I received this book at no cost from the publisher
The Lake House by Sarah Beth DurstISBN: 0063214075
Published by HarperTeen on April 25, 2023
Genres: Fiction, Horror & Ghost Stories, Suspense
Pages: 368
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
About the Book:
Claire’s grown up triple-checking locks. Counting her steps. Second-guessing every decision. It’s just how she’s wired – her worst-case scenarios never actually come true.
Until she arrives at an off-the-grid summer camp to find a blackened, burned husk instead of a lodge – and no survivors, except her and two other late arrivals: Reyva and Mariana.
When the three girls find a dead body in the woods, they realize none of this is an accident. Someone, something, is hunting them. Something that hides in the shadows. Something that refuses to let them leave.
About the Author
Sarah Beth Durst is the award-winning author of over twenty fantasy books for kids, teens, and adults, including Spark, Drink Slay Love, and The Queens of Renthia series. She won an ALA Alex Award and a Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and has been a finalist for SFWA’s Andre Norton Award three times. She is a graduate of Princeton University and lives in Stony Brook, New York, with her husband, her children, and her ill-mannered cat. For more information, visit her at sarahbethdurst.com.
My Thoughts
Sarah Beth Durst is one of my favorite authors and this latest story from her is just spectacular. It is a blend of suspense, horror, and friendship. In order to flesh out their college applications, three girls go to a secluded island for a retreat. I found Claire to be believable and she reminded me a bit of myself as she thinks of everything that can go wrong and not what might go right. In this case, she is very correct and everything goes wrong. She is thrown into a situation with two other girls, Mariana and Revya who find themselves stranded on an island after the cabin they are supposed to stay at is burned to the ground and the counselor they are to meet with is dead.
I was all set to have figured this story out and then NOPE – plot twist in ways that I was not expecting. Claire’s extreme anxiety works both for and against her, at times and Revya and Mariana each bring a lot to the mix as they try to find the answer to the mystery of the island. This flows so well and I just didn’t want to put this down until I finished it. Durst’s books are so easy to read and bring such joy even with the suspense of this one.
Awesome review. I want to check out the author now.
I have enjoyed this author in the past, so this one is on my radar. Glad to hear it is good! Great review!