Very atmospheric & dreadful! Love his writing style, he’s so good at setting a scene that it makes you feel present in the story! This is another short fun horrific tale from this author! Definitely I’ll read anything he puts out next!

This was a new author for me, and I was pleasantly surprised that I finished it quickly during a short flight.
I was a little nervous with the pov changes as they can easily become too much, but found that it really was easy enough to keep everyone straight. Also, you were able to pick up on who was important and who was just adding a bit of action scenes.
I would call this more creature feature, but also I enjoyed the urban legend feel of it.
The gore wasn’t over the top, nor did it feel like it was used for shock factor. It felt like it fit in nicely.
I’d be interested in picking up more from this author.

Very good writing. I was worried about the introduction of a lot of characters in the beginning but it really worked and it was easy to remember who is who. I loved the twist in the end. I would definitely read more of this authors work! Thanks NetGallery!

A great short story to get your blood pumping. Nice mashup of murder mystery and creature feature. An added bonus was that location 666 on my kindle was the start of chapter 13.

This was a fast paced and quick read that was so easy to get lost and immersed into. I always love it when short books like these are so fantastically written that it feels like a full novel.

This gave me massive Stephen King vibes, particularly some of his older work and it felt quite nostalgic.

This was my first time reading from this author and I can’t wait to check out more of their work.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alien Agenda Publishing for providing me with this ARC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley for my copy of It Comes from the Lake! I had a great time reading this short book. It really reminded me of Stephen King in that every sentence oozed each individual character’s personality, which is so fun to read when done well and is necessary in a shorter-length book with many points of view. As a Mainer, I loved each little tidbit about my home state that made its way into this story. Leilani was one of my favorite characters and a nearly perfect final girl, and I honestly think I would read a book just about our short-lived characters Deana and Kevin and their story. I haven’t read much creature-horror, but this book was really fun, and delivered on the creep-factor for me! I look forward to reading more Glenn Rolfe!

This book turned out to be better than I thought it would be. I got a little confused with the first couple of chapters, but I promise the way it’s set up it does make sense. I honestly thought it was gonna be like a mix of short stories, but somehow it all came together cohesively. I very much enjoyed this book and the twist ending was just perfect!! I would be happy to let everyone know to buy this book, and to buy a copy myself for my physical shelf.

It Came From The Lake by Glenn Rolfe was a quick read and a book for a windy rainy night whilst snuggled under your quilt or sitting round a camp fire in the woods. It was a creepy and gory read. It was a quick read and once I started it I had to finish.
I really enjoyed it and will not be my last book from this author

Big Thank you to Netgalley and Alien Agenda Publishing for my Arc

It came from the lake, this is a short story. But it really packed a punch! You got in depth information about characters and a fantastic storyline! I loveeee creature features and this was right up my alley! It gave me gory adult goosebump vibes. I see others have said the same! (I hope the author was going for something like this). This was such an enjoyable read, I’ll definitely check out other titles by this author!

3.75 🌟 rounded down for Goodreads and Netgalley!

This was an entertaining and quick creature feature read. I loved the descriptions of the creature and the characters. The ending was good too and it was gory enough.
Not really much more to say about this one.
Read if you like cryptids and creepy woods settings.

Thank you Netgalley, Publishers and the author for my eARC of this book.
All opinions are my own and I'm leaving my review voluntarily.

I love a good creature feature, and this one is short, gory, and I loved it. it was very easy and fast to read.

This story reminds me of Humanoids from the Deep but less cheesy, this was more this was very atmospheric, darker, I would say it reminds me of Creature from the Black Lagoon, but I have not seen the whole movie as yet (I know. I know. It is on my to watch list)

Like any good story, It left me wanting more, maybe some background about the monster, or some more of the monster POV, but I did love the ending!

It also made me realise there is not a lot of lake monster out there these days, so this was a pleasant change from, werewolf's and vampires, (which I also love) but I always like finding new and different creatures.

All in all, if you are craving a quick easy to read creature feature, then this will hit the spot.

This is a fun little book - very Creature from the Black Lagoon-ish.

While the book is short, the author does a good job of building the characters into full and interesting people.

I was very concerned for our two kids and thoroughly enjoyed the read!

3.5 stars. This is a fun creature feature and the ending was a real surprise and cool twist. Thank you to NetGalley for a digital copy

This was a wild ride of wild creature feature gush and gore in 86 page novella! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Absolutely loved the B horror movie feel to it

It has a new type of cryptid, so strap in if you're freaked out by them. Reminded me of the horror books I read as a kid but in adult form. Which is a breath of fresh air for a change. Thoroughly enjoyed it.

“He turned and found himself in the shadow of a grotesque impossibility.”

Glenn Rolfe in his new creature feature, tells the story of a young teenager and a foster child find themselves in the woods next to a lake in Maine. For years a Vietnam vet has been protecting the secrets of this lake and unfortunately for these two they are about to come head to head with these dark secrets.

This is a short but thrilling story. It has all the quirks of a creepy creature feature film. It was as though the reader was there with these kids experiencing the horrors that were awaiting them.

The author does great work in telling the tragic back stories of the characters involved which make the reader empathise with their situation.

Combining this with the terror thats always around the corner, this story was a fun read a lot of people would enjoy.

I really enjoyed this horror novella! It Came from the Lake is a classic "creature feature", perfect for fans of campy, bloodstained B-Movies.

We follow a few different characters, a teenage runaway, a local kid visiting the lake, a traumatised veteran and a private detective. The characters were interesting, and set up ok considering the books length (although I would have been interested in a little more detail and backstory perhaps). I was very interested to see how their paths would cross as the story progressed.

Plot wise, there are a few unanswered questions for me. I'd be curious to know more about our "creature" and it's background also.

The pacing was fast, short punchy chapters that made this hard to put down. It started with a bang, and maintained it's intensity throughout. Would definitely be interested in reading from this author again!

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing a review copy of It Came from the Lake!

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘨𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘈𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘯 𝘈𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘢 𝘗𝘶𝘣𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘤 𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸

"ᴛʜᴇ ꜱʜʀɪʟʟ ᴋᴇᴇɴɪɴɢ ᴄᴀᴍᴇ ᴀɢᴀɪɴ, ᴇᴄʜᴏɪɴɢ ᴀ ᴛʜʀᴇᴀᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴛᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʀᴇᴇꜱ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ꜱᴇɴᴛɪᴇɴᴛ ᴛʜɪɴɢ."

It Came From The Lake is a creature-feature horror short from Glenn Rolfe. I got through this book easily in a day, and it is a good pick for someone just looking for a quick read!

One of the strengths of this book was the creature - it had a unique premise, and I loved some of its behaviors. It was very creepy, and it certainly gave me a sense of dread when it was described on the page.

The ending was the strongest part of this book to me, including the fun twist at the very end - it gave a payoff for the buildup!

A few things didn't hit the mark for me. Some sentences felt forced and took me out of the moment, especially in the middle of the action-packed sequences. For example, "Qᴜɪɴᴄʏ ʀᴇᴀᴄʜᴇᴅ ᴅᴏᴡɴ ᴀɴᴅ ᴄʀɪᴇᴅ ᴏᴜᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴀ ᴡᴀʀʀɪᴏʀ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴏʀᴅ ᴏꜰ ᴛʜᴇ ʀɪɴɢꜱ ᴍᴏᴠɪᴇꜱ ʜᴇ ᴜꜱᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴡᴀᴛᴄʜɪɴɢ ᴡɪᴛʜ ʜɪꜱ ᴅᴀᴅ." It feels so out of place to be building this character during a fast-moving scene, and these moments really made me stumble during some of these critical pacing beats.

The POV jumping was fun, but I think sometimes confusing. The segments could have been longer to prevent whiplash as we were first learning about these characters. I do think Lelani's portion was the best executed in this way, where I felt like I knew her voice and background well from her first scene.

"ʟᴇɪʟᴀɴɪ ᴡᴀꜱɴ'ᴛ ᴜꜱᴇᴅ ᴛᴏ ꜰᴜᴄᴋɪɴɢ ᴜᴘ ᴀɴᴅ ɢɪᴠɪɴɢ ᴀ ꜱʜɪᴛ. ᴛʜɪꜱ ᴡᴀꜱ ɴᴇᴡ ᴛᴇʀʀɪᴛᴏʀʏ. ᴀɴᴅ ꜱʜᴇ ᴅɪᴅɴ'ᴛ ʟɪᴋᴇ ɪᴛ."

A couple of things felt like misses to me - the way Leilani was portrayed racially felt out of touch, to put it lightly, and the same could be said about the mental health issues that Francis was dealing with. I know these things are less critically examined often in the Horror genre, but some moments felt really unneeded to drive the characters and their stories, even in an edgy or gritty context.

TW: Sexual Assault, Gore, Murder, Drug Mention, Abuse, Racism, PTSD

Quotes:
"ᴛʜᴇʏ ꜱᴀʏ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄʀᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇ ᴡᴀꜱ ʜᴇʀᴇ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴏᴡᴇɴꜱ ʙᴏᴜɢʜᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴏɴᴅ ᴀɴᴅ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴀᴄʀᴇᴀɢᴇ ꜱᴜʀʀᴏᴜɴᴅɪɴɢ ɪᴛ. ʟᴏᴛ ᴏꜰ ʟᴏᴄᴀʟꜱ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʏᴏᴜ ʙᴇʟɪᴇᴠᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴀᴅ ꜱʜɪᴛ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴛᴇᴅ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ꜱᴄᴜᴍʙᴀɢ ʀɪᴄʜ ʙᴏʏ ᴀɴᴅ ʜɪꜱ ɢʀᴇᴇᴅʏ ᴡɪꜰᴇ ꜱᴄᴏᴏᴘᴇᴅ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀɴᴅ ᴜᴘ ʙᴇꜰᴏʀᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴏᴡɴ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴜʏ ɪᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ᴘʀᴇꜱᴇʀᴠᴇ ɪᴛ ꜰᴏʀ ꜰᴜᴛᴜʀᴇ ɢᴇɴᴇʀᴀᴛɪᴏɴꜱ, ʙᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴀᴛ'ꜱ ᴏɴʟʏ ᴘᴀʀᴛ ᴏꜰ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴘᴘᴇɴᴇᴅ."

"'ᴡʜᴀᴛ'ꜱ ᴏᴜᴛ ᴛʜᴇʀᴇ?' ᴍᴀᴅᴅᴏx ᴀꜱᴋᴇᴅ, ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏꜰꜰᴇᴇ ɪɴ ʜɪꜱ ʜᴀɴᴅ ꜰᴏʀɢᴏᴛᴛᴇɴ.

ᴋʏʟᴇ ᴘᴜʟʟᴇᴅ ᴀ ᴄɪɢᴀʀᴇᴛᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴀᴄᴋ ᴜᴘᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛᴀʙʟᴇ. ʜᴇ ᴛᴡɪʀʟᴇᴅ ɪᴛ ʙᴇᴛᴡᴇᴇɴ ʜɪꜱ ᴛʜᴜᴍʙ ᴀɴᴅ ꜰᴏʀᴇꜰɪɴɢᴇʀ. 'ɪᴛ ʟɪᴠᴇꜱ ʙᴇɴᴇᴀᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀᴋᴇ'"

#ItCameFromTheLake #NetGalley

Somewhere in lovely Maine there is a manmade lake owned by a wealthy man who won't let anyone trespass on his property near the lake because something inhuman and hungry lives within the waters, at least that is how the local folklore has been told.

Only on this particular week there will be many unfortunate people including two young teens who will all make the grave mistake of going near the lake and they will find out there are more harrowing dangers than only the creature of legend.


This was a fun, horrific and fast paced book that you won't put down. The story grabbed my interest from the first page and the action never let up. There are a lot of different characters which made the book very entertaining and interesting.

I love creature feature books and this one didn't let me down. The ending may surprise some readers but most horror enthusiasts will. probably figure out what would happen as I did but it still made for an enticing ending. The book was the perfect length which made the story even more enjoyable.

I definitely recommend to all horror lovers who especially enjoy creature tales reminiscent of the old B movies of the 60's and 70's.

I want to thank the publisher "Alien Agenda Publishing" and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this digital copy and any thoughts or opinions expressed are unbiased and mine alone!

I have given a rating of 3 1/2 CREEPY FOLKLORIC 🌟🌟🌟🌠 STARS!!

It Came From The Lake by Glenn Rolfe is a tale of murder, teenage angst, and a manmade lake in the woods of Maine housing a dark secret.

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on It Came From The Lake by Glenn Rolfe –
The opening paragraph of It Came From The Lake brings the first blood and immediately sets the tone for the rest of the book!

I loved that the author takes a step back after that first chapter and then slowly dials up the terror once again through the perspectives of different characters. In each chapter, we get to watch as they are slowly pulled toward the lake. I had so much fun getting to know each of them and their reasons for being out in the forest, but only one of them truly knows what dangers are present in the area.

Oh my gosh, and when things started to overlap… Once the action picks back up, it’s a full-out sprint for survival up through the end of the book.

My Favorite Passages from It Came From The Lake –
*Please note that these passages are from the ARC and therefore may have changed before the final copy was released.*

Deana couldn’t believe Kevin would kill for her. Fifteen years of marriage and she never would have guessed he had it in him—but the blood and brains spilling from Henry Owens’ skull, sliding like black mud down the edge of the sheer rock, told her otherwise.

She was not prepared in her darkest of nightmares for the sight of it.

He wasn’t a monster, no—vampires and werewolves were for movies. He was a breathing ghost of sorts, unable to be truly free of his past—but here he was, taking in air just the same.

Stepping from the trees, Leilani found the most breathtaking vision she’d seen since a shirtless Thor first crossed her TV screen. It was a lake, resting here in the comfort of complete silence.

“You can choose to believe or not to believe, but that won’t matter if you go out there. Monsters don’t need you to believe in them. You’re just safer if you do.”

My Final Thoughts on It Came From The Lake –
This was FINALLY my first Glenn Rolfe read! I own four of Glenn’s books that have been sitting on my bookshelf, just waiting for me to get to them. Hopefully this year I finally will. Glenn’s writing is SO darn good.

Creature horror fans, make sure this one is on your radar!

'It Came From The Lake' was full of action and monsters (both aquatic and a couple of human varieties), right from the beginning!

Before I started reading, I wondered, with the book being as short as it is, if the story might feel like it was missing details or incomplete. I shouldn't have worried at all. This was a fast-paced story that tied all of the characters together one chapter at a time and wrapped everything up in a nice neat package by the end. The Lake Monster was described in perfect detail and reminded me of something from The X-Files.

This was a really fun read, I definitely recommend it if you're looking for a good monster story that's quick and easy to get through.