17th August, 2025 in Recommended Reads

Spirit Lake by Ben Dolan

“I loved her. I knew it then, and I think she knew she loved me then, and we were very, very afraid of what that meant, so we said nothing, and she cried out of fear because two people who love each other can do nothing but draw pain towards themselves like magnets. To fall in love with another person is a sort of suicide.” The novel, Spirit Lake, by Ben Dolan, compels us to relive a torrent of memories through JP Stone as he confronts a past based on the entreaties of a young woman seeking revelations that Stone is hard-pressed and fearful in baring. Through the guidance of Dolan’s witty use of his protagonist’s perspective, Spirit Lake treads into the pains of memories that will never perish and heartache that can shatter even the most resilient.