Reviews with content warning for Cursing - First Lie Wins

First Lie Wins
Rating : ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.25

“There’s an old saying: The first lie wins. It’s not referring to the little white kind that tumble out with no thought; it refers to the big one. The one that changes the game. The one that is deliberate. The lie that sets the stage for everything that comes after it. And once the lie is told, it’s what most people believe to be true. The first lie has to be the strongest. The most important. The one that has to be told.”

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First, let me say that this is more of a mystery/suspense novel than a thriller. The primary aspect of the plot being to figure out the overarching puzzle of our MC's, Evie's, mission that her boss has sent her on. Knowing that, helped me better determine my expectations of what this novel should and shouldn't be.

With that being said, I feel that Ashely Elston did a great job with the premise of this novel. The first lie wins, and boy was our MC, Evie, a master of "the first lie." Ashley did a wonderful job interweaving and connecting characters, plot points, and events of our main character's past and present, as well as the plot as a whole. While I was able to determine who Mr. Smith was, I was still surprised by a few things in the conclusion of this novel. Do I wish there were a few more explosive, bigger moments? Yes. But overall, I really enjoyed the journey Ashley Elston took us on.

⚠️Warning⚠️
Language, no spice, adult content, death, violence

Content Warnings

yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

4.5

Finished reading: August 23rd 2024

“There's an old saying: The first lie wins. It's not referring to the little white kind that tumble out with no thought; it refers to the big one. The one that changes the game.”

Part of me was a bit hesitant to read First Lie Wins, as we all know how hyped books and me tend to get along... But there was something about the premise I wasn't able to resist, and I ended up giving in. I'm so glad I did now, because I ended up having SUCH a great time reading book! Things can be said about the credibility, but I personally didn't care as the entertainment level was through the roof. First Lie Wins reads like a Hollywood action movie with a similar vibe as Mr. And Mrs. Smith, and the premise had me fully hooked. The story is told through Evie Porter's POV, and switches back between different time in her past and the present. There was something about Evie that made it easy to start rooting for her despite her flaws, and the flashbacks worked perfectly to start revealing certain information and twists. The building up of tension and suspense was really well done, and it had me turning page after page as I HAD to know how it would all end. And while I guessed some of the twists, others came as a total surprise. The writing itself is extremely engaging and the heist/spy elements really made this story stand out. The ending itself was perfect for this story, and the journey itself was a blast as well. If you enjoyed fast-paced, engaging and cleverly plotted thrillers with a spy/heist vibe and don't mind suspending your disbelief, I can highly recommend First Lie Wins.

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monicabach's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

What a fun read!!! I really enjoyed it.

Content warnings: many F bombs, frequent cursing; no sexual content.

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achay91's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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olivialaa_'s review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

An amazing book! Unfortunately, there is a lot of language, but it was such a good book, I kept reading anyways. There are so many plot twists, and it is such a fun story!

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samanthabryan34's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Fun, twisty, and for the most part unpredictable. Even with all her alias names I thought the story was pretty easy to follow; although I when I tried to explain the plot to someone it was kind of hard to explain 😅 missing that wow factor for a true five stars but still one I really enjoyed and would recommend!

⚠️ language

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penguins_save_lives's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

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katelynprice's review against another edition

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mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I was really intrigued by this book, but I wanted to like it more than I did. The flashbacks to the past confused me, and I had a hard time keeping all of the names straight. I also had trouble suspending my disbelief. It was fun and twisty, but not as polished as I would like.

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