What Lies Beneath | The House Across The Lake by Riley Sager

When it comes to thrillers, Riley Sager’s books leave you wondering how it’s all going to end once the plot presents itself. If I had to rank them, I’m not sure where I would place The House Across the Lake. Often playing with familiar thriller tropes, this story falls into the category of featuring an unreliable narrator spying on their neighbor à la Rear Window, Disturbia, The Girl on the Train, and The Woman at the Window, but takes an unexpected turn that leaves me conflicted. 

Casey Fletcher is an actress who has retreated to her family’s lake house, using alcohol to cope with her husband’s death. While there she happens to casually watch the couple who live right across from her. Katherine Royce is a personable former model married to app developer, Tom Royce. After Casey saves her from drowning, they quickly become friends. Suddenly, Katherine disappears. Casey immediately suspects Tom, but maybe there are other suspects and more secrets that the lake holds that she cannot fathom to believe.

You know how you go into a movie knowing what you’re going to get, but then it turns out to be completely different from what you thought it to be? That’s how I felt about this book. On the one hand, I liked the mystery surrounding Katherine’s disappearance. It got a little slow in the middle, but I was still ready for whatever twist was about to be revealed. Instead of an “aha” moment though, it shifts into a different direction where I began to wonder if this was what I signed up for. I had to go back and see if any of it was hinted at, and although there were inklings in the beginning, I kept putting it aside because none of Sager’s books ever had an ending like this before.

It’s a pretty bold move when an author decides to take a risk and subvert expectations, which I have to commend him for, but I think it could have been developed better. It kind of comes out of nowhere, but at the same time I have to ask if I feel this way because I didn’t see it coming. I think this is one where I will leave you to read and hear what you think. It’ll be interesting to see what his next book will be like now knowing anything can happen.

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A Grounded and Mature Romance That Takes the Cake | Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory

After I shared that I was reading Party of Two by Jasmine Guillory, I ended up talking to a fellow bookstagrammer, @kaysnovels, about it. She mentioned how she loved this book and how the relationship in it was so mature and genuine - and I completely agree! This was such a good romance filled with endearing moments, a classic meet-cute, and that overall felt so grounded and realistic. 

I think what I liked most about this book was that it was less about any outside drama affecting the characters, which some romances tend to lean on, and was more focused on the development and burgeoning relationship between Olivia Monroe and Max Powell. Max is a senator and Olivia is a lawyer who has just started her own law firm in LA. He’s more of an extrovert ready to jump all in, while she’s more cautious. And yet, they understand each other so well, gradually learning to trust and open themselves to one another while taking into consideration their careers and life positions. The fact that they communicated their feelings rather than let any miscommunication get in between was a highlight for me. 

I will admit, there were times I was frustrated whenever Olivia second-guessed or doubted Max and what they had, but at the same time I understood how she felt. Max is earnestly kind and charming - how can you not worry if it’s too good to be true and be expected to let your guard down? Also, considering his very public career and what that entails, I thought all her worries were valid. The same goes for Max, who may not be as cautious as Olivia, but believes in their relationship as much as he wants it to all work out seamlessly. I thought Guillory did a great job in showing all of this and how Max and Olivia were different, but so similar as they both did really care about each other and were patient in building their relationship. 

Party of Two was undeniably sweet and romantic featuring two characters you can easily connect with. This was also my first Jasmine Guillory book after wanting to read her books for so long, and it won’t certainly be the last.

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