I want to thank the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC of this book. If you love magic, victorian gothic stories, monster boy romances and deals made with the Lord of the Underworld, you NEED to read this book. I was hooked from the first line and couldn't put it down. As an older sister with a younger brother, Leta and Arien's relationship really resonated with me. And Rowan? *SWOONS* I can't wait to do some more doodles of Rowan, Leta and Arien (If you need more reasons to read Lakesedge, you can see my drawings @angelaanimates over on instagram). Now to wait til Forestfall...

The world of Lakesedge is magically gothic in all the best ways possible while also being a light enough read that readers looking for just a bit of darkness will surely enjoy it. Everything from the tortured hero to the blighted land to the desperate heroine work in making this a darkly emotional tale that pulls you in and holds you in thrall.
Leta's life of pain and sacrifice for her brother takes an unexpected turn when the lord of the land, Rowan, sees young Erian's dark magic and decides to take him to his appropriately rundown estate. Leta, of course, will not let her brother go alone with what everyone knows is the monster of Lakesedge and tags along. Thus begins to unravel a story of loss and pain that connects Leta and Rowan far deeper than they could have possibly imagined.
The story is full of magic and sacrifice and dark terrors that threaten the world, but it also has little shining moments of connection that keep it from being a total downer.
My one complaint is that it ends on what could seriously be considered a cliffhanger, which I hate, but I knew coming in that it's a duology so that's all on me.

I'm happy I have this a chance but it just doesn't work. The story is plain and basic, there are points where the story feels off and doesn't make sense, and the characters are so one dimensional and boring. There is no real gothic atmosphere and the plot is full of issues.

4.5 stars
I really liked this book, i lot of people were saying that they didnt like Leta but I really liked her and rowan together. At the end when she basically decided to love the lord under and keep him company to be able to go home I really was not expecting that. But I liked how this book wasn't too slow in the beginning and that the author kind of got straight to the point. I will be picking up the second book because we got left on a cliffhanger and I need to know what happens between leta and the lord under.

This is the perfect fall read.

Lakesedge is creepy, ominous, and atmospheric. From horror to romance, this book has it all. I found myself glued to the pages, loving these characters and this world, eager to find out what happens next.

The relationships between all of the characters are at the heart of this story and truly make it shine. I loved the dynamic between our main character and her younger brother that she would do anything to protect. And the romance was absolutely adorable. If you like broody and possibly monstrous love interests, this book is for you. Their banter was so entertaining and I never wanted it to end.

I swear, Lakesedge was made for me. This book has similar vibes to The Haunting of Bly Manor and Down Comes the Night. And did I mention that 90% of the characters are queer? Our protagonist is demisexual, and we also have gay, sapphic, and bi/pan characters. Yeah, I'm officially obsessed.

Can book 2 come out already???

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

(Content Warnings: death, violence, gore, self-harm (for magic), body horror, drowning, vomiting [official list available here])

3.5

The description absolutely nails this book: lush, Gothic, and fantasy fully capture the feel of this story. The decaying manor and its mysterious, secretive owner who drags two siblings back for an initially unstated purpose all contribute to the ominous atmosphere. It turns out that there is a very otherworldly reason behind this, and our main character, Violeta, may be getting more than she asked for. A very intriguing tale whose ending makes me curious for the next book!

literally the only thing this book has going for it is the sexual tension/romance. the plot was boring and repetitive, the main character was annoying, and all the side characters were so bland. i probably should have dnfed this

This book to itself say to seriously. It was trying to be fresh and unique but didn’t pull it off. The heroine was quite annoying and was always trying to be a martyr. The writing is very much tell instead of how especially with describing the male main character. We never see him do monster pjs things and yet he is suppose to be a monster. I think the author had a very intriguing idea of an evil cursed lake at a gothic mansion but let her plot be pulled along by over done tropes and lack luster characters.