Well friends, this is the first Sager book I did not care for. I found it rather hard to stay interested in. I kept getting caught up on the drunk lady, Casey, talking about alcohol and how much she drank. The other thing that I kept getting hung up on was the fact that she was a snoop, and pretty much that is all she did for most of the book, dpy on her neighbor across the lake and drink.

Now, there was some substance to the book once you reached about 75 to 85% of the book where you get the full story, the twist, and the why behind most of the things. At that point I was more interested in how this would end. So I would say, I was into the book about 15% of the time.

With that…will i continue to auto-buy Riley Sager’s books, yes. I have really enjoyed all of his books. This one was just not this one for me. This does not go to say that you shouldn’t read it for yourself because everyone’s taste is different. Pick it up and give it a whirl and let me know what you think. I know others have enjoyed it.

Absolutely LOVED the book. It's dark, it's a mystery and it will leave you guessing, so prepare for a long night. I simply had to finish it in one go!

After reading a few of Sager’s other books - Lock Every Door and Behind Closed Doors - I was excited to pick up his newest release, The House Across the Lake. I didn’t even read the synopsis for this one, I just jumped right in.

The thing I love most about Riley Sager’s books is how he blurs the line between thriller and supernatural. You never know which one you are going to get from his books, which keeps the reader guessing. The House Across the Lake is no different.

The House Across the Lake seemingly falls into common thriller tropes - jaded and unreliable female main character, spying leads to seeing something nefarious, something sinister going on between famous couple, etc. - however Sager does a good job giving new life to these familiar tropes. Like Sager’s other books, this one is compulsively readable.

The House Across the Lake includes a dual timeline alternating between ‘then’ and ‘now’ chapters. While I did not enjoy this format in the early parts of the book because it made the story feel a bit rushed, everything does eventually unfold nicely. I was completely surprised by the plot twist and enjoyed the direction the story takes.

While I did overall enjoy this story, I did feel like parts of this story were a bit implausible and questioned the actions of the characters. Like I mentioned, not my favorite Sager book, but I still think it is definitely worth the read. Because it seems to be so polarizing, The House Across the Lake would make for a great book club discussion.

***A big thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.***

WOW! Riley Sager does it again! This one was fast paced and kept me on the edge of my seat. I am in LOVE with it!!!!

Wasn't my favourite Riley Sager, but definitely kept me on my toes throughout the entire book. The twist is unlike any other - so it was interesting that it was a different/unique twist BUT it was not the twist for me and the book felt like it went in a completely opposite direction towards the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager. All opinions are my own.

Being entirely honest, in Riley Sager-standards, this fell flat for me. I'm usually instantly hooked and can't put it down. This book didn't do that for me, but it was still a solid read. Sager is a master storyteller and truly one of the best of our time.

Sager's "The House Across the Lake" is at the same time similar to the author's past novels and a semi-welcome deviation. I was not expecting the story to end the way it did and the twist was not predictable, as it had been in previous novels by the author. Casey is plagued by memories of her deceased husband and is drinking away the pain during a mandatory sabbatical at her family's lake house. When she picks up her husband's old birdwatching binoculars, she begins spying on the ex-supermodel and her husband that live across the lake. Casey sees things that she's not meant to see and she begins working to unravel mysteries of the past with the help of a neighbor after believing she has witnessed a murder.

I very rarely do this when I have an advanced reader copy, but I did not finish this book. I adore this author and was so excited to start reading it, but it just never pulled me. I kept trying to return to it and I just wasn’t interested enough to keep going. I will definitely read everything else that comes out, as I have always loved Riley‘s works. This one just didn’t do it for me, unfortunately .

I love Riley Sager. I love all of his books. I loved this book until about 2/3 of the way through. I am used to a certain format for Sager's books, and this twist was frankly too scary for me to finish except during daylight hours. I love twists and Sager's stories, and while this was a great twist and plotline, it was not my style of story and I did not enjoy the final third of the book.

Felt kind of familiar. Went kind of strange. Worth reading. Not my favorite Sager book. Four stars. Ready for the next Sager book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the DRC.

This was my first book of Riley Sager and I am quite impressed. The book is a crime thriller/ horror which is a rare and terrifying combination.
The protagonist Casey is a former actress and a widow who lives in her family house near Lake Green. Enters Katherine, the gorgeous supermodel who is saved by Casey from drowning in the lake and they become good friends. Little did they know that the very lake separating their houses is going to change their lives forever.
The writing style is quite dramatic and the author is surely good at plot building. The characters are good, in a way that they are not pretentious or superficial. The heroes and villains are aware of themselves and act accordingly. The author did a wonderful job of narrating the entire story from a woman's perspective while keeping up her self awareness and morality.
The storyline jumps back and forth in time and hence can cause some confusion and might need a lot of focus at times. But overall, a binge worthy read on a rainy day afternoon. Definitely recommended to the readers of Girl on the train and Into the water.

First line: The lake is darker than a coffin with the lid shut.

Summary: Casey has recently moved out to her family’s cabin on the lake after the death of her husband. She spends her days drinking and staring at the house across the lake. One day she hears cries for help from the water. As she investigates, she finds a young woman floating on the surface. After reviving her, she discovers that this is the neighbor across the lake, a former model, Katherine Royce.

With this new connection Casey starts to form a friendship and then an obsession. She notices little changes and questioning behavior in Katherine and her husband. It appears that Katherine is scared of her husband and then when she disappears, Casey knows that something has happened to her. And she knows it must be Katherine’s husband, who is to blame.

My Thoughts: As always I found Riley Sager’s newest book fantastic. There is always a 80s vibe to it with mystery and paranormal aspects. I felt little hints of Rear Window but also Woman in the Window as well but with its own spin.

I could easily imagine this beautiful lake but also one that has many dark secrets. I found myself fooled throughout the mystery, never knowing who to suspect. Especially since there were multiple things happening at once. Is everything connected or are they all just tied to this dark corner of the country?

With Casey we have an unreliable narrator like in many thrillers today. I did not exactly like her but I felt like her whole story was interesting and kept me wanting to find out more about her. I loved the big twists at the end. Very fun summer read!

FYI: Drinking, death and mental health issues.

Not my favorite by the author but still an engrossing page turner that kept me reading all night. Riley Sager knows how to keep you on egde, turning pages, guessing and losing yourself in the wild ride.

REVIEW-The House Across the Lake
***JULY READ***
★ ★ ★ .5
🔪Genre: Thriller/paranormal
💭Thoughts
Finished this one in early July but was so busy, that I only am now writing a review. I want to start by thanking Riley Sager and Penguin publishing for this arc. I loved the beginning of this one, it left me intrigued and kept me on my toes. Casey spying on her neighbors, reminded me a lot of The girl on the train and I have to admit, I was as curious as her. I personally did not like the switch from thriller to paranormal, which is why I lowered my rating. I loved the trajectory of the story before the switch and I expected it to continue down the thriller path. I did however find the story very interesting and it helped me get out of my reading slump!

This book frustrated me so very much, I was so into this book and throwing out different guesses almost every chapter...never would I have guessed what was about to go down! The twist occurred and I just couldn't get on board with it. At the same time though, I devoured the book until the very last page

So to say I was confused with how I felt about this one by the end is an understatement. I sat with my thoughts on it on and off for a week before posting my review. I still don't know if I loved it or hated it, but I'm leaning more towards didn't care for it. It felt like Sager was trying too hard to shock us with the twists it took, and it backfired.

I'm also very tired of the "crazy" or "drunk" woman trope as the main character. It just feels lazy at this point. I'm also tired of characters who have never been in law enforcement or the military all of a sudden thinking they can track down a possible murderer. It's insanity.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Alright, I've finally read a 5 star Riley Sager book!!

His books have been a bit hit or miss for me up to this point. But I loved The House Across the Lake.

The nod to Rear Window (which if you haven't yet seen I would highly recommend) is always a sub-genre I love to read.

The unreliable narrator is usually pretty fun in Thriller books as well as the additional twists and turns that were put in place in this story.

Great timing of reveals had me squealing with delight!!

5 stars!

As a huge fan of Riley Sager, I was so excited to read his newest release! While this book will certainly have readers hooked and entertained, it missed the mark for me in a few main areas. First, I feel like the unreliable female narrator with a drinking problem is overdone in the thriller genre. Second, I felt like as I was reading many aspects of this plot felt like they were veryyyy similar to other thriller books and movies out there. Finally, the twist in the end was creative but was a bit too far fetched for my liking. I loved Riley Sagers earlier novels and will certainly be reading his next releases in the hopes that I will enjoy them! Can’t wait to see what he comes up with next!

Rear View Window with a twist, because that’s never been done before 🙄🤪 The first half was boring and the second half was boring AND stupid. My only regret is not drinking when the main character drank so I, too, would remember nothing.

Before I say anything else, I want to say that this is the first Riley Sager book that I read. I have been seeing all the hype around his books and I was so intrigued, that as soon as I saw “The House Across the Lake” available for request on NetGalley, Ι went ahead and pressed the request button! Well, the least I can say is that it was an enjoyable read.

Casey Fletcher, a daughter of an actress and an actress herself, is staying at her family’s lake house in Vermont as per her mother’s request. She had to leave the city and go hide over there because she has made a spectacle of herself. She has been more drunk than sober for so many days. However, according to Casey, she had a really good reason! She lost her husband not so long ago and she still cannot deal with what happened. The worst of it is that Len, her husband, had drowned into this very lake, so she doesn’t really agree with her mother’s decision to sent her there. Too many memories. Too many sad memories that will not help her get better any time soon! But at least, there are no reporters to witness her downfall. There is only Ely there to keep an eye on her, in case she needed something. Like more booze for example!

Well, actually, there is not only Eli. In the house across the lake, there is also a very well known and rich couple, Tom and Katherine Royce. That house is new and has so much glass instead of walls, that Casey finds it hard not to look at it. Especially at night, when the lights make it somewhat of a stage, Casey, armed with a pair of binoculars and a bottle or two of bourbon or whiskey, watches the glamorous couple, the tech innovator and the former supermodel. Until one day, Casey saves Katherine from drowning in the lake and this is the tipping point of their relationship. The two women come closer and build a friendship and so Casey continues watching Katherine and Tom as she realises that something is off about their marriage. And then, one day, Katherine suddenly disappears and Tom looks guilty in Casey’s eyes. She is determined to find out what has happened to Katherine even if it means breaking into Tom’s house or contacting the police.

When I started reading the book, it felt as if Casey was a man. The discussion she had with the detective is what had me confused there, even though the detective was clearly a woman. I guess it had something to do with the fact that she was consuming too much alcohol or that she had somebody tied up, which would require some strength. Maybe it was the way she was talking, I don’t know. After some time, when she introduced herself, it became clear that Casey was a woman that had gone through a lot.

While reading the book I had a pretty good idea of what might be happening, but then at some point, very far on the book, I understood that it’s not what I thought at all. There were a few twists that took place near the end of the book and changed the perspective a few times. All in all, it was really easy to read and it made you think you have a clue of what might be happening, but there are secrets that are not revealed until the very end.

Thank you to NetGalley & PENGUIN GROUP Dutton, Dutton for an advance copy of this book. The views expressed are my personal and honest opinion.

I thought the book was good but I did have a hard time getting into it at first. It is full of suspense, twists, and a different ending. I find it hard to follow an unreliable character, and the alcoholic aspects seem to be overplayed lately. If you are looking for a book where the ending will surprise you, this is it.