On Mystic Lake

This was a sad and depressing novel. I wanted to stop reading it a bunch of times, but kept on reading for some reason. Probably because this got high ratings and she’s got several top selling books out now. I did like the ending. I may read one or two of her other books, but not until next year. The little girl, Izzy in the book was so darn cute. And, I was rooting for a happy ending for the protagonist, Annie.

I finished this novel while mourning the disappearance of my cat. She was here one day, gone the next. Reading it helped me focus on something besides all the horrible things I imagined happening to her. To have the novel start with Blake Colwater telling his wife of 20 years, Annie, “I want a divorce,” is about as shocking as losing your cat.

Annie's retreat from southern California to the Pacific Northwest made me wish I could follow her. In fact, I sort of did. Virtually anyway. Annie stayed with her dad to recover/reorient her life. Of course, she ran into her old sweetheart, Nick, but this wasn't a simple ‘boy gets girl back' story. Not by a long shot.

Nick had his own issues, including a deceased wife and a mourning, young daughter who not only didn't speak anymore, but thought she was disappearing, one limb at a time. At first, it looked like the story would be Annie stepping into a new family. But that wasn't to be.

The roll coaster ride through love, commitment, and honor keeps the reader off balance until the very end. That said, without giving anything away, the end was very satisfying. It really helped me forget about my missing cat for a little while anyway.