Ladies of the Lake is an exceptional book in every way from the gorgeous prose to the achingly tender story to the well-written characters to the fascinating setting. My heart shattered and rejoiced as I became deeply immersed in this unputdownable book about sorrow, friendship, family, jealousy, forgiveness, faith and hope. It also contains elements of history and snippets of romantic love.

In the early 1900s, after Adelaide's parents tragically die, she is forced by her half brother to leave her beloved PEI to move to Connecticut. There she attends Lakeside Ladies Academy where she finds immediate connection with Dot, Susannah and Ruth, especially Dot. They call themselves the Ladies of the Lake and do everything together...but they don't share all their secrets, many of which they'd prefer kept hidden. A crack begins. festers and causes a rift which remains until eighteen years later when the girls are women and have lives of their own in a second timeline. Subplots are woven seamlessly throughout.

I really enjoyed the school antics, meeting families of the girls, the boarding school setting, learning more about the Halifax explosion in 1917, friendships, the lives of the women later and dear Mrs. Simmons. The writing is smart and thoughtful and captures the essence of what it means to be a friend and a woman of faith. To me this is the epitome of perfection in a book!

Christian Historical Fiction readers, Ladies of the Lake is absolutely unmissable. If you are new to the genre, there is no better place to start! It is more than a book...it is an experience.

My sincere thank you to Tyndale House Publishers and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this phenomenal book I enjoyed with my whole heart, one of the most memorable I have read in a long time.

I must admit, this book took me quite a while to get into. I'm not sure if this was the story itself--- it being a dual timeline with many characters to keep track of, which can often be harder for me to connect with anyway... or if it was because I was listening to the audiobook version, which is not my usual or preferred way to enjoy books typically.... most likely, it was a bit of a combination of the two.

Despite the slow start though, once I got into the story, I absolutely adored it! This was such a beautiful story about friendship and forgiveness.... mixed with great pieces of history and even a love story too. It spanned the course of many years, jumping back and forth between the time the Ladies were children at the school to their adulthood. It had many heartbreaking moments, but also many filled with hope. All of it kept me wanting to read (or listen) on to see what was going to happen next and how it would all end. While quite different from what I have been reading lately, I found it to be a really wonderful story.

If you enjoy historical fiction, this is certainly one to check out.

**I received a complimentary copy for consideration. All opinions are my own.

Woven with fascinating historical elements, Ladies of the Lost Lake celebrates the enduring power of friendship and the healing strength of forgiveness and love.

Well-written dual timeline story set against the atmospheric backdrop of America and Canada in the early years of WWI and then in the 1930's. I love learning something new when I read historical fiction, and this story introduced me to an event I had never studied. Ms. Gohlke's description of the Halifax Explosion in Canada was well-researched, seamlessly woven into the story as a major turning point that would affect the characters for years to come.

I absolutely adored the Ladies of the Lake and the circle of friendship between the four women. Ms. Gohlke definitely celebrates the importance of lifelong friendships. The book nerd in me loved the references to L.M. Montgomery and her Anne of Green Gables series.

As the story came to the expected resolution, there was a fantastic plot twist that I did not see coming, and made my reader's heart happy.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author/publisher through Netgalley and was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

When eleven year old Adelaide MacNeill has to leave Prince Edward Island she’s heartbroken and her half-brother is sending her to Lakeside Ladies Academy in Connecticut. Her parents have just died, her older brother isn’t compassionate and Addie attending boarding school means he can get on with his own life. Here Adelaide makes friends with, Dorothy, Ruth and Susannah, over the next five years the girls get up to a bit of mischief and grow close.

The girls refer to their group as the "Ladies of the Lake," when they graduate in 1910, the young women vow they will always be there for each other and will meet at the schools gazebo every two years. This is before the love for the same man causes Dot to be jealous of Addie, and America is now fighting in The Great War, the man they both love his parents were born in Germany, and their family is the target of vandalism and hatred. Adelaide is visiting her brother and sister-in-law in Halifax in December 1917, when two boats collided in the harbor and no one could predict the catastrophe that's about to happened.

Seventeen years later, Rosaline Murray is an author, she lives in Halifax and she receives a call from Dorothy, she's the headmistress of Lakeside Ladies Academy and she invites her to attend her daughter Bernadette’s graduation. For over eighty years the prestigious school has educated daughters of diplomats, senators, and the countries elite. This causes Rosaline to reflect on the past, one that she’s been determined to forget and hide from. How can she not attend Bernadette's valedictorian graduation ceremony, but she's kept secrets from her and she doesn’t want to face anyone and the ghosts of her childhood?

I received a copy of Ladies of the Lake by Cathy Gohlke from Tyndale House Publishers and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Ms Gohkle latest novel explores the friendship and sisterhood between four young girls attending a private school and how it's tested by jealousy, competition, secrets, lies, bullying, shaming, misunderstandings and arguments. The well written and captivating narrative focuses on the role each of the young women plays in the problems within the friendship, and how they find the path to exoneration and reconciliation.

Based around true facts about a girls school in Connecticut, author Lucy Maud Montgomery and an orphaned girl from Prince Edward Island. An inspirational story about faith and the importance of telling the truth and most of all forgiveness. Five stars from me, my favourite and the most memorable characters were Adelaide, Dorothy, Mr. and Mrs. Meyer, Jonas and Stephen, Bernadette and Portia. I highly recommend this book and Ms. Gohlke's previous novel, A Hundred Crickets Singing.

Ladies of the Lake, by Cathy Gohlke, is a stand alone Christian dual time-line story. I just love the way this author writes and this book is outstanding. Her stories have so much depth to them and sometimes touch on tender subjects. In this story we meet four girls who attend a Lakeside Ladies Academy and make an agreement to stay in touch when they leave.

After finishing school Adalaide returns home to Halifax. When an explosion shakes the whole town, killing and injuring many people, she is left with scars she hides. She also changes her name and doesn’t stay in touch with her friends, leaving them to think she dies. When her daughter gets old enough Alelaide enrolls her in Lakeside Ladies Academy. She never attends any of her daughters school events until she is pressured to attend her daughters graduation.

This is such a touching story. I felt so bad for the treatment Adelaide’s brother gave her following her parent’s death. I enjoyed the friendships the four girls develop and how they plan to stay together. I just loved how the friends finally realize she is not dead and who she really is. This story focuses on friendships and relationships.

I received a complimentary copy of this story from the author and publisher, this is my honest review.

Tragedy, childhood friendships, misunderstandings, WWI, catastrophic events, jealousy, lies.....
Miracles, reliance on God, forgiveness, secrets revealed....

The Ladies of the Lake by Cathy Gohlke is unlike any novel I have read lately. I was snagged into the lives of Addie/Rosaline, Dorothy, Susannah, & Ruth from page one. Would the friendship they formed at boarding school last a lifetime? Would Stephen forever love Addie or would he forsake her for Dorothy (Dot)?

One quote that resonated with me was by Susannah: "I don't want to lose another minute of our friendship, girls. The truth is, children grow up and move on with their lives. Husbands become busy with their work and who knows what. But women need friends, real, true friends, and we're the best we've got."

Cathy Gohlke is a new to me author but I will definitely read more by her.

A copy was provided for my review but all opinions are my own.

Wonderful story of love and friendship! Having never heard of the Halifax explosion, I liked learning about the event. Addie's heart for others after her own experiences were admirable. Loved the way the author wove the story of the four friends with a few unexpected twists to surprise the readers. Highly recommended!

This was a beautiful split-time novel. The author was able to draw the reader into the story from the first page. I truly felt like I was living the story right along with the characters in the book. This book is different than other books I have read by this author, but not in a bad way. Cathy Gohlke continues to be one of my favorite authors.

First sentence: It had been easy to set aside the engraved invitation to the July graduation fro Lakeside Ladies Academy, less easy to ignore persistent letters from my beloved Bernadette with her daughterly pleas to attend the "most important event" of her life. Still, I never expected a call from the United States when Portia summoned me to the phone in the downstairs hallway.

Premise/plot: Rosaline Murray, our heroine, has a tough decision to make: attend her daughter's graduation ceremony and face the demons of her past OR disappoint her daughter and perhaps damage their relationship forever.

The novel is set in two timelines (for the most part) and has multiple narrators. The "past" is circa 1905 to 1917. Adelaide Rose MacNeill, an orphan from Prince Edward Island, is sent to a boarding school in Connecticut where she befriends three others--Ruth, Susannah, and Dorothy. The four become the "Ladies of the Lake" and vow to be lifelong friends who meet every several years in the gazebo at Lakeside Ladies Academy. The "present" is 1935 (and an epilogue set during the Second World War, 1943???). The narrators are Dorothy and Addie/Rosaline.

Friendships are front and center in this historical novel.

One of the BIG, BIG, BIG events in this historical novel is the Halifax Explosion of December 1917. This was a real event that had a big impact (literally and figuratively) on our main character.

My thoughts: I really LOVED this one so much. If the novel has a flaw, then perhaps it is the complete and total lack of chapters. (To be fair, perhaps this is just in the Advanced Readers Copy I previewed.) One pro to that being is that I read for LONG periods of time. If I could have managed it physically to read in one sitting, then I would have. I read it in about three or four sittings. I always wanted to read more, more, more.

I enjoyed the story, the time period, the dual narration, the suspense, the characterization.

When her beloved parents die in a tragic storm at sea, 12-year-old Adelaide MacNeill’s older half-brother arrives to settle his father’s estate as quickly and efficiently as possible. Addie finds herself swept away from her beloved Prince Edward Island without even a chance to say goodbye to her friends.

Instead of living with her half-brother and his family, Addie gets sent to Lakeside Ladies Academy in Connecticut. While there, she meets three kindred spirits. Together, the four girls navigate living at a boarding school, homesickness, bullies, and first loves. The friends become the Ladies of the Lake and swear to meet each year after graduation ceremonies.

But life, love, and war interfere with their happy plans. Addie and Dorothy, the closest friends in their foursome, fall in love with the same man—a man of German heritage. In her jealousy, Dorothy supports Helen’s request to cut off ties with all things German as a show of support. Addie can’t agree because she now knows Stephen loves her, and they hope to have a future together.

When the locals attack the Meyer family in a misguided show of patriotism, Addie is far away in Halifax, helping her sister-in-law as she awaits the birth of her second child. Two lives are forever changed when Dorothy withholds information in a fit of jealous pique.

Eighteen Years Later

The Ladies of the Lake plan to gather once again after graduation ceremonies. This time, they band together to raise money to keep their beloved Lakeside Ladies Academy open despite the ravages of the Great Depression. They also want to finish the gymnasium and dedicate it to their fourth friend, who tragically lost her life so young.

Rosaline Murray has woven popular stories and novels for an adoring public for the past eighteen years. But Rosaline guards her privacy like a treasure. Her only close friend will marry soon, and her beloved daughter Bernadette will graduate from Lakeside Ladies Academy in a few short months.

As much as she longs to see her daughter’s triumphs, Rosaline knows the scars from her past will prevent her from attending. When a ghost from her past, Mrs. Dorothy Meyer, headmistress of Lakeside, calls Rosaline and encourages her to attend Bernadette’s graduation, the conversation plunges Rosaline into the depths of forgotten memories and past regrets.

How can she honor her daughter while maintaining her anonymity? How can she live with the decisions of her past yet move forward into the future?

What I Loved About This Book

The Ladies of the Lake, my first Cathy Gohlke book, turned me into an instant fan. Gohlke’s attention to historical detail and characterization turn what could be a confusing story of four friends into a masterpiece told with heart and compassion.

Readers will relate to Addie and her struggle to forgive her best friend and Bernadette and Rosaline’s fight to overcome a tragedy. The story of how the small town treated the members of the Meyer family reminds us of the dangers of mob mentality disguised as patriotism. It happened once; it could happen again.

Exceptional!! What a heartfelt and captivating story of Adelaide Rose MacNeill, who upon losing her parents at sea on their way back to Prince Edward Island is sent by her half brother to a girls boarding school in Connecticut at the tender age of 12. This beautiful historical novel finds Adelaide meeting a sweet grandmotherly friend for life on the trip to Connecticut and meeting three kindred spirits at school. They quickly become the "Ladies of the Lake" and vow to be friends for life. This story is a beautiful tale of the value of friendship, bonds that are broken and hopes that remain. I was hooked from the very beginning, loved the unexpected twist later on, and was crying by the end!

I love the settings of Prince Edward Island, the connection to the author of Anne of Green Gables, Halifax and the terrible explosion in 1917 (which I knew nothing about), and Connecticut where the girls attend school. The story begins in 1910 thought 1917, includes the hardship and attitudes during the Great War (WWI), and switches to the present in 1935, as well as an update during WWII.

I highly recommend this beautiful story by Cathy Gohlke, I loved this redemptive and uplifting story despite the difficulties they encountered along the way.

"All for one and one for all!" "We are the Ladies of the Lake!"

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for allowing me to read an early copy. All opinions are my own. I hope to get my own paperback for my keeper shelf!

This book evoked a wide range of emotions. In the beginning of the book the main emotion was something close to annoyance. So much of the story was shrouded in mystery. The back and forth, past and present, storyline created a lot of room for references to things the reader just yet didn’t understand. Slowly the story began to unravel and reveal itself.

This was a story of human nature. Friendships are fast and strongly formed, but mistakes and frail human nature often set self and contrary goods over retaining and cultivating friendships. This is a reality that any person can say they’ve experience, either in being the one choosing the other good or in being discarded in favor of the other good. Most books skirt this realistic portrayal of friendship and opt for the idealistic portrayals of friendships.

I cried at a few different points while reading. I even (and this is a very first) gasped aloud. The plot was not predictable though nothing came as an incredible surprise. The language was impressive. I haven’t read a book, a historical fiction book, this well-written in quite a while. I finished the book and immediately began telling my friends about it, and I definitely now recommend it to you.

Though Ladies of the Lake wasn’t a super quick read, I found myself reading through it more quickly than I thought I would. The writing flowed well, and I was hooked on the story from the very beginning. The fact that my tears began in chapter two really made an impact on me. Cathy Gohlke’s book was touching from the very start. It was a roller coaster of emotions and a ride I was happy to be on. This story has made it to the top of my favorites list this year.

Ladies of the Lake was a dual timeline, and I liked the contrast between the time Adelaide was a young school girl with her best friends (1905-18) and the present day (1935 & 43) when Adelaide was known as Rosaline and thought to be dead by her life-long friends. Her daughter, Bernadette, was graduating soon, and she wanted Adelaide to be at the graduation, but doing so would mean revealing the truth about herself.

Scars played a part in this story, both physical and emotional, and affected multiple characters in different ways. They shook the foundations of friendship, aided in poor choices, and created misunderstandings. Addie herself went into hiding and allowed the people she had been closest to to believe a lie for far too long. And she wasn’t the only one who deceived her friends. Dorothy, another member of the Ladies of the Lake, had a secret of her own that she held tight to, gnawing at her conscience for all those years.

One thing I loved about this book was the redemptive quality of it. So much had happened in the lives of this group of friends, hurt handed out whether known or unknown, but it didn’t mean their story had to end. John 8:32 says that the truth will set you free, and when the truth was revealed, it opened the door to new beginnings.

So much happened in this novel — events that only added to the story — but I don’t want to give anything away. All I can say is, if you love historical fiction, friendship and love tested, and bonds severed and mended, you need to read Ladies of the Lake. There are plenty of characters you need to meet.

Ladies of the Lake by Cathy Gohlke is a beautiful story about friendships and tragedies that rip the bonds of relationships apart. Can they be restored and can healing and forgiveness happen?

This book is written with a dual timeline and centres on four young girl’s friendship until they mature into adulthood. There are numerous twists and turns to the story that make for a great read.

I throughly enjoy the author’s style of writing. Her characters are well developed, interesting and believable. I would highly recommend this book and any others by Cathy Gohlke.

Thanks NetGalley and Tyndale House Publishers for an advanced copy of this book.

I could not have enjoyed this beautifully written dual timeline story more. Cathy Gohlke expertly tells a moving and lovely tale of friendship, love, deep loss, forgiveness, and restoration. It is not really a romance and not predictable. The two timelines flow seamlessly together in a suspenseful, hard to put down read. The history of the Halifax explosion was interesting and something I had never heard.
Thanks to NetGalley and Tyndale for the opportunity to read for honest review.

Engrossing story filled with drama and hope. Gohlke brilliantly shapes characters, weaving their story in distinct time periods that keeps you turning pages. I found myself reading slowly to soak in these characters and the beauty of their intricate stories. I would love to know the deeper stories of some of the supporting characters.

Ladies of the Lake
By Cathy Gohlke
Tyndale Publishers
Pub date July 11, 2023

This is a beautiful story of friendship, 𝑪𝑶𝑴𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑺𝑶𝑶𝑵!

Thank you @tyndalehouse and @netgalley for approving me to read the ARC of The Ladies of the Lake.

This is a beautiful story of overcoming hardships, friendships, betrayal and finding one’s worth through God’s eyes and not our physical appearance.

I also love a historical fiction story that teaches me about a part of history that I knew nothing about. In this case the munitions explosion in Halifax harbor that destroyed much of the forty and its inhabitants. The ripple effects of which were felt for decades after with burned and maimed victims walking the streets with stories of loss. Many bodies were never found and some people used that fact to create new identities and lives for themselves.

@cathy_gohlke does a wonderful job of weaving together a beautiful tension between two of the main characters so that you don’t dislike either of them through the betrayal. But feel a sorrow for a friendship lost.

I felt very connected with Addie and her battle with her self worth/esteem as I think many women would identify with. I loved the story but gentle character of Portia who always pointed Addie to Christ.

I definitely recommend this book!
🌟🌟🌟🌟💫

An epic heartfelt read, full of emotion, lifetime friendships and faith. Mainly focusing on the life of one woman, Adelaide "Addie" MacNeill, as told from her perspective, beginning with her traumatic arrival at the Lakeside Ladies Academy in 1905. Her life takes some dramatic turns, as she and her close friends navigate their way into adulthood during the beginning of a world at war.

Well-written with complex characters, this story contains a lot of insight into friendships, family relationships-- especially mother-daughter--and the power of forgiveness. I liked all of the references to the Anne of Green Gables series, including nods to the author, Lucy Maud Montgomery, as Addie's early life had so many parallels. It reminded me of how God places people along our way to help us in times of need, especially the dear Mrs. Simmons, and Portia.

The ladies' friendships from school showed how important it is to show each other grace and extend forgiveness in order to mend broken relationships. Addie's story especially showed how it takes a lot of strength and faith to overcome our fears that hold us back in life. It was inspiring!
The author adeptly weaves real history into the story along with personal tales that she reveals in her notes. The ending was lovely and well worth the wait.

Recommend to readers who like deeper reads, with history, faith and some romance. 4.5 stars

Four girls bond at the Lakeside Ladies Academy in Connecticut in the 1910s. Two of them love the same boy. Worse, he’s in a German American family, and anti-German hysteria infects the academy.
Adelaide is back home in Halifax in 1917 when an ammunition ship explodes in the harbor, leveling the town. Adelaide disappears and Rosalind rises in her place, but the other girls think she’s dead.
There’s a lot I like in this book. Friendships with women are so important. I like Adelaide, but Dot is hard to warm to with her jealousy. The author does a great job of making you believe you understand what happens with Dot and her husband, only to reveal a big difference. I actually felt tricked, but it’s still a great book.

I loved this book, set with dual time lines and beginning in Prince Edward Island, but also set in Connecticut and Halifax.

This is a Christian read, and this is life, from the beginning to end there is love and loss. With a lot of historical facts built into the book, and a gift of a bit of L. M. Montgomery is here, with a reminicient of Anne, and a friendship.

There are bullies at the school, and I was chuckling at how these four friends got a bit of revenge!

When life's circumstances get in the way, and again a disaster, life plays out differently than was originally planned. Yes, you will be page turning for answers, and they do come along with more surprises!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Tyndale House, and was not required to give a positive review.