SHE TOLD is a dark and twisted mystery/psychological thriller by USA bestselling author, Cate Holahan, author of The Widower's Wife.
This is a story of love and deceit,
This is one book that you must pay close attention to, to follow both the storyline and clues, as there exists a parallel story between Liza, the protagonist, a novelist and her fictional character, Beth in her novel.
Liza Cole, a oncesuccessful novelist whose career has seen better days, has one month to write the thriller that could land her back on the bestseller list.
Meanwhile, shes struggling to start a family, but her husband is distracted by the disappearance of his best friend, Nick.
As stresses weigh her down in her professional and personal lives, Liza escapes into writing the chilling exploits of her latest heroine, Beth.
Beth, a new mother, suspects her husband is cheating on her while shes home caring for their newborn.
Angry and betrayed, she aims to catch him in the act and make him pay for shattering the illusion of their perfect life.
But before she realises what shes doing, shes tossing the body of her husbands mistress into the East River.
But then everything gets blurry, between what is fiction and reality,
Nicks body is dragged from the East River, and Lizas husband is arrested for his murder,
This book will have your head spinning out of control, Pay close attention to the detail, or you will miss out,
I highly recommend this book for those that like a thriller, I loved it! A total pleasure to read,
Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books via NetGalley for my digital copy,
Liza Cole is a writer of Romantic Suspense and she's looking for the one that will make her name.
It's also her safe space as her husband has been sorely stressed over the disappearance of his best friend and law partner, Nick.
Liza thinks he's also having an affair with a female law officer,
Her husband doesn't think she knows, did not see her watching them at a restaurant, . or entering his lover's apartment, He's always 'working late'. It's all made worse by the fact that they've been trying to have a baby without much success,
To deal with her real life issues, she's working twice as hard as her book, Beth is her main character and she could be forgiven that part of her new book mimics Liza's real life.
Of course, there are some differences, "Beth" has a baby girl, . but a husband that also cheats,
And when the mistress' body is found floating in the East River, fact and fiction meet, . .
The first half of the book rotates chapters, One is Liza . the things she is going through, The next chapter would be the story she is writing about 'Beth', It's like trying to read two books at the same time, The first half is a little slow, . . no mystery, no suspense. But then it changes . .
The last half of the book is extremely good, Who killed the
mistress Was it Liza, . . or her husband And when her husband's best friend makes an appearance, . . what does that mean to them both
Very wellwritten psychological thriller, Characters are finely drawn. None of them are perfect, . they are all damaged in one way or another, Lots of twists and turns and surprises until the explosive ending,
Many thanks to the author / Crooked Lane Books / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy of this compelling story.
Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own,
What an amazing thriller!
In fact, reading this book is what kept me sane during Hurricane Irma.
I spent days shuttered up in my home without power, the heat was unbearable and the darkness constant,
I still have no power and the heat is still awful but, alas, reading brings a wonderful escape in these difficult moments.
The book is about writer Liza Jones who desperately needs to finish up her next thriller, The thriller she is writing is about a fictional character named Beth, a new mother who suspects her husband is cheating on her.
At the same time, the main character Liza Jones is also facing difficulties when her husband's professional partner disappears.
The book is told from the alternating points of view of Liza Jones and Beth.
So it alternates between present reality and the story she is writing,
There is a story within a story and it reminded me of the book Magpie Murders.
The novel is interesting, engaging and so good,
Overall, I loved it and highly recommend it to all readers of suspense, mystery and thrillers.
Thanks to NetGalley, Cate Holahan, and Crooked Lane Books for providing me with a copy of this publication in exchange for an honest review.
Parallel universes.
Existing within the light of truth while simultaneously traveling the roads of deception inked in covert shadows.
Somehow the lustre of New York notoriety has worn thin for mystery writer, Liza Cole, Liza stares blankly at her computer screen lost in agonizing thoughts of turning out a well overdue blockbuster thriller.
Notches in her book belt would be one thing, but Liza has a mortgage payment on the upscale condo and highly expensive fertility treatments in the process.
Her husband, David, has a new law partnership that needs his undivided attention which leaves Liza living on the peripheral.
Stress seems to have wallpapered every room in this now depleted love nest, Then a sonic boom hits the airwaves when Nick, David's law partner, goes missing, David is distraught upon hearing the news, He and Nick are best friends, Days turn into weeks with no sign of Nick, Tension sits like a cold meatball sandwich congealing between them, Nothing Liza says or does consoles David,
So Liza steps deftly into the fictional world of her writing, A daily glimpse into her character Beth's wired atmosphere provides Liza with the diversion that she needs, Beth has recently given birth to a beautiful baby girl, She is experiencing the heavy demands of breastfeeding and the/care of a newborn, Although sleep deprived and physically exhausted, Beth's internal antennae picks up the vibrations of a wayward husband, With stroller in hand, Beth hides across the street and spots Jake lockin' eyes and holding hands with an attractive woman in a darkened restaurant.
Oh, it's gonna get good now, .
Cate Holahan presents a dual storyline that crosses back and forth into the real and the not so real.
Just like adjusting the thermostat in an overheated room, the reader will experience the flash of hot and cold from Liza's situations to those of Beth's.
Holahan knows how to keep her readers locked in to the staccato beat of her storyline as she did in her previous book, The Widower's Wife.
I especially liked her story layering into Liza's episodes and encounters in the publishing world,
Attention to detail is a must here, There's plenty of dark streets involved along the East River with a deep chill in the air, My thanks to Crooked Lane Publishers and to Cate Holahan for a copy of this book, That deep chill has certainly stayed with me,
This review may contain spoilers,
“I don't invent my characters, I steal them from my surroundings, To be a writer is to be a life thief, Every day, I rob myself blind, ”
Not one but two unreliable narrators
A story within a story
Parallel universes
Liza Jones is struggling with the demise of her prolific career as an author.
She is trying to come up with the next blockbuster thriller novel, Meanwhile, she is going through fertility procedures to get pregnant, She also has communication problems with her husband, David, whose undivided attention is monopolized by Nick, his best friend and partner in crime who has gone missing.
Since Liza cannot get through to her distraught husband, she sublimates the mounting pressure she is suppressing into her new story, projecting herself into an alter ego version of herself named Beth.
Beth is suffering from postpartum depression and suspects her husband of cheating on her, When she decides to confront him, jealousy gets the best of her and in a fit of rage she murders her husband's adulterous partner and disposes of the body in the river.
Suddenly, Nick's body is found and David is considered the prime suspect, The lines between reality and fiction intertwine, The author and the character become indistinguishable,
I have to admit that getting into the story was difficult at first and demanded mental effort, Given the tremendous similarities between the two story lines, I had trouble telling them apart, Hence my frustration. The more the story unfolded, the more engrossed in it I became,
I felt for Liza, the epitome of an untrustworthy narrator due to her memory loss, There were inconceivable plot twists, although I guessed the major one from the very first, The ending was plausible yet it lacked in retaliation and retribution,
All in all, it was a mindbending novel, brimming with suspense, I would probably recommend, Uniquely Plotted and Engrossing, BUT . What is fact and What is fictionLisa Jones writes romantic suspense crime novels and theday deadline is quickly approaching for her next offering.
as is her personal deadline to start a family, but husband David is only interested in one thing at the present time.
and it's not romantic getaways or Lisa's reproductive cycle, it's the mysterious disappearance of his law partner, . . and best buddy, Nick. LIES SHE TOLD alternates between Lisa's real life struggles at home and the volatile story developing in her current work of fiction.
. . AND just to make matters even more complex, Cate Holahan weaves in a few surprises and some long buried childhood memories to reek further havoc on Lisa's already erratic state of mind making for one crazy good read! Flat out enjoyed it!Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books of New York for sending a beautiful complimentary copy of Cate Holahan's upcoming new novel in exchange for an honest review.
Expected date of publication: September,I loved this cleverly written, twisty, book within a book, A murder occurs in both and fact blurs with fiction when the author's novel in progress is eerily similar to events happening in her real life.
It's a short, quick read and well worth the time invested, I'm not a fan of romantic suspense so the blurb that categorized the fictional author's books in that genre made me a bit skeptical.
But I would consider both story lines as domestic thrillers, not romantic suspense, and I thoroughly enjoyed both stories.
It's an addictive multilayered story within a story that kept me on my toes, It was a fun beach read for me these last couple days! ,unreliable.
Are you a fan of the unreliable narrator Well in this book you get not only one but two very unreliable narrators!
This is a book where you really need to Pay attention! Liza is an author of romance/suspense books.
Beth is the MC in the book that she is writing, The brilliant yet confusing part of this is that you get both Lizas real life story and Beths fictional story alternating throughout this book.
Liza and Beth have quite a few things in common including cheating spouses, as the book goes on the lines between fact and fiction, between Liza and Beth, get blurrier and blurrier.
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Have to confess I started this book and I wasnt paying close enough attention and I got really confused and then I got really frustrated.
. . SO I decided to start the book over and Im so glad I did that, . . because once I figured out that this was a book I truly needed to focus on I started to really Become completely engrossed in the story.
Neither Liza or Beth were terribly likable, however I found them very sympathetic and real, The twists and turns in this book were wild and took you on quite the crazy ride! Somethings I saw coming while others I definitely did not.
The ending was so well done and very plausibleAlways a bonus,
Definitely would recommend this to fans of the psychological thriller, was it the best Ive ever read no, but it was pretty darn good!
id like to thank my wallet for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review
you can find my review on the audio narration as well as all the other reviews from my partner in crime and me on our new blog.
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sitelink com/ From the author of the USA Todaybestselling novel The Widowers Wife, comes an electrifying story of love and deceit, where the truth can be darker than fiction.
Liza Cole, a oncesuccessful novelist whose career has seen better days, has one month to write the thriller that could land her back on the bestseller list.
Meanwhile, shes struggling to start a family, but her husband is distracted by the disappearance of his best friend, Nick.
As stresses weigh her down in her professional and personal lives, Liza escapes into writing the chilling exploits of her latest heroine, Beth.
Beth, a new mother, suspects her husband is cheating on her while shes home caring for their newborn.
Angry and betrayed, she aims to catch him in the act and make him pay for shattering the illusion of their perfect life.
But before she realizes what shes doing, shes tossing the body of her husbands mistress into the East River.
Then, the lines between Lizas fiction and her reality eerily blur, Nicks body is dragged from the East River, and Lizas 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 her own.
If she doesnt, the end of her heroines story could be the end of her own, .