History Literature / TheEssexSerpent

* AmbiguousDisorder: Francis, Cora's eleven-year-old son. He's obsessive and shows little to no affection for his mother or other people. He doesn't express emotions overtly and others are often a bit bothered by his behaviour. He's lucky his mother and governess are understanding and try to make his life as comfortable as possible. He's fascinated with mathematics and certain facts, and he collects various things like dog hair, pebbles, bird feathers, or bird eggs.

* TheReveal: The Essex serpent is ultimately revealed [[spoiler:to be two things. One morning, the village is filled with a foul smell that causes many of the villagers vomit. William and others find a huge dead fish on the beach. They realise it's the serpent, but it's not the scary thing everyone imagined. It looks like a very long eel and it's filled with disgusting tapeworm. Later Francis walks on the beach and he meets Mr Banks. Francis tells him that he can see something through the fog and they hear a grinding noise. Mr Banks is convinced that the serpent is still out there. After some time, Joanna and Naomi go walking on the beach where they hear the grinding as well. They think it's the serpent but it's revealed to be just Mr. Bank's lost boat.]]

* IllGirl: Stella has been weak since winter, she coughs and constantly has a fever. She gets weak, but remains as beautiful as ever -- her fair pale skin gets even paler, almost translucent, her cheeks are red and radiant and her eyes get bright, glossy and sparkling. Ideal of a Victorian beauty. [[spoiler:To her family's horror, she's diagnosed with tuberculosis. Dr Garrett offers her experimental operation and his colleague suggests another treatment, but she and her husband are reluctant to use either because both sound dangerous. She lives by the end of the novel, but it's clear she's slowly dying.]]

When Cora Seaborne's tyrannical husband dies, she feels... relieved. She married at nineteen and she was not suited to be a proper lady and a society wife. Luke Garrett, one of the most talented, finest doctors and surgeons of his generation, becomes Cora's close friend and immediately falls in love with her. Cora decides to leave London to breathe fresh air and explore. She travels to Essex with her autistic eleven-year old son Francis and Martha, who is Cora's companion and Francis's nanny.

''The Essex Serpent'' won the The Book of the Year (British Book Awards) in 2016. Here is a [[https://www.sarahperry.net/theessexserpent link]] to Sarah Perry's official website.

The novel was adapted into a limited series by Creator/AppleTVPlus, which premiered on May 13th, 2022.

* AlliterativeFamily: The Ransomes have three children whose names all start with J. They're called Joanna, John and James.

* AmbiguousDisorder: Francis, Cora's eleven-year-old son. He's obsessive and shows little to no affection to his mother or other people. He doesn't express emotions overtly and others are often a bit bothered by his behaviour. He's lucky his mother and governess are understanding and try to make his life as comfortable as possible. He's fascinated with mathematics, certain facts and he collects various things like dog hair, pebbles, bird feathers or bird eggs.
* BungledSuicide: [[spoiler:Luke Garrett decides to kill himself by hanging on a belt from a tree. He does it and almost dies, but halfway through he stops because he thinks of his best friend George Spencer.]]

* CompellingVoice: Luke Garrett loves trying fashionable hypnosis on people as a therapy of sorts. Cora wants to understand what is happening to girls after their group mad laughter and she suggests to Stella to have Joanna hypnotised. Stella (Jo's mother) agrees. Luke Garrett uses his calm, quiet voice and he asks her to focus on one place in the room. Half way through the procedure Will arrives and gets furious because he sees her helpless daughter lying on a sofa with a strange man standing over her, whispering strange things.

* DrivenToSuicide: Luke Garrett, a brilliant doctor and surgeon with grand ideas for new medical procedures especially in cardiology, chooses to hang himself after he suffers a stab into his right hand and after angered Cora unceremoniously refuses his declaration of love (to her credit, she didn't know about his injury and his state of mind). She later pities him, which is even worse for Luke. He can't stand that his medical career is over and he can't get over Cora's cruel refusal, so he decides to end it all. [[spoiler: He survives and later find some sense in his life again.]]

* GossipyHens: Stella ''loves'' people and is interested in all news about her friends and all children, women and men from her neighbourhood. She's never malicious and it's a sign that she's caring and sweet.
* GrumpyOldMan: Cracknell is an old man from Aldwinter who lives at a house called World's End. Everyone in his family died, except for his two goats. He's rather creepy, for example he skins moles and hangs them on his gate as a protection against the serpent.

** Stella and William Ransome are very happy together and adore their quiet domestic life. They live for each other and their three children, and William also loves and takes seriously his job as a priest. They had two other children who died, but despite suffering such tragedy, their marriage remain strong and as loving as ever.
** Charles and Katherine Ambrose are a happily married couple without children. They are from the upper class London society. Charles is a conservative politician, a member of the Parliament. Katherine and Charles adore each other and they are always happy to interact with their friends. It's them who introduce Cora to the Ransome family. [[spoiler:They later take care of the Ransome kids when their mother gets tuberculosis and her illness is infectious. Charles becomes very fond of the kids.]]

** George Spencer and Luke Garrett are colleagues from medical school and they work at the same London hospital. They are close friends, actually called "bosom friends". George Spencer is from a rich upper-class family and he admires Luke a lot, having recognized he's a brilliant doctor destined for grand things.

* LoveDodecahedron: To quote from one review, "there are enough love triangles in ''The Essex Serpent'' to confound Euclid himself." Cora Seaborne, an intriguing young widow, is the central point on this dodecahedron. Luke Garrett and Martha are Cora's close friends who both love her. Cora likes them a lot, especially Martha, but she doesn't love back either, and moreover, she's beyond happy to be single and free. She however becomes strongly attracted to William Ransome who shares her feelings, but at the same time he still loves his wife Stella. Both Will and Cora feel intense anguish over this. Stella loves her husband a lot, but she's also glad that Will and Cora become so close and she feels no jealousy. George Spencer, a doctor who is Luke's particular friend, falls in love with Martha. Martha enjoys using Spencer's devotion to her for her cause, though it's implied she still loves Cora. Martha then gets together with Edward Burton, a guy who is stabbed and gets a successful heart surgery from Luke. The book ends with Luke angry at Cora for refusing him in a rather nasty way. Spencer is sad, heartbroken but understanding about Martha. Will is with Stella [[spoiler:who is dying of tuberculosis]] and he still thinks of Cora. Cora sends Will a letter, trying to explain her conflicting feelings towards him.

* MidSuicideRegret: Half-way through his suicide attempt, [[spoiler:Luke Garrett keeps thinking of things that are and are not worth living for. The thought of his best friend Spencer, especially how he would deal with his death, actually makes him stop and he survives. He's very angry at Spencer though because he thinks it was a lame reason not to kill himself.]]
* MissingChild: Young Naomi Banks goes missing and only leaves a note saying 'Here I come, ready or not.' Her father and most of the villagers are convinced she has been taken by the serpent. [[spoiler: The supernatural part is just their imagination.]]

* NewYearHasCome: The death of a guy on the New Year's Eve is mysterious and creepy and it gets attributed to a mythological creature that was once described in a 1669 pamphlet ''Strange News out of Essex, or The Winged Serpent''.
* NonIdleRich: Luke's friend George Spencer is a doctor and he falls in love with Martha, who however doesn't return his feelings. She doesn't tell him this right away and keeps him hooked because he's described as 'embarrassingly rich'. Martha plans to use him to help her solve the problem of London housing. It's also said that he studied medicine just to fill his time. Martha seems to think that it's unfair how many women who are more talented and equally determined have to be content being nurses, making tea and scrubbing floors. George improves conditions for lodgers in the buildings he buys and the rent is very low. And he plans to work for the poor even after it's clear that Martha lives with another man.

* PairTheSmartOnes: Cora and Will are two intelligent scholars. Will is a priest interested in humanities, philosophy and modern religion. Cora is an avid naturalist. They disagree on most matters, however they form an intense connection through their disagreements and become close friends. Will's wife Stella (also an intelligent woman) is pleased that Will has found a friend and feels no jealousy. However, Luke (as brilliant as Cora and Will, if not more) is jealous.

* PenPals: When Cora stays in London, she keeps thinking of Will and his family. William and Cora correspond and exchange letters about their friends, children, science and religion or the Essex Serpent. Sometimes they inadvertently reveal their feelings in their writing.

* TheReveal: The Essex serpent is ultimately revealed [[spoiler: to be two things. One morning the village is filled with a foul smell that causes many of the villagers vomit. William and others find a huge dead fish on the beach. They realise it's the serpent, but it's not the scary thing everyone imagined. It looks like a very long eel and it's filled with disgusting tapeworm. Later Francis walks on the beach and he meets Mr Banks. Francis tells him that he can see something through the fog and they hear a grinding noise. Mr Banks is convinced that the serpent is still out there. After some time, Joanna and Naomi go walking on the beach where they hear the grinding as well. They think it's the serpent but it's revealed to be just Mr. Bank's lost boat.]]

* TheRunaway: Naomi Banks is a young teen who disappears from her home. People are convinced she was taken or killed by the Serpent. [[spoiler: It's revealed she ran away from home when she couldn't cope; one aspect is her ending friendship with Joanna Ransome and her knowledge of their class difference, and another her drunk of a father who's not unkind but irresponsible. She actually didn't run away far; she cut her hair and disguised herself as a boy and joined a local homeless beggar. She earned some money with her art skills and sketches. When Joanna recognises her, Naomi returns home to her father and the two girls become friends again.]]

** Cora is called a "spirited widow" in one review. She's in her early thirties. Cora is an independent lady from the upper-class English society, rich and attractive. Her husband dies at the beginning of the novel and she realizes she's never been happier. She thoroughly enjoys her independence and freedom. She doesn't much care about her appearance (though if she combs her hair and dresses with care, she passes as good-looking and lady-like) and she's very open-minded. She loves science, especially biology and paleontology and hopes to discover the Essex Serpent, a living proof of evolution and scientific explanation for the monster that has been tormenting the village of Aldwinter.
** Thirteen-year-old Joanna Ransome, a daughter of an English parson from a prominent family, suddenly feels she has outgrown her childhood games and spells. She has always read a lot and many different books, even if they're not appropriate for her age. Cora's and Martha's examples inspire her to pursue science and knowledge even more and she aspires to be an educated lady. She hopes she might become a doctor or an engineer and string of other prestigious professions mostly reserved to gentlemen. She studies diligently and works on her dreams, but she's aware of unfair inequalities as she won't be allowed to study at university.

* TrueBlueFemininity: Lovely Stella is obsessed with with colour blue. She wears blue dresses, collects blue stuff (all kinds of it like pillows, bottles, glasses, pebbles) and loves pressing blue wild flowers.
* UptownGirl: George Spencer is loaded and falls desperately in love with Martha. Martha comes from a working class family and works as a nanny/governess/lady's companion with the Seabornes. And interestingly, it's Martha as the poor one who has the upper hand in the relationship. Martha appreciates his affection on a certain level and enjoys having power over him, and plans to use his money and influence among politicians for her cause. She's campaigning for workers' rights. Ultimately she decides against their relationship because she perceives Spencer as one of her enemies, a representative of the rich upper class.

* AdaptationalAlternateEnding: There are several differences in the ending of the Apple TV+ series:

* AdaptationalAlternateEnding: There are several differences in the ending of the Apple TV+ adaptation:

The novel was adapted into a limited series by Creator/AppleTVPlus, which is set to premiere on May 13th, 2022.

* AdultFear: Young Naomi Banks goes missing and only leaves a note saying 'Here I come, ready or not.' Her father and most of the villagers are convinced she has been taken by the serpent. [[spoiler: The supernatural part is just their imagination.]] A lost child, presumed dead, is a very raw feeling, one of the worst nightmares people can experience.

The book is set in late nineteenth-century England, and it explores themes like science, scepticism, love, independence, faith, religion, socialism, feminism, politics, poverty, class, or community. The story and its characters aim to subvert many stereotypes we hold about Victorians and their era.

The novel is set in the year 1893 in VictorianLondon, and in the town of Colchester and the village of Aldwinter in Essex. Its protagonist is Cora Seaborne, a young intellectual widow and naturalist who passionately pursues palaeontology.

* CompellingVoice: Luke Garrett loves trying fashionable hypnosis on people as a therapy of sorts. Cora wants to understand what is happening to girls after their group mad laughter and she suggests to Stella to have Joanna hypnotised. Stella (Jo's mother) agrees. Luke Garrett usus his calm, quiet voice and he asks her to focus on one place in the room. Half way through the procedure Will arrives and gets furious because he sees her helpless daughter lying on a sofa with a strange man standing over her, whispering strange things.

The novel was adapted into a television show by Creator/AppleTVPlus, which is set to premiere on May 13th, 2022.

When Cora Seaborne's tyrannical husband dies, she feels... relieved. She married at nineteen and she was not suited to be a proper lady and a society wife. Luke Garrett, one of the most talented, finest doctors and surgeons of his generation, becomes Cora's close friend and immediately falls in in love with her. Cora decides to leave London to breathe fresh air and explore. She travels to Essex with her autistic eleven-year old son Francis and Martha, who is Cora's companion and Francis's nanny.

* AffectionateNickname: Joanna is often called Jo or Jojo by her family.

** Martha and Cora Seaborne. Martha works for the Seabornes as her Cora's companion and a nanny for her son Francis, but she's more like a family member than an employee. They're intensely close. The heterosexual part is debatable because it's implied their relationship is physical, too, but ultimately Cora considers Martha her close friend, and not a lover or spouse.

* KrakenAndLeviathan: Cora is intrigued by the news of a mysterious SeaMonster, called the Essex serpent or Leviathan. The serpent has been sighted in Aldwinter and seems to terrorise the coast: There is a mysterious death of a man on New Year's Eve, winter won't end, there are dead animals, more people die or get lost... Many people believe the creature has wings. Cora's interested in fossils and Mary Anning's work, and therefore any news of a mythical serpent is like catnip to her. She supposes it could really exist, though she's sure much of the stories are exaggeration and caused by the general sense of panic and eeriness. She hopes she'll discover it and that it will be a living ichthyosaur, a Palaeozoic surviving species.

* SeaSerpents: A mysterious sea monster, called the Essex serpent or Leviathan and believed by some people to have wings, is sighted in Aldwinter and seems to terrorize the coast: there is a mysterious death of a man on New Year's Eve, winter won't end, animals turn up dead, more people die or get lost... Cora is interested in fossils and Mary Anning's work, and therefore any news of a mythical serpent is like catnip to her. She supposes it could really exist, though she's sure much of the stories are exaggeration and caused by the general sense of panic and eeriness. She hopes she'll discover it and that it will be a living ichthyosaur.

* AmbiguousDisorder: Francis, Cora's eleven-year-old son. He's obsessive and he's most likely on the autistic spectrum. Francis shows little to no affection to his mother or other people. He doesn't express emotions overtly and others are often a bit bothered by his behaviour. He's lucky his mother and governess are understanding and try to make his life as comfortable as possible. He's fascinated with mathematics, certain facts and he collects various things like pebbles, bird feathers or bird eggs.

* KrakenAndLeviathan: Cora is intrigued by the news of a mysterious SeaMonster, called the Essex serpent or Leviathan. The serpent has been sighted in Aldwinter and seems to terrorise the coast: There is a mysterious death of a man on New Year's Eve, winter won't end, there are dead animals, more people die or get lost... Many people believe the creature has wings. Cora's interested in fossils and Mary Anning's work, and therefore any news of a mythical serpent is like catnip to her. She supposes it could really exist, though she's sure much of the stories are exaggeration and caused by the general sense of panic and eeriness. She hope she'll discover it and that it will be a living ichthyosaur, a Palaeozoic surviving species.

** Thirteen-year-old Joanna Ransome, a daughter of an English parson from a prominent family, suddenly feels she has outgrown her childhood games and spells. She has always read a lot and many different books, even if they're not appropriate for her age. Cora's and Martha's examples inspire her to pursue science and knowledge even more and she aspires to be an educated lady. She hopes she might become a doctor or an engeneer and string of other prestigious professions mostly reserved to gentlemen. She studies diligently and works on her dreams, but she's aware of unfair inequalities as she won't be allowed to study at university.

* AlliterativeFamily: The Ransome's have three children whose names all start with J. They're called Joanna, John and James.

* DrivenToSuicide: Luke Garrett, a brilliant doctor and surgeon with grand ideas for new medical procedures om cardiology, chooses to hang himself after he suffers a stab into his right hand and when angered Cora unceremoniously refuses his declaration of love (to her credit, she didn't know about his injury and his state of mind). She later pities him, which is even worse for Luke. He can't stand that his medical career is over and he can't get over Cora's cruel refusal, so he decides to end it all. [[spoiler: He survives and later find some sense in his life again.]]