The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager
- Published on
- Shalini
- in Book Posts, Book Reviews, Digital Reads Media, Digital Reads Reviews, Fiction
Blurb
Casey Fletcher, a recently widowed actress trying to escape a streak of bad press, has retreated to the peace and quiet of her family’s lake house in Vermont.
Armed with a pair of binoculars and several bottles of liquor, she passes the time watching Tom and Katherine Royce, the glamorous couple who live in the house across the lake.
They make for good viewing—a tech innovator, Tom is rich; and a former model, Katherine is gorgeous.
One day on the lake, Casey saves Katherine from drowning, and the two strike up a budding friendship.
But the more they get to know each other—and the longer Casey watches—it becomes clear that Katherine and Tom’s marriage is not as perfect and placid as it appears.
When Katherine suddenly vanishes, Casey becomes consumed with finding out what happened to her.
In the process, she uncovers eerie, darker truths that turn a tale of voyeurism and suspicion into a story of guilt, obsession and how looks can be very deceiving.
My Review
What was it all about
An actress post her husband’s death retired to the lake house, and to pass her time in between her drinks, she decided to break all laws of privacy and keep a watch on the House Across the Lake, where a supermodel and her rich husband lived. Via a pair of binoculars.
Suddenly, one fine day, the supermodel disappeared, and this amateur drunk sleuth concluded – the husband did it!
So more spying along with a small B&E to get to the truth.
How it made me feel
Exasperated was what I felt at the writing which showed a woman with several drinks inside her performing superhuman stunts like saving the drowning neighbor, coming to some logical conclusions even when she is completely sloshed to the gills.
Then I was irritated and angry. The main character drank and drank and drank some more on every page, whiskey being one of her favorite drinks even with her breakfast coffee. The author went overboard.
The Good
The Bad
Oh, there were many. When a male author wrote a female character, some research ought to be done to get the nuances right.
Would a lone woman who had just lost her husband not feel wary if a man suddenly approached her out of nowhere and proclaimed himself to be her neighbor?
Nah, not our MC, she proceeded to spy on his body with her favorite toy, the binoculars, and thought a gorgeous man could not be dangerous. She was rather attracted to him.
To note, all guys in this book were quite attractive, yet she suspected the husband to have killed the wife who had disappeared.
Sudden pop up of paranormal possession of a human body by a ghost. Not a Casper kinda ghost but the one who wanted vengeance and desired to live the entire eternity torturing possessed bodies and our heroine.
A few missing women and dead bodies and inclusion of a serial crime popped up.
Did you wonder how they popped up? Look at the title – Across the Lake. The lake waters had buoyancy, so they all popped up across the pages of the book.
The writing was so damn boring. Absolutely no zest in the lines. OMG. How many times would we need to have unreliable, drunk main characters when the trend showed we readers were quite bored of it by now?
The Conclusion
As you might have guessed, not my favorite read. Sighhh
The review was written early for all those who got rejected at NetGalley. Now you can laugh and pump your fists in joy.
Should you read the book? Of course, who wouldn’t like a heroine who is a drunk voyeur. At your own risk.
Book Links
Book Details
Publication Date: July 2022
I downloaded the digital version of the book from an online retail, and this is my journey down its pages, straight from the heart. STRICTLY HONEST and UNBIASED.
If you’ve loved the review, buy me a cuppa to perk me up.
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2 Responses
Oh no, sorry to hear that this book wasn’t your cup of tea. It sounds like a mess. A drunk voyeur as MC (no thank you), random things happening, suddenly paranormal stuff… why? I still want to give it a shot because it is Riley Sager and I really enjoyed a couple of their other books, but I am already mentally preparing for DNF. XD
You are a hoot, Shalini. I love your use of English. Fess up–you went to school in the US, huh.