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Published: 3 October 2023
ISBN: 9780857529787
Imprint: Doubleday
Format: Hardback
Pages: 320
RRP: $32.99

Categories:

Historical fiction

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Go as a River

Shelley Read

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From the publishers of GREAT CIRCLE, a soaring, heartstopping debut novel of female resilience and becoming, for fans of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING.

'Shelley Read's lyrical voice is a force of nature and when she lends it to a woman leading a hardscrabble life in rural Colorado, the result is tragic, uplifting and completely unforgettable' BONNIE GARMUS, author of LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY'

'A compelling tale of love and a heroine fighting back' PATRICK GALE
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On a cool autumn day, Victoria Nash heads into the village from her family's farm in rural Colorado pulling a rickety wagon filled with late-season peaches. As she nears an intersection, a stranger in town stops to ask her the way. Over the course of the next few moments, as the townspeople look on suspiciously, the course of Victoria's life will be fated.

So begins a mezmerising story of split-second decisions and thoughtful acts that make up Victoria's tumultuous life as she attempts to escape her dissolute family.

Gathering all the pieces of her small and extraordinary existence, spinning through the eddies of desire, heartbreak and betrayal, she will arrive at a single rocky decision that will change her life for ever.

GO AS A RIVER is a heartwrenching coming-of-age and a drama of enthralling power. Combining unforgettable characters and a breathtaking setting, it is a sweeping story of female survival and self re-invention, of the deepest mysteries of love, truth and fate.

'A lush, beautiful, strong book. It took me on such a transformative life journey. I could not put it down' CLOVER STROUD

'Completely spellbinding, vivid, and luminous' JANE GREEN

'Go As a River delivers so very much: the tenderness and curiosity of young love, the eternal pangs of loss, the brutality of racism, the sustaining power of nature and the miracle of a mother's love. Suffused with wisdom and compassion, this shattering testimony to life must be savored, treasured, shared' MEG WAITE CLAYTON, author of The Postmistress of Paris

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'A lush, beautiful, strong book. It took me on such a transformative life journey. I could not put it down' CLOVER STROUD

'Completely spellbinding, vivid, and luminous' JANE GREEN

Published: 3 October 2023
ISBN: 9780857529787
Imprint: Doubleday
Format: Hardback
Pages: 320
RRP: $32.99

Categories:

Historical fiction

Share…

About the author

Shelley Read

Shelley Read is a fifth generation Coloradoan who lives with her family in the Elk Mountains of the Western Slope. She was a Senior Lecturer at Western Colorado University for nearly three decades, where she taught writing, literature, environmental studies, and Honors, and was a founder of the Environment & Sustainability major and a support program for first-generation and at-risk students. GO AS A RIVER, her first novel, is inspired by the landscape she comes from and will be published in over twenty-five territories.

Praise for Go as a River

Shelley Read's lyrical voice is a force of nature and when she lends it to a woman leading a hardscrabble life in rural Colorado, the result is tragic, uplifting and completely unforgettable
BONNIE GARMUS, author of LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY

A lush, beautiful, strong book. It took me on a transformative life journey. I could not put it down
CLOVER STROUD

Completely spell-binding, vivid and luminous
JANE GREEN

Suffused with wisdom and compassion, this shattering testimony to one woman's life must be savoured, treasured and shared
MEG WAITE CLAYTON, author of THE POSTMISTRESS OF PARIS

A young woman broken by circumstances who must find a way to forgive before she can love. Torie Nash is a character for the ages as she navigates loss and despair on the road to redemption. Stunning.
ADRIANA TRIGLIANI

An extraordinary story of fate, determination and love. Gorgeous, and beautifully written, your heart will break for all Victoria has to lose and mend with all that she has to find. Tender and heart-breaking.
MARIANNE CRONIN, author of THE ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF LENNI AND MARGOT

Go As A River swept me away. It is gorgeously written. Longing, passion and heartbreak are all set down with such a beauty and restraint that I had to set the book down, amazed. Every page was a joy to read. Magnificent
SUE FLETCHER

The way in which the rivers flow, the land gives and takes back, and how these things shape Victoria's life and livelihood are beautiful. It is such a redemptive story, despite the heartache. We should all care for our peach trees with this much tenderness
ANNE YOUNGSON, author of MEET ME AT THE MUSEUM

A key title for 2023. This soaring, compassionate tale of female resilience is set against the breath-taking beauty of the natural world - its trees and mountains and light
INDEPENDENT

A compelling tale of love and a heroine fighting back. She had me racing to bed so I could read another chapter
PATRICK GALE

A beautiful, compassion-filled debut - a hymn to the cycles of the natural world and testament to the resilience of the human spirit
DAILY MAIL

To be so immersed in a setting is a privilege. A mesmerising coming-of-age story. Simply stunning
WOMAN & HOME

Echoes of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING. Luminous
WATERSTONES

Beautiful, lyrical and vivid ... Shelley Read's beautifully drawn characters are brought to life against the backdrop of the Colorado mountains. Full of wisdom and strength ... this is a powerful love story with an unforgettable heroine at its heart
SUNDAY EXPRESS

The outer landscape both delicately and unflinchingly traces the inner landscapes of Read's characters. This is a story full of heartbreak, yet also hope
THE I-PAPER

Tragedy, heartbreaking decisions and strength is found in this mesmerising coming-of-age story. The harsh but magical environment of Iola serves as her guide and you can almost taste the sweet peaches. Simply stunning
WOMAN'S WEEKLY

Heart-wrenching and mesmerising ... Combining unforgettable characters and a breath-taking natural setting, it is a sweeping story of survival and becoming
Women's Prize for Fiction