Lady in the Lake

A Novel

By: Laura Lippman

Narrated by: Susan Bennett

2020 Audie Awards® Finalist - Thriller/Suspense

The revered New York Times best-selling author returns with a novel set in 1960s Baltimore that combines modern psychological insights with elements of classic noir, about a middle-aged housewife turned aspiring reporter who pursues the murder of a forgotten young woman.

In 1966, Baltimore is a city of secrets that everyone seems to know - everyone, that is, except Madeline “Maddie” Schwartz. Last year, she was a happy, even pampered housewife. This year, she’s bolted from her marriage of almost 20 years, determined to make good on her youthful ambitions to live a passionate, meaningful life.

Maddie wants to matter, to leave her mark on a swiftly changing world. Drawing on her own secrets, she helps Baltimore police find a murdered girl - assistance that leads to a job at the city’s afternoon newspaper, the Star. Working at the newspaper offers Maddie the opportunity to make her name, and she has found just the story to do it: a missing woman whose body was discovered in the fountain of a city park lake.

Cleo Sherwood was a young African-American woman who liked to have a good time. No one seems to know or care why she was killed except Maddie - and the dead woman herself. Maddie’s going to find the truth about Cleo’s life and death. Cleo’s ghost, privy to Maddie’s poking and prying, wants to be left alone.

Maddie’s investigation brings her into contact with people who used to be on the periphery of her life - a jewelry store clerk, a waitress, a rising star on the Baltimore Orioles, a patrol cop, a hardened female reporter, a lonely man in a movie theater. But for all her ambition and drive, Maddie often fails to see the people right in front of her. Her inability to look beyond her own needs will lead to tragedy and turmoil for all sorts of people - including the man who shares her bed, a black police officer who cares for Maddie more than she knows.

©2019 Laura Lippman (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

Difficult to distinguish characters

From the performance, it was often difficult to distinguish between the different characters, to tell who was talking. This made the story hard to follow early on though it be a e clearer in the second half.

Loved it!

Susan Bennett's performance is top notch and the story line is intriguing & lightly political yet entertaining.

History, feminism, race relations, and newspapers!

Wonderful narration. Kept me enthralled. Set in Interesting historical period -- Baltimore in mid 60s.

Everything is not as it seems

Laura Lippman is one of my favorite authors. As in life, her details create a fully realized background for her plots. This takes us back to 1969, a period I lived in too. I remember the de facto racism. I remember the inability of women to be given the same opportunities as men. It is in this backdrop that Maddie creates her new life as an investigative reporter, even if she is not defined by that job title. This personal interest story has plenty of mystery , an a couple of great twists.

well written. well performed

I throughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it, especially to other Lippman fans. I especially enjoyed Baltimore being the backdrop again.

The characters kept me interested

The story wraps up too neatly at the end, but the characters were well described, and I listened every opportunity I had. Overall enjoyed it. Would recommend.

Brilliant, engaging, suspenseful

It was a bit jarring at first- the back and forth of perspective but then it all fell into place. So intriguing. Loved it. Would recommend.

Kept me listening, start to finish.

This novel falls into several categories. It's a newspaper story as well as a murder mystery involving well-drawn characters. Set in Baltimore, it also addresses the issues of romantic love, finding fulfillment outside of homemaking for a woman at a time when many careers were closed to females, and race relations.

Great read!

I read the Audible reviews for this book. It gets a lot of bad ones . I visited Baltimore last summer with my family and I loved it. Then POTUS said all that stuff about Baltimore. I wanted to support an author from that city, so I did . I loved the narration, and the story. It had depth and kept me listening. I am excited to check out more books by this author !

Lady lives!

Good read. Lippmann characters seem to move between her books . Still enjoyed her writing immensely