Meet Me at the Lake Summary, Characters and Themes
Meet Me At The Lake by Carley Fortune is a contemporary romance that explores love, grief, and finding one’s place in life after loss.
The novel follows Fern Brookbanks, who returns to her family’s lakeside resort after her mother’s death, grappling with the responsibility she never wanted. The past and present collide when Will Baxter, a man she spent a single transformative day with ten years ago, unexpectedly reappears, forcing Fern to confront old promises, her desires, and the life she truly wants. The story examines how plans change over time, how family shapes identity, and the courage it takes to choose love and oneself.
Summary
Fern Brookbanks returns to her family’s lakeside resort after her mother, Maggie, dies unexpectedly. Though she never planned to run the resort, Fern feels the weight of grief and responsibility as she sorts out her mother’s estate and daily operations. The resort is facing financial difficulties, and Fern is torn between returning to her coffee shop job in Toronto or staying to preserve her mother’s legacy.
During her first days back, Fern is shocked when Will Baxter checks into the resort. Ten years earlier, they had spent a single day together in Toronto before making a promise to meet at the resort a year later, a promise Will never kept.
Their day together had been meaningful to Fern, as she was uncertain about her future and longing for freedom from expectations to run the resort. Will had encouraged Fern to follow her own desires, and they created a one-year plan that would allow them to live for themselves before committing to long-term plans.
In the present, Will has returned to the resort as a business consultant, unaware that Maggie has died. Fern learns he had made an agreement with Maggie to help the struggling business, which brings up old feelings of abandonment for Fern, who is still hurt by his failure to show up years ago.
Despite her initial anger, Fern allows Will to assist with the resort’s planning while she considers whether to sell it or take over.
As they work together, Fern and Will’s connection resurfaces. They spend time discussing the resort’s future, hiking around the lake, and sharing small moments that rekindle the intimacy they once shared.
Fern learns about Will’s life since their day together, including his commitment to raising his niece, Sofia, after his sister needed help, which led him to sacrifice his artistic passions. Will confesses his regrets about abandoning his dreams, and Fern realizes she too has been avoiding her desires by following the safe, expected path.
Fern finds herself at a crossroads: she wants to open her own coffee shop in Toronto, a dream that feels within reach, but also finds herself falling in love with the resort and the life it represents. She decides to work on two plans—one where she sells the resort and another where she keeps it—so she can choose from a place of clarity. Fern reads Maggie’s diaries, which reveal her mother’s excitement about becoming a mother, her relationship with Peter (Fern’s father figure), and her dreams for the resort. These entries help Fern understand her mother’s choices, struggles, and hopes for Fern’s future.
Meanwhile, Fern and Will share a deepening romance, reconnecting physically and emotionally, yet Will remains guarded about his responsibilities back in Toronto and his fear of pulling Fern into his complicated life. Fern’s fear of being an escape for Will rather than his reality is compounded when Will suddenly leaves the resort without a word, leaving Fern feeling abandoned again.
Fern learns from Will’s sister, Annabel, that Sofia had fallen ill and Will rushed to be with her, explaining his abrupt departure. Annabel encourages Fern to reach out to Will, sharing how much happiness Fern brought into his life after years of sacrifice and responsibility.
Gathering her courage, Fern visits Will in Toronto to confront him about his disappearance and to express her love for him.
Will admits he has always loved Fern but struggled with fear and self-doubt, and that he had been at the dock the day they were supposed to meet but felt unworthy due to failing his one-year plan. They share a vulnerable conversation where they acknowledge their love, fears, and the reality that their dreams can change as they grow.
They begin to build a life together, balancing their love with their responsibilities. Fern keeps the resort, renaming its restaurant “Maggie’s” to honor her mother while continuing to operate it alongside Peter and Jamie. Will begins spending weekends with Fern at the lake, maintaining his family responsibilities while building a life with Fern. Their relationship evolves into a stable partnership rooted in honesty and love, rather than being an escape from reality.
The story closes with Fern and Will getting engaged on the lake, surrounded by family and friends, ready to continue building their future.
The epilogue reveals Fern writing in a diary addressed to her unborn daughter, continuing the legacy of love, family, and hope that she once shared with her mother. She dreams of sharing mornings on the dock with her daughter, carrying forward the traditions of love and connection that shaped her.
Characters
Fern Brookbanks
Fern is a complex, restless protagonist caught between her obligations and her desires. She grew up at the lakeside resort her mother ran, feeling both trapped and defined by it.
She spent years trying to distance herself from its expectations by building a life in Toronto. Her longing for anonymity in the city highlights her discomfort with the labels and judgments people at home associate with her.
This discomfort stems from her tumultuous teenage years filled with rebellion and grief after discovering the truth about her father. Fern’s internal conflict deepens after her mother’s death, forcing her to confront her own identity and what she truly wants.
She dreams of the resort, her own coffee shop, and a fulfilling relationship. Her connection with Will Baxter reopens old wounds while offering a mirror to her vulnerability and potential for love.
It tests her willingness to trust and embrace change. Throughout the story, Fern transforms from a woman hiding from herself and her desires to someone willing to embrace the complexity of her love for the lake, her mother’s legacy, and her own future.
Will Baxter
Will is a tender, quiet yet internally conflicted artist-turned-business consultant who carries the weight of past failures and family responsibilities. His early life is marked by parental abandonment and financial struggles.
This leads to his deep fear of becoming like his mother, who left him and his sister, Annabel. Will’s love for art and his commitment to caring for his niece Sofia reveal his nurturing side, but these responsibilities force him to sacrifice his desires.
His abandonment of Fern years ago when he felt unworthy and lost continues to haunt him. Will’s reappearance at the resort stirs up the unresolved past, forcing him to reckon with his choices and his feelings for Fern.
Despite his stoic exterior, Will craves love and stability but struggles with mental health and the fear of being an obstacle in Fern’s life. Through reconnecting with Fern in Meet Me At The Lake, Will gradually rediscovers his artistic purpose and his right to happiness.
Eventually, he learns that he can be both a caregiver and someone who chooses himself and love.
Maggie Brookbanks
Maggie is a presence that hovers over the narrative, shaping Fern’s internal world long after her death. As a single mother and the resort’s matriarch, Maggie is hardworking, self-sacrificing, and deeply committed to the life she built.
This commitment comes at the cost of moments of closeness with Fern during her teenage years. Her diaries reveal a woman who once held dreams of travel and freedom but chose the resort and motherhood.
She learned to find joy and purpose in what she created. Maggie’s complicated relationship with Peter and her feelings of inadequacy as a mother mirror Fern’s own fears of failure.
Through reading Maggie’s diaries in Meet Me At The Lake, Fern learns of her mother’s strength and youthful desires. She finds a deeper connection and understanding of her mother as a woman who was trying her best while allowing herself to love imperfectly.
Jamie
Jamie is Fern’s childhood sweetheart and the dependable general manager of the resort. He embodies stability and commitment to the place Fern is unsure about.
His love for the resort is clear, and his relationship with Fern is marked by familiarity and comfort rather than passion. This shows that while he cares deeply for her, their paths have diverged.
Jamie’s presence in Meet Me At The Lake serves as a reminder of the life Fern could choose: one of continuity and stability. This contrasts with the unpredictable, emotionally intense connection she has with Will.
Jamie’s quiet support during Fern’s period of indecision and his willingness to work with her reflect his maturity. He understands that love sometimes means stepping back while still being present.
Peter
Peter, Maggie’s best friend and the resort’s pastry chef, is a steadfast figure of quiet love and loyalty. He acts as a surrogate father to Fern, filling emotional gaps while respecting the boundaries set by Maggie’s choices.
Peter’s longstanding love for Maggie demonstrates a love that endures despite never being fully realized in traditional terms. His interactions with Fern are tender, rooted in care and shared grief.
His return to playing music in the kitchen signifies healing and acceptance of Maggie’s absence. It also shows the life he continues to build with those she loved.
Annabel
Annabel, Will’s sister, is depicted as a resilient young woman who has faced the fallout of their mother’s abandonment alongside Will. Her closeness with Will, particularly after becoming a mother to Sofia, shows her dependency on him.
It also illustrates Will’s capacity for care and family commitment. Annabel’s decision to reach out to Fern toward the end of the novel demonstrates her understanding of Will’s struggles.
She desires to help him find happiness, bridging the gap between Fern and Will when he cannot do it himself.
Sofia
Sofia, Annabel’s daughter, is not an active character in dialogue but represents the source of Will’s internal conflict. She forces him to balance responsibility and his desire for personal fulfillment.
Caring for Sofia has given Will purpose while also becoming a source of fear, worrying that his presence may limit Fern’s future.
Themes
Grief, Legacy, and Inheritance
In Meet Me At The Lake, grief and legacy flow through Fern’s experiences as she returns to her childhood resort after her mother’s death. The resort is not simply a property but a representation of her mother’s lifelong dedication and identity, forcing Fern to confront the weight of inheritance that is more emotional than material.
The grief Fern carries is tangled with regret for the lost opportunities to reconcile fully with her mother, yet it pushes her to understand who her mother truly was, both as a mother and as a woman with her own dreams and heartbreaks. The diaries left behind reveal her mother’s complexities, which Fern discovers while making decisions about whether to sell the resort or continue her mother’s work.
Each day spent at the lake forces Fern to evaluate the space between duty and desire, realizing that the inheritance of the resort is also an inheritance of community, history, and love. The process of sorting out her mother’s estate becomes a quiet acceptance of her grief and a reimagining of legacy, shaping Fern’s journey to find her own version of fulfillment while respecting her mother’s memory.
The theme illuminates how grief can transform into an active, living relationship with the past, showing that inheritance is not simply about taking over responsibilities but also understanding the intentions and dreams of those who came before. It becomes a decision about what to keep, what to change, and what to let go.
The Conflict Between Personal Desires and Expectations
Fern’s character arc captures the struggle of living between what is expected by family, community, and tradition, and what one truly desires. Growing up, Fern was expected to return to the resort, a plan shaped by her mother’s hopes, her relationship with Jamie, and the expectations of a small community that remembers every detail of her past.
Toronto offers Fern anonymity and the potential to shape a life she can claim as hers, with the dream of owning her own coffee shop standing as a quiet but persistent desire. Her tension with these expectations surfaces during conversations with Will and in her private reflections about her mother’s diaries, as she wrestles with whether fulfilling her mother’s vision means sacrificing her own dreams.
The theme explores the burden of being the child who is meant to continue a family legacy while longing for a different life, revealing the quiet suffocation that comes from always aligning oneself with what others need. Yet, Fern’s journey shows that honoring personal desires does not always mean abandoning expectations.
It can mean reshaping them into something new. By the end, Fern realizes she can find her desires within the legacy she inherits, turning the resort into a place that honors her mother’s dreams while leaving room for her own, illustrating how the intersection between personal desire and expectation can become a space of transformation.
The Passage of Time and the Evolution of Love
The novel’s use of a split timeline, contrasting Fern’s younger years with her present, underscores the passage of time and its effects on dreams, love, and identity. Fern and Will’s single day together becomes a touchstone, both idealized and heavy with what could have been, influencing how they view themselves and each other over the next decade.
The delayed meeting and missed connections become a reflection of how time changes people, with Will becoming a guardian for his niece and sacrificing his art, while Fern transitions from a restless young adult to a woman who must face real decisions about the future. Their love evolves from a fantasy rooted in youthful spontaneity to a complicated, mature connection tested by responsibilities and past hurts.
The time that passes does not erase their feelings but reshapes them, showing how love can endure in different forms. It shows how the version of love that fits one’s early twenties is not the same as the love that fits a person’s thirties.
Through Fern and Will, the book reveals that while time may disrupt plans and challenge dreams, it also provides the necessary perspective to understand what love truly requires. It allows both to confront their fears and admit their feelings, ultimately choosing to be each other’s reality rather than an escape.
Identity, Self-Forgiveness, and Reconciliation with the Past
The book thoughtfully explores identity through Fern’s internal struggles with her past actions, the reputation she carries in her small community, and the person she believes herself to be. Her rebellion as a teenager, her destructive behavior, and the shame attached to it shadow her present, affecting how she sees her worth and capability to lead the resort.
Reading her mother’s diaries becomes a mirror for Fern to confront the reality that her mother, too, was once young and uncertain, grappling with her own mistakes and regrets. This theme reveals how identity is not static but is continually reshaped by the willingness to forgive oneself and accept the parts of the past that cannot be changed.
The presence of Will, who sees Fern without judgment, becomes a catalyst for Fern to view herself with more compassion, while also challenging her to be honest about her desires. By deciding to keep the resort, Fern reconciles her past with her present, accepting that she is not defined by her past mistakes but by her choices and actions now.
The narrative shows that reconciliation with the past is necessary to move forward. Self-forgiveness becomes a quiet but powerful act of reclaiming one’s identity, allowing Fern to step into her role at the resort with confidence and clarity.