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Under The Lake
Still Waters
Situated on a peaceful lake in the prettiest part of the north Georgia mountains, Sutherland seems like a nice town, warm and quiet. The kind of place where families know their neighbors and children can grow up safe.
Run Deep
But this picture-perfect hamlet harbors a dark evil—whispered rumors of greed, incest, and savagery. Buried deep within the lake's waters are hideous secrets, unspeakable horrors that can turn hair white and drive a person mad. Wicked lies that can kill.
And Deadly
Now, one unknowing outsider has the power to reveal the terrifying truth . . . if he lives.
368 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
1090 people are currently reading
2044 people want to read
About the author
Stuart Woods
414 books3,250 followersStuart Woods was an American novelist best known for Chiefs and his long-running Stone Barrington series. A Georgia native, he initially pursued a career in advertising before relocating to England and Ireland, where he developed a passion for sailing. His love for the sport led him to write his first published work, Blue Water, Green Skipper, about his experiences in a transatlantic yacht race.
His debut novel, Chiefs, was inspired by a family story about his grandfather, a police chief. The book, a gripping crime saga spanning several decades, won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel and was later adapted into a television miniseries. It launched Woods' career as a novelist, leading to a prolific output of thrillers.
Woods' most famous creation, Stone Barrington, is a former NYPD detective turned high-profile lawyer who navigates elite circles while solving crimes. The series became a bestseller and remained a staple of his career, often featuring crossover characters from his other books, such as CIA operative Holly Barker and defense lawyer Ed Eagle.
Beyond writing, Woods was an experienced pilot and yachtsman. He maintained homes in Florida, Maine, and New Mexico, where he lived with his wife and their Labrador, Fred. His literary career spanned decades, with dozens of bestsellers to his name.
His debut novel, Chiefs, was inspired by a family story about his grandfather, a police chief. The book, a gripping crime saga spanning several decades, won the Edgar Award for Best First Novel and was later adapted into a television miniseries. It launched Woods' career as a novelist, leading to a prolific output of thrillers.
Woods' most famous creation, Stone Barrington, is a former NYPD detective turned high-profile lawyer who navigates elite circles while solving crimes. The series became a bestseller and remained a staple of his career, often featuring crossover characters from his other books, such as CIA operative Holly Barker and defense lawyer Ed Eagle.
Beyond writing, Woods was an experienced pilot and yachtsman. He maintained homes in Florida, Maine, and New Mexico, where he lived with his wife and their Labrador, Fred. His literary career spanned decades, with dozens of bestsellers to his name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 392 reviews
April 29, 2017
This started as an okayish lowbrow mystery. A dumb drunk goes drunkenly night boating and alludes to something he saw that time. Then he sees something! And it turns his hair white; I had no idea that still happened. But forget him, he is a minor character. A washed-up reporter borrows his brother-in-law's cabin to ditch his adoring, more successful wife write a book, and the small town happens to have SECRETS. You know, skeletons in the closet, except in this case it is a lake instead of a closet. Another reporter, this one young and sexy, is coincidentally under-cover investigating something in the same town.
Then the progress of the plot became surprisingly slow, with a lot of driving and drinking and talking to the same couple locals in the burger joint. Around page 180 I started skimming. It seemed to stay dull up till almost the end when suddenly it was crammed full of every escandalo under the sun, for no real reason. Drug dealing! Corrupt law enforcement! Incest! Pedophilia! Ghosts! (well, a ghost.) More incest! Illegitimacy! Adultery! Secret babies! Broken hearts! Murder!Suicide oops, no, that was also murder. Faith healing! Psychic power! Death! Surprise inheritances! Shop-lifting!
Not the worst airport book I've ever read but I won't be picking up another Woods. I don't even know how I got this one, to be honest. It was in my house somehow.
Then the progress of the plot became surprisingly slow, with a lot of driving and drinking and talking to the same couple locals in the burger joint. Around page 180 I started skimming. It seemed to stay dull up till almost the end when suddenly it was crammed full of every escandalo under the sun, for no real reason. Drug dealing! Corrupt law enforcement! Incest! Pedophilia! Ghosts! (well, a ghost.) More incest! Illegitimacy! Adultery! Secret babies! Broken hearts! Murder!
Not the worst airport book I've ever read but I won't be picking up another Woods. I don't even know how I got this one, to be honest. It was in my house somehow.
April 6, 2022
A certain Stephen King wrote a glowing cover blurb for this novel, calling it "Part detective story, part ghost story, part Southern gothic... it scared the living hell out of me!" While I may agree with the genre aspects, once again King's praise for a novel makes me question his judgement. Under the Lake is a mediocre mystery novel at best and the ghost aspect is really tangential to the story. What we are left with is a meh Southern gothic thriller with some supernatural aspects with a plot that unfolded like a cheap lawn chair.
Our main protagonist is an aging former reporter now 'retired' to work on his 'Great American Novel', but really just a lazy drunk. His wife runs a multi-million dollar company while he drinks in his 'study' above the garage; this has been going on for a few years at least. One day his brother in law, who never really liked John in the first place, makes him an offer to ghost write some buffoon's autobiography for a quick 60 grand. The guy started a fried chicken franchise that now rivals KFC. John's bro in law gives him the keys to a cabin up in the woods on a lake in Georgia and three months to write the book, so off he goes...
John really is a despicable protagonist, however, and I was really pulling to see him offed rather than be a hero. While John has been unable to fulfill his 'martial obligations' for some time (not being the bread winner can really induce some depression I suppose 😉), he has no problem with the young women in the small town on the lake who basically throw themselves at him left and right. After a few weeks at the lake he gets a classic 'dear John' letter from his wife (yuk yuk, his name is actually John). In any case, the main plot involves uncovering what happened 25 years ago or so when the lake was first created via a dam.
The dam's owner tried to buy up all the land in the valley from some hardy (and very incestuous) Irish families but one family held out. In fact, the story starts with a prologue where a townie one night on a boat sees the lights of their farm house now underwater, and for cliche, it turns his hair white. John has only been in town for a few days when he runs into an old colleague of his from his newspaper days working in the police department. Turns out, she is 'undercover' to investigate the local sheriff for some unspecified reasons that he is corrupt.
The town founder and dam owner is a remote figure, but obviously he is trying to keep a lid on what exactly went down 25 years ago, and is tipped off that a reporter is lurking around. Once John introduces himself, the owner immediately thinks the reporter is John, but it is actually the woman at the police department (Scotty). So, we have some intrigue here, local politics, some nefarious drug running and a secret that will not stay buried under the lake forever...
On the plus side, this is a really easy read and flows nicely. I can see it as a good beach read for a few reasons. Under the Lake takes very little brain cells to concentrate on and because if the tide happens to come up unexpectedly, you can move on to the next book without much of a loss. Probably my last book from Stuart Woods. 2 damp stars...
Our main protagonist is an aging former reporter now 'retired' to work on his 'Great American Novel', but really just a lazy drunk. His wife runs a multi-million dollar company while he drinks in his 'study' above the garage; this has been going on for a few years at least. One day his brother in law, who never really liked John in the first place, makes him an offer to ghost write some buffoon's autobiography for a quick 60 grand. The guy started a fried chicken franchise that now rivals KFC. John's bro in law gives him the keys to a cabin up in the woods on a lake in Georgia and three months to write the book, so off he goes...
John really is a despicable protagonist, however, and I was really pulling to see him offed rather than be a hero. While John has been unable to fulfill his 'martial obligations' for some time (not being the bread winner can really induce some depression I suppose 😉), he has no problem with the young women in the small town on the lake who basically throw themselves at him left and right. After a few weeks at the lake he gets a classic 'dear John' letter from his wife (yuk yuk, his name is actually John). In any case, the main plot involves uncovering what happened 25 years ago or so when the lake was first created via a dam.
The dam's owner tried to buy up all the land in the valley from some hardy (and very incestuous) Irish families but one family held out. In fact, the story starts with a prologue where a townie one night on a boat sees the lights of their farm house now underwater, and for cliche, it turns his hair white. John has only been in town for a few days when he runs into an old colleague of his from his newspaper days working in the police department. Turns out, she is 'undercover' to investigate the local sheriff for some unspecified reasons that he is corrupt.
The town founder and dam owner is a remote figure, but obviously he is trying to keep a lid on what exactly went down 25 years ago, and is tipped off that a reporter is lurking around. Once John introduces himself, the owner immediately thinks the reporter is John, but it is actually the woman at the police department (Scotty). So, we have some intrigue here, local politics, some nefarious drug running and a secret that will not stay buried under the lake forever...
On the plus side, this is a really easy read and flows nicely. I can see it as a good beach read for a few reasons. Under the Lake takes very little brain cells to concentrate on and because if the tide happens to come up unexpectedly, you can move on to the next book without much of a loss. Probably my last book from Stuart Woods. 2 damp stars...
September 24, 2014
I think I'm becoming a jaded supernatural mystery reader.
If I had read this one four or five years ago it probably would have been a 4 or 5 star read. Now it's just barely a 3.
It's not that Under the Lake was that awful, it's just that when you quote Stephen King on the cover saying that the book "scared the hell" out of him, you better have one mother fucking scary-ass book on your hands. Or else you paid Stephen King to lie.
I think someone paid Stephen King to lie. I'd rather believe that ugly fact than believe Stephen King is a pussy. Because to have nightmares because you read this novel (a fact that Stephen states in his praise inside the cover) you would pretty much have to be a pussy. Or a liar. I choose to believe, in this case, that liar fits the bill.
This was a really weak attempt at a ghost story. At some point in the beginning, some characters decide to hold a seance. And some spooky things happen, but things that don't even scare the characters as much as intrigue them. If your characters aren't terrified, how do you expect to spook your readers?
Under the Lake is more of a southern detective mystery. There are some really formulaic events which you could read in any mystery, some family secrets that all get wrapped up a little too cleanly, and characters that speak and behave exactly as one would expect. I think I guessed most of the ending at the halfway point, but that being said, I still read the last 130 pages or so in one sitting, late at night before bed.
To put it in layman's terms, I can sum up my response to this "thriller" as one big fat "eh, I liked it. It was entertaining."
And entertaining it is. If you can get past the fact that it isn't really a scary ghost story. The plot centers around a journalist who used to be pretty cutting-edge who has basically just sold out who stays at his brother-in-law's lake house in a cryptic little town which obviously doesn't get, or want, many visitors. He finds a young, oversexed undercover reporter he used to work with in the local sheriff's office sniffing out a rumor that the sheriff is dirty. The two of them join forces (and bodies) as they crack open some long-buried mysteries about the lake and the town itself, and (believe it or not) everything pretty much works out in the end. The "bad" guys lose or die and the "good" guys bring the truth to light, expose corruption, save the day, and go on with their lives. I personally believe the whole ghost story scenario was thrown haphazardly into the plot in order for the author to dig himself out of a gigantic plot hole. Because ghosts can do anything, right?
The characters are bland, and for the most part, their motivations are unbelievable. There were even some that were thrown in for apparently no reason at all (the blind psychic named Joyce points everyone in the direction of the lake house ghost who just so happens to have a sister named Joyce who is also blind--but this is all coincidence....mmhmm yeah) The only characters I kind of grew on were the Kelly family, a mystic incest-laced family from the valley with supernatural abilities and powers. No mention is ever made to why they have powers--they can just see the future, have healing abilities, and the ability to read minds--again for no apparent reason whatsoever. I would have liked to see their stories and characters fleshed out a bit more because that could have been an interesting side-plot to me.
Read this book if you like a good mystery and are going to be sitting on the beach in the near future. It's a great plane ride/beach read--quick, easy, and mildly entertaining. If you want to be scared, go read The Shining.
If I had read this one four or five years ago it probably would have been a 4 or 5 star read. Now it's just barely a 3.
It's not that Under the Lake was that awful, it's just that when you quote Stephen King on the cover saying that the book "scared the hell" out of him, you better have one mother fucking scary-ass book on your hands. Or else you paid Stephen King to lie.
I think someone paid Stephen King to lie. I'd rather believe that ugly fact than believe Stephen King is a pussy. Because to have nightmares because you read this novel (a fact that Stephen states in his praise inside the cover) you would pretty much have to be a pussy. Or a liar. I choose to believe, in this case, that liar fits the bill.
This was a really weak attempt at a ghost story. At some point in the beginning, some characters decide to hold a seance. And some spooky things happen, but things that don't even scare the characters as much as intrigue them. If your characters aren't terrified, how do you expect to spook your readers?
Under the Lake is more of a southern detective mystery. There are some really formulaic events which you could read in any mystery, some family secrets that all get wrapped up a little too cleanly, and characters that speak and behave exactly as one would expect. I think I guessed most of the ending at the halfway point, but that being said, I still read the last 130 pages or so in one sitting, late at night before bed.
To put it in layman's terms, I can sum up my response to this "thriller" as one big fat "eh, I liked it. It was entertaining."
And entertaining it is. If you can get past the fact that it isn't really a scary ghost story. The plot centers around a journalist who used to be pretty cutting-edge who has basically just sold out who stays at his brother-in-law's lake house in a cryptic little town which obviously doesn't get, or want, many visitors. He finds a young, oversexed undercover reporter he used to work with in the local sheriff's office sniffing out a rumor that the sheriff is dirty. The two of them join forces (and bodies) as they crack open some long-buried mysteries about the lake and the town itself, and (believe it or not) everything pretty much works out in the end. The "bad" guys lose or die and the "good" guys bring the truth to light, expose corruption, save the day, and go on with their lives. I personally believe the whole ghost story scenario was thrown haphazardly into the plot in order for the author to dig himself out of a gigantic plot hole. Because ghosts can do anything, right?
The characters are bland, and for the most part, their motivations are unbelievable. There were even some that were thrown in for apparently no reason at all (the blind psychic named Joyce points everyone in the direction of the lake house ghost who just so happens to have a sister named Joyce who is also blind--but this is all coincidence....mmhmm yeah) The only characters I kind of grew on were the Kelly family, a mystic incest-laced family from the valley with supernatural abilities and powers. No mention is ever made to why they have powers--they can just see the future, have healing abilities, and the ability to read minds--again for no apparent reason whatsoever. I would have liked to see their stories and characters fleshed out a bit more because that could have been an interesting side-plot to me.
Read this book if you like a good mystery and are going to be sitting on the beach in the near future. It's a great plane ride/beach read--quick, easy, and mildly entertaining. If you want to be scared, go read The Shining.
October 9, 2021
CW: suicidal ideation, suicide jokes, suicide, people in the 1980s being gross about LGBT and learning disabilities, cheating, incest, statutory rape, child death
Read for the "Read the States" challenge for: Georgia (This is a formal apology to Georgia, I am SO sorry this is the book I read for your state.)
John Howell, the main character of this novel, reminded me an awful lot of Paul Sheldon from Misery. Unfortunately, Paul was my second least favorite aspect of that book! So! Here we are. 🙃
At first, I thought this book made me unreasonably angry. Like, it's really not as bad as I'm going to make it out to be for the most part - but then I got to the ending.
1. I agree with the person who said Stephen King lied to us. His cover blurb says this book is scary. Stephen King is a dirty liar.
2. Whoever thought this is Southern Gothic was poorly explained the genre by someone over a crackly telephone line. Setting your book in the south and adding incest for ✨flavor ✨ does not Southern Gothic make.
3. The foreshadowing was weak at best. We didn't get to see the antagonist do anything until after the main characters are already investigating him. And then we get a reverse villain monologue when Howell exposits it all in the third to last chapter.
4. We have not one but two under developed women who really want to sleep with the protagonist. Why? WHO KNOWS! He sure was interested in their breasts, though. Also, one of them is really into no-strings-attached sex which would be fine except we all know she's only doing it to fulfill Howell's ideals and also because - this is a paraphrase - she said she would kill herself if she went to prison because there weren't any men to sleep with. Because they [women] are "literally" lacking "something." 🙃🙃🙃 Mr. Woods clearly knows nothing about lesbian sex and none of us should tell him anything.
5. Read the spoiler above. You shouldn't care if you get spoiled.
6.
In conclusion, don't read this book. It made me angry and annoyed.
Read for the "Read the States" challenge for: Georgia (This is a formal apology to Georgia, I am SO sorry this is the book I read for your state.)
John Howell, the main character of this novel, reminded me an awful lot of Paul Sheldon from Misery. Unfortunately, Paul was my second least favorite aspect of that book! So! Here we are. 🙃
At first, I thought this book made me unreasonably angry. Like, it's really not as bad as I'm going to make it out to be for the most part - but then I got to the ending.
1. I agree with the person who said Stephen King lied to us. His cover blurb says this book is scary. Stephen King is a dirty liar.
2. Whoever thought this is Southern Gothic was poorly explained the genre by someone over a crackly telephone line. Setting your book in the south and adding incest for ✨flavor ✨ does not Southern Gothic make.
3. The foreshadowing was weak at best. We didn't get to see the antagonist do anything until after the main characters are already investigating him. And then we get a reverse villain monologue when Howell exposits it all in the third to last chapter.
4. We have not one but two under developed women who really want to sleep with the protagonist. Why? WHO KNOWS! He sure was interested in their breasts, though. Also, one of them is really into no-strings-attached sex which would be fine except we all know she's only doing it to fulfill Howell's ideals and also because - this is a paraphrase - she said she would kill herself if she went to prison because there weren't any men to sleep with. Because they [women] are "literally" lacking "something." 🙃🙃🙃 Mr. Woods clearly knows nothing about lesbian sex and none of us should tell him anything.
5. Read the spoiler above. You shouldn't care if you get spoiled.
6.
In conclusion, don't read this book. It made me angry and annoyed.
September 21, 2015
The first Stuart Woods I read and it remains my favourite. Howell is a journalist who rents a small cabin by a lake to write his novel. He soon learns that the creation of the lake was forced upon the farmowners whose land was to become sea bed, and there are even rumours that somebody did not get out in time. Howell begins both hearing and seeing unexplainable things and when he finds out he's not alone he does not know if he should be relieved he's not going crazy or if...
It was quite a disappointment to find out that this was Woods only excursion into horror/the supernatural, but granted, he did manage a couple of more very fine novels.
It was quite a disappointment to find out that this was Woods only excursion into horror/the supernatural, but granted, he did manage a couple of more very fine novels.
August 1, 2014
just in case you're in the mood for a mediocre mystery with a washed up, middle aged has-been (who hates that his wife is the bread winner) finding himself again thanks to sex with multiple nubile 24 year olds. I just like lakes, okay?
October 31, 2023
This was simply a great, great read. As promised on the book jacket it combines the best features of a detective story, ghost story and Southern Gothic. It's also an outstanding addition to my Family Secrets shelf. I didn't want to blink as I was reading this one because every single detail was important to the story. Highly recommended.
May 23, 2018
Two-haiku review:
Writer goes to lake
Has strange dreams, maybe visions
Investigates them
Pre-computer times
With phone booths, film cameras
But still pretty good
Writer goes to lake
Has strange dreams, maybe visions
Investigates them
Pre-computer times
With phone booths, film cameras
But still pretty good
August 30, 2016
Under the Lake by Stuart Woods:
Synopsis: Middle-aged male writer admits literary and physical impotence, moves to the country to recover his mojo, winds up solving a mystery involving an underwater town and a crooked sheriff, bones all the ladies. Apparently solving things makes him feel better.
...D'y'ever feel like maybe a change of scenery will make everything better? Like if you could just move out to a cheerful little cabin besides a bucolic lake, that writer's block would disappear, maybe your old investigative reporter senses would kick in and you'd discover the town's crooked sheriff boned both his fiancee's 12-year-old sister and his own daughter as part of covering up his murder spree?
Yeah. ME NEITHER.
Anyway. John Howell is a drunk, middle-aged Pulitzer Prize-winning (O.o) investigative reporter turned kept husband who's stalled on writing the Great American Novel (o.O) and lost interest in his beautiful, successful business-owning wife who forgives his impotence. His brother-in-law attempts to get him sober by getting him secretly hired to ghost-write the autobiography of a fried chicken magnate (fuck it, I'm out of eyebrows already), which John does by moving to scenic and hella rural Sutherland, Georgia.
Things basically go wrong from the get-go, with John's suicide attempt foiled by a Mysterious Thunderstorm and a ghost, then he saves the sheriff's life in a convenience store shoot-out (c'mon, someone lend me some damn eyebrows, we're on like page 14) and random strangers follow John home and conduct a seance in his cabin, inviting the ghost to reappear. Meanwhile, John discovers an old newspaper gal-pal working undercover at the sheriff's office, bones her, then goes to the home of a mysterious and scandalous hill family to get his back fixed by the family's lovely daughter, bones her, then gets a letter from his wife all DON'T COME HOME THANKS THERE'S SOMEONE ELSE. At which point he throws a hissyfit.
Now, in all fairness, I'd like to pause here to point out a couple things.
One, this book is not terribly written. It has above-average mechanics and a vividly descriptive writing style. It has that going for it.
But more importantly, two, the protagonist does in fact recognize the hypocritical loserness of getting mad about his wife's infidelity while boning two women who are not actually his wife. And that right there basically saved the book for me, because otherwise having to listen to this over-entitled little man-boy stomp about his cabin drinking Scotch, scheduling more bonings and hanging out with the corrupt local sheriff could've put this one squarely on the Oy Vay Gevalt shelf, and as of this writing I have in fact backed over a book with my car because it pissed me off so much. I have feels about books, is what.
But see, there's a drowned town in this one.
And I do love me some drowned town. Blame Blackwater, my newly discovered interest in the Quabbin Valley and this incredibly fabulous resource for reading all about drowned towns. Also feel free to lose yourself in that last site entirely, as that person loves the lissssssts and is incredibly research-oriented.
Meanwhile, back at the lake, it looks like while the sheriff is more than likely involved in a complicated money-laundering scheme with the National Guard (seriously, I'm about to use one of the dogs' eyebrows. Help a sister out) John's on the track of Sutherland's reclusive and ultra-wealthy patriarch, who bought out all the land in the valley in order to flood it and obtain a monopoly on hydro-electric power. Sounds legit, right? Except a bitter lawyer in town tells John, totally conveniently, about the rumor that one family refused to be bought out, then all disappeared one night and the patriarch took the deed to their land to the bank the next morning.
Cue John Howell having Mysterious Visions at his lake-side cabin of a dark car pulling up to the disappeared family's house, screams from inside, then the lake all lake-ing over everything.
Anyway, to make a long story short, it was the sheriff the whole time, as he is waaaaaay more corrupt than anyone gave him credit for, and considering he's money-laundering with the National Guard, that's really saying something.
He kills the patriarch, he takes John and the undercover newspaper gal hostage and, in true Bond villain style, tells them all about how he was engaged to the eldest daughter of the holdout family, but her 12-year-old sister seduced him! And killed everyone! And was going to lie about the affair! So he killed her! And she turns out to be the ghost in John's cabin who, blessedly, he has managed not to sleep with. But the gal-pal is secretly the sheriff's daughter with the 12-year-old! And he slept with her too! Then luckily for everyone the sheriff throws himself in the lake.
Now, here's my problem with all of this.
As I read entirely too much hard-boiled crime fiction, I run across these child-molesty plotlines more often than I'd like. BUT! *At no point in this book does anyone raise a hand and go, uh, no Slappy, she didn't seduce you, you molested her. Children don't seduce adults, adults molest them*. No, instead we have the sheriff, John Howell and the gal-pal all nodding and being like, yup, sucks to be the seduced sheriff, that murdering child and her terrible seductive powers all out to get this poor adult man. Enjoy the lake!
GRAH.
However! Luckily I was not alone in my feeling that perhaps this book was not possibly the Great American Novel our friend John Howell had been attempting to write when his wiener gave out on him.
Seriously, I turned around and Pickles The Pug was cheerfully in the process of applying his own review directly to the lower spinal area of this book. He's done this once before with a book that I was much less happy he'd eaten (A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie) which I wound up replacing, because Agatha Christie.
But Under the Lake... I'm torn. I mean, there's quite an obvious and quite gross fear-of-the-pussy going on in this book (the eldest daughter of the hill family turns out to be boning John because she wants a baby, then refuses to let him be involved in the resulting pregnancy and y'all I just can't--), as well as the fact that there are no women with agency save the 12-year-old mass murderer who is vilified for seducing a grown man.
I FIND THIS PROBLEMATIC.
But good writing and a well-paced mystery are compelling reasons not to go warm up the car, especially as it's like 10 degrees F outside so this whole process would take awhile.
But Pickles regrets nothing.
It was time to panic, Scotty thought. The only thing she could think of was to faint.
Scotty had never fainted before, not even in the worst moments of her life, but she was so frightened that very little acting was required. She simply placed a hand on her forehead, then crumpled in sections at Bo's feet like an elongated sack of oranges.
Bo's inexperience with fainting apparently matched Scotty's, because he reacted as if she had taken an arrow to the chest.
Synopsis: Middle-aged male writer admits literary and physical impotence, moves to the country to recover his mojo, winds up solving a mystery involving an underwater town and a crooked sheriff, bones all the ladies. Apparently solving things makes him feel better.
...D'y'ever feel like maybe a change of scenery will make everything better? Like if you could just move out to a cheerful little cabin besides a bucolic lake, that writer's block would disappear, maybe your old investigative reporter senses would kick in and you'd discover the town's crooked sheriff boned both his fiancee's 12-year-old sister and his own daughter as part of covering up his murder spree?
Yeah. ME NEITHER.
Anyway. John Howell is a drunk, middle-aged Pulitzer Prize-winning (O.o) investigative reporter turned kept husband who's stalled on writing the Great American Novel (o.O) and lost interest in his beautiful, successful business-owning wife who forgives his impotence. His brother-in-law attempts to get him sober by getting him secretly hired to ghost-write the autobiography of a fried chicken magnate (fuck it, I'm out of eyebrows already), which John does by moving to scenic and hella rural Sutherland, Georgia.
Things basically go wrong from the get-go, with John's suicide attempt foiled by a Mysterious Thunderstorm and a ghost, then he saves the sheriff's life in a convenience store shoot-out (c'mon, someone lend me some damn eyebrows, we're on like page 14) and random strangers follow John home and conduct a seance in his cabin, inviting the ghost to reappear. Meanwhile, John discovers an old newspaper gal-pal working undercover at the sheriff's office, bones her, then goes to the home of a mysterious and scandalous hill family to get his back fixed by the family's lovely daughter, bones her, then gets a letter from his wife all DON'T COME HOME THANKS THERE'S SOMEONE ELSE. At which point he throws a hissyfit.
Now, in all fairness, I'd like to pause here to point out a couple things.
One, this book is not terribly written. It has above-average mechanics and a vividly descriptive writing style. It has that going for it.
But more importantly, two, the protagonist does in fact recognize the hypocritical loserness of getting mad about his wife's infidelity while boning two women who are not actually his wife. And that right there basically saved the book for me, because otherwise having to listen to this over-entitled little man-boy stomp about his cabin drinking Scotch, scheduling more bonings and hanging out with the corrupt local sheriff could've put this one squarely on the Oy Vay Gevalt shelf, and as of this writing I have in fact backed over a book with my car because it pissed me off so much. I have feels about books, is what.
But see, there's a drowned town in this one.
And I do love me some drowned town. Blame Blackwater, my newly discovered interest in the Quabbin Valley and this incredibly fabulous resource for reading all about drowned towns. Also feel free to lose yourself in that last site entirely, as that person loves the lissssssts and is incredibly research-oriented.
Meanwhile, back at the lake, it looks like while the sheriff is more than likely involved in a complicated money-laundering scheme with the National Guard (seriously, I'm about to use one of the dogs' eyebrows. Help a sister out) John's on the track of Sutherland's reclusive and ultra-wealthy patriarch, who bought out all the land in the valley in order to flood it and obtain a monopoly on hydro-electric power. Sounds legit, right? Except a bitter lawyer in town tells John, totally conveniently, about the rumor that one family refused to be bought out, then all disappeared one night and the patriarch took the deed to their land to the bank the next morning.
Cue John Howell having Mysterious Visions at his lake-side cabin of a dark car pulling up to the disappeared family's house, screams from inside, then the lake all lake-ing over everything.
Anyway, to make a long story short, it was the sheriff the whole time, as he is waaaaaay more corrupt than anyone gave him credit for, and considering he's money-laundering with the National Guard, that's really saying something.
He kills the patriarch, he takes John and the undercover newspaper gal hostage and, in true Bond villain style, tells them all about how he was engaged to the eldest daughter of the holdout family, but her 12-year-old sister seduced him! And killed everyone! And was going to lie about the affair! So he killed her! And she turns out to be the ghost in John's cabin who, blessedly, he has managed not to sleep with. But the gal-pal is secretly the sheriff's daughter with the 12-year-old! And he slept with her too! Then luckily for everyone the sheriff throws himself in the lake.
Now, here's my problem with all of this.
As I read entirely too much hard-boiled crime fiction, I run across these child-molesty plotlines more often than I'd like. BUT! *At no point in this book does anyone raise a hand and go, uh, no Slappy, she didn't seduce you, you molested her. Children don't seduce adults, adults molest them*. No, instead we have the sheriff, John Howell and the gal-pal all nodding and being like, yup, sucks to be the seduced sheriff, that murdering child and her terrible seductive powers all out to get this poor adult man. Enjoy the lake!
GRAH.
However! Luckily I was not alone in my feeling that perhaps this book was not possibly the Great American Novel our friend John Howell had been attempting to write when his wiener gave out on him.
Seriously, I turned around and Pickles The Pug was cheerfully in the process of applying his own review directly to the lower spinal area of this book. He's done this once before with a book that I was much less happy he'd eaten (A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie) which I wound up replacing, because Agatha Christie.
But Under the Lake... I'm torn. I mean, there's quite an obvious and quite gross fear-of-the-pussy going on in this book (the eldest daughter of the hill family turns out to be boning John because she wants a baby, then refuses to let him be involved in the resulting pregnancy and y'all I just can't--), as well as the fact that there are no women with agency save the 12-year-old mass murderer who is vilified for seducing a grown man.
I FIND THIS PROBLEMATIC.
But good writing and a well-paced mystery are compelling reasons not to go warm up the car, especially as it's like 10 degrees F outside so this whole process would take awhile.
But Pickles regrets nothing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 26, 2025
Actually insane plot twist after plot twist. It was almost unnecessary for this one plot twist. And disgusting. Like why did bro even feel the need to include that
August 14, 2011
I've only read a few books by Stuart Woods thus far, but I like him. Palindrome is one of my all-time favorites! Under The Lake is a stand-alone novel and is one of his earlier works. It takes place in the North Georgia mountains (my home state!) in a tiny little backwoods town, where former reporter John Howell is staying in a lakeside cabin to focus on writing a book. He stumbles on something far more interesting, however, when he learns of a decades-old mystery that is filled with long-buried secrets. The lake covers what used to be a farming community in the valley, and John begins to recieve ghostly visions urging him to investigate what happened "under the lake" all those years ago. Stephen King described the book as "part detective story, part ghost story, and part Southern gothic", which pretty well sums it up! I gave it 4 stars because of a few little things that were unrealistic, and because it dragged on a bit towards the final third of the book. Overall, it was a nice, light read, with a great setting and an interesting storyline.
February 1, 2013
This was a really good, fast read. The pace of the book was pretty fast and I finished it in less than a week. It's a story about a reporter who comes to this remote mountain village to write his novel and instead gets caught up in the local legends about the lake and what's underneath it. I wont say too much more about the plot but it's NOT about a lake monster as I first thought when reading the title. It's a supernatural story and a great mystery. If you want a light, fun, intriguing read then check this book out.
October 14, 2012
I really liked this book. Great old school suspense novel, with a good amount of twists and turns and paranormal activity to keep you in suspense until the end, where you could say, “ok, didn’t see that coming!” I prefer these to his Stone Barrington series, where those lean more towards cozy mysteries.
Currently Reading
March 28, 2008It's about a drunk writer. He lives in a cabin. I like it so far.
October 4, 2023
Oops I finished this a few weeks ago. Enjoyed this mystery. This book had an abrupt ending though
April 5, 2022
Under the Lake, Stuart Woods, 1987
(MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS)
My favorite quote: “Howell hung up the phone and pressed his forehead against the cool glass of the booth. The world was suddenly a different place. He wasn’t sure he liked it.”
Most interesting characters: John Howell, a former investigative journalist; Sutherland, a strange little town that harbors dark secrets deep beneath the waters of its lake (even though there are lots of great characters in Under the Lake, I’m counting the town as a character because of the way Stuart Woods writes it)
Opening scene: It’s late at night in Sutherland, and after drinking a couple six-packs, a man named Benny Pope decides it’s time to hop on a boat and go fishing for the first time -- and there, under the lake, he sees lights twinkling deep in the waters. Not just any lights, but house lights. And then he remembers -- he’s seen this before …
The gist: In short, Under the Lake tells the story of a weird little town with lots of dark secrets -- and I love it. It deviates from Stuart Woods’ usual fare -- but in the best way possible
Greatest strengths: Even though Under the Lake is different from his other work in a lot of ways, it retains Stuart Woods’ southern crime detective vibe that makes Stuart Woods so great, so I think fans of his other work will like this one, too
Standout achievements: Stuart Woods is a fine writer, and though a bit dated, Under the Lake is one of those books you find yourself thinking about long after you’ve finished
Fun Facts: Under the Lake has a quote by Stephen King on its cover, stating that this book “scared the hell out of him.” That may have made Stuart Woods happy, but I’m not going to lie: I think Stephen King is a total fibber. As much as I liked Under the Lake, it’s not scary, especially by Stephen King’s standards -- unless he’s a lot more easily-spooked than he seems. But I think we all know the truth: Stephen King will endorse just about anything at this point. That said, at least this time he did it for a worthy book. While it certainly isn’t going to “scare the hell” out of anyone, Under the Lake is a damned good read -- one of Stuart Woods’ best
Other media: As far as I know, Chiefs and Grass Roots are the only Stuart Woods books to be adapted into film but if they ever made a movie of Under the Lake, I want to play the part of Benny Pope, who gets drunk and goes night fishing
Additional thoughts: Many reviewers are outraged -- outraged! -- by a plot line in Under the Lake that deals with a twelve-year-old “seductress.” While I personally don’t seem to have the energy (or even the capacity) to be outraged by imaginary people doing imaginary things, I agree, it was odd. That said, I came for the intrigue, ghosts, and spooky atmosphere -- and on that score, Stuart Woods didn’t disappoint
Hit or Miss: Hit
Haunt me: alistaircross.com
Read Under the Lake: https://tinyurl.com/2xnmch6t
(MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS)
My favorite quote: “Howell hung up the phone and pressed his forehead against the cool glass of the booth. The world was suddenly a different place. He wasn’t sure he liked it.”
Most interesting characters: John Howell, a former investigative journalist; Sutherland, a strange little town that harbors dark secrets deep beneath the waters of its lake (even though there are lots of great characters in Under the Lake, I’m counting the town as a character because of the way Stuart Woods writes it)
Opening scene: It’s late at night in Sutherland, and after drinking a couple six-packs, a man named Benny Pope decides it’s time to hop on a boat and go fishing for the first time -- and there, under the lake, he sees lights twinkling deep in the waters. Not just any lights, but house lights. And then he remembers -- he’s seen this before …
The gist: In short, Under the Lake tells the story of a weird little town with lots of dark secrets -- and I love it. It deviates from Stuart Woods’ usual fare -- but in the best way possible
Greatest strengths: Even though Under the Lake is different from his other work in a lot of ways, it retains Stuart Woods’ southern crime detective vibe that makes Stuart Woods so great, so I think fans of his other work will like this one, too
Standout achievements: Stuart Woods is a fine writer, and though a bit dated, Under the Lake is one of those books you find yourself thinking about long after you’ve finished
Fun Facts: Under the Lake has a quote by Stephen King on its cover, stating that this book “scared the hell out of him.” That may have made Stuart Woods happy, but I’m not going to lie: I think Stephen King is a total fibber. As much as I liked Under the Lake, it’s not scary, especially by Stephen King’s standards -- unless he’s a lot more easily-spooked than he seems. But I think we all know the truth: Stephen King will endorse just about anything at this point. That said, at least this time he did it for a worthy book. While it certainly isn’t going to “scare the hell” out of anyone, Under the Lake is a damned good read -- one of Stuart Woods’ best
Other media: As far as I know, Chiefs and Grass Roots are the only Stuart Woods books to be adapted into film but if they ever made a movie of Under the Lake, I want to play the part of Benny Pope, who gets drunk and goes night fishing
Additional thoughts: Many reviewers are outraged -- outraged! -- by a plot line in Under the Lake that deals with a twelve-year-old “seductress.” While I personally don’t seem to have the energy (or even the capacity) to be outraged by imaginary people doing imaginary things, I agree, it was odd. That said, I came for the intrigue, ghosts, and spooky atmosphere -- and on that score, Stuart Woods didn’t disappoint
Hit or Miss: Hit
Haunt me: alistaircross.com
Read Under the Lake: https://tinyurl.com/2xnmch6t
November 28, 2017
I read this book while on a long bus trip, and it sure passed the time well. A very intricate mystery that reads quickly, with a clear cast of characters and excitement as the climax is being reached.
Former investigative journalist and Pulitzer Prize winner John Howell has reluctantly taken on the job of writing a man's biography. He retreats to the mountains of north Georgia to idyllic Sutherland to a cabin owned by his former brother-in-law. A lake was formed years ago under suspicious circumstances which Howell starts to investigate, since the one family who was holding out on selling their land disappeared at that time. Meanwhile, he discovers that Scotty, a woman he barely knew back in his working days, has gone undercover and is investigating Sheriff Bo, the right-hand man of town founder Eric Sutherland. And Howell is seeing the ghost of a teen girl - perhaps from the family that disappeared years ago. How will this all be solved?
Former investigative journalist and Pulitzer Prize winner John Howell has reluctantly taken on the job of writing a man's biography. He retreats to the mountains of north Georgia to idyllic Sutherland to a cabin owned by his former brother-in-law. A lake was formed years ago under suspicious circumstances which Howell starts to investigate, since the one family who was holding out on selling their land disappeared at that time. Meanwhile, he discovers that Scotty, a woman he barely knew back in his working days, has gone undercover and is investigating Sheriff Bo, the right-hand man of town founder Eric Sutherland. And Howell is seeing the ghost of a teen girl - perhaps from the family that disappeared years ago. How will this all be solved?
January 2, 2016
Under the Lake is just under ten hours of listening narrated by Tom Stechschulte.
This is a good read/listen, a mystery. The lead character is a single man who experiences a bizarre disappearance of the lake outside his house, revealing an old farm. Part paranormal, mystical, part who-done-it mystery. Everyone in his small town, except him, knows the dark history he unfolds. Thwarted by everyone, including the local librarian and sheriff, he peels away the layers of an Agatha Christie-type story. The ending is a surprising twist. Thus is the foundation.
Narration by Tom Stechschulte is great, you’ll enjoy. No trouble discerning who-says-what-to-who.
Enjoy!
This is a good read/listen, a mystery. The lead character is a single man who experiences a bizarre disappearance of the lake outside his house, revealing an old farm. Part paranormal, mystical, part who-done-it mystery. Everyone in his small town, except him, knows the dark history he unfolds. Thwarted by everyone, including the local librarian and sheriff, he peels away the layers of an Agatha Christie-type story. The ending is a surprising twist. Thus is the foundation.
Narration by Tom Stechschulte is great, you’ll enjoy. No trouble discerning who-says-what-to-who.
Enjoy!
February 23, 2016
Under the Lake was my first time experiencing Stuart Woods, and I was pleased. I'm glad I didn't know ahead of time that there were some supernatural and ghostly elements in this, because I probably wouldn't have read it. Although these elements were included, they didn't overwhelm the story by any means. I'm fact, without them, the story may not have worked.
Woods' pacing was excellent and the mystery was intriguing. The ending was a surprise, which is nice, although some of it was a little cliche. In the end, I enjoyed Woods' writing and look forward to reading more of his standalones.
Woods' pacing was excellent and the mystery was intriguing. The ending was a surprise, which is nice, although some of it was a little cliche. In the end, I enjoyed Woods' writing and look forward to reading more of his standalones.
July 27, 2018
Mediocre suspense/mystery that gets worse and more cliched at the end. Originally published in 1987, some of the language is dated in an unpleasant way. The 2011 edition updated the author’s bio to include a website and current info, but somehow couldn’t get rid of several appearances of the word “retard” or “retarded” to refer to disabled children. It was jarring to see that, and the book is just barely ok, not good enough to excuse the offense. There are much better throwaway reads to spend your time on.
September 12, 2018
Although I found the dialogue a bit contrived, the story was delightfully snarled and suspenseful. Of course, I read for pleasure and rarely bother trying to figure anything out. And even after it's spelled out, there was still a little "huh?" factor. There is a bit of a stretch with it all, but that's okay. I especially liked the supernatural element. I'm looking forward to reading more of the author's works.
May 8, 2022
This started out with such promise but ended up completely unbelievable and less imaginative than it could have been. Not one of the characters is likable, not even the main character. And this writer seems to not know much about women — offensive even. I know it was written a long time ago and things have changed, but still didn’t even seem right for the 1980s either. I’ve rarely given any book one star.
February 29, 2024
Got this because of King’s blurb ‘terrified the hell out of me’ or something to those words… didn’t even feel a flutter and this turned out to be more a crime than horror. There was a big supernatural element near the beginning but this just sat on the back burner for most of the book, then a twist brought it back. Was a good read but not what I expected, there were a couple of holes… but it worked out well as a crime story, not a horror story.
November 11, 2019
I powered through this red pretty quickly. I like how there is the pretense that multiple things are going on, but it all seems to wrap up and connect to it self in the end. I like John, even though I didn’t want too. I kind of wish it had a more dramatic ending, but it was a good read.
June 1, 2013
O my gosh i loved this book!! So mant twists and turns, and the end was really good! This was a first for me by stuart woods, but wont be my last!
August 9, 2021
Starts strong, but rapidly dissolves into “white fortysomething author goes to a cabin to write and have several affairs and also there’s ghosts”.
June 26, 2023
Not sure why this got “ehh” reviews- I loved the historical mystery….
September 24, 2024
I normally read only classic mysteries a la Sherlock Holmes and Agatha Christie but I made an exception in this case and was rewarded with a terrific page turner. I didn’t finish it in one sitting but I came very close and if I had started it on a rainy Saturday afternoon I probably would have. The mystery itself and the creepy atmospherics add up to a great read.
Read
March 14, 2022Absolutely wonderful! It was so riveting almost from the start!
May 19, 2024
Great book!
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