This book tells the story of Kate, a mother who lost her 15 year old son in an accident six years previously. The storyline was interesting but the speed with which I read this book showed the need for a little more depth.
Kate is desperate, bordering on obsessed, with finding out the truth surrounding her son's death following an open verdict at inquest. I found it slightly irritating that answers fell into her lap with such ease and an unbelievable amount of good fortune.
Definitely worth a read but probably not a book I would return to a second time.

3.5 stars rounded up on this debut! It was a very entertaining plot but it could have been told a little faster with a little more intensity. I felt awful for the mother, Kate, who just wanted the truth of what happened to her son. She wanted closure and it was slightly far fetched on how things fell into her lap at times but I was intrigued nonetheless. Her support system was crap at best and I struggled with understanding her relationship with her own sister. And her husband, he is the definition of divorce he was ruthless and bothered me but that was good writing for me to have that much emotion towards him. 

Overall it was a good book I just wish it wasn’t so spread out and a little more thrill to be added.

**SPOILERS**

3.5 stars - Great read. The author has a fantastic writing style. The last 25% of the book or so (when the poetry retreat starts) is kind of slow, and the 'evidence' Kate thinks she's gathered really is just opinion isn't it? The biggest thing that annoyed me was that "Diving Fish" was supposedly Michael's swim coach. But then during the canoeing she said she couldn't go because she couldn't swim. (But she was the swim coach?) Then later when they fell in the Loch, suddenly she was swimming. Then somehow something "pulled her down"... doesn't seem plausible.

Also Kate didn't seem to grieve much when her mother died? And she claims she left her husband but I don't think HE knew that.... lol.

I did LOVE that none of the book's locations were in the United States! Loved the Canada-UK connection also!

Great book! Engaging from the beginning to the end. Looking forward to reading more by this author! Highly recommended!

When Kate’s teenage son drowns in the pond near his school, authorities deem it a tragic accident, but Kate doesn’t believe it. Six years later, when Kate finds Michael’s diary, she finally has the chance to prove her theory. It’s only when she delves into the diary that Kate realizes she didn’t really know her son at all, and it may have been better to have let the past, and her son’s secrets, stay buried

This novel focuses on a desperate quest by a mother to find out the truth about what happened to her son that drowned in a lake next to his school. Excellently written!

Warning!
Do NOT start this book if you have a busy schedule or want to have a life anytime soon. 
My phone has been attached to my hand and this book the center of my mind with everything riding passenger. 
Let me tell you how hard it is to cook while reading.

The blurb for The Lake promised an addictive page-turner and while I did finish reading it in a day, I am still as ambivalent about it as I was while reading it. 

Kate Hardy, a grieving mother has been living in limbo ever since the drowning of her 15yr old son, six years ago. Though she suspects foul play considering that Michael was a good swimmer, no-one is willing to believe her. And with a haphazard investigation, the lukewarm support of her family and her controlling husband, Kate has been unable to move on. Things quickly take a turn when she discovers Michael's diary and figures that her son was hiding a huge secret, probably one that got him killed. Armed with a renewed sense of purpose, Kate begins her own investigation into her son's death. The villain is revealed midway through the story; the rest of the plot is about bringing the person to justice.

The story premise had great potential as the author has touched upon sensitive issues such as loss of a child, emotional abuse and underage abuse. While the first half of the book maintained a steady pace, the latter half drags by. The story itself was intriguing; my curiosity to find out what happens next kept me reading till the end. But the writing style was not to my taste. For eg: Though not an expert, I would suppose that a diary entry would be written in the past tense not in the present or present continuous tense. Also the repetitive use of certain lines (How many times have I said this? Why does everyone keep asking me this?) quickly got old. Not to forget the very convenient, coincidental way Kate found out the location of the antagonist.

The character of Caleb seemed like a forced addition to the plot, provided only to give Kate a happy-ever-after. The story was off to a great start but slowly peters out. The anguish of a mother is portrayed well as well as the insecurities of an emotional abuse victim. Overall, I would say the book was average. 

A big thank you to Avon Books and Netgalley for approving my request for a digital copy of this book in return for an honest review.