The Essex Serpent

The Essex Serpent is a novel by Sarah Perry, released in 2016. Set in 1893, it tells the story of Cora Seaborne, a recently widowed woman with a burning interest in the natural sciences. Escaping London, she visits a small village in the Essex countryside. There, she finds a population in thrall to the local legend of a sea monster lurking in the nearby estuary and a village priest who is desperately trying to dissuade his congregation of this belief.

The book begins on New Year’s Eve. A drunk young man wanders down to the shore of the Blackwater estuary with the intention of swimming. He senses something strange in the water and then disappears. In crowded London, a skilled surgeon named Dr. Luke Garrett (nicknamed the Imp for his diminutive stature) travels to the funeral of a former patient, Michael Seaborne. Garrett has fallen in love with Michael’s wife, Cora, who he grew to know while treating her husband. He sensed an unhappiness in the marriage and became acquainted with Francis Seaborne (Cora’s son) and Martha (Francis’ nanny). Cora has developed a burning passion for the natural sciences. Francis is known for his strange behavior; he collects objects—his “treasures”—from everywhere he can.