Book Review: This is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter

 

publication

August 20, 2024 by William Morrow

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Everyone here is a liar, but only one of us is a killer…

A secluded cabin retreat

For GBI investigator Will Trent and medical examiner Sara Linton, McAlpine Lodge seems like the ideal getaway to celebrate their honeymoon. Set on a gorgeous, off-the-grid mountaintop property, it’s the perfect place to unplug and reconnect. Until a bone-chilling scream cuts through the night.

A murderer in their midst

Mercy McAlpine, the manager of the Lodge, is dead. With a vicious storm raging and the one access road to the property washed out, the murderer must be someone on the mountain. But as Will and Sara investigate the McAlpine family and the other guests, they realize that everyone here is lying….Lying about their past. Lying to their family. Lying to themselves.

Who killed Mercy McAlpine?

It soon becomes clear that normal rules don’t apply at McAlpine Lodge, and Will and Sara are going to have to watch their step at every turn. Trapped on the resort, they must untangle a decades-old web of secrets to discover what happened to Mercy. And with the killer poised to strike again, the trip of a lifetime becomes a race against the clock…

MY REVIEW:

This is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The 12th book of the series. I had only read one other book in the series but you didn't need to read the rest if you are just looking for the mystery. But if you want to know the characters then you should start from the beginning.
Will is on his honeymoon with Sara. He is an investigator and she is a medical examiner. They are both also married to their jobs.
Will made this honeymoon happen and got this secluded cabin retreat where you have to hike to get there. Luggage and other deliveries are taken there by a small back road.
Mercy has been running the resort for quite awhile. Her father is in a wheelchair, and makes her fell like shit along with her mother.. Mery's brother and ex husband also work there. She is raising her son there and wants to be able to run it with h. Someone wants to buy the place but Mercy doesn't want to sell. There is a big blowup and nasty things are said to her. Then that night she is killed.
There are several other couples renting the cabins and it seems like everyone is lying who they are and what they do.
I loved getting to know all the characters and what they are thinking. Trying to figure out who would want to hurt Mercy the lost was on my mind and I was wrong.
Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the book to review.
#ThisIsWhyWeLied #NetGalley

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Karin Slaughter

Bornin The United States

January 06

Website

https://linktr.ee/karinslaughter

Twitter

@slaughterKarin

Genre

Mystery & Thrillers, Fiction, Thriller

Karin Slaughter is the author of more than twenty instant NEW YORK TIMES bestselling novels, including the Edgar–nominated COP TOWN and standalone novels THE GOOD DAUGHTER, PRETTY GIRLS, and GIRL, FORGOTTEN. She is published in 120 countries with more than 40 million copies sold across the globe. PIECES OF HER is a #1 Netflix original series starring Toni Collette. The Will Trent Series is on ABC (and streaming on Hulu in the U.S and Disney+ internationally). THE GOOD DAUGHTER and FALSE WITNESS are in development for film/tv. Slaughter is the founder of the Save the Libraries project—a nonprofit organization established to support libraries and library programming. A native of Georgia, she lives in Atlanta.

Facebook: Facebook.com/AuthorKarinSlaughter

Website: http://www.karinslaughter.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karinslaugh...

Book Review: The Last Word by Taylor Adams

 

Publication date April 25, 2023 

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After posting a negative book review, a woman living in a remote location begins to wonder if the author is a little touchy—or very, very dangerous—in this pulse-pounding novel of psychological suspense and terror from the critically acclaimed author of No Exit and Hairpin Bridge.

Emma Carpenter lives in isolation with her golden retriever Laika, house-sitting an old beachfront home on the rainy Washington coast. Her only human contact is her enigmatic old neighbor, Deek, and (via text) the house’s owner, Jules.

One day, she reads a poorly written—but gruesome—horror novel by the author H. G. Kane, and posts a one-star review that drags her into an online argument with none other than the author himself. Soon after, disturbing incidents start to occur at night. To Emma, this can’t just be a coincidence. It was strange enough for this author to bicker with her online about a lousy review; could he be stalking her, too?

As Emma digs into Kane’s life and work, she learns he has published sixteen other novels, all similarly sadistic tales of stalking and murder. But who is he? How did he find her? And what else is he capable of?

MY REVIEW:

The Last Word by Taylor Adams
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read this in one day. I could not put it down and my heart was in my throat the whole time. I am afraid I will have nightmares or insomnia tonight lol.
Emma escapes from something that happened to her and she is depressed. She stays at a house on a beach as a house sitter, She meets the neighbor through telescope and they write things back and forth on a whiteboard. When he tells her she should read a book, she does and does not like it, She gives a review of 1 star and that's when all hell breaks. By chapter 26 I was pretty sure what was going on but not all of it.
This book is a must read and highly recommend it.
I read one other book by this author, NO Exit and loved it but this one is even better.
Thank you to William Morrow for the book to review.

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Taylor Adams is the author of several acclaimed thrillers including No Exit and Hairpin Bridge. No Exit has been published in 32 languages and was recently released by 20th Century Studios as a Hulu Original Film. Adams lives in Washington State.

Book Review: The Friendship Pact by Jill Shalvis

 

                                                               ebook, 384 pages
                                      Expected publication: June 14th 2022 by William Morrow
                                                               buy on Amazon

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis returns to Sunrise Cove with a powerful, moving story about a young woman on a quest to find the truth about her father who learns the meaning of true love along the way.


Alone in the world, Tae Holmes and her mother April pretty much raised each other, but as Tae starts asking questions about the father she's never met, April, for the first time in her life, goes silent. To make matters worse, Tae is dangerously close to broke and just manages to avoid financial meltdown when she lands a shiny new contract with an adventure company for athletes with disabilities and wounded warriors.

Her first big fundraiser event falls flat, but what starts out as a terrible, horrible, no-good night turns into something else entirely when Tae finds herself face-to-face with Riggs Copeland. She hasn't seen the former Marine since their brief fling in high school, and while still intensely drawn to him, she likes her past burned and buried, thank you very much. Hence their friendship pact.

But when April oddly refuses to help Tae track down her father, it's Riggs who unexpectedly comes to her aid. On a hunt to unlock the past, the two of them find themselves on a wild ride and learn a shocking truth, while also reluctantly bonding in a way neither had seen coming. Now Tae must decide whether she's going to choose love ... or walk away from her own happiness.

                                                          MY REVIEW:

The Friendship Pact by Jill Shalvis
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I didn't realize this was the 2nd book to a series and I did not read the 1st book. I don't think it matters as it felt like a standalone.
April became pregnant at 15 and raised Tae all alone. Tae's father had died before she was born and they were pretty poor growing up.
Tae is pretty much broke when she starts her own business as an event planner and helps a company, who she finds out, the co partner is someone from her past. A marine who she new in high school.
Riggs is home to help his brother, Jake, who was wounded and now in a wheelchair. Riggs did not expect to meet Tae, who was a troublemaker in high school.
They end up bumping into each other and the sparks fly. Then a secret is revealed and Tae doesn't know what to think so her and Riggs try to uncover the truth but who is going to get hurt?
I really liked the bond between April and Tae and they seem more like sisters because of the small age difference. Riggs and Jake had a tough childhood and are getting over that.
Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the book to review.

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                                                                      Jill Shalvis


Website
http://jillshalvis.com

Twitter
JillShalvis

Genre
Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit



Multiple New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras full of quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is … mostly coincidental. Look for Jill’s bestselling, award-winning heartwarming and full of humor novels wherever books are sold and visit her website for a complete book list and blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures. Her most recent book, THE FAMILY YOU MAKE is out now, and almost here is THE FRIENDSHIP PACT!

Look for Jill's bestselling, award-winning novels wherever books are sold. Visit http://www.jillshalvis.com for a complete book list and fun blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

Connect with Jill:
http://instagram.com/jillshalvis
http://facebook.com/JillShalvis
http://twitter.com/jillshalvis

Book Review: The Forever Girl by Jill Shalvis

 

                                                  Kindle Edition, 1st edition, 400 pages
                               Published January 12th 2021 by William Morrow Paperbacks
                                                     buy on Amazon

New York Times bestselling author Jill Shalvis does it once again with a heartfelt story of family, forgiveness, and secrets that have the power to change the course of more than one life.


When Maze returns to Wildstone for the wedding of her estranged bff and the sister of her heart, it’s also a reunion of a once ragtag team of teenagers who had only each other until a tragedy tore them apart and scattered them wide.

Now as adults together again in the lake house, there are secrets and resentments mixed up in all the amazing childhood memories. Unexpectedly, they instantly fall back into their roles: Maze their reckless leader, Cat the den mother, Heather the beloved baby sister, and Walker, a man of mystery.

Life has changed all four of them in immeasurable ways. Maze and Cat must decide if they can rebuild their friendship, and Maze discovers her long-held attraction to Walker hasn’t faded with the years but has only grown stronger.

                                        MY REVIEW:

The Forever Girl by Jill Shalvis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

When Maze returns to Wildstone for the wedding of her estranged bff and the sister of her heart, it’s also a reunion of a once ragtag team of teenagers who had only each other until a tragedy tore them apart and scattered them wide.
Now as adults together again in the lake house, there are secrets and resentments mixed up in all the amazing childhood memories. Unexpectedly, they instantly fall back into their roles.
Maze is their reckless leader, Cat the den mom, Heather the beloved baby sister and Walker a man of mystery.
Maze and Cat must decide if they can rebuild their friendship, and Maze discovers her long-held attraction to Walker hasn’t faded with the year.
This is the 6th book in the series but I felt it read like a standalone. You got enough about a backstory of the characters to understand why they are the way they are.
Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC to review.

View all my reviews

                                                                 Jill Shalvis
Website
http://jillshalvis.com

Twitter
JillShalvis

Genre
Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit

URL
https://www.goodreads.com/jillshalvis



Multiple New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jill Shalvis lives in a small town in the Sierras full of quirky characters. Any resemblance to the quirky characters in her books is … mostly coincidental. Look for Jill’s bestselling, award-winning heartwarming and full of humor novels wherever books are sold and visit her website for a complete book list and daily blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures. Her most recent book, THE SUMMER DEAL, was published in June and her next book, MISTLETOE IN PARADISE, comes out in December.

Look for Jill's THE SUMMER DEAL and get all her bestselling, award-winning books wherever romances are sold. Visit http://www.jillshalvis.com for a complete book list and fun blog detailing her city-girl-living-in-the-mountains adventures.

Connect with Jill:
http://instagram.com/jillshalvis
http://facebook.com/JillShalvis
http://twitter.com/jillshalvis