I devoured this book in a single sitting—I’m always gonna love a lake house thriller.
The Summary
A summer trip to the Adirondacks is turned upside down when a woman’s body is discovered in the lake in this twisty thriller, perfect for fans of Liane Moriarty and Paula Hawkins.
Sisters Esme, Piper, and Regina go on their annual visit to their remote summer house on Lake George expecting a tense vacation. Each has their own families to deal with plus their own secrets to hide. Esme, the oldest sister, is desperate to keep up appearances after discovering her husband’s infidelity with the one person who hurts her the most. Piper, the middle child, has a four-month-old baby boy and is too tired to keep playing peacekeeper to her siblings. Regina, the youngest, is a sarcastic rule breaker with a secret to hide that could cost her everything.
After tension boils over into an ugly fight late one night, the sisters go off in separate directions. Like most of their blowouts, they think they’ll cool off and resume the trip like normal the next morning. Only this time when dawn comes, a young woman’s body is discovered in the lake. As a criminal investigation narrows in on their family home, it becomes clear that the sister’s web of lies and secrets is inextricably linked to the woman in the lake.
A tense and fast-paced thriller, The Summer House Murder will leave readers breathlessly turning the page until they reach the thrilling conclusion to this twisted family drama.
My Review
This is exactly what I want in a domestic thriller: messy family dynamics, buried secrets, and characters you can’t trust.
Tropes:
- Dysfunctional families
- Domestic thriller
- Lake house
The sister relationships were the standout for me. They felt so real, complicated, and layered. There’s love there, but also resentment, jealousy, and years of unspoken tension, which made everything hit harder as the story unfolded. Everyone had something to hide, and I loved how my opinions kept shifting with every new reveal.
I loved the setting and the writing was so atmospheric I felt like I was there. I could picture everything so clearly, like I was right there watching it all unravel in real time.
The pacing is super fast with short, punchy chapters. I loved how the story slowly peeled back each layer of the family dynamic.
I will say I guessed part of the twist, but honestly it didn’t take away from the experience for me. There were still enough surprises and smaller reveals along the way to keep me hooked, and the tension never really let up. If anything, it made me more invested in seeing how everything would play out.
If you love domestic thrillers packed with toxic family dynamics, secrets, a hint of female rage, and nonstop drama, this one is such a fun, bingeable read.
Thank you to @crookedlanebooks for the gifted copy!
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