‘The Woman in the Lake’ is Malevolent and Irresistible [REVIEW]

Can a gown inspire treachery? (Photo courtesy Graydon House)

He didn’t mean to kill her. He swears the thought had never even entered his mind. Until he saw that dress. Yes, that was it. There was something about that golden gown that made him do the unthinkable. But why? And would anyone ever discover his secret? Find out in Nicola Cornick’s compelling new suspense novel, The Woman in the Lake.

Graydon House

It is 1765, and Lady Isabella Gerard can’t even look at her new golden gown anymore. A respectable member of London’s Georgian society, she should not have to deal with such atrocious behavior, and certainly not from her own husband. Be that as it may, his brutal actions tainted the lovely new gown and now all she wants to do is dispose of it. So she calls her maid to have it taken away.

Three months later, Lord Eustace Gerard can’t believe his eyes. He stands on the shore, looking down at a woman wearing the golden gown. But when the corpse slowly rolls over, he is horrified to realize that the deceased was not his intended victim. Anxious for no one to ever find out the truth, he allows his henchman to spirit away the body and tidy up his mess, but the shadow of his crime looms over him the rest of his days.

It has been 250 years since that shocking night and now the gown has surfaced once again. Fenella Brightwell was only a child when the gown had been stolen from the historic home of her youth. So when it mysteriously returns, she finds that she is just as entranced by it now as she was all those years ago. In fact, in a strange way it begins to possess her mind, taking over her thoughts in a way that is almost frightening as it blurs the lines between fantasy and reality.

As she investigates the history of the gown, she realizes she has a lot in common with its original owner, as both women were traumatized by the very men who should have protected them. The more she digs, the more she learns about the gown’s history, and soon Fen’s very sanity is threatened. Will her obsession push her past the brink and destroy the new life she has built for herself?

Nicola Cornick’s latest is as all-consuming as the gown she writes about. The Woman in the Lake is everything we love about a suspense story. It is riveting, has a creepy mystery fueled by details from a bygone era, and is populated by characters who are as fascinating as they are sinister. Readers are going to be turning pages late into the night with this one, as they seek to find out what happens to Fen, or if she will come completely undone.

In many ways, this story reminded me of the novels of Sabrina Jeffries and Grace Burroughs, but with a delicious yet malevolent twist. Longtime fans of Dorothy Eden, Velda Johnston and Daphne du Maurier will eat this one up. Just be forwarned: this is the kind of twisty, well-executed novel that you are going to lose sleep over. The Woman in the Lake is one irresistible read!

Nicola Cornick

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nicola Cornick is the USA Today bestselling author of over 40 historical romances and now writes Gothic time slip for HQ and Graydon House.

Nicola’s writing is inspired by her love of history and was fostered by a wonderful history teacher and by her grandmother, whose collection of historical romantic fiction fed Nicola’s addiction from an early age.

She studied in London and Oxford and works as a guide and historian in a 17th century house as well as acting as a historical adviser for TV and radio. Publisher’s Weekly have described her as a rising star and her books have been nominated for the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award and for the Romance Writers of America RITA Awards.

Nicola lives near Oxford with her husband and dog. When she isn’t writing she enjoys long walks in the countryside, singing in a choir and volunteering as a puppy walker for Guide Dogs.

Readers may visit her home on the Web at NicolaCornick.co.uk, like her on Facebook, subscribe to her on YouTube, and follow her on Twitter, Instagram, BookBub and Goodreads.

THE WOMAN IN THE LAKE
By Nicola Cornick
320 pp. Graydon House. $16.99

Purchase The Woman in the Lake at one of these fine online retailers: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, Harlequin, IndieBound and Powell’s.

The Woman in the Lake is brought to you in association with TLC Book Tours.