This book sounded good, but it was really boring and slow. It struggled to hold my attention, and I put it down, preferring to do other things.

This was an entertaining story about girl friendships with more than a touch of horror.

Claire, Revya, and Mariana are late arrivals at the Lake House. All have been pressured by their parents to go to this summer camp for and "enrichment retreat." None expected to find themselves alone on an island in Maine with the camp burned to the ground and something chasing them.

I liked the way each girl exposed herself to the others as they began to trust each other. Claire has a pessimistic viewpoint on life. She's the first to identify all the things that can go wrong in any situation. Sometimes these circular thoughts cause her be suffer panic attacks. Her parents don't know what to do with her and make her feel that these attacks can be overcome with a more positive attitude. This only makes Claire feel worse about them.

Mariana and Revya are hiding secrets of their own.

But all three girls have to develop their own sorts of survival skills if they want to live through their summer camp experience. I loved watching the girls grow while learning to depend on and accept each other for what they are.

The horror aspect was also a nice addition to the story in a very creepy way.

This was a YA book that I did not want to put down. From the beginning chapters of The Lake House, you know something is not right. There was a twist in the story that I for one dis not expect, but that made it even more interesting.

Claire, Marianna, and Reyva are three teens from three different backgrounds, three different states, but had one thing in common...The Lake House. The Lake House was a summer camp in the woods of Northern Maine where the girls' parents had attended a couple of decades earlier. They then decided to send their daughters there for a few weeks. The three girls were arriving a little late due to bad weather and were being dropped off, expecting the camp director to meet them. However, after the boat that dropped them off leaves and no one is there to meet them, they decide to follow the trail to the cabin. What they find will leave them all in a state of shock and trigger a chain of events that will keep you guessing.

I really liked this survival stiry and was impressed with the three mc's courage, stamina, and ability to think clearly after all they go through.

I also loved that this story didn't have any kind of agenda, it was just a good, twisty story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy of The Lake House in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Claire is less than thrilled to go to a remote lake house retreat. It's just like all the other things her parents sign her up for that give her anxiety. When she and the other two girls are left on the dock only to discover that the Lake House has burned to the ground, Claire's anxiety gives her only the worst-case scenarios. Claire, Revka, and Mariana might be very different girls, but together they will have to survive, because there's something else out here in the woods with them...

I think I would have liked this better if it had been just a straight survival story. The dangerous elements - a mysterious man in the woods, another man with a gun, and an unspecified evil - were a little vague and confusing. Which is weird, because I generally like supernatural evil. I think if the supernatural aspect had been larger and there'd be more of that atmosphere in the story, I would have liked it, but in the end nothing was really answered about it. The comradery between the girls and how they overcome their personal issues was the best part of the book.

The cover for this book is what first drew me, but the story sucked me in, and wouldn't let go.

The tension and suspense start right away, our three girls arriving via boat, to the Lake House, somewhere their parents went to as children. However, once they arrive all they find is the husk of the house as it has very recently burned to the ground. Now the boat is gone, there is no phone service, and there doesn't seem to be any other people around... even though they were a day late arriving at the camp and all the others should surely be there... did they all die in the fire?
How are they going to get rescued? Once they find the body in the woods everything really ramps up, because now they know there is at least one other person with them, and they are a killer.
The book kept me on the edge of my seat throughout, it was spooky, and suspenseful, a story of three girls forming an unbreakable bond that helped them survive days in the forest while being hunted by not only a couple of crazy people but something that shouldn't exist, and will do everything in its power to make sure no one escapes.
I loved everything about this book, and when it was over I wanted there to be more. This was a perfect supernatural thriller and I will definitely be reading more from this author.

First, thank you Netgalley and HarperCollins Canada for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

The cover was an immediate draw for me in picking this book, it had that nineties style horror vibes in the vein of Christoper Pike and RL Stine. Once I got into the book, those vibes continued and I ended up reading the whole book in one day.

I really loved the girls: Claire, Mariana, and Reyva and how they used their different strengths to survive in the wilderness with nothing really but their wits and what they could gather. They all had their own personal battles and I loved how the girls opened up to each other and really found that solid friendship with each other—because that’s the biggest takeaway from this story. Friendship and accepting oneself for who you are.

I enjoyed the setting with that survivalist aspect and how the girls were able to overcome obstacles and how strong they were as a trio. When the mystery started ramping up the girls never swayed in their support of one another when they easily could’ve abandoned each other—instead, despite having just met they really formed a tight nit bond. Trust was definitely needed to survive what they were facing!

I honestly didn’t expect this story to go where it did but it was a fun read with a great thrill!

Instagram post to come soon!

It's fine, it's perfectly serviceable but it's not doing anything incredible or original. I didn't dislike it but it's possible I just don't connect with YA anymore.

Three girls arrive at a summer camp deep in the woods in Maine—but nobody's there. The camp is a battered, burnt-out ruin, and the only person they can find is dead. With nobody around to get them out, it's up to them to figure out: who did this? And why? And what will it take for the three of them to survive?

I've read a number of books of late in which it's clear that one of the main characters must have been the perpetrator, and this is basically the opposite: Claire and Mariana and Reyva arrived together, on the same boat—so there are few things of which they are certain, but they know without a doubt that none of them is responsible. They know they can trust each other. As a platonic-friendship story, then, it's fantastic: the girls are all very different, and under normal circumstances they probably wouldn't be friends...but these are not normal circumstances. This is late nights in the woods, in the rain, desperately needing a way to collect water and a way to find food; this is knowing that they aren't alone in the woods, and that nobody is coming to save them, and they'll need to save themselves. Mariana is a girly-girl with a deep love of old cars, and Reyva has gotten used to years of quelling her emotions, and Claire is terrified that her panic attacks will break them apart—and right now, they're all each other has.

I love a mystery that *scares* me, that makes me afraid that someone is, you know, stalking me through the woods and could slit my throat any minute now. I want to be afraid for the characters, but I want to be so lost in the story that I'm afraid for myself too. And "The Lake House" gripped me by the throat for the first twenty-one chapters. I was so deep in it that I barely registered the world around me as I walked through my neighborhood with my nose deep in my e-reader, and I jumped every time I caught another person moving in my peripheral vision.

What I didn't love: there's a twist. It's one that will work brilliantly for some readers, and I think it's best to go in not knowing, so I won't get more detailed than that—but it's the sort of twist that neutralizes a lot of the fear for me. I finished the book in a day and slept like a baby, but I sort of wish that I'd read only halfway before calling it a night, and then finished the next day, so that I could have had a bit of that wide-awake-can't-sleep-is-that-something-at-the-window feeling. (I know. It's a personal problem.)

So...not a home run for me, but I can and do gleefully recommend this for anyone who wants a deep-in-the-woods type of mystery (it's one of my favorite sorts, along with the stuck-in-a-rambling-old-mansion type) with an emphasis on platonic friendship and girls working together.

Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a review copy through NetGalley.

Between the cover, the title and the premise of a summer camp mystery/thriller I was sold. Unfortunately it didn’t work as well as I wanted it to. Firstly I didn’t realize this was YA and while I read the genre; this time it was too young writing style wise for my liking. Secondly, I can’t stand supernatural twists which (spoiler alert) this one has. I think this will work for lots but not me

The Lake House follows Claire, Mariana, and Reyva as they fight to survive while trapped at summer camp. All three girls were such interesting characters and I liked their immediate friendship. Each girl has their own secrets and as they work together to survive, each of their secrets come to light. I really liked being in Claire’s head because we got to see how she deals with mental health. It’s not explicitly stated but I read her condition as anxiety and OCD. She is constantly worrying about things around her and always thinks in worst-case-scenario. As someone who has anxiety, I really connected to this side of Claire because I often think in worst case scenarios so it was nice to see myself represented in a character. The girls’ relationship was interesting to see unfold. Each girl has something they want to hide about themselves, but being trapped in this situation forces them to confront their flaws in a way that forms them into strengths. They give each other the support they each long for so to see them finding them selves in such a dark situation was beautiful.
The mystery thriller element was fun and I found myself constantly trying to figure it out before it was revealed. The descriptions were super creepy and there were times I had goose bumps because of how creepy and gruesome the descriptions were. I was able to guess where the book was headed and the big twist was not my favourite. I felt like it pulled me away from the thriller aspect unfortunately. But the entire store was a fun read. I was engrossed in the story and even though the twist wasn’t my favourite, I still really enjoyed how the whole book wrapped up.
Overall this was an exciting Young Adult thriller that fans of Karen McManus and Holly Jackson would really enjoy! It releases April 25th 2023!

An edge of your seat, suspenseful page turner! I loved that this supernatural thriller focused on the friendship of the three main characters and romance was not a focus. That can be really hard to find in YA.

I was definitely interested from the beginning of book, the thought of 3 teens being stranded in the woods sounded great. I was invested in the survival aspect of the story but once the supernatural element came into play it lost me.

I did really like the friendship that formed between the 3 girls and how they worked together to survive and overcome the challenges throughout the book.

I didn’t love the end, I didn’t like how the just forgot Jack. I mean I get WHY but it didn’t work for me.

The cover art is great and I think this will really appeal to the younger YA crowd.

Thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books, HarperTeen for this advanced copy.

Imagine Jason has gone through Camp Crystal Lake, killed the campers, burned the bunks, moved into the shadows, curtain down. But then, three young teen campers, delayed by weather show up the next day, dropped off at the dock, expecting to be greeted by happy scenes out of a camp brochure, only to find the smoldering remains of camp house, see the boat that dropped them off speeding away, and realizing that they have no cell service and limited supplies. As they try to work through this nightmare scenario, they also discover something else - they may not be alone at the camp. And whoever's with them isn't exactly friendly.

The concept of this book was really exciting, not only for the "stranded on a deserted island" aspect, because if that was the only aspect of the book, there are plenty of survival shows to watch to get your fix - in fact some are mentioned in the book! But the author take things up a notch with the creepy, thriller angle adding in the unknown presence on the island and the mystery surrounding what's really going on and what really happened The Lake House.

And the answer is really intense - it's a great puzzle that the girls are able to slowly put together as they also fight for survival against the elements. I don't want to give anything away, but they end up dealing with threats in the present, threats from the past, and their own demons to try and stay alive for just one more day. It's really intense, and you can just feel the emotion coming off the page.

I really enjoyed this one, with its unique premise and its just little tiniest bit of a twist ending that makes you think. If you're a fan of Survivor-type shows, or even just good ol' thrillers, I'd recommend picking this one up.

It's not that this book is bad, per se, but more that its purpose/genre are not elevated by the writing. Meaning, this is a mystery book written for young adults, and therefore, the language may not be particularly complex. Now, does a book need to be complex to be intelligent, thoughtful, and a worthy piece of literature? Absolutely not! I read tons of YA literature; by virtue of that, I've read so many YA mystery/thrillers that are more dynamically written than this one.

This book had a lot of elements in it that I thought I was going to love: summer camp, survival, girl in the woods but the supernatural twist didn't work for me this time!

I've loved Durst's other books so had high hopes for this one. Unfortunately, the survival thing has been done better by others, and the supernatural element just felt forced.

eARC provided by publisher via Netgalley.

I'm a huge sucker for YA horror centered around girls in the woods, so I thought this was going to be a real treat. It was...not. I didn't click with the writing or the characters, and I found them a bit irritating, unfortunately. This is clearly a me issue, and I'm sure others will adore this YA alternative to 'Yellowjackets.'

Thank you to Harper Collins for sending me an advanced copy.

Claire has a lot of anxiety and is not looking forward a summer camp at the Lake House, but her parents think this will be a "formative experience" for her. She arrives at the camp with two other late arrivals, Reyva and Mariana and dropped off by Jack, a teenager. Immediately, the girls find the burned buildings and then a dead body in the woods and realize that someone is hunting them and they have no way off the island.

Strengths: This book immediately sucks you in and because the characters are extremely likable, you are rooting for them to survive. I enjoyed the evolving relationship between the girls and they accepted Claire's anxiety and helped her realize that overthinking and analyzing situations is also a plus in dangerous situations.
Weaknesses: The book seemed much longer than 253 pages and at times the plot seemed repetitious; however, there is enough action to keep YA readers engaged.

I will be purchasing several copies for my middle school library and recommend as a must purchase for libraries.

This was a total hit for me. I went in without any real expectations and was totally blown away! The comparison to Yellowjackets is apt, and I think this book will be a hit with fans of the show for sure.

I loved the survivalist aspect of the book, I had no idea that was going to be part of it. And I thought I had the twits figured out from the beginning but I was way off which was a delightful surprise (though I think some could see it coming).

There is some really great character growth, and I really appreciated the representation of anxiety (potentially OCD) which I think was really accurate.

The ending did feel a little rushed to me, I think it could have benefited from a few more pages, but overall, a super solid read.

ARC was given by NetGalley & HaperTeen in exchange for an honest review.

This review is being published before the release date (April 25, 2023)

Content/Trigger Warnings: Death, murder, depictions of blood, stalking, gun violence, violence, on page suicide, depictions of anxiety & panic attacks, mentions automotive accident (in the past), graphic injuries

“And the worst part wasn’t that there was a dead body here. The worst part was that somewhere out there… was a killer.”

First off, let me start by saying how excited I am to finally be able to share this review now that the HarperCollins strike has ended! I really enjoyed my time buddy reading this book with two of my favorite people and I’ve been eagerly waiting to tell you all about it. I never thought I’d be someone who gets into survival thriller books, but here we are and now I’m keeping my eyes peeled for more survival thrillers. And if the survival thriller aspect doesn’t lure you in, let the cover intrigue you enough to give this book a chance especially for fall reading!

Claire has spent her whole life making lists in her head of worst case scenarios, triple checking and preparing for anything, including the worst case scenarios. It’s just how she’s wired, but most people worry for her including her parents. So much worry, in fact, that they ship Claire off to a summer camp bonding experience with two other girls. However, things suddenly turn dark when the three girls are left on the island, ready to enjoy their week of bonding, when they discover the lake house they’re supposed to stay at is burned to the ground and they find a dead body in the woods. They’ll soon realize that nothing is by accident and someone, something is hunting them and refuses to let go.

Honestly, I loved our cast of characters! Reyva was probably my favorite out of everyone just due to the fact that even though she’s bonding with Claire and Mariana, she’s the person we really have to peel the layers back with. Reyva is the character we find the backstory and details of last, and that’s just by her character’s design. I loved it so much and Reyva is also a gamer, which you know I love a good game I can curl up with for hours. Mariana was such a fun time though! For starters, Mariana loves cars and gets really passionate about it. I adored reading the sections of Mariana talking about it. Seeing characters being passionate about the things they love and adore is like drinking a glass of cold water, refreshing and energizes my soul! Out of all of the characters, Claire was the hardest for me to connect with and I think it’s just due to the way Claire is written. While it’s clear Claire has severe anxiety and intense overthinking, it wasn’t clear on if she also has agoraphobia (the fear of open or public places) which I would have liked some clarification on due to having quite a few passages about how Claire never really liked going out into to public or liked being in public places. Either way, I still appreciate the anxiety representation, despite not having that clarification. All together, I enjoyed these three girls together and I loved the way the book concluded with the three girls, as well.

“Reyva said, quieter, “I don’t know who told you that broken means weak, but that’s bullshit. You are the smartest, most capable person I’ve ever met. And just because your body doesn’t behave the way you want it to all the time does not mean that you aren’t strong.”

There were so many fantastic discussions happening throughout this book between Claire, Mariana, and Reyva. A lot of conversations surrounding mental health and how some times the world, and people, make you believe that there’s something really wrong with you when there’s not. There’s underlying discussions surrounding stigmas with mental health and how you can internalize not feeling enough, how having mental health hardships or a disability somehow makes you weak or you feel broken, and I loved watching these girls talk about this and shoot it all down. I have a lot of love for books that can have discussions surrounding mental health, shoot the negative down, and at the end be like, “You are so much more than just your mental health.” And I felt this book conveyed that in a really good way. What I loved even more than these discussions was the fact that it brought the three girls closer together and strengthened their bonds. Seeing the author write that into the story made me really soft and sappy, and I don’t think I’ll ever get over how much it warmed my heart.

All of the character love and the mental health talk aside, the atmosphere was really good. Even though I haven’t read this book in a hot minute, I still vividly remember the atmosphere. I remember how I just wanted to keep reading and was so captivated. The minute the girls are dropped off on the island and discovered the lake house was burned down, I had to make sure I was stocked on water and snacks because I knew I hunkering down until I finished this book. I think due to the atmosphere being well built, the pacing of the book read so fast for me, personally. However, I will admit that I went into this book with the mindset of wanting to have a fun, captivating, thrilling time and I felt I had received that in my reading experience.

“There was something wrong. Wrong about the house, wrong about the cave, wrong about the forest and the sudden storms and the birds that fell quiet.”

If I had to say anything bad about this book or say what others might not like about this book, it would probably boil down to two things. The first thing being the storyline. Let me just say, the storyline is a wild ride and even though I enjoyed it, I think readers will either have a fun time or absolutely hate the direction it goes. I think for those who will be on the disliking end of the direction the storyline goes will feel like the storyline is odd or potentially come off as half-baked. And the dislike for the storyline also ties in with the second thing, the ending or the conclusion to the book. Now, this was my only issue with this book, but it wasn’t enough to make me knock a star or anything like that. The ending felt very unsatisfying with how things concluded on the island and the way it was wrapped up. Again, I loved watching all three of the girls meet up and still get that happy ending, but everything else before that scene felt like something was missing or almost like the author took the easy way out to wrap up the book.

Overall, I had a fantastic time reading this. Again, I loved chatting about this book with my friends and fellow buddy readers. It was a great read for us all around and some of the discussions we had surrounding the book were some of the most memorable conversations I’ve ever had. There was just so many great things about this book and I think readers will have a lot of appreciation for the anxiety rep, disabled/chronic pain rep, the lgbtqiap+ rep, and the atmosphere. I love a good spooky atmosphere for a read. This is a very autumnal read and I definitely recommend curling up with it during the Halloween season or just a really stormy day!


The quotes above were taken from an ARC and are subject to change upon publication.