In the hottest summer on record, Iron Lake reservoir is emptying, revealing secrets that were intended to stay hidden beneath the water. The tragic story of a missing man is a media sensation, and abruptly the writer and the cop falling in love is just a postscript to horrors neither could have imagined.
Best Selling Horror writer Chris Lassiter struggles for inspiration and he’s close to never … to never writing again. His life has become an endless loop of nothing but empty pages, personal appearances, and a marketing machine that is systematically destroying his muse. In a desperate attempt to force Chris to complete unfinished manuscripts his agent buys a remote cabin. All he has to do is hide away and write, but he’s lost his muse, and not even he can make stories appear from thin air.
Sawyer Wiseman left town for Chicago, chasing the excitement and potential of being a big city cop, rising the ranks, and making his mark. A case gone horribly wrong coincides with a family tragedy and draws him back to Lancaster Falls. Working for the tiny police department in the town he’d been running from, he spends his day’s healing, and his nights hoping the nightmares of his last case leave him alone.
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Chris is a horror writer who has come to a small town cabin in a desperate attempt to break through writer’s block. His last two books were a huge hit, turned into movies, and now he owes the studio a third novel, and the well has run dry. In this moody little town with a reservoir going stagnant during a drought, with just his dog for company, he hopes to find some kind of spark. What he finds, is a skull in the mud under the bridge.
Sawyer is second in command in the local police department, under a chief he despises. He left a big city law enforcement career after a traumatic experience, and has plans to do a good job as a local cop in his quiet home town. That resolve is being challenged by his attraction to Chris – when he’s determined not to pursue a gay relationship where the town can see – by the sudden onset of a case that hits close to home, and by his conflicts with local power structures.
The relationship and characters are engaging here. The end to the romance element is a solid HFN. But the mystery is barely gathering speed at the end of this installment, and new characters appear on the last pages. Luckily, all three books of this trilogy are now out, so I could cruise through to the mystery’s ending, with two other excellent couples along the way.
This story is a great combination of mystery and romance. After book 1, I’m hooked on this series and can’t wait to find out what happens next!
I love romantic suspense/sexy cops/murder mystery and just finished the What lies Beneath trilogy by RJ Scott. Three couples. One over reaching baddy ARC but a part of the mystery gets solved in each book – then a new couple tackles the next one.
SO GOOD.
The characters are believable, likeable and even lovable. The horror writer discovers a mystery practically on his doorstep. The cop has to look past his attraction to solve a crime…while protecting the town and solving old mysteries.
I’m certainly going to b e reading the next book in the series. there are too many questions not answered.
Chris Lassiter is a best selling author of horror. His books have been made into movies. He’s in the middle of a world class writer’s block, when his agent suggests going to Lancaster Falls to get his muse back. He’s having trouble getting words on the page, so he goes for a walk. On his walk he finds something that will shake up his muse, as well as the whole town.
Sawyer Wiseman grew up in Lancaster Falls and became a cop in Chicago. Torn down by troubles in Chicago, Sawyer comes home to a town still struggling with the loss of one of it’s own. During the day he’s dealing with an uncooperative Captain and during the night he’s dealing with nightmares.
What I liked about this story:
This is a well thought out mystery. Yes it doesn’t get solved in the first book but the author was very clear about the mystery spanning the trilogy; so I was prepared and not bothered by this. Chris and Sawyer have great chemistry. They start off slow but things heat up well. The supporting characters are all well written and play their own parts. I liked the small town feel that’s written in this book.
What I didn’t like:
This book needed a better editor. There are too many run-on sentences and over usage of the comma. Too many issues where there is a comma before the and’s, but’s, or’s when it isn’t grammatically correct.
Example of both in one sentence: “It was one cabin, that was all, but this was how small towns worked, and I was used to it and ignored it, because if everyone calmed down and thought about it, who in their right mind would want to build a leisure complex here?”
This is especially funny as the author wrote in the book: “She exhaled noisily after that run-on sentence, and when Sawyer glanced at me, I nodded.” These two examples don’t go together either.
Incomplete sentences: “Stunning, maybe.”
Sentences that started with And, But, Or. This isn’t grammatically correct and easily spotted. Why weren’t they corrected?
Simple spelling issues that should have been caught: “cold ACAC”.
This could’ve easily been a 4 star book IMO.
Looking forward to book 2. Recommend for anyone who likes low key mystery and romance.
I think this might be the best RJ Scott book I’ve read in ages (and since I enjoy all her work that is high praise indeed). It’s creepy with suspense and an age old mystery. The romance takes a back seat to the mystery for most of the book but it doesn’t suffer for it. I believed in these guys and what they’ve built. I felt Chris’ frustration (I’ve not written a new word in 6 months!) and understood the worlds in his head and how they encroched on the real world. Excellent setting (the lake was haunting) and a great cast of secondary characters.
**********Contains Spoilers**********
Man, RJ Scott has written another story. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I liked Chris and Sawyer and they just made sense. Chris, is a horror writer whose having a writers block while trying to write another book in his successful Lakes Series so his agent found a creepy cabin near a reservoir, as it may kick start his brain into generating some new ideas. Sawyer, is recently back in Lancaster Falls after being a cop in Chicago since a kid was k*lled on his last op as well as himself nearly dying so he’d had enough of the city as he was losing more of himself the longer he stayed in Chicago. Chris and Sawyer meet when Sawyer is told to go check on the out of Towner staying at the Dwyer Cabin since there’s wild rumours going around, that’s small town gossip for you. Chris takes an instant liking to Sawyer and asks him out for a drink but Sawyer has no idea how to take it and ends up shutting Chris down and just warns him to stay off the trails by the reservoir as they’re unstable before leaving. Chris and his dog Kota go for a walk along the trails, totally ignoring Sawyer’s warning and Kota trips up this lady running along the same trail, where they both see some bones under the bridge, which leads to a lot of questions especially if it could be Casey McGuire who disappeared about 10 years ago. Casey is Sawyer’s best friend Drew’s older brother so Sawyer is struggling especially with having no answers he can give anyone. During the course of the investigation they grow closer and Chris researches about Casey and other unsolved mysteries he slowly finds the words for his next book. I can’t wait to read Logan and Drew’s story and hopefully find out what happened to Casey and the women whose remains were also found. I’d definitely recommend this book, series and author to everyone.
Loved this first book in the series and am moving immediately on to book two!
The mystery element is both creepy and intriguing. There are all kinds of clues as to what is going on and the fact that one of the MCs is a horror writer lends the whole thing an evil tone.
Horror writer Chris has writer’s block so severe his agent has bought a creepy old cabin up a mountain near a dried up reservoir to try and goose his muse. He meets town cop Sawyer when Sawyer is sent to check up on the out of tower staying in the cabin. Chris is immediately intrigued and Sawyer is immediately annoyed.
The enemies to lovers trope goes as usual with Sawyer eventually giving in and a relationship developing. And as interesting as both the MCs back stories are it is the mysterious goings on that grabbed my attention. As an avid mystery reader I’ve got all kinds of theories percolating.
Can’t wait to see what more we find out in book two.
I shouldn’t have loved this book. It’s dark and gritty and it ends with a freaking cliffhanger. I hate cliffhangers.
But I loved this book.
I loved Chris and his no nonsense attitude.
I loved Sawyer and his grumpy but soft self.
I loved the small town and most of the people being in there.
The mystery was intense and so far I have no idea what’s what.
On to the next one. I need to know what is happening.
While the mystery is gritty the romance between Sawyer and Chris is sweet and easy balancing it up in the best of ways.
Awesome book. Can’t wait wait for the third one.
Lots of unexpected twists and turns. Romantic and sexy with a who done it thrown in.
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.
Chris is hiding away, trying to get this third book written, and his muse is missing. A jog with his dog leads to a discovery that could have been right out of his books. Sawyer, a local police officer, lands the case, since it might actually be someone he knew, before he left for Chicago. When more bones are found, the net is cast wider than Casey’s missing person case and everyone becomes a suspect.
I cannot really say what I was expecting, not really, going into this first book. I’ve read a couple of Ms Scott’s books before and they lean to the light and fluffy side. So I was *kinda* expecting that, but not really cos, you know, missing people, deadly secrets and all that.
And I was blown away by this book!
I mean, it’s dark and deadly. Chris is a HORROR writer, and the things that are discovered in this quiet little town are shocking and he could use the inspiration. But more than that, it’s his need for Sawyer, the cop that pushes him forward, writing Sawyer into his lastest book was a bit of a no-brainer, and Chris just needs to pull it all together cos his agent is on his back.
Sawyer is trying to put all his past behind him, what happened in Chicago is still pulling him down, after all this time. Finding what appears when the lake is at its lowest for decades knocks him back, especially when it could be one of his childhood best friends. But that darn writer keeps getting in his face!
There is something odd about some of the people in Lancaster Falls, and I have a feeling that many MANY more secrets will come to light before this trilogy is done. Indeed, I have already read book 2, Without A Trace, when writing this review, so I KNOW things are coming. I just can’t see the full extent, and how things will be eventually . . .not resolved but settled maybe? The truth needs to come out and I can’t see it all yet.
What I particularly LOVED about this book, was that it’s not all laid out for you. Things come out in dribs and drabs and you start to put the clues together, and they are wrong cos something else is thrown at you, and you gotta start all over again!
I also loved the way the relationship between Chris and Sawyer grows, quickly, yes, but it’s powerful. It comes out of nowhere and knocks them both off their axis.
Not overly explicit, but this book isn’t about that. It’s about the discovery in the lake, and what that means for the people of Lancaster Falls. And I really rather LOVED that it wasn’t!
As I said, already read book 2, and I eagerly await the final part in this trilogy!
5 amazing stars!
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
4.5 stars
Heat Level: 3
A gripping mystery that left me wanting more!
Oh, my word! I loved the mystery, the town, and the characters! I have so many questions and I can’t wait for the next book to find more answers!
This is the first non-hockey related book I’ve read by RJ and I loved it! While the story follows Sawyer and Chris there is so much more to the story and the mystery cases will have you intrigued and leave you wanting more. I felt the romance was sort of second to the “skull mystery” and while their relationship was hot and streamy, I felt their feelings were a little less organic than I like. The book doesn’t so much end on a cliffhanger but the case is still open and needs solving and we are left with more questions as to “why?”.
I look forward to Book two and am interested in a new couple as the focus and can’t wait to see where this town and it’s mysteries take us!!
Well written and full of intrigue, I’m hooked!!
Thanks for reading!
11/25/19 Edited to add my comments on the audiobook:
I reviewed this book when it was published in July 2019 and now, I’ve had the opportunity to listen to the audiobook, performed by the fantastic Sean Crisden. A great narrator can sometimes turn a mediocre book into one that is OK but a great narrator can also make a fantastic book even better and Sean Crisden has done just that.
Below is a copy of my original review from back in July. I loved this story then and I loved it all over again while I listened to it.
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Wow, great story and I can’t wait for the next one!
I knew before I started this book that it was the first in a trilogy. So, I didn’t expect everything to be tied up and answered in What Lies Beneath. I’m not sure I would exactly classify it as a cliffhanger, but be warned that all questions aren’t answered in this book.
Now that I have that obligatory cliffhanger statement out of the way I have to emphasize how great this story is; maybe one of RJ’s best books, and it’s certainly a fantastic start to a new series. Whenever I read a book where one of the main characters is an author, I always have to wonder how much of the character comes from the real life of the book’s author? I have no clue about this one.
Best selling horror writer Chris Lassiter is suffering from writer’s block. I follow RJ Scott pretty closely but I can’t recall if she’s ever mentioned suffering from this malady. In any case, Chris’s problem is somewhat integral to the story and I found reading about his difficulty fascinating.
Sawyer Wiseman is originally from Lancaster Falls but he left to become a cop in Chicago. He returns to Lancaster Falls several years later and is now a Lieutenant on the local police force. We know that he’s suffering because of something that happened in Chicago but it’s awhile into the story before all is revealed.
RJ’s books often have me dissolving into tears or sobs at some point but this one didn’t and I still loved it. I think because the story was so suspenseful that the mystery and suspense was really my main focus and not so much the emotional stuff like is usual. Towards the end however, the familiar emotional reaction finally made itself known and the tears fell.
The mystery, actually multiple mysteries, is yet to be solved but reading the story of Chris and Sawyer’s developing relationship and finally, their declaration of love, was just perfect. Enough loose threads of the story were tied up that I’m not dying from a typical cliffhanger feeling, but I surely can’t wait to get my hands on the next book, Without a Trace, coming this fall.
***Reviewed for Xtreme-Delusions dot com***
There is a good reason why R.J. Scott is an auto buy for me. She never disappoints. Her characters are so fully formed they literally jump off the page. The story is everything you could want in a mystery/love story.
I was totally absorbed in this amazing story from start to finish. The connection and dynamics between Sawyer and Chris are perfectly portrayed. The storyline will keep you on the edge of your seat and turning pages as fast as you can!
I can’t wait for the next installment in this series!
This was a great start to a new series! Chris and Sawyer are great together. I love the mystery aspect to this book and can’t wait for the next book. This book is a must read for anyone who loves romance with some mystery books.