Shag Lake

This book was, without a doubt, one of the most innovative and incredible books I've read in a long while.

Full of action, suspense, and a dash of romance, Shag Lake managed to take multiple overused plot devices and create a fresh, new science fiction adventure. I loved both of the main characters, and found them to be incredibly well-rounded. Geri was clever, plucky, and full of spirit, while Sean was caring and level-headed. They complemented each other well, and their relationship was definitely one of the best parts of the book. The world-building was vivid and creative, with amazing new creatures and extraterrestrials.

Written as a standalone, the ending ties up loose ends giving you a satisfying ending, but leaves you desperately wanting more from the author. I would definitely recommend this to fans of X-Files or the Lux series by Jennifer L. Armentrout, as well as anyone who loves romance with a sci-fi twist.

Geri McKenna has been busy focusing on getting her career as a journalist off to a start working non-stop for a big company for the past two years where she has been stuck writing about fashion. When Geri travels back to Shag Lake for her brother’s wedding she never expected to have the latest big story happening right there at home.

Sean Eastman was Geri’s brother’s friend that Geri had a huge crush on during high school but he had mysteriously moved away and hadn’t stayed in contact. When Geri arrives home to find that Sean will be attending the wedding events she’s excited to see him again but never expected Sean to be saving her in the woods when she went to investigate the missing girl in the news.

Shag Lake by Susan McEachern was such a fun read mixing in a lot of different elements to bring this story together. Much like romantic suspense focuses on a relationship building during the story this one would be a romantic sci-fi/fantasy type of read. From aliens to bigfoot there’s a whole world hiding near Shag Lake that the author brought to life with a bit of mystery with a missing girl involved too.

I love when characters have an existing background to build on so a story doesn’t seem like a rushed insta-love type of connection. Sean and Geri had grown up together so them developing feelings in this story fit easily within the action of the rest of the story. Also found the creative sci-fi side of things quite fun as things are brought in and explained as the book went along. Just a lovely read overall and would love to see this world explored more if the author chose to do so.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

This is an enjoyable kooky read, bigfoot and aliens, and a little romance. I didn’t take it too seriously, you just can’t.

Shag Lake can be described as a combination of an episode of Roswell, Finding Bigfoot, and a Lifetime movie. I'll admit that the reason why I was drawn to this was because the book blurb read like a Roswell episode and I was in the mood for a little nostalgia. What I found was that it was a diluted summer read. The author had way too much going on with the different species of aliens, hybrids, UFOs, sasquatches, and the love story. There was very little to no character development. The writing itself was at an enjoyable pace. I do believe there are some interesting bits to the overall story, especially with the idea of the alien hybrids and their origins and agreements/relationships with the aliens and humans. If the author chose to continue this series, I would recommend they try to focus more on that.

All kind of beasties that go bump in the night...

Wellup...I wasn't sure what to expect from this story but I was totally surprised by the mixed salad of different creatures that filled the pages. I had read SHAG LAKE PREQUEL: THE KISS so I expected a romance with maybe a bit of otherworldly hoohah thrown in. Once I wrapped my mind around the impossibleness of the storyline, I leaned back and enjoyed the ride.

The story takes place in Canada eight years after the events in the prequel. Geri McKenna is a strong female protagonist and Sean Eastman is a hot romantic interest.

I was very glad that the book didn't end in a cliffhanger. The author did hint of a sequel or sequels if there's enough interest but I liked that all the loose ends were tied up by the end.

I received this book from Clownfish Publishing through Net Galley in exchange for my unbiased review.

***4.5/5 Stars***

Shag Lake was absolutely riveting and spellbinding! This book was so much more than I expected. I mean, I had a feeling that I would like it, since I enjoyed the prequel. And while it started out a little slow, I found myself connecting to the characters and enjoying where the story-line was going. But before I knew it, I was around 35/40% into the story, and I was beyond obsessed. I didn't want to put the book down because Shag Lake built into an intricate story that was gripping, swoon worthy and so much fun! This book was such a huge win!

I stand up and back away from the laptop, dragging both my hands through my hair. “There’s no way,” I whisper. “It’s just too crazy.”
I know Sean. He wouldn’t hurt anybody.
But how well do I know him?


The story started up with everyone back together, since Geri McKenna's older brother is getting married. Even Sean Eastman was there, and her brother's friend had been completely MIA for the last eight years. I was so nervous for the moment Geri would see Sean again. Not only has she had a crush on him forever, but their last moment together involved a kiss that didn't end in the greatest of ways. I was so thankful that there was dual narrative between Geri and Sean, so we knew exactly what they were thinking and feeling. And when they did see each other, I was happy that there was a strong chemistry between them.

But when she walked into the backyard this evening, I actually went weak in the knees. I had that moment when the world suddenly stopped turning and everyone at the party faded away into a blurry background, leaving just the two of us. I could barely breathe.
Get her out of your head , Eastman. She’s still off-limits.
I can’t offer her a future, and she deserves nothing less. - Sean


Fast forward to Shag Lake. A women claimed Bigfoot attacked her, and her hiking partner is still missing. Geri and Sean head there separately, but for entirely different reasons. Geri thinks this news story about Bigfoot will catapult her career, and be the big break she's been waiting for. Whereas Sean has every reason under the sun to want to stop Geri in her tracks. And this is where the action starts and their sexual chemistry gets ratcheted up!

A throaty burbling sound brings me to a dead halt. - Geri


As I got closer to the end of the book, I was obsessed with how it all came together. Completely genius! And while I'm being vague about what happens when they're both at Shag Lake, it's because it'll be so much more fun to discover on your own. But I can say that I loved the characters! Geri was smart, determined, brave, yet she could still be so unsure of herself around Sean. I loved how relatable she was! And Sean was *starts wiping tears from eyes because he was so beautifully perfect* someone I fell completely in love with. He was loyal, seductive, protective, playful and ever so sexy. I have to mention the word balcony, because when you get to that part and see what he does, how could I not fall for such a caring, protective, fierce man?! I love, love, love him!

And no matter how fast I push myself, the thing is keeping pace somewhere to my left. Not that I have eyes on the damn thing, but I can see bushes rustle, tree branches twitch, and the occasional tall patch of grass ripple.
Where the hell is it? Why can’t I see it? - Geri


And here's two thoughts on the creatures and villains in this book.....although I'm not going to give anything away -

*The "creatures" in this book was the most unique combination I've ever read about! Together they were original, and I was fascinated with how they interacted. There were some surprises in regards to what they were capable of and how they were all connected.

*The "bad guy" wasn't that cut and dry. While one of the creatures comes across as bad, you see that as the story starts to unfold there are so many shades of grey that appear. Even within our own government. And the way the creatures, their leadership and our government meshed together came across as shockingly real. Which makes me laugh when I think about it because those creatures in our world?! But still! I could easily picture it. Ugh, I wanna say SO much more. But darn those spoilers!

We have to get out of here. This is utter madness. This is Alice in Wonderland kind of shit, and I don’t want to be a part of it anymore. - Geri


So I found myself with tears in my eyes quite a few times towards the end of this book. And that ending was absolutely perfect. Oh this book made me ever so happy! I can't recommend it enough! If you adore science fiction that's more closely related to The Lux Series by JLA or Broken Skies by Theresa Kay, then you may adore this book too. Or even paranormal lovers, that are open to different creatures in a story, could find themselves loving it just as much as me. It was such a wonderful surprise. Enjoy!

P.S. I am definitely going to beg - can there please be more stories set in this world? Whether it follows the characters into the future or focuses on others like Sean? Please, please, please? I absolutely loved this book and would die of happiness if I could read more set in this world! *fingers crossed*

*ARC kindly provided by Pronoun/McMillan via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Book review on blog scheduled for release day - 7/13 at 6:30am PST

***I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

This was the first book I've read by this author. The characters were interesting and well developed and there is a lot of potential for sequels and other novels set in this world. The premise is interesting and plausible but the introduction is rather jarring and I felt a little bit of information overload. I think this novel would have been better as YA. There is some crude terminology in regards to the romance and it felt like an unnecessary afterthought. I'm not sure if I would read a sequel but the foundation is there for a series.

One cool fact -- It's based off an actual place and event and has a link to explore the real life story.

Geri’s brother Mark was getting married. Geri’s boss Derek was sending texts and they weren’t important he could have found the emails himself he was bothering Geri about. To top it off Geri was an assistant columnist not Derek’s personal secretary and it was time he figured it out. Geri worked at The Global News. But then Geri’s sister Emma let Geri know her teenage crush Sean was in town. Geri was in tenth grade and was behind the shed getting wood with Sean got a splinter and ended up kissing Sean. That was the last time she had seen him as he had left town and hadn’t come back until now eight years later. Mark was an NHL player and Sean best friend. Sean had thought about that kiss from Geri from so long ago. That innocent sweet badly executed kiss Sean had never forgot. Sean had never had the same reaction with anyone else besides Jeri. But Mark was Sean’s best friend and that was Mark’s little sister so he couldn’t have done anything about what he felt if he had wanted to and could have. Sean works at MIT in Boston. Sean felt like the McKennah’s were the closest he had to a normal family life and he loved it. The fact of being to spend another night in the only place he ever really considered a real home. Even if Michelle wanted Sean to stay at her place for the night but he told Michelle no. Sean had been sitting out on the back deck at the McKennah’s house. Enjoying the predawn when Geri came out, Sean gave Geri his sweater to stay warm as the talked outside for a little bit. Sean gets called away for his job and doesn’t end up attending Mark’s wedding.
I liked this story a lot. I love how it switches from Geri’s and Sean’s POV. This was a fun read and I really liked the plot and hope there are more books from this world especially with Geri and Sean as part of the story. I really liked Sean and Geri together. This had a great ending also. I got choked at times while reading this book. I also I also really liked how Sean and Geri’s relationship grew. I loved the characters and the ins and outs and surprises in this story. I wish I could rate this 4.5 this deserves it. Anyway I do recommend this book.

The legalities: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Look out bigfoot! This tale revolves around Geri, a young woman starting her career as a journalist in the Fashion department, which she did not choose, and her desire to become a more important journalist: Sean, a young man who is as mysterious as he is handsome: a strange disappearance, bigfoot hunters, and a cast beyond the norm.

This fascinating tale takes you by surprise, grabs you immediately and won’t let go until the last page. Even then it leaves you wanting more. The pace is excellent, the characters are well developed and interesting. Ms. McEachern has a new follower. Read this book and you will join me!

3.5 stars. This book was unique and had several twists going on, with a bit of humour thrown in. However, I found that part way through the book I had trouble getting into the story and put down and picked up the book several times and ended up skimming through part of the middle of the book. The ending was well done with the potential for another book in the series. * I received an ARC from Net Gallery and this is my voluntary and honest review.

I have been lucky to read a number of really good books lately, and this one is by far my new favorite! This may very well be my all-time favorite book! I don't know that I can even do it justice in a review. I’ve already reread it about six times since when I first completed it. That’s how much I love this book!

It has got everything you could possibly want in a story! Or at least everything I want: There’s intrigue, fantasy, mystery, sci-fi, action, suspense, romance, cover-ups, etc; everything for which a dedicated nerd could wish. Even Bigfoot and Bigfoot hunters!

The characters from the prequel novella “The Kiss” return in this delightful tale. Only Geri is no longer just the awkward almost 16-year-old sister of Sean’s best friend; instead she’s a frustrated journalist, looking for a big story; but she’s still carrying a torch for her first kiss. Sean is a successful researcher, who suddenly gains a much deeper appreciation for Geri than what he experiences at the end of the prequel novella. He’s definitely torn between what he wants and what he thinks he needs to do.

Susan McEachern does a masterful job of making all the disparate, unique characters appear believable, even in the face of some generally not-too-believable situations. Each character definitely has their own incomparable personality as well; not just the main players, but also many of the periphery individuals. The story is full of their distinctive personalities and interactions.

I'm generally not a fan of dual-perspective novels, but again the author really made it work. Geri and Sean each had their own distinctive voice, so there was never any question as to who was speaking. It was nice to see the different attitudes and perceptions that each of them had about the same events.

The writing in this tome was just spoke on in every way really. The dialogue and interactions seemed genuine, the premise basically created its own validity, and the words just flowed from one point to the next. I found myself rereading multiple passages throughout the book that just spoke to me because of how lovely the words were or how vividly the scene was presented. I honestly just lost myself in the story and didn’t want to find my way out.

I so hope that the author creates more tales in this series! I’d love to learn more about the world that Geri and Sean are a part of, and with any luck, see more of them and their associates, and learn what the future holds for them, either as the main players in future stories or even just as background characters.

Really enjoyed the story and glad I was introduced to this author