Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this in return for an honest review.

This book was strange but it didn't really have the thriller like feel I was hoping for. I knew who Mary was from the start and that may have ruined some of the suspense for me, but it didn't really feel like that was set up to be a twist.

In the end this book just left me feeling sad. Sad for both of the main characters that we are reading about. I do appreciate that the author is trying to bring awareness to mental illness but I am not sure it left the reader with much hope.

We start out with what I would consider a very unreliable narrator, and it is always hard for me to get too invested in the character with that going for them. Although, since the book is title Better Liar, it is not a surprise that both of the main characters are set up to be unreliable and liars.

It wasn't a horrible book, but it was strange and the twists were not at all shocking.

I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. The characters really held my interest. The chapters were short and I enjoyed the flashbacks as well.
Leslie needs to find her estranged sister Robin, who she hasn’t had contact with in ten years. Both of their parents have died and the clause in her father’s will states that they both must be present to receive their shares of the inheritance. Leslie finds her sister in an apartment outside of Vegas but she is too late as Robin died of an overdose just a few hours before she got there. Leslie desperately needs the money and doesn’t know what to do when she meets a stranger Mary, who she saves from an ex-boyfriend and brings back to her hotel room. After several drinks, Leslie comes up with a plan to get the money. Mary seems to have an uncanny resemblance to Robin and Leslie has Robin’s passport. Since no one has seen Robin in over 10 years, Leslie talks Mary into impersonating Robin in exchange for 1/2 of the money. Leslie brings Mary to her home to meet her husband and son. Mary is convinced that there are secrets that Leslie is keeping from her and the money must be really important for her to bring a stranger home to her family. Mary is determined to find out Leslie’s secrets and follows her and goes through her home and starts to pit the pieces
of her story together and sift through the lies. Mary also has secrets of her own. Who will be the first to reveal their secrets and can they still play their parts in order to claim the inheritance?
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I really enjoyed this book, the characters were well developed. It had an interesting plot. I would be interested in reading more

So, here's the thing: this is a wild ride, from start to finish. There are so many twists throughout - some obvious, some less so - that I was truly in it at the beginning. That said, are you ever reading something where you want to know what happens, but would be totally fine with just reading a synopsis with full spoilers? Because that's how I felt about halfway through. This book is twisty and the story is captivating, but it's also so nuanced that at some points, I was just skimming to get to the next big reveal.

Generally, motherhood as a plot point can be done really well or really poorly. In this case, it felt like a mix of the two. I totally understand why Leslie would be concerned about her capacity as a parent based on her mother, and why she may not recognize the signs of PPD. But also, if you recognize there may be an issue, how is your first thought to hire someone to kill you and/or run away entirely? I didn't love that point.

Thank you to Netgalley, Ballantine, and Tanen Jones for the digital ARC of this book!

I honestly don’t really know how to categorize this story. A psychological thriller? A twisted contemporary? A fantastic debut? I think all of those descriptions, and many others, suit this novel very well. I thoroughly enjoyed this story, and highly recommend it. Taken Jones’ writing is layered and immersive, perfectly capturing a moody and mysterious atmosphere in these pages. This story digs deeply into family relationships, and the shadows that parents cast over the lives of their children. Not to mention, the plot was extremely engaging and unpredictable. This book was a ride, and I loved it!

This incredibly engaging thriller will be one of those novels you stay up late to finish, racing towards the unpredictable conclusion. The characters are fascinating and multi-dimensional, and the intriguing plot will sweep you along on an unique ride.

Okay, you want unreliable narrators and mysteries that keep you reading late into the night? This is totally your book.

I was drawn into this story from the moment I started reading it, especially from Robin's point of view. I spent the entire book not really sure what was going on, who was telling the truth, and who was lying about what. Every time I thought I had figured out at least a part of what was going on one of the characters just slapped me in the face!

I also liked that this book speaks about family and grief and the things a woman may or may not feel after having a child. These themes run throughout this novel, and although it's supposed to be a suspenseful book, it also talks about things that can flow through all of our lives, which made it very real as well.

The fact that this is a debut novel from Tanen Jones shows that she's got some incredible talent and I really can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Definitely would recommend this fabulous novel!

The Better Liar by Tanen Jones is a fiction about a game of deception to claim an inheritance. Leslie Voigt, who haven't seen her sister Robin for over ten years, finds her dead in her Las Vegas apartment. With her sister dead, she will be unable to claim the inheritance their father left behind, which requires both sisters to be present to claim their share of $50,ooo each. Leslie meets Mary, a girl strapped for cash, who bears an uncanny resemblance to Robin. She comes up with a plan; Mary impersonate Robin and get her share of the inheritance. Soon, Mary realizes there is more to what Leslie is telling her. Leslie finds out Mary has secrets of her own too.

The story switches from three different narratives: Leslie, Robin and Mary. The beginning of the story starts off slow and seemed to drag a bit. Robin's narrative caused a bit of confusion for me, as she was dead. However, I could see why the author told the story from her POV; it gave a bit of context to Leslie and Robin's childhood, and explains a bit as to why they are the way that they are at the end.

I enjoyed the storyline, but the ending ruined it for me. I am still confused about the reasoning behind the ending. I don't want to leave any spoilers so I will not say what happened, but the ending really took a huge plunge in my opinion. It did not leave me satisfied with answers.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author Tanen Jones, and publisher for providing me with an ARC, in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

If psychological thrillers are your thing then you need to read this book. I confess that I usually figure books like this out pretty quickly but with this one I had NO IDEA. Great book to seep you on the edge of your seat!!

Absolute page-turner. Unique characters, intriguing plot line that kept me reading late into the night. The twists and turns kept me guessing til the end. Highly recommended

I didn't read the synopsis of this book before starting it, so I was curious to see where it went. It was a twisty novel, and at its center, an exploration into mental illness and post partum depression. As someone who is bipolar AND who has experienced PPD, much of this book really resonated with me. It didn't end as I expected, but the ending made sense. I will definitely be looking for books by this author in the future.

Each book is like an unopened gift. We might have some idea what's inside and if we're lucky the inside is better than what we imagined. The Better Liar kept surprising me as I got further inside the story. The characters were interesting as layer after layer was uncovered. There were dynamic twists that changed the plot in unexpected ways. How families can fail at rearing healthy children and the consequences of hidden mental instability are explored. The story is told from the points of view of two very different sisters and held my interest right up to the very last page.

I received an Advanced Reader's Copy from Ballentine Books through NetGalley. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.
#TheBetterLiar #NetGalley

Creepy, scary, lonely....

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I honestly did not figure out the full scope of the story until about 80% through the book.

The family dynamics, secrets and behavior lead you to several assumptions as to what is going on.
How well do you know your family. How trustworthy are your childhood memories.

Two sisters in a tale if love. Devotion and disappointment.

In this book, a desperate woman convinces a stranger to impersonate her dead sister in order to get their inheritance. I was really caught up in this story--both the writing and plot were engaging and I couldn't wait to get reading each night so see if the two women would be able to pull off of the deception. The whole story was so well done -- up to the end which seemed kind of rushed and just didn't have the same attention and believability as the rest of the book.

THis book started out with an interesting premise. The more I read, the more I struggled to stay with the story.

Woah, this book was great! It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time!! It was full of mystery and twist and turns you won’t see coming!

Really enjoyed this one because it was not too predicable. There was just the right amount of humor to elieviate the tension but the story still kept going at a good pace. I tried to figure out what was going to happen atthe end but was surprised. Yet, looking back, it all made sense.

truth is a figment of the imagination in The Better Liar by Tanen Jones. When Leslie is appalled to find her long lost sister Robin, dead, she serendipitously finds a stand in. Mary needs out of Vegas for her own reasons, so when Leslie offers her Robin’s share of the inheritance in exchange for well, becoming Robin for a week, the two women embark on a mutually duplicitous journey. What else is Leslie not telling Mary? What is Mary not saying? So many lies, abruptly shifting perspectives, and revelations to keep you guessing until the end. Cynical and darkly entertaining.

This was a well written, twisty thriller. I read through it rather quickly, and it kept me guessing through out. I’ll be looking for more from this author in the future. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced review copy.

Thanks to Netgalley for the arc.
In order to claim the portion of her inheritance, Leslie needs her sister to sign on the dotted line. But after tracking her down, she finds Robin dead from an over dose. But Leslie is not one to give up. She schemes a stranger named Mary, into impersonating Robin. It all sounds simple...until it's not and things get complicated as lies breeds more lies. A solid read.