3 Nice Guys Finish Last: Tales From The Dreaded Friendzone stars!!Fade in. Scene Set. Kelsey Castle (excellent name BTW), a prominent true-crime author and journalist still in recovery from a rocky few months, is sent to the small, stilt-housed, cozy town of Summit Lake. She is sent here for her own well-being as well as to cover the murder of young, beautiful, full-of-potential, her-whole-life-ahead-of-her, Becca Eckersley. This is told from 2 POVs - Kelsey's (which we're given information abou...

EDIT- once again I couldn't stop thinking about this book, so I felt it only fair to bump this rating up to 4 stars!*****************************************Many thanks to Netgalley for my copy in exchange for a fair and honest review. 3.5 starsWell, I was all over the place on this one. I figured I'd settle in the middle to be fair.This story is a healthy blend of past and present, told through multiple POVs which I thoroughly enjoyed. We begin with the murder of Becca and travel back and forth...

I'm putting the whole review under spoiler tags instead of here and there since I'm discussing things in the book that was problematic for me quite a lot in this review. And, I don't want to ruin anyone's reading experience. Star reporter Kelsey Castle travels to Summit Lake in North Carolina to write an article about Becca Eckersley who was murdered in her parents home 2 weeks earlier. Is the police trying to cover up the murder and if so why? Kelsey must find out the truth... I initially gave

“No suspects. No persons of interest. Just a girl who was alive one day and dead the next.”Following an attack on herself while she was out running, investigative reporter Kelsey Castle is sent to a picturesque North Carolina town to do a piece on a murdered law student Becca Eckersley. Becca was hard-working, accomplished, and ambitious. Who could possibly have wanted her dead? And in such a brutal fashion?As Kelsey walks in Becca's footsteps she feels a growing connection to the dead girl. Thi...

4.5 stars! Charlie Donlea is three for three!I’ve now read all three of Charlie Donlea’s books and LOVED each and every one of them! This novel was Donlea’s debut and I’m thrilled to say he found his groove from the start!This story revolves around the murder of first-year law student, Becca Eckersley, who comes from a prominent and powerful family. Investigative reporter, Kelsey Castle, is sent to the little town where Becca was murdered to explore, examine and report the details surrounding th...

Check out all of my reviews at: http://www.avonnalovesgenres.com(I reviewed this book last year. I am adding this previously posted review since I am currently reading Mr. Donlea’s second mystery novel The Girl Who Was Taken and had not yet started my website.)SUMMIT LAKE by Charlie Donlea is a debut mystery that keeps you turning the pages. The setting is a small town in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. The story is told by two narrators; Kelsey Castle, a true crime journal...

Summit Lake is Charlie Donlea’s debut novel and it shows. He’s really developed as an author over the past few years. Becca Eckersley was a first year law school student visiting her parents’ second home in the Blue Ridge Mountains when she’s brutally raped and left for dead. And she does die the next morning. Kelsey Castle is an investigative reporter who comes to the town of Summit Lake to find the answers to who killed her and why. We not only see Kelsey’s progress, but are privy to Becca’s h...

I wish to thank Net Galley, Kensington Books, and author Charlie Donlea for an ARC of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.Wow, Charlie Donlea! Your writing career is off to a good start with one terrific read. Yes, this is indeed a clever debut mystery/suspense novel that engaged me the entire way. Reading a book by a brand new author is always a risk, but when it pays off, it is so satisfying. Not only is the ride great, but there is a new author on the must-read list to look out for.T...

Traveling Friends Review by Norma and BrendaIt’s no secret that Brenda and I really enjoy Donlea’s novels and have highly recommended his books in the past on our blog and to our Traveling Sisters and Friends, especially the novel DON’T BELIEVE IT. After we finished up our monthly group read on our Traveling Friends group for DON’T BELIEVE IT we were all left with wanting more Donlea so we quickly dove into reading Donlea’s debut novel, SUMMIT LAKE. He is such a natural and talented author - he

Summit Lake beings with the brutal rape and murder of first year law student, Becca Eckersley. Becca was staying at her parent's home in Summit Lake while studying for her final exams. She diligently followed her parent’s rules of keeping the doors locked and the security system on, until that fateful night when someone she knew knocked on the door. She turned off the alarm and opened the door not knowing the danger she was letting inside the home. Now the town of Summit Lake is reeling. As the

Summit Lake is a solid murder mystery with a twist!Bad things don’t happen in Summit Lake—no one has ever even been murdered, until the murder of 22 year old Becca Eckersley takes place. Summit Lake opens with a detailed description of Becca's brutal murder. The town is in shock, gossip fuels the air and the state police don’t seem to want Becca’s murder solved. Enter crime writer Kelsey Castle, who is drawn to Becca’s story. The story alternates between Becca and Kelsey’s POV’s, and the reader

This review is sooooooooo late...as are many of the others that are going to follow in the next few weeks. Living out in the booonies- sometimes my internet doesn't work with me. Sorry NetGalley. :(Blue Ridge, North Carolina-[image error]Becca Eckersley- a law school student from a prominent family escapes to her families vacation home on school break...but as soon as she arrives, her past catches up with her...In the place she felt safest- she is brutally murdered. It is obvious to the detectiv...

4.5* The novel centers around four university students who are the best of friends. One of the students, Becca Eckersley, decides to drive to her parent’s summer home to study alone for her final exam. With doors securely locked and the alarm system set, Becca runs to the door when she hears knocking expecting a friendly face, but unfortunately, opens it to a killer. Since Becca’s death is the only recorded homicide in the history of this small town, Summit Lake is now on the radar of reporters,...

After reading “Don’t Believe It” (Charlie Donlea’s third novel) in 2018, he became an auto-request author for me. I was thrilled when I was invited by the Publisher to read Some Choose Darkness, in 2019. It was always my intent to go back and read his earlier work, but I was not as enamored with “The Suicide House” ((Rory and Lane #2) so, those plans kept being put on hold as new ARCs took priority.Ahead of my commitments, I decided to make time to finally read earlier work from favorite authors...

SUMMIT LAKE by author Charlie Donlea, is a well-written debut psychological crime suspense mystery thriller that has winner written all over it.The novel is set in a little town called Summit Lake in the Blue Ridge Mountains, in North Carolina, where urban workers take a break from the rat race and go and spend time at their weekend homes…a real tourist town. The town has a beautiful view of the mountains and Blue Lake.“Somewhere in this quaint tourist town, a girl had been murdered. It seemed t...

Thought is apropos that I start the new year by finishing a book by a début author. Good start to what should be a promising series. Kelsey Castle, an investigative reporter attempting to overcome a horrible event in her own life, is sent to Summit lake to gather facts on the murder of a first year law student. On the whole this was an interesting read, a good case, and some interesting characters. But there were a few things that just didn't gel for me in and some situations like the relationsh...

4 Stellar Stars.Captivating, Compelling & Wholly Intriguing! Present Day: Kelsey Castle is an Investigative Reporter with a past she’d like to forget. Sent to “Summit Lake” to investigate the heinous murder of first year Law Student Becca Eckersley, Kelsey has her work cut out for her, especially when she discovers that the police don’t exactly appear to want the case solved.The Past: Becca Eckersley is a Senior in College, who spends every waking hour with her three best friends. Thick as thiev...

Kelsey Castle, a renowned crime writer for a prominent magazine, is assigned to develop a story about the murder of Becca Eckersley, a law student from a prominent family, who was savagely killed two weeks prior in Summit Lake. Becca was alone at her family’s vacation home near the Blue Ridge Mountains. Kelsey first thought this was a light assignment given to her by her editor as she recovers from her own situation. However, as she probes for answers, Kelsey finds an even larger effort by law e...

Top 50 Books of 2016! Debut? If this is a debut, can only imagine what is to come. SUMMIT LAKE by talented new author, Charlie Donlea, is destined to be in line for "The Best Debut of 2016." "Charlie, I hope you have given up your day job, and busy writing your next installment of Kelsey Castle." Many more stories here, waiting to be uncovered, (hoping for a series); sure your fingers are tapping away. Set in the Western North Carolina, in the Blue Ridge Mountains- a small upscale weekenders’

Many thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book with my offering of an honest review. I wish to thank the author, Charlie Donlea, as well as Kensington Books.Summit Lake is a small community in the mountains of North Carolina. Quiet and tranquil would be just about right in describing a town where early morning sunrises are the place to be. Nothing but the peaceful waters lapping at the shore......until a shocking murder sends turmoil and fear their way.Becca Eckersley's story is