Lakesedge

by Lyndall Clipstone

Book Overview

A lush, gothic fantasy from debut author Lyndall Clipstone about monsters and magic, set on the banks of a cursed lake, perfect for fans of Naomi Novik and Brigid Kemmerer.

When Violeta Graceling and her younger brother Arien arrive at the haunted Lakesedge estate, they expect to find a monster. Leta knows the terrifying rumors about Rowan Sylvanan, who drowned his entire family when he was a boy. But neither the estate nor the monster...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1250753392
• ISBN13: 9781250753397
• Release Date: September 2021
• Publisher: Henry Holt & Company
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 0.95 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.8" x 8.5"
• Age Range: 14 to 17 years
• Grade Range: Grades 9 to 12

Customer Reviews

A creepy, gothic YA fantasy

Lakesedge was a mixed reading experience for me. The author showed a lot of creativity in terms of the setting. I loved the eerie, atmospheric, isolated gothic mansion on a lake filled with spreading corruption, a secret garden and creepy woods. The dark magic was fascinating, and I would have loved more background on it. The main characters felt flat to me and there was a lot of ruminating inner monologue from Violeta. Rowan was just brooding most of the time. Both had a heavy self-sacrifice trope. I really liked the side characters and wish they had been better developed. First person narration was not the best choice since we were inside Violet's head instead of experiencing different perspectives. The plot was repetitive and often stalled instead of moving along, making the book hard to get through. My favorite parts were those involving the sinister Lord Under and his dark realm. He was reminiscent of Hades and I could have read an entire book about him. There is a cliffhanger ending involving Lord Under and this makes me want to read the sequel as he will likely feature more prominently in it.

Could have been better

h. I had a bit of a hard time getting through this. Violeta, or Leta was really annoying in the beginning though she got just a little better when you find out the reason for why she acts the way she does with her brother. But then it was the tired old trope of girl having secret power and she is the only one that can save the bad boy that is being eaten by corruption (literally in this case) and gives it all up. Just once, I would like to see it be more of a group effort. I really am not a fan of the whole self sacrificing and makin bad decisions without thinking it through, or even asking the others who it will effect when you end up making a total hash of things. This book definitely ends on a cliffhanger but I kind of find that I don't really care to find out what happens with Leta. The only thing I am interested in a bit is the Lord Under. Cool cover, flat characters.

Was good

I love the cover of Lakesedge by Lyndall Clipstone it's very pretty. I love how she's running up the stairs. So to start off the mom burning Airen was messed up. There's never an excuse to hurt a child it's disgusting. Quote: "I want his shadows." The monster said is why it wants Arien. He gives off bad vibes. It also must have been weird for Airen's sister Violeta to have to ride with the monster as well. It also must have been scary when they were running from the monster in the woods. Quote: "Tendrils of darkness unfold from the ground and snare the wolf, wrapping it's legs like vines." Very descriptive and scared me to be completely honest. Quote: "This monster, who claims there's darkness in my brother who wanted to take Arien away and leave me behind, he came back for me." Does the monster have a little crush on Violeta? This book was very interesting and loved it. The plot was so amazing. Love the relationship between Rowan and Violetta. I also love how she sacrificed everything. I would definitely reccomend reading this just be warned it's a very emotional story.

Enchanting fantasy filled with horror and magic

If you are into fantasy and magical worlds this will be good for you. I was never into horror and mystery but it makes it all real and draws you in until the very last page. I can't wait for the second book