A review by mfrank
Lakesedge by Lyndall Clipstone

dark emotional sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I really wanted to love this book. I went into fully expecting to be obsessed because it's the type of book that is right up my alley. But, I just couldn't love it. I hated the way the other characters treated Leta all throughout the book. I can usually handle characters being irrational, but they were all just so hypocritical. They would constantly lie or hide things from Leta and then get angry with her for doing the same and concealing things from them. They really threw her childhood trauma back in her face several times. The emotional moments of this book were really good and were what kept me going, but the relationship between Leta and her own brother felt incredibly toxic.
Arien often threw her attempts to protect him back in her face and would get mad at her for not telling him stuff or doing stuff without telling him when he was literally always doing the same thing.
I also felt the ending was very rushed. The relationship between Leta and the Lord Under felt very underdeveloped for what it felt like the author was trying to do.
When she was constantly saying she felt betrayed by him, it made me wonder why she put any trust in him. He also lied to her multiple times and she was always acknowledging how ruthless and cruel he was. I feel like there weren't enough moments where he was nice to her or kind beyond that one moment when she was a child to have it make sense how much trust she put in him.
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