Cormorant Lake
Cormorant Lake

Cormorant Lake

By Faith Merino
Unabridged
100% overall 4 ratings. Go to reviews
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“Cormorant Lake has been called fantastical. But to me it reads as very real. It tells a story of generations of women who live without men. Parenting, husbanding, repairing their homes, caring for the sick and weak. Desiring. Women who haunt each other for what they’ve done and failed to do. Women who hurt their mothers, their children, their own minds and bodies, their friends. Women who try to hold their societies together by themselves. This darkly compelling debut mirrors a woman’s nightmares, and equally, her realities.”

Katherine Forbes Riley, author of The Bobcat, longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize

Longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize

Longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize

On a cold November night, Evelyn Van Pelt steals her roommate’s two underfed and neglected little girls from their beds and drives to the northwestern hometown she fled fourteen years earlier—Cormorant Lake. There, hidden in the mountains and woods, dense with fog and the cold of winter, Evelyn grapples with the guilt of what she’s done, and as she attempts to reconcile her wild independence with the responsibilities of parenthood, she reconnects with the two women who raised her—her foster mother, Nan, and her biological mother, Jubilee. But by coming home, she has set in motion a series of events that will revive the decades-old tragedy that haunts Cormorant Lake—and lead her to confront the high cost of protecting her secret.

At once fantastical and deeply rooted in the natural world, Faith Merino’s deeply affecting and spirited debut novel explores the shape of family, the enduring bonds of friendship, and the imperfections of motherhood—messy and beautiful, instinctive and learned, temporal but permanently life-altering.

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4 reviews

  1. Nikka
    Overall Liked it

    Gorgeous imagery! Beautiful character development. Immediately transports the reader

    Wow! The imagery and description in this book is incredible! In just a few words I was transported. The author uses unique and brilliant ways to create characters, setting, and set the overall ambience of the story. I felt like I was Immediately absorbed into the story, immediately invested in the characters and their well-being. There’s so much to relate to in the story; motherhood, childhood, friendship, neighbors. It is a story of humanity and love in all of it beautiful and sometimes heartbreaking forms.

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  2. Winnie
    Overall Liked it

    Standout story!

    This was the story I needed to kick off 2021. I couldn't put this book down and was caught in its rhythmic spell. This book understood motherhood, families, and relationships in a way that speaks to my own experience and was so utterly relatable. We are all so deeply lovable, and also so deeply flawed, and carry that through every mundane and remarkable moment of life. The author did a stellar job of creating rich characters that jump off the page. I especially loved the ending and how the story is intentionally directionless. After a year of unexpected changes, the ending feels true and honest.

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  3. Lacey
    Overall Liked it

    Gripping story

    Cormorant Lake was a gripping narrative with fascinating characters and thought-provoking themes. I loved the touch of witchcraft in modern motherhood; the frank acknowledgement of sexuality in motherhood; the look at motherhood through generations. The eldest character in this book, Nan, offers insight into the various generations, whose traumas and successes (often surprising!) complete the reader's picture of the past and its ties to the present. I enjoyed being surprised by the character growth even from periphery characters. I especially enjoyed being made to hate a character and then getting to see that character's positive aspects. It reminded me in no small way of my own relationships, and brought a new appreciation of those things that do ultimately unite us. Don't read this book if you dislike endings that make you think - you will be less than satisfied - but if you are gripped by the tale as I was, you may find the ending to be in the exact perfect spot--wanting more, but knowing that nothing further really needs to be said.

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  4. Jennifer
    Overall Liked it

    An amazing evocative debut novel by Merino

    An early read for me but bound to stay in my top of 2021 list. I stayed up all night solo parenting to finish it. And I can't wait for you all to read it too. Merino's writing blew me away. It's sparse but full of imagery and I could see everyone and every scene and feel the pain, betrayal, loneliness, and awkwardness to my core. As well as the love and connections and tenderness and interests too. This is a story of women, of daughters, of what connects us and binds us and what doesn't. You need to read Cormorant Lake.

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