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thrillofthepage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Gaslighting
100_pages_hr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
skersnick's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction and Vomit
sandiet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
#ListenfortheLie #NetGalley
The debut adult novel (she typically writes YA) from Amy Tintera is simply in a word engaging! I'm not typically a lover of the thriller genre but this book kept me up to the wee hours of the morning.
I was reeled in from the first line "A podcaster has decided to ruin my life, so I'm buying a chicken".
With a start like that you'd be expecting a funny book but this book deals with domestic violence, toxic relationships and dysfunctional families. Lucy, the main female character is the unreliable narrator, who hears voices telling her to kill people. It becomes clearer whose voice she's hearing as you get deeper into the story. Lucy can't remember what happened 5 years ago when she was found wandering around covered in her best friend's blood. She was never charged with Savvy's murder, but most of the people in the small town of Plumpton, including her parents and ex-husband were and still are convinced she's guilty.
Ben, who has a very successful true crime podcast, comes to town to try to figure out what happened. Unbeknownst to Lucy, her kick-ass grandmother Beverly has orchestrated the whole thing because she's never believed Lucy was the murderer. Lucy agrees to help Ben but only because her grandmother has asked her to.
There are many twists and turns and a lot of suspects, but the journey to get to the truth was never boring. I really enjoyed this book despite the subject matter.
This is a true "me too" movement book and a lot of good points are made about how a woman's version of the truth is completely dismissed in favour of the man's version.
A quote from the book "Men always believe each other".
5* + read and I'll be looking for more adult novels from this author.
Thank you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
shesflippinpages's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
It kept me guessing throughout as there were so many suspicious characters with intertwined storylines. It was one of those books that kept you on your toes and just when you thought you had it figured out, another curveball was thrown your way. Definitely recommend this one!
Thank you to Celadon Books & NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Vomit, and Sexual harassment
xandriaisreading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
This book was amazing; I read it in one day it was that good! The plot instantly grabbed my attention and the fact that it's based in Texas only further convinced me to read it.
You get a lively cast of characters, no one is as they seem at first. Each unraveling as secrets get exposed in service of uncovering the truth. While the book is from Lucy's perspective, you get to hear from other people via the transcript of the podcast. It balances out and adds to the mystery while offering up many different conclusions as the story unfolds.
I'll be honest, I couldn't predict who'd done it. That's all I ask of a mystery book and this one delivered.
Thank you NetGalley & Celadon Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Grief
Minor: Sexual content
aftereliza's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Blood, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Sexual violence and Toxic relationship
chezler24's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
In this age of true crime podcasts and TV show dramas centered around real, gruesome events, Tintera has crafted an interesting new angle within this genre. The book takes place 5 years after Savvy (Savannah) had been murdered in Plumpton Texas. The main character, Lucy, has been living with everyone assuming she had been responsible for her friend's death; however, she has no memories from that night. Throughout the book, we see Lucy wrestle with her fragmented memory and poor reputation as a podcaster, Ben Owens, begins prying open the cold case to see if Lucy really did it or if someone else was to blame.
I enjoyed the novel's format and how it switched back and forth between Lucy's internal monologue and transcripts from the Listen for the Lie podcast. The book had a rough start for me, but I was hooked once we got the ball rolling with the true crime element, and I was immersed in our screwed-up little cast of characters. (I do mean that. Most everyone here has some element of unlikability whether it's from their sarcastic demeanor or from the hurtful, damaging things they've done.) The amnesia element is not going to work for everyone, but I did enjoy how Tintera decided to "trigger" the memories. Regarding this element, I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome and mostly content with how things turned out.
(The real MVP was Grandma Beverly. She might be my favorite side character out of the bunch.)
(Rating probably around the 3.5-3.75 range)
(Advanced Reading Copy)
Moderate: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, and Alcohol
jess_xen's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
From the very beginning, the pacing, voice, and perfectly articulated emotions had me in a chokehold. I was hooked; there were so many questions that I needed answers to. Amy Tintera is a master at weaving together a tale that feels like wandering through an ill-lit hedge maze, always thinking that around the next corner all the secrets will yield themselves, only to be confronted with a new path in a new direction.
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Gaslighting
emetrock's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Blood, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual assault