Lake Season
by Denise Hunter 

There is so much to like about Lake Season by Denise Hunter. First, it is a sweet, tender romance between Molly Bennet and Adam Bradford. Molly helps run the Bluebell Inn with her brother and sister, and Adam is a bestselling author known as Nathaniel Quinn. Then there is another romance between two lovers from years past that Molly and Adam learn about in a letter and resolve to work together to right a tragedy that changed their lives. This part of the story is a little sad, so be prepared, but it ends well despite the sadness.

Molly is sweet, shy, and has a heart of gold. Adam is talented, reclusive, and suffering from a big case of low self-esteem despite his stellar writing career. Seeing these characters grow, heal, and fall in love is quite beautiful.

Of course, early on, you know Adam’s secret identity will present a problem, but his reasons for using a pen name are very understandable. I could totally identify with Adam feeling less than even though he was very talented. In his case it was his father, but if you’ve been made to feel like you didn’t measure up by anyone, you’ll be very empathetic towards Adam.

Molly has experienced a broken heart and feels stupid for not recognizing the duplicity of her former boyfriend. Again, this is something I could identify with because I had a boyfriend once who seemed so perfect and then suddenly all the lies came crashing in and I just felt like an idiot for not seeing what a liar he was.

Both Molly and Adam have strong faith, which is presented very realistically and without becoming preachy. I always like the faith element in stories and Hunter is particularly good at weaving it into the story without shoving it down your throat. Her characters are believers who aren’t perfect – just like me.

This is the first installment in a series, which will be focusing on the other Bennet family members. And luckily I like both Levi and Grace, so I’m looking forward to spending more time with the Bennet’s.

This is a five star romance as far as I’m concerned, and one you shouldn’t miss.