A review by aphelia88
Lost Lake, by Sarah Addison Allen
3.0
"That was something his mother always made sure he knew. The world was not like him and was not going to change for him. The trick to getting through life, she'd told him, is not to resent it when it isn't exactly how you think it should be." (84)
After falling in love with the Waverley duology - [b:Garden Spells|1158967|Garden Spells (Waverley Family, #1)|Sarah Addison Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347309330l/1158967._SY75_.jpg|2689445] and [b:First Frost|21853633|First Frost (Waverley Family, #2)|Sarah Addison Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1410962794l/21853633._SX50_.jpg|41125528] - I had high expectations for this book and really wanted to love it! Unfortunately, a plot twist late in the story lost me.
Centered around a rundown retro motorcourt in Florida called Lost Lake, the characters just weren't as vibrant as their outsized personalities and eccentricities made them seem.
Kate lost her husband a year ago and has been sleepwalking through life ever since. When she finally wakes up, she realizes her freewheeling 8 year old daughter Devin is being manipulated by her controlling mother-in-law and that she has allowed this woman to take over her life.
In a fit of defiance, she takes Devin to the last place she remembers being happy, a resort owned by a distant relative. But when they arrive, Lost Lake is a lot different than she remembers, and is in the process of closing down, in preparation for being sold to a developer.
Some season regulars turn up despite being told the resort is closing, and they all have a part to play in remembering the past and fighting for a future for Lost Lake.
Unfortunately, I had a major issue:
Also, the whole storyline about the dead brother magically turning into the alligator he always wanted to be, one that was leaving clues for Devin, in order to right a past wrong, was something I found more creepy and pitiable than charming.
I still love Sarah Addison Allen's writing, and will look for more of her work, but this book wasn't for me and I can't recommend it.
After falling in love with the Waverley duology - [b:Garden Spells|1158967|Garden Spells (Waverley Family, #1)|Sarah Addison Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1347309330l/1158967._SY75_.jpg|2689445] and [b:First Frost|21853633|First Frost (Waverley Family, #2)|Sarah Addison Allen|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1410962794l/21853633._SX50_.jpg|41125528] - I had high expectations for this book and really wanted to love it! Unfortunately, a plot twist late in the story lost me.
Centered around a rundown retro motorcourt in Florida called Lost Lake, the characters just weren't as vibrant as their outsized personalities and eccentricities made them seem.
Kate lost her husband a year ago and has been sleepwalking through life ever since. When she finally wakes up, she realizes her freewheeling 8 year old daughter Devin is being manipulated by her controlling mother-in-law and that she has allowed this woman to take over her life.
In a fit of defiance, she takes Devin to the last place she remembers being happy, a resort owned by a distant relative. But when they arrive, Lost Lake is a lot different than she remembers, and is in the process of closing down, in preparation for being sold to a developer.
Some season regulars turn up despite being told the resort is closing, and they all have a part to play in remembering the past and fighting for a future for Lost Lake.
Unfortunately, I had a major issue:
Spoiler
This would have been a 4 star read for me if it wasn't for the shocking twist near the end, which was more suited to a murder mystery than a feel good romance. I cannot get past the fact that Kate's teenage crush, with whom she reconnects and develops feelings for, deliberately set the fire that killed his abusive father and beloved younger brother. Granted, he thought his father wasn't home and his brother ran back into the flames trying to save a few precious belongings, but still. He wanted to follow young Kate, and he thought this was the only way out? And it was so quickly forgiven?!!!Also, the whole storyline about the dead brother magically turning into the alligator he always wanted to be, one that was leaving clues for Devin, in order to right a past wrong, was something I found more creepy and pitiable than charming.
I still love Sarah Addison Allen's writing, and will look for more of her work, but this book wasn't for me and I can't recommend it.