Peering over the side of the boat, the glare of early morning sun catches on something pale in the inky water. The boy’s curious fingertips break the surface, pulling up a tangle of long blonde hair from the reeds below… suicide. But the victim’s lack of clothes make Forensic Pathologist Beth Adams want to investigate further. Anything to distract her from the arrival of her abusive ex-boyfriend’s body on the mortuary table that morning.
With witnesses keeping tight-lipped and any clues washed away by the tides, it’s up to Beth to find the evidence her team needs. But then another girl is found in the lake, this time still clinging to life. She tells them she was at a party on a boat, and that she was pushed…
As more bodies surface, tiny traces of boat paint lead Beth to a tragic accident involving a group of school children years ago, and the feeling that the killer might be closer than anyone could ever have imaged. But with her personal life spinning out of control, can she persuade her team before another life is lost?
An absolutely unputdownable serial killer thriller that will have you sleeping with the lights on. Fans of Patricia Gibney, LJ Ross and Angela Marsons will have to hold on tight for this nail-biting rollercoaster ride!
Readers love The Girls in the Lake:
‘Brilliant… keeps you on the edge of your seat right until the last chapter…loving this series and the characters in it.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Plenty of twists… I didn’t want to put it down… suspenseful and riveting, you will want time to read it in one sitting.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Hooked from the beginning and it kept me engaged until the very last page.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Full of twists… full of tension… several times I caught myself holding my breath.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘Another thrilling, tightly plotted addition to this already fabulous series…I loved this book…fast paced, realistic… plenty of action, mystery and suspects. Definitely comes highly recommended and deserves all of 5 stars.’ Netgalley reviewer, 5 stars
‘I thoroughly enjoyed… an engrossing tale… I don’t know where the time went, one minute I started to read and a few hours later I was finishing.’ Goodreads reviewer, 5 stars
‘A humdinger of a crime thriller that grabs you and draws you in from the brilliantly written and powerful opening scene to the nail-biting, butt-clenching finale.’ Netgalley reviewer, 5 starsmore
The idyllic setting of this crime thriller is quickly broken when there is a body found in the lake, followed shortly by another one. I appreciated that the main character in this book is a Forensic Pathologist, as it allowed the reader to follow the investigation from a different perspective. I thought that the case was well-thought-out, and the author did a good job of throwing out some red herrings to keep the reader guessing. I definitely recommend it. For more thoughts, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for a digital ARC of this book.
This is the second book in the Beth Adams series and can be read as a stand-alone. Helen Phifer provides the ideal amount of contextual information to round out Beth Adam’s character. The narrative is intriguing and Phifer provides an element of atmospheric temperance with the irony of the lake being a serene setting. While the plot does move at a bit of a slower pace and offers an abundance of foreshadowing, readers who appreciate a systematic approach in a novel will applaud Phifer’s efforts. Those looking for a faster pace with more cryptic insinuations will be disappointed. 4 stars.
Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC of #TheGirlsInTheLake. It was read and reviewed voluntarily.
After a party on a boat, a man finds a woman’s body in the lake. As he was unable to rescue her in time, Forensic Pathologist Beth Adams is called to the scene. Beth at first finds nothing abnormal in the woman’s autopsy, but in time a second woman is found dead in the same lake. Could the two be connected and no longer be considered accidents? She and her lover, Detective Sergeant Josh Walker, search for and wade through the evidence. When Beth uncovers a similar incident from years ago, with connections to current individuals, could this be the work of a serial killer? Meanwhile, Beth’s abusive ex has been found dead in his prison cell. Can she finally put the past behind her? A very dramatic ending adds to this suspenseful and excellent read. I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (by paytonpuppy)
Young women, all beautiful, all blond, all found floating face down in Lake Windermare. Accidents? Murder?
They were all guests to what locals call the Party Boat … a large boat owned and run by a young man with extremely wealthy parents. He offers tours… along with champagne and sometimes a few pills of one sort or another. He and his two close friends also enjoy all the benefits of beautiful women.
Pathologist Beth Adams, after investigating the first two women found in the lake, has a gut feeling that these were more than suicides. She’s determined to find some kind of evidence, even if it really isn’t her job.
But her live-in relationship with her boyfriend, Josh, also a law enforcement officer seems to be failing and the death of a man who tried to kill her a few years ago is killed while in prison. With so much going on, she finds she’d rather seek out a serial killer than sit at home and do nothing.
How many more girls will find Beth find at the bottom of the lake?
This is well written, a few twists and turns along the way … and a very surprising finale. Although second in the series, this is easily a stand alone. However, I highly recommend reading the first one in order to see what Beth has endured for years and how she and Josh connected. The story premise is a good one, evenly paced from the very first page.
Many thanks to the author / Bookouture / Netgalley for the digital copy of this police procedural. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.
Two dead young women and one girl rescued from the same fate, DS Josh Walker has a tough nut to crack. It’s not easy to find evidence of a crime, so maybe all this drowning women are just unfortunate accidents? Beth can’t believe that, there’s is something telling her to get out and search for more clues.
I like Beth and Josh, and for a short time, I nearly fainted with the situation between Beth and Josh and Jodie. Beth needs this relationship so much after her past was a living hell. At times I wasn’t sure if the things Beth did helped or put her in danger for nothing. Highly recommended series.
Second book of a series, I had no problem reading this book as a stand alone. For me this was a new author, and Wow I certainly will be reading more. What a well writen book, the storyline was amazing and I thought I had the guilty one pick out. Yet I was totally wrong, this is a thriller from start to finish. I would definitly recommend this book to those that enjoy suspense thrillers.
Thank you NetGally and Bookouture for allowing me to read and leave my honest opinion of this book.
This is the second book in this series. It was a really good read. Good strong story line with very well written characters. It was an easy reading book with a surprise ending It has a good romance written in as well with the detective and a Pathologist. I found I had to keep reading until I finished to see who was killing the blonde women that kept turning up in the lake. hope more books are to come would really like to read more from this autho