Book Review: Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine
I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.
Stillhouse Lake by Rachel Caine
Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars
Genre: Thriller, Mystery
Series: Book 1 of Gwen Proctor
Publisher: Thomas & Mercer (July 1, 2017)
Length: 302 pages
Author Information: Website | Twitter
Rachel Caine does thriller-suspense! And she’s a natural at it, if Stillhouse Lake is any indication. Before picking this one up on a whim, I’d only read her books in the YA fantasy series The Great Library and was curious to see how she would tackle a different genre. Now though, I can safely say that my esteem has only grown for her talent and versatility as a writer.
The story follows Gina Royal, a woman who has had her life turned upside down. Before that fateful day when everything changed, she was just your average Midwestern housewife with a loving husband and two great kids, blissfully unaware of anything wrong with her life. Then, a drunk driver accidentally slams his car into the side of the Royals’ house, exposing the dark secret that has been kept hidden for years within its walls. As it turns out, Gina’s husband has been concealing his double life as a serial killer, and she is as shocked to discover it as anyone else. Not surprisingly, the public found that difficult to believe and thus she was tried as his accomplice, and only after years of trials did she manage to convince the court of her innocence.
However, by then the damage had been done. Most of the country now believes her guilty, claiming that no one could have lived in that house for years with a murderer, not knowing what was going on right underneath her roof. Gina knows she had been naïve, giving her husband all the space and privacy he’d asked for, never questioning anything he did. But even though he is now in prison, her nightmare is far from over. The constant harassment and death threats from doxxers and internet trolls have led her to fear for her life and those of her children, leading them to take on new identities and stay on the move. Gina is now Gwen Proctor, and she is a new woman—tough and independent, but also anxious and paranoid, unwilling to let her guard down even for a second. That is, until the family arrives at Stillhouse Lake, a small rural community in Tennessee where Gwen dares to imagine that her family might have finally found some semblance of peace and stability. But then that fleeting moment of happiness is shattered by a gruesome discovery in the lake, a dead body that shows signs of being tortured and killed in the same manner of her ex-husband’s victims. Suddenly, Gwen finds herself under suspicion again—only this time, she may be a target too.
While Stillhouse Lake may lack the complexity of some of the more high-profile books in its genre, it’s nonetheless one of the more enjoyable and addictive mystery-thrillers I’ve ever read. It all started with the intro, which was an insanely nerve-wracking and tense few pages, especially if you were like me and didn’t read the publisher’s description too closely before I started the book. My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vise as I watched the events unfold, not having a clue what the hell was going on but at the same time being cognizant enough of the situation to know nothing good could come out of it for Gina/Gwen and her family. From then on, the story takes off—perhaps not like a rocket, but definitely more like a powerful steam locomotive that gradually builds up speed before hurtling off towards its mysterious and unforeseeable destination.
Gwen is also a character you can sympathize with, if not relate to (because let’s face it, her situation is pretty unique). We know she is innocent because we get to be in her head—but imagine looking at her story from an outsider’s point-of-view, and it easy to see why she has been driven to her wit’s end by fear and paranoia. So much of her actions may seem extreme or unnecessary, but again, we’re privy to the truth while the rest of the world believes her to be a monster complicit in her ex-husband’s horrific crimes. Also, anyone who has spent enough time on the internet knows how vile people can be when acting under conditions of anonymity, as well as how far some are willing to go when they think their actions are justified. It was easy to feel for Gwen, not only because she’s a mother who wants the best for her children, but also because she’s living with a tremendous amount of guilt. She might not have known what her husband was up to all those years living with him in their old house, but the realization of how naïve and complaisant she was in the face of his manipulative charms is going to haunt her forever.
Having only read the author’s fantasy work before this, I found Stillhouse Lake to be very different but no less engrossing and addictive. Nail-bitingly intense and unsettling, the story managed to lure me in before swiftly sinking its hooks into my mind, consuming my attention. I was a little surprised to learn there will be a sequel, which I gathered simply based on how the book ended (with an edge-of-your-seat climax that led to a satisfying closure, while still leaving things open enough for more to come). Still, it’s news that fills me with excitement. Needless to say, I’ll be continuing with the series, and I can’t wait to read on and find out what happens next.
The BiblioSanctum 
Awesome review! I loved her Morganville Vampires series & always meant to read other books by her. I’ve seen this one going around but was unsure cuz some books in that genre are hit or miss for me, but this sounds Awesome! 😀
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Yeah, thriller-suspense is a bit outside my genre, but I’ve been having a good run with them so I figured why not. Plus, it’s Rachel Caine and I love her! 😀
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Awesome in depth review. I had no idea she had written YA prior to this, and as someone who’s been enjoying thrillers lately, this one sounds great. Love that atmospheric cover too. I definitely want to read this now!
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Yep, I’ve got a couple of her adult UF on my shelf, but her work I’m most familiar with is The Great Library series which is YA. It’s really good too! I definitely want to try any of her books I can get my hands on.
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Oooh, this sounds good. I was curious about it when I saw it around a lot a few weeks ago, but now I’m really tempted!
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I was the same way – saw it around, got curious, picked it up. I’m really glad I did, it was an addictive read 🙂
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I loved reading your review and it makes me more excited to pick up this book. I was able to grab it for free as my Amazon Prime choice last month and since then, I’ve seen tons of hype about it. I had no idea there would be another one.
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Yeah, I have Prime but I guess I just don’t pay attention to the emails I get because I totally missed that it was one of last month’s free book choices! Luckily I had already requested from NetGalley!
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I would not expect Rachel Caine to write mystery! Very cool, she’s one of those authors that can probably write anything:-)
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I agree, she’s so talented! Wouldn’t be cool if she tried her hand at horror? 😀
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I got a wish granted for this one on netgalley, and it’s high up on my list. Glad to hear that the author can write just as well in a completely different genre! (And it’s perfect timing too, I’m on a mystery/crime binge this year.)
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Sweet, I’m kind of on a mystery/thriller “binge” this year too, as in I’m reading more than I would in an average year. Lots of good psychological thrillers coming out!
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It’s always interesting when authors step out of their comfort zone to try something different. When it happens I always expect the worst, but it sounds like Rachel Caine has pulled it off.
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Me too, I’m interested but also wary. Though, I had a good feeling Rachel Caine would knock it out of the park 🙂
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You made me want to go and grab this book immediately! Even if I had not sampled this author before, the story would be enough to draw my attention, and the way you described it made me feel the nerve-wracking tension by proxy! 😀
I’m sure I will not wait long before reading this one – thanks for sharing!
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I hope you get a chance to read it! I have a feeling anyone to grab a sample of this would be immediately sucked in. The intro/prologue was INTENSE!
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I haven’t even read her YA…I think, or did she write adult too? Well nothing then
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Yeah, I think her other really famous series is the Morganville Vampires which I believe is adult UF.
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Right! I am so out of the loop
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I’ve got this one on my TBR pile and have yet to get to it – your wonderful review is encouraging me to bump it up the pile:)
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That’s awesome, I hope you get to read it soon! It’s a fast read, made even quicker because of how addictive it was 🙂
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Fantastic review! Very easy to read and informative.
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Thanks!
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I loved her Morganville Vampires series which I’m nearly finished and I was in two minds about reading this. Based on your review I just might give it a try!
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Definitely give it a shot if you’re a fan of Caine. She’s really showing off her writing chops these days!
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Fabulous review! I can’t wait to find out what happens next. 🙂
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