Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Lies is a well-paced thriller told from the perspective of Joe Lynch, an average, middle-class father who finds his world turned upside down when he makes a split decision to follow his wife's car to a parking garage. Seeds of doubt and jealousy are sown as he catches his wife in a (seemingly) compromising situation with her best friend's husband Ben, which soon leads to a game of cat and mouse, culminating to a plot twist that was truly startling.

The use of social media and cell phone technology heighten the tension, as Joe tries to sift the truth amid the lies and deception. The short chapters and first person narration give the story a sense of urgency and as the story unfolds, the reader is left questioning Joe's actions and his innocence. The revelations toward the end of the story were startling, and (strangely enough) rather relevant to (late 2018 US) current events - a twist that I should have spotted but didn't, given the structure and character perspective from which the story was told.

This would make for a good film - a variation of the "unreliable narrator" story that has social (and political) relevance.

WOW!! This is a gripping, heart pounding, can't put it down until you're finished thriller. From the beginning, I couldn't help but imagine how someone could get caught up in a similar situation. The ending was brilliant! Buy this book and shut off the world!

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.*

Lies is the first book by T.M. Logan that I've read. I enjoyed the writing style and was quickly engrossed in the fast-paced thriller.

It is the story of Joe Logan, an average London schoolteacher, father to 4-year-old William, and husband for nearly 10 years to Mel. The story opens with Joe & William in the car headed home when William spies a car that looks just like his mummy's. Joe sees the plate and realizes it IS her car so they quickly change lanes and follow her to a car park to surprise her. The carpark is underground at a hotel, and they miss catching her before she heads in so Joe runs up to see if he can find her. He spies her at a table having a heated discussion with the husband of one of her close friends. Something doesn't feel right to Joe, but he goes back to William in the carpark and waits for Mel to come down. She leaves in such a hurry that they don't' speak to her. But when the husband follows shortly after, Joe confronts him and it turns physical.

Joe's predictable, comfortable life quickly becomes utterly unrecognizable as events beyond his comprehension play out.

While not literary genius, Lies had plenty of plot twists and kept me guessing right up until the end. In the vein of B.A. Paris, I'd definitely recommend this one. I read it in two days!!

*With thanks to netgalley for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

During a normal drive home with his young son, Joe Lynch’s life suddenly comes crashing down on him. He spots his wife with another man. Joe can’t believe he’s eyes, but it soon becomes apparent that everything he ever believed in is nothing more than lies.

Things quickly unravel for Joe as his perfect family life is completely ripped apart. He is challenged every step of he way. All he know is that he will do whatever it takes to protect his son.

This book grabbed me from the first page. I didn’t want to put this one down. It was like a bag of potato chips - I just wanted to read one more chapter. I couldn’t stop at one more, though. This is exciting, edge-of-your-seat reading.

I don’t want to give too much away but this book shows you how things aren’t always as they seem. I thought I figured it all out before the end, but I was off. I had part of it, but I didn’t have the whole puzzle put together. When I got to the end, I was stunned by the big reveal.

The characters literally jump off the pages in this fast-paced thriller. The excitement never slowed down. I will be looking for more books by this author.

I received an ARC from Netgalley for a review. WHAT IF YOUR WHOLE LIFE WAS BASED ON LIES? Lies is a fast paced thriller and the use of technology and social media definitely plays a role in the story. This is a debut novel from T.M. Logan. Lies is well-written, and the short chapters makes it a quick read. Lots of twists and turns, and a somewhat shocking end.

This book was Amazing!!! From the first chapter to the end, I was on the edge. The plot although simple in nature, isn't what you think. It is a plausible story. The entire time you are reading it, you think "This could really happen". I definitely recommend. T.M. Morgan will be on my radar from now on!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of the e-book in exchange for an unbiased review.

https://hockeysticksgripsandtrips.com/2018/10/10/book-review-lies-by-tm-logan/

Summary:

When Joe Lynch is driving his son home, his son insists his mother's car is in a parking lot of a hotel across the street. He looks closer and realizes that it is his wife's car. He drives into the hotel car parking lot and that's when his life changed...........

He witnesses her in an angry altercation with family friend Ben. Once his wife leaves, there is a confrontation between the men, and Ben is knocked unconscious. At this same time, Joe's young son has an asthma attack - and Joe must go home to get his inhaler.

When he returns, desperate to make sure Ben is okay Joe finds that Ben has disappeared.



Once he confronts his wife, the lies began to spiral out of control, and Joe's life with never be the same.

My thoughts:

If I wouldn't have looked at the cover, I would have thought this was a Harlan Coben novel. If you like Harlan Coben, you definitely will like this book!

It is fast paced and suspenseful. The twists and turns keep coming every single chapter. I had a feeling that the result that occurs was going to happen, but there were some twists I didn't see coming.

I gave this a 4/5 stars on Goodreads.

This book was sheer genius. With a chilling plot twist and the brilliantly interwoven message regarding the immense power of social media, Lies has propelled to my top ten favorites books of 2018.

I won this book both digitally and a physical copy. I really enjoyed it. This book had me drug in, and pages turning until I reached the end. It's been a while since a book has done that for me.

A roller coaster of a ride riddled with lies. Once you start reading you are hooked. Twists and turns and surprises are around every corner. Guaranteed to keep you up late at night.

FIRST SENTENCE: "My son's first word wasn't Daddy or Mummy. His first word was Audi."

THE STORY: Joe Lynch is happy with his life. He has a beautiful, loving wife and an adorable four year old son. As a teacher he can spend quality time with his child. It only takes one impulsive seemingly innocent decision to bring down his whole life.

WHAT I THOUGHT:Good writing, careful plotting, full of unexpected twists makes this a fun read.

BOTTOM LINE: If you like psychological thrillers, you will totally enjoy LIES. Just be sure to suspend disbelief since some details may seem a bit unrealistic.

Hardcover: 432 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Press (September 11, 2018)
ISBN-10: 9781250182265
ISBN-13: 978-1250182265

DISCLAIMER: I received a free e-copy of LIES by T.M. Logan from NetGalley/St. Martin's Press for my honest review.

This was such an excellent read! T.M. Logan did an astounding job with the story line and character development. I can't wait to purchase a few copies for my book loving friends!

3.5 Stars. So I read this in under 24 hours. I couldn't put it down. What a thrill ride! Until the very end. It's a very rare occasion for a thriller to surprise me in the end, and Lies failed to surprise me, as well. That's probably just me, though. For me it's more about the journey than the destination, anyway. This thriller was timely and relevant. It will have you doubting your friends, doubting your spouse, and deleting your Facebook account.

Let me just say this, I was hooked from the very first page. "Lies" takes readers on a crazy, psychological ride; the heart-pounding twists and turns don’t ever stop. I really liked that it was unpredictable; that is rare these days. If you like suspense, cop dramas, whodunits, and to be on the edge of your seat, you will love this book!

***Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the chance to review this book. The following is my honest opinion of the book.***

I read the book description up above and was intrigued to say the least. I love reading different types of books and every so often a thriller will just sound too good to turn down. This is exactly what happened with this book. I would be lying if I told you it was one of those books you have figured out from page 5. I had no idea how it was gonna turn out. Joe is such a great character. I love that he was the victim in the story instead of his wife. I wish I could tell you all the many twists and turns that surprised me but it would be giving to much away. I WILL tell you that I have not read a book quite like it. It was a page turner from the beginning and it truly kept me guessing. I can say that this is one of the best suspense/thriller books I have read in a very, very long time. I rated this one 5 out of 5 stars.

This is a suspenseful and twisty novel. I did not expect to enjoy it as much as I did and if you like thrillers, then more likely than not you will have a good time with this story.

Joe is driving his son home when they spot his wife's car on the road. He decides to follow it and watches as she arrives at a hotel and has a conversation with their friend Ben.

From that moment Joe starts question why his wife is in that location and having, what appears to be, a disagreement with Ben. With his mind in turmoil, Joe makes a decision that irrevocably changes the course of his life. What is that decision? You will have to read to find out.

I found the plot well-paced and flowing. At some points I questioned the decisions the characters made but that is the case with almost every book I read. The author did a good job at building and maintaining the suspense.

Overall, I enjoyed it and recommend it to readers of contemporary fiction, thrillers, and misteryes.

Received ARC from the publisher via Netgalley

Good psychological mystery. Joe is going about his life, minding his own business with everything right in his life. Suddenly, he sees his wife's car, in a place where it's not expected to be, and Joe's life spirals out of control from there. Joe has a naivety about his marriage that contributes to his situation. As the truth comes out of the lies, the story ends with a shocking conclusion.

Imagine that you find out one day.....seemingly out of the blue.....that your entire life is based on lies. All of it. What you thought you could trust, suddenly you can't believe in. An altercation with a family friend leaves a man on the sidewalk injured. Joe leaves the scene to get medical help for his son who is having an asthma attack. When he returns, the man is gone.....but then the text messages start. Joe's life rapidly disintegrates. Lies, lies, lies....all lies.

I found this book a bit hard to read. The plot is disturbing. I didn't feel sorry for Joe. What I felt was more akin to pity, I think. He's just.....stupid. Completely naive. What person today reaches their mid-30s and can't discern anything about human behavior? He is completely blindsided by everything. I guess maybe when you are completely content, you ignore warning signs? The entire time I was reading I kept wanting to grab Joe and shake him, yelling "Stop being so bloody stupid!'' All of the characters are hiding something....lying, manipulating, cheating. Just an unlikable crew. It was hard to sit back and watch Joe's life totally come to pieces all because of one spur-of-the-moment innocent choice to please his young son....BOOM..... One decision.....and he can never go back to content.

Powerful story. But I felt emotionally exhausted as I finished reading. All the horrible lies. All the twists. The absolute trashing of a man's entire life......OMG. That sort of train wreck is hard to watch. I did stick through the entire book because I just HAD to know the entire truth and what was going to ultimately happen. But I didn't get entirely sucked into the story because I just felt Joe was completely naive....and the rest of the cast were horrendous human beings. But, if a book gives me strong feelings....even negative ones....then it's well written and got its point across. Do we ever really totally know the people around us? Everyone has secrets. Everyone tells lies. How much can any person really trust? And what happens when things start to fall apart? For Joe, they fall apart in a disastrous way.

Well-written, but disturbing. Several surprising twists. I had to watch a few sitcom episodes after I finished this. Needed a fast palate cleanser to clear my head.

I will definitely be reading more by this author! I know now to keep a funny movie queued in wait for me to finish. His other book, 29 Seconds, sounds just as disturbing. The tag line says "How much could you lose in 29 seconds?'' I might just need two funny movies after that one!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from St. Martin's Press via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

This book is easy to read, and a bit predictable, but it still holds my attention. Lies, they always come undone and that's what's doing in Joe Lynch. His last name fits, this guy is framed and virtual "lynched" with what he's going through. I found it to be fast-moving, with nice short chapters. I can see this one on TV as a movie.

My copy came from Net Galley. My review is my own, left of my own free will.

Joe Lynch is a decent, caring man who dearly loves his wife and son, enjoys his teaching job, and feels lucky to have such a great life. Then, one day while driving on the freeway with his son, the boy spots his mother’s car and wants to see her. Joe makes a split-second decision that will drastically change his life and follows her off the freeway. He gets the shock of his life when he catches up with her, just in time to see something that shakes him to the core and upends his life.
Read this enjoyable whodunnit to find out what he saw and the chaos that ensued.
Note: I received an advance copy of the ebook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Joe Lynch’s life is changed forever when he is charged for murder. Did Joe commit this crime? His life has been perfect until this point. His wife is an adulteress and Joe and his son see her car pulling into a motel. He thought he knew his wife so well!

This book will keep you guessing what is going to happen next and their is a surprise at the end that you will not expect!

I definitely recommend reading this book