The Bell at Sealey Head

The story is about a moderately prosperous little port, Sealy Head, which is unremarkable except for a bell that has been tolling every day at sunset for centuries. But no one knows where it is or who is responsible. The story has excellent characters including Judd (tavern keeper of a tavern that has seen better days and has a catastrophic cook), Gwyneth (who is writing a story within the story) the daughter of a prosperous merchant trader, Ridley a traveling scholar, among others. The story kicks off when Ridley comes to stay in the tavern to investigate the bell. Lots of good humor as Ridley is traveling with a library, a wood witch who stereotypically lives in a house made from a tree and Gwyneth's family. But a real puzzle is who the protagonist is? Judd and Gwyneth are more side kicks, and the only other possibility after Ridley (investigator/instigator) is Aislinn House (a badly schizophrenic dwelling). So far I think the house is the protagonist.Overall and excellent read saved from greatness by a somewhat unsatisfactory villain.

This subtle and beautifully written novel fits perfectly in Ms. McKillip's canon of books. The bell that rings each evening has always been a part of the lives of the residents of Sealey Head. Some don't even hear it any more. But no one knows where the bell is. No one has ever found it. When a stranger comes to town asking questions and looking for the source of the ringing, it sets off a series of events that will eventually solve the mystery and place many people in jeopardy, including the young princess who lives in another world behind the doors of Aislinn House, where Lady Eglantyne lies dying.Beautifully evocative prose makes this an easy but very enjoyable read. The story and content feel geared towards a more general audience. I would recommend this to young teens with advanced reading sensibilities as well as adults with a taste for a bit of romance with your lyric prose.

The Author is one of my favorite writers. The story had many subplots that all were resolved at the end. If I had a complaint, it would be that the action came to late into the story and was resolved too easily. But the story was so captivating, even that is not a complaint.

I love her works, they always surprise me with how well the plot comes together in the end with all it's myriad tangents and wonderful characters. I became a fan with Rose in Winter and I continue to be a fan with Bell at Sealey Head. I loved it! It does start off a bit slower than expected but if you're used to her pacing then you know it's par for the course for an excellent roller coaster ride of plot and twists and plot twists. I definitely recommend it if you are in the mood for something where the good guys win and a queendom is saved.

I adored the moment-by-moment experience of reading McKillip's prose. I really liked the characters, the world, the idea, and the theme.Wherein lay the problem?I really disliked the story structure. There are four point-of-view characters, each engaging and interesting. But two are clearly the main protagonists, while the other two are important side characters.And the major problem I had with the book was that when the story reaches its big climax, with everything on the line, the two main characters are sidelined. They literally stare at a brick wall (really truly; when they open the door with access to the main events, the opening is blocked up with either stone or brick), and one of the side characters teams up with a non-point-of-view character to take the big risks, to dare everything, solve the mystery, and defeat the villain. It left me feeling very flat.The romantic arc for the two protags is settled nicely, but the romantic arc is a subplot, not the main story arc.Basically, the protags got the sidekicks' subplots, and the sidekicks got the main plot. Meh.There was one other really irritating detail. The female protag is a writer, and in this book, we read excerpts of a short story she is writing. I enjoyed the short story. And the ending seemed fitting and right to me, even though it was sad. But near the end of the book, the writer protag confesses that she didn't get the ending right. That took away my feeling of satisfaction and closure regarding the short story. It may be very true to life - a writer worrying about whether she nailed it or not - but putting in that snippet of realism at the end of _Bell_ just contributed to my overall feeling of dissatisfaction.I have loved a lot of McKillip's work, but this book disappointed me.

When I was a child, I loved the fairy tales by Hans Christian Anderson and the Grim brothers. Patricia McKillip writes dreamy fairytales that are intellegent and timeless, that satisfy me in the same way. The story contains some characters from an earlier book, but is not a direct sequel. She writes fantasy for women- there is action, and plenty of magic and suspense, but the focus is on the life-like characters. A wonderful read.

This year I discovered Patricia mcKillip reading "The Riddle master" trilogy...and what a discover she was! After that I started trying to pick all her books I can find. Since here in Italy there are few of them I bought most of them in English. "The Bell at Sealey Head" is her more recent book, and like her other stories it entwines love, romance, magic. Here we are in a small town by the sea, where an unseen bell rings every day at sunset. A scholar coming from a city nearby arrives in town trying to solve this mistery. You will follow the story from the perspective of a young innkeeper who loves books, a merchant's daughter who love writing stories and a housemaid who opens doors in another world. Once more McKillip's poetry enchants the reader bringing him in a small world full of magic and unforgettable characters

A story that blends a "real" and a parallel world is a recurring motif for McKillip's stories. Her powerful descriptions and her heroes and heroines, struggling to survive and to integrate these worlds, is a particular gift she brings to all her writings. The "Bell at Sealy Head" is another of my favorites in this genre!

Not as enthralling as her 'deeper' work, nonetheless, this is a good tale, told well and has a little bit of a twist... Unlike some of her other work, this really did feel American to me (okay, I'm English, but I didn't get that with The Riddlemaster trilogy, for example), which wasn't a problem, just an interesting flavour.Nice reading for young teens.

The Bell at Sealey Head was the best surprise! I have enjoyed most of Patricia McKillop's books very much, but some more than others. This was beautifully written and quite reminiscent of some of Elizabeth Goudge's younger fiction. I loved it. It quite took me back to my first favourite childhood books. That's not to say, that it's not for adults, but there is nothing here to offend any delicate sensibilities either....try it!

Lovely, just lovely. Mystical magical and other worldly, full of sea creatures and folklore myths, a beautiful book to read and keep. Recommended.

I LOVE McKillip's prose. Sometimes I get so caught up in her words I'll forget about the plot. Her books are extremely readable, not to mention re-readable. There is something so compelling about the way she writes.The Bell at Sealey Head is another one of those re-readable books. If you enjoy the English language (USA), you'll get a kick out of this book. PM uses the tools of her language well. I'm certainly caught in her net.

舞台は存在しない鐘が毎夕鳴る海辺の街、シーリー・ヘッド。古びた領主屋敷では老いた女主人が死にかけ、由緒ある宿屋は潰れかけてる。新興商人が栄え、成り上がりの地主が気取る現在、誰も鐘の魔法を気にしてない。もう１つの広く知られてはいない魔法は領主屋敷の扉とメイドの母娘。お屋敷の若いメイドが扉やタンスを開けると別の時空のプリンセスに会えるのです。プリンセスは「質問禁止」で育てられ、不条理な儀式に明け暮れ、結婚も強制される。メイドは同情するけれど、どうしたら助けられるか分かりません。事態が動き出すのは、不思議な学者が鐘の調査にやってきて古い宿屋に泊ってから。間もなく都会から相続人のレディが取り巻きの一団と街にやってきて…作品全体としては消化不良気味で星３つです。せっかくの設定や人物を生かしきれてない。２つの時空で起きるあれこれを、小説内小説も含めて包みこんでもっと複雑華麗にできたはず！でも印象的な場面が絵画的にすばらしいので星４つをつけました。表紙のプリンセスが餌をやるカラスたちの正体は巻末近くまで不明でワクワク。実地では活躍しないけど鐘の魔法を気にする作家志望の娘は、作者の分身でしょうか。