3.75

I wasn't really sure what to expect coming into Lakesedge, and overall I would say it's a good read, especially for fans of this genre. It's a gothic fantasy, and I think the author did an excellent job of blending together horror and fantasy in a way that felt seamless. There were a lot of elements that felt like pure horror, which is not my personal favorite, but if you like reading horror, gothic fiction, dark fantasy, I do think it was done really well. Lyndall Clipstone's writing is really lush and elegant and immerses you into the world well. If you're at all intrigued by the description and like the blend of genres, you would likely enjoy this. It's got some gory descriptions and some really intense moments, so it's definitely not a lighthearted read (and I probably wouldn't read it right before going to bed), but it's an excellent debut for Lyndall Clipstone, and she writes a really intriguing protagonist who is strong and fierce, soft and feminine, and fights hard for those she loves. A good read.

A stunning debut that will take you on a fantastical gothic adventure.

From the marketing of this book I assumed that it was a historical gothic, but it is a bit higher fantasy than that. Despite the initial confusion, I found myself sinking easily into this lush, dreamy, gothic world. As with any good gothic, it takes place in an atmospheric mansion house that becomes as much of a character in its own right as anyone else. I appreciate that it isn't a chosen one narrative, but rather the main character, Leta, is motivated by a fierce love for her brother and a wish to protect him from his abilities, and those who want to take advantage of them. It's not often we get a fleshed-out sibling bond on the page. When the siblings end up on the Lakesedge estate, the story begins as they become wards to the intimidating Rowan Sylvanan, who may also be their only hope. A great, solid, gothic fantasy debut, and I greatly look forward to reading Forestfall. Thank you to the team for letting me read this early!

I definitely lost interest in the book after the first few chapters. I didn’t know there was a limit on the amount of times I can stand the word “monster” being said, but the book went waaaaay over that limit really quick. After that I had to drag myself to finish it. This has been the most time I’ve spent trying to read a book this year since Priory of the Orange Tree and at least that’s a 800+ page high fantasy novel. Violeta annoyed the heck out of me the entire book and the pacing all felt like a week. It’s supposed to be a month?!?!?! Which isn’t a lot of time but too much and too little happens in that time span.

I like the conflict, I like most of the characters, but I don't think I could dislike a main character/protagonist more. She keeps messing up and everyone forgives her anyway because her main motive is "protecting everyone".

I'd purchased this book years ago after reading a glowing review, but it did not live up to the hype. The plot wasn't anything new (Naomi Novik's Uprooted and T. Kingfisher's The Seventh Bride both do it better, even if those are more adult and less YA, but only just), and once again when reading YA I thought "WHY is YA so horny?" Every other sentence was about the softness of someone's skin or the way someone's strong jawline catches the light. I get that young adult novels are aimed at people experiencing puberty who are pretty horny, but I've read so much YA that has good romantic longing passages that aren't "just horny" that this book exasperated me to no end, and I wound up skimming the last third of the book just to finish (and I didn't lose the plot, because most of that was breathy glances and descriptions of adolescent longing). This is a miss for me across the board.

The was one of my most anticipated reads from 2021 and it didn't disappoint. This is all about those bleak, dark and tragic gothic vibes paired with painful beauty. You get lovely descriptions of beautiful flowers in the secret garden, moonlit kisses, and Violetta's new lace dresses and then in the next scene are met with viscous mud, dark water running down walls, and blood sacrifice. The atmosphere is topnotch and it's definitely a little creepy at times.

The one thing that did annoy me was Violetta herself. She is so self sacrificing and self-righteous that she annoyed the living daylights out of me at certain points in the book. She kept doing stupid things and seemed to insist that only she could do anything of note. But I will say, her romance with Rowan was absolutely adorable. Their banter was so entertaining.

Overall, this did end up feeling like a very dramatic and dark mixture of "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Secret Garden." It was good and I would read the second one, though Violetta isn't a heroine I'm keen to read from again anytime soon.

“There are Monsters in the World. There are Monsters in the Woods. There’s a Monster in the Shadows and now it knows my Name.”

I’m speechless, even though it had a open ending I have a nice warm and fuzzy feeling, a feeling that everything will be all right.

This book was so good.

Again I have to say the Lord Under reminds me of Hades from the Disney Movie, well maybe not attitude wise but definitely from the way I imagined him, his features, how he walks things like that - it made me laugh at the wrong times but it at least did not hurt the story line