Lie to Me

I honestly don't even know where to start with this book. The premise was so promising, right up my alley, seemingly my particular cup of tea....but unfortunately that was not the case with this book. I feel like at this point I've read so many thriller/mysteries, that I am getting a lot more critical of them and when a book does exactly what all the other ones do and even not as well, I just can't give it four or five stars. I actually debated the whole time I was reading this novel whether to give it four or five stars but ultimately I couldn't lie to myself, this book just didn't do it for me. In my opinion it was a mess, and not even a hot mess at that.

To begin with, Lie to Me is about a husband, named Ethan Montclair, who wakes up one day to find that his wife Sutton has disappeared, leaving nothing but a cryptic note saying not to look for her. As more time passes, Ethan begins to question whether Sutton left of her own accord or if she was forced in some way and is in trouble. I thought this plot was okay, it's nothing I haven't seen before in terms of the trope but the execution was just not to my standards. Even the most overdone tropes, if done right, can be extraordinary and this one certainly wasn't. I also thought that the pacing in this book was horrendous, I've never had such issue with that before in a thriller, it's the main reason it took me so long to finish it. The first 65% of the book stretched on endlessly and we didn't get anything really concrete to point us in the right direction and give us any idea of what might have happened to her and the last 35% gave me whiplash because things started happening every other page and I couldn't keep up with all the reveals. I also think this book could have been a lot shorter for that reason as well.

Further on, the characterization was above average in this story. I thought that the characters had good, solid backgrounds and I enjoyed finding out why they were the way that they were but since most of that was revealed at the very end of the book, I was already too frustrated and bored with the majority of the book to really care and it didn't make much of an impact on me in terms of raising my interest levels. I did enjoy the darkness of these characters and appreciated being able to peal back the layers, one at a time, because these people were complicated as heck. I'd say this is where the book shines the most.

Finally, Ellison's writing style is mediocre at best. I found that I didn't quite vibe with it and it felt choppy and confusing at times. That doesn't mean that I won't give any other one of her books a chance, I'm just not really in a hurry to do so at the moment.

In conclusion, this book was okay. If you're a newbie to the thriller genre and want to start nice and slow and not get overly flabbergasted right off the bat, you might enjoy this book. Otherwise, I'd say steer clear because there are tons of other domestic thrillers out there, that are done a lot better.

This book is definitely a page turner, without being necessarily unique or particularly thrilling. The first half gave off very strong “Gone Girl” vibes, which is not a bad thing at all, but it's been done. I did like the cool double twist that the ending provided, I thought it brought something fresh to a common concept. The chapters were short and well made, the format contributed to the fast pacing of the story.

Overall an enjoyable read, the main mystery is fairly obvious and similar to others, but the ending is what truly makes this novel unique. I recommend to all craving a fast-paced, not-beating-around-the-bush, suspenseful thriller!

I'd also like to thank Goodreads, the author and Harlequin for the giveaway copy