Rating: 
Summary: fantastic, completely enchating and intriguing debut
Review: Jane Hudson has returned to Heart Lake - a girl's school nestled cosily beside the waters of said lake - after 20 years to teach Latin. Many years ago, whilst studying there as a scholarship student under the charismatic Domina Chambers, a tragic series of events (the suicides of two roommates and her best-friend's brother) occurred, that burnt themselves into the very fabric of Jane's self, affecting who she is today. Now she's back at the school, amidst the turbulent emotions of the teenage girls, struggling to cope with all the emergent memories, when, with horror she has to watch as the cathartic events of two decades ago appear to be recurring before her eyes...This book is quite, quite amazing. I've not read a novel containing such rich, beautiful prose in a long while, with each word combining to form a fully realised almost tangible image, full of wonderful detail. Certainly, I've never come across a writer who can describe a lake in so many varied, and, quite frankly, once again beautiful, ways, with each new descriptions causing a bright smile of utter contentment to spread across my face, happy in the knowledge that our language can be used to evoke such wonder from a single image. The tone is, often, very claustrophobic and haunting, given the insular nature of the community in which the involving mysteries take place, and especially when concerning the eerie "three sisters", - named thus due to an old myth surrounding the school - which are 3 stones which rise up out of Heart Lake, and seem to have some kind of mystical pull over the impressionable teenage girls of the school. The characters are great, especially Jane Hudson (our likeable and very human narrator) and her young students, whom, in her Latin class are given classical "nicknames", such as Vesta and Athena, which may be indulgent, but I found to be another completely magical touch. The plot itself is marvellous, original and puzzling all the way through and very engagingly told. Some people have said that aspects of the plot are predictable, but I didn't find them so...I was far too wrapped up in the writing style to bother trying to second-guess the plotline. There are revelations throughout the story, each one bringing a wonderful level of ice-like clarity to one particular feature of the plot. The suspense is built up masterfully, yet almost invisibly, so you don't notice it much, until suddenly there is a great sense of foreboding at the events soon to come. I am surprised that this is her first novel. All of this culminates brilliantly - along with the explanation of what truly happened all those years ago - to a pulse-pounding conclusion atop the frozen-solid surface of the lake. Some books appeal to the heart, and some to the mind. For me, this one went straight to the soul.
Rating: 
Summary: A Satisfying Companion to the Secret History
Review: Carol Goodman's novel the Lake of Dead Languages is a worthy companion to Donna Tartt's Secret History. If you mourned finishing the Secret History, pick up Goodman's book. While not as lush as Secret History, the Lake of Dead Languages has enough similarities to its predecessor to feel like a continuation of Tartt's book. Heart Lake School for Girls in the Adirondacks is described as a "last resort for a certain kind of girl." That is, the kind of girl who's bright, troubled, and mostly a bother to her moneyed family. Intelligent girls who've been kicked out of other boarding schools for the usual offenses (sex, drugs, acting out) are sent to Heart Lake. The school has steadily fallen in rank since its inception in the late 1800s. Jane Hudson, the story's protagonist, was once a student there when the school was of a higher rank. When Jane separates from her husband and has to fend for herself and her daughter financially, she returns to Heart Lake to teach Latin (the dead language of the title) and regain her footing in life. Heart Lake has a dark legend (some would say curse), and the teenage girls at the school work hard to keep the legend alive. Problem is, actual events reinforce the legend, if not dictate the certainty of events. In Jane's quest to get at the truth of the past and the present, two parallel stories unfold. When the past seems to repeat itself at the school, Jane decides to find out exactly what happened all those years ago. She muddles through the events of her youth at Heart Lake, carefully piecing together memories, family relations, old photos, and old journals to finally learn what happened to her close friends Lucy, Matt, and Deirdre. At the same time, she discovers that the current event is not as open-and-shut as everyone previously thought. Jane's committed to finding out what happened at the school when she was a student there and what's going on now, but she seems like someone who simply got caught up in the momentum of her life. Having no strong sense of self or ambition, Jane's meandering life took her right back to where she was as a young woman: caught up in the events at Heart Lake. Jane learns far more than she bargained for, both about the past and the present. I'd suggest keeping a list of character names, to keep things sorted out as the story progresses. Characters in the present parallel characters from the past. Add to that their Latin names, and it's easy to lose track of who's who. My one criticism of the story is the all-too-tidy ending. Fortunately, I didn't see it coming, and it transpires fairly quickly. That doesn't detract from the overall experience of the story. Lake of Dead Languages is an engaging read that you can polish off in a day or two. Perfect for a cold, dreary weekend.
Rating: 
Summary: (3.5)A classic case of unfinished business...
Review: Her youthful past shattered by tragic loss and a recent divorce, the solace of routine drives Jane Hudson back to the Heart Lake School for Girls, in the Adirondacks of upstate New York. The school has its own mythological past, the legendary drowning of three sisters, daughters of the family who establish the school. Rumors pass from ear to ear over the years, until the myth itself takes on the ring of truth and will not be denied. Attending Heart Lake as a scholarship student, Jane finds inclusion with two roommates, Lucy and Deirdre. But each of these young women meet untimely deaths, feeding the gossip mill regarding the Lake's unquenchable thirst for more sacrifices. Twenty years later, Jane returns as a teacher of Latin Classics, drawn back into a world she's never quite forgotten. As a teacher, her favorite Latin students are enthralled by the Heart Lake drowning legend and obsessed by their own life struggles, dressing all in black like Goths, self-cutting and a perverse attraction to suicide. When pages from Jane's senior year journal appear, along with other mysterious events, it is clear that Jane's new life is plagued by unfinished business. The story moves forward, alternating past and present, the classical Latin studies lending authenticity to the unique perspective of misdirected youthful passion when taken to extremes. A variety of characters introduce clues, although the clues become quite transparent. However, Goodman's sense of place is excellent, permeated with the hovering shadows of danger and menace. The current students are precociously rendered, with their nervy bravery and unconscious vulnerability, wildly colored hair and outrageous personal habits. Jane's best friends at Heart Lake are a less successful endeavor. Lucy and Deirdre are actually Jane's only friends at school, and Jane does appear to be a gullible pawn for the two of them. The lonely Jane aches for acceptance by her peers without ever making a case of her attraction for the roommates. This slightly unformed image of Jane and her subtle lack of definition unleash a dissonance in the novel. Yet Goodman does well in tying up the story line at the end, when the mystery is unveiled as yet another tragic consequence of the past.
Rating:
Summary: I concur with most of what the other reviews say
Review: This is a very well written book with tons of suspense and plot twists. I did guess most of the revelations beforehand, though I didn't see that as a flaw in the storytelling. The characters, events, coincidences are a definitely over the top, but this is still a unique, smart, engaging story.
Rating:
Summary: Four Stars
Review: I tore through The Lake of Dead Languages finishing it in three days. And I was unhappy when I finished it because there was not more to read. It's been a while since I've thought that. However, I felt the author telegraphed her intentions too much. It seemed as if she was trying to seed subtle clues throughout the novel but they were often quite apparent. One character in particular was like Checkov's gun - I just kept waiting until when she would go off. The various secret identities/birthrights are clearly meant to refer back to the classics, but they seemed a little soap-opera-ish. I liked this book for its language and imagery. They were original and evocative, but they didn't slow down the pace of the novel. They propelled the story forward.
Rating:
Summary: Engrossing tale, well written
Review: I really enjoyed this deeply crafted and well-written debut novel by Carol Goodman. She serves up a plethora of plot twists and really delves into the many jealousies, rituals, and secrets of private school life. It is interesting too, and believable, how history repeats itself in each generation. Unlike some other reviewers, I did not find the ending silly, though perhaps it was a tad bit contrived. Like other readers, I did guess the identity and motive of the person behind the persecution of Jane fairly early on (though I did get thrown a curve ball about 2/3 of the way through), but that did not detract me from reading the story, as there were so many other secrets to be revealed, some of which were total surprises. This is a great novel for cold winter evenings by the fire with a warm blanket and a hot cup of tea.
Rating:
Summary: Imperfect, indeed, yet somehow engaging
Review: I started it and was drawn into the world of Heart Lake, and though I stopped to do errands and other needed things, I read it through because I was interested. Perhaps the ending was simplistic, and I admit that I rarely "solve" a mystery, but I read alot of them, and this one was particularly engaging. It was not a "fluff" book, or what is commonly called a "beach read". I was drawn in and was glad that I was, for it was an enjoyable ride. I am very interested in seeing what the next novel shall be like, she's off to a pretty good start.
Rating:
Summary: I'm sad that I've finished reading this book
Review: Have you ever read a book that you didn't want to finish because you didn't want to see it come to an end? And when it did end, have you ever felt lonely because you'll miss the characters and setting? This book is like that.
Every time I opened this book, I was drawn into the world at Heart Lake, the school where the story takes place. I will defintely buy Carol Goodman's next book the day it is released.
Rating:
Summary: Has potential but needs more.
Review: I agree with an earlier reviewer, who said that the author here spent too much time describing and not enough time telling. And I think that did make this book drag in a few places. While it was a good story that Carol Goodman came up with, she could take a lesson from one of my favorite authors, Stephen King. King's style concerning dialog is what stands out about his writing, not whether the story's about a possessed car or a mad dog. The dialog flows, you can actually picture people talking like that, and they tell you what's going on. Goodman's story could use a bit more of that. I'm also not sure if the stuff about the relationship of three of the characters to the founder of the school really added anything to the story. Overall, it was a good, but not great, book. This author has potential.
Rating:
Summary: Satisfactory First Novel
Review: It was the title of this book that intrigued me into buying it. It didn't entirely play me false either. This is an interesting, well told, well written story. Unfortunately, it suffers from being way too long, containing characters who are both transparent and unsympathetic, and consisting of a mystery I'd solved well before the end. Nice to see a new author attempting the mystery genre, however, and I hope she writes another novel. I'd certainly buy it, but I think this time I'd wait for the paperback.
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