so you all keep smiling and happy reading to you all with love from wee me. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[Geraldine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this mistakenly thinking it was on the Booker shortlist. It was actually on the Guardian's Not the Booker shortlist, voted for by readers. I now have a much higher opinion of Guardian readers than Booker judges.

The narrator is a teenage girl, and I wondered if I'd picked up a book for adolescents. Although it could very well be read by a teenage audience, it is equally suitable for adults. It weaves a mystery over a serial killer with Scottish folklore about selkies.

I enjoyed most of the book well enough. It certainly keeps you reading. But the last part of the book is where it really comes into its own. It's exciting, emotional and beautiful. And not the story I was expecting from the blurb.

[Carla (Carla's Book Bits) · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the love of God, do not read the synopsis to this book if you're about to pick it up! I hate synopses like this; this one tells too much without telling you what the book is actually about, and when you're reading it, you're wondering why pages have gone by with "nothing happening." The truth is, this book's synopsis doesn't tell you what the book is about at all.

I had a hard time telling my SO what this book was about and why I was so invested in it. The words that came out of my mouth were "oh, it's about this girl living in this Scottish island, she wants to leave, and there's all this lore about selkies" and it sounded so lame. I couldn't put into words what appealed to me so much about this story.

I guess a list of what I liked will have to do, so here goes:
- Selkie folklore that feels like dark fairytales
- Atmospheric writing, a place so well-described it feels so tangible
- A slow, but hypnotic pace
- Such lovable and well-drawn characters; in fact they felt so real, that the island of Bancree felt actually lived in, and not just a setting to a story

Yeah, this book was amazing. Such an underrated read. I spent the last pages hugging this book to my chest, because the island of Bancree became so dear to me throughout the story. I still can't put into specific words what made this story so special, so wild, so magical, but I urge you to pick it up.

[emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

i think possibly, this book was written just for me. it is almost the selkie story that i've been dreaming about writing since i was about 12. the atmosphere is perfect. the descriptions of the ocean, and the small island life, and flora's yearning for something more really work well. the selkie mythology and stories she is studying are fantastic. there are some really interesting bits about the nature of storytelling and mythology in here. and the coming of age, gothic vibe of flora's story really works.

i'll admit, it took me about halfway through the book to really get into it. the beginning was interesting and i was enjoying myself perfectly, but i was able to put it down and just come back to it later. reading a few chapters here and there and then go about my day. but, last night, i was meaning to do the same, read a few chapters before bed.... and then suddenly it was 2 am, and i'd just finished, and i was crying in bed. (the crying had a bit more to do with my cold, than the book, but, honestly, it also had to do with the book. i don't think too many others will find themselves ending this in tears. i cry a lot. i've accepted it.)

part of the reason i got so hooked towards the third act of the book is a bit of a spoiler. there are queer characters!! i don't feel bad spoiling that at all. because if i had known going in there was a girl/girl love story, my baby gay little heart would have squealed in delight and plowed right through the book from start to finish. so, it's there. rejoice! enjoy! i won't spoil anymore about that.

except that i will, because i need to talk about it. actual, real, spoilers for the ending: ALISA IS IN LOVE WITH FLORA!!! FLORA REALIZES SHE IS IN LOVE WITH ALISA BACK!! GAY SELKIE GIRL!!!! SHE WAS PROTECTING FLORA OVER AND OVER. I AM OVERCOME I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH MYSELF. honestly, the reason this isn't a five star for me is because yet again, tragic lesbians, one of them dies. (i say lesbians just for a time saver and effect. flora is quite possibly bisexual, she dates a boy. she shows attraction to men. she never states her sexuality. neither girl does.) BUT the reason i am not bitter about it, after sleeping and thinking it over, is that... all selkie stories are tragic. i've been interested in them since i was 12, and i've yet to encounter a happily ever after. so, while i would have loved to see alisa and flora, like, actually together beyond their developing friendship, and the one life saving underwater kiss (which i LOOOVED ngl) and the declaration of love as alisa is dying, i can (a little unhappily, and while docking a star) be okay with it. i will just have to write the happily ever after lesbian selkie story myself one day.

in conclusion: the sea, selkie myths, gothic murder elements, small town isolation, fierce lady friendship, teenage girls being awesome, and girls falling in love. WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT? READ IT.

[Adriana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't understand what just happened. I went back and forth rereading the last chapters and I think I get it but I don't. It was a very engaging story with a crazy twist I din't expect. I still don't know the truth from the imagined.

[Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review also found at http://kristineandterri.blogspot.ca/2...

3.5 stars

**I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher Melville House via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. The expected publication date is December 29th, 2015**

I will be upfront and say that I gambled on this story. It seemed a little like it was outside of my comfort zone however in my quest to expand my horizons I decided to take the plunge. Additional doubts arrived when I read the synopsis on Goodreads. A lot less detailed than the one I read when I decided to request it and in reality not a great synopsis to capture attention.

I was pleasantly surprised. Sylvester told the story by keeping it mostly surrounded in reality and telling the tail of the Selkies through stories told as Scottish folklore. While you knew there was something not realistic at play, it was understated and not overwhelming. When the time came for fantasy to meet reality it was not overwhelming and it made sense to the story.

The character of Flo was likeable in the sense that she was a little bit of a loner and awkward however everyone can identify with the need to move on to something better.

If I had to offer a little bit of constructive criticism, I will say that towards the end I had trouble visualizing the description of what was going on with the Selkies. I'm not sure if it is because my imagination is rooted in reality or if the pace of the story sped up to a pace I couldn't keep up with.

At the end of the day I am glad I opened my mind to this story as I enjoyed it. It goes to show that you should step outside of your comfort zone every once in a while.

[Caroline Deacon · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s interesting this has been marketed as general or crime fiction, as the voice and subject matter feels v YA. Nevertheless it’s a beautifully written book, hard to categorise. Is it crime? Coming of age? Fantasy? Gothic horror? Or Scottish literary fiction? Immerse yourself in it and don’t worry what it is.
Written in first person from POV of seventeen year old teenage girl, I’ve only given it four stars rather than five as a couple of times the odd turn of phrase reminded me this was a man writing imagining himself a teenage girl, and this took me out of the story. But most people probably won’t notice these slips and maybe I’ve been hyper-critical.

[Karthik Thrikkadeeri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating read! I'd never known about selkies or other Scottish mythology, and I must say, this has got me hooked! The setting, the writing and the plot were all great, and like all selkie stories, have a grim and grey tone. Absolutely love it!

However, there are a couple of loose ends that nag me - why did the Dobies decide to start life on land if they were all selkies? Was Annie a human? How did Ailsa end up dying, was it from her injuries? Was Anders a selkie or his woman? If someone could answer these, I'd really appreciate it!

[Jen-Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

24.11.2020
This book breaks my heart and I will treasure and cherish it forever.


03.11.2018
I can't really describe how I feel about this book as my feelings would just pour out in a unintelligible gush. I loved this book. I fucking loved it. I adored all the selkie folklore, how real Flora's life felt and how relatable she was. I read this in two long sessions, I'm so sad it's over, I need more!

[Ali Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW!! From start to finish this book had me gripped, sucking me in like a Selkie would. The descriptions of Bancree were perfect creating an eerie setting from the start. It was easy to read and the story just flowed but it was the anticipation which built up with each chapter and towards the end my heart was beating. I loved it so so much as I love all stories intertwined with folklore. I really did not want it to end. On reflection I think I may have met a few selkies in my own life, it certainly make you think. I hope the author comes up with a good follow up but this is a hard act to follow. Highly recommended.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The atmospheric descriptions had me after the first few chapters. The myth of “selkies” combined with a coming-of-age tale...riveting. My Scottish ancestry didn’t mean I could interpret the vocabulary (and argot) except with the aid of Wikipedia, among other sources, of such words as ‘dreich, shennachie, cèilidh, numpty, lochan’. My thanks and support are well earned. Enchanting.

[Suze · Rating 5 out of 5]

Flora can't wait to leave Bancree. It's only a small island and there's nothing to do. She's seventeen years old and just has one more year of high school left before she can see more of the world. When her boyfriend leaves to go to university Flora is all alone. She doesn't have any other friends as they were an item for years and his friends were hers, but they've all left. Now that they've broken up she starts to think about their relationship. Fortunately Flora's loneliness doesn't last too long, because strangers move into the dilapidated cottage on Dog Rock. One of them is a girl her age named Ailsa. They immediately have a connection and Flo and Ailsa become friends almost straight away.

Something is happening on the island. Men are disappearing and people are starting to get afraid. Flora doesn't believe it at first, but when someone she knows and loves is missing she has to acknowledge there's a problem. Is Flora safe herself or is there something happening that she can't escape, because she's part of it? And what is the reason for the arrival of Ailsa and her dad on the island?

Flora is a strong girl who isn't easily scared. She can stand up for herself very well and she needs to. Nobody around her is particularly nice to her, but she can handle it. Ailsa is different, Flora knows she and her father have moved to the island for a reason. They fascinate her and Ailsa isn't like any other girl she's ever met. She's much kinder and more generous and she likes swimming in the sea even when it's cold. She's definitely intriguing and I couldn't wait to find out her secret.

I loved this book. The author has created such a beautiful story about love and myths. It's really good and I couldn't stop reading. I wanted to know more, to find out why there were disappearances and how everything was connected. I think this book is amazing and I enjoyed reading it very much. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a good story about secrets, legends and life on a small island.

[Thebooktrail · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book brings the mythical and creepy nature of the Scottish islands to life. Best to read at night under the covers with a torch for the full effect. If it’s foggy out so much the better!


The island of Bancree may be fictional yet it is evocative of many islands in and around the Hebrides. Places such as Gigha, Islay and Culloden all provide the inspiration for Bancree according to the author on his website and we have to agree. Wester Inshes is another place mentioned for the view and island landscape. Oh and the island with the great name of Yell. Yet this is what is so fascinating about the book and its mythical setting – the themes within are so mythical and eerie that you might be pleased the real place does not exist. Still, you can get a real sense of the unique remoteness and community feel that the Scottish highlands still has.

Grogport on the Kintyre peninsula was an early inspiration for Simon and if you want a further feel for the Bancree and its history then this is a must see on any booktrail for The Visitors.

Then there is the cover – creepy, dark, eerie and enticing all at once. Once you open the cover and step on to the island, be very afraid…

If I could describe this book in a few words – atmospheric, atmospheric and atmospheric. You will see Bancree come alive before your eyes, you will see the cottages and the rocks and Dog island. And like Bancree itself, it draws you in across the shimmery water, calm on the surface but be careful of what is going on underneath. Once you’ve been to Bancree, you will not be able to leave. and that is a particularly apt description for the island and for the book.

[Raven · Rating 4 out of 5]

There’s something about crime fiction set in small town communities that is endlessly compelling, and if these communities are set on remote Scottish islands, so much the better! Again, another crime book that is much more allayed to the style of contemporary fiction, The Visitors is an intriguing tale, steeped in myth, murder and a nifty reworking of the familiar locked room mystery, where there are only a finite group of suspects, but where the guilty party is well-concealed. This book is atmospheric, mysterious, and is imbued with a beautiful dream-like quality, incorporating as it does mythical tales from the tradition of oral storytelling. By fusing so completely the superstitions of the past, with an essentially modern murder mystery focussed around two young female protagonists, Sylvester has really brought something quite different to the genre. Being fascinated personally by the Icelandic sagas and Norse myth, I thoroughly enjoyed the tales of the Shennachie but also how this was counterbalanced throughout by attention to the very particular problems of modern island existence in the contemporary age. Although I found the actual murder mystery a less satisfying aspect of the book, this was of little consequence when taking the character, atmosphere and the rendering of the mythical tales into account. Enjoyed and recommend.

[David Kenvyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simon Sylvester first attracted attention with his collection of storytelling tweets. This is his first novel and it is well worth the wait. This is a story about two young girls on a remote Scottish island, and it tells of the terrifying consequences of their friendship. The tale is set in the everyday world of a small Scottish island, where everyone knows everyone else, and where everything is as safe as it should be. It is a story of school projects, school rivalries, ferry journeys, trips to the pub, underage drinking and first love.

But it is not safe. Men are disappearing. And there is a new family moved into an island off this remote island, a sexual predator and a storyteller who tells dark tales of the mythology of these islands - of sealwomen, of love and of death.

To know anything more you will have to read the story, because there is a mystery at the heart of this tale, and to say any more would spoil it. I can tell you one more thing though - this tale is spellbinding, terrifying and heartrending.

[Andy Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is typical of many such novels recently in that they may be a YA novel that is quite suitable for adults, or perhaps the other way round, in this case a crime mystery novel that would be very suitable for young adults.

Sylvester gets the setting right as far as I am concerned. On a remote Scottish island there is a missing person. Two 16-17 year old girls, struggling to find entertainment on the sparsely populated island, investigate. Around this is there own coming of age stories, and island tradition, specifically the legend of the selkie, a half seal half human character.

It is in the second half in which the novel really gets going. The island characters are strong, and there is a whodunnit element also. There are faults to find, perhaps Sylvester tries to be cross-genre too much, and may have been better playing down some aspects, for example the supernatural. But, it works quite well, and is enjoyable to read throughout.

[Zee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Descriptions of this book make it sound like it's a mystery with a potentially supernatural twist, but though there are more than one mysteries in this book, it's not a "mystery" book, more a coming-of-age look at an interesting, likeable protagonist in an interesting setting. While the missing men were relevant, that mystery served more as a device to get the lead characters into certain places and situation than as a driver of the plot. The plot itself is driven by Flora (Flo)'s growth as a person and her understanding (and misunderstanding) of the world around her. Haunting and starkly beautiful in some places, lush and lively in others, this was an extremely enjoyable read.

[༺Kiki༻ · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you liked this book, you might also enjoy:

✱ The Brides of Rollrock Island
✱ When the Sea Is Rising Red
✱ Tides

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to receive an advanced copy of this book. It's not the sort of book I would buy usually but because I had been sent it I started to read. And I'm glad I did! I really enjoyed it and couldn't put it down. I am really into Scottish folklore so I enjoyed reading about the "Selkies". Would recommend this to anyone as it's very good. Will definitely look out for this author again

[Christie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tricky one - this book had a lot of 5 star moments and I loved the incorporation of the selkie myth into a mystery book... but I felt like there were some key moments that needed to leave more impression with me as a reader and didn't. I got to the end and felt like I missed something even though I didn't. Still worth the time to read it, though :)

[Nicola · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was really a very magical piece. I would love to give the book 5 stars but just can't because it starts off so slowly. Halfway through the book, everything picks up, the relationships build, the mystery intensifies. I should have pieced the story together, but I didn't. Really good entertainment and I will be on the lookout for the next book by Sylvester.
Magical realism at it's best!