my first time reading an author from Czechia. Translation seems off sometimes but i love a dystopian novel and this kept me going for more. I like the characters and how everything unfolds

The download date was unfortunately missed, I would be happy to re-review if it became available again. I have awarded stars for the book cover and description as they both appeal to me. I would be more than happy to re-read and review if a download becomes available. If you would like me to re-review please feel free to contact me at thesecretbookreview@gmail.com or via social media The_secret_bookreview (Instagram) or Secret_bookblog (Twitter). Thank you.

This one wasn’t for me. I know others will enjoy it. Sadly not me.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. This is my honest review.

We follow the young protagonist as he grows up in squalor with his grandparents. When Russian soldiers brutally disrupt his and other's lives, he flees. Is the scene in a southern Soviet state in the 1980s? The setting stark and reminiscent of the tone of the story, and Nami's outlook for much of it.
Although the premise is engaging, the reading experience wasn't perfect. This is a translated work so I am unsure whether that is the issue - maybe this reads a lot more fluently in its original language - but it did mean I didn't get the full experience of this story.

My reason to pick up this book was simple. I was looking for increasing my reading list of Czech literature and this book won numerous awards, including the EU Literature Prize in 2017. Yet I find that I have not much to say about the book. I struggled to understand the first half of the story. The beginning of the story is nostalgic, with little Nami growing up at a house by the lake with his ageing grampa and gramma. It emphasises the value of living close to nature, with a rich depiction of the lake and its surrounding, as well as being nostalgic for the lost way of life. Halfway, I started to get disappointed with Nami’s characterisation and the vulgar language used by the author. Perhaps, it's a good book, yet not my cup of tea.

This novel was evocative and deliciously dystopian, I'm a big fan of translated fiction anyway and these types of novels are exactly why!

I really do not understand how this book won prizes.
Maybe it was down to a poor translation, but this was probably the worst book that I have read in a while. It had racist language and some really uncomfortable rape scenes, Nothing about the plot made sense to me and it felt like events happened just for the shock factor, which made it really difficult to get through.

Definitely not the book for me but, as always, I was pleased to have the opportunity to pick it up.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

‘The Lake’ was a different type of novel for me; a coming of age novel in a very bleak dystopian environment.
I personally couldn’t get into this novel although written very well, it just was just a little too raw and unnerving for me. Perhaps although fiction it felt too realistic as Bellova depicts the damage that people can inflict upon one another, but that being said a personal opinion on the plot not the skill in which it was crafted.

One of the biggest things about this book I can say is: I want to read more from the author.

The Lake feels like one of those almost silent, slow paced, festival-worthy movies.

Nami looks for his mom maybe because he has to find who he is. Nami goes out of town because he looses everything and everyone that means anything to him in rather tramautic ways. The Lake Spirit is mad a the people in Boros and everyone seems to know why except for him, so he decides he needs to find out. We follow him for a stretch of his life time up until he's around 17-ish... this may seem like a long time to say this is a slice-of-life type of story, but it does feel like that. I feels like that young Nami we hop onto a boat to get to the capital city has only grown a couple of inches, sometime it doesn't feel like he has legitimately fought for his life and been scarred in the process.

Heart-wrenching at times, this is a story I may come back to and to me that's a big deal.

CW: the book includes graphic depictions of SA

I think I only ever read 1 book by a Czech author (Milan Kundera obviously) and thought it was high time to increase that number. The Lake won the EU literature prize in 2017 (a strange prize with lots of winners every year from lots of countries and not always available in English) and seemed a good place to start.

We follow the young Nami who grows up in poverty with his grandparents on the shores of a polluted, evaporating lake. He runs away when his girlfriend is raped by Russian soldiers. The setting is unclear and slightly disorienting: are we in a 1980s southern Soviet state? Or is this some kind of dystopian near future where climate change has caused extreme drought, poverty and inequality, and Russians exerting authoritarian rule over Muslim lands?

So, the setting is intriguing but I am afraid the reading experience was not 100% satisfactory. My biggest problem was that the language did not flow naturally, which made I could never fully relax while reading. The characters also react strangely and unnaturally at times. I am not sure if the translation or the original is to be blamed, but I think a bit of both.

Many thanks to the publisher for the ARC!

Unfortunately, this book expired from my shelf by the time I took notice of it. My shelf had too many books lined up to be read. As I kept progressing up on my way towards picking up on this one, alas, I saw that it has been archived from netgalley.

Set in an unnamed Eastern European country with the brutal presence of Russian soldiers a possibility at every turn. The Lake follows the youthful Nami as he enters manhood. Raised by his grandparents, a distant memory of a mother, a first love spoilt by circumstance, an omnipresent air of disease and decay...Nami's life has little to rejoice in, until he embarks on a pilgrimage to find his lost mother. During his odyssey he meets a bizarre array of characters, the rich, the poor, the kind and the cruel until he returns full circle to a world changed, but still identifiable as home.

This one was not a hit for me. Wanted to like it but didn’t get on with the main plot or characters. This was the first time reading from this author. Will still be happy to I try another of her stories

The Lake is a dystopian story about a small fishing village and one young boy Nami's story of growing up there.

This was a particularly tough read even though it was beautifully written. Although at times very bleak there was a dark humour there too. A novel that stayed with me long after I'd finished reading.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review.

The Lake is a raw, unusual, and pretty dark novel.

Nami lives with his grandparents by the polluted lake. His mother vanished from his life when he was very young. So he only vaguely remembers her. His grandparents don’t want to talk about his parents. After a series of unfortunate events, he leaves his home village of Boros and needs to grow up quickly.

The Lake is a coming-of-age story in a cruel and toxic world. Not only environment is toxic (vomiting and eczema are pretty common), but also many relationships. Some places (and also events) in the story are very extraordinary, but on the other hand, they also seem a bit familiar. The novel feels post-apocalyptical because we can’t imagine places like this on our planet. But they do exist.

All in all, I enjoyed this different and unique novel. I stopped at a few places, and it made me think. But it will not appeal to all readers, especially those that expect a typical post-apocalyptical or dystopian novel.

Thanks to Parthian Books for the ARC and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review, and all opinions are my own.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I'm not really sure what to make of this book. From the description I was expecting something more like A Handmaid's Tale, but to be honest this book was more realistic than dystopic for me. The prose pushes you forward through the story, but the plot itself is more like a series of little vignettes and I'm not sure if it really all fitted together for me. An interesting concept but I was left a little confused at the end.

I love a dystopian novel so the blurb for this really appealed, especially as it was so well thought of before being translated into English. It is very dark, and I did find it a bit of a slog in places although it's very well written and I did want to know that the main character flourished despite all of his challenges. There is a slightly odd flow to the story with some sections feeling a bit glossed over whilst others have loads of detail, and it's from a very masculine point of view - women are objectified and oppressed, with no real voice in the story which I found a bit frustrating.

A dystopian page-turner about the coming of age of a young hero, Beautifully drawn characters and a story so intriguing it kept me one-more-chaptering till late into the night.

thanks for the opportunity to review. This was not my kind of book i didnt gel with this no reflection on the author or how the book was written

"The Lake" by Bianca BELLOV'A (translated by Alex Zucker) is new wave dystopian fiction. While it is not for everyone, it definitely has a strong audience that will love it!

Nami age-4, lives with his grandparents in Boros. The villagers in Baros are destitute. The lake they depend on is quickly becoming playa. Nami's grandmother tries her best to provide for Nami in unstable conditions, but a tragic event leaves Nami with nothing but a coat on his back. His life becomes a arduous fight for survival.

This is a dark story in which there is great injustice and suffering. Those that understand dystopia will appreciate it. Additionally, this story was translated from Czech to English. Some scenes could come across different due to translation. I enjoyed reading this heart-wrenching novel. It will be published April 11, 2022.

Warning: Sexual Content, Strong Language, Child Abuse, Animal Abuse

Thank you NetGalley and Parthian Books, for the honor of reviewing this e-book. Nami's character touched my heart.