Rating: 3.5 stars. Overall, I mostly liked this book for it's twists. Early on, it was easy to catch onto where the author(s) were going with each of the possible theories as to what happened to the girls who went missing. A solid 3 suspects were identified in the first half of the book and it feels to me, Greene spent too much time honing in on each of them, leaving the second half of the book an irritable read. The positive, obviously, I wanted to finish quickly to see where I stood. The end. Never saw it coming.

The writing perspectives were quite creative. I often enjoy books that are written in different timelines that relate to each other. I found the readers relationship to Jessica hard to navigate. It was all over the place and we never really got the opportunity to know her for the good and the bad. My takeaway, she was obsessed with her Dad. It rocked her negatively. All weird. I enjoyed Lindsay so much more. She was relatable. The author(s) took the opportunity to really allow Lindsay, the overlooked sister of a missing girl, to shine.

Very Riley Sager feeling without the old lady as the killer and a big huge fire. I'd recommend to friends looking for the quick read and an ending they never saw coming.

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I went through so many emotions reading this book: curiosity, frustration, disgust, sadness, and so much more.

This book has dual POVs which I found really worked for this book! It kept me hooked and wanting to continue reading after I finished a chapter! There’s also mixed media such as podcast transcripts, social media posts, etc. which is always a plus!

The writing style was super easy to read and I enjoyed it! However, the chapters were a bit long for my taste, but that’s just my opinion!

The characters developed well, however, I would’ve liked to see more of Jess’ development. I felt like her development just hopped from one version to the next without much explanation.

I didn’t guess the plot twists until right before I read them! The ending wasn’t what I expected and I was definitely shocked!

4/5 star review for me

This was a 5 star read for me! I loved the story and it kept me guessing until the very end. Jess was so relatable. I saw a plot twist coming but never guessed that she was the murderer. I had to reread that page because it took me by surprise. Ryan McKay was a love/hate for me. I was glad he made it right in the end.

In The Lake of Lost Girls, several girls disappear from college in 1998. One of them is Jessica, a student with a bright future who suddenly spirals out of control in her freshman year. One timeline details Jessica’s experiences and behavior. In the current timeline, her sister Lindsey, six years old when her sister disappeared, is determined to learn the truth of what happened. She follows a new true crime podcast about the disappearances when coincidentally some of the bodies of the missing girls turn up at a lake nearby. Lindsey teams up with a journalist who is very intent on solving the mystery. Fans of this particular style of writing will enjoy the snippets of social media posts as well as the text of each podcast. I would have liked Lindsey to be a more developed character with less inconsistent behavior. Despite the serious family dysfunction and many creepy potential killers in the story, I was able to see where the story was going. Still, the author hooks the reader along and the suspense heightens until the stunning conclusion. With thanks to Netgalley and Crooked Lane Books for this ARC. My opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed the dual timeline and the way the media/podcast pieces brought it into modern time.

The plot was thrilling, exciting and did have me wanting to find out what really happened. That said, at the end of the book, I realized I really didn’t like or connect to any of the characters. They were all very flawed and unlikeable. I felt Lindsey deserved more and much better. There were many twists and red herrings but they felt somewhat obvious as such sometimes.

The last and final biggest twist of the plot really didn’t sit well with me. I get that it tied everything together and it was painfully obvious who did it around 70% but it just felt half done. I wanted more back story on the very strange and borderline emotionally incestuous relationship between Jessie and her dad.

Overall, I enjoyed it while reading and it was decent for a murder mystery.

I want to start this off by saying I had gone into this book expecting a 50/50 split of novel and podcast transcripts, and was disappointed that it really was like 95% novel and 5% podcast transcripts, and the podcast added nothing to the story, these snippets could have been left out entirely. My other issue was I found it very predictable, the breadcrumbs left by the author to give you hints at the culprit, seemed super obvious and not camouflaged into the story like other authors tend to manage. I had figured out one major twist within the first chapter of the book. Which bummed me out.
Overall, it was well written but left me wanting more.

Okay... WHAT THE ACTUAL HECK WAS THAT ENDING?!?!?!?!
I did not see that coming and I truly enjoyed the read. There was so much going on all at once, but I was able to follow along just fine. But seriously, I did not see any of that coming.

Possibly one of the best books I’ll read this year! I love it when books include podcasts in the storyline. I also really enjoy multiple points of view which this book had and it was incredible. All the twists and turns and trying to figure out who killed the girls had me hooked from the start.

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley. I appreciate the opportunity to read this book before its release.

With that being said, I felt like I had to trudge through this book. It felt mediocre. The characters felt underdeveloped and I was never able to form a bond or interest in any of them. What kept me reading is that I genuinely felt like it could’ve been a good book and that it becoming a good read was always right below the surface. So, I powered through in hopes it would take ahold of me, at some point.

The suspense and desire to have the case solved does keep the reader invested, to a small extent. I wanted there to be some life altering twist that pulled it all together and made it worth the read. And, while there was a twist, it wasn’t impossible to foresee.

As a true crime consumer, I appreciated the perspective it gave into the family of victims and how truly invasive the true crime industry can be.

To put it simply, it was right on the cusp of being a good book. But, I’m glad it’s over.

Fantastic fast paced murder mystery. Jess Fadley is just one of four girls who have gone missing without a trace from Southern State University. The cases have gone cold, but are being reexamined after a true crime podcast is covering the case, showing the complete incompetence of the police and the college to investigate properly. This book is a true page turner that is impossible to put down with an ending that is completely unexpected. Would give 10 stars if possible.

My oh my! I loved this book! I’m completely shook! This is a book that once you start, it is nearly impossible to put down! It is a dark and twisty true crime with an AMAZING female MC! This book just progressively gets crazier and crazier as more secrets are uncovered with a huge turn of events at the end that left me shocked! I also loved the format of this book! It has alternating timelines, flashbacks, and different point of views with even snippets of a true crime podcast and it flowed effortlessly. It truly gave me the full experience of all the differing angles of this story.

This won’t be my last book by Katherine Greene- will definitely be an auto-buy author for me!

I wanted to like the book. The premise was interesting. The writing was just clunky and just made for a bad read.

I really enjoyed this. A well-written, fast-paced thriller that kept me guessing right up until the end. I liked how it alternated between the podcast and the perspectives of different characters.

I will definitely be looking for other books by this author. A solid four stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the advanced copy!

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Just finished "The Lake of Lost Girls" by Katherine Greene, and wow, what a journey it was! First off, a huge shoutout to NetGalley and the publisher for the early access - what an absolute treat! This was my first venture into Greene's world, and I'm already hooked. Thought you had the plot figured out? Think again. Greene weaves twist upon twist, leaving you second-guessing at every turn. I pride myself on being a bit of a detective with these sorts of things, but this book had me completely floored.

For my fellow true crime aficionados, this book is a must-read. It's not just the plot that captures your attention; Greene's writing style is impeccable.
The story paints a vivid picture of young women in college at a crossroads of self-discovery, navigating pervy men and their influence. It's an exploration of vulnerability and manipulation that might hit close to home for some. But it's this raw, unflinching look at their experiences that makes the book resonate so deeply.

In a heartbeat, I found myself purchasing Greene's other works - that's the level of impact we're talking about. A blend of suspense, the complexity of characters, and a story that keeps you on your toes.

Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a story that will keep you guessing…usually wrong, and, most importantly, reading until the very last page.

Phew! This was a RIDE. Between the podcast transcripts, alternating timelines and different POVs I was a little worried I wouldn't be able to keep it all straight. Thankfully that wasn't the case, the way that Katherine wrote it, not only was it easy to follow but everything added to the story in a way that made it that much more mysterious.

This thriller was SO well done. I loved the plot and the way the author kept leading me down different rabbit holes. It was twist after twist but not in an overdone way and the ending floored me. I suspected everyone, except the actual killer. HOW?!

Do yourself a favor, go ahead and mark your calendar for November 5th, clear the day and fall into this book.

Katherine Greene knocked it out of the park! Really enjoyable read for true crime lovers like myself. Huge thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane for an advanced copy of this book. It was a pleasure to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Publication date November 5, 2024.

4.5 ⭐️’s

This one is for my true crime lovers out there. This book was captivating, jaw dropping and one I absolutely couldn’t put down!!

This was my first book by this author and I AUTOMATICALLY bought the other one already out!

I absolutely loved the writing style, I’m usually not one to love podcasts in my book, but this was do so effortlessly. It gave a bit of comedy even though the plot was dark. I appreciated that so much!

It paints you a picture of women who go to college and don’t really know themselves. They’re trying to figure out who they want to be, how they want to act, and they are easily manipulated by peers or adults that are in their lives. These women were targeted because of this and that may be hard for some people to read about. So keep that in mind.

There were so many plot twists and jaw dropping moments, especially the end. Did not see that one coming AT ALL. There are moments when I figured out little things, but this book was so enjoyable that didn’t even matter to me. I buddy read this book with a good friend which made it even better to be able to talk it out!

Eternally grateful to NetGalley and the author, Katherine Greene for writing such an amazing thriller! I could not recommend this book more!!

I received this an ARC from Netgalley and I hate to write a negative review, but this book, was difficult. I didn't hate it, it engaged me enough but it wasn't surprising "who done it". The part I struggled with the most, and SPOILER, was the father. I don't know if he was written to be creepy pedo vibes, but then the author was too afraid to go there? Super weird relationship. Promise ring. Special alone time only with his one daughter. Alienation of the mother to the extent she had to have her *own* child? It was so obvious that they had an inappropriate relationship being foreshadowed, then it just ended up being nothing, just a weird relationship that didn't make any sense. It's almost like two different people wrote parts of the book, it was so disjointed in personalities of not just the dad, but Jessica too. The second issue was Ryan. He was clearly not a hero and so unlikeable even when the story plays out, he still is abusive and controlling and has no redeemable qualities, its like you wanted us to like him, then maybe ooh, bad guy, then ah, like him again.. but you can't, because he's also a predator of a different nature. This book was just a hard book for me to decide how I feel about it... but I don't think I can recommend it.

This review was posted on my Goodreads-account on March 19th.

The premise sounded very promising. Disappearances, mysterious lake and so on but unfortunately the story kind of drags. In my notes I’ve written that there’s a lot of non-relevant information in the first few chapters where focus should be put into introducing the plot and characters rather than giving information such as the main character’s father is good-looking.

Some good aspects of the story are that I feel like Greene had a solid idea and that she has captured this small-town/collective trauma in an emotional way. I liked the different formats in the book with the podcast script, that was a fun little twist.

All in all. Solid idea but the execution could use some work.

I had fun reading and guessing the twists in the story. I like how it was modern, with the use of podcast and media to increase the mystery surrounding the disappearance of the girls. It got me hooked on reading the multiple POVs and changing timelines. Overall, I think it was a really good mystery.