Summary

The first chapter in May opens with Naomi Banks and her wariness of the blackwater. She will not set foot on its deck and is convinced that there is something in there. She has webbed hands and for this reason her classmates believe her to be singled out by the serpent. As she is coming home one evening after searching for her father. Naomi passes by a pub where men ask her to come in and admire her hair, white skin and ankles. She finds that she possesses power over these men and for a moment she enjoys herself before things go wrong. While it is not explicitly mentioned, the suggestion is that she is raped by one of these men. As she lays in bed at night the metaphorical serpent visits her and sends her a dream.

The narration moves from Naomi...