A mediocre mystery. Too many twists and turns for my satisfaction.

Wow. That’s what describes this book best. I read this book in a day. I avoided everyone just to see what was going to happen next. This book is about a woman who is in a coma and struggles to remember what happened. The chapters go from her past, the present, and the week leading to her being in a coma. There was many twists and turns, just want a thriller needs. It kept you in suspense and wanting to know the end, but not wanting the story to ever finish. I would highly recommend this to all my book lovers and would hope this could be made into a movie.

Cross-posted on Goodreads


** spoiler alert ** 3.5 stars

Overall the premise of this story is very compelling. A woman, Amber Reynolds, finds herself in a coma, able to hear the activity and conversations in her hospital room, and unable to interact. The story shifts between the present, the recent past, and her childhood. It’s a complicated story that doesn’t wrap itself up in a nice bow. Like life, it’s messy.

I liked the plot, the author’s writing style, and the setting / scene development. However, certain aspects, such as Amber’s recollections and reactions to hospital room conversations, are confusing. I had to re-read several to clarify and understand the storyline. Certain aspects were also difficult to believe, and impacted my perception of the story.

I recommend this book to readers that enjoy a tangled web and don’t mind having to refer back to earlier chapters or sections.

I swallowed this book in two, big gulps!

The book starts with Amber waking up in a hospital unable to move but able to listen and smell everything around her. She's in a coma!

She can't remember how she ended up there but little by little she starts reconstructing the events from the conversations of her visitors and memories. Amber suspects her husband and maybe her sister but is not sure...

This was an excellent psychological thriller! The story alternates between the present and the past. It takes place in England and is intriguing and fast-paced. There are elements of dysfunctional relationships and you must read this book carefully, if you blink you may miss very important details.

I can't say much about the book without entering into spoilers but overall I enjoyed it and recommend it to all readers of thrillers.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this publication in exchange for an honest review.

1. I’m in a coma.
2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore.
3. Sometimes I lie.'
Twisted as any book I've ever read. What the...I'm still processing and I love it.

I was so happy to finish this book. It started out interesting and then it got confusing and boring for the entire first half. Its one of those books that go back and forth in time. All chapters titled "now or then" In the second half the twists and turns started to happen. I had difficulty following who was actually who. None of the characters are likeable and the ending is unpleasant and again confusing.Sent
I normally enjoy a good mystery thriller but this one was too much work.

All I can say is "wow!" This is a book to be read in one sitting. In fact, I read it a second time a day later to make sense of things and to see if somewhere along the line, the author screwed up. Nope, don't think so. And, even if there were some seemingly inconsistent trains of thought between the two main characters -- well, sometimes they lied!

Thanks Net Galley for letting me read this great book.

A twisty psychological thriller that has you questioning everything when the MC states upfront that she is a liar. The coma chapters are suitably claustrophobic and probably the best part of the book. This will definitely appeal to fans of the genre.

Amber is in a coma after an accident. Although she can still hear everything going around her in the hospital, she can't interact with anyone visiting her. She hears her husband and her sister come and has memories of the events that led up to her accident. There are three things you should know about Amber.
"1. I’m in a coma.
2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore.
3. Sometimes I lie."
Feeney spins a wonderful tale full of deceit and lies in this novel. I felt like I was slowly unraveling the mystery with each turn of the page but each time I thought I had something figured out, there was another mystery that had yet to be unlocked. There were multiple moments where my jaw just dropped while I was reading and I couldn't believe where the story was going.
I am absolutely astounded by the way in which Feeney writes and I will be on the lookout for more of her work!

this was a strange and twisty book. Amber is in a coma. and Claire is her sister. I thought I had it figured out and then another twist would happen.
The story has three points of view. Now/Then/Before. . What is going on? Who is lying? You must read it. I do not want to put too much in the review - do not want to ruin it. There is a little bit of the story is Far fetched but not much, it works and then end is a big surprise. Worth a read. I read it in two days. Good Book

There is a pivotal moment where The Big Reveal happens and it STUNNED me. It changed my entire perspective after I had a chance to get over the shock. It's rare that a book does this to me. But The Big Reveal made sense, tied everything together, and quickly moved the story forward.

Amber is an excellent narrator. She likes to tell her stories using three things. This is brilliant. It's easy to remember and sets up the theme of the scenes.

The author's writing is very engaging and descriptive. I felt like I was there in the hospital room, hearing Amber's ventilator and the beeping monitors. The dream sequences were so vivid that I could picture them happening, and it felt like I was watching a movie through words.

The ending wasn't really an ending, it was a teaser to a sequel! I hope Alice Feeney writes one soon.
This book is shocking, twisty and I loved it!

Sometimes I Lie is a world class, death defying, literary roller coaster ride. I delightfully lost my way in this book several times as it twisted and turned, zigged and zagged, switched back and rolled over leaving me breathless, shouting, stomping, standing, pacing, and jumping out of bed. At times, I questioned my sanity, the writer's sanity, various characters sanity. "Sometimes I lie." is a diabolically evil plot mechanism because you can never be sure of anything. In a first for me, I immediately reread the book positive that I still did not get it. Good thing, too. I would have been frustrated over this one for days if I had not gone back. Now I can at least enjoy mulling it over. So, that is all I am going to say. If you enjoy a mystery that drives you nuts, read it. Oh yeah, what is the deal with the bracelet at the end? ARGH!

I am not a fan of this new genre of mysteries with the unreliable narrator so I wasn't expecting to be drawn into this book. Plus I hate flashbacks and this book is told in alternating timelines between the present and the not too far past plus even older diary entries are thrown in. I knew there'd be a twist coming but even though I figured out some parts I definitely missed the big one. As much as I dislike flashbacks this book held my interest and my attention to the end when the action speeds up. This was a quick read that I enjoyed despite my misgivings.

Unreliable narrators are my favorite - throw in some unexpected twists and unsolved crimes, and you can be damned sure it jumps to the top of my reading list. Sometimes I Lie has all the best elements woven together, and the result a suspenseful, page-turning mind game.

Amber wakes up in a hospital, but it appears she's in a coma and her body is entirely unresponsive. She can hear, but she can't move or speak. And she has no memory of the last couple of days or how she came to be in this state. The story then unfolds in alternating pieces - "now" from Amber's locked-in perspective, "then" as it presents the days leading up to her accident, and a child's old diary entries.

There are a few hiccups - there are a lot of cerebral dream sequences and too much exposition in the initial setup. Still, it's a stunning effort for a debut author, and I was delightfully shocked by twists and turns. Anything that can surprise me always gets a thumbs up.

A confusing but entertaining read. All the characters were liars and unlikeable. Amber was totally insane and her character radiating evilness. At times I thought I was reading a fairy tale was events were so bizarre and unrealistic. All the characters were dysfunctional and I am not really sure what caused them to be so over the top. Not your normal read but something about the book engaged me.

Alice Feeney has written a fascinating novel—-and I was surprised it was her first. SOMETIMES I LIE does not read like a rookie effort, but rather more like an experienced and skilled storyteller. The story, which continually moves around in time, is convoluted and often surprising, and ultimately has twists and turns the reader will never see coming. There are enough damaged and psychologically unbalanced characters to go around, and each is deeply drawn.

Amber is married, she has a sister with whom she has a stormy relationship, and sometimes she lies. She climbs out of a coma only to find herself in a hospital, unable to move, or speak, or communicate. What happened? As she listens to those who talk around her, and explores her own memory, she begins to believe that her condition was no accident. Someone tried to kill her. Her husband? Her sister? Her ex?

The story alternates between her present situation, the week (Christmas week) before her injury, and her childhood. As the time shifts and the characters evolve, the reader will need to pay agnation, keep up, and try to sort through who is who, what is what, and who is lying.

DP Lyle, award-winning author of the Jake Longly, Samantha Cody, and Dub Walker thriller series

Here is another unreliable narrator who is hard to like. At first, I was intrigued, as I thought it was a "locked-in syndrome" type of story, which I have enjoyed in the past. The plot jumps around in time a bit, which can be disorienting. Different points of view also add to the disorientation. I was able to follow the storyline up until the patient "wakes up" and then, all bets were off! Even after thinking about the story for awhile, which is usually a good thing, I'm still confused.

What a page turner! This book had me hooked from the get-go. And then...the other shoe drops. The twist in this book was totally unexpected. Sometimes I Lie is a perfect addition to this genre of writing, which I feel was made popular with Girl on the Train. I can't wait to read more from this author.

Wowza!

I usually like to start my reviews with a quote, but there were so many good ones in this extremely well-written debut that I couldn't pick one that hadn't already been represented in others. The best thing about this book was the quality of the writing as Alice Feeney has an incredible command of a turn of phrase.

That said, I just sit here, my head still reeling from the story within the covers of this psychological thriller. I read this one tonight in a couple of hours, couldn't put it down, had to find where it was going, tried in vain to figure out who was writing the diary, who was in the coma -- you get the picture. The phrase, "Sometimes I lie" totally kept me trying to anticipate and, regretfully, experiencing one (or two or three) of those WTF moments!

Here's the gist -- a woman lies in a hospital bed in a coma. Her husband and sister visit her in present tense. There are diary entries back from childhood, but you have no clue who wrote them. And then there is a first person narration of events that occured the week before the accident that led to the coma with a lot of backstory thrown in. Confusing? You bet! Mindblowing? ABSOLUTELY.
If you want a book that causes you to reread significant portions of the sections even after you've finished, then this is the one for you. After doing some extensive review after finishing, I think I've finally GOT IT. But, please, if you are thinking about picking this one up -- don't read any of the reviews or the questions with their spoiler alerts.

I'm afraid I'll be thinking of this one for some time as those books that make you delve deeper always stick a bit longer in the mind. Thank you to the publisher for the book to read and review and to NetGalley for the digital ARC. If there is a sequel, I'll certainly want to read it.!