portcityreads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Fern and Will spend 24 hours together ten years ago - and then reconnect at her mom’s lakeside resort shortly after her mom’s passing.
I really enjoyed this one, but it was lacking *something* for me and I don’t quite know what it was. That’s not say it wasn’t good (I gave it 4/5 stars), but it just wasn’t a WOWWEE romance for me! I think maybe it was lacking a little in the second chance romance department - they weren’t established enough in the past to have the big feelings they were having in the future (or maybe I’m a big curmudgeon)! Also I didn’t love Will so that might have been where my feelings are coming from 😂.
What I did love: Fern, everyone at the resort, PETERRRR, bread, Canada!
Trope: second chance romance
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️
Steam: 🔥🔥
TW: car accident, mental health, death of a parent, divorce
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for a copy of this book for review! It will be out May 2nd!
I really enjoyed this one, but it was lacking *something* for me and I don’t quite know what it was. That’s not say it wasn’t good (I gave it 4/5 stars), but it just wasn’t a WOWWEE romance for me! I think maybe it was lacking a little in the second chance romance department - they weren’t established enough in the past to have the big feelings they were having in the future (or maybe I’m a big curmudgeon)! Also I didn’t love Will so that might have been where my feelings are coming from 😂.
What I did love: Fern, everyone at the resort, PETERRRR, bread, Canada!
Trope: second chance romance
Romance: ❤️❤️❤️
Steam: 🔥🔥
TW: car accident, mental health, death of a parent, divorce
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada for a copy of this book for review! It will be out May 2nd!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident, Death of parent, and Mental illness
beautifuldetour's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Getting to read this book first thing in the new year was an absolute treat. This book comes out in May and you better pre-order it! If you loved her last book then this one will not disappoint. By the end of this book, you will fall in love with the characters. This book has loss, a lakeside setting that you feel like you are at, and a love story worth the nine-year wait.
aliciag's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
3.75
alexatthelake's review against another edition
5.0
To say I had high expectations for this book would be a gross understatement. Every Summer After moved me in so many ways that I was almost positive there would be no way a second book by Carley Fortune could come close to it. While I tried to convince myself of that in the beginning of Meet Me At The Lake, Carley absolutely proved me wrong in the end, leaving me a blubbering, sobbing mess.
Not only is the title of this book the story of my current life, Fern, her past and a lot of her present really hit close to home for me. Small town, family owned resort, expectations and a wild streak all really resonated with me. I adored the pacing of this second chance romance (if you can even call it that?), I loved the flashback glimpses of how Fern and Will met and spent one incredible day together and how that plays out in their current life. I will say that there were definitely some similarities and parallels to Every Summer After, but please give this book the chance, it won’t disappoint.
Carley Fortune has this way with words that totally transports you into her books and her characters lives. You feel like you know them, want to be their best friend and want to know everything that happens in their lives. You can’t help but fall in love. Bravo, Carley, for your sophomore book being just as incredible as your debut. I can’t wait to see what else you come up with for us.
taykealook_'s review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
does Carley Fortune know that people can just meet each other and fall in love and not be in a relationship when they meet? it’s unclear.
3.5 for me. I think a lot of y’all will love it, over all a good time - but for a book that starts with the death of a mother the emotional depth, or lack thereof was alarmingly “meh”
3.5 for me. I think a lot of y’all will love it, over all a good time - but for a book that starts with the death of a mother the emotional depth, or lack thereof was alarmingly “meh”
asreadbykatherine's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
isabella_acacia's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
megmcreads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Meet Me at the Lake carries with it the same summery, nostalgia that Every Summer After had. And while certain themes can be found in both books, Meet Me at the Lake is very much it’s own book.
I loved the connection between Fern and Will. Fern came from a world where everyone knew her or at least thought they did and Will was a one day companion. Fern got to share herself with him, she got to tell her story on a clean slate to someone who wouldn’t be waiting for her in her home town.
Fast forward to the present! Will shows up after no contact for 10 years and while the truth is revealed slowly it felt like the right pace. I liked watching them get more time to learn about each other and explore things they didn’t get to the over the course of their first meeting. I adored Will at 22, I fell head over heels for Will at 32!
I loved how we got snippets of Fern’s mom in the form of journal entries. And seeing Fern learn various truths was actually quite emotional especially when they were introduced through the entries then elaborated on by loved ones.
Set in Toronto and Muskoka, Fortune managed to yet again transport me to the places she wrote about. Part of me would love to experience her books as someone who didn’t go up north in the summers or spend 5 years working in Toronto. But as someone who did both I can say she does a brilliant job capturing both places. So much so I was craving certain culinary delights that are not exactly the easiest to obtain without at least an hour commute!
Meet Me at the Lake took me back to the days of lofty expectations and uncertainty. It had me dreaming of falling asleep to loon song and rediscovering a city I love.
I loved the connection between Fern and Will. Fern came from a world where everyone knew her or at least thought they did and Will was a one day companion. Fern got to share herself with him, she got to tell her story on a clean slate to someone who wouldn’t be waiting for her in her home town.
Fast forward to the present! Will shows up after no contact for 10 years and while the truth is revealed slowly it felt like the right pace. I liked watching them get more time to learn about each other and explore things they didn’t get to the over the course of their first meeting. I adored Will at 22, I fell head over heels for Will at 32!
I loved how we got snippets of Fern’s mom in the form of journal entries. And seeing Fern learn various truths was actually quite emotional especially when they were introduced through the entries then elaborated on by loved ones.
Set in Toronto and Muskoka, Fortune managed to yet again transport me to the places she wrote about. Part of me would love to experience her books as someone who didn’t go up north in the summers or spend 5 years working in Toronto. But as someone who did both I can say she does a brilliant job capturing both places. So much so I was craving certain culinary delights that are not exactly the easiest to obtain without at least an hour commute!
Meet Me at the Lake took me back to the days of lofty expectations and uncertainty. It had me dreaming of falling asleep to loon song and rediscovering a city I love.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Death of parent
Moderate: Abandonment and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Car accident
susiebooks72's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kendra_reads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5