Rose's daughter, Jules, was backpacking through Central America when she went missing. Despite all the resources available to Rose and her ex-husband, the only thing they know is that she was working at a writer's retreat in Guatemala run by famous author Eva Marshall. Everyone presumes Jules dead--except Rose, who refuses to give up. She decides to register for one of Eva's retreats under a fake name, determined to figure out what happened to her daughter.

What she discovers once she arrives to Lake Atitlan, the deepest lake in the world, is more than she could have imagined. Murder, corruption, lies...Rose is confronted with all of these as she desperately searches for clues about what happened to Jules.

This book was thrilling and took me places I wasn't expecting at all. The setting was amazing, and I loved learning about a place I'd never been before. The theme of mothers and daughters ran throughout the book, which would be relatable to nearly anyone whose ever had a mother.

There were some triggers I wished I'd known about beforehand (infant death, for example), but overall I really enjoyed this book.

A slow start and took some time to set up where this was all taking place but if you give it some time it all comes together. I enjoy dual point of views and reading more to see how the pieces fit and where there stories will cross. You just have to keep going with this one and get over the slow start then it hooks you in.
Thank you NetGalley and SoHo Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would! I sort of expected an average thriller that wouldn't knock my socks off, but I was pleasantly surprised!

I have to start by saying that I imagined Eva Marshall as Gwyneth Paltrow, which was very fun for me. I think she embodied the kind of wealthy woman who would appeal to other wealthy women wanting to stay in a luxurious place to write their own memoir.

I thought I knew where this story would go, I love it when I'm surprised. Without spoiling, I was very pleased with the way the plot progressed. It was a book that also made me want to book a plane ticket to Central America.

A small criticism for me is just that the cast of characters was too large. I couldn't keep any of the women in the writing group straight and just gave up. Luckily that didn't detract from the plot, but it was hard to keep a firm grasp on who was who.

Thank you NetGalley and Soho Press for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Deepest Lake is a compelling mystery with a unique setting and premise. In Lake Atitlán, Guatemala, there is an elite writer’s workshop hosted by a famous author. Rose arrives at the workshop with ulterior motives, to find out what happened to her daughter Jules. Jules’s disappearance has left Rose with grief and unanswered questions. She hopes the retreat, the city, and the workshop leader hold the answers.

Told between Rose and Jules, on altering timelines, the reader gets drawn into the space, the other attendees, and the spell of writer and teacher Eva Marshall.

There is so much promise in this novel, but it left me wanting more. The setting is really compelling, but it is approached with a tourist’s lens. I didn’t get a sense of the people of Guatemala in any deep ways. Eva is a compelling character, and the elusive writer’s workshop holds a lot of potential, but the reveals didn’t satisfy. I wanted it to be darker or more flushed out.

The book is a compelling read and the audiobook is really well done.

A very good read. The story starts a little slow, setting the scene. As someone who had not heard of Lake Atitlán before reading this book, setting up the environment where the story takes place is necessary. I found myself wondering where the plot was hiding (and began to wonder why the book was categorized as a mystery, then 'BAM' there it was. From that point on, I found I was unable to put it down. I found the dual point of views the author utilized is easy to follow (some often leave gaps and the reader wondering what they are missing). The ending was exactly what I would of expected.

The formatting of this ARC was really wonky on my Kindle, as a result it is impossible to read for enjoyment or engagement. That I'm sure took away some of the enjoyment of this read for me. I loved the writing of this book. The descriptions of Guatemala and the lake were beautiful. This book just didn't grab me and I couldn't finish it. I will pick up more reads by this author though, as the author's writing style is amazing.

I have visited Lago Atilán myself multiple times and had to pick this book up! There is something incredibly magical about the deepest lake in Guatemala, in all of Latin America. Surrounded by volcanoes, it is truly a vision. This book is also magical and kept me guessing and fully engaged until the very end!

In this story, Rose has traveled to a writing retreat at a small colony on the lake. Her daughter had been working as an assistant for Eva Marshall - a famous writer who is well known worldwide for her story and her writing retreats. Jules has been missing for many months and is presumed dead, drowned in the lake. The famous Eva claims that she barely met Jules much less had her work for her.

Like most mothers, Rose is determined and travels that many miles, many busses, planes and cars to the lake. She is sure she will find something out and it isn't long before she finds a thread.... Romano-Lax provides Jules' portion of the story, a young college graduate searching for that next step, completely enamored with her favorite writer. How did Jules die? Is Eva culpable? Can Rose find closure? Read the Deepest Lake to find out!
#sohopress #thedeepestlake #lgoaatilan #andromedaromanolax

Honestly the cover of this book caught my attention at first and I’m so glad it did. This thriller/mystery was sooooo good! This would be a great summer or spring read!

This is a story of a mother who goes on a writing retreat to figure out what happened to her daughter who has disappeared and probably died. It is her story and also the story told by the daughter. The book is pretty slow and then gets unbelievable to me, I didn't get a real sense of the mother. The daughter was more real to me but overall, this was a miss for me

Compelling story and characters. Book clubs will enjoy discussing this book's twists and turns. A writers' workshop set in an exotic location, add a woman's mysterious disappearance, along with sinister money trails, and it's a page turner .

Such a great book! It had a mix of everything that makes it the perfect read on a winter day. I was excited to be curled up with hot coco as I read this. Not a single page disappointed. The pacing and level of mystery was just right.

The ARC is not correctly formatted and as a result it is impossible to read for enjoyment or engagement. No insights would reflect the actual reading experience.

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
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ARC Book Review: I was intrigued right away by the premise of the book. It begins with news coverage of the disappearance of a girl named Jules in a remote location in Guatemala. Her mother, Rose, decides she’s not satisfied with the investigation and goes undercover as a retreat member. Right away, I knew that all these elements would make this a good read.

I enjoyed the dual POV of both Rose and Jules. It gave a unique look at both sides of the writing retreat. The retreat brought up a lot of the negative things I hear about authors and the publishing world, and found it so interesting. I found myself liking Jules’ story more. The leader, Eva, was quite the character and right away gave off the worst vibes. I was intrigued by her motives and actions.

As much as I enjoyed the plot, the story just didn’t wow me the way I expected it to. It had a lot of potential but it was missing something. There was a lot of repetition, a lot of characters at the retreat (hard to keep track), and a slow in the beginning. It did really pick up around halfway with a lot of twists.

I think the author could have gone deeper with Rose’s story. I felt like I didn’t really understand her. What stood out to me was Jules’ story, the twist near the middle, the ending, and the descriptions of beautiful Guatemala. My grandfather lived in Guatemala for many years, and this book made me realize I should have asked him so much more about the culture!

If you enjoyed The Writing Retreat, you will be sure to enjoy this one!

This book comes out May 7, 2024. Thanks for Netgalley and SoHo Press for an advanced copy of the book.

Clever p[ot and kept me reading at a fairly fast pace. I enjoyed the setting and some of the character development although I felt some of the characters could have had more work. Overall, delighted to have been able to read this early and I look forward to more from this author. Thank you

The Deepest Lake by Andromeda Romano-Lax had a very intriguing thriller premise - 20-something Jules attends a writing retreat in Guatemala, hosted by her favorite author - a very eccentric Eva. Jules goes missing and is assumed dead, this prompts a search and newspaper headlines but no answers for mother, Rose. Rose decides to take things into her own hands by signing up to the same writing retreat to get answers and closure only 3 months after Jules had gone missing.

The story was difficult to stick to in the first half of the book, the chapters alternated between Jules' experience at the writing retreat and then 3 months later her mother's experience at that same retreat. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough between those two perspectives to distinguish them from each other. Rose gets a bit involved with questioning people about Jules' disappearance but she is mostly attending the writing retreat and processing her loss of her daughter with internal thoughts.

The pace picked up in the last 40% of the book but I was mostly just trying to get to the end by this point. Rose ended up accomplishing very little by the end of the book, and the twist while interesting wasn't a surprise at all. Anyone reading the book knows whodunit within the first writing workshop chapter. The resolution is also very quick and clean, and there were a lot of plotholes that were explained away.

The biggest plothole - which was explained at least 3 times throughout the book was how could Jules' mother attend the same writing retreat as her daughter, 3 months after her daughter went missing and no one is the wiser? She even stated that she didn't change her name to enter the retreat. The excuse? Somehow she wasn't in the newspapers about her daughter's disappearance.... what?

Overall, it just wasn't for me - maybe it's for someone else? I did read a book about a year ago that was about a writing retreat by Julie Bartz. That was also a fun thriller but it didn't take itself as seriously as The Deepest Lake tried too and I think that's why Bartz's worked better for me.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me a copy of this book to read, I enjoyed it and I would rate it a solid 3/5 stars.

I enjoyed a lot of elements of The Deepest Lake. The descriptions of Guatemala are beautiful and set a vivid scene, the retreat setting is instantly gripping, and the premise is very intriguing. However, I just could not stay interested in the story. Neither of the POVs stood out to me, especially Rose's, which relied heavily on internal monologue rather than action. Ultimately, this was a DNF for me, but I would definitely read something else by the author.

Heart pounding thriller that left me on the edge of my seat. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one. Definitely one of the best books this year.

Thanks so much NetGalley and Soho Press


I wished for this book and was so surprised when I got it!

Rose is the mom of 20 something year old Jules. She has been waiting for answers about her death, which was ruled an accidental drowning. She travels to Central America for this memoir workshop to get answers for herself.


This was so good. I was pleasantly surprised. I especially appreciated how Romano-Lax used the dual POVs in the story. The pacing of the story was good. I thought the ending was satisfactory, although it could have been written a number of different ways!

Hierum geht es auf Deutsch: Jules, Anfang 20, Tochter aus gutem Hause, ist nach dem College auf Reisen in Lateinamerika. Auf den Spuren ihrer Lieblingsautorin Eva Marshall, die sie schon fast ikonenhaft verehrt, landet Jules in Guatemala – dem Land, in dem Eva lebt und regelmäßig Schreibworkshops für betuchte Bestsellerautorinnen in spe abhält. Jules ergattert einen Job als Assistentin Evas – ein Traum scheint in Erfüllung zu gehen.
Als Jules sich nicht mehr bei ihren Eltern meldet, setzen diese alles in Bewegung, um ihre Tochter zu finden, aber es ist alles vergeblich: Jules scheint im Lake Atitlán ertrunken zu sein. Und wer in diesem tiefen See ertrinkt, den gibt das Wasser nicht wieder her…
Rose, Jules Mutter, kann sich damit nicht abfinden, und unter ihrem Mädchennamen meldet sie sich 3 Monate später zu dem nächsten Workshop von Eva an. Sie will die letzten Tage ihrer Tochter rekonstruieren, und findet schon bald einige Unstimmigkeiten in der Villa Eva, die sie misstrauisch machen.
Die Kapitel des Romans sind abwechselnd aus Jules‘ und Roses Lage geschrieben, und wir sind einerseits immer mit Rose im hier und jetzt und beim Workshoppen, und dann rollt sich Jules‘ Geschichte der vergangenen paar Monate peu a peu auf, bis am Ende die Zeitläufte sich treffen, und ein Showdown beginnt….
Mein Leseeindruck: Das war richtig gut 😊. Es fing langsam an, wir waren bei Rose, die völlig fertig ist vom Verlust der Tochter, und die sich damit nicht abfinden kann. Dann kam Jules‘ erstes Kapitel, und wir lernen eine junge Dame kennen, die eigentlich nicht recht weiß, was sie vom Leben will. Das erste Viertel des Romans war vom Tempo her recht gemäßigt, aber dann schleicht sich das Unbehagen ein und das Spannungslevel ist unaufhaltsam am Steigen, bis man am Ende das Buch nicht mehr aus der Hand legen will. Sehr, sehr gut gemacht!
Der Thriller besticht durch die psychologische Spannung. Je mehr wir von Eva erfahren, desto abstruser wird es. Eine ganz merkwürdige psychopathische Persönlichkeit, die man sich aber sofort genauso vorstellen kann.
Was ich auch faszinierend fand, waren die Einblicke in die „writer retreats“. Sowas gibt’s ja nicht nur für angehende Schriftsteller, sondern auch für alle möglichen anderen Aktivitäten; und einiges kam mir aus eigenen Erfahrungen bekannt vor. Nur war das hier ein Ticken teuer und exquisiter als die, die ich kenne, hahaha, aber die Gruppendynamiken sind universell.
Teils echt sehr toxisch, solche Veranstaltungen. Vor allem diese hier in Guatemala. Also allein dieser Aspekt war lesenswert! Die Ladies wollten alle ihre Schreibkünste verbessern, und bekamen teils eine Traumatherapie, die sie gar nicht wollten. Aber ja, halte ich für glaubwürdig.
Ich komme mal zu einem Fazit, mir hat es sehr gut gefallen, das war superspannend, gut aufgebaut, mitreißend geschrieben, und mal irgendwie was ganz anderes. Die Autorin werde ich mir auf jeden Fall merken.
Besten Dank an den Verlag und an Netgalley für das Rezensionsexemplar!