Under the Lake

By: Stuart Woods

Narrated by: Tom Stechschulte

Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's Summary

Stuart Woods, the best-selling author of L.A. Times and Heat, has created a haunting thriller full of ghostly images, murder and old family secrets. Part detective story, part ghost story, part Southern gothic - this absorbing novel will fascinate listeners as a small town’s present, past and future converge.

©1987 Stuart Woods (P)1996 Recorded Books, LLC

Great entertainment!

Where to start... I love Woods' way of placing the reader into the story with great characters and methodical suspense building. The narrator, one of my favorites, is equally adept at drawing the listener in to the strange world of Georgia mountains. (Tom Stechschulte narrated No Country For Old Men, Cormac McCarthy's masterpiece, so well i can't imagine anyone alive or dead could match his performance.)

The mystery which unravels in the end is complicated and fascinating. Where it fell short for me was in the supernatural elements. It's like he had a great story, but decided he needed ghosts and other paranormal phenomena to make the pieces fit. Actually I found this element completely unnecessary and even distracting from a great story.

Nevertheless this is a wonderfully entertaining book by one of the better novelists of our day. An easy 4 stars!

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

A very good mysterious story

Haven't read Stuart Woods, I didn't know what to expect. What I got, was a very intriguing story of a guy somewhat in a crossroads of his life, finding whole new beginnings. This is a complex mystery with all sorts of threads being intermingled throughout, coming together with a rather unusual ending.
Our burnt out reporter/author finds himself in a lake community that holds all kinds of secrets with all kinds of mysterious characters, including a ghost. It's one of those books that keeps you listening with never a boring moment.
The narrator is very good at capturing the characters personalities.

5 of 5 people found this review helpful

You like the mystical? Maybe this is for you.

I've enjoyed Stuart Woods. But mystical stuff doesn't crank my handle. I bought this on the strength of my past Wood experiences. Okay… my fault, I'll read the reviews before getting another of his novels. If you like ghostly explanations for mysteries… You could like this one fine. Me? Not so much. Finished it though. So, it was a three star experience.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Under the Lake

Any additional comments?

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!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Banal, boring and weird.

What was most disappointing about Stuart Woods’s story?

It was a strange mixture of a crime story with paranormal. I did not like the paranormal part at all. The main push about bad rich guys is too banal to be interesting.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Narrator did a good job, no problems there.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Enjoyable listen

Any additional comments?

This is a very nice book for a listen on a long trip. Nice story line, interesting characters and enough going on that you don't get bored. And it has an interesting ending. I'm not a huge fan of fake southern accents but this narrator did not grate on my nerves much at all.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

murder plus ghost story

If you could sum up Under the Lake in three words, what would they be?

mystery plus plus

What was one of the most memorable moments of Under the Lake?

when the lake disappears showing what is underneath

Which scene was your favorite?

looking down into the valley

If you could rename Under the Lake, what would you call it?

It was never meant to happen......

Any additional comments?

loved it!

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

First 'lad lit' I've ever experienced.

I had to search on the Internet for the male equivalent of 'chick lit'. The definition should have had this book as an example.
I've not even finished the book, but I felt that I really had to write this review. (I will finish it if only because other reviewers have said there's something interesting at the end).
The main character falls in and out of relationships and beds like changing books at a library. The spooky bit's confusing and slotted into descriptions of marathon sex sessions. The cliffhangers are... there. Often.
Under the Lake? I'm merely underwhelmed.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

An oldie but a goodie

Would you consider the audio edition of Under the Lake to be better than the print version?

Having never read the print version this is only a guess but I think I would prefer the audiobook.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Under the Lake?

The unraveling of the layers of lies that premeate the lives of the characters.

Have you listened to any of Tom Stechschulte’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No I have not

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It neither made me laugh or cry but kept me entertained.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

One of his best

I am a Stuart Woods fan and have read most of his books this has go to be one if not the best

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Don't go in the water!

I admit I got this as I really like the narrator Tom Stechschulte, had it not been for him, I would probably have given it a miss.

A small town is full of dark secrets led by the founder Mr Sutherland. When a journalist turns up everyone is afraid he'll unearth their secrets.

1 of 2 people found this review helpful

Very good listen

I loved it. Good story to get lost in and a very good narrator whose different voices and southern accent just seem to fit the story perfectly. Too much detail of the sexual scenes, way too much as it didn't really add to the story. Could be off putting for some. Aside from that, the ghost story was an adult one and we are so in short supply of those these days. Would highly recommend if this genure interests you.