Bestselling author, Sidney Meyers, thrives on the intimate connection she shares with her fans until a chilling string of anonymous emails forces her into hiding. Pressured by her publisher, she reluctantly emerges for a book signing, where she and her fiancé, Matt, unexpectedly run into her ex-boyfriend, Cole.
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When their hotel room is broken into that same night, Sidney is convinced it’s her stalker. She and Matt accept Cole’s gracious invitation to join him and his girlfriend at their secluded lake house. One night turns into a weekend of madness, as Sidney realizes that leaving was never an option.
The Couple at the Lake House is a quick thriller that will appeal to readers who enjoy fast-paced stories with predictable twists. At just over 200 pages, or 6 hours of listening time, it moves at a decent pace, but at that momentum often comes at the expense of deeper development.
I came across this audiobook on Spotify where it had a 3.7 star rating and decided to go in blind. I immediately noticed that the plot felt like a Scream knockoff, with the author even using the same characters names, such as Sidney and the last name Macher. Despite the familiar setup, the story struggles to bring anything fresh to the genre.
The plot leans heavily on tropes we’ve seen before, and while the author attempts to justify certain twists and character decisions, the execution doesn’t feel authentic. In many ways, the characters seem more like tools to move the plot along than fully developed individuals, which makes it difficult to connect or invest in their outcomes.
Although this story didn’t hit the mark for me, it’s clear that there’s a strong audience for this type of thriller. With a solid rating on Goodreads and similar praise for the author’s other works, it’s evident that many readers enjoy his style. If enjoy short twist-driven thrillers, then this might be a fun and breezy read, but if you prefer stories that dive into character motivations and have a lasting impact, then this one will likely fall flat.
The Couple at the Lake House by James Caine
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
Pages: 251
Rating: 2.5/5
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I do appreciate your honest review of this book. It’s always disappointing when you come across something that feels like it has overly borrowed from something else. Originality is always the best!
Thank you Heidi! I agree, it’s always better to go the original route or pay homage the right way, which in this case, the book didn’t.
The plot does sound intriguing, but it is a shame that the book does not do anything new and relies so much on tropes. I will give it a pass!
It was disappointing but I’m glad it counts towards my 2025 reading goal haha. Thank you for reading Karalee!
Aw, man. The title was promising. Too bad it got a low rating. Thanks for the honest review!
Thank you for reading Lux!
I wish the author was able to build on Scream plot. It really would have been a great read.
I agree, it wasn’t even an homage it felt like just a copy-cat. Thank you for reading Lanae!
Thanks for posting your honest review Winnie. It seems we both had disappointments in the books we read this week.
I hope our next picks will turn out to be a winner! Thank you for reading Jodie.
Great honest review, I loved the Scream comparison!
Thank you Candice!