Cradle Lake

By: Ronald Malfi

Narrated by: David Stifel

When Alan Hammerstun inherits a quaint ranch house in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains, he and his wife Heather seize the opportunity to leave New York and the haunting aftermath of two miscarriages. Eager to start over in the rural North Carolina town, they hope this new beginning will be the antidote to Heather's severe depression. For a time everything seems perfect. Too perfect, in fact. The neighbors are all young, handsome, healthy, and friendly. While surveying his new property, Alan finds a dirt path through the forest designated by stone markers carved with strange symbols, which culminates in a grassy clearing. One night Alan dreams the path ends at the foot of a lake and dives in; when he awakes gritty with lake grime and improved health and strength, he wonders if it could cure Heather's depression and infertility as well. When the townspeople warn Alan of the lake's powers, he must decide if the community's secret is a nightmare or a miracle.

©2013 Ronald Malfi (P)2017 Journalstone Publishing

Kept my attention

From the very first my attention was grabbed and held. All characters were interesting. Would recommend to other s. Will follow this author.

The descriptions of places and characters.

The reader's voice used for females and children were not of my liking.
The voice used for a male character being emotional was strange and too high or too low.

A dash of Pet Sematery.....

I've read quite a bit of Mr Malfi's work, more than I had realized, while listening to Cradled Lake. The man doesn't disappoint when it comes to dark storytelling and rich atmosphere. Like his other books, this story carries both in spades. A young couple seeking solace in the country from the traumas they faced in the city, Alan and Heather seek a new beginning, a fresh start. Unfortunately the nearby Lake provides both...with a price. I would've given this book four stars, but, thirty chapters or so into the story the "dream sequences" began to slow the stories momentum significantly, causing me to start the "it's only this many chapters till the end" argument in my head. Once that started it fell to three stars for me. A good story with equal measures suspense and atmosphere, I recommend Cradle Lake if you want a good horror story with fleshed out characters that you want to see succeed....maybe.

Riveting story line

I chose this book simply because David Stifel was narrating it, and I was not disappointed. The narration was superbly done as always. The plot definitely held my interest & kept me listening to every detail until the very end. My only complaint is that there isn’t another one to follow!

Good story, bad choice in narrator.

Recently discovered this author and have not been disappointed yet! I feel the only thing holding this back is the narrator. The narrator has a great voice, but it does not fit this story at all. The discrepancy in the narrator and the main character’s age is too jarring.