I thoroughly enjoyed Fortune’s debut, Every Summer After, and I have been not-so-patiently waiting for her follow-up novel. Meet Me At the Lake has some of the same second chance vibes as her first book, but also a somewhat more complex take on first loves, coming of age, as well as how anxiety can hold us back, and how others might help us find our own worth.
I love Fortune’s writing and how she creates situations that keep you guessing about exactly what happened until the very end. Her characters have such depth to them and I have left both of her books thinking, which is the mark of a great story in my opinion.
ABOUT THE BOOK
A random connection sends two strangers on a daylong adventure where they make a promise one keeps and the other breaks with lasting effects in this breathtaking new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Every Summer After.
Fern Brookbanks has wasted far too much of her adult life thinking about Will Baxter. She spent just twenty-four hours in her early twenties with the idealistic artist, a chance encounter that spiraled into a daylong adventure in the city. Both were in relationships, but their connection was undeniable: they shared every secret, every dream, and made a pact to meet one year later. Fern showed up single. Will didn’t show at all.
At thirty-two, Fern’s life doesn’t look at all how she once imagined it would. Instead of living in the city, Fern’s back home, running her mother’s lakeside resort—something she vowed never to do. The place is in disarray, her ex-boyfriend’s the manager, and Fern doesn’t know where to begin.
She needs a lifeline. To her surprise, it comes in the form of Will, who arrives with a suitcase in tow and an offer to help on his lips. Will may be the only person who understands what Fern’s going through. But how could she possibly trust a mirage, especially one who seems so different from the openhearted young man she met all those years ago. Will is hiding something, and Fern’s not sure she wants to know what it is.
But ten years ago, Will Baxter rescued Fern. Can she do the same for him?
