Seldom has a ship and its metaphorical rigging sailed through the novel form to better effect. And it's seldom that a thoughtful, deeply-pondered novel makes you want to turn the pages so fast. Elizabeth Lowry's evocation of time and place - whether a Boston parlour or a ship's darkest hole - is warm and sure, and her characters, particularly the adamantine Borden, have a solid presence, but remain enigmatic at their core. She makes us realise how hard it is to know even one human being, no matter how long and privileged our acquaintance, or what ordeals we have shared. Her eloquent, impressive sentences often end in a way you don't predict, and while her touch is witty, her manner almost buoyant, her themes are sinister beyond belief. She touches the frontiers of the human, and balances there on the crest of a stylish wave. Hilary Mantel sakriti opis