THE SWIMMERS

Erin's mother has motor neurone disease and has decided to take her fate into her own hands. As Erin looks back at her twenty-six-year-old self, she can finally tell the story of the unimaginable task she faced one winter. Like Rachel Khong's Goodbye Vitamin and Deborah Levy's Hot Milk, at the heart of this darkly humorous novel is an exploration of the messiness of family, and the small ways we can save, and destroy, each other.

Set in rural New Zealand over five days, Chloe Lane's debut novel THE SWIMMERS tells the story of 26-year-old Erin Moore who, on returning to her family's farm, is shocked to learn that her mother has made a massive decision. Erin's mother has entered the late stages of a neurodegenerative disease and has recently become a full-time patient to her sister, the hapless Aunty Wynn. With her condition rapidly worsening, Erin's mother has announced that she wishes to end her own life. In three days. Despite their prickly relationship, Erin and Aunty Wynn must now help the woman they both love most to "exit." Already troubled by a failed affair that may have major professional repercussions, Erin narrates her story with a mix of fear, frustration, humor, and insight. Chloe Lane is a native New Zealander and a recent graduate in fiction of MFA@FLA, the MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Florida, where she has also taught.