Customer Reviews

Snowfall at Willow Lake (Lakeshore Chronicles, Book 4)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Fans of the popular Lakeshore Chronicles by Susan Wiggs will be delighted with this addition to the series - especially pleased when it is read by the always splendid Joyce Bean.

A high powered international lawyer, Sophie Bellamy, would seem to have it all. She's seen her share of misery as much of her career has been assisting those in countries ravaged by war. Thus, it comes has no surprise that when she's visiting one of these areas she finds herself in the middle of a terrorist attack. This experience affects her in a number of ways - causing her to reassess her life, her values, and goals.

Suddenly Sophie not only feels compelled but wants to return to Avalon, a small town in the Catskills. She wants to be reunited with her family, her two children, Max and Daisy, and hopefully make up for lost years, time not spent with them.

As a divorced recently career obsessed woman she doesn't seem to be a very good candidate for romance, but this is a Susan Wiggs story! Upon arriving in snowy Avalon she finds not only a heavy blizzard but a skid that takes her into a ditch. As luck and the author would have it Sophie is rescued by Noah, the handsome local veterinarian. Despite freezing temperatures sparks immediately fly and she falls in love.

But wait, there's more to come. As she often does this author tosses in a few surprises leaving listeners to wonder for a while whether or not love can really conquer all.

- Gail Cooke

Sophie Bellamy has been protrayed in the earlier stories as the former wife & absentee mother - and I'm sure I had a rather poor impression of her character. Although it seemed as if Sophie was a selfish, career-driven woman, this story peels away the layers and reveals the real woman. Although it takes a life-threatening event to bring Sophie back to her family and discovery of her real values in life, she is actually a brave, caring woman. Her love interest, Noah, breathes new life (and, as a bonus, a lot of humor) to this story. I really got caught up in the lives of Sophie & Noah, and of Max & Daisy & Daisy's baby. You won't be disappointed, but expect to laugh, cry & worry about how this wonderful story will end. I've enjoyed ALL the Lakeshore Chronicles, but this one in particular touched my heart. A special place in my "keeper shelf" for these stories!

It's a fantasy come true for Noah Shepherd when he rescues sexy "international woman of mystery" Sophie Bellamy on a snowy winter's night near the frozen shores of Willow Lake. There is nothing like instant chemistry between characters to begin a steamy novel and lust between two people ready to live in the moment, spontaneous and uninhibited.

A tragic hostage situation at the Peace Palace in The Hague Holland changes Sophie and ignites fear into this workaholic international lawyer. Sophie's instinct for survival is to run to the family members she left in pursuit of a high-powered career as a lawyer on the International Criminal Court on war crimes. Sophie's life has been consumed by ceremonial events, couture wardrobes, ornate palaces, dignitaries, drivers and security agents, and translations whispered into an earpiece from exotic locations. It has been her dream job for most of her adult life. But at what price? Sophie sacrificed her family life and her marriage. Her ex-husband is now happily remarried, her daughter has a child out of wedlock and her son is a teenager trying to find his way to manhood. Sophie begins a personal journey to find her place among her family and make up for lost time, realizing that "life lived without family was meaningless."

Contrary to her prior addiction to a successful career, Sophie is now ready to surrender to living in the moment and immersing herself in her children and baby grandchild, a tight-knit community in small-town Avalon in the Catskills and in the arms of a much younger man. For years, Sophie was driven to stopping "transnational crimes against children," "tortures beyond imagining --- rape, ethnic cleansing, genocide" at the expense of missing the events in her own children's lives. Sophie closes the door on her career and pursues a new direction in her life, surrounding herself with people who make her feel good about herself.

Being snowed in for days at a time forces Sophie to slow down, explore her feelings and her new home, and be completely self-indulgent, impulsively falling into the welcoming arms of Noah, the sexy stranger who rescues her from a snowdrift and stitches her leg and her soul. Sophie's wild attraction to Noah takes her completely by surprise, but she feels desired in a way that awakens her passions and releases her inhibitions. "Sophie's brush with death in The Hague had changed her...then when she was a hostage, she'd regretted the many times she hadn't acted on desire, the times she'd put something off, thinking she had all the time in the world."

New York Times bestselling author Susan Wiggs tells the story of Sophie's monumental decision to walk away from a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to sit on the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague Holland in order to free her soul to discover who she is and who she really wants to be. She gives herself the greatest gifts: time to think, time to live, time to love.

Unexpectedly, when she lets go of the past, surprises beyond her imagination await. Sophie's wild attraction to local veterinarian Noah Shepherd takes her by surprise, and she succumbs to a boy toy who professes to follow her to the ends of the earth. Noah has the hot body of a man training for the Ironman triathlon and "a smile that took her breath away." Readers will appreciate the torrid imagery, and identify and cheer as Sophie acts on her desires and builds enduring relationships that heal and transform.

The message in SNOWFALL AT WILLOW LAKE is clear: Follow your heart's desire, and make rediscovering yourself a priority, not a luxury. Pursuing desires and passions opens the door to enormous surprises.

--- Reviewed by Hillary Wagy

I found this book to be the best of the series. I enjoyed reading Sophie and Noah's journey, and to be honest - I thought this was the most real book of them all. The other books have been good, but I didn't want to put this down. Perfect book for a cold winter day.

This is the ideal snuggle-up book, perfect for cold winter nights. These characters are so real -- funny, imperfect, thoughtful -- that you fall in love with them. Also includes new updates on favorite Willow Lake characters.

First, I'd strongly suggest that anyone considering this book should first read the others in the series. Knowing the other characters, and understanding their stories, is very helpful to appreciating this one.
Second, I loved the fantasy of this one, with the wounded woman finding just the right man, however unlikely the match may appear on the surface. Wiggs did an excellent job of making both lead characters three-dimensional [loved Noah's interest in STAR WARS!] and I liked the fact that other characters didn't always behave in ways the reader expects.
Third, the business of the U.N., the court at The Hague and the fictional country were all unnecessary to the plot, except insofar as they provided background on Sophie. Frankly, I skipped those parts and still enjoyed the book.
This is a good read, especially for a winter's day - or to cool off on a hot summer's day.

I am thoroughly enjoying this series of books by Susan Wiggs. I happen to own the entire series thus far but I fully believe that a reader new to the series would not get lost if this happened to be the first one read. What it would do is just cause the reader to go to the nearest library to play 'catch up' on what has been taking place.

In short, I highly recommend the series...individually and as a group.

I like and have read many books by Susan Wiggs. Although I do not like novels that include cooking recipes before the chapters, I suffer through these to read her storyline. Unlike the previous books in the Lakeshore Chronicles, this one is action-packed. The story even begins and ends in Europe, with international intrigue. But somehow, this takes away from the atmosphere of the setting of the series--upstate New York. The best parts of this book are the characters, and the realistic challenges that face each one of them. I think they were all wonderful. There is plenty of romance and plenty of action, but the mixing of the settings and the pace of the storyline is not to my liking. Perhaps others will enjoy her injection of international espionage. Not for me. Just stick to Lakeshore and I will be happy.

I intended to rate this higher, but when I realised I was skipping every second or third chapter because it was all Daisy, Daisy, DAISY! I realised how little I liked this book.

So very little happens in Susan Wiggs books, I often find myself taking a break in frustration. Somewhere in there is a decent story, but it struggles under all the painfully lengthy description and the repetition. Wiggs needs a better editor. Fast. Even though I had trouble paying attention through much of this, even I could find continuity errors for the series. Julian kissed Daisy in book one, so how was it their first kiss here in book four?!

I find it easy to put a Susan Wiggs book down and get some sleep - I never have any desire to keep reading when I get to yet another chapter about Daisy! It would be okay if this girl had anything special going for her. She doesn't. She's just a forgettable teenager with nothing in particular about her of interest. As it is Wiggs' romances are always underdeveloped, and this is due largely to the fact Daisy always steals their page time. I hate Mary Sues, and that's exactly what this character is.

Another thing; I don't get why so many chapters of these books begin with a recipe. Why do I need to know how to make French cheese puffs just before I read about a terrorist attack? And - if Wiggs is aiming for a cosy kind of small town romance - why does she then go and involve outlandish international terrorism storylines to go alongside the idealistic small-town setting? The ideas just don't gel, creating a confusing mess of different genres.

The bizarre international suspense angle of this book was so out of place with the heart of the series I thought it was crazy. Fictional countries are stupid. I'm sorry, but they are. Inventing an African country, language and culture was embarrassing. I adore romantic suspense, but in this series it doesn't fit - especially as it is never an issue between Sophie and Noah. I expected some flashbacks or nightmares they'd have to deal with together, but all we got was a conversation off the page. It was weird.

I'm a little perplexed as to why the age difference between Noah and Sophie was made into such a big deal. How old is this author that she thinks a professional man of twenty-nine is still a child?! What thirty-year-old women does she know who dye and pierce like rebellious teenagers? How come it is perfectly acceptable - the norm, in fact - for a man to have a lover younger than him, but when the roles are reversed offensive names like `cougar' have to be thrown around? These were two consenting adults who loved each other. Where was the conflict in that situation?

I did appreciate that there was more focus in this one. There weren't tangents galore like in the book one, for example, the only significant tangent being bland old Daisy. It allowed for better relationship development for the two main characters, and I came to like both of them very much. Noah was a far better-developed hero than others I have read from this author.

The painfully predictable ending ruined what would otherwise have been a decent final quarter of the book. I hate very much when an author devotes an entire novel to pointing out the sacrifices a couple would have to make to be together, only for all those obstacles to be miraculously removed at the end (I'm looking at you, Stephenie Meyer). Of course, one could see it all coming from page one, but that didn't stop me from being disappointed at yet another Susan Wiggs cop-out. The unfortunate revisit to Made-Up-African-Country complete with crazy Made-Up-African-Words reminded me what I disliked much about the beginning of the book, and lost this one another star.

I really wanted to like this book, since I liked the others in the series, but it just fell short of being "good." Instead it was merely "ok." The plot focused a lot less on the romance between Sophie and Noah and more on Sophie's attempt at redemption with her family. I swear I read several of the same lines in a couple of places throughout the book, since Sophie's feelings kept being rehashed, without really adding any new insight than what was brought out earlier. Plus--while I liked both of the characters as individuals--the love interest between Sophie and Noah just never quite felt right. In some stories, opposites mesh well and are believable as a couple, but not here.
A lot of time was also focused on Daisy and her struggles as a new single mother, even bringing back a former love interest of hers, but never really resolved the story; perhaps it will be resolved in a future book.