The Lake by Natasha Preston [Book Review]

Book Description:
Esme and Kayla once were campers at Camp Pine Lake. Now they’re back as counselors-in-training. Esme loves the little girls in her cabin and thinks it’s funny how scared they are of everything—the woods, the bugs, the boys…even swimming in the lake. It reminds her of how she and Kayla used to be. Before…

Because Esme and Kayla did something terrible when they were campers. Something they’ve kept a secret all these years. They vow that this summer will be awesome. Two months of sun, s’mores, and flirting with the cute boy counselors. But then they get a message:
THE LAKE NEVER FORGETS.

The secret they’ve kept buried for so many years is about to resurface.

This novel is a listed as mystery, thriller, suspense, and horror. It’s definitely a young adult novel. The age range on Amazon lists it at 12-17 years old or grades 7-9. Obviously, I’m well over the intended demographic for this book, but I genuinely do enjoy lots of young adult novels and I thought it sounded interesting.

This book is a pretty fun read. It’s 356 pages but those pages flew by and I read it in only a couple of days. I would have adored this story when I was 15. I think a lot of the little nit-picky issues I have with it now (at 30 years old) wouldn’t have bothered me at all when I was younger. The story pacing is very fast, so it’s definitely an easy one to binge. It’s also a pretty twisted story that is a little bit scary, but not so scary that it will keep you up at night. I think this makes it perfect for those early teen years. I wouldn’t hesitate to gift this book to any of my nieces. There is some violence (obviously) but it isn’t gratuitious and there is no sex.

This book definitely brought up memories for me of going to summer camp. It’s a super cozy read that perfectly captures the awkwardness of being somewhere remote with boys who may or may not have a crush on you. It also depicts very realistic teen friendships. The girls in this book are supposed to be 18 years old, but I will say that they act much younger. For instance, they go through a lot of drama and their hearts are racing because they want to sneak out of the camp one night. But all they do is literally hang out in an arcade for like 30 minutes and then go back. In a way, it feels like a very wholesome book because of this representation. Later in the book, when some of the dark secrets start to be revealed, it becomes less wholesome and does feature some very violent scenes with animals. However, the characters themselves are all pretty likeable and also just mysterious enough that you aren’t sure who to trust.

I think that the only place where the story fell short for me was the ending. I know how hard it is to land an ending but this one just didn’t quite stick for me. I think there was just such a climactic build up that I expected an explosive ending and it kind of felt like a fizzle. The ending felt unbelievable, but if you can look past that (and I know I would have as a teenager), it is still really enjoyable. The Lake is a fun, spooky read that is perfect for summer.