What Happens at the Lake by Vi Keeland-review tour

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date January 15, 2024

When life took an unexpected turn, I decided to get out of New York for a while. What better place to go than the idyllic small town my father spoke about so fondly when I was growing up? Laurel Lake held the title America’s Friendliest Town for seventeen years running, and friendly was just what I needed right now.

Unfortunately, friendly wasn’t the welcome I got when I arrived.

Instead, I got Fox Cassidy. My tall, dark, and burly neighbor, who grunted at me instead of saying hello.

Okay, so I might’ve had his mailbox in my hands the first time we met. And it might’ve been a little crushed after removing it from under my tire. And I might’ve needed his help breaking into the place I was staying in after the key broke off in the lock. But still…he didn’t have to be so grumpy.

As time went on though, I started to notice things about Fox other than his glares. Like how he watched me when he thought I wasn’t looking, or how fire ignited in his eyes whenever we bickered. Though I was in Laurel Lake to escape my problems, not create new ones. And getting involved with a man like Fox screamed trouble, even if he was gorgeous and unlike any man I’d ever met.

But alas, problem seemed to be my middle name this year. So why not have some fun while I was here for the summer? It seemed like a good plan. At least until it was time to go home…

They say what happens at the lake, stays at the lake. But it’s not so easy to walk away when what stays behind…is your heart.

•••••

REVIEW:WHAT HAPPENS AT THE LAKE by Vi Keeland is a contemporary, adult, stand alone erotic, romance story line focusing on former professional hockey payer turned construction company owner Fox Cassidy, and pharmaceutical science engineer Dr. Josie Preston.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Fox and Josie) using present day and memories from the past, WHAT HAPPENS AT THE LAKE follows Dr. Josie Preston as she ventures towards her future on Laurel Lake. Years earlier, Josie’s grandmother, and subsequently her father died, leaving our heroine the family property but on ‘leave’ from work, Josie makes the decision to leave Manhattan only to discover the property at Laurel Lake in disrepair. Accidentally meeting her grumpy neighbor Fox Cassidy forced our heroine to reconsider everything about Laurel Lake including the town’s reputation as America’s Friendliest. As Laurel struggles with a myriad of home repairs, Fox knows the neighborly thing would be to help but it is not until someone else takes an interest does Fox step up his game. What ensues is the building romance and relationship between Fox and Josie, and the fall-out as Fox’s demons refuse to let go, sending our hero into a spiral from which he may not return.

The world building focuses on the heart breaking past of our story line couple. Individually, each has a story that has shaped their current direction in life but Fox’s past continues to control his present, and with it, he is unable to let go. Having both loves and lost, Josie is hoping for a new start, while Fox continues to live in the past.

The relationship between Fox and Josie begins acrimoniously as Josie’s slightly flighty attitude sets Fox’s teeth on edge.Josie has become the town’s newest daughter, and the gossip chain refuses to let anything die, and Fox and Josie’s life becomes fodder for the town. As Fox and Josie’s relationship turns into something more, the ghosts continue to haunt our hero, pushing the woman he loves out of his life. The $ex scenes are intimate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

There is a large ensemble cast of colorful, quirky and charismatic secondary and supporting characters, as well as the small town busybodies, and grapevines that pull everyone into everyone else’s business.

WHAT HAPPENS AT THE LAKE is a story of loss and grief, guilt and shame, family and friendships, relationships and love. The premise is emotional yet captivating; the romance is seductive; the characters are broken, determined and healing.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn’t change for the world. She is an attorney and a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, & USA Today Best Selling author. Over the last three years, ten of her titles have appeared on the USA Today Bestseller lists and three on the New York Times Bestseller lists.

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