I have read Gregg Dunnett books before and enjoyed them but this book I struggled with, not to give up I kept going and happy I did. The police interview with Kate had you thinking hard on the story of how the family had come to be at the lake house. So many twists and turns and yes in comes the “ I never expected that “ . This book is not just a mystery but a bit spooky as well with lots of questions building as you read on. Loved it !
My thanks as always to NetGalley and Storm Publishing and author for another excellent read.

This was a fun twisted family drama.

This is the first time I’ve read anything by this author and I was hooked!

There was a lot of switching back and forth from past to present but it was done in a way that made the transitions seamless and easy to follow. I haven’t read many supernatural books but this one was just enough supernatural where it didn’t make it seem unbelievable.

Will definitely be reading other titles from this author soon!

Thank you NetGalley, Storm publishing and Gregg Dunnett for this ARC copy!

What an unusual read, I have read a lot of Greg Dunnett books and they all have a quirky element to them which a enjoy and this one is no exception. I am not going to spoil the story in this review as others have. But I loved it

I've been a bit away from reading for a while, but, when I had the opportunity to pre-read this book from one of my favourite authors, it gave me a great reason to dive back into one of my favourite hobbies. I wasn't disappointed. Having read all of Gregg's other books, I knew I would like his writing style. This book a bit of a change in style to his previous books, but don't let that put you off. I liked how the story progressed, most of the characters (I wasn't a big fan of Neil), and the ending. It kept me engrossed from start to finish. I highly recommend this book.

I went into this read absolutely blind. I had no idea what this book was about. I was not disappointed.

We are so close to the start of spooky reading season and this was a great kickoff! This was a slow burn right up until the last second.... I never would have figured out how this story unfolded.

I loved the way we learned the details of this family and how they landed where they were. Kate was a strong FMC who fought for her child. This was an overall really good read.

Thank you Storm Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC for my honest review!

#thelakehousechildren #greggdunnett #NetGalley #StormPublishing

Jim McGee is looking forward to retirement, after working for so many years he is looking forward to slowing down and taking things easy, but before this can happen, he has one more case and this may be one of the strangest he has come across.

A terrible fire has ripped through a holiday lake house and most of the occupants have been killed. Kate Marshall is trying to explain these terrible events but for those she is speaking to, it all seems terribly wrong and implausible. Jim and his off-sider Robbins thought this was going to be quite a run of the mill case but boy are they wrong.

This is a different kind of crime story with a little of the supernatural thrown in, not normally my thing but it works very well in this setting. Then we are taken back to the beginning and the scene is set, one that will capture your imagination and keep you reading.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and publisher for an advanced copy of the book, all opinions expressed are my own.

book review 📖 The lake house children by Gregg Dunnett
Genres: PARANORMAL, horror, fiction, mystery, suspense, thriller
Goodreads rating: -
My rating: 1,5 ☆ ☆
Read in: 5 days & 🇬🇧 & 📱

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🇬🇧 Thanks, NetGalley and Storm Publishing for granting me early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly, I really wish I didn’t have to write this review and that I hadn’t asked for an advanced copy of "The House Lake Children" by Gregg Dunnett, because it’s been a while since a book left me feeling this frustrated! I’m sorry if this sounds harsh, but I was so disappointed. To be fair, part of my bad experience is because the book was marketed as a thriller, but it felt way more like a horror/paranormal story. As someone who LOVES thrillers, I want a plot that stays grounded in reality, where the twists could actually happen in real life. So, heads up – if you're a thriller fan and don't enjoy paranormal stuff, this one isn't for you.

I had really high hopes because the premise sounded great, and at first, I was actually into the spooky vibes… until I realized there wasn’t any logical explanation for what was happening. The main character, Kate, drove me nuts! She reminded me of those horror movie characters who hear a noise in the house and then, instead of calling the police, they go creeping around in the dark like, “Hello? Is anyone there?” Seriously?! The scenes with the police were pretty weak too, and the whole crime investigation plot got lost in Kate’s confusing storyline. I just don’t think the whole detective angle worked well here. Even though the setup with the fire at the lake house and the mysterious survivor was interesting, the story didn’t deliver the way I hoped it would.

FBI agent Jim McGee has one last case to solve before he retires. It involves a house fire that destroyed a lakeside property, killing some of the occupants. Along with his partner Billy Robbins, he is interviewing survivor and suspect, Kate Marshall. She is one of the three sisters who owns the house, left to them when their father died. All three sisters, Kate, Amber and Bea and their families were at the lake house that weekend celebrating the completion of recent renovations to the property.

The events leading up to that day are narrated in an original and interesting way, through Kate’s interview with the FBI agents. She has quite a story to tell them beginning with a tragedy that occurred seven years ago. The agents find elements of her story hard to believe, but also hard to explain otherwise. The reader might also not buy into it, but it works well as a technique, ultimately leading up to the motive for the fire and subsequent deaths.

I enjoyed the unusual technique used to narrate this psychological suspense and Kate’s story made for addictive reading. It also works well as a family drama with three very different sisters and their families finding it hard to get along now their father has gone.

The book starts off with Kate being interviewed by the police. There was a house fire and four of her family members died in the fire. She is their number one suspect, but is she really to blame?

The book centers around this lake house which we find out burns down at the end, but the story really starts with Kate’s father. I can’t say much about that, but there is a huge twist at the beginning with Kate's dad.

So not only do we have the fire mystery and the issue with the dad, but there is a whole other issue with her son Jack.

Yes there’s a lot going on in this book.

The storyline with the son Jack was a little far-fetched for me and I did not see that coming. I don’t want to post spoilers here, but just know the Jack story is wild.

I thought there was a lot going on in this book, maybe too much? I found myself taken out of the story and not wanting to pick it back up. It was a little slow and I think it could have been shorter. I was kind of hoping the Jack storyline was going to get more thrilling, I was convinced he started the house fire, but it was rather bland. I wish the story went a little darker and more unhinged.

That being said, I would try another book from this author because he did write well and the storyline was something different I never read about before.

Thank you to Storm Publishing for an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I finished this book, and then started reading through the reviews on here. (I never read reviews before starting a book if I can help it, as I don’t like to be influenced one way or another or go in with preconceived ideas).
After doing so, it appears to be quite polarising. Either loved or disliked.
I definitely fall into the first category. I found the story intriguing, immersive & atmospheric.
Great characters and well executed. I’d recommend this book without thinking twice.

The Lake House, a picturesque family getaway. A house where children make memories and adults make up lies…

A thriller with a supernatural twist, this is unlike anything I’ve read before. Imaginative and gripping, this kept me turning the pages, desperate to find out what really happened. And boy, did my jaw DROP at one point.

Gregg Dunnett never fails to disappoint.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm publishing for providing me with an eArc in exchange for my honest review!

Synopsis:
After a house fire that killed half of her family, Kate finds herself in the interview room being questioned about the night of the fire.
But that's not where the story begins - to understand the night of the fire, we first need to understand what led to it.


My opinion:
I really wanted to enjoy this book. The premise was great and my expectations were high. Sadly, this book was not for me.

I wouldn't class this book as a thriller and I would have liked to be made aware of some of the topics that were discussed in this book (Zack and Jack situation).

The whole Zack - Jack situation was just not believable to me, for various reasons, but naming a child Jack after your sister's son Zack died in such a tragic way seems a bit strange and that detail also made the story a bit too obvious.

Everything was a bit too repetitive and unnecessarily so.

Nevertheless, after reading the reviews, I see that I am the minority! I would like to give this author another go in the future.

What a great read. This book has me gripped from the beginning, the writing style made it so easy to get into and the who done it so intriguing.

I'll definitely be looking for more books by the author.

one of the characters felt like they had anything to them that made them special. They all felt wooden. Within the first time meeting each character, you know how they’re going to turn out. There was not a single plot twist that I did not guess by 25% through the book, which very much hindered the amount of fun I was able to have while reading it. Of course Jack is Zack. Of course Aaron killed him. Of course Amber was sleeping with Neil and covered up her son’s murder. I don’t even count this as spoilers because it’s all so obvious. I couldn’t get a sense of suspense because I could easily figure out what was going on -and that’s not bragging. I’m dumb, I can’t ever guess what’s going to happen.

4* Excellent introduction to this author. Not the suspension of disbelief tale that I expected.

This is nicely written, told in part in the present, in the aftermath of a fire that killed 4 people, and in events that led to the fire. It was plausible, and the author's clearly done research into people who claim to remember past lives and reincarnation (that Hindus and others believe is what happens when you die. Your soul is reincarnated in another body).

The start of the tale totally had me going in one direction and tbh, that part felt completely divorced from the rest of the story, but it gave an opening to how matters came to a head. I'm not entirely sure why the author included what he did, as it had no relevance to the tale - unless an ulterior motive was to maybe give the subject matter some attention? Make people think? But, I digress.

If you've watched Bollywood, then you naturally suspend disbelief a little. If you've watched Om Shanti Om, you'll remember that bad guys get their just desserts, often at their own hands, and in fire, and so this will probably feel quite believable.

The tale ends with a now-retired detective McGee visiting Kate, the storyteller, with a theory about who set the fire. I'm again OK going with the flow, because I'm not sure if Kate played a part from a distance and judged things to perfection, or if the detective could've been right about the person found dead in a certain place. 'Bollywood justice' got done.

ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my reading pleasure.

I enjoyed Gregg Dunnett’s Little Ghosts so was eager to read another one of his books.
Described as ‘a one of a kind thriller’ and it really is, I can’t think of anything similar.
Kate is being interviewed by police in the aftermath of a fatal family tragedy, she tells her story which includes the her young son Jack’s eerie recollection of events from before he was born.
I love a good troubled child thriller, and the depiction of Jack, a sensitive child, learning to communicate his fears and convey his memories, is very powerful.
There are some eerie and chilling moments. Not the fastest book but it holds together really well and kept me turning the pages.
Highly original, perhaps a little bit niche but well worth it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Storm Publishing

What an original story and a very well written book. I found the supernatural aspect a little bit unsettling but I was really drawn into the family drama and mystery and thought it was a gripping read. The writing really was amazing. Great job, and 4 stars from me. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the early copy.

Kate is being interviewed by police after a fire that killed several people. The story flips back and forth to the past as she recounts the story leading up to it. I hated everyone in this book. Also, even including all the more "spiritual" (for lack of a better word) aspects of the story, the least believable thing to me was that a woman would name her son JACK three years after her nephew ZACK died. 2 stars.

Brilliant, brilliant, BRILLIANT!

I absolutely love Gregg Dunnett’s writing and this book is my favourite yet.

I have myself experienced what the three daughters went through with their father and that part of the story was hard to read, but very important and relevant, to get to know the family and their history.

Four of Kate’s family members have perished in a fire at their shared holiday home, she is happy to tell the full truth to the police, but has warned them that they won’t believe her! There is a hint of supernatural to this story and the way it is written is utterly realistic and believable - this is not a fantasy or speculative supernatural novel, this is totally relatable.

Jack and his situation absolutely fascinated me. It is something I am curious about and open minded to. I remember my son, at around two years old, saying at bedtime, “I want to go home”. We reassured him that he was at home, he replied, “not here, my other home”.

I was completely invested in this story and this family and there were some mind blowing twists that I absolutely didn’t expect - amazing!

5 ⭐️ Thanks to Netgalley, Gregg Dunnett and Storm for an ARC in return for an honest review.

Wow! I was not expecting to love this book as much as I did.
The Lakehouse Children centers around Kate, her son Jack, and the rest of their extended family. There's been a fire, and during the investigation the book goes back in time to tell the story. Without putting spoilers out there, I'll say that Jack's storyline is something I would normally stear away from, but I could NOT put this book down. I loved it. It was so suspenseful. I will most definitely be reading more books by Gregg Dunnett.