Black Lake: A Novel
In Lane’s elegant first novel, the Campbell family relinquishes Dulough, their family estate, to the Irish government. John; his wife, Marianne; and children Philip and Kate must leave their beloved castle and move into a cottage on the grounds. As the government opens their home to the public for regular tours, the Campbells face a far more excruciating loss. Philip, heading for the island where he’s building a secret hut, drowns in the sea. John decides to send Kate away to boarding school, but Marianne swiftly removes her and brings her back to the estate, illegally sequestered in a never-used ballroom on the castle’s third floor. Lane’s earthy prose is well suited for such an isolated setting, and she beautifully portrays the landscape of Donegal. The characters’ only weakness might be their near-flawlessness; the Campbells are kind, loving people, who inhabit their world of privilege without a hint of entitlement. --Jackie Thomas-Kennedy