We're thrilled to have signed Carys Shannon's debut novel, Truth Like Water, which is due for release in September 2025.
In a small estuary village on the Welsh coast, Catrin is mourning the anniversary of her mother’s drowning when a teenage girl disappears on the mudflats. Terrified of history repeating itself and driven by unresolved grief, Catrin becomes obsessed with finding Emily. Her search dredges up secrets from the village’s past and present, uncovering far more than the missing girl.
This is a story of lost women – some who can be found again, and some who can’t.
Shortlisted for the Caledonia Novel Award 2021, and winner of the Jericho Writers, Festival of Writing Prize in 2020, Truth Like Water is, in the words of commissioning editor Carly Holmes: "a beautifully written and structured novel, driven by urgent prose and atmospheric landscapes".
Originally from North Gower in Swansea, Carys now lives in the Spanish Pyrenees with her partner and rescue cat.
“I’m thrilled that my debut novel, Truth Like Water, has found its home at Parthian Books. Parthian has been a powerhouse of brilliant fiction writing for decades, and there are many writers on their list who I admire and whose work I have enjoyed. To know my novel will not only sit within such good company, but also be treated with care and respect by a Welsh publisher that champions new Welsh voices, is a dream come true.” – Carys Shannon
