At first I thought this book felt promising. However, it ended up being kind of boring. I will say there was an unexpected twist, but it took too long to get there and it lacked the energy of a good suspense. It was underwhelming.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for an ARC of Gravewater Lake.

This story pulled me in right from the first few pages! The missing memory trope worked really well with the eerie, isolated setting. I also enjoyed the alternating timelines. I found the story dragging on a bit in the middle and I think it could have benefitted from being a little shorter. The ending tied up the plot nicely, but was a little too far-fetched to feel totally satisfying to me. Overall, this would make for a good read for a snow day.

4 stars.

Just finished reading this book. The story was gripping throughout. I was very invested in both characters Adria and Anna. The book was interesting and flowed nicely. I didn't figure out what was going off. The twist at the end was brilliant and not predictable! I would recommend this book and the authors have produced another thrilling read!!

I really enjoyed this book. A woman comes to find her self at a lake house ,waking from trauma . Not knowing who she is or where she came from she is left to find her way around and sort out who she can trust. There is a lot of twist and turns in this book. I would have never guessed the ending of this page turner. Til the very last page no one can be trusted and the victims life depends on trusting the right person. This is a must read!

WOW. I don't even know where to start with this one! I swear I held my breath for the entire opening and then,.. Chapter one happened. This was a wild ride of book and just when I thought I'd figured it out, I clearly HAD NOT. It's really hard to say much due to spoilers and I don't want to ruin this read for anyone but I will say the I DID NOT SEE THAT COMING moment was epic. Like, it had me rethinking the whole thing and then shaking my head at how clever the authors are. Easily one of the best thrillers I've read and I've read a lot. It really put the THRILL into thriller. Hope they've got a backlist!

Did not finish book. Stopped at 20%.
Before I begin, I am making it clear that I did not finish this book. At times there was fantastic tension and a great pace, with credible characters. I enjoyed the plot and there were some great moments of imagery. However, most of the tension and mystery was destroyed with the overuse of cliches and redundant dialogue. Long, overly descriptive sentences told the reader what was happening, rather than showing. There were many times when the protagonist/ narrator stated her realisations over and over again, as if the reader had amnesia like the protagonist. Perhaps it is the use of present tense that limited the writers? Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and provide an honest review of the book.

3.5⭐️
Thank you Netgalley for this ARC!
I enjoyed this quick thriller for fall and had a good time with it overall. Throughout the book you feel as though it’s a very straightforward thriller, simple and maybe predictable. Once you get to the last few chapters you realize you were wrong and the twist is not what you were expecting. I thought the end was pretty solid but I think the book unnecessarily dragged on a bit in the middle, it was a quick read but didn’t need to wait that long to reveal itself. I did also feel like the main character’s trusting personality and actions were pretty far fetched. I feel like most people wouldn’t accept answers that quick from someone they don’t know and instantly settle down at their home when they lost their memory. All in all I thought it was fun and atmospheric, definitely reminded me of The House Across The Lake.

This was a twisty book but needed a few more twists in the middle. Was overall enjoyable to read and would recommend.

this was going to be a 1 ⭐️ but that ending did enough to save it so it’s a 2.5 ⭐️’s..

there’s very little I can say about the good things about this book.. though the first thing I would say would be pacing. the quick pacing is what had me reading to the end, also the simplicity in writing helped with that greatly. the twist and the overall (I guess) writing concept was interesting and the reason why I gave it another star..

but the way the story was executed could have been better, for instance, I found the change of pov titles were a jumble and hard to keep up with. there was a lot of repetition of things, Anna’s voice/pov wasn’t particularly nice to be in there was a lot of frustration there, it’s like common sense just flew out the window. moving towards the end felt rushed and therefore a little confusing but perhaps that’s why its a psychological thriller? either way I really believe this could have been better.

I can also understand the reasoning behind these choices both in writing and story, given the main character loses her memory and because of that mix between reality and fiction. i really refused to believe anna was unintelligent, driving her to make those decisions. I could go on but I would have to spoil so I’m going to leave it here.

Thanks to Netgalley.

Anna wakes up by Gravewater Lake, soaked and with a head injury. She has no idea where she is, let alone WHO she is. It is also the dead of the winter and absolutely freezing. She sees a cabin with lights on in the distance, so she knocks on the door. Luckily, a man name Gregg answers the door and takes her in. He treats her head injury and offers her a place to stay. They decide on the name "Anna" due to a bracelet with an initial A on her wrist. I won't say too much more, but as time goes on, Anna tries to remember who she is and also questions Gregg's identity.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book but I was pleasantly surprised! I ended up really enjoying it. A great mystery and a pretty unique story line. I honestly was unable to put it down, I had to know what was happening and Anna's backstory. There are some pretty shocking reveals later on in the book that I did not see coming. Always impressed with a thriller when I do not guess the big reveals! Recommend giving this one a read!

Thank you Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this mind bending book. Like one of rose movies where you have to pay total attention or you’ll miss something important.

I spent part of the book thinking Gregg was Peter and then i stopped and started warily trusting him.

The actual revel was insane and i didn’t see it coming.

I might have thrown a little fit at the ending! I hate when things are left open to interpretation. I want a clear cut ending haha. I wanted to see them go on a date and build something!

Grace Water Lake 🚤
By A.M. Strong, Sonya Sargent✨

Review💕

I wanted to jump to the end because of how slowly it burned! I was quite curious about how in the world things would come together. The wonderful thing about this is that, despite your belief that you understand everything, you are incredibly mistaken. I thought the writing style was nice and it was easy to read. The ending was absolutely fantastic, as I had no idea it was coming! 

Thriller🔪
Plot twists🌀
Suspense😱
Mystery⁉️

4 stars
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book was very intriguing from the first few sentences. It starts off in the thick of a suspenseful moment.

It did start to falter a bit for me. I’m not a huge fan of the amnesia trope. There were spots I wish the pace would have picked up a bit, but the prose was quite well done throughout the novel.

Anna wakes up practically frozen and unaware of who she is or what she’s doing on this lake and can only remember bits and pieces of being on water. She goes to a house for assistance and meets Gregg who immediately gives off strong red flags. Due to a blizzard she’s trapped with him. In a surface level he seems like a Good Samaritan but things start rot ale a turn and she feels uncomfortable and convinced something is going on in the house. Can she trust this stranger or is he hiding a terrible secret?

The mystery seemed pretty predictable from the offset and it seemed like this was going to be a situation where I feel like I knew what was going to happen from the first third of the book.

You do have to wait until practically the end for the big twist. So, it’s worth it in the end but it does take time to get to that point.

Overall, this was a well written psychological thriller. Great fall or winter read with the trapped characters and the blizzard setting.

Anna wakes up wet and cold, in a snowstorm, at the edge of a lake with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She stumbles to a nearby lakehouse where she meets Gregg. Gregg takes her in and cares for her while they wait out the storm. As she struggles to remember who she is, she begins to believe Gregg is not who he says he is. Can she figure out the truth before it’s too late?

Parts of the writing are very poetic and well written. I found myself having to look up the definition of more words than normal, and I like challenging word use in a story. Anna’s internal dialogue reads more like she’s writing in a diary, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but is in stark contrast to some of the other writing.

Speaking of Anna’s internal dialogue…she’s a smart girl who questions what’s going on. Unlike many FMCs in thrillers, she acknowledges her concerns with Gregg. I did get a little annoyed at how easily she flip-flopped between being wary and untrusting of him and falling for him.

I thought I had the story figured out pretty early, and found myself bored, wanting to put the book down. I pushed through, and was pleased to find an unexpected twist in the last act. That twist wasn’t enough to raise this up from a 3-star read, though. Overall I think there’s a lot that could have been cut out to keep the pace of the book up. Most readers are likely going to come to the same early conclusion I made, and I’m concerned that having so much to wade through before we get to the twist will have people putting the book down and writing it off as predictable.

Gravewater Lake is a gripping thriller that keeps you guessing with every twist and turn. Set in an isolated lakeside cabin during a snowstorm, the plot thickens as two characters are trapped under mysterious circumstances. The relentless pace and easy-to-read style make it a true page-turner that’s hard to put down. Just when you think you’ve figured it out, a refreshing twist keeps the suspense high and the story compelling. It’s a captivating read that will have you invested from start to finish. I was truly impressed by this one!

Suddenly finding herself nearly frozen to death on an unfamiliar lake, ‘A’, finds refuge at the doorstep of a stranger. Cold and alone, A has one other problem, she can’t remember who she is or why she’s found herself on Gravewater Lake. As she comes to get to know her savior, she can’t help but feel this familiar tug to him, the cabin and the lake.

A.M. Strong and Sonya Sargent work beautifully to keep the reader on their toes. Just when you think you’ve figured this one out, they pull the rug out from under you and you’re left at square one.

This book really does stay true to its claim of being a psychological thriller. As you grow to love the characters, both authors reveal new details that make you question your previous feelings. I love how I thought I knew the ending about halfway through the book and by the next chapter I was completely thrown off. This book is full of plot twists and turns that keep you engaged and second guessing everyone involved. The only negative for me was the ending, it left much to be desired like perhaps an epilogue to tie everything up.

I thought I had the the plot of this book down from the first chapter… but I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Because I was so confident I had the whole book figured out I was a bit annoyed to see another woman-in-a-thriller believing everything and not trusting her gut. Looking back after finishing the book I felt better about the main characters decisions.

The plot seems pretty outlandish and it wrapped up a little too cleanly and nicely for me but at least an unreliable narrator in a thriller makes for better twists and turns.

3.5 Stars.

Shout out to NetGalley for the chance to read this ahead of publication.

I’ve been wanting a phycological thriller book that would keep me up late! Such a fun read! And truly surprised me at the end! Definitely recommend!

I loved this book and kept thinking "Oh I know this ending. It is just another cliché" Then something else would happen and I'd be left trying to figure it out again. In a lot of books I also find myself rooting for a character or a character who was innocent in all of it. This is not that book. They all needed some serious therapy. I also enjoyed the follow up at the end of the book instead of cutting off right at the end it continues a little into the future so you find out more of what the characters ended up doing after what can be best described as a roller coaster of events that end up tied together causing a massive crash and burn. Will definitely be adding this author to my read list. If you are out at a lakehouse or it is a snowy day this is the book to read.

I debated rating this a 4 or a 5. After some thought, this deserves 5 stars. This is a new to me author. The writing was fantastic. The character development was fantastic. The twists and turns which I didn't see coming were fantastic.

A woman wakes up on the edge of a lake half submerged during a blizzard. She has no idea who she was or how she got there. She has a large bump on her head and a facial wound. She trudges along in the blizzard to a cabin with a light on. The snow is already very deep. Inside is a very handsome man who kindly takes her in and saves her from hypothermia. The blizzard drops massive amounts of snow and there's no way to leave this cabin and the man, Gregg.

This is a difficult book to review because anything else I say will give away the entire story. I will say this was a great thriller. It kept my attention, which is a feat in itself. There are a lot of twists and a huge twist at the end.

Thank you to Bookouture and Netgalley for the ARC. I highly recommend this book.