Lake Season

The beginning of the book got me right away. I felt a sense of anxiety as the siblings tried to do what was best for the inn and everyone involved. Losing their parents was a shock, but now they had an eighteen year old sister to consider. As they work to reopen the inn they find themselves drawing closer as a family. I loved how they decided that the best way to honor their parents was to work together and allow God to heal their wounds.

Getting to know Molly was a wonderful treat. She has carried around so much guilt since her parents died unexpectedly. We are not guaranteed one moment on this earth and Molly now has to live with the regrets about her relationship with her parents. Her breakup with Dominic has caused her to keep people show more at arms length. It is as though she has built a wall up so she can't get hurt. The fear she has of getting close to someone could cost her finding true love.

Adam was my favorite character because he is a humble man who values life and friendship. I loved how the author included how much Molly and Adam both loved to read. They had many interesting conversations that developed into a real friendship. He has always felt like his dad was not proud of him and carries around the feeling that he is not good enough. The emotions in the story are so well written I could feel the pain and self doubt both characters had.

The story is a time slip where we encounter two people hopelessly in love. These characters bring a depth to the story and a romance that digs deep into the soul. A lost letter that is discovered will change lives and give hope, peace and closure to some. I have to say that this is one of the best books written by this author. She captures human feelings and expands on how our emotions can dictate wrong decisions. I loved going back and forth in time and couldn't wait to find out the ending of the story.

Fear plays a big part in the story as well as secrets. We think that if we hide something, it will never be found out. The funny thing is God knows just when to have those secrets revealed and is waiting to heal the wounds from fear and doubt. Trust is a big issue for many of us and I loved how the author shows us to always trust God and he will direct our path. The ending of the story is everything I hoped for yet still took my breath away. This is one story you will not forget as the author brings the past to the present in an unforgettable story of love and forgiveness.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion. show less

I haven't read many books by this author but based on this book, I am going to add her to my list of favorites. This was a nice, light fun romance with several additional plots going on. It was a quick read with interesting characters and a happily ever after ending. Basically this book has everything - a little romance, some mystery, a supportive family and a beautiful setting in North Carolina.

The Bennett parents were renovating an inn in their hometown of Bluebell, NC, when they were killed in a car accident. Their three children -Levi, 26 years old; Molly, 23 years old; and Grace, 18 years old decide to finish the renovation and open the inn to fulfill their parents' dream. Lake Season is the first book in a new series and it is show more Molly's story. Molly quit her last year in college to help renovate the inn with her brother and sister. She loves reading and there are lots of references to authors - both classical and current - but she has a crush on a never-met romance writer who writes under a pseudonym and she reads his books over and over. Adam shows up at the inn before the renovations are done and asks if there is a room available because his booking at a lake house had been cancelled and he wants to spend some time in town doing some research. Adam is a very solitary person who has a really poor self image but he decides quickly that Molly will be his 'muse' on his current project. When a letter is found from the 1960s during the renovation, he agrees to help Molly find out more about the person who wrote the love letter. The more time Adam and Molly spend together, the closer they become but they both have significant baggage from their past that is keeping their possible romance at a stand-still. Will they be able to get beyond their past hurts and disappointments and find their happily ever after?

I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to future books in this series. I'm ready to go back to Bluebell Inn and spend more time getting to know the Bennett family. show less

Legit loved this book! Setting, characters, all the food...(yummmm!! I’m ready for some of Miss Della’s muffins!)

I started the book last night before bed, and was exceedingly grateful for a free afternoon today so I could just sit down and ... oh ... finish it! I had a hunch about halfway through regarding how it all would play out, and was right (yay!). I loved watching everything unfold...I suspected the end result but not how everything would get there, the roads it would take.

Excellent read.

4.5 stars.

The first installment in the Bluebell Inn series, Lake Season by Denise Hunter is a bittersweet novel of love and healing.

Molly Bennett and her siblings, Grace and Levi, decide to follow through with their deceased parents' dream of turning their home into an inn. With Grace finishing high school, the majority of the work falls to Molly and Levi. Most of the renovation is almost complete as the summer tourist season is approaching when visitor Adam Bradford stops in hoping to reserve a room. Molly bends the rules a little since the inn has not undergone their inspection when she allows Adam to stay with them. After she discovers a lost letter within the inn's walls, Molly and Adam team up and attempt to locate the letter show more writer and recipient. An unexpected friendship springs up between them but as their feelings for one another deepen, will their respective issues prevent Adam and Molly from giving love a chance to bloom into a lasting relationship?

Molly is a very outgoing, cheerful young woman who does not think twice about abandoning her dreams after her parents' tragic deaths. With one failed relationship behind her, she is not in any hurry to take a chance on another man deceiving her like her previous boyfriend. After finding the lost letter, Molly becomes quite invested in trying to locate what appears to be a star-crossed couple.

Adam is a popular, best-selling author who guards closely guards his privacy and writes under a pseudonym. He is a quite intelligent and a little shy. Adam has an extensive backlist but he still struggles with insecurities and low self-worth. With a looming deadline on the horizon, he is struggling with writer's block for the first time in his career. Since his research is not spurring his creativity, Adam instead offers to help Molly track down the author of the letter and addressee.

Chapters which flash back to the events leading up to the lost letter are interspersed with events playing out in the present. In 1962, a local young woman and a visitor unexpectedly fall in love over the course of the summer. Just as they are planning their future together, outside forces tear them apart. Is there any chance Molly and Adam will find the couple after so many years?

Lake Season is a delightful novel with a slight undercurrent of faith. Molly and Adam are charming characters whose strengths, self-doubts and shortcomings are realistically depicted. The main storyline is well-developed and will resonate with readers. The secondary story arc is poignant and tugs at the heartstrings. I absolutely loved and highly recommend this uplifting and engaging novel by Denise Hunter. show less

In Lake Season, siblings Molly, Levi, and Grace Bennett decide to fulfill their parents dream of renovating their large, old home and turning it into an inn after their parents’ untimely deaths. During the renovation, Molly finds an old letter stuck in the wall where the mail slot used to be when the building was a post office. When she opens and reads it, she discovers a beautiful letter written by a woman who was sorry for a falling out she had with the man she loved, asking for his forgiveness and for him to return to her. Molly is instantly drawn in, and she enlists the aid of Adam Bradford, a man staying at the inn who she has begun a friendship with, to help her try to track down the woman who wrote the letter and the man who show more never received it. As they work together on this project, their friendship begins to develop into something deeper, but Adam has a secret that might destroy what he’s built with Molly.

I really enjoyed reading Lake Season. Once I got into it, I couldn’t put it down. I had to know what was going to happen next. I appreciated that both Molly and Adam struggled with issues that a lot of people really do struggle with — trust issues due to being hurt by people’s lies in the past and feelings of inadequacy, feeling that your just not good enough due to not getting the acceptance you need from a parent. I could so easily identify with both characters. The story line was also exciting, jumping back in time to give us insight into the lives of the letter writer and intended recipient. And I loved the way Molly and Adam’s search ended. It was a twist that I didn’t see coming. Overall, I thought Lake Season was an interesting, exciting story full of hope and love.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. show less

Who doesn’t love a story with an unconventional hero? Lake Season has one of those and so much more to enjoy.

Denise Hunter takes a popular romance trope or two—mistaken identity and a search for information about the writer of a found letter—and turns it into something completely unique.

Molly is such a likable character with her love of reading and propensity to ramble and overshare. Adam is quiet and reserved but kind and caring (as evidenced by his interactions with his friend, his mother, and Molly).

There’s also an additional storyline centered around the letter, making Lake Season a split time read. And the way it all comes together, in the end, left me sighing contentedly.

I’m already looking forward to catching up with show more Adam, Molly, the other Bennett siblings, and what’s happening at the Bluebell Inn in the next book in Hunter’s series.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255. show less

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28 NIV

There are so many things to like about a book that often mentions this Bible verse. Three siblings determined to fulfill the dream of their recently deceased parents. A highly successful author who keeps his identity a secret because he has never been able to live up to his father's expectations. A love affair that occurred over fifty years ago and recently discovered when a letter is found in a wall of an inn that is being renovated. As Molly Bennett and Adam Bradford try to find how Ben and Lizzie's lives turned out, they themselves begin to see each other as more than an innkeeper and her guest. show more But there are so many obstacles! Can Molly escape her grief and get over the hurt caused by her boyfriend? Would her trust be further damaged if she knew that Adam is the author that she adores? Will Adam ever feel worthy? Did Ben and Lizzie find happiness?

Denise Hunter has written a wonderful story filled with romance, faith, mystery, and a reminder that God orchestrates every part of our lives.These two romances, past and present, share a similar theme and I was especially moved by the ending. I look forward to following Molly and her siblings Levi and Grace as they continue managing the Bluebell Inn.

I highly recommend Lake Season to all who enjoy contemporary romantic fiction.

I received a copy of this book through Celebrate Lit and NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. show less