What a wonderful way to find one’s self and rekindle a very special romance.

Loved that it was set in one of the most popular lakeside destinations in Ontario.

Wonderful summer read

On June 14, ten years ago, Fern Brookbanks spent twenty-four hours with Will Baxter. He was an artist who took her on a tour of Toronto for one of her final days in the city. They hadn’t met before that day, but they made plans to meet exactly one year later at Fern’s family’s resort in Huntsville. The following year, Fern waited for Will but he didn’t show up. Now, thirty-two year old Fern is returning to her family’s resort because her mother died in a sudden accident. Fern is trying to take over the resort with no experience or desire to work there. Then, Will shows up at the resort with an offer to help her figure it out. Fern needs the help and she has been waiting for Will for ten years, but she must decide if she’s willing to open herself up to possibly getting hurt again.

It is very hard not to compare this book to Every Summer After. It’s by the same author and has a similar storyline: a woman who grew up in Ontario’s cottage country, moves to Toronto as an adult but must return home after a death in the family and face the love of her life who she hasn’t seen in years. Probably if I hadn’t read these books back to back and if they hadn’t come out a year apart they wouldn’t have seemed as similar. Every Summer After was relatable and had a lot of strong emotions. Meet Me at the Lake didn’t evoke the same emotions in me but I liked the ending. I appreciated how much the author said in the acknowledgments that writing this one was more difficult than her first book. Every Summer After would be a hard book to follow up due to its huge success, but this one is a good summer beach read.

Meet Me at the Lake is a great second chance summer romance!

Thank you Tandem Collective and Penguin Random House Canada for sending me a copy!

Content warnings: death of parent, anxiety, marijuana use, death by car accident, parental abandonment, teen pregnancy

I heard great things about Carley Fortune's previous books, so I wanted to read this one. Throw in that it takes place in Ontario, and specifically in an area that I have spent time in, and I was all in. Fern Brookbanks finished school ten years ago and had no intention of leaving Toronto to go back to Huntsville and run the family resort. Her mother, Maggie, was anticipating her return and Fern was trying to decide what to do. At that point, she meets Will Baxter, a handsome, talented artist. They spend time together and convince each other to follow their heart and dreams. Will with whom she spends the next 24 hours, gives her the courage to follow her own heart. They had great chemistry and agreed to meet up one year later. Fern showed up. Will didn’t. Fast Forward ten years and Maggie has been killed in a car accident and she left the resort to Fern. She returns to determine if she will run it, or sell it. It is losing money, needs work, her ex-boyfriend is the manager and she needs to make a decision that will affect the rest of her life. What makes the decision even harder is that Will Baxter shows up. He was hired by her mother to consult on how to turn the resort around. The attraction is still there, but neither Will or Fern are in the place they thought they would be ten years ago.

I enjoyed getting to know both Fern and Will, although the story is told from Fern's POV. They both have issues and baggage to deal with. Fern knows Will is hiding something and she wants to help him, but he is so secretive and shuts down her questions and prodding. They can't deny their chemistry and end up in a relationship. This makes it even harder to decide what the next steps should be as Will lives in Toronto. Considering they are in their 30s, it is still a coming of age story to some degree. Neither of them are living the life they want to live and together they help each other to realize that. Will is over protective with his sister and niece, which was kind of nice to see in a man, but he needs to back off, and make a life for himself. Of course things don't go smoothly and Will's sister and Fern's BFF get involved (I loved how they wanted to protect them) to help them see what is really important in their lives. I was waiting to see what they would decide for their futures. I enjoyed the story, the characters and the setting, but it didn't bowl me away as I had been expecting. It was a nice story and perfect for this time of year.

This is a different genre of books than I normally pick up, but it was a really good escape and I enjoyed it. I absolutely loved all the (very specific) Toronto references. I have no doubts this will be a “must read” for many this summer.
Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for an ARC of this book!
3.5/5

Read if you like: Second chance romances
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I struggled to get into this book at first but was completely hooked for the last quarter, and I am glad that I pushed through and finished it, but I can see how some people might not. I love a second-chance romance and loved that Fern and Will got another opportunity to get to know one another. I loved the lake setting of the book and the fact that Fern needs to figure out what to do with her family's resort.
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I think the thing I struggled with is Will and Fern had only met for one day, and had a connection but both were still in relationships. They plan to meet in one year but Will doesn't show. Then they see each other again 10 years later. I think I struggled with believing that they would still hold a flame for each other for 10 years after only knowing each other for a day, and since the book is told with dual timelines, we don't really get to understand what happened that one day 10 years ago until near the end of the book.
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Overall though, like I said, I am glad I read it and overall it was a good summer read!

This was a really solid follow up to Every Summer After. I had no issues with the insta love and the 10 years of pining, I felt like it added to the angst. I wish the mental health issues brought up at the end had been a bigger part of the story, but overall I really enjoyed this!!

This Canadian author has done it again. Meet Me at the Lake by Carley Fortune delivered the flawed yet loveable characters readers have come to know and love. A wonderful second novel for Fortune that is sure to elicit a wide array of emotions from readers and become everyone’s favourite summer read.

Meet Fern. When she was 22 and finishing college, she met an artist named Will while he was painting a mural at the coffee shop she worked at. They had a bittersweet 24 hours together and planned to meet at her family resort in one year. A year later, Will never shows up. Fast-forward to 10 years later, and there he is. Checking in to the resort. Will the memories of that fateful 24 hours resurface, and will they be able to find the words that need to be said?

Fortune continues to write characters who don’t hold back and hurt themselves as much as they hurt others. In other words, they’re relatable. I also adore stories written by Canadians and set in Canada. I grew up going to both settings in Fortunes novels, and I’m here for this poignant story of loss and forgiveness. If you enjoyed Fortune’s debut novel, you are sure to devour this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Random House Canada, and Viking for an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

It took one, adventure filled day in Toronto for Fern Brookbanks to fall for Will Baxter. If it wasn’t for her then boyfriend, Jamie, who knows what could have been. Fast forward 10 years, Fern has returned home to Muskoka to take over the family business - something she thought she would never do - after her mothers tragic death. One morning, as Fern is trying to figure out her future, Will shows up at her resort and ultimately changes the trajectory of her life.

Carley Fortune’s sophomore novel was a highly anticipated one, and boy it did not disappoint. I devoured this in one day. I enjoyed how the story was told through a dual timeline, it really helped the reader to understand Fern and Will’s dynamic. Read this if you like stories about second chance love, Canadian cottage life and overcoming hardships.

I definitely liked this one more than the authors first one However once again I feel like something was missing, whether it be that some parts felt more telly than showy, or that there were certain parts of the book like the letters and the father issue that felt unfinished or not delved into enough. BUT the sexy parts were sexy and I liked that there wasn’t another cheating scandal and it also felt very homey and very dirty dancing-esque which I really liked

Totally bin9e worthy second chance romance, the stream, the connections, the Characters and plot make this book amazing. Fortune has a way of drawing you into her novels and keep you wanting to turn the page to find out more, the dual timeline prespective was amazing to go back the ten years to watch what happened on that day in Toronto that left such a huge impression

Overall I did enjoy the book. Carley has a way with words that keeps you engaged and wanting to read more.

However, I did find some of the themes very similar to Every Summer After and that was a little disappointing. I loved ESA when I read it at my lakefront property last year. What I did love about MMATL is the same cottage life nostalgia.

Fern, the FMC, is struggling with the decision to keep the family business going after her mother's sudden passing. It is not something she ever saw herself wanting, but when an old love interest turns up, she slowly changes her mind, with his help.

Will, the MMC, was just not my favourite. He was meant to be leading man quality but he just fell flat for me. His issues were never fully addressed, regarding mental health, and it felt like a missed moment for us as readers to empathize with him.

There were some other characters that I enjoyed in the story as well, Jamie/Peter/Whitney, but again I wanted just a little more of their stories. I actually loved Whitney as a character, I am always for ride-or-die friendships.

As I said all in all I did enjoy the book, I wish maybe it were a bit longer to flesh out some of those details that would have made it even better.

Without a doubt, Carley Fortune will be an auto-buy for me. I can't wait to read what she writes next. I hope she sticks with the wonderful Canadian content.

Really enjoyed the author's first novel but this felt very similar at times. I also couldn't connect to the past characters as much as the characters in the present. Still enjoyable but a bit of a let down.

woof ok this review is hard to write, mostly because i really enjoyed carley fortune's debut 'every summer after' when i read it last year, but her sophomore novel just did not do it for me.

i won't get into the nitty gritty of the plot, but basically our main girl fern spent one day 10 years ago with a guy called will. they have a whirlwind day in toronto, and their connection is undeniable, but they are both dating other people. fast forward to the present when will turns up at fern's family resort in muskoka that fern has just inherited from her late mother. fern takes will up on the offer to help get the resort back in shape, and their love is 'rekindled.'

basically, this book was just not believable. there is NO WAY these two were still pining after each other ten years later after having full lives, evolving as people, and not having anything beyond a connection on the day they spent together (ie. no kissing, hand holding, etc). fern & will are also not enjoyable to root for, as they are just kinda cardboard cut-out characters; there's nothing about them that makes them interesting to me.

this is yet another romance that also deals with grief, but it didn't hit the same as the first did. there are a lot of pages from fern's mother's diary inserted into the book, but not much was done with them, so it didn't add to the story.

overall, just skip this one.

Oh man, I wanted to love this one. Every Summer After was a 5 star read for me and was added to my favourites. So this was definitely a let down.

I think the biggest reason this didn’t work for me is that I did not buy the “insta love” at all. You spend one day together exploring Toronto (kind of) and they are suddenly pining for each other for nine years? I didn’t even really feel any chemistry during this day that they spent together.

I felt like pieces of this book dragged on but there were parts that were also rushed? If that makes sense at all. I think I would have enjoyed less flashbacks and more focus on the current adult time. I also felt like there were some pieces of the story that weren’t finished.

There was a lot of build up to the reveal of why Will didn’t show up. The reveal fell super flat for me.

There were some things I did like: THE COVER. So gorgeous. I also loved the setting of the book. I did like the themes of grief and mental health, I thought they were well done.

2.5 Stars, Rounded up.

This is my first read by Carley Fortune, but I definitely want to go back and read her first novel after reading this story. I loved the back and forth from past and future of Fern and Will, it was great seeing how their one night together affected her and how it made her who she is years later. The characters grow a lot over the course of the book, and it is amazing reading a book where I can imagine all the places that they go to. Definitely an amazing quick read with a great romance and I can't wait to read more!

Today is the craziest pub day of the year. I can think of about 8 books that publish today that I've been antsy to read or have already read! So exciting!!

What book is on your list for today?!?

Thank you so so much the @penguinrandomca @penguincanada for the advanced copy of Meet Me at the Lake by @carleyfortune. I loved this tender story and I am certain that fans of Carley's debut Every Summer After will love this one as well. Meet Me at the Lake is told in a somewhat similar way to ESA in that we go from the present to the last (9 years ago) and authors who are employing this writing technique are REALLY working well for me lately because the way the story moves along is just so compelling and as a lover of people, it's so fun to experience characters at two points in their lives. That's just my opinion!

This story features a man named Will and a woman named Fern and Fern's friends and family at the resort where she grew up in Ontario. The setting is so fun - and the segments in Toronto throughout the book were appreciated too 😍. There has been some heartbreak in both characters' pasts and present and there's a lot of uncertainty both in the past and the present as to next life steps. All of this comes to a head by the end of the book, as expected, and the journey these characters take is emotional, difficult, and fragile.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐5 stars from me for a beautiful love story from an author I can't wait to continue reading well into the future 😍 I want to reread Every Summer After again now so I just might!

2.5 ~
MEET ME AT THE LAKE by Carley Fortune was a highly anticipated & most disappointing romance.
Before we continue, let the record show that I loved EVERY SUMMER AFTER (5⭐️).

𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧:
MMATL tells the story of Will & Fern. Fern meets Will when she is 22 and they spend 24 hrs together, during which Will takes her on a tour of Toronto (the tour was underwhelming) (I shouldn’t start critiquing the book here; we are talking about the plot) (but it was lame – Graffiti Alley, AGO, Sonic Boom Record Store, Kensington Market, Sneaky Dee’s…meh).
They promise to meet 1 yr later. Fern shows up but Will does not. 10 yrs after their initial meeting, Fern needs help and Will appears… *cue music*

𝗔𝗦𝗜𝗗𝗘:
I know that greyhound station on Dundas at the beginning of the book. My favourite little hangout spot is across the street. I’ve spent a significant amount of time at Rex’s; at our favourite table in the corner and sipping gin & tonics on the patio in the summers.

𝗧𝗛𝗢𝗨𝗚𝗛𝗧𝗦:
The story did not work me. I did not believe in their love story so it was hard to root for them. In addition to the glaring “THEY ONLY KNEW EACH OTHER FOR ONE DAY” trope which is always a difficult one for me, he had a girlfriend & she had a boyfriend (of 4 years!) when they met & developed this so called “connection”. When I’m not on board with the romance, I get nit-picky — the writing started to sound corny and I started laughing at analogies that weren’t meant to be funny.

Further, they never really got to know each other as thirty-somethings. It really irked me when they would say “I know you” or “you know me” in the present day timeline. They knew each other for ONE day in the past & a few weeks in present. They were obsessed with the version of each other that they met (for ONE day) 10 yrs ago. It needed more of them getting to know each other in the present timeline.

The big secret & reason why Will didn’t show up 9 years ago was as underwhelming as his tour of Toronto.

Recommend to a friend? Sadly, I cannot.

PS: Her old boss gave someone her address. Why wouldn’t he just give that person her phone #? Somebody pls call the privacy law police! Make it make sense.

In their early 20’s Fern and Will spent 24 hours together. Sharing secrets and fears, their connection was undeniable.

They promised to meet one year later, a date Fern kept, but Will did not.

Ten years later they story continues when their paths cross again.


I, like many #bookstagrammers absolutely fell in Love with Carley Fortune’s debut novel ‘Every Summer After’.
I went into this book with high expectations and I was not disappointed.
I loved the dynamic between Will and Fern, I did think maybe their relationship moved a little quickly considering the bad blood that would have been there, but I’m the end I was all about this love story.

Carley Fortune is officially on my autobuy author list!

3.75

Carley summer romances are top-tier and having them in a Canadian setting makes them even better. I really enjoyed the first 80% of the book so much because the summer vibes were there and it was super engaging. But the last 20% was a little harder to get through mainly because I think I was over the past POV ( which is a me problem).

Didn’t really enjoy this one as much as every summer after but I would still recommend for a quick and easy summer read.

Meet Me At The Lake was unknowingly appropriate for pre-Mother's Day reading.
Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for my eARC for review.
Fern Brookbanks returns to her family's Muskoka resort after the sudden death of her beloved mother, Maggie. Like so many moms and daughters, their relationship was a complicated one.
It also brings Fern back in contact with Will Baxter, a business advisor hired by her mother, who Fern met 10 years earlier when he was an aspiring artist.
Carley Fortune's latest is a love letter to summer, to Toronto and Muskoka, to Canadiana (Alanis and Jann, anyone?) and to the dreams of youth. It's also about finding your way in romance, following your passions, and a new oneness as a motherless daughter.
Fortune creates characters that are relatable and feel real, and this is a fantastic follow-up to her first novel, Every Summer After.
I highly recommend both!
Released on May 2.