Member Reviews
I accessed a digital review copy of this book from the publisher.
The book jumps between two narrators. By doing this it lets the reader in on more red herrings and clues while also clearing up why the narrators are innocent of the crime. The overall feeling of mystery and menace was achieved, however, the ending did not make much sense with the evidence presented.
Im sorry to say I am tired of reading of children drowning in the lake. It seems alot of authors are writing about this. For this reason, I found it hard to continue and did not finish.
I loved this. Facing your fears of a lake and losing a child to losing a friend. being framed as a killer and finding a cheating husband. How much can you fit into one storyline. Such a great story and poor George.
The Lake is a thriller about three couples holidaying together before they enter a business relationship, but when the business owner, George, dies on a mountain trek, suspicion falls to the remaining five.
This was a quick read that got better and better as the story unfolded and the many reasons why someone might want George dead became increasingly clear.
The key strength of this thriller was the way each character's motive to kill George became clearer after George was dead, and they were stuck in a house by the lake together while the police investigated whether what happened to George was an accident or something more.
I just reviewed The Lake by Kevin Lynch. #TheLake #NetGalley
Gripping, Traumatic and full of suspense. I read this whilst on holiday and couldn’t put it down!
Trying to face her fear of water after her son had drowned in one, Debbie goes away on holiday with a group of friends which just happens to be by a lake….
One of the group goes missing and his body is found the next day, looking like he had been in some kind of altercation or fight.
This book really plays with your head and emotions so get the Kleenex ready!
Thank you to Netgalley for this book.
This book had an interesting premise but was a pretty predictable book. It didn’t take me long to figure out who the killer is. Debbie, Jim, Susie, George, Steve, and Brenda decide on going on holiday with each other. The men, Jim, George, and Steve are going in business together so they decide to take this trip to bond together. They all decide to go hiking when George falls to his death. Nobody saw what happened because there was to much fog. Susie and Jim have been having a affair and Susie reveals she is carrying Jim’s child which turns out to be a lie. Debbie begins to suspect Susie until she goes back to the scene of the crime and sees fake nails which Brenda wears and realizes she is the killer. Debbie confronts her and Brenda takes out a knife and tries to make Debbie touch it in order to frame her and tries to kill her in the lake. Debbie had been questioned twice by the police so she went looking for the truth. The police get there and arrest Brenda and question her. At the end it’s two years later and Debbie and Jim fix their marriage and have a daughter. Brenda killed George because he owed her money and they were fighting with each other during the first two days of their trip. Debbie gets over her fear of the water since her son died young after swimming in the same lake and she even lets her new daughter start to enjoy water.
Debbie’s holiday has turned into a nightmare. And that’s just the beginning.
Debbie has been terrified of lakes ever since her son tragically drowned in one. So when her husband and some friends decide to take a lakeside vacation, Debbie is reluctant to go. But hoping that the holiday will help cure her fear, she eventually agrees to join them.
Things start to go wrong very quickly. A local fisherman seems to be stalking them. And then George, a member of their group, goes missing. His body is discovered a day later, his injuries suggesting a struggle.
All the while, Debbie is being haunted by the sinister presence of the lake. More than anything, she wants to leave this dark foreboding place, but the group has been told to stay in place while George’s death is being investigated.
Which means Debbie has only one choice. If she wants to escape the terror of the lake, she must first solve the mystery of George's murder.
What she discovers will not only shock her to the core, it will also put her own life in grave danger. Can she escape in time to expose the terrifying truth?
I love stories like this. Perfectly paced, characters are well developed. My first read by the author and certainly not my last.
Synopsis (It's a fiction book, so it helps…from Netgalley, the provider of the book for me to review.)
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Debbie’s holiday has turned into a nightmare. And that’s just the beginning.
Debbie has been terrified of lakes ever since her son tragically drowned in one. So when her husband and some friends decide to take a lakeside vacation, Debbie is reluctant to go. But hoping that the holiday will help cure her fear, she eventually agrees to join them. Things start to go wrong very quickly. A local fisherman seems to be stalking them. And then George, a member of their group, goes missing. His body is discovered a day later, his injuries suggesting a struggle.
All the while, Debbie is haunted by the sinister presence of the lake. More than anything, she wants to leave this dark foreboding place, but the group has been told to stay in place while George’s death is being investigated. Which means Debbie has only one choice. If she wants to escape the terror of the lake, she must first solve the mystery of George's murder. What she discovers will not only shock her to the core, but it will also put her own life in grave danger. Can she escape in time to expose the terrifying truth?
The story is tight and tense and I kept finding myself having to remind myself to breathe as I got so into this book that I stayed up and finished it in one fell swoop. Great characters, great plot ... I will recommend it far and wide!
#shortbutsweetreviews
The writing style of this book did not appeal to me. I found it hard to read and did not end up finishing this book
Three couples go away for a lake weekend getaway. The men are going into business together so it's a bonding weekend, and their wives are along for the ride. George is a dominating man and the planner of the event. His wife is Susie. Debbie and Jim are the main couple whose POV's tell the story. Debbie has a debilitating fear of lakes after he son drowned in one. Debbie once dated George in high school. Jim is having an affair with George's wife Susie, and was embezzling money at his old job. So lots of secrets and undercurrents floating around. The other couple, Steve and Brenda, don't really know anyone in the group very well.
They go out hiking. It is foggy so they can't see very well and George gives a yell and falls off the mountain to his death. When there is evidence he was pushed, the other five are told to stay put while things are investigated, leading to lots of tension.
This was an good suspense story, but the ending seemed a bit rushed and forced and out of left field.
Really enjoyed this book. Didn't like many of the characters. But I liked how it was told by 2 people even though there was 6 until 1 of them got killed. I did like how it moved along at a good pace and did not guess who it was I have to say until the very end. Really good read.
This book turnout not as good as I’d hoped. I didn’t like the characters at all and I found the story quite boring , not much of a thriller. I struggled through to the end and was relieved when I’d finished it. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.
This book, written as a dual/alternating POV between a husband and wife, sounded amazing. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me.
The good—it’s a story about three couples who spend what’s supposed to be a relaxing weekend at a lake house together. Things got creepy. Someone died. And in true locked-room mystery style, you didn’t guess who the killer was until the end. I also LOVED the addition of the creepy fisherman. Like the initially-creepy older man in Home Alone, he was the real hero of this story.
The bad—unfortunately, the characters were all generally unlikeable or unremarkable. There was a weird tension between them despite the beginning of the book saying they were all friendly. I wanted to kill George myself. He was one of the most terrible humans I’ve come across in a book. Debbie was spineless and a total pushover.. Jim was a straight up cheat and weasel. And why do his companies keep failing? Steve was a dick just to be one. Brenda was forgettable. The writing was choppy and elementary and probably needed further edits to make it flow better if the reader is to believe that these characters are educated professionals. The conversations were awkward and unrealistic. But my biggest sticking point was that the twist was poorly executed, and as a reader, I was left not knowing the details of the murder (aside from who did it) or what led to it. As a thriller-obsessed reader, I hold thrillers with high expectations. This means incremental clues as I’m reading, background information peppered throughout, and fully developed characters so that the reader can solve the mystery along with the book’s sleuths.
I imagine this book will be a hit for others, but the whole thing fell flat for me.
⭐⭐
2 Stars
Thank you Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
It has Dual POV from Debbie and Jim running in parallels for creating suspene.
It started off good but lacked the thrill. Maybe its just me. I like thrillers that chills me to the core. The writing was mediocre and the things were repetitive at times.
Also as a reader who has read a lot of thriller/mystery, I predicted who was the murderer. Predictability does even matter to me as long as the events leading to the climax is💣. But in this case, the climax scene was underwhelming.
Secrets Abound..
Three couples, a lakeside retreat and a holiday from hell. As three couples group for what is meant to be a relaxing lakeside holiday things soon begin to go drastically awry. It’s not long before an unnatural death occurs and the rest of the party are suspects. Secrets and lies abound within this group of people - but, as we all know, secrets will out. Engaging psychological suspense with well drawn characters, snappy narrative and many threads which will eventually merge.
Six friends about to go into business together set up a weekend at the lake as a sort of bonding experience. The weekend was scheduled with activities for the three couples, dinners, shopping, hiking. Before the weekend even got started George "fell"to his death from a mountain hike. Now everyone in the lake cabin is a suspect.....
Thanks to Kevin Lynch, Net Galley and Inkubator Books for the opportunity the read this in exchange for an honest review.
A good psychological thriller with a great setting. Three couples go away for a holiday. The group dynamics are interesting and cause a lot of tension. I enjoyed the book and the multiple POV’s. The cover is what drew in my from the start. The beautiful lake with the red shoe in the foreground. Gives a little hint into what you will find in the book.
Debbie and Jim are getting out of the city with two other couples. Jim is going to be working with the men soon and they've known George, the planner of this event and the most annoying man alive, for many years.
Debbie is anxious about this trip because she has a phobia of lakes. Her 6 year old son died in a lake years ago. She's trying to be strong and make peace with the water. But some strange things happen, including a man watching them from across the lake.
Meanwhile there are also domestic situations afoot. Jim had secretly been seeing Susie, George's wife. Debbie dated George, again the most annoying man alive, back in high school.
The other couple are new and the husband Steve, who seems like an investor of sorts. That has George(most annoying man alive) showing off his alpha personality even more to make up for his financial failures. Steve's wife Brenda is not having it. She's challenging him and he doesn't like it.
Anyway, someone finally kills George and we have a lot of good clues and info to go off of so it's a nice little mystery. Nothing takes your mind off past tragedy like a current murder so hopefully Debbie can overcome her fears of the lake.
This was pretty good, if not a bit long-winded for me. There were a few too many characters but at least it was only narrated by Debbie and Jim. It just wasn't very emotional, not for the serious issues at hand. I wasn't finding them to be very believable but it was still a worthwhile and interesting read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review!
Debbie has been terrified of lakes ever since her son tragically drowned in one. So when her husband and some friends decide to take a lakeside vacation, Debbie is reluctant to go. But hoping that the holiday will help cure her fear, she eventually agrees to join them. Things start to go wrong very quickly. A local fisherman seems to be stalking them. And then George, a member of their group, goes missing. His body is discovered a day later, his injuries suggesting a struggle. All the while, Debbie is being haunted by the sinister presence on the lake.
I was suspicious of everyone in this tense and gripping read. I was pulled in from the first chapter. The characters are well rounded. Filled with secrets that are slowly revealed, the pace is fast, and the plotline is easy to follow. So who was the killer? This was my first read by the author, but it won't be my last.
I would like to thank #NetGalley #InkubatorBooks and the author #KevinLynch for my ARC of #TheLake in exchange for an honest review.
This book didn’t really grab my attention, I just kept wonder when it was going to get better. I didn’t really enjoy any of the characters which is probably why I struggled with the book and struggled to finish it.