If you loved Tom Lake by Ann Patchett, you’ll love these 11 novels about human relationships too.
Tom Lake is a gorgeous, slow-burning sort of novel by acclaimed author Ann Patchett. It follows Lara, her husband, and her grown daughters as they shelter from the pandemic in their cherry orchard.
As the weeks roll on, Lara slowly unfolds the story of her former life, before she had children: the life in which she tried to ‘make it’ as an actress.
Lara has to relive these tender moments, and her daughters must discover new truths about who their mother was.
Although Tom Lake is a lovely read, it is a hard one to follow!
But if you love novels that centre location as an important storytelling device, stories that delve into the reality of human relationships, and stories that revolve around nostalgia and longing for the past, the following 11 books like Tom Lake might fit the bill.
Amazing book deals you don’t want to miss
Blackwells: Free worldwide delivery on books
Audible: Get 30 days free when you sign up to Audible
Kindle: Save up to 80% on Kindle book deals
Prime Reading: Unlimited access to a rotating catalogue of e-books
11 Books Like Tom Lake
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
Before the Coffee Gets Cold is a phenomenally successful series of books, but the first book actually started life as a play, which is something you may want to keep in mind as you read it.
The story is set in a magical cafe; in this cafe, customers can travel back in time. This allows four people to experience a short (and often painful) conversation with someone they left behind.
In Tom Lake, the daughters wonder what could have been if Lara had taken a different direction. In Before the Coffee Gets Cold, the characters do get to manipulate time, at least a little bit.
If you prefer realist novels, this may be a bit of a change, but it’s worth a read for the poignancy packed into each story.
Grab a copy of Before the Coffee Gets Cold now!
Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah
Kristin Hannah, like Ann Patchett, has the envious ability to understand the human psyche and display it in a way that is tender and raw; Firefly Lane is a good example of this.
Focusing on sisters-in-friendship rather than actual blood relatives, this story follows girl-next-door Kate Mularkey and her cool, exciting friend Tully Hart. The two are as close as friends can be, but their lives take very different directions.
Firefly Lane moves a little quicker than Tom Lake, as it covers a greater time span, but you still get enough time with Kate and Tulley, enough to form bonds with them and be genuinely sad when it’s over.
Grab a copy of Firefly Lane now!
Hot Stew by Fiona Moriarty
On the surface of it, Hot Stew feels like a big departure from Tom Lake. Set in bustling, manic London as opposed to a sprawling Stateside cherry orchard.
However, the setting of Hot Stew is as intrinsic to the story as the farm in Tom Lake; really, it’s a story about how much a particular place can give you an identity and roots that are actually very important to who you are.
In Hot Stew, the characters have to contend with their home being taken from them. There’s a power struggle between the residents of a brothel and the billionaire who owns the building.
This power struggle defines a lot of the novel as the characters each wonder what ‘ownership’ of a place really means.
The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo
If you loved the dynamic between the three daughters and their parents in Tom Lake, you’ll probably enjoy this one, too.
In The Most Fun We Ever Had, four adult daughters grapple with their upbringing, and the introduction of a very intense secret threatens to destabilize the entire family.
What is nice about both novels is the reality of family life. On the surface, the marriage of the Sorensens is very similar to the marriage between the Nelsons.
But the women in both stories must be prepared to really understand who their parents were before they came along, and the situation in both cases is not black and white.
Grab a copy of The Most Fun We Ever Had now!
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
In The Joy Luck Club, the daughters are not as curious about their mothers’ pasts but are actively ignorant about them.
They don’t see their parents lived experiences as being particularly relevant to them, having been raised in the States and having a completely different upbringing.
But some experiences are universal, crossing the boundaries of both time and place, and this novel sensitively digs into the similarities between each mother and their daughters.
It’s a thoughtful, fascinating insight into the powerful (and sometimes fraught) mother-daughter bond.
Grab a copy of The Joy Luck Club now!
The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller
The Paper Palace feels quite a bit darker than Tom Lake, but shares a common theme around digging into old memories in a familiar place.
The Paper Palace is the family summer home of Elle, a married mother-of-three, having to choose between her loyal husband and her oldest friend, Jonas.
Like Hatchett, Heller is excellent at portraying the more difficult parts of the human experience in a way that is sensitive and nuanced, and it’s a very moving (if sad) read.
Grab a copy of The Paper Palace now!
The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls by Anissa Gray
In Tom Lake, the characters are drawn together by the pandemic. The situation is quite different in The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls: they are drawn together because of a very different crisis when the eldest sister of the group, Althea, is arrested. It’s up to her sisters, Lillian and Viola, to care for Althea’s teenage children.
It’s a very moving story, moving at a quicker pace than Tom Lake, and it’s an interesting look at how families love and support each other, in an imperfect, flawed sort of way, even when faced with secrets they never knew.
Grab a copy of The Care and Feeding of Ravenously Hungry Girls now!
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Where the Crawdads Sing was hugely popular when it first arrived on the scene in 2018. It follows the main character Kya, known by the locals as ‘Marsh Girl’, a strange and lonely outsider left to fend for herself from a young age.
It’s impossible for the setting to be more important here; the landscape is a huge part of Kya herself, as she learns to live alone in the only place she has ever called home. It’s a lonelier experience than Tom Lake, but it’s a stunning, emotionally charged novel.
READ MORE: 15 Books Like Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
Grab a copy of Where the Crawdads Sing now!
This Must Be the Place by Maggie O’Farrell
Maggie O’Farrell is an incredible writer. This Must Be the Place captures the incredible marriage of Daniel and Claudette.
Both are interesting characters: Daniel has connections all over the globe, and Claudette is an ex-film star enjoying the wild, quiet surroundings of their Irish farm.
When Daniel is called away to a woman from his past, the marriage is put to the test.
Like Tom Lake, this is a story about characters looking back into the past with fresh eyes. It’s also about the close bonds we form with each other. It’s very funny, emotional, and sweet.
Grab a copy of This Must Be The Place now!
Small Pleasures by Clare Chambers
In Small Pleasures, we see Jean, a feature writer, feeling stuck and frustrated in her life. But when Jean hears of a woman claiming that her daughter is the result of a virgin birth, it takes her on a very strange and unexpected journey.
Similar to Tom Lake, it’s a complicated story about love, humanity, and making the occasional (big) mistake.
Grab a copy of Small Pleasures now!
Expectation by Anna Hope
Expectation is a novel about the optimism of youth and the reality of growing older. Like Lara in Tom Lake, the women of Expectation start with huge career dreams, as well as a (perhaps) unrealistic desire to be best friends forever.
Ten years on, the three women are reflecting on the lives they have led, the decisions they’ve made, trying to find contentment and meaning in their reality.
It’s a slow-burning novel, allowing you to get to know Hannah, Cate, and Lissa well, and their relationships are fascinating to delve into.
Hopefully, this has pointed you in the direction of a new novel to fall in love with: Tom Lake is lovely, but any of these books have a similar vibe.
Grab a copy of Expectation now!
If you liked this post, check out these:
Books Like Normal People
Books Like Daisy Jones and the Six
Books Like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Books Like Malibu Rising
Books Like Little Fires Everywhere
Books Like Gone Girl
Books Like Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine
Books Like It Ends With Us
Books Like My Year of Rest and Relaxation
Megan Bidmead
Guest writer
Megan is a freelance writer based in Somerset, England. When she’s not writing about books, video games, and pop culture, she’s running around after her two kids and trying to squeeze in the occasional walk in the countryside.
