The Lake

Rating:
Summary: fantastic thriller
Review: As a teen, Leigh was a rebel protesting the Viet Nam War so her parents decided she needed a change of scenery sending her to her uncle an aunt's home in Wisconsin where she met studmuffin Charlie Payne. Leigh chased after the shy man who was intimidated by his mother until she finally caught him. They made love in an abandoned house, but as Charlie was leaving he fell through the floor, hit his dead, and died. His mother claimed Leigh killed her son, but the police ruled it an accidental death. She returned home pregnant.

Eighteen years later Leigh's daughter Deana is on a date with Allan when a man carrying a cleaver and wearing a chef's hat chases after them and kills the lad. The culprit is the former chef at Leigh's restaurant, who was recently fired. Macer, the detective in charge, becomes romantically involved with Leigh. When the police catch Allan's killer, Leigh feels safe, but she soon will learns she is wrong because someone is coming for her and her daughter.

Richard Laymon is a Bram Stroker award winning horror novelist who proves he can switch genre gears by writing a fantastic thriller as well. From the very beginning, the action explodes and just accelerates beyond warp speed and yet allows for a strong believable relationship between mother and daughter even when stress threatens to destroy it as both want to protect the other. The story line is loaded with surprises so that the audience never knows what will happen next. This totally absorbing crime thriller will have readers enthralled and unable to put it down until the last page is turned.

Harriet Klausner


Rating:
Summary: Slow, uneventful read from master horror writer Laymon
Review: I am a huge fan of Richard Laymon. Ever since I picked up his book, Island a few years back as I was searching for a new Author to try, I can't get enough of his incredible stories, and am even willing to shell out more money to get his books from the UK. Well, for the first time I've been let down by one of Laymon's books. To blame it on Laymon though is not entirely fair. Yes he wrote this story, but it's one of his few stories that was released after his death, meaning it was released for book companies to make a quick buck since Laymon has become even more popular here in the states since his death. This is probably one of his books that he finished but never had a chance to touch-up and revise, making it into a more cohesive story that didn't have so many plot holes and pointless twists.
One of the things that's so great about Laymon's books is his wild characters. You never know what they're going to do next because each one is brought to life, and none of them ever quite fit the bill of hero, because each one has his or her faults. The characters in this book are never fully flushed out and as fun as the characters in his past books. The story meanders on with many a slow parts, which is also very unlike Laymon, who usually writes fast-paced page turners. The story never reaches any strong point. Instead it just limps along until the end, which is once again, unspectacular. Plus, in this book, I could guess what was going to happen, who was tied to who and what the characters would do. In past Laymon stories I was always on the edge of my seat because Laymon wrote so well, you never quite knew what was going to happen next. Lets hope the book company's stop releasing sub-par books that aren't even fully finished, and instead bring us Laymon's older books that are out of print here in the states, then at least I could save a little money from having to order them from overseas.

Rating:
Summary: Not one of Laymon's best.
Review: I'm a huge Richard Laymon fan. After spending hundreds of dollars on his domestic and import titles, I have read pretty much everything he has written. Needless to say, I was excited when I got my hands on "The Lake", but my excitement has been reduced to a general feeling of... "eh." The story held up for two thirds of the book, but by the end, I was just in awe of the ridiculous turns the plot had taken. Silly twists aside, the editing flaws alone are enough to put a person off. Did anyone proofread this before it was published? Look, if you want to read a good Laymon book, please try "Bite", "Body Rides", "Darkness, Tell Us", or, my personal favorite "Funland" (though for that one, you'll have to spring for a UK edition for now). They are all so much better than this particular book. Richard Laymon is one of my favorite writers, but this book just didn't do it for me.

Rating:
Summary: Not Fleshed Out
Review: Richard Laymon has long been one of my favorite horror writers. I could not wait to read the Lake, and was...well, very disappointed. It is apparent by the choppy, unworked text, the obvious holes, and the lagging momentum, that this work was plucked from Mr. Laymon's unfinished story pile and published for the income alone. Had he lived, I've no doubt that this story might have been as compelling as the Island, Traveling Vampire show, the Stake, etc., however I would dare to venture a guess that future posthumous releases of this savagely perverted author (meant fondly, of course!) will be for the $$$, not the readers. Farewell Mr. Laymon. Perhaps you are in horn-dog Heaven now!

Rating:
Summary: Good Read
Review: The Lake is my 11th Richard Laymon book and I really enjoyed it. The book was intertaining and very enjoyable. Yes its not one of his best but I recommend getting it

Rating:
Summary: AWFUL....no wonder this wasn't published while he was alive!
Review: This has got to be the worst Laymon book in print. If it weren't for the fact that a)the characters are always horny and b)his typical overuse of the word "gal", I would have a hard time believing Laymon wrote this book. I don't know where to start-the plot becomes more ludicrous as you go, there are plot holes as big as the Grand Canyon and the ending is ridiculous. This should never have been published and I'm glad I got it from the library instead of paying good money for it.