3.5 stars

While I enjoyed the premise for this book, I found myself skimming that last 100 or so pages. Don't get me wrong the first half I was eager to see if I could figure everything out before it happened. The plot twists kept me going, but by the end I thought to myself "this isn't really feasible." With everything that was presented the last 30 or so pages I would have thought that Morelli would have been able to put two and two together....This is definitely a summer, beach read...

In the words of Joe Kenda of Investigation Discovery: “Well my, my, my.” Charlie Donlea certainly knows how to spin a tale.

Following is confirmation that I loved this book:

1. I couldn’t wait for an opportunity during the day to read it
2. I couldn’t stop thinking about it
3. I kept inundating my husband with details about it
4. I opened it up at 3:00 a.m. and started reading instead of going back to sleep after using the bathroom
5. I wasn’t longing for it to be over so I could read something else
6. I kept thinking to myself, “this guy can write!” as the book progressed and I was flipping pages faster than my little arthritic pinky finger could manage
7. The final sentence sent a wave of exhilaration coursing through my body, making me wish I could call up Mr. Donlea ASAP and gush about my thoughts
8. My e-reader showed I’d reached 100%, but I was still attempting to find for more pages
9. I’m poised to add it to my Best Reads list for 2018

Need I go on?

If those reasons don’t convince you, buy the book, read it, and see for yourself. It releases in the U.S. on May 29th.

And now here’s a very brief account of the book.

Julian Crists’s body is washed up on Sugar Beach, part of an island resort in St. Lucia, where he was vacationing with his girlfriend, Grace Sebold, who is found guilty of his murder and spends a decade in a St. Lucian prison cell, all the while proclaiming her innocence. She’s exhausted her appeals and it looks likely that she’ll be living out her days locked up. Desperate, she reaches out to a former acquaintance, Sidney Ryan, by means of letters written continually asking for her help. Sidney is a documentary film writer whose films have exonerated a couple of wrongly convicted criminals. Sidney makes the decision to help Grace by producing a real-time documentary of her findings regarding Grace’s case; new episodes airing each week revealing her findings from the previous week’s research. The documentary is a monumental hit for Sidney, and fans of the show loyally tune in to find out the fate of Grace Sebold. Will Sidney’s instincts prove true regarding Grace’s innocence?

There’s so much more but this is all I can share without giving anything away. Charlie Donlea truly delivers with this one. He’s a new favorite suspense writer for me. Highly recommended.

Thank you Netgalley, Kensington Publishing, and Charlie Donlea for an e-ARC of Don’t Believe It. In exchange I have provided an honest review of my thoughts about it.

4.5 Stars! This was a good one just the way I like my mystery/thrillers!

DON’T BELIEVE IT by CHARLIE DONLEA is a gripping, fascinating, action-packed, and suspenseful psychological thriller novel that I was immediately drawn into and had me totally engaged in the storyline right up to that surprising and shocking ending. This book was so entertaining, enjoyable and extremely hard for me to put down.

CHARLIE DONLEA delivers a well-written, detailed, unique and twisty read here that had me questioning whether Grace was guilty or innocent for murdering her boyfriend while on vacation in St. Lucia.

This book pretty much kept me guessing right up to around the 70% mark and then that is when I started piecing things together. Even though I thought I knew what was happening when the actual reveal came it was presented in a way that shocked and surprised me. I loved that about this book!

I absolutely loved the way that this story was told and with the way it was formatted had me immediately intrigued in this storyline. It was a lot of fun following along with our central character, Sidney an investigative reporter who was producing a true-life documentary into the innocence of Grace as the investigation unfolded in real-time. What Sidney learned we as readers learned at the same time which really moved the plot forward for me.

To sum it all up it was an entertaining, enjoyable, fast-paced, and clever read with an ending that left me hoping for a sequel! Would recommend!

Publishing Date: May 29, 2018

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Kensington Books and Charlie Donlea for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a review!

The last 40% of this book is absolutely mind-blowing!!! I had to go back and reread passages to make sure I read what I thought I did!!!

This is my first book by Charlie Donlea, and what a fantastic introduction to this author!!! This book already drew me in with the premise, but the writing and the way the story was executed kept me engaged until the very last page. This is a book that is fueled by the plot. Some thrillers take place mostly in the minds of the characters, but this book is action driven. There are no slow points—every single chapter is moving you towards the shocking conclusion. You’ll want to pay attention, because a LOT happens in this book!

10 years ago Grace Sebold was convicted of murdering her boyfriend…

Grace’s life was on the right track. Grace recently found out she was accepted in the medical residency she wanted in NYC with her boyfriend Julian, who is unbeknownst to her about to propose marriage to her at the top of a gorgeous bluff at Sugar Beach in St. Lucia. But before he can propose, Julian falls to an untimely death. Or was he pushed? The prosecution believes Grace was the one who pushed him, and they have a mountain of forensic evidence to back it up!

Grace claims she didn’t do it…

When documentary film-maker Sidney Ryan is hired by network television, she finds herself craving the independence and meaning of wrongful conviction cases she has worked on in the past. After reading years’ worth of letters from Grace and Grace’s best friend Ellie proclaiming her innocence and the issues with Grace’s case, Sidney gets the network to greenlight her investigation into Grace’s conviction for a real-time television docuseries. Sidney hopes to discover whether Grace is guilty, or whether she is a victim of a corrupt prosecution.

With evidence piling up, Sidney has a hit on her hands…

The public is enamored with the story of Grace Sebold, but as Sidney gets closer to the truth, she feels pressure by the network to deliver them the outcome they want. Sidney isn’t sure what the truth is, but she knows she has to deliver one slam-dunk of an ending! Can she find enough evidence to uncover the truth?

This is truly un-put-downable by about 60% in. I raced home from work to finish it! This is an action-driven book, not a character-driven book. Similar to the documentary viewers, the readers is uncovering the evidence along with Sidney as she races to finish the 10-part docuseries as it is already filming. I found myself questioning everything along with Sidney. Did Grace do it? Or was she innocent all along? Donlea does a fantastic job of leaving the suggestion of either scenario there, even as evidence is uncovered.

I really enjoyed the scene breaks with the summary of the documentary episodes. All of the settings and characters were so vivid, and I could really envision the scenes of the documentary as I read them. I found myself curious about so many of the characters! We see them all the way a viewer might—with snippets of knowledge about their relationships to Grace, to Julian, and to each other. In the same way a detective uncovers evidence, we begin to hear multiple perspectives on Grace and Julian, and with each new lead the puzzle gets even more complicated.

Throughout the book there is the feeling that you are almost to the truth, if you can just put the right pieces together in the right way. I’m sure this is how Sidney, and the detectives, and even Grace’s loved ones feel. I think fans of true crime documentaries and series will love this aspect to the book! It’s a mystery for the reader to solve, because you get the information the same time Sidney does.

I cannot wait to read more by this author!!!

Thank you to Kensington Books, Charlie Donlea, and to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sidney Ryan is an up and coming documentary producer about to tackle the story of a lifetime. One that could make or break her career. For the past two years she has been receiving letters from Grace Sebold, convicted of killing her boyfriend while vacationing in St Lucia ten years prior. Grace claims she is innocent and needs help proving she had nothing to do with the murder of her boyfriend. Grace had a bright future ahead of her before being tried and convicted of killing her boyfriend.

Sidney, with three successful documentaries under her belt, decides to go on a fact finding mission, which leads to holes in the case against Grace. Sidney’s documentary, Girl on the Beach, garners nationwide attention, leading her in the top spot in ratings. The documentary also sensationalizes the case against Grace when new evidence comes to light that has the potential to exonerate Grace after serving ten years in a St Lucia correctional facility. Is Grace performing one hell of an act or is she really innocent after all? Sidney wonders the same thing when she receives a letter that points to Grace being much more than what she claims to be. Is fame and fortune worth more to Sidney than the truth, because her life may depend on the answer to that question.

True crime documentaries are a huge hit on television. The Investigation Discovery channel on cable has many highly watched shows devoted to true crimes. It is one of the few channels in my home that is watched most frequently. Personally, I have always been interested in true crime stories from serial killers to murders and at best these type of shows sensationalize crimes that have taken place. So, it comes as no surprise that when I read the synopsis of Don’t Believe It by Charlie Donlea, I knew I had to read it. I am ecstatic to say that the story does not disappoint. I was sucked in right from the start as the story slowly builds leading to a twist that shocked the heck out of me. You ever get so shocked that your jaw just drops? Yeah, that was me! The ending is completely mind blowing and one that the author took a huge risk on, but it works and I wish more authors had the courage to do what was done here.

Don’t Believe It starts out strong with a solid plot that holds its momentum straight through to the end. I could not find one hole in this story at all. Everything worked from the suspense to the characters and through all the twists and turns. The entire story is so detailed and well written that I could not find one thing wrong with it. The story was gripping and quite honestly, I had a hard time figuring out if Grace Sebold was guilty or not. Charlie Donlea is definitely an author to watch out for. Five stars is not enough praise for this story. If Don’t Believe it is not on your TBR you are seriously missing out!

Sydney is an up and comer in the television business. She tackles legal cases with a questionable outcome. Her last three documentaries have proven that the innocent have been imprisoned, securing their releases. Grace Sebold has sat in prison in St. Lucia for the last ten years, convicted of the murder of her boyfriend. insisting all the while that she is innocent, she contacts Sidney. Sidney decides to investigate the case, and do so while making a new type of documentary. The audience will find out what she learns, as she herself learns it, good or bad.

Loved the way this was written, following the same format as that of the popular Serial or Making of a murderer. The book is divided, at least the first two thirds, into the investigating of evidence, interviewing those involved, and talking to Grace in prison. A rather unique inclusion, a retired detective who is in the hospital recovering from a leg amputation, he will become integral in the forming the conclusion of the case. It takes a big, unexpected twist towards the end, one I didn't see coming, and I had thought I had it all figured. Not!

ARC from Netgalley.

4 show-stopping stars to Don’t Believe It! ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

My first read from Charlie Donlea was engaging and propulsive and a fabulous Traveling Sister read to boot!

The Girl of Sugar Beach is a popular documentary covering whether Grace Sebold murdered her boyfriend while on spring break in St. Lucia. Grace has been in prison for 10 years, and Sidney Ryan agrees to produce the documentary in an effort to (hopefully) prove Grace’s innocence.

Sidney quickly becomes a pseudo-detective in her production role, and evidence falls in her lap that could change everything. Is Sidney really helping to free an innocent Grace, or is she possibly working for a brutal killer?

Overall, Don’t Believe It was an original, gripping, and fascinating read. It took some time to get into it, but once I did, it took off! I highly recommend this book to psychological thriller fans, and I plan to explore Donlea’s backlist!

Thank you to Charlie Donlea, Kensington Books, and Netgalley for the ARC. Don’t Believe It will be released on May 29, 2018!

First I want to thank Kensington and Netgalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Don’t Believe It by Charlie Donlea is a fast read. It tells the story of Grace Sebold, who was convicted and found guilty of murdering her fiancé while in St. Lucia. She has been in prison in St. Lucia for 10 years but claims she is innocent. Sidney Ryan is a producer of documentaries that have helped to free several wrongfully convicted prisoners. She receives a letter from Grace asking her to look into her case. Sidney does this and ends up producing a summer documentary called The Girl of Sugar Beach about Grace and her conviction. What really happened on Sugar Beach? You will have to read this book to find out. Many times I thought I had it figured out and I was wrong every time. The book goes back-and-forth from St. Lucia To New York City. Livia Cutty, the main character and medical examiner from Donnelly’s previous book The Girl Who Was Taken, has a very important cameo in this book. I very much enjoyed this story. The ending was not quite what I expected. If you haven’t read Charlie Donlea before this would be a good book to start with.

This is a good one!

Charlie Donlea jumps on the Serial/Making A Murder train with Don’t Believe It, and boy does he deliver! This is a tightly wound, dark psychological thriller that kept me guessing!

Sidney Ryan has a knack for creating enthralling true crime documentaries. Having successfully created two binge-worthy series, she now has a contract on a large tv network to create a third series. Her subject is quite controversial: Grace Sebold who was convicted 10 years ago for the murder of her boyfriend, Julian Crist, while on vacation in St. Lucia.

Grace was a 26-year-old medical student when she was arrested for Julian's murder. She claims that the St. Lucian police targeted her as a suspect and created evidence to match their claims. She is adamant that she is innocent and Sidney soon begins investigating what really happened when Julian died.

Sidney plans to air 10 installments about Grace’s case. She constructs them on a weekly basis and sometimes comes across vital information at the last minute. She is learning about the murder at the same time as the viewing audience, which is when readers are learning too.

Don’t Believe It had me constantly questioning Grace’s innocence--I changed my mind several times about whether or not she murdered Julian. Books that have me constantly questioning EVERYTHING are some of my favorites. While I did eventually figure things out before the book ended, I wasn’t completely sure of why what happened the way it did (sorry for lack of detail, I’m trying to avoid spoilers) until I got to the very end. There's also some unexpected big twists and turns that threw me for a loop.

I didn’t love this at first. I couldn't connect with Sidney’s character in the beginning and was annoyed with the chapters featuring Gus. However after I got about 25% in, everything clicked and my life began to revolve around reading this book. Overall, I really enjoyed reading Don’t Believe It! I especially loved the last sentence and the way it brought everything full circle.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Kensington Books in exchange for an honest review.

Yo. This book. THIS BOOK Y'ALL. Big huge Charlie Donlea fan anyway so of course I requested his new novel.

Okay, honest opinions... slow start. And I didn't really understand the concept of live airing a documentary, like it was sold and had started airing and no one, including the producer, knew how it would end. I didn't listen to Serial, et al, so this was new to me. Anyhoozle, the execution of how the story plays out was a little slow and jaunty for me, but the story itself was fascinating. I saw some shades of Amanda Knox, though this story doesn't borrow anything from that case except for an American jailed overseas for murder.

I tweeted the author that I was going to make a guess, at around 50% in. He said, great, lemme know if I tricked you or not. The answer? I got taken. I sorta guessed whodunit. Then changed my mind. Then figured out my first guess was actually correct. I say all this to say that this book will keep you GUESSING.

Fun read!

OOOOH- so hard to review without spoilers! Donlea frames this suspenseful novel with Sidney's effort to make a documentary about Grace, imprisoned in St Lucia for the murder of her boyfriend Julian. Did Grace do it? Well, Sidney doesn't think so (even if she's trying for impartiality) but then, well, she gets info that makes her rethink it. Of course she ends up investigating on her own. There are twists, red herrings, and lots of lies and secrets, all of which add up to a darn good page turner. I liked Sidney and the details of making a documentary. Grace is more problematic. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This is the perfect read for those who like a dash of the sometimes implausible but possible in their crime novels.

Being the third book from Charlie Donlea, I was sure that this book could go either way. I adored The Girl Who Was Taken and have read it again and again and Don't Believe It was similar and I really enjoyed this book. As a fan of crime fiction it kept me on the edge of my seat and I just needed to know what happened next and the way that Donlea throws in a twist ending did not disappoint. It has very quickly become my favourite of his books.

Charlie Donlea transports readers to an amazing Island location where the story is set. Readers are given a wonderful visual of the island as the are weaved into a story of mystery. This story will keep readers wanting more as they finish the book with a shocking ending the might not see coming.

The cast of characters are well written. The story flows well from topic to topic and readers will eat up this story.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Charlie Donlea Don't Believe it

If you’re one of the millions of people who loved Serial or Making a Murderer then you have got to read this book! It will also appeal to fans of true crime as well as fans of engaging, sharply written thrillers that leave you breathless in the end. I’m basically telling you that this book is for everyone.

Much as like Donlea’s last book, The Girl Who Was Taken, this is told via a unique perspective that breathes fresh life into the genre. Sidney is a producer and seeing the ins and outs of how a television show is made was really cool and something new for me. She doesn’t have the easy connections a police officer has at their fingertips, girlfriend has to seriously hustle to investigate and I loved her determination and grit. She is only in search of the truth, she doesn’t know if Grace is guilty or innocent, but there’s enough questionable material to pique her curiosity. Besides Sidney you visit several other points of view but I feel like revealing who is kind of spoilery, so I’ll just say that they were the type of viewpoints that make you go, YASSS, I’ve been dying to see things from this angle. If you read TGWWT then you get the added bonus of seeing a character from there as well, always so fun!

This book has such a detailed, well thought out and researched plot, from the laws and regulations of St. Lucia, to courtroom processes and all the way to pathology labs and then back again to the production offices where Sidney works, every single aspect was meticulously written and compelling to boot. Twisty doesn’t even come close to accurately describe the roller coaster ride that reading this book took me on, then Donlea delivers a few final killer twists and an explosive finale that knocked my socks off. This book is just as binge worthy as Serial but ten times more satisfying, my hat is off to Mr. Donlea, this is one of the best mysteries I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading.

Don’t Believe It in three words: Mutilayered, Skillful and Gripping.

Although once you start this book you have to finish it to find out if Grace did kill her boyfriend or not this book was just ok for me. Sometimes an author can be a bit to descriptive in the story enough that you start skipping pages because you just want the story. This for me is a good book but not a must read.

Reading Don’t Believe It is comparable to driving up a mountain road, moving through switchback after switchback, to reach the peak. And what a ride it is…

Charles Donlea is a masterful story teller. Grace Sebold, serving time for murder, reaches out to Sidney Ryan, a college friend and documentary film maker, for help in proving her innocence after 10 years in prison. The ten-part series begins and by the 4th episode is one of television’s most watched programs.

The book starts with the murder being described in specific detail by the murderer as it is being committed. The murder took place on St. Lucia, where Grace was tried, found guilty and is serving her sentence. Sidney locates experts to review the case against Grace and finds serious mistakes and errors were made. But that is just a starting point as Sidney digs and digs into people’s backgrounds and relationships.

The nature of the shifts running through the story make it difficult to review without revealing too much. What is easy to share is this: Donlea creates an amazing and complex plot that he fills with finely developed characters, realistic dialogue and a pace designed to maximize the suspense. The title, Don’t Believe It, captures the essence of this read and keep that in mind as you turn the pages.

I was given a ARC copy of this book for an honest review. What can be said about Don't Believe It? Well this is one of those book's that will grab you from the start and leave you wanting more when it ends! In this story we get to meet Sidney a film maker who is hoping to make it big with her true crime doc for network T.V. she has had other films that were big but were independent and helped to over turn two wrong convictions. We also get to meet Grace who is the one that the doc will be about and her crime of murdering her then boyfriend Julian on the island of St. Lucia. The book tells the story about Grace and her crime but just like the people at home watching the show we only get to find out things as Sidney is learning them. This book is griping and will keep you on the edge of your seat waiting to see if Grace truly did murder Julian or if she was wrongly accused as she has stated for the past ten years. Charlie Donlea does a great job of spinning this story and making you believe one thing while another is going on. This writer will keep you second guessing your self all the way till the dramatic end of this book!

Don’t Believe It by Charlie Donlea is a thriller read that follows up and coming filmmaker Sidney Ryan as she revisits and old murder case to make a documentary. Sidney hopes to bring justice to innocent people convicted and have their sentences overturned through her work.

For ten years Grace Sebold has sat in a prison in St. Lucia after being convicted of murdering her then boyfriend. Grace has written to Sidney over and over through the years always proclaiming her innocence and how she was wrongly convicted. She claims that all the evidence used against her was circumstantial and the police targeted her in their investigation.

Sidney knows she’s competing with the network’s big star and that she needs to bring in the ratings for her twelve week documentary featuring Grace’s case. She brings in top experts to go through all the evidence and show that Grace has been wrongly convicted and as her audience grows Sidney knows the truth will come out in the end.

When reading Don’t Believe It I could see how this book may not be for everyone as it is just like reading a television documentary for the most of the book. We get the behind the scenes as the show is being taped and the evidence collected. Most of the story being told from Sidney’s point of view. There’s also a retired detective playing a part in the story that will all tie into the final wrap up as the story unfolds.

I really found the behind the scenes rather fun to read and couldn’t wait to find out how it would all unfold in the end. But I will say too I would also find myself interested in watching this type of true crime on television too so this type of format may not be for everyone as it is different than a normal thriller read.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Not bad Donlea... not bad at all!!! After having read Summit Lake by Charlie Donlea I became a fan quickly.

This is my second book I've read by this author and again have been very impressed by his talent and writing style!

Mr. Donlea has an excellent way of grabbing his readers from page one and taking them on one heck of a ride! I really really enjoyed this one! What I like most is his writing style. The use of symbolism and metaphors is ON point!

Sidney Ryan is a documentary producer. She finds inmates that have been convicted of a crime that appears they did not commit. Sidney has received many letters about a woman named Grace Sebold pleading her innocence. Sidney decides to look into Grace's case of killing her boyfriend in St. Lucia while on vacation with all of her friends. As Sidney starts investigating and producing her documentary on Grace... she finds that things start falling through the cracks. Nothing is adding up to what Grace and her friends/family are telling Sidney. Can Sidney find out the truth before it's too late?

Can I just say... I LOVED the documentary spice this added to the mix. I really enjoyed the characters as well and have to say that Gus stole my heart was my fav :)

And.... WOW can I just say the ending WAS the perfect icing on this cake!

4.5 stars for me on this one! I loved it :)

Thank you to Kensington Books and Netgalley for the arc.
Published to GR: 4/28/18
Publication date: 5/29/18

Read all my reviews at: https://brainfartsandbooks.wordpress.com

Argh! This book was so good! I couldn’t put it down. The story seems so straight forward at first. Grace is in prison for murdering her boyfriend while at a friends’ wedding. She takes a chance and writes to filmmaker Sidney Ryan who does documentaries on prisoners who were wrongfully accused of a crime. Grace pleads that she is innocent. When Sidney starts uncovering secrets of both Grace and her friends and family, it becomes a question of who’s telling the truth and who isn’t. Grace was a little annoying since she didn’t divulge important information to Sidney but overall the story was very well written and the ending was a shocker!

Thank you to Netgalley, Charlie Donlea, and Kensington for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.