In 1913, a powerful and dangerous storm descends on the Great Lakes — and three sisters find their lives transformed amid the chaos in this "superb, character-driven adventure" ( Publishers Weekly ). Great Lakes galley cook Sunny Colvin has her hands full feeding a freighter crew seven days a week, nine months a year. She also has a dream—to open a restaurant back home—but knows she'd never convince her husband, the steward, to leave the seafaring life he loves. In Sunny’s Lake Huron hometown, her sister, Agnes Inby, mourns her husband, a U.S. Life-Saving Serviceman who died in an accident she believes she could have prevented. Burdened with regret and longing for more than her job at the dry goods store, she looks for comfort in a secret infatuation. Two hundred miles away in Cleveland, the youngest sister, Cordelia Blythe, has pinned her hopes for adventure on her marriage to a lake freighter captain. Finding herself alone and restless in her new town, she joins him on the season’s last trip up the lakes. On November 8, 1913, a powerful storm descends on the Great Lakes, bringing hurricane-force winds, whiteout blizzard conditions, and mountainous waves that last for days. Amidst the chaos all three women are offered a glimpse of the clarity they seek, if only they dare to perceive it. Kinley Bryan's debut, a Historical Novels Review Editors' Choice, is inspired by actual events during the Great Lakes Storm of 1913, as well as her own family history. "This is historical fiction at its best" (Molly Gartland, author of The Girl from the Hermitage ). Winner, 2022 Publishers Weekly Selfies Award for Adult Fiction Finalist, 2022 Eric Hoffer Award Editors' Choice, Historical Novels Review "Bryan writes with vigor and verve, whether relaying the characters' knowledge of sailing or digging into the sisters' personal dramas. Readers will eagerly follow Bryan through the rough and thrilling waters." —Publishers Weekly "Bryan illustrates the interior lives of early 20th-century Great Lakes women as adeptly as she describes a ship's layout and the visceral experience of this destructive storm." — Historical Novels Review (Editors' Choice) "This novel goes on a small shelf containing my all-time favorite books." — Michigan in Books "Kinley Bryan's portraits are mesmerizing... Sisters of the Sweetwater Fury is a riveting period piece." — Midwest Book Review "This is the kind of book that reminds you why you love reading... The pure devastation, and the fear, have been depicted with incredible skill, and I was almost certain I was living the events alongside the characters, rather than simply reading them from words on a page. Not many novels have left me reeling quite so much as this one did." — Candlelight Reading "A book in a million... The kind that stays with you forever." — The Book Bandit's Library "Absolutely loved this Great Lakes tale ... Historical fiction fans, this is not a book to miss." —Molly Gartland, author of The Girl from the Hermitage "The reader will feel the frigid water... and the fearsome pitching of the freighters in the raging storms as the inches-thick ice accumulates on the decks." — Akron Beacon Journal "Bryan's debut is a highly assured and gripping novel." — BlueInk Review (starred) Kinley Bryan was inspired by stories of her great-grandparents, a schooner captain and ship's cook, who survived the 1913 storm with their young children. Kinley lives with her husband and children on the Atlantic Coast, where she prefers not to lose sight of the shore. Sisters of the Sweetwater Fury is her first novel.