Well, I can officially say that Riley Sager has officially ruined lakes for me forever. Officially an ocean or pool gal only from here on out!

This book definitely felt different than past Sager endeavors. I was extremely intrigued by the fact that we got to dabble into the lives of the rich and famous but wish that had been played up a bit more. This book had moments that peaked my interest and I flew through and then I'd hit several chapters that we're a bit boring. This was especially tough as it followed the typical trope of a woman, down on her luck (and well into her alcoholism), spying on neighbors and seeing things she shouldn't have. I will say though, when the twist hits, IT HITS! I was SHOOKETH, However as soon as that twist is over, it's a bit boring again from there on out.

Still hoping for a strong Sager comeback but this one just wasn't it for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC!

2.75*

WOW! What a twisty ride! This was my first book by Sager and I was not disappointed. I loved the character development, and the twists kept me guessing the whole way through! Overall, I am glad I read this one!

Really wasn’t my favorite. I wanted to get more into it than I did it fell flat though. I really liked the characters I just felt something was missing.

Riley Sager has done it again! This is another twisty, funny and lean mystery that constantly wrong foots expectation in the best way. It was fun seeing Sager playing with genre in a new way, and I was hooked the whole way through. Nobody writes thrillers as good as this.

Riley, you just don't know when to stop, do you?

I've got to hand it to him, he knows how to write a gripping novel. I constantly wanted to be reading this to figure out the big mystery at the end and let me tell you; I was terribly disappointed by what was revealed. This turned out to be 10% thriller and 90% a commentary on alcohol abuse. which doesn't make for a very exciting novel. Add in a supernatural element for your twist and you have yourself one of the worst thrillers I've ever read.

Hopefully Riley Sager can redeem himself in his next book.

This was my most anticipated read for the year, and what a disappointment. I found this to be sloppy compared to Sager's normal mastery of suspense. While we still get the usual unreliable narrator, it's in a completely different direction than previous books. I could not find myself caring about Casey and the character development was weak. The first half of this book mirrored The Woman in the Window so heavily that I found it difficult to get seriously invested. While I didn't hate it, I also didn't love it, which says a lot as Sager has consistently been all 5 star reads for me.

Okay, what the hell was that?
Seriously.

To say it bordered on ridiculous might be a bit intense because this is fiction after all, but toward the last quarter of the book, is where I lost it. That twist is almost laughable I had to read it again just to make sure I've understood it. This has been a huge disappointment because Sager is one of my "auto-buy/auto-request" authors.

To give him the benefit of the doubt, maybe he's trying something different, but boy did it not pay off.

[Disclaimer: The next line has a little spoiler in it]

I'd still wait for the next book but I'm really hoping he foregoes this "supernatural element" experimenting.

Thanks, @Netgalley, and @PenguinGroup for the ARC of this book.
To be published on 21st June 2022.

Ahh, I am so disappointed to say that this one was very "meh" for me. After not loving Survive the Night I was hoping to love this one, but sadly, it fell flat for me.

The premise of this drew me right in - a secluded lake house, a main character with a troublesome past, and lots of secrets. But once I started reading, I could tell I wasn't going to love it.

Our main character is just another woman who is unreliable because she drinks too much, and I really think this trope is overdone. I feel like I've read so many books with a female MC who is an alcoholic. There were so many descriptions of her wanting a drink, making a drink, getting drunk and then feeling sick the next day.

I saw some reviews saying this story had a supernatural element to it, and I was excited for it because I loved Home Before Dark. But unfortunately I just don't think it was executed correctly. I wanted more background, more build up to what was happening and that didn't happen. It was explained away far too easily and quickly at the very end.

I also got MAJOR Layla by Colleen Hoover vibes from this. Anyone else?

I'll continue to read what Riley Sager releases just because I know he's popular for a reason, but this one wasn't my favorite compared to others.

After reading Final Girls and Lock Every Door, I was excited to read Riley Sager next book! The House Across the Lake was a great read. It was not my favorite book by Sager, but am happy I had the opportunity to read it and will continue reading books by him.

New releases from Riley Sager tend to be must-reads for me in the summer. I am sad to report that this wasn't my favorite Riley Sager novel. I found it uncomfortable to read about Casey's problematic drinking. I found the action lacking. Oddly, with that said, I think this story would make a great movie. I can imagine the binocular scenes to be particularly compelling, so well done to Sager on that count. All of that said, this was a quick read with a satisfactory ending, so while it's not top of my list, it was still enjoyable.

There wasn't a lot I liked about this story. I got tired of reading about Casey Fletcher's drinking on just about EVERY. SINGLE. PAGE. of this book. I also could not understand why she would let her mother talk her into staying at her lake place after her husband had died there. Why dredge up those memories and give Casey more reasons to drink every day and on every page? And then that weird twist with her husband towards the end? Meh. I enjoy reading thrillers/suspense novels but this one didn't do it for me.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

Excellent writing and telling of a story reminiscent of Rear Window. It was a bit slow at first but really got going and I flew through the book. The twists were fantastic.

This would make an amazing film. I loved the setting and the set-up of the novel is pitch-perfect. Some odd creative choices in the middle but it ended strongly.

Riley Sager is one of the best authors when it comes to writing psychological thrillers with the most unexpected twists! That's no different with this one. I inhaled The House Across the Lake and didn't want to put it down! I know for sure that so many readers will feel the same and this one will be a hit this summer!

4.5 ⭐️
What a ride!!! I was feeling down as I needed a thriller to mess with my mind 😆 Well, so glad I got the chance to read this one early. Thanks to Penguin Group Dutton and Netgalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This was my second book by Riley Sager!! Loved this story. It kept my mind reeling and excited to see where this was going!! It was creepy and twisty, just the way I like my thrillers. I didn’t rate it a 5 ⭐️ as there was one thing I wasn’t a fan of, but only because of personal preference. Overall awesome read and hope you add this to your TBR asap! I know I will be adding more of his books to mine.

Hits stores June 21, 2022

Riley Sager’s latest novel The House Across the Lake may be one of his best novels yet. He continues to satisfy his readers with his plot twists, fascinating characters and spooky settings. The novel follows Casey Fletcher, a widowed actress who has escaped to her family’s Vermont lake house after enduring some horrible publicity and needing a break from the relentless paparazzi. She spends her days drinking plenty of bourbon, thinking about her dead husband, Len, and using her binoculars to spy on her famous neighbors, Tom and Katherine Royce, who live in the house across the lake. Casey is fascinated by the couple: Tom, a social media innovator and Katherine, a former supermodel and current philanthropist.

Casey saves Katherine from drowning in the lake one day and the two become friends. As Casey gets to know Katherine better and keeps watching the couple, she sees that their marriage is not as perfect as it seems. When Katherine mysteriously disappears and provides no further contact, Casey suspects Tom of possibly murdering his wife. The novel could have strictly followed the played-out story of the guilty husband, but there is so much more to this story than that. I was shocked when the novel took an unexpected turn, but the clues are there if you look hard enough for them.

The novel also presents many suspects, such as Casey’s other neighbors on the lake such as the attractive, former cop Boone and the writer, Eli. Lake Greene itself is something of a character, too, with its history and mysteries. The protagonist, Casey, is a deeply flawed character but you can’t help rooting for her and wanting to see her fix her train wreck of a life and solve the mystery of Katherine’s disappearance. You will not be disappointed by the novel’s ending; I felt satisfied by how Sager wrapped up everything. Do yourself a favor and read Sager’s The House Across the Lake. It is the perfect psychological thriller to read this summer.

I am a big fan of most of Riley Sager's work, and this one managed yet again to impress me! This one is probably the most unique compared to his other books and I loved it. As someone who spent most of her spare time growing up at the lake, sitting around bonfires and listening to ghost stories, The House Across the Lake had the perfect spooky atmosphere for me! The characters in this story are all very charismatic, and I can truly say I didn't see where he was going with the story! While I'm not really a fan of the trope of having an unreliable narrator due to alcohol, this one was really well done.

Another winner from Sager! And easily one of my top thrillers of the year thus far. You definitely want this one on your radar for a spooky summer read.

I am so disappointed. Riley Sager used to be an auto-buy author for me but now it seems he is just getting by on name recognition, because frankly, this book is the perfect example of lazy writing. Take one SUPER OVERUSED trope (an alcoholic woman as an unreliable narrator--wow, so fresh, so unique--so much sarcasm) and add to it a twist ending that was previously done in a much better fashion (Sarah Pinborough's Behind Her Eyes) and you have this book. The hallmarks of Sager are there--the writing is solid and the novel is definitely atmospheric, but I'm just so disappointed that he's now relying on this terrible, overused trope. A huge disappointment.

****Fast-paced, roller coaster ride of twists and turns***

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 bourbon, she passes the time watching Tom and Katherine Royce, the glamorous couple living 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 isn’t 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.

The newest book by Riley Sager. WOW!!!, This book completely changed direction when I least expected it to! I did not want to stop reading!
The Main character Casey does become a little annoying with the excessive amount of alcohol she consumes I tried very hard to like her but it was a struggle!
I really didn't see any of the plot twists coming they were a shock when they did!

I haven't always been a lover of Sagers books but the most recent 3 haven't disappointed and this one has slid into my second favorite after Home Before Dark. I Would 100% recommend this one if you are looking for a rollarcoaster ride thriller!

This book is, as is usual with Sager, compulsively readable, and it's much better than his offering last year, which I could not finish. That being said, the requisite twist(s) here were freaking hilarious--props of a sort (I guess?) to him for going there for this one, though I feel like now that he's done this, he can't really do it again? (Or at least he can't with such hilarious/out-of-left-field effect?) IDK, but I was almost crying laughing as I finished it, and that's not even mentioning the FINAL final twist...absolutely bonkers.