The Twelve Lives of Samuel HawleyThe Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley
Score Modern
What it's about
Twelve-year-old Loo moves back to a New England fishing village with her father, Hawley, who works the boats. Over them hang the mystery of her dead mother and the ghosts of Hawley's past as a professional criminal.
Why it's worth reading
It was a finalist for the Edgar Award.
You'll love it if you liked
Where the Crawdads Sing
The River
The Secret HistoryGood to know
It's a crime novel and a father-daughter story.
By the numbers
- Readers34 out of 100 · counts 42%
- Critics21 out of 100 · counts 34% (its stronger lane)
- Bestseller3 out of 100 · counts 14%
- Buzz7 out of 100 · counts 10%
Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero. The parts combine into the Must-Read Score, shown on a scale where the best book we found scores 99 and the last book to make the ranking scores 50.
Where it ranks
- #215 of the 260 young adult books we rank
- #1428 of the 1,647 modern books we rank
- #2689 of the 3,056 books we rank
Why it made the list
Reads as
Adventurous
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Young adult booksTop 25 · 260 ranked

Modern booksTop 25 · 1,647 ranked

Books of the 2010sTop 25 · 751 ranked

Fantasy booksTop 25 · 504 ranked

Mysteries and thrillersTop 25 · 623 ranked

Literary novelsTop 25 · 325 ranked

Pulitzer Prize-winning novelsTop 25 · 63 ranked

Memoirs and biographiesTop 25 · 290 rankedQuick answers
Is The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley worth reading?
Yes. It was a finalist for the Edgar Award. It ranks #2,689 of the 3,056 books in our ranking, with a Must-Read Score of 58.3 (the best book we found scores 99).
What is The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley about?
Twelve-year-old Loo moves back to a New England fishing village with her father, Hawley, who works the boats. Over them hang the mystery of her dead mother and the ghosts of Hawley's past as a professional criminal.
How long does it take to read The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley?
About 10 hours (399 pages), or about 3 weeks at 30 minutes a day.
What should I read after The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley?
If you liked it, try Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, The River by Peter Heller or The Secret History by Donna Tartt.