A Hand to Hold in Deep Water, Shawn Nocher
A Hand to Hold in Deep Water, Shawn Nocher
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A Hand to Hold in Deep Water

Author: Shawn Nocher

Narrator: Elizabeth Evans

Unabridged: 14 hr 4 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/21/2021

Synopsis

Willy Cherrymill and his stepdaughter, Lacey, are deeply bruised by a past brimming with unanswered questions. It’s been thirty years since May DuBerry, Willy’s young wife and Lacey’s mother, abandoned them both, leaving Willy to raise Lacey alone.Lacey Cherrymill is smart, stubborn, and focused. She’s also single mother to a young daughter recently diagnosed with a devastating illness. The last thing she needs to think about right now is the betrayal that rocked her childhood. Reluctantly, she has returned to her rural beginnings, a former dairy farm in the Maryland countryside, and to Willy, a man steeped in his own disappointments and all the guilt that goes with them.Together they will pool their wobbly emotional resources to take care of Lacey’s daughter, Tasha, all the while trying to skirt the issue of May’s mysterious disappearance. But try as she might, Lacey can’t leave it alone. Just where is May DuBerry Cherrymill and why did she leave them, and how is it that they have never talked about the wreckage she left behind?A Hand to Hold in Deep Water is a deeply felt narrative about mothers and daughters, the legacy of secrets, the way we make a family, and the love of those who walk us through our deepest pain. It is about the way we are tethered to one another and how we choose to wear those bindings. These are characters you won’t soon forget and, more so, won’t want to leave behind when you turn the last page.

About Shawn Nocher

Shawn Nocher’s compelling short stories have appeared in numerous literary magazines, including SmokeLong Quarterly, Pithead Chapel, Eunoia Review, and MoonPark Review, and she has been longlisted or won honorable mentions from both SmokeLong Quarterly and Glimmer Train. She earned her master of arts in writing at Johns Hopkins University, has given wings to two children, and lives with her husband and an assortment of sassy rescue animals in Baltimore, Maryland, where she writes in a room of her own. This is her first novel.

About Elizabeth Evans

Elizabeth Evans has received many grants and fellowships for her writing, including an NEA Fellowship, the James Michener Fellowship, and fellowships at Yaddo and MacDowell. She is the author of The Blue Hour and lives in Tucson, Arizona.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Susan's Reviews on August 16, 2022

A memorable 4.5 star read that stayed with me long after I turned the last page. I am so very glad that I took a chance on this book: I still think back with a smile on that scene where Lacey and her daughter are surrounded by people who loved and supported them during their darkest times: a stark co......more

Goodreads review by Susanne on March 10, 2021

Review also published on blog: [URL not allowed] The day Willy Cherrymill fell for May DuBerry, his life changed in a myriad of ways. A chicken farmer, he fell and fell hard, for May and for her daughter Lacey. His life seemed picture-perfect until the day May abandons them bot......more

Goodreads review by Jovana on November 30, 2021

I have to start checking for trigger warnings! Even though, generally speaking, there’s nothing I am adamant about avoiding, some things caught me off guard. This was an excruciatingly difficult read for more than one reason. I was not prepared for it. Honestly, when I read the blurb of this book, I......more

Goodreads review by Addie BookCrazyBlogger on May 22, 2021

Willy Cherrymill and his stepdaughter Lacey have been forced together ever since her mother abandoned the two of them, a year after marrying Willy. Willy was a dairy farmer in Maryland, until a TB outbreak killed his herd off and he began raising chickens instead. Now thirty years later, Willy is st......more

Goodreads review by Trisha on October 24, 2022

An intensely painful and emotional multi-generational drama told through beautifully spun stories of well-developed characters that are bound to break your heart. This book was a great read, technically not a read because I listened to the audiobook, but irrespective of the format, it was captivating......more

Quotes

“Shawn Nocher’s A Hand to Hold in Deep Water is beyond thrilling. Tender, fierce, achingly beautiful, this far-reaching novel of family and a woman’s fight to keep her life and those she loves afloat sounds the depths of honesty, secrecy, and our desire for connection with a sharp, unyielding insight. Add in the clarity of the writing, its supple lyricism and wry humor, and spread the news: Shawn Nocher is a writer to watch.” Elise Levine, author of This Wicked Tongue

“A gorgeous…debut novel by Shawn Nocher…Tender and piercing, A Hand to Hold in Deep Water is about secrets, shame, love, and what makes a family.” Kim Magowan, author of The Light Source

“Shawn Nocher’s vivid, quietly beautiful prose lures you into the world of this accomplished debut novel. Her rich landscapes and complicated characters are evoked with a rare combination of tenderness and urgency. A Hand to Hold in Deep Water is an immersive novel that’s so deeply felt, you don’t just read it, you inhabit it and then emerge from it as if from a dream.” Stephen McCauley, author of My Ex-Life

“A rich and resonant family story, a meditative, lyrical, and deeply emotional exploration of heritage, loss, and the profundity of parental love.” Claire Lombardo, New York Times bestselling author

“There’s a wonderful sense of place in A Hand to Hold in Deep Water…[An] impressive debut…The literary world could use more tales of places other than New York City.” New York Journal of Books

“A devastating family drama driven by engrossing and believable characters.” Kirkus Reviews

“It is hard to believe, in a way, that A Hand to Hold in Deep Water is Shawn Nocher’s first novel. It is so accomplished, so intricately constructed that it reads like the work of a novelist with years of practice refining and polishing her craft. It is one of the few books that I have ever picked up to reread nearly immediately after finishing it, because I didn’t want it to be over…Nocher’s skillful use of water as a metaphor throughout the novel is one of those things that makes this first novel so impressive…I highly recommend this book.” Midwest Book Review

Awards

  • PopSugar Pick
  • Portland Book Review Pick
  • Crook's Corner Book Prize
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