Savage Lake

by Nick Medina

A mother and son travel to a dilapidated cabin in the woods that haunts more than just her memories in this new unnerving horror from the author of The Whistler and Sisters of the Lost Nation.

Nell Marin swore she would never return to the place where part of her died.

The passing of her estranged father, however, leaves her with no choice but to take her teenage son, Oscar, back to the run-down family cabin on Torchlight Lake, where horrific memories linger. The two will fix the place up, sell it, and ensure Nell never has to return to that dreaded lake again.

But when the roads—which pass through Native land—are barricaded by the local Tribe, the quick trip turns into weeks. Oscar, a horror movie buff, knows this is exactly how it starts. As the long summer days drag on, unsettling things begin to occur: screams ring out over the water and a mysterious figure watches the cabin from the trees at night. Most disturbing of all, his mother is becoming less and less herself.

As the strange events lead Oscar to uncover the secrets Nell has shielded him from, he is forced to confront a reality that is far more frightening than movie monsters. He must uncover answers to the questions that stole so much from his mother…before the horror that traumatized Nell drags him under as well.

Genres: Horror, Indigenous, Mystery, Adult, Summer, Fiction, Thriller

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Expected publication October 27, 2026

About the author

Born in Chicago, Illinois, Nick Medina is an enthusiast of local and Native lore. His debut novel, Sisters of the Lost Nation, features several supernatural myths and legends and earned a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection Award and was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Horror (2023). He became interested in the problem of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls after reading an article in the Chicago Tribune about Ashley Loring Heavyrunner, who went missing from the Blackfoot reservation in 2017. He enjoys exploring the strange and unusual, haunted cemeteries, and other spooky places, playing guitar, physical fitness, and spending time with family. He is a member of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana.

​

Reviews

[Gabby Hurley]

2.75/5

Thank you NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and the author Nick Medina for gifting me with this ARC to review!

I struggled with what I was going to rate this book, because while I did enjoy the premise I really couldn’t get into the writing.

Liked:

-creepy cabin in the woods, no cell service, and spooky things happening (sounds like a dream vacay to me!) let me tell you though if I was in Oscar’s shoes and my mom framed a dilapidated cabin as a lakefront house, I’d be so pissed. I’m surprised that they had electricity in that thing! At that point I don’t think any type of cleaning it out would make it sellable (just tear it down and sell the lot lol).


Disliked:

-the writing. At certain points it felt clunky to me and at others sporadic. I will have to say I read through the story pretty fast but the writing just didn’t impress me too much.

-maybe one too many horror tropes (ghosts, Bigfoot, serial killers murdering a group teens). I thought it was just a lot to throw in the book personally. I don’t think the Bigfoot subplot was really required to get the point of the story across.

[Mattie B.]

Nick Medina continues to solidify his position as a favorite author every time I pick up a new book from him. I was fully sucked into this from the moment I started it. I stayed up until I could no longer keep my eyes open just to devour the poetry that is this haunting tale. Medina has a beautiful way of immersing you into harrowing tales that you can’t look away from, no matter how tragic and heartbreaking they are. This is for the grief-horror lovers, hands down. It packs a punch!
If you haven’t picked up a book from this author yet, I HIGHLY recommend you do! I’ll be anxiously waiting for my preorder to come in 👀

• cabin in the woods
• grief horror
• difficult family dynamics
• monster in the lake
• ghost story (dare I say)
• haunting past
• murder mystery
• ode to slasher films
• CRYPTIDS!

CHECK THE TW! This does contain familial abuse, racism, and gore that could be a sensitive subject to some, amongst other subjects. Please take care of your mental health.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

[megs_bookrack]

New Nick Medina!!!!!

[Rachel]

Thank you Berkley and NetGalley for my eARC

Savage Lake follows Nell and her teenage son, Oscar, as they travel to the run-down family cabin from Nell’s childhood after her estranged father passes away. Their hope is to fix up the dilapidated cabin and sell it, but their plans quickly unravel.
The story also follows another timeline from Nell’s perspective from the tragic summer of 1999, the summer when everything changed.

🫈 Dual timeline
🔥 Cursed lake
🪵 Isolated cabin in the woods
🛶 Horror with grief

This was so unsettling and atmospheric. The eerie lakeside cabin setting immediately pulled me in, and I especially liked how Oscar is very aware of all the classic ‘horror movie rules’ and tries to play by them.

The dual timeline was definitely a highlight for me. The way the past and present slowly come together builds so much suspense and tension. Knowing something happened without knowing the full story creates this constant dread - it was like a weight in my stomach.

There were just enough pieces of the puzzle revealed along the way to keep me turning pages, desperately trying to connect the past with the present.

[ReadTheHotline]

Savage Lake | Nick Medina

🖤🖤🖤🖤/5

If a horror novel opens with a run-down cabin, a body of water with a bad reputation; consider me emotionally invested.

“Savage Lake” by Nick Medina follows Nell, who returns to her family's crumbling cabin on Torchlight Lake after her estranged father dies, bringing along her teenage son, Oscar, with one simple plan: fix the place up, sell it, and never look back. Unfortunately, Torchlight Lake has other ideas. When the roads are suddenly blocked, what should have been a quick trip turns into weeks of isolation. Then come the screams echoing across the water, the figure lurking in the trees, and the unsettling realization that this place isn't done with Nell’s family yet.

You know your ghoul loves a dual timeline and Medina is so good at revealing just enough of the past to keep you completely hooked. Every flashback added another juicy little piece of the puzzle, and most of the time I found myself racing through those chapters because I couldn't wait to get back to the present and see how everything was colliding.

I also adored Nell and Oscar. They felt incredibly real; messy, vulnerable, and so easy to root for. Oscar won me over with his love of horror movies and the way he kept recognizing every classic horror red flag while desperately hoping he was wrong. Meanwhile, watching Nell navigate the unbearable weight of her past was heartbreaking. I wanted to scoop both of them up, put them in my car, and drive them as far away from Torchlight Lake as humanly possible.

And speaking of Torchlight Lake; this setting was everything. I love secluded, rural horror, and this book absolutely nails that feeling of isolation. The woods feel too quiet. The lake feels like it's watching. Every chapter carries this constant sense that something is fundamentally off, even during the quieter moments. Medina doesn't rely on nonstop scares…he lets the atmosphere do the heavy lifting, and it works beautifully.

I also really appreciated the Indigenous storylines woven throughout the novel. The inclusion of Sabe didn’t just catch me off-guard (complimentary), it gave the story another layer of history and meaning that elevated the horror beyond haunted cabins and creepy woods (we do love a mysterious, hairy man who respects nature).

At its core, though, this is a story about grief, about generational trauma and about the scars parents carry, the secrets families bury, and what happens when the past refuses to stay where you left it. Some of the most devastating moments weren't supernatural at all…they were painfully human.

The only reason this wasn't a full five stars for me is that I wanted just a little more from the ending. I will say that I started to suspect the direction of the ending before we got there, so the final reveal didn't completely knock me off my feet. I was still very invested in seeing how all those little threads would come together, but I think the buildup ultimately hit me harder than the resolution.

Tropes!

🪵 Isolated cabin in the woods
🌊 Creepy/cursed lake horror
⏳ Dual timelines
🪶 Indigenous folklore
🩸 Family secrets
💔 Generational trauma
😨 Slow-burn atmospheric horror
🔍 Unraveling a decades-old mystery
📼 Horror movie references

Torchlight Lake is definitely going on my list of fictional places I would absolutely never visit...but I'd happily read about all over again.

That said, if you love horror that simmers with dread, characters worth fighting for, folklore woven into the narrative, and stories where the emotional wounds cut just as deep as the supernatural ones, Savage Lake absolutely deserves a spot on your TBR. Get your copy on October 27, 2026!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing, NetGalley and Nick Medina for the opportunity to read and revel in this book.

[storriebooked]

If Nick Medina writes it I know that I need to be prepared for emotionally-charged horror, but I wasn't ready for Savage Lake. This book is a wholely intoxicating blend of familial grief horror, the classic lakeside cabin slasher, and Indigenous lore in the form of the Sabe. Every page of this book felt heavy, the tension radiating off of the pages, the reader stuck both in the summer of 1999 alongside Nell, feeling something ominous on the horizon, but being powerless to stop it, and seeing her years later through the eyes of her teenaged son as he grapples with the past, what his mother lost, and how to make things right... if that's even possible when the lake has grown tired of staying quiet and keeping secrets.

I truly believe that the best horror makes readers think and to that end, Savage Lake is a masterclass. How do you watch your family implode while knowing you can't stop it? What happens when the guilt and grief eat you alive? How do you process going back to the place that broke you? Where do you turn when you're watching someone you love self-destruct? How do you fight off generational trauma when you haven't healed from the trauma yourself? How do so many different types of evil continue to exist? Why do people refuse to learn?

This book is for my readers who want their horror to hurt, who crave excruciating levels of tension, who love their characters to feel real and flawed and compelling, and who are beyond sick and tired of the hatred, ignorance, and injustices forced onto Indigenous people and other people of color. Sometimes the sickest horror is what people do to each other.

There is so much more I want to say, but it would give the entire book away and I urge you to go in blind. With Savage Lake set to release on 10/27/26, please make the time to preorder, add to your TBR, and ask every library you have access to use to ensure they have copies requested. And while you wait, I encourage you to look into more of Nick Medina's work. He's a truly talented author and I don't see his books shared nearly enough. At this point, his publishers may as well just charge my card in advance when a new release is announced. I'm going to buy it, I'm going to love it, and it would just save me some time.

((While the viewpoints shared are my own, I want to thank NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, & Nick Medina for this complimentary copy.))

[Jessica King]

⚠️ DONT GO INTO THE WOODS... OR THE WATER. 🌊🌲

Stars: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

I just finished an early copy of Savage Lake by Nick Medina hitting shelves October 27, 2026! 🗓️ and my skin is still crawling. If you love atmospheric horror that messes with your mind and delivers classic creature-feature chills, you need to add this to your spooky season TBR immediately.

What it’s about:
Nell Marin swore she’d never return to Torchlight Lake—the place where horrific family memories linger and a part of her died years ago. But when her estranged father passes away, she has no choice but to take her teenage son, Oscar, to fix up and sell the old family cabin.

Things take a sharp turn when the local Tribe barricades the roads passing through Native land, trapping them there. Oscar is a massive horror movie buff, so he knows exactly how this setup plays out. Soon enough, the movie tropes come alive: disembodied screams echo over the water, a mysterious entity watches them from the trees, and Nell starts acting less and less like herself... 😱🌲👣

Why you need to read it:
Medina delivers the ultimate “cabin in the woods” love letter with brilliant, dark twists. Think Evil Dead energy meets Pet Sematary grief, blended with indigenous lore and cryptid myths. Oscar’s horror-buff commentary is incredibly fun, but the book is deeply emotional too—exploring generational trauma, intense grief, and terrors of the mind.

The slow-burn dread builds beautifully, wrapping you in a suffocating summer-camp-gone-wrong atmosphere that builds to a wild, graphic climax.

Read this if you love:
🌲 Isolated cabin settings
🛶 Creepy, cursed lakes
👣 Cryptid & monster horror
🎬 Horror movie-obsessed characters
❤️ Deeply emotional, grief-stricken thrillers

A massive thank you to NetGalley for the ARC copy! Order your copy now!

[Janine]

A blend of “family horror, lakeside cabin slasher and Indigenous lore” makes for a riveting read - and a perfect addition for those making their Halloween reading list.

The lakeside cabin belonging to her dad now belongs to Nell Martin. She doesn’t want it because of its memories, so she takes her sixteen old son, Oscar, with her to help make the cabin ready to be sold. They become trapped when the road through tribal land is closed. Soon screams are heard, a mysterious figure seems to be lurking in the woods, all unnerving Nell and to Oscar’s eyes she’s changing. Oscar himself is a horror movie lover so he’s not too scared but he soon realizes what’s happening is the stuff of all those movies and vows to figure out what’s happening.

This is a dual time line story. In 1999 Nell experienced a trauma that is explained in alternating chapters with what’s happening in present time. The secret Oscar must uncover lies in the past. I liked the dual time line in this story and the foreboding sense of danger and horror in both time lines is nicely paced. Unlike Stephen Graham Jones’s indigenous horror stories (which I like for the most part), I liked Medina’s better (this is my first read by this author) because the story in more linear and clearer in the telling. Don’t forget to read the author’s Afterward; it explains some of his motivation in writing the book and its setting. I appreciated this as it helped me in appreciating this book.

Readers who enjoy indigenous horror stories will love this. It’s one of the few horror books I’ve read, especially recently, that I think captures the essence of horror.

My thanks to NetGalley and Berkley for allowing me access to this ARC.

[Cyndi Farfsing]

A compelling mystery with supernatural elements. This was my first Nick Medina novel and, honestly, I’ll be reading more from him. Oscar accompanies his mother, Nell, to his grandfather’s old lake cabin following his death so they can prepare the property for sale. Very quickly, it becomes clear this trip is going to be far more complicated than either of them expected.

Returning to the cabin is difficult for Nell. A family tragedy occurred there decades earlier, and being back on the lake forces her to confront memories of a broken family. As Oscar realizes there is far more happening than he expected, Nell withdraws into herself, and readers slowly uncover the events that unfolded on the lake all those years ago.

The story unfolds across both the past and present, with Oscar trying to piece together what’s happening while the past reveals the tragedy that forever changed Nell’s family. Normally, dual timelines can feel like a drag, but that wasn’t the case here. I was equally invested in both stories.

I appreciated that Medina created a genuinely eerie atmosphere through the isolated setting, local history, and growing sense of unease without relying on “ancient burial grounds” or similar tropes. That said, this read much more like a mystery thriller than a horror novel for me. The mystery was compelling from beginning to end, but the horror elements never quite pushed it into what I personally consider horror.

If you’re a fan of mysteries with supernatural elements, layered investigations that keep expanding, and characters who don’t constantly make you yell at the book for making terrible decisions, I’d definitely recommend picking this one up.

[Ti'Asha]

Thank you, NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group, for the advance review copy of Savage Lake by Nick Medina.

Nell and her teenage son, Oscar, return to her father's cabin on Torchlight Lake, also known as Savage Lake. Nell and her family suffered a great tragedy on the lake over 20 years ago, so after her father recently passed, she made the decision to go clean up the cabin so she could sell it and never have to return to the lake again. But now they're stuck with no way to return home, and Savage Lake's haunting past doesn't feel so distant anymore.

This book turned out to be much different than I was expecting. Going into it, I thought this was a full-on thriller, but it's more like a supernatural mystery novel.

The positives - I really like the characters in the book. Oscar, being the horror-obssessed teen who recognizes and imagines horror tropes related to the strange things he keeps witnessing. Ella, battling depression while reliving the grief of losing her brother on this very lake and now dealing with the loss of her father. Even Tess added an interesting sub-plot to the dark and dreary atmosphere.

My main negative was the pacing. The book dragged a bit for me. Thankfully, the ending paid off big time, but it was rough for me to actually finish it.

This is definitely a sloooooow burn of a mystery, with dual timelines following Oscar and Nell in the present, and revealing what happened to Nell's brother in the summer of 1999 and how everything ties together.

Overall, I ended up liking this book a lot. It covered important themes of mental health, stereotyping/racism, grief, and generational trauma.

[Birch]

Thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC of Savage Lake!

Every novel Nick Medina writes is better than his last. It's been really cool getting to see him develop as a writer from Sisters of the Lost Nation through to this, his latest book. Savage Lake is a bit different than Medina's first three novels, which all take place in and around the same Native community in Louisiana.

Savage Lake takes us to the Northwoods of the Midwest, where Oscar and his mother, Nell, are fixing to sell his recently deceased grandfather's cabin. Nell hasn't been back at the cabin in 27 years, not since the summer she lost her brother. Medina seamlessly blends present and past in one, masterfully written narrative. Each chapter, told from the differing perspectives of Oscar (present) and teenage Nell (past), maintains a distinctive voice while building context for the larger, overarching plot.

Medina manages to balance the gore of a slasher with the psychological horror of a haunting to create something really special. The cast of creepy characters keeps you guessing until the end. The story concludes cleanly and the last scene felt lovely within the context of everything Oscar and his mother had been through.

Nick Medina is continuing to establish himself as a key voice in the horror genre and I can't wait for this to come out so I can recommend it to all the horror fans in my life.

[Morgan K]

I’m going to be upfront and honest with the fact I struggled with this book for a good portion of it. There’s quite a few (sometimes ham handed) slasher tropes that feel a bit disjointed from the plot. I understand the primary character uses horror films to help them process their real life feelings, but it just didn’t land for me. However, I’ve read Nick Medina before and loved his books and that made me trust the process here and continue.

And it did pay off.

At the core, this a story about racism and who qualifies as an outsider on stolen land. I liked that the indigenous tribe was kind of in the background for this story, but still an overshadowing presence. This story is also about damaged family ties, horrific violence, unresolved trauma, and the lasting after effects.

Medina writes this time about a Latino family who has been in the states for generations at this point but is still treated like outsiders due to the color of their skin. There’s some pointed and necessary commentary on immigration and state violence. For me, there was also a theme of willful ignorance by a few of the white supporting characters.

All in all this was an emotional read for me and I did end up enjoying it.

It was fully worth the slow burn buildup. 3.5/4 stars, rounding up to 4.

Thank you Net Galley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

[Emboldened]

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the advance copy of this e-book in exchange for my honest review.

Savage Lake was not quite the book I thought I had signed up for. I expected more horror, but the story felt more like a mystery with supernatural and unsettling elements. I enjoyed the themes of family and love, but I was able to predict many of the twists before they happened, which took away some of the suspense.I also struggled to understand the main character’s daydreams about the horror movies he had watched before arriving at the cabin. I’m sure they were meant to add meaning to the story, but I found them distracting rather than enlightening. Some of the symbolism, like the book in the cellar, the fishing line in the bathroom, and the fish in the bed, also felt too obvious and ultimately took me out of the story. And why was Bigfoot needed to set the atmosphere of the woods? I appreciated the nods toward Native American culture and history in the storyline, but that aspect sometimes felt forced rather than naturally integrated into the plot. While this was not my favorite Nick Medina book, I would definitely read more from him in the future. His writing continues to hold my interest, even when a particular story does not work for me as well as I had hoped.

[Meg Pearson]

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review.

Nick Medina has quickly become one of my go-to horror authors, and Savage Lake did not disappoint. Equal parts atmospheric horror, family drama, and mystery, this is a novel that pulled me in from the very first page and never let go.

The isolated lakeside cabin setting is wonderfully eerie, creating a constant sense of unease that only grows stronger as the story unfolds. The dual timeline is handled well, gradually revealing long-buried secrets while keeping the suspense high. I also loved the relationship between Nell and Oscar—both felt authentic and emotionally grounded, making it easy to become invested in their story.

Beyond the supernatural horror, Savage Lake explores grief, generational trauma, and the lasting impact of the past in a way that gives the scares real emotional weight. The atmosphere is immersive, the pacing kept me turning pages, and there were enough twists to keep me guessing until the end.

If you enjoy horror that combines creepy folklore, haunting settings, compelling characters, and emotional depth, Savage Lake is absolutely worth picking up.

Highly recommended.

[Robin]

Real monsters aren't strange entities with claws and sharp teeth—they're people. The ones who see all the differences in the world and view it as a threat. At its roots, Savage Lake is about the effects of that monstrous violence and the ensuing generational harm haunting our main characters. The plot bounces between young Nell's perception of her brother's death during the summer of 1999, and her teen son Oscar contending with their family's ghosts during the present day while clearing out the old dilapidated family cabin.

Nick Medina excels at sewing a perpetual eeriness into the backdrop of his books, perfectly setting the tone. The combination of Indiginous Bigfoot folklore with classic slasher horror tropes (often noted by Oscar, himself) works well with the heavier, grief-focused moments. While I felt that Savage Lake had some definite creepy moments, it read as more of a spooky mystery or thriller rather than full horror. That isn't to say I disliked it, the opposite actually.

I enjoyed the Afterward; I always find myself learning something new while reading Medina's books.

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkeley Publishing Group, and the author for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

[Nikki Kossaris]

Savage Lake is one of those books where the setting becomes a character all its own. Torchlight Lake feels heavy with secrets from the very first page, and that sense of dread only grows as the story unfolds.

I loved the relationship between Nell and Oscar. Oscar’s horror movie obsession adds some much-needed humor and self-awareness, especially when he starts recognizing all the warning signs that things are about to go terribly wrong. If you’ve ever watched a horror movie and yelled at the characters, Oscar is right there with you.

The real strength of this book is how it balances supernatural horror with generational trauma, grief, and family secrets. The scares work, but the emotional weight behind them is what stuck with me. Watching Oscar uncover pieces of his mother’s past while realizing how much pain she’s been carrying was heartbreaking.

The atmosphere is relentless. The screams across the lake, the figure in the woods, the isolation, the feeling that something is fundamentally wrong, and the dueling timelines all create a sense of unease that never lets up.

[Amber Rivera]

4.5/5 stars

Wow. This is one of those books that I will be thinking about for a while. One of those books that will leave me in a reading slump for a week or two because I need to mentally unpack it before I can begin another story.

First, this was a beautifully written story that had multiple POVs. 1999 and present with both Oscar and his mom Nell. I found that I needed to know what was happening in both timelines. They both had me gripped! Benny’s storyline truly broke my heart, and though I knew where it was heading, the reveal was still a gut punch. I was not even close to the guessing of the “who” so I enjoyed that twist. The paranormal aspects of the story were harrowing and impactful.

So why the 4.5 stars instead of 5 you may ask? The story took a bit to get going. I’d say, the first 30-40% was very slow in the buildup for my tastes. However, the story to follow quickly made up for it.

It’s not often a book is creepy, heart wrenching, and impactful like this one. I’d highly recommend this book to almost anyone.

[Betsy]

I thought I was ready for Savage Lake. Nick Medina said, ‘Cute."

Savage Lake is this incredibly tense blend of familial grief, lakeside cabin horror, the Sabe, and Indigenous lore..... and somehow the scariest part is that the horror isn't always supernatural.

This book is HEAVY.

You’re watching a family unravel, carrying grief, guilt, trauma, and secrets while that lake just sits there… quietly keeping score.

And that’s what I loved most. This horror actually makes you think.

Generational trauma. The ways people hurt each other. What happens when you can’t save someone you love. And how hard it is to break cycles you never asked to inherit.

There’s SO much more I want to say, but trust me: go in blind.

If you want horror that doesn’t just scare you but gets under your skin emotionally.... READ THIS.

Thanks to Berkeley Publishing for inviting me to read this galley through netgalley. All thoughts are my own.

Confession: Don't read anything and JUST GO IN BLIND!

[Paige]

I don't know what I was expecting, but it wasn't a cabin-in-the-woods part-time slasher, part-time paranormal dual timeline horror. Phew.

When Oscar goes to his recently deceased grandfather's cabin with his mother Nell, he's expecting plenty of things. No service, a few days of labor to clean up the place, and some time with his mother. What he wasn't prepared for was the trauma associated with the house, which seems to linger in unusual ways.

Occasionally flashing back to Nell's point-of-view in 1999, we get two stories: the summer leading up to the death of her brother, and Oscar's unraveling of the mystery a couple decades later. This mashes up Bigfoot, ghosts, and slashers with familial conflict, generational trauma, and a few bizarre characters.

This was a great Indigenous horror. I just wish it did a littleee bit less, so it could focus on doing just a few things really well. 3.5 rounded up - and thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an arc!

[AMY DURAN]

Huge thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review Savage Lake by Nick Medina.

After the death of her father, Nell takes her son, Oscar to their family's cabin by the lake in order to clean and prep the house for sale. Soon they find themselves stranded at the lake when the only roads out of town are closed off, As the days pass, Nell is weighed down with depression and grief leaving Oscar alone to find out that sometimes houses can be haunted by memories and secrets, not just ghosts.

Savage Lake is a decent read, the writing is engaging, but I grew tired of the constant horror movie references and found myself skipping past those parts. Character development was ok, Nick Medina did a great job describing depression, grief and family dynamics but there were some scenes that were dragged out to the point where it felt performative.

Still a solid entertaining read, 4 out of 5 stars.

[Steve Edholm]

This was my first book from Nick Medina, I have a couple others of his, but still on my TBR list. That being said, this was disappointing to me. Let's go over the good and the rough.

Good: I did like the flow of the book, the back and forth timelines worked out. I really liked the setup of everything and I thought the book really flowed more as it went along. I struggled early on to make progress, but was pushing out more of the book each day. The idea of generational trauma in families was great.

Rough: The end was just a dud. I mean I don't want to spoil anything, but the ending was just just one of the worst I have read in a long time. There are times which you aren't sure if things are real or in the main characters mind. So many forced references to horror movies (essentially like "Oh this is like the set up to Cabin In The Woods!"). Oof

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for the advanced copy

[Joyfully Booked]

The plot was great! It kept my attention from start to finish. Medina’s writing is very descriptive, which is what I love.

I loved how the story jumped from past to present. It gave us insight into the trauma Nell was handed.

Oscar being a horror buff and the way he made up his own horror movie version of events was a great touch. I’m still left with questions about the stories he made up. I noticed some similarities between his versions and the actual events in the story, which made me wonder if they were meant to foreshadow or mirror what was really going on.

I do think there was a lot going on. There were quite a few different elements woven into the story, and at times I found myself a little confused about how everything connected. But honestly, I don’t think it took away from the story or my enjoyment of it.

Thank you Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for providing an ARC.

[Nocturne Pages]

Savage Lake by Nick Medina is a Horror novel set for release on October 27th, 2026. Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this early so I can live out my Summer/spooky camping dreams without having to leave the house. While this novel embodies the traditional horror movie atmosphere, it twists it to mirror and combat societal standards instead; challenges the normal of the sub-genre. The writing style Nick Medina uses accentuates the action provided even in the most mundane of settings, such as the outdoors. The honoring of the author's indigenous roots by way of content and dedication was memorable and will be for a long time to come. The horrors both by humanity and the unknown was shocking and had me sitting in silence occasionally to sit with my thoughts. I do wish the film references were toned down a bit though; I wanted the book to stand up on its own. 4 ⭐ 

[♡°°Mercedes°°♡]

3.5/5 Stars ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of Nick Medina's upcoming release, Savage Lake.

I think there was a lot going on in this book, and it made it a bit difficult to truly connect and fully understand what was going on at times.

Liked:
- eerie and creepy cabin in the woods with no cell service
- dual timelines (going between present day and past)
- suspense of what happened
- emotional

Disliked:
- the narration and writing. I found myself confused a few times on what was going on because it did not flow in a clear and concise way. For example, Oscar coming up with his own horror story about the teens across the lake was weird.
- too many tropes and I think the biggest "Huh? What?" was the Bigfoot aspect. I understand Bigfoot playing a role with the Indigenous tribes of the area, but it did not truly add to the overall story.

[Melissa]

Thank you to Berkley Publishing & NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read the ARC of Savage Lake.

This was my first book by Nick Medina and it won't be my last. I love his writing style and storytelling.

I absolutely loved this book. I'm a sucker for a good supernatural element in my horror and this one did the trick. I also loved the flashback chapters as well as the main characters horror movie scenes.

The story was also rife with grief, generational trauma, & indigenous lore. There was also deep love and familial bonds that really helped to tie both timelines together.

There were some scenes in the book that were utterly heartbreaking. There was a looming sense of loneliness on almost every page and the isolation of the setting really connects to that.

I loved this book!

[Lindsay]

This was my first go at a Nick Medina book, and I was not disappointed. The story unfolded with so many twists and turns, it was a little overwhelming at first. We have Native land, Bigfoot, serial killers, a group of teens, a mother and son … but when the book ended I really liked how it all tied together. We follow Nell in two timelines - as a teen and then as an adult. The familial trauma was so heavy, it made my heart break. There were some mild horror elements , but it felt more like a thriller/mystery to me. The connection Oscar has with horror movies and how that works itself into the book was unique and fun. And thanks to Oscar, we get some real answers as to what happened to his Uncle Benny that fateful summer in 1999. Thank you to Nick Medina and Netgalley for the ARC, I am happily leaving this review voluntarily.

[Alanna Metz]

A slow burn horror, Oscar and his mother are faced with the burdens of her past and what it means for them in the present day. Nell has never quite been able to put behind her what happened at the lake when she was her son's age. She never wanted to go back to the family cabin on the lake, but when her estranged father dies, she and Oscar go to prepare it to sell. While there, the roads are barricaded, trapping them and forcing them to face the past. Oscar is determined to get to the bottom of his mother's secrets, even if its dangerous. A compelling book, it slips back and forth in time between Oscar's childhood and Nell's. All is eventually revealed at the end of a dread filled journey, full of suspense. A great read to curl up with this fall.

I was given an advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Keisha Frantom]

Oscar and his mother travel to an old cabin that belonged to her father to get it ready to sell after he passes away. The trip is supposed to only be a weekend but when the local Native American tribe disagrees with the town about access rights, they are barricaded in the town and unable to leave. Memories of coming to the cabin as a teenager haunt Oscar's mother and she becomes more withdrawn with each day. In flashbacks, her last summer spent there is retold. Oscar is a horror movie fan and becomes interested in the teens who are staying across the lake. Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Sami Davidson]

Oh. My. Gosh.
Did this one take me on a wild ride and I'm so glad it did.
Benny, Tess, and Oscar are my favorites.
Savage Lake fills you with dread, thrill, and fear throughout the whole story. As I read this I kept thinking, "I know what happens but somehow, maybe it won't happen after all." And then it happens and you fall into a pit of utter despair. That's how hard this story's grip was on me.

I hope Medina isn't done with this world because I'd love to be able to dig deeper into these characters and into Savage Lake!

[Kayla Shea]

Savage Lake is a mix of horror movie plots and tall tales. Oscar has these moments where he works out a horror movie with the people around him. He thinks that he has made one of the horror movie mistakes and unleashed something. What Oscar doesn't know is that he is the key to fixing whatever is haunting his grandpa's cabin, maybe even his mother.
I liked this book but didn't love it. It was pretty graphic in parts and somethings did give you the thrill feeling. I think I was just not interested in everything going on. The location and all that was fine. I can't put my finger on what exactly didn't make me want to give it 5 stars.