Really enjoyed the location and overall story but it was far too long and the characters a bit over complicated.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this reader's copy. In exchange, I am providing an honest review.

I ran across a review of this series and the reviewer posted the question, "Why do authors always make detectives so messed up and complicated? It distracts from the actual mystery." They have a point. Whether it is in print or on the screen, most detectives have messy personal lives that spill over into their professional life. Gemma Woodstock is no exception. She's pretty messy personally.

We meet Woodstock in the shower and getting called to a murder scene. She arrives on the scene to discover the dead woman is someone she knew in high school. Is this a conflict of interest? Woodstock doesn't think so and works hard to prove it isn't. Can you sense the "but?" BUT. But Rosalind's death renews Gemma's memories of when her boyfriend, Jacob, killed himself at the end of high school and suddenly it's like Gemma can't see the forest for the trees. Adding to the dead ends of the case are Gemma's partner at home pressuring her about marriage and her partner at work, whom she is also sleeping with on the side. Christmas is drawing close and the heat is on, both literally and figuratively, to resolve this case. Rosalind, alive, was quite a mystery so her death doesn't make tracking down the killer any easier.

Maybe the point of messy lives in the brilliant detectives' authors create books around is the actual point of the book and the cases described are secondary to the detective? Or maybe not. I think, either way, it takes finesse to be able to equally develop a character in their personal and professional lives for a reader (or viewer). Bailey's Woodstock is pretty messy and I felt like her personal mess was incredibly intrusive to her professional life. Of course, sleeping with your partner isn't going to help that. But I think that part of the story is much more realistic than other parts. When you work that closely with someone I feel like it is bound to happen - or the temptation of it is always going to be present. I was slightly put off, annoyed, with Woodstock and the story dragged a bit for me. She feels very unstable to me and it felt like her hunches were more luck than talent. I ended the title feeling ambivalent, would I continue with the series or leave it be? After reading summaries of the next two books in the series and seeing that Gemma Woodstock continues on in her messy ways I decided to not continue on.

I have tried to read this a few times and unfortunately it just hasn't grabbed me, I have read too many similar novels and it almost haunts me every time I see it still on the Kindle. Apologies, just not my thing.

There was much to enjoy here, but I found I couldn't connect with it. I'd read more from this author in the future though.

Detective Gemma Woodstock is faced with a difficult homicide investigation. She is the lead detective in the small town where she grew up and where she knows everyone and everyone knows her. The victim in this case is Rosalind Ryan, the English and drama teacher at the school where she and Gemma attended as teenagers. They weren't friends back then but few knew that Gemma had issues with Rosalind. Rose, as some called her, was beautiful even back then and she was the new girlfriend Gemma's first love, Jake, turned to after he broke up with Gemma.

Now Rosalind has been found floating in the lake behind the school. Although she was liked, no one seemed to know her well and there are several fields of inquiries. The surviving family is her father and three brothers, none of whom seem to be that upset about Rosalind's death. There are rumors about Rosalind at school. Some people think she was involved with the principal who seemed to favor her while others gossiped that she was much too close with the male students. The autopsy reveals that Rosalind is pregnant so there was a man somewhere in her life although there is no overt signs of one.

Gemma has other issues. Her relationship at home with her partner, Simon, is floundering. The main thing that is keeping them together at this point is their son, Ben. Gemma is involved in an affair at work with her partner, Felix. He is married with three children of his own and they both know the affair is doomed or that it will tear their lives apart. Can Gemma balance her personal life and her professional one in order to solve the crime?

This is a debut novel for Sarah Bailey. The novel is set in rural Australia and American readers may have some small difficulties with cultural differences such as school schedules and Christmas being hot and steamy. The main character, Gemma, is not a polished professional but rather a woman with demons of her own, trying her best to do the work that defines her. This book is recommended for mystery readers.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to be an early reader. This is an overall good suspense novel. While enjoyable, I struggled a bit to get through it.

I finally got around to reading The Dark Lake (Gemma Woodstock 1) by Sarah Bailey. I've had both a physical copy and a netgalley copy of this novel since publication (thank you to Grand Central Publishing for the free copies).

I'll just start with what didn't work for me in The Dark Lake. This story started a bit slowly for me. I did find the last quarter to be a significantly different pace than the beginning sections. I felt like I figured out the majority of the story pretty early on and while there were a few surprises, I was mostly correct. I've found that I have trouble enjoying books where I don't like the main character. And while I can understand some of Gemma's motivation, I found her life choices (especially the ongoing affair which is not a spoiler) to be despicable. Leave your partner if you want to have an affair - this does not need to be a main plot point. I hate how often affairs are used to create drama. In the end, Gemma and her life depressed me and I didn't like slipping into her shoes. This is likely how the atmosphere was meant to be, but it just didn't work well for me and isn't the world I want to escape to in books.

Now on to what DID work for me -- I really enjoyed the last quarter where the deaths came together. I still think we had way too many clues, but this one wrapped up neatly, which I appreciate. I also liked the flashback scenes and the fact that we didn't really know a major aspect to Gemma's background until the end.

Overall, this was a 3 star read for me. It was fine. I wouldn't necessarily recommend it to others, but I think many readers who enjoy mysteries would like this one. It wasn't necessarily memorable (good or bad). I'm not sure I'll continue on with the series.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing for sending me a review copy. All opinions expressed above are my own.

I found this a compelling slow burner, very much character focused but with a truly interesting and intriguing storyline that I was desperate to find out who murdered Rosalind. I was pleasantly surprised at the ending which fit perfect and came together seamlessly.
I would recommend this book to crime and thriller readers of all ages and I'd happily read more by this author again, I like her writing style and found the whole book an enjoyable read.

"Beautiful things are hard to keep alive."

Smithson, set in between mountain ranges in Australia, is a community that has seen recent growth over the past decade. Detective Sergeant Gemma Woodstock has lived there all her life, attended the local high school, and is now a detective with the local police. When the body of a woman is found in Sonny Lake, Gemma is stunned to find out that the victim is an old classmate of hers -- the gorgeous and talented Rosalind Ryan. It's been 10 years since their school leaving and Rosalind had returned to teach drama at Smithson High. She was murdered just after the first performance of the play she had worked so hard to put on and the whole town is in shock as Rosalind was respected and loved by all.
Gemma has some serious secrets, however, and her feelings about Rosalind aren't quite along the same line, but she commits herself to the investigation. She's partners (with benefits) with DS Felix McKinnon and both immediately apply themselves to the routine of a big murder case. NO SPOILERS but this is a very complicated situation compounded by Gemma's history.

Basically a police procedural and crime thriller, this debut offers a real atmospheric read along with the mystery of who killed Rosalind and why. Gemma is quite the complex character and I alternated between liking and despising her -- she is a bit of a hot mess, actually, and has demons that threaten her present day that are being dredged up by her past. Her partner, Felix, doesn't help matters and their involvement threatens more than just their home situations. There were many other significant characters and many theories and possible motives regarding the murder as well as the requisite red herrings though a savvy reader will make some accurate guesses. All told, it's a good read and I did love the detail and description about the town and its inhabitants. The weather -- December in Australia is unbearably hot -- also added to the levels of tension and the heaviness of the tone of the book. I'm quite interested to see what happens to Gemma after the conclusion of this particular case and hope that she's going to get herself together and come to terms with what happened in her past. I loved the writing style and the flip between THEN and NOW.

Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the e-book ARC to read and review. I realized just recently that it was far overdue and plan to start the second in the series immediately so that I can have it finished by the publication date! Next up: INTO THE NIGHT.

Though I liked the book, I made the decision when I finished not to review it on my site. Maybe in the future I will include it in a book list post or another article.

I am not sure how I feel about this book. But I feel a lot. When I first got this book, I think I read the first few chapters and couldn't get into it at all. So after a few weeks I decided to try again. I think I am glad I did? Anyway, be warned this review is completely all over the place. A bit like the book.

So, there's a dead girl who is a teacher at a high school. The detective- Gem- shows up, and from the narrative you think that she was in love with the dead girl, or had some pretty serious shit going on with her. Oh and by the way, she is miscarrying, but what the hell let's put on a pad and go off. Then she meets up with her partner, with whom she is having an affair. I swear to god if she says "I want him in me" one more time I will throw the book in the fire (of course there are also wildfires in this book). Gem lives with her boyfriend and their son. And said detective partner and lover is married with 3 kids, whose daughter possibly discovers them but will that go anywhere (no)? So anyway, we have a dead girl, who turns out was pregnant, a very emotional detective with problem relationships at home and work. To top it off, she keeps reminiscing to her high school boyfriend, who committed suicide and everything is soo soo intense. Detective's son gets kidnapped but is returned, Dead girl's family is totally messed up, and apparently her dad is not really her dad but the principal at the school she teaches is. Rumor of a possible affair with either principal or student - said student is the brother of the high school boyfriend who committed suicide. And all this and I have no idea who the killer is. Exhausting. I don't know if I have the energy for the rest of the book but I want to know who filled the girl. So, I read on. Relationship with boyfriend and lover blow up. Turns out the killer is the mother of the high school boyfriend and the student who is rumoured to be having the affair with the dead teacher - rumor turns out to be true and so baby is his and mother could not handle dead teacher taking both boys (she thought her first son committed suicide because of dead teacher who as a student had a brief relationship with dead son). Ok all this and the story is told in a then and now fashion. At the end - I would recommend this book anyway, it somehow kept me reading and that is worth something!

I had a difficult time getting into this book and ended up not finishing it. I didn't care for the main character and the plot meandered too much for me to become invested.

In this debut mystery, police detective Gemma Woodstock is faced with solving the murder of a former classmate named Rosalind Ryan, whose body is found at the edge of the lake, surrounded by red roses.
Gemma, along with her partner, Felix, begin to look into Rosalind’s life and the people in it. Gemma admits that she has a bias about Rosalind, who took her boyfriend when they were in school. But now, Rosalind, who is a teacher and adviser to the theater group, is well loved by her students and family. Or so it seems.
Gemma has her own life choices to make.
A good first effort.

The Dark Lake was a fantastic read with tons of twists and a mystery that keeps you guessing until the very end.

When Detective Sergeant Gemma Woodstock is called to the crime scene of the murder of one of her former classmates, Gemma immediately wonders who would kill a woman with a seemingly perfect life. The victim, Rosalind Ryan, drew others to her in an effortless way both back in high school and in present day as the drama teacher. As Gemma begins to dig into Rose's life, she soon has more questions than answers and is no closer to finding Rose's killer. With pressure on the rise, Gemma knows she needs to solve this case and fast.

Gemma was an interesting as a main character but I found myself struggling to like her at times. Gemma is currently having an affair with a colleague which I thought was an unhealthy one and I often found myself questioning Gemma's decisions as I disagreed with the affair. Outside of the affair though, Gemma is good at her job and could see connections where others couldn't. Despite the fact Gemma has a hard time connecting with people, it doesn't effect her job and at times enhances it even.

Rosalind's murder case is incredibly interesting and managed to hold my attention throughout the book. Occasionally we got very short chapters from a random person's POV who had seen something that seemed inconsequential at the time but would help Gemma's investigation if she knew about it. I liked those little snippets as they showed how people know more than they think they do. A large part of what we learn is colored by Gemma's biases so at times you're left wondering if someone is truly innocent or if you just think that because Gemma does. There were definitely a few things I didn't see coming and I was completely surprised by who the killer ended up being. Overall I felt the mystery aspect of this book was its' strongest aspect.

I enjoyed The Dark Lake more than I expected to and I'm excited to see where the author takes the series in future books. I'd recommend this book for anyone looking for a thriller that plays up the mystery plot line.

The Dark Lake was a gripping thriller that took me on a ride I never expected! It was such a wild ride that I couldn't help but want to read until I finished to the final word. It was such an amazing book and I cant wait to read her next book!

This was a solid debut from a new Australian crime writer. The Dark Lake is a police procedural with a complex plot. I occasionally found it difficult to accept all of the professional screw-ups by our characters but it wasn't enough to warrant more than an eyeroll from me. The character development was superb though, to be honest, the "emotionally damaged detective" trope isn't my favorite. Gemma as a character is rather unlikable and I soon grew tired of hearing about her dumpster fire of a personal life. That being said, the fact that I had such a strong reaction to her says something, even if it wasn't a strong positive reaction. I'm looking forward to seeing what comes next from Sarah Bailey.

Especially for English-speaking readers, we now have more national literatures than we have stories, so that with a few changes in local colour & weather, it doesn’t matter very much whether we’re reading Australian literature, Canadian literature, or (in translation) Scandinavian literature. Sarah Bailey’s The Dark Lake is set in NSW @ Christmastime, but except for the characters sweltering in holiday party Santa costumes whilst threatened by bush fires, the story could have as easily taken place near Winnipeg with blizzards instead. It’s set in a provincial town, apparently just far enough from Sydney to escape being a suburb. Rosalind Ryan, a popular high-school English & drama teacher has been drowned in a nearby lake, just as her production of an adaptation of Romeo & Juliet was being performed @ the school, with the lead actor a prime suspect. What makes this story special is that the principal detective & narrator, Gemma Woodstock, was Rosalind’s contemporary & rival when they were students @ the same school. Not very professional, but in a small town it’s believable that an investigator would have been involved with the victim (cf. The Dry.) But Gemma’s personal life is out of control. She is still attached to the memory of her high-school heartthrob Jacob, who committed suicide. She is living with the father of her son Ben - a pre-schooler - who is named Scott, whom she has not married. But Gemma is currently involved in a secret passionate affair with an Englishman named Felix, a married man with teenagers who is also her detective partner. (Even less professional, granted.) Tho’ I thoroughly disliked Gemma (& if the series continues I’ll not be around for her reappearances), I found Rosalind a fascinating and attractive character and was caught up in the quest for her killer. Gemma’s own life is, frankly, a mess, & she constantly overacts the role of star in her own domestic drama. This book is also too long. An excessive number of minor characters introduce themselves for no other reason than to be red herrings. With better editing @ about 3/4 the present length, The Dark Lake would be a enjoyable read-once-and-forget, tho’ strangely I found Rose haunting: I could imagine a school story like Mindy Mijia’s Everything You Want Me to Be with her as a main character. As I’ve just finished composing a novel featuring a school production of Shakespeare, it was quite fun to compare notes. But as a detective story, The Dark Lake is readable but Gemma is too high-maintenance to be worth the effort to keep as a friend. I am grateful to Hachette Group and Netgalley for an ARC.

Solid debut with a good mystery and a cast of well developed characters. I can't say I actually like Gemma as a character but it fit well into the story.

Sarah Bailey efinitely keeps one guessing! I don't usually enjoy mysteries in which so much of the plot takes place in the mind of the main character. However, this is the exception to that rule. Gemma's internal struggles played an important part in making several mysteries make sense. Periodic appearances of unfamiliar characters was somewhat distracting at times, but in the end those made sense as well. I was disappointed that Gemma never seemed to learn about what Jacob left in the tunnel near the lake. I look forward to seeing what Gemma does next so I hope Bailey writes the book mentioned in her acknowledgements!

Unfortunately, I stopped at the 40% mark of the book because I could not get into it. I really enjoy suspense and murder mysteries, but this book was not for me. It was slow and meandering, making it hard for me to really commit to the book. I found myself not caring that much for any of the characters, especially the lead who is a cop with a shady partner and past.