A Lake With No Bottom by H. D. Hunter

Blurb:

When Sidney Cromwell moves to rural Forsyth County, Georgia from the big city of Atlanta, all he wants is to fit in at his new high school. But when Sidney nearly drowns in Lake Lanier, an allegedly haunted lake that is the site of numerous inexplicable freak accidents and deaths, he becomes a social pariah as he starts to suffer terrifying visions from the past and hauntings by apparitions calling him to Lanier.

Sidney returns to the lake for answers, and he finds in its murky depths the spirits of former residents from Oscarville, the Black town that lies beneath the man-made lake. They enlist Sidney to remind Forsyth of its devastating history and push its citizens to make amends so that the souls in Oscarville can finally rest.

But Sidney soon learns that people will go to great lengths to avoid facing truths they’d rather not hear. The people of Forsyth County refuse to acknowledge the past, and as Oscarville’s populace starts to lose their patience, their rage and thirst for vengeance rise like a tidal wave.

Poignant, timely, and utterly terrifying, this gripping supernatural thriller is perfect for fans of Internment, She Is a Haunting, and You’re Not Supposed to Die Tonight.

Review:

When Sidney Cromwell moves from his home city to a rural town amid Forsyth County, traveling across Georgia from the massive cityscape of Atlanta, he simply wants to belong. But all of his plans for “fitting in” go out the window when he almost drowns in the infamous Lake Lanier, a body of water that is rumored to be haunted and the target site of many freak accidents and deaths. Becoming a pariah in the social spheres he wanted desperately to join, he suffers from terrifying visions of the past and the presence of ghosts demanding he return to Lake Lanier.

With his head full of hauntings, he has no choice but to return to Lake Lanier for answers. Within it, he discovers the dead. Dozens of spirits of former residents from Oscarville, a Black town that once existed and is now far beneath the man-made lake. Enliting Sidney to bring Forsyth and its people to justice, exposing the dark history of how Black people were treated in its murderous past, he’s tasked with pushing its citizens to make amends and putting the souls of Lake Lanier to rest.

Soon, however, Sidney realizes that his mission is not one that will be devoid of peril. The townsfolk will do anything to avoid the truths they’ve been burying for years—refusing to acknowledge the terrible past they lived. As the dead begin to lose their patience, rage and thirst for vengeance driving them to commit unspeakable acts, Sidney will have to figure out how to bring Forsyth to justice…or suffer far worse than visions and hauntings of the dead.

I saw in the details of this novel that it was compared to She Is A Haunting and You’re Not Supposed To Die Tonight, two legendary stories in the horror sphere. And I cannot help like those titles fit this novel perfectly. Delightfully dark and impressively morbid, A Lake With No Bottom is the epitome of what an excellent, well-written, and well-thought-out horror narrative is like. I found myself engaged throughout my entire read and devastated when it came to an end.

I’ve become quite involved in reading many, many horror stories, and it’s always a treat when I pick up something particularly unique and fall in love with it. A Lake With No Bottom is truly that novel for me. It has a compelling premise, bone-deep characters, and a historical commentary that runs far deeper than the words that flow from its pages.

With strong prose, intricate worldbuilding, and formidable characterization, H. D. Hunter has written a story about the cost of racism as well as the long-lasting effects that it can have. Not just on modern society, but on those connected to the people who suffered under the hands of those who hurt them in the past. History is not easily erased from those determined to remember it, and this story displays that concept beautifully.

With a main character longing to belong, it couldn’t be anything but masterful that the same character who wants to fit in is the vessel in which the people beneath Lake Lanier try to bring their oppressors to justice. Those who “don’t fit in” tend to migrate together, and when they do, they can achieve great things—which for me, was my personal takeaway from this story as a secondary theme.

Overall, A Lake With No Bottom was gritty and visceral and tumultuous, and I couldn’t have enjoyed it more than I did. I cannot wait to see what H. D. Hunter writes next! This story is deeply poignant and utterly unforgettable.