What an amazing journey! I was delighted with the way she wove all the stories and characters together. Quite the page turner! I found it very hard to put down. My husband and I listened together and we both really liked this book. Caroline Lee is a remarkable narrator. Well done in so many ways. I really didn't want it to end.

I very much enjoyed this novel from Kate Morton. Her characters and setting came alive for me with her descriptive and evocative writing. I also enjoyed the dual timeline. Recommended!

London detective Sadie Sparrow is on leave after having leaked sensitive information concerning a case she was involved with to the press. She takes refuge with her grandfather in picturesque Cornwall and soon stumbles onto a 70 year old mystery, the disappearance of the young son of a prominent local family during their annual Midsummer celebration.

This was my first Kate Morton book and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I listened to this as an audiobook as well as reading along with the print copy and enjoyed it in both forms. Written following a number of timelines, the stories were captivating, the characters well developed and likeable. The writing was period appropriate and descriptive, enhancing the overall feel and enjoyment of this atmospheric mystery.

Possibly on the unnecessarily long side with an ending that was unexpectedly out of character (read cheesy) with the rest of the book but all in all a wonderfully atmospheric mystery.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for providing a digital copy in return for an honest, unbiased review.

I am the librarian at a public, 7-12th grade school and my 10-12th graders love The Lake House. It is a good option to give older students who want something to read other than YA. They like the mystery of it and how it goes back and forth between past and present.

Four and a half stars: A captivating story that presents a mystery that weaves back and forth through time.

In June 1933, the Edevane family’s happiness was shattered when eleventh month old Theo vanishes without a trace. Flash forward seventy years. The marvelous Lake House known as Loeannath, lays abandoned, frozen in time, when Detective Sadie Sparrow stumbles upon it while visiting the countryside. For some reason, Sadie is drawn to the magnificent old house, even more so when she uncovers the mystery that surrounds the house. Sadie can’t leave it alone, she has to know more, so she reaches out to Alice Edevane who is now in her eighties, to help solve the mystery. Alice wants nothing to do with the past, she buried her secrets when she left Loeannath at sixteen. Unfortunately, the past has a way of coming back, will Alice finally learn the truth?
What I Liked:
*The Lake House laid buried in my pile for far too long. Once I finally got around to reading this book, I was captivated. This is a sprawling mystery that covers almost a century. It begins at the turn of the twentieth century with young Eleanor. Then the story flashes forward to 1933 to the night young Theo goes missing, and then it jumps forward to 2003 where we find Alice as an old woman who is avoiding the past, but the past won’t let go. I loved seeing this one unfold. It is steeped in history and mystery and there are so many secrets. I was hooked.
*I love books that move through time, and I thought Ms. Morton did an excellent job with the time line. This book has so much history to cover, and I enjoyed going back to the beginning of Loeannath and then moving forward to uncover all the mystery and the secrets. I thought it was fantastic the way the story moved around, and I loved each revelation.
*If you enjoyed layered mysteries, this is one to read. There is so much more to this than a missing child. As the book moves through the decades, it follows Eleanor, the matriarch of the The Edevane family, her husband Anthony and Alice. Each family member has secrets to share, and some are certainly more startling than others. In present day, there is Sadie, a young detective, who is not only working to solve the long buried mystery of the Edevane family, but she is always trying to unravel her last case that caused her some major problems. There is so much going on in this one, and with each chapter, another piece is revealed. It was so fun to finally see how all those pieces fit together, and when all was said and done, I was shocked at how it all came together. A fascinating mystery.
*Talk about twists and turns! The author is a master a planting red herrings and clues that will led the reader astray. I promise, you won’t figure this one out. I loved the suspense.
*The ending was brilliant. I loved seeing how everything worked out, and I was so pleased and surprised by the developments. It was fantastic!
And The Not So Much:
*Even though I loved the ending, it felt a little too abrupt. I was left wanting a little more. I wish that there was more on Sadie and her daughter. I would have loved to see more of that part of the story.
* I enjoyed the writing and the story, the author’s use of vocabulary becomes a bit pretentious. I like to think that I have a strong vocabulary, but time and time again, I found myself highlighting and looking up words, only to roll my eyes as so many of them were thrown in there I would say only for the sake of using big words.
*I liked all the red herrings, but once I caught on to the author’s tricks, I quickly learned to dismiss some of them, especially the ones that seemed way out of character. Sometimes the clues were a little too much.
The Lake House is fascinating multi layered mystery that moves back and forth through time. This is a big, complicated read that requires time and patience, but it is so worth the journey. I loved the story, the mystery and the suspense. I especially enjoyed seeing how it all fit together. A brilliant read for anyone who likes a bit of a challenge. I wish I had read this sooner!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.
Posted@Rainy Day Ramblings.

I apologize for the delay - I thought that I had submitted feedback regarding this book, but it appears that I did not. I read it a long time ago and I am sorry that I do not recall the specifics of the book. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book and I apologize for any confusion.

Kate Morton knows exactly what I want to read, but it turns out that even her patented brand of time-slip narration, English gardens, family secrets, and semi-Gothic atmosphere can be drawn out a bit too long. I wish the editor had tightened up the last third of the book quite a bit, and I could have done without most of the Sadie backstory. It didn't seem to motivate her character in the way I think the author intended. Still, the Cornish setting and lush writing were fabulous, so yay Kate Morton!

3 Stars

REview on Goodreads

My lowest rated Kate Morton book to date. Now, don't mistake me. It was still a great read, but it didn't capture my attention as quickly as her books normally take me. It also took me several days to read this book while my normal pattern with her works is twenty four hours-at the latest. Told in two different time periods, I found the character development fascinating in each of them and how well they "interplayed" with each in the wrap up.

Reviewed for publisher via Netgalley

Absolutely my favorite kind of book - long (more than 500 pages), wonderful romantic setting (a beautiful house in Cornwall), which was abandoned in 1933 and full of secrets.

This is a multi-generational mystery. This book is well plotted and well written. So happy to have gotten my hands on this one!

Thank you so much for being willing to grant me access to this book. Unfortunately, life obligations have prevented me from doing so. If my schedule clears, I plan on reviewing this in the future and will post the review on Amazon and Goodreads. Thank you.

I truly enjoy this book, it kept me reading till the end. I would certainly be reading more of this amazing author. I suggest you read it, you will certainly won’t be disappointed. I usually don't read this type of books, but I read the summary and got very interested. Thank you for the opportunity I will look forward for more from this author.

Beautiful work of writing. :) Thank you for allowing me to read it.