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The Shore

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The Shore

By: Sara Taylor
Narrated by: Jenna Lamia, MacLeod Andrews
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£5.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST. Cancel monthly.

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SHORTLISTED FOR THE GUARDIAN FIRST BOOK AWARD 2015

SHORTLISTED FOR THE SUNDAY TIMES/PETERS FRASER & DUNLOP YOUNG WRITER OF THE YEAR AWARD

LONGLISTED FOR THE BAILEYS WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2015

The Shore. A collection of small islands sticking out from the coast of Virginia into the Atlantic Ocean that has been home to generations of fierce and resilient women. Sanctuary to some but nightmare to others, it’s a place they’ve inhabited, fled, and returned to for hundreds of years. From a brave girl’s determination to protect her younger sister as methamphetamine ravages their family, to a lesson in summoning storm clouds to help end a drought, these women struggle against domestic violence, savage wilderness, and the corrosive effects of poverty and addiction to secure a sense of well-being for themselves and for those they love.

Their interconnecting stories form a deeply affecting legacy of two island families, illuminating the small miracles and miseries of a community of outsiders, and the bonds of blood and fate that connect them all.

Dreamlike and yet impossibly real, profound and playful, The Shore is a richly unique, breathtakingly ambitious and accomplished debut novel by a young writer of astonishing gifts.

 Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Women's Fiction
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Critic reviews

Taylor is blisteringly good on systemic male violence against women, but The Shore is an inspiring read rather than a bleak one, full of compelling voices, vivid stories and memorable characters. It’s a great book.
[A] remarkable first novel, an intricately plotted series of episodes in the life of two families ... A challenging family history of violence, murder, rape, castration and magic ... Taylor is a terrific storyteller with a flawless narrative voice and, as a portrait of the impoverished rural south, this novel is a real achievement ... There are ambitious experiments ...The Shore is a mesmerising, powerful read.
An exuberant talent announces her arrival in this Baileys-nominated collection of interlinked stories touching on murder, misogyny and morality … To find the connections between stories, you have to follow names, places and even objects through 200 years of timeline … It’s a strange but pleasurable way to read, an experience at once postmodern and childish …The green, lush landscape, the oyster beds, insects and crabs, are evoked through so many eyes and felt by so many hands that we start to believe in their enduring existence, giving backbone and depth to the green politics of the book …Taylor, it seems, can do dark realism as well as she can the magic kind – in fact, she seems able to do most things. This debut is a testament to an exuberant talent and an original, fearless sensibility. It’s also enormous fun to read.
Taylor is a beautiful writer, exceptionally talented in fact, and brings us lyrically into the hearts of each of her many characters … I do look forward to reading more Taylor.
I'm very fond of this book...It's very Southern Gothic...It's blisteringly good on systemic male violence against women...It also has moments of humour...It's written in a very lively, compelling way. It's a great book. (Sarah Waters, Radio 4 Open Book)
I loved this book . . . Epic in breadth but glittering in its detail, The Shore is utterly absorbing. (Catherine O'Flynn)
A vivid exploration of the struggle for autonomy and the many meanings of what we call home. (Eimear McBride, author of A Girl is a Half-formed Thing)
In her debut, Taylor has already mastered the most dastardly of high-wire acts; an epic tale that's neither overbearing nor overblown . . . The sprawling tale is marked by domestic violence, murder, rape, castration, drugs and magic; the isolated islands a shelter for some and a prison for others. But there are brilliant moments of intimate, quotidian despair, too.
This is a tremendous debut novel featuring writing which is unusually evocative, often hauntingly so. The prospect of more to come from Taylor is exciting.
This ambitious and magical novel is made all the more remarkable by its muscular prose redolent with atmosphere.
All stars
Most relevant

What disappointed you about The Shore?

I didn't finish the book.
I got to a point where I just wasn't interested in any of the characters to carry on. I think there was a good book somewhere, but it lacked the page turning effort.

good effort

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