Tell Me Lies by Carola Lowering is a tale of deceit, premeditation, suffering, and acceptance. It is told in dual POVs.

Lucy Albright starts college in California away from her parents specifically her mother. Lucy doesn't get along with her mother since an incident which occurred when she was younger. After it, she started calling her mother by her first name and wanted nothing to do with her.

In college, Lucy immediately starts making friends and is enjoying her new found freedom. She's drinking alcohol, experimenting with drugs and attending parties. It is at one of these parties where she first meets Stephen. At first, she wants nothing to do with him since he's not her type but soon she's falling for his charm and charisma.

Stephen De Marco is a serial dater. He enjoys having a girlfriend but being faithful is not in his repertoire. He has a wandering eye and when he sees beautiful, thin, and long-legged Lucy, he knows he must have her. He plans his every move learning everything he can about her in order to win her. What follows is nothing but pain for Lucy for years to come.

I won't deny it, I'm so frustrated after reading Tell Me Lies. I wanted to punch Stephen so bad. What a douchebag! Yes, I know there are plenty of "Stephens" out there in the world but I have no idea why he was able to seduce Lucy in the first place and then kept her going for years! He was a sociopath without remorse or conscience.

I can't say I like Lucy either. She blamed her mother for years but she was not any better. She was full of bad decisions even in the present. She was dating someone who was not worth it and she knew it. She still had problems with her self-confidence and self-respect. I felt like she didn't learn anything from her heartache.

One thing I can't forgive is that Lucy figures out a secret which Stephen is keeping for decades and she does NOTHING with this information. It wouldn't have been about revenge but providing closure instead.

Cliffhanger: No

3.5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was wild. This book took me right back to college, to a time where hormones and alcohol and insecurities rolled out the red carpet for bad decisions and toxic relationships. I feel like every one of us has been a Lucy at some point, or a Diana, or a Pippa. And we all know a Stephen, unfortunately. And as brutal as it is to take this journey with Lucy, as frustratingly clear as our own hindsight reveals her path to us, we've still all been there, wanting something that is so terribly wrong for us just because it's out of reach.

This story is hauntingly relatable for much of it. Sure, there are twists and dark turns that elevate it into a story that is both shocking and riveting and crazier than any life experiences I've had personally. But the bones of it are so real, so ugly, so honest. Tell Me Lies is a seriously twisted story of a college student convincing herself that something toxic and unhealthy is actually something perfect. It's a story of desperation and narcissism. It's a story of growing and learning and having to go through a whole lot of unsavory experiences in order to learn and grow and change.

Stephen is pretty horrible. At first, I saw every college guy in him. He just wants to get laid. He's selfish and self serving. He cheats on his girlfriend. He's a partier and a drinker and he says all the right things, flirts with every girl in the room, is underhanded and can manipulate any situation to make himself seem like a solid guy. We all knew that guy in college. But as this story unfolds, as Stephen shares more of himself from his own twisted point of view, it becomes disturbingly clear that there's something way off about Stephen. His unpredictable personally makes for a story that's precisely that.

These characters are so hard to like at times and I think it's because they represent everything we should've done differently at their age. They can't see beyond the superficial things they want. They don't see how self absorbed they are, or how ridiculous their behavior is, or how they should want more than what they're settling for. As infuriating as it is to watch, Lovering's portrayal of twenty somethings trying to figure out love and life while their perspectives are clouded by emotions and drugs and alcohol is disturbingly accurate.

Tell Me Lies is a story about a character who loses herself and finds herself thanks to the manipulative, detached, charming, deplorable guy she meets in college. This book is kind of a mindf*ck for so many reasons. I didn't know whether to throw my kindle in rage over the games Stephen plays or if I should just shake my head in shock over all that he gets away with. But it's kind of a kick to the stomach as well because I related to this story in ways I'm ashamed to admit. I've been a Lucy and I've been a Diana and I sold myself short by allowing myself to be treated like crap, let myself cry over a guy that was never worth it, and let myself stupidly grasp at straws for a relationship that I never should've held on to. This is NOT a feel good story. It's a cautionary tale for every college girl who will undoubtedly lose themselves in a guy. It's a hypnotic novel of heartache and desperation. It's funny in a baffling way, shockingly shameless and it's unputdownable the whole way through. This is one of those books that you know can't end well and you are SILENTLY PRAYING that it doesn't because what these characters desperately want is exactly what SHOULDN'T happen. Tell Me Lies is unlike anything I've ever read, a mind boggling portrayal of dysfunction that never felt good to read yet I couldn't look away. It's peppered with twists and turns that left my chin on the floor and knots in my stomach and a desperate need to get away from it despite the fact that I just couldn't put it down. And it ends in a way that is unsettling but right all at once. I was entertained. I was transfixed. I really enjoyed this story in a sick, twisted way and I look forward to much more from Carola Lovering.

It started with so much potential - I mean, who doesn't have that cringe-worthy ex that makes you shudder like you just drank rotten milk when you think of them - or more importantly how you were when you were with them. This story just drags on and on, long after you see Stephen for the psycho he is and are begging for Lucy to pull her head out and end it for good.

Baird College is supposed to be a stand in for one of the 5 Claremont McKenna schools. They're amazing, academic schools but they're in Claremont.. Even though its situated on the edge of Los Angeles County, its still at least an hour's drive from LA (at two in the morning with no traffic) so please stop saying you go to school in LA. That's like saying you go to school in the city when you're really at CSI (Go Dolphins!).

I was very pro-Lucy up until the last quarter of the book - then, after the umpteenth breakup/makeup/fight I just was done with her. It's like she will never learn.

Shame someone who was so obviously book smart didn't have a clue when it came to love.

One of my favorite books I have read this year. So enjoyable!

The relationship between Lucy & Stephen was like watching a gruesome car wreck that you couldn't turn your head away from. I couldn't decide who I disliked more because of how much I wanted Lucy to leave him. I seriously could not put this book down and devoured it in two days. Stephen is a character that I disliked very much but he was a very strong force through out the book going up against Lucy who couldn't seem to get away from him. It was a wicked jar of hearts of a book that definitely displays a toxic relationship. Thank you Netgalley & Atria.

This book evoked so many emotions inside me that I could hardly think straight! Tell Me Lies is a fantastic story that had me hooked. I look forward to reading more of the authors work in the future.

What a read! Carola Lovering has really wow’ed me with her debut novel, Tell Me Lies! Let me say if I hadn’t researched what other novels I can read from Carola, I would have had no clue she wasn’t a seasoned veteran!!! Everyone has either been the person, or has known someone who has fallen for the wrong guy, well this novel takes that concept to whole other level. Although the novel isn’t short, I found myself glued to my kindle to see how everything will play out and finished in record time. I was shocked by the very well timed twists and turns that had my eyes bulging out of my head! There was such a wide range of feelings I experienced while reading Tell Me Lies from wanting to give Lucy and huge hug, to other times I wanted to channel Cher and slap Lucy while screaming “snap out of it”! The characters were well developed and realistic - I haven’t been able to get them out of brain since I finished. Tell Me Lies is a full 5 star read that I recommend everyone read. I absolutely cannot wait to read what Carola Lovering comes out with next!