Born the thirteenth child, Darra is to be sacrificed to Dond, the dark God of the Underworld on her thirteenth birthday. She will be rowed out to sea and must leap overboard with a weight attached to her ankle to secure thirteen years of good luck for her village.

Coming from a tiny emerald island lashed with waves the impending bleakness of what she faces can only be solved by a mother’s kiss and a true account of her past. This last novel by Siobhan Dowd before her untimely death is a new departure into fantasy and myth and hides truths that might best be left unanswered.

This is a tale to be treasured, a haunting tale of love and fate and truth. Pam Smy's beautiful two-colour drawings announce her as a leading children's illustrator and the astonishing blend of words and pictures takes us all into that timeless world of story.

The Ransom of Dond comes to us like a gift from the past.
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