The Lake of Dead Languages

A shocking secret between siblings partway through “The Lake of Dead Languages” sets off a torrent of Hitchcockian plot twists-and-turns as windy as the windiest mountain road with as many blind curves you never see coming until…until it’s too late and you sit stunned, eyes all enormo-like, like you’re driving off a cliff, too shocked to scream. Though I’m not suggesting you disregard the first 243 pages of what’s an already intriguing whodunit mystery staged around a lost journal and an oft-lethal lake prone to apparent suicidal drownings (or might they be murders?) in the austere snowbound Adirondacks; it’s just that Carol Goodman so ups the macabre, gothic ante in the novel’s concluding chapters that as a reader show more you’re all-in no matter what. Should you recklessly begin this book in the evening plan on an unputdownable all-nighter and calling in sick to work the next day. Best read “The Lake of Dead Languages” during the day time, Friend, and never by a pine forested lake at night near a boarding school for nice and naughty girls, and especially not by a pine forested frozen lake which moans and creaks as its ephemeral ice shifts and cracks, eliciting eerie sounds all too hauntingly human.

Need I praise more the exceeding Excellency of “The Lake of Dead Languages?” I could further extol the virtues of its liberal use of Latin, or champion the literarily allusive depths it plunges, how a working knowledge of Virgil’s, “The Aeneid,” in particular, aids and enriches our psychological/motivational understanding of the painful choices made by the main characters, Jane Hudson (our narrator-heroine), and Lucy and Dr. Lockhart, as well as foreshadowing the varied dire consequences and outcomes of these character’s actions, for those, that is, who are in tune with the designs of Virgil’s ancient classic. But I’ll conclude and say no more, other than what a delight to have “discovered” the debut novel from one Carol Goodman which launched what looks to be an extraordinary career. show less

This book has been blurbed as being comparable to Donna Tartt's Secret History, and indeed, there are some distinct similarities. Both books enter the world of New England private schools, paticularly the world of classics students obsessed with their teachers. Both books involve students entranced by the rites of the ancients, and in both the students perform clandestine rites with tragic consequences. All of these similarities aside, the two books have different purposes. Goodman's novel follows Latin teacher Jane Hudson, a teacher and alumna of the Heart Lake school in upstate New York. Hudson had a horrible experience at Heart Lake, and when mementoes from her past start washing up in the lake, she has little idea who or what could show more be responsible. Deaths and accidents in and around the school make it clear that Jane is being pursued by a malevolent force, and she is in real danger. And that danger makes this a gripping book. The story sucked me in quickly and held me to the end. Though I had determined the responsible party and the twist at the end before Goodman revealed it, the book was still engaging, and I couldn't wait to get to the end. In this book Goodman has woven a complex narrative with multiple layers of characters and relationships. The story jumps back and forth between Jane's past and present, and culminates when the two parts of her life collide. Suspense builds quickly in this book. Full of suspense and psychological intruige, I couldn't put the book down. I'll certainly be reading other of Goodman's books soon. show less

This is a very good novel, and I enjoyed it a lot. It kept me interested until the end. The ‘action’ scene at the ending was a little overdone, but I guess it was plausible.... I’m not sure. I just kept thinking someone else could have helped the main character out just a bit more, then.
Vivienne Benesch is the narrator, and she was great with the different voices of the characters, and the pronunciation of Latin and French.

3.75 stars, and recommended to those who love those slightly atmospheric novels that belong in all girl schools, have murder in them, and where you can’t trust anyone.

Twenty years after her graduation from the Heart Lake School for Girls in the Adirondacks, Jane Hudson returns as a Latin instructor following a separation from her husband. Having buried the trauma and secrets surrounding the suicides of three friends during her time as a student, Jane hopes for a fresh start for herself and her young daughter. However, the school year takes a dark turn as the events taking place seem suspiciously similar to those of the past and girls begin dying again. A deliciously Gothic mystery with a somewhat predictable ending, but plenty of suspense, mythology, and Latin to make up for its shortcomings.

If you're looking for a good scary story, and you're willing to suspend disbelief, 'The Lake of Dead Languages' is a satisfying read and is really quite well done for a first novel.
Newly separated Jane Hudson, child in tow, returns to isolated Heart Lake School to teach Latin. Jane is an 'old girl' - a Heart Lake graduate with a remarkable past - both her roommates drowned in the lake their senior year. Jane is the survivor, complete with survivor's guilt and an untold story haunting her life.
But once at Heart Lake Jane's past appears to resurface - is she the victim of a cruel hoax or the instigator as her current students seem to toy with suicide?
Goodman has a remarkably smooth novelist's voice - the book glides along much as the show more skaters on Heart Lake. Her plotting is a little less sure, and the book is best enjoyed in a wonderful marathon read or two [perhaps on a dark, cold, windy night alone with a nice bottle of red]. Warning: for the best enjoyment, don't look too deeply beneath the surface! show less

This has to be one of the best crime novels I have read in a while. It cleverly pulls the past into the present and merges the two but without leaving the reader confused.
It's about secrets and friendships, all central to being an adolescent girl, and how these affect the future when Jane comes back to the school to teach.

I will be searching out all of Goodman's books!

Overall a gripping book. This is the second I have read by the author and enjoy the characters that she creates. The ending of it seemed a bit forced and too coincidental for my tastes however. This is a great coming of age story with a dark past and present mystery thrown in for good measure.