The Lake Season by Hannah McKinnon

The Lake Season

by Hannah McKinnon

Set in the weeks leading up to an idyllic New England wedding, this “enticing and refreshing” (Nancy Thayer, New York Times bestselling author) novel sparkles with wry wit, sweet romance, and long-kept family secrets.

Iris Standish has always been the responsible older sibling: the one with the steady marriage, loving family, and sensible job. But all of a sudden, as her carefully-constructed life spins out of her control, a cryptic postcard from her estranged sister Leah arrives at the perfect time: Please Come. Iris seizes her chance to escape to her childhood lakeside home, where Leah is planning her summer wedding to a man their New Hampshire clan has never met.

Against a backdrop of dress fittings, floral arrangements, and rehearsal dinners, Leah hides secrets of her own. And while her sister faces a past that has finally caught up to her, Iris prepares to say good-bye to a future that is suddenly far from certain. As new love beckons and Hampstead Lake shimmers in the background, Iris must decide when to wade in cautiously and when to dive—and, ultimately, how to ferry herself to safe harbors in this enticing novel of second chances and the ties that bind.

Reviewed by lindsey on

3 of 5 stars

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(Source: I received a copy of this book from Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.)

Iris has been married to Paul for sixteen years, when he suddenly drops a bombshell - he wants a divorce. Her sister, Leah, is getting married at her parents' idyllic lakefront farm, and Iris decides to return home a few weeks early so she can try to figure things out. She leaves the kids with Paul so they can finish up their respective summer camps, and heads back to her parents' house.

Iris has always thought Leah was the perfect and popular one, but as her sister's wedding looms nearer, she learns that Leah's life hasn't been as perfect as she imagined.

Amidst all the drama, Iris gets closer to Cooper, an old high school crush who now helps out at her parents' farm. They both want more than a summer fling, but so much stands in the way that she isn't sure it will work.

This is an ideal beach read, though a little more serious than an average chick-lit book. Dealing with depression, divorce, recovery, taking chances, and mending relationships, The Lake Season is heartbreaking at times, yet ultimately realistic and hopeful.

Though Iris is a little flat for a main character, the others are more complex. Well-written, with evocative descriptions of the landscape, The Lake Season is an enjoyable read, and one I would recommend to fans of engrossing women's lit and beach reads featuring a strong family dynamic and second chances.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 12 July, 2015: Finished reading
  • 12 July, 2015: Reviewed