Why we’re excited
Jane Weber is eighty-four and unwell at her lakeside cottage when her granddaughters find human remains near the water. The discovery reopens an old case, and a local police officer starts asking about a summer in 1955 that Jane has spent seventy years not talking about, along with a ghost story the town never let go.
Nita Prose is best known for The Maid and its sequels about Molly Gray. This is a stand-alone and looks darker and more nostalgic than those. Readers who like elderly narrators with long memories, cold cases and a strong sense of place will want to watch for it.
On our most-anticipated list since 21 October 2026. See all the most anticipated books →
What to know about Emerald Lake
We have reviewed 5 of Nita Prose’s books, with an average score of 4.0 out of 5. The one we rated highest is The Maid’s Secret (4.5★).
It sits at No. 19 on our March 2027 most-anticipated list, which ranks the month's books by how many readers have saved them.
From the publisher
An idyllic lakeside cottage hides long-buried secrets in this haunting mystery from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid.
For most of her life, Jane Weber has kept the secrets of one devastating summer submerged in the brooding waters of Emerald Lake. Now, at eighty-four and in failing health, all Jane wants is to live out her days in peace at her lakeside cottage—the place where she first fell in love and where she suffered a loss so profound she wishes she could forget it.
But when her young granddaughters stumble upon human remains by the lake, the discovery sends shock waves through Jane’s entire community, reopening a mystery everyone thought had been laid to rest long ago. Police officer Clair Mundy begins digging into the area’s dark history, unearthing lies, scandals, and the strange legend of a woman who the locals insist has been haunting Emerald Lake for generations.
Jane knows far more than she’s willing to say—including what happened in the summer of 1955 when first she met that mysterious boy who existed in the shadows between the water and the woods. As the investigation closes in, Jane must decide whether to protect the secrets that have defined her life or tell the truth before it's too late.
Atmospheric, emotionally charged, and utterly immersive, Emerald Lake is a sweeping story of love and loss, memory and wilderness, and the dangerous myths we cling to in order to survive.
Description supplied by the publisher.
We haven’t read Emerald Lake yet. When our review goes up, it will replace this page.
