Lakesedge is a dark, gothic like novel. There is a corruption that is gradually spreading through the land, one that cannot be contained easily. Leta is the main character of this story. She is protective of her younger brother and tries to hide the shadows that come from him when he dreams. Their adoptive mother is cruel and tries to punish him every time his shadows appear. On the night of the tithe, the lord of the lands arrives to gather their payment to him. In the case of bad timing (as always seems to happen in these kinds of stories) Arien's shadows suddenly appear in the middle of the day instead of only at night. The lord, whom is later known with his actual name, takes Leta and Arien back to his home in hopes that Arien can help cure the corruption with his shadow powers. Along the way, all of the characters show growth and develop more dimension.
It was an exciting day when I received and ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I wish I could have rated this book much higher, but I simply could not connect with the characters. For a novel of this length, I can usually finish it in a matter of a couple days. However, this book took me a week. The world building was dark, lovely, and everything I could have hoped for. The characters left much to be desired. It was as if the author wanted to spice things up and kept adding more poor choices and emotional damage to the characters at every turn, even when wholly unnecessary. I will not continue on with this series, but I will not forget the stunning imagery the world building gave me.

Lakesedge is a story of an older sister who would do--and has done--anything, even the unthinkable, to save her little brother. In a world ruled by "The Lady," some are born with magic and are called alchemysts. The Lady's counterpart "the Lord Under" rules the afterlife below, but sometimes intervenes in the living world above when people encounter death, bringing them back to life or keeping them from an otherwise inevitable death after bargaining with them, sometimes for magic, or memories, or worse things entirely. Leta and her little brother are swept into a fight against dark magic when they are taking to the Lakesedge estate by its young lord, Rowan Sylvanan, whose dark reputation at first paints him as an antihero at best and murderous villain at worst. But as the plot progresses, Rowan's innate kindness reveals itself quite soon and Leta and Arien are quickly invested in the fight against the evil "Corruption" magic of their own accord.

This book was dreamily atmospheric, the details of the setting and customs lovingly detailed. The characters were all distinct and easily likable in their own ways, though there were a couple hiccups in their development. For example, the young alchemyst Clover blushes after looking at Rowan when talking about the choice to work at Lakesedge, leading me to believe she had a crush on him and fearing the arrival of a love triangle. For the rest of the story, however, Clover is cheerfully and meddlesomely supportive of Rowan and Leta's growing feelings for each other while staying steadfast in a different crush on the daughter of a local official. I like the pivot, but that first detail about Clover threw me off.

I would also say that the climactic arc of the book was a little bogged down with back and forth "will it work or will it fail" events, but successfully leads the reader into a somewhat unexpected final showdown. The final pages are not what I would call a satisfying ending or stopping point in the narrative of the world, but urgently set up an inevitable sequel.

Elder siblings will sympathize with Leta's character. There was a scene of intimacy between Rowan and Leta that I thought very well done, euphemistically worded, and appropriate for an older teen audience while still adding to the story and dripping with chemistry and sweetness. Overall, this story is one I would recommend to any young adult fantasy enthusiast who enjoyed darker tales or hints of a Hades-esque underworld lord.

Lakesedge is a gothic YA story with elements of romance, witchcraft, and a splash of horror. I was immediately captivated by both the beautiful cover and the synopsis. Unfortunately, the book ended up falling flat to me.

I will say that the author is a very good writer and is able to weave together great sentences. This review has nothing to do with the author's ability to write- she clearly can! I was simply not captivated by the plot. It dragged in many parts and didn't go as quickly or as smooth as I would have liked.

The characters were fine, but I wanted a little bit more out of them. I do think the worldbuilding is great, but without a steady plot and developed characters, this book just wasn't for me.

Lakesedge fit my love for atmospheric YA with a great blend of gothic, horror, and romance. In the book we are following our main character, Violeta, who will stop at nothing to protect her younger brother from nightmares. Lakesedge, itself, is a mystifying old estate that is rumored to be cursed and haunted by a monster of the lake. I got some Crimson Peak mixed with Secret Garden vibes here and my heart was oh-so-happy! This is the first book in the World at Lake's Edge Series and the ending leaves much more to be desired. I will be reading on....

Absolutely wonderful story! Cannot wait to read the next book! Characters were wonderfully written and easy to fall in love with. Brought me to tears. And that ending was equally infuriating and amazing.

*Thank you to the publisher for this eARC.

I was so excited for this title and the premise sounded so good. I'm such a sucker for gothic YA themes and this seemed to be perfect for the Fall season.

It's March now.. and I still have yet to pick it back up to finish it. I suppose I'm marking this as DNF. The plot was interesting enough but the friendships/relationships seemed superficial and there was just something that made it feel like they weren't real almost.

The relationship between the siblings were the worst. Violeta seemed more controlling than caring. She refused to listen to any kind of reason and ran around thinking she knew what was best for her brother despite not knowing crap about anything.

She got on my nerves.

I wish I had enjoyed this title more!

Lakesedge scratched my dark fantasy/gothic horror itch and that ending!! I need book 2 immediately. For fans of creeping horror, unsettling stories, and monsters who may not be what they appear.

I loved the gothic vibe of this book but I felt like the relationships were forced and the “romance” wasn’t quite believable. The MC made some choices that didn’t sit well with me. I felt like too much focus was out on the villain rather than the love interest and again I would’ve like to have seen more organic relationships.

I won an e-arc of Lakesedge from Fierce Reads last summer but completely forgot to review it here! I loved this book! From the characters to the lovely gothic atmosphere, it turned out to be one of my top reads for 2021! I’m stoked for the sequel!

This is a very atmospheric book. I spend a lot of time out in the woods and am drawn to books where the scenery acts as another main character because of this. Lakesedge did not disappoint with its strange decaying mansion setting, religion, and magic system that is exchange based. Plus, there’s a death god that reminded me of Luc from Addie Larue who I was obviously rooting for as the love interest. Not sure he won out yet. The ending of this book confused me at first because I didn’t realize there was a sequel. I think there was a lot of foreshadowing and set up in book one. Plus, the Lord of Under seems like he will be taking center stage, and I can’t argue with that!

This one was a bit of a slog to get through. I was expecting a gothic romance with a side of haunted house. Instead, it's more possession with a hefty dose of magic. All that would've been fine if it weren't for the incessant pity party everyone is throwing. The "Everything is my fault, only I can fix it," "No, everything is MY fault and only I can fix it!" exchange between every character gets real old real fast.

Never realized I didn't write a review but I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It reminded me some of Isabella August's Crown series but just as good! Haunting and romantic which not too many books fit that aspect. I hope more people give this book a chance.

Absolutely gorgeous and atmospheric, LAKESEDGE is a gem of a debut with a compelling cast of characters. Cannot wait for the sequel!

3.75 ⭐
A lush gothic fantasy about monsters and magic, set on the banks of a cursed lake. Perfect for fans of Naomi Novik and Brigid Kemmerer.

I enjoyed this book so much! The relationship between all the characters are so beautiful.
This book is full of magic, monsters, secret garden and death gods.
It was a great, horrifying and amazing fantasy. I was intrigued from the very first page!
The only complain I have is it ends with a cliffhanger.

Violeta Graceling has spent years protecting her little brother, Arien, ever since their parents died. Their adopted mother has grown afraid of Arien, and just as living situations become tenuous, Rowan Sylvanan, the Lord of the village, becomes interested in the magic that Arien wields. Rowan has been perceived as a monster, ever since his whole family drowned when he was a boy and everyone has blamed him.
Leta begins to fall for Rowan, and learns that he is bound to the Lord Under, the sinister death god lurking on the property. Leta is drawn to the Lord Under, for reasons she doesn't quite understand. In order to save her brother, Rowan and herself, Leta must figure out what it is that draws her to the Lord Under.
This is a dark gothic fantasy that looks at what you will do for those you love. The stories of the characters are interwoven as they start to connect with one another. I would have loved a little more compelling romantic connection in the story.

I was ready for lush, spooky and atmospheric read, and Lakesedge did not disappoint! I adored the whimsical writing and the very thorough world-building, and I enjoyed Violeta and Rowan's romance. I can't wait for the next book!

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC of this book.

Lakesedge is a vivdly written YA Gothic Fantasy novel about Violeta, who with her brother finds herself at the mysterious manor where she meets the mysterious Rowan. Rowan needs help from Violeta and her brother to help cleanse the estate from a mysterious Corruption.

I very much enjoyed the world of Lakesedge. It was described in vivid detail, and the magic system and mythology was really cool and interesting. Violeta and Rowan have a typical YAish type relationship kind of mirroring enemies to lovers in a small way.

Overall would recommend for lovers of YA Fantasy and enemies to lovers romance.

This was very slow and very dull for me. I had heard raves about this book, but I just could not get into it. Everytime I tried to pick it up again, I'd make it one page before setting it back down, and I tried for months. I DNFed at about 20%

*eARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I've been waiting for this book for months. I read it ages ago, but needed some time to gather my thoughts for a review.

Lakesedge was dark and mysterious and yet it lacked one specific thing- villain romance. For a man who the main character constantly refers to as "monster," he sure is not very monstrous. I get it, I get it, Rowan's got hidden depths and he's misunderstood. But I wanted more...

On the other hand...there is a mysterious Lord Under. He's a sinister death god who cursed Rowan and seems to have a strong connection to Leta. While I don't really want them to get together... since he's an ancient creature (obviously), their interactions are great and I like how morally black he is.

I thought this was a standalone but it is in fact a duology and I am curious to see what happens next.

I compared this book to the song Lighthouse by Halsey and the author was very happy.

This is an incredible atmospheric, gothic, fantasy, for the ages. The descriptions and characters are perfect for the setting and the story is romantic yet terrifying. And the cover is gorgeous.