This is not your run of the mill who done it. From the first few pages to the end of this story, I was enthralled with it. Not many stories get one passionately involved as this one does. I felt very strong emotions for not just the main character but some of the others as well. I think one will be able to identify with a couple of the star characters in this story. Great read, I will be recommending this to many of the patrons this summer and fall. Great story.

This latest entry from Sager feels like several books combined into one. (Woman falling apart after personal tragedy, woman seeing something strange and THE LAKE).) While I enjoyed all the storylines, I would have liked to see some of them fleshed out more. And I would have liked a lot more folklore about the lake tbh.

Unreliable narrator? Check. Sexy next door neighbor? Check. Mysterious couple across the lake with a house full of windows? Check. Surprise ending. Check. Only a 3 star for me, but it kept me entertained for a bit.

Just when I think Riley Sager's work can't surprise me further, he writes The House Across the Lake. I loved this story and the surprising turn of events, I wasn't insanely thrilled with some of the choices he has the main characters make in his stories as they often seem to lack all common sense, but the entertainment value tends to make up for it.

This book drew me in from the first chapter and didn’t let go until the very end. It was fast paced, well written and just fun to read. It had so many things I enjoy in a book: a slightly spooky location, stormy fall weather, a drunk rich narrator and crazy twists and turns. I couldn’t put it down!

I give this book 3.5/5 stars but rounded up to 4 because I felt 3 was too low. I always enjoy Sager's writing, and the book did keep me entertained. However, the storyline itself lacked originality, and too many twists were thrown in at the end, seemingly just for the sake of being surprising, rather than doing anything for the story.

Just when you think you have it figured out, that's when they get you with the twist. The House Across The Lake, the newest release from Riley Sager, is the perfect read for those who enjoy thrillers. The main character, Casey, is banished to the lake house following her firing after showing up drunk for her theatrical performance. This comes on the heels of having lost her husband, Len, to a drowning accident.

Casey finds herself sitting on the deck with her best friend, bourbon, when she spots someone floating facedown in the lake. Desperate to save this person, she rows out and manages to pull Katherine to shore, who miraculously survives. Casey finds herself intrigued by Katherine, a former model, and her husband, a tech entrepreneur, and begins spying on them at night. But when Katherine goes missing and Casey suspects her husband was involved, things begin to heat up.

There is an element of fantasy to this story that may not appeal to some readers, but I found the story and characters to be engaging and stayed up late to finish it. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this early copy.

I love Riley Sager and he always give me a story that makes me read way past my bedtime. This one was no different for me. He did a great job painting the scenery in this book and I could picture the lake and homes on it. It's hard to decide if you like any of the people in this book but I don't really need a character to root for to enjoy a book. The book does take a rather bizarre turn and I'm still struggling to decide if I liked it. I am feeling a little bit of book withdrawal after finishing the story so clearly I enjoyed it overall.

🔊Song Pairing: No Body, No Crime - Taylor Swift

💭What I thought would happen:

I love Riley Sager, the biggest fan. So I expect a great thriller with a shocking ending

🗯Thoughts:

I’m so tired of authors making their leading ladies drunk to make them an unreliable MC. It’s been so overdone. I understand alcoholism is a real issue and many women and men suffer from it but honestly it just seems like an easy way out of a writing bind

All of sager’s women are so pathetically weak and there is almost always a man coming to save them in some way and frankly I am tired of this too…I used to think I loved that he could write a relatively good woman for not being able to understand but I’m starting to have doubts.

Lacked creativity in every way. Felt like this book was being pushed my the publisher to get one out annually so as to not be forgotten.

Also, his characters while yes tragic, are just so self-involved. Always the victim and always always about them. Why me, poor me, I don’t need help even though I blatantly do…help me

Overall, just not my favourite. Thank you, next.

I have yet to be blown away by a Riley Sager book…..until now. This is by far my fav of his, the characters were so intriguing and the plot was well done. It wasn’t as far fetched as some of his other mysteries which I was thankful for. I could have done without the then and now flashbacks as I felt it gave away some of the plot but that’s ok. If you’re a fan of Sager I definitely recommend this one

Rating: 4/5 stars ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Thank you so much to Penguin Random House & Dutton for the ARC copy. So grateful!

I will be the first person to say that I’m really OVER the psychological thriller “main character is an alcoholic so we can’t trust her” trope. With that in mind, this novel really is a classic ‘whodunnit’ with some really shocking twists and turns that I did NOT expect at all.

Our main character Casey is a famous broadway actress who has retreated to her quiet Vermont lake house for the month after having a very public meltdown in Manhattan. Her husband drowned in the lake a year back & she has been struggling with alcoholism ever since. Across the lake, famous model and her tech husband Katherine & Tom Royce have moved in to an all-glass home. Armed with her bottle of bourbon & binoculars, Casey watches as things may not be as they seem in public behind closed doors.

So many different things happen with a cast of many characters such as Boone (hot handyman next door), Eli (only full-time resident of the lake who has been friends with Casey for years) and of course.. Katherine and Tom Royce. The characters I loved and the overall plot twists were SHOCKING. I thought I had the final twist pinned down halfway through the book and I can happily say I was wrong. 😳 🤐

I feel like this book was so much better than I thought it would be. I was expecting another “Woman in the Window” but I found that the main twist was way juicier and more out there. 👏🏻 I read a lot of thrillers and I found this one to be better than typical! Way to go Riley Sager! My lips are sealed. Make sure to pick up a copy in June when it is published!

Riley Sager rules! Enough said!!! "The House Across the Lake" is another top-notch, edge of your seat thriller.

What an amazing, faced paced, mysterious little thriller this book turned out to be. Sager has easily become one of my favorite authors. He hooked me when I first read “Lock Every Door” and each book he has written since has gotten better and better.
I have a lot of Patrons at my library who rely on my book suggestions… and this book will now be the first I will recommend. Solid 5 stars for me.

As a huge fan of Riley Sager, I was so excited to receive an advanced reading copy of this book. My feelings on this book were unfortunately mixed- as always, Sager’s books are wonderfully written and a joy to read, but the first half of the book felt like yet another iteration of the unreliable female narrator spying on the suspicious couple in a nearby house. As always with a Riley Sager book, there is a massive twist that completely changes the course of the book.

Overall, I did enjoy this book but found the first half to be a bit too slow moving and wished the twist happened earlier. Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for this ARC!

I requested this book on reflex without even reading the description, which boils down to: “Socially isolated recently traumatized drunk white lady with binoculars drunkenly spies on her neighbors and thinks something really bad has happened, but she is so drunk she’s not quite sure what is going on. and then she drinks some more because she’s sad and confused. Also: she’s drunk. From drinks. Lots of them. Mostly bourbon. But sometimes wine. Because drunk ladies like to drink all the drinks and get paranoid and abuse their access to high-powered binoculars.”

This trope is tired, so tired, like three-or was it four? I’m too drunk to count-day-drinks-of-bourbon tired. Please stop it with the drunk white ladies.

But… I still weirdly sort of liked it in parts because some super bananas stuff happens that makes it a bit different than all of the other drunk white lady books, but that bananas stuff was so bananas that I kind of lost it again, and I mostly hated this book, but still kind of enjoyed reading it because I wanted to see what nonsense would happen next, thus I am left conflicted but mostly irritated, and decidedly, unfortunately, not drunk.

I don’t know. Some people are going to love this. I did not.

This is the kind of story that as you read it, you are thinking about which actor/actress should play which parts. I have their perfect lineup figured out! So much drama in such a simple setting! Great plot twists and nail biting suspense here. I tore through it so fast - you have to make time for this when you start it because it definitely is one that’s hard to put down.

Riley Sager is one of the most popular thriller writers today for lots of reasons. His thrillers are propulsive and fun and feature twists galore. The House Across the Lake is no different and Sager's fans will love this one while it also brings new Sager fans into the fold.

This book is in some ways an homage to films like Rear Window, Disturbia, et. al. Casey, the main character, is (like most Sager protagonists) a heroine with secrets of her own and she finds herself spending some time at her family lakehouse in Vermont. During her sojourn she spends the time spying on her neighbors and when one of her neighbors disappear, Casey's spying takes a darker turn as she finds herself trying to find out what happened to the missing neighbor.

This book was another fantastic Sager thriller. All the elements that readers return to his books for are present: Strong heroine, surprising twists, and mysteries galore. To say too much more would be to spoil some of the twists that I thought were most effective so I'll just stick to saying "This is a great one."

To anyone looking for a great summer thriller, I would highly recommend this one. This book is definitely going to have some long waitlists for it at public libraries this summer!

This will be the book to beat for 2022. I’m still processing all the twists and there are a shit ton of them. This starts as a solid thriller but I’m wondering to myself when the horror elements will arrive, if at all. They arrive and it’s sooooo creepy. I used to live on a lake and now I’m running through all my memories. You never really know your neighbors. Or what’s lurking in that dark, deep water. I love Sager’s books! I’m so incredibly thankful that I was given advanced access through NetGalley—this book is the main reason I created an account. I basically kept my fingers and toes crossed every day hoping for approval. Such a fantastic book, highly recommended!!

Also, I've never won the lottery before but I believe it would feel similar to reading the email I received letting me know that my request was approved to receive digital access to this book. So thankful!!

This was my first Riley Sager book and I can totally understand the hype now! I really enjoyed his writing style and thoroughly enjoyed the first few sections of the book. I can't say much more without spoiling but something happened that just completely took me out of the original story and I did not enjoy the last part of the book as much as the first. Overall I am excited to try my next Riley Sager read because I did truly enjoy his writing style immensely. Thank you for the ARC!

A washed up alcoholic actress lives alone in the family house on Lake Greene in Vermont. She spies on her neighbors using the binoculars left behind by her recently drowned husband, Len. As days go by, she becomes really interested in the couple who live directly across the lake - The Royces. Something strange is going on in that house and Casey Fletcher is determined to get to the bottom of it all.

If you are looking for a straight forward suspense or psychological thriller, this is not the book for you. To say it bordered on the preposterous might be a little strong, since this is fiction after all, but toward the last third of the book the author really goes way out there. That twist is what turned me off to the rest of the book and I ended up severely disappointed despite having read and generally enjoyed all of this author’s previous stories. I can’t say more without spoilers, so just leaving it here that I wish I had not wasted my time.

I do appreciate NetGalley and Dutton for the e-book ARC to read and review.