~Marcella Nielsen ~
iReflect 2017
Lies She Told
by Cate Holahan
First impressions before start:
Very gripping blurb! I can only assume that the “lies she told” are rewritten in the form of the protagonist’s fiction. The cover is of a woman, one side of her face shows sadness or guilt maybe, the other half shows her left eye closed with her hair blowing in front of it. I’m going to interpret this as the woman being outwardly calm in regards to her husband’s friends, playing the role of the worried wife but inwardly racked with guilt or in denial. For what? Who knows but I’m excited to find out!
Sometimes the truth is darker than fiction.
Liza Jones has thirty days to write the thriller that could put her back on the bestseller list. In the meantime, she’s struggling to start a family with her husband, who is distracted by the disappearance of his best friend, Nick. With stresses weighing down in both her professional and her personal life, Liza escapes into writing her latest heroine.
Beth is a new mother who suspects her husband is cheating on her while she’s home alone providing for their newborn. Angry and betrayed, Beth sets out to catch him in the act and make him pay for shattering the illusion of their perfect life. But before she realizes it, she’s tossing the body of her husband’s mistress into the river.
Then the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur. Nick’s body is dragged from the Hudson and Liza’s husband is arrested for his murder. Before her deadline is up, Liza will have to face up to the truths about the people around her, including herself. If she doesn’t, the end of her heroine’s story could be the end of her own.
Status:
Read on 25th August 2017
Publisher:
Crooked Lane Books
Publication Date:
12th September 2017
Pages:
288
Format:
Kindle Edition
Purchase Links:
Amazon
My Rating:
Thoughts:
This book had me hooked from the very first moment! As a mystery thriller, it had a good douse of suspense and tension. I was constantly anticipating what would happen next and if my suspicions were true. I didn’t trust anyone in the book because from all those episodes of CSI I watched, I know everyone and anyone is a suspect. The mystery factor had me flying through this book, I just needed to know where Nick disappeared to or if he disappeared at all. From the blurb I already expected there to be a connection between Liza’s fiction and the events occurring in her life, not just presently but in the past too. As the story went on I found the similarities in Liza’s life and her fictional character Beth’s and ultimately…the answers to Nick’s disappearance.
Characters:
Liza - A middle aged author both struggling to write her next best seller and hold onto her husband. His best friend’s disappearance has taken his time, attention and even affection away from Liza, their marriage and their goal to start a family. If she is being honest with herself, their marriage wasn’t doing great before Nick disappeared either. Liza uses her writing to escape her life…but when the lines between fiction and reality blur Liza realises she can’t trust anyone. Least of all herself.
“I don’t invent my characters. I steal them from my surroundings. To be writer is to be a life thief. Every day, I rob myself blind.”
David – Liza’s husband, David, is co-owner of an attorney firm alongside his best friend, Nick. With Nick’s disappearance, David is running the company on his own and any spare time he has he dedicates to finding his friend. His wife and her concerns are the least of his concerns. His worry for Nick borders on obsession, rousing the question of why David is so anxious to find him.
“He’s toggled between stages one through three of grief: tearful shock, frantic denial, and raging anger.”
Beth – A fictional character created by Liza. A new mother and heartbroken wife, Beth suspects her husband is cheating on her. When her suspicions are confirmed her hurt and confusion lead to anger, and her anger leads to murder.
Jake – A fictional character created by Liza. An attorney cheating on his wife with the police officer assigned to help him with a case.
Plot:
I have read many books that go back and forth between characters, time and even reality. I find most of these books frustrating and terribly confusing but I always keep going because when everything adds up…
This book didn’t frustrate me in the least. I enjoyed the back and forth between Liza and Beth. Two worlds that were parallel in story, one that hid truths within fiction and the other a reality to run from. I would have my suspicions of who knew something or who did something and at times I would be certain, then the author would throw me for a loop and I would be off suspecting someone else. Every character had a motive, from Liza, to her husband, to Liza’s best friend, and even Liza’s boss. I was apprehensive of everyone at all times.
Last Note:
The author was able to keep my undivided attention and interest the majority of the read. The pace of the story was unrushed and very well done. As mystery thriller books go, this one had great suspense and intensity. Definitely unpredictable.
References:
Holahan, C. (2017). Lies She Told. Crooked Lane Books.
~ Comments ~
Cate Holahan is the USA Today Bestselling author of The Widower's Wife, Lies She Told, and Dark Turns, all published by Crooked Lane Books. The Widower's Wife was named to Kirkus' best books of 2016.
An award-winning journalist and former television producer, she has written for BusinessWeek, The Boston Globe, and The Record newspaper. Her short fiction won first place in the 19th annual Calliope competition, a magazine published by the writer's group of American Mensa. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, two daughters, ages 7 and 5, and dog Westley.
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