Audio version of this book 📚
I really struggled with this book . It just didn’t hold my attention as the storyline was so slow. I found the fact that the mother of the victim ended up doing detective work to find out what had happened a little bit unbelievable so just couldn’t relate to the storyline at all.
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The female narrator was ok but I kept drifting off and not sure whether this was because the storyline was not holding my attention

Louise Sharland is a new author to me and I am so glad I had a chance to listen/read her latest audiobook The Lake. The Narrators are Hattie Ladbury; and Vinny Moli and they were brilliant. I found this was an interesting a book that kept me glued to my Iphone. This book, The Lake is the heartbreaking story of a mother called Kate whose son called Michael dies in a drowning accident, but is convinced that his death is no accident. Kate unearths Michael’s lost diary and realises she may finally be able uncover what really happened that night.
Kate, a former accident and emergency nurse, will not stop until she finds the truth.

I highly recommend this book and this new author.

Big Thank you to HarperCollins UK Audio and Avon Books UK for providing me with a copy of The Lake, via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Kate's son, Michael, drowned in the lake six years ago. While it was called an accidental death, Kate has never really believed that. When she is cleaning out her mother's house and find's Michael's diary, she becomes driven to find out the truth about what happened that night.

I was definitely drawn by the description. Hattie Ladbury and Vinny Moli performed excellent narration Overall, a good psychological thriller.

This debut novel centres around Kate, whose son, Michael, died 6 years ago in a drowning accident. I found the book a little slow to get going, but when it did I was totally engrossed in the mystery of what did actually happen to Michael. The book is well written and certainly pulls an emotional punch. It deals with some sensitive subjects such as underage grooming, loss of a child and abusive relationships, but the author handles it well.

Kate is a likeable and relatable character and I felt sorry for her, and the lack of support she received from her family. I also found her background with the Plymouth Brethren fascinating.

I also really enjoyed the narration by Hattie Ladbury (with a cameo from Vinny Moli) and felt her voice was perfect for Kate.

Although this book was hard to stick with at times, the narrator kept me going and I am glad I stuck with it. Brilliantly written, the ending was great, I will be looking for more books by this author

I was so excited to listen to this audiobook and loved the premise. However, as the story progressed it fell a little flat for me. I found the characters quite two dimensional and found it hard to suspend my belief at times.

Unfortunately this book just didn't hit the spot for me and I'm not totally sure why. I just didn't feel connected to the characters or invested in the story. Kate's 15 year old Son, Michael, dies in a lake despite being an excellent swimmer and no-one really knows why, or what he was doing there, or if he was there with someone else etc. 6 years later Kate finds Michael's diary from just before his death and she discovers new clues that might lead to an explanation of what actually happened the night Michael died. So off she goes to investigate. There were some interesting characters and twists but there was a huge red herring that was made to be such a big deal but then it stopped all of a sudden and wasn't mentioned ever again which I thought was really bizarre. I am absolutely terrible at figuring out the answers in thrillers so when I say that I figured it out in this one then that should tell you that it wasn't very thrilling or exciting.
I really liked the female narrator and thought she did an excellent job however, the male narrator did not sound like a 15 year old boy in any way and made the narration sound really odd. Not to say that he is a bad narrator, but just wasn't suited to this character.
Overall the book just felt like a flop and really put me into an audiobook slump. I wasn't looking forward to listening to it and actually put it off part way through for several days before I decided I just had to plough forward and finish it regardless.

I absolutely loved The Lake. As an audio book it was brilliantly narrated by Hattie Ladbury and Vini Moli. Their voices suited the narration and were believable.

Kate is searching for the cause of her 15 year old son's death, why did a strong swimmer drown. It cannot be true that it was a tragic accident and as his mother she refuses to believe it. Her desperation makes the book one you cannot forget and I stayed up too late listening to the audio version..

It's important for me to like characters, care about them, after the book ended they were still in my thoughts. One of those books you can't wait to finish and find out the answers then feel sad that it's over.

An emotional, thriller I will recommend to my friends.
Thanks to Netgalley for a downloaded book in return for an honest review.

Do read it or get the audio book.

How would you react if your 15 year old champion swimmer son drowned? Kate Hardy is understandably bereft.

In this audiobook by Louise Sharland, we follow her path to find out what happened, fighting against her family , the establishment, and those involved who try to cover up the truth.

It is an interesting and gripping tale, that leads the reader to places we wouldn't expect at the start of the story. The excellent narration helps the story to flow, and I listened to the story whenever I could!

I really wanted to know what happened, and the end is very satisfying!

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an audio arc of this book, all opinions expressed here are my own.

The Lake by Louise Sharland is the author’s first novel. It was an interesting read.

Kate’s 15yo son Michael drowned in the lake. How was never determined. Six years later Kate needs answers and follows new clues from a lost diary in her search for closure. At the same time she is dealing with the declining health of her elderly mother and a marriage breakdown.

I enjoyed this book and felt the need to continue reading, but I was also left confused. The author made a very big deal about (husband) Adam and the diary, to the point where I thought he was responsible for the death. Then just dropped it, never to be mentioned again. It seemed rather odd and clunky to me.

The female narrator was excellent. She did a fabulous job. The male narrator sucked. He was supposed to be 15. Why did he sound like a fully grown up man complete with a weird foreign accent?! He did not fit the character at all.

Overall an okay three star read. Hopefully others will enjoy this more than me. The Lake by Louise Sharland is out now.

I loved the narration on this book and I really got involved in the story. This was surprising to me as I was also reading the book at the same time, but the narrator really brought it to life.

There were lots of twists and turns and some really intense themes.

I found the beginning a bit slow.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

The Lake - Louise Sharland

Kate is looking for answers in all the wrong places until she gets what she's looking for.

Desra (Susan) is a mouthy one and in the end gets her comeuppance! Poor Kate, to grieve and to then be spoken to and have her son spoken about in that way 😮... another tragic accident.

This had me gripped. So much I wanted to know, couldn’t work out and was desperate to find out. Great read adored the audiobook version.

I liked the narration in this book. It felt true to the story, which is so important.
The story itself didn’t feel so strong to me. I can’t really explain it, but I didn’t get invested. Saying that, I did keep listening, wanting to know the outcome. I wasn’t disappointed. I really enjoyed the final moments

The Lake is a thoroughly enjoyable audiobook, telling the story of Kate, a nurse and wife of Adam, a fairly unpleasant and seemingly selfish character. Six years previously Kate tragically lost her son, Michael, in a drowning accident.

Those around her (particularly Adam), encourage Kate to ‘move on’, but the notion that the drowning was an accident has never sat comfortably with Kate, particularly since Michael was on a swimming scholarship at an exclusive private school.

Her mother’s failing health leads Kate to her hometown, and the discovery of Michael’s secret diary, prompting Kate to embark on a journey of discovery regarding events leading up to his death.

A well written, expertly narrated novel that while but not being fast-paced, certainly kept me on my toes, and longing to listen to the next instalment at every opportunity!

My thanks to Netgalley, author and publisher for the opportunity to review this audiobook in exchange for an advance copy.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and Louise Sharland for an ARC in return for an honest review.

This is the first book by Louise that I have read. The overall storyline was really interesting and well written. I’d have liked more background about her husband. Overall, a good book with a satisfying ending.

An easy read but it wasn’t the sort of book that has me reading/listening for longer than I should. I didn’t really warm to the main character and found the book was slightly longer than it needed to be. I enjoyed the main storyline and was satisfied with the ending. I didn’t like the male narrator and struggled to understand a lot of what he was saying - very poor speech. The female narrator was brilliant and I will be looking for more books read by her.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the audioARC.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for my audio copy of The Lake, in my (humble) opinion this book was neither a mystery nor a thriller but it was a very good family drama. The narrator probably encouraged me to keep going as at times it did seem to drag on a little, and she did very well with the various accents. I don't really understand why the male narrator was utilised only for the recitation of the poems but not when Kate imagined him talking, he was superfluous really.

Overall it was a good plot with a lovely epilogue which made up for the disappointing ending prior to that, it all tied up a little too nicely I think. I won't explain that any further because of spoilers.

I enjoyed this book, but I think I enjoyed it more because I listened to the audiobook and two voices were used throughout (although one was only used a few times, but it did add some dimension to the experience).

If you read a lot of thrillers then you'll probably guess what happens, however that doesn't take away from the enjoyment of the book. My only complaint is that the book could have been shorter if some of the main character's thoughts had been cut. It did get a bit repetitive at times, but I guess that's part of the anguish of a mother losing her son.

Overall I would recommend this book.

I was totally gripped by this complex and totally satisfying tale. The narration throughout is excellent and I spent some hours listening when I should have been sleeping; I wanted to know what happened next.

At one level, the story is a mystery thriller; a mother is unable to accept that her sons death was accidental. However, Louise Sharland explores numerous complexities including grief, exclusion by way of religion, live, loss, controlling relationships, sibling rivalry and much more. Kate, the mother at the centre of the story comes across as a well grounded individual who, despite the negative childhood influences imposed by the Plymouth Bretheren, manages to become her own person. However, she’s damaged by her personal relationship and the death of her son. It’s an emotional read at times; I felt quite involved with her plight and search for the truth. The story builds very cleverly in layers and there are final twists which took me by surprise. Accomplished writing and a rewarding listen. Certainly an author to watch out for and I really enjoyed the story.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.