Ladies of the Lake by Cathy Gohlke: A Book Review

Ladies of the Lake

Author: Cathy Gohlke

Genre: Historical Fiction, Christian,

Romance

Publisher: Tyndale Fiction

Release Date: 2023

Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Synopsis: After the deep bond of friendship between two young women is torn apart, what will it take to bring them together again? In Ladies of the Lake, the beloved author of Saving Amelie and Night Bird Calling returns with a transformative new historical novel about the wonder and complexities of friendship, love, and belonging.

When she is forced to leave her beloved Prince Edward Island to attend Lakeside Ladies Academy after the death of her parents, the last thing Adelaide Rose MacNeill expects to find is three kindred spirits. The “Ladies of the Lake,” as the four girls call themselves, quickly bond like sisters, vowing that wherever life takes them, they will always be there for each other. But that is before: Before love and jealousy come between Adelaide and Dorothy, the closest of the friends. Before the dawn of World War I upends their world and casts baseless suspicion onto the German American man they both love. Before a terrible explosion in Halifax Harbor rips the sisterhood irrevocably apart.

My Review: At the young age of eleven, Adelaide MacNeill is distraught to leave her beloved Prince Edward Island and go to a school in Connecticut named Lakeside Ladies Academy. She quickly befriends a girl named Dorothy at the academy, who quickly heals her homesickness. However, their friendship is tested when they both love a German American man. When an explosion erupts in Halifax Harbor, Adelaide cuts off her friendship with Dorothy and forges a new name of Rosalina Murray. One day, Rosalind receives a phone call from Dorothy inviting her to attend the Lakeside Academy’s graduation. This makes Roseline ponder her life and identity.

This story is told from Adelaide’s perspective. I could not connect with her. She was very selfish and childish. She never grew up in the novel. I also did not like some of her actions. Some of them were ruthless. I also did not believe her friendship with Dorothy was deep as the novel tried hard to portray. Their friendship was broken because of their love for another man. This proved to me that their friendship was never strong to begin with. If it was, then a man would not have gotten in the way of their friendship. Therefore, I was not invested in Adelaide or her friendship with Dorothy.

Overall, this novel is about forgiveness, sisterhood, and identity. The message of this book is to forgive those who have done you wrong. I did not

care for the characters, and they seemed very flat, especially Dorothy. Dorothy was childish, and I could not relate to her. I detested the love triangle and thought it was very silly. The love interest had no personality or depth. I did like the writing style of this book. However, it was filled with unnecessary drama. I do recommend this novel for fans of Melanie Dobson, Kristy Cambron, and Susan Meissner. Still, Ladies of the Lake is a forgettable novel with insufferable characters.

Rating: 2 ½ out of 5 stars

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