This is a good book. The two main characters are Giuliana and Declan. They have known each other for all their lives. They were first crush for each other. Giuliani returns to her grandparents’ lake house, which she inherited. Declan runs his construction business. They run into each other and Declan ask her out. They start dating. They fall in love.

The beginning paragraph of The Lake House is beautiful. It talks about the three loves we'll have in our lifetimes and how Giuliana's third love, the one that was supposed to be forever, broke her most of all.

There's even a flashback to the moment of heartbreak. I felt like her husband, Todd, was open and respectful during this part. He owned up to what he did and left.

It's why his behavior for the rest of the book is so weird. I understand he's meant to be unhinged, but you would think that would have come out on the beginning as well.

With the relationship between Guiliana and Declan left on the surface level, it was difficult to pay attention to much else than Todd and what he'd do next.

I can see the appeal for The Lake House. There's a cute ploy and a cast of quirky characters. It just wasn't for me.

Thank you, Bella Emy and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read this book!

I'm sorry, but this was just so awful that I couldn't go past the 30% mark and ended up DNFing the book.

- Liv, Giuliana's friend, talked like a 14-year-old.
- Declan was so bland and dull that I couldn't believe it.
- Giuliana kept putting a strand of hair behind her ear. Every time we see her, the author feels the need to let us know that she's definitely putting her hair behind the ear.
- Giuliana's ex, despite leaving her to follow his dick through a string of women, seemed normal. Then he suddenly starts calling and texting her, behaving like a possessive psychopath in need of therapy, saying that she only belonged with him and whatever.
The book HAD to have a villain, of course, how could we survive without one, so out of the blue the ex becomes the stalker when, again, nothing even pointed in that direction.

The dialogue was over-the-top, and there was way too much tell and not enough show. All this is in the first 30% of the book.

Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Hi Y’all! Come in and grab an oatmeal cookie and a cold drink while I tell you about this book I just read.
The title is The Lake House by Bells Emy Silver Mist escapes book 1
The cover is beautiful . Then I read the blurb and it really got my interest because it’s about two adults that thought they had happy ever after but both ended up divorced. Giuliana moves to Silver Mist where she visited her grandparents in the summer. Her best friend lives there and so does her first crush.


Who’s my favorite main character ? I didn’t have a favorite main character. I did like all the characters but Declan’s daughter Lily was a cutie.

The story is set in Silver Mist a small lake town. I liked how everyone knew everyone and it seemed a nice place to live.
The story is a romance, though the main characters don’t get together until halfway through the book. There is a bit of suspense with Guile’s ex. The story is in two views and I did like that . We got Declan’s story and Guile’s story then them together.
Was there something I didn’t like? My only issue was though I do like details the descriptions got to be too much. I didn’t need every step from the closet to laying the clothes on the bed to going back into bathroom etc and this was every scene.
What would have made that better? Less description, more of The main characters together possibly sooner.
This story made me feel relaxed and happy.

I like the ending. It was HEA
How hot was the book? 2 there wasn’t on page sex but mention of it . If you like second chances, sweet romance and cute kids you will like this.

This book is everything! I couldn't get enough of Giuliani and Declan. I read this book all night because I couldn't let them go. I had to know what happened next. Great book!!
I just reviewed The Lake House by Bella Emy. #TheLakeHouse #NetGalley
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Thank you to Netgalley and Bella Emy for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

What can I say about this book? It has an amazing storyline, characters, and depth. This is a book I couldn't put down. It has two things I love in books: a HEA and dual first-person POV, so you can get both characters feelings while reading.

Giuliana and Declan's love story is filled with heartache, healing, and tons of chemistry between them. This is sort of a second chance romance, as the characters have a history where secret feelings were never explored.

Giuliana is a woman who returns home to Silver Mist after divorcing her husband, who cheated on her. She wants to return to a time when she was happiest in her life by returning to the place where she spent the summers with her grandparents as a kid.

Declan Bell is a handsome local Silver Mist resident who has always lived there and is just trying to raise his daughter by himself after his ex-wife left him to pick up the pieces.

Declan and Giuliana are two people who are sweet and loving. They have both been through hard times, and they weren't sure if true love even existed for them. While reading, I fell in love with Silver Mist itself. We also get to meet the amazing support system both main characters have, from Giuliana's best friend Liv to Declan's sister Cheryl and many more. Another character you get to meet is Declan's adorably sweet little girl, Lily, who just steals every scene she is in.

I love how both Declan and Giuliana took the relationship at a slow pace to allow Lily time to get to know Giuliana so as not to force the relationship between the two girls. I love how Giuliana was respectful and didn't try to force herself into their lives.

Bella! You wrote Giuliana's ex as such a scummy character that I wanted karma to hit him more than it did for hurting such a sweet, amazing person like Giuliana. (That's how much your writing made me fall in love with the characters.) Everything about this book is amazing!

I definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a heartfelt, second-chance small-town romance about picking up the pieces and learning to love again!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC. This started out great for me. I was hooked right away. Then it added in the suspense of the ex husband and I felt like that wasn’t needed. I would’ve liked it to focus more on the second chance romance for Giuliana and Declan. I did love Liv. She’s a great best friend! Overall an ok read for me.

Giuliana needs to put some distance between her and the recent events of her past. She decides to return to Silver Mist to try and recapture the happiness she let there but she never expected that it would reunite her with the man who stole her teenage heart.

When it comes to romance Declan hasn’t made the best choices however his daughter Lily made it all worthwhile. When Giuliana returns to town all the feelings from the past resurfaced but if they are to have a future together, they must first overcome the past.

Both characters have a difficult past which causes some turmoil, but it also allows them to appreciate how special the relationship between them is.

FANTASTIC!!! Thank you NetGalley and Bella Amy for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a heartbreaking and heartwarming small town romance that is about friendship, first love, second chances and not letting fear determine your future. It is filled with unconceivable heartache, loss, healing, love, passion and hope. I am blown away by this authors exceptional writing and how deeply connected I was to the characters. I absolutely LOVED this book so much!!💖💖

Giuliana Bianchi returns to the small town of Silver Mist in hopes of starting over after divorcing her husband who cheated on her. As a child, she would spend the summers at the lake in Silver Mist with her grandparents. It is the one place that has brought her serenity and peace. Declan Bell has always lived in Silver Mist and is raising his daughter by himself after his (ex)wife left him for another man. When Giuliana sees Declan again, she is reminded that he was her first crush and all those feelings coming rushing back to her. Why did he never ask her out? What Giuliana did not know is that Declan had fallen in love with her all those years ago. Starting over is never easy and both of them have been hurt but will they have the courage to open their hearts again? Will the secret feelings they have for each other develop into a second chance for them? Does true love even really exist?

I just ADORED his daughter, Lily!! She is the sweetest little girl ever.🥰🥰 I loved how they took their relationship slow and allowed Lily the chance to get to know Giuliana. The way Declan protected Giuliana and all the tender moments they shared was just swoon worthy!

One nick picky thing that I wish would have been handled differently is a situation with her stalker ex husband. Again that is my person preference. 🤣🤗

Overall, it was a wonderful read and an amazing start to a new series! I highly recommend this book and it deserves all the stars!⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I really wanted to enjoy this one as I love books where heroines find themselves - especially ones with single dads!

However, this moved so slowly I unfortunately had to DNF.

It felt like a lot of telling rather than showing, and I struggled to keep myself interested enough to see what would happen with Giuliana and Declan.

I appreciate the opportunity to read this in advance. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed the first 80z or so of this book. I became frustrated with our heroine, Giuliana, because of here lack of action when it came to her ex-husband. I also also disliked how wish washy she was about falling for Declan. One chapter her inner voice says she is not going to allow herself to fall all the way in love with Declan and the next she is telling him she loves him. Then she is no good for him because of all of her drama, but the most drama is in her head. Since I liked most of the book and the epilogue I give it 4stars, Thanks NetGalley for an advanced copy for this honest review.

This was a delightful read with plenty of steam, the right amount of danger, and a fantastic romance. Could not put it down.