This is the second in the Undertaker’s Daughter series. I felt I should have read book #1 before starting this one as insufficient transitions and not enough back story included, so I was unable to get comfortable in the characters and setting. Also, I hate books that end on cliff-hangers, and this one certainly does that.

Overall, I felt this attempted to be another series akin to Patricia Cornwell’s Kay Scarpetta series; however, the Undertaker’s Daughter series lacks the sophistication of the Scarpetta series as well as the quality of writing. This is built as romantic suspense, but the romance is minimal (which I am okay with), but if you are a romance reader, you’ll be disappointed. There are abundant twists and turns, many of which don’t feel intrinsic to the storyline. Typically I can get so involved in a book like this that I stay up all night reading it. I was able to put this down without difficulty at bedtime and, due to its multiple inconsistencies and erratic quality of writing, had trouble wanting to pick it back up the next evening.

I’m gonna start off this review by saying that I haaaaate cliffhangers with a burning passion. And if that’s you too, then you should absolutely not read this book until the series is complete, because otherwise you’ll be very annoyed and frustrated. There’s an obvious overriding series arc with a ‘big bad’ who doesn’t even make an appearance in this book, but is constantly on the mind of (and manipulating from afar) the characters we’re following. There’s a character who is very obviously a ‘bad guy’ who appears right at the end of this one and is clearly going to play a part in the next book, but right here he looks like a deus ex machina, his existence not even signaled earlier in the story.

Despite all those things which mean I should probably loathe this, it’s such a riveting, action-packed storyline that I really couldn’t. I haven’t read the first one in the series and I definitely want to, because there’s obviously lots of fascinating stuff that’s already happened to our main character, Doctor Rowan Dupont. With a prolific serial killer intimately connected with her family, Rowan has retreated from her high-powered job consulting with the Nashville PD to run her family’s funeral home, but murder has followed her home to the small town of Winchester. With the body count rising, Rowan’s closest friend Billy, the chief of police, needs her expert psychiatric help to crack the cases, but getting involved draws her into danger she doesn’t see coming.

Debra Webb absolutely knows how to build the suspense in a story, and I’m keen to read the rest of the series, but my dislike for books that don’t complete their own story arcs keep me from giving this a maximum five stars. I’m knocking off one for that frustrating cliffhanger ending.

This is an intense, twisted, addictive, complex, jaw-dropping novel! Not only is it a very well-written book with wonderfully-interesting characters, but the tension builds at just the right pace as the story unfolds. It was an artful melding of twisted psychological thrills and nail-biting suspense.

*I received a complimentary ARC of this book from NetGalley & HARLEQUIN - MIRA (U.S. and Canada) in order to read and provide a voluntary and honest review, should I choose to do so.

#TheLiesWeTell #NetGalley

EXCERPT: With gloved hands, Rowan gently examined the final mask of skin. The edges were clean and fairly smooth, like the others. Whoever had removed the faces had first made a meticulous incision around the entire boundary of the hairline, in front of the ears and then down and beneath the chin, tracing the mandible. Finally, the skin had been removed with painstaking slowness to ensure there were no sudden tears, or thin or uneven spots. The work had been executed with surgical precision. There was, of course, no way to determine if the removal was completed postmortem, or if the victims had still been breathing.

As if that was not grotesque enough, more skin had been removed, presumably from the bodies of the victims, and tanned like leather for use as a binding. Each face was ensconced inside its own book. Each book was unique in texture and varied ever so slightly in colour, maybe due to age or maybe related to ethnicity.

ABOUT THIS BOOK: Doctor Rowan Dupont knows a serial killer is coming for her. Julian Addington has been waiting. Watching. And it’s only a matter of time before he strikes. But what Julian doesn’t know is that Rowan is ready for him. And more than anything she wants answers. How well did the depraved killer actually know her mother? And how many lies have been spun in the years since she took her own life?

Working alongside her childhood friend Police Chief Billy Brannigan, Rowan is determined to get to the bottom of her mother’s puzzling suicide once and for all—even if it means exposing an unsettling past. It certainly seems like her family’s Victorian funeral home has borne witness to more than one dark secret, but when a recent double homicide leads to an even grislier discovery, separating the truth from the lies might be the last thing Rowan does.

MY THOUGHTS: I blew hot and cold on this book the whole way through.

Did it deliver what I expected? No. It came close in parts, but was inconsistent.

There were parts that were beautifully written, like the passage I have quoted above. But overall, I was disappointed. There was no depth to the characters. The dialogue is often stilted. The murder-mystery wasn't, a mystery I mean. It was glaringly obvious who was behind those deaths.

The whole thing felt exaggerated. I could not settle into it. It didn't flow. One minute I was thinking, 'Yes! She's got it!' And the next I would be groaning, 'Whaaaat? You have to be kidding. What is she thinking?'

And that is without my even starting on the procedural errors....

I have not read the first in this series, of which The Lies We Tell is #2. I had planned to, but after this experience I will be removing The Undertaker's Daughter from my tbr list. Not a series that I will be following on with.

😕😕.5 reluctant stars

THE AUTHOR: DEBRA WEBB is the USA Today bestselling author of more than 140 novels, including reader favorites the Shades of Death, the Faces of Evil and the Colby Agency series. She is the recipient of the prestigious Romantic Times Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense as well as numerous Reviewers Choice Awards. In 2012 Debra was honored as the first recipient of the esteemed L. A. Banks Warrior Woman Award for her courage, strength, and grace in the face of adversity. Recently Debra was awarded the distinguished Centennial Award for having achieved publication of her 100th novel.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to MIRA via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Lies We Tell by Debra Webb for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system, please refer to my Goodreads.com profile or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon and my webpage

This was a great addition to the Undertaker's Daughter series. The book is written in such a way that you didn't have to read the first book prior to reading this. The plot moved fast with lots of twists and turns. Highly recommend!

Favorite Quotes:

That was the thing about secrets. Secrets never stayed secret forever.

She hadn’t analyzed the realization too deeply in the past. Honestly, this was the first time the thought had fully formed in her brain. Ideas and conclusions so very close to that thought had bobbed to the surface of the ocean of others flooding her life lately.

She closed the bag wondering when she had so thoroughly become her father? He had always chatted with the clients. She vividly remembered walking into the embalming room and hearing him carrying on a conversation with the person on the mortuary table. As a teenager she had thought it was completely bizarre. It was true, she supposed. You did become your parents.

She stared directly at him. Her famous eyes, one blue and one green, were as vivid as if light poured out from them.

Paranoia. It was spreading inside her like a disease she couldn’t stop.


My Review:

As impossible as it may be, I am even more fascinated by this complex and captivating tale than ever, it just keeps turning over and infinitely expanding while tickling my gray matter and provoking my curiosity. This case is as slippery as an eel and ingeniously plotted. In addition to being well entertained, I’ve also gleaned a considerable amount of knowledge concerning mortuary services, a ghastly yet necessary and interestingly evolved process.

Rowan has discovered that her mother’s secrets were much darker than anyone ever imagined and has uncovered unsettling notations in researching her parent’s journals. But that is just a pittance to the disturbing and hair-raising events that take place throughout the various active and intriguingly nuanced storylines.

I am irrevocably enthralled by and enamored with this author’s well-honed storytelling and am currently coveting all her clever words. How has she eluded my notice all this time as she has an impressive backlist of over one hundred forty novels? I am ashamed of myself but determined to make up for my slothful dereliction and have added her to my list of favorite authors.

This is the first time I have not only read this series but this author as well. A serial killer is on the loose and from what I understand is after the main character for some reason. This is the problem sometimes with starting a series where it’s not the first book. Her mother committed suicide. Her dad and her sister are dead. I will be reading the first book to get the whole story. Her cop friend is making sure she is ok while trying to see if she’s hiding anything. Sparks are flying between the two. I can’t wait to find out more about this story. The twists and turns in the book kept me on the edge of my seat at the end. I feel like I will be more engrossed in the story once I read the first book.

So I wanted darker and this one definitely delivered the darker! There are serial killers galore and family secrets on top of family secrets. And these aren't happy little secrets or even sad family secrets these are some seriously disturbing secrets. Rowan is an interesting character with a background in law enforcement, psychology and all the skills learned from growing up/inheriting a funeral parlor. Not only is her professional career varied and a bit dark but her family story provides for a whole boatload of baggage for her to carry around. Her friendship with local cop Billy and her coworker Charlotte as well as her relationship with her dog Freud humanized her quite a bit which was very much needed.



The mystery is a wild one. Just what secrets was her mother hiding and how does it connect to Rowan's former mentor and recently discovered serial killer Julian Addington? But there's a lot more to it then that. Rowan's mother was a complicated woman and Rowan is just beginning to discover how complicated. The events in the book are tied to the events in the previous book. I did see some reviews that mentioned being a bit confused. I, however, didn't have an issue with that. I felt like there was enough backstory given that I had no problem understanding what was going on. My issue with the book is that at times there's a certain repetitiveness to Rowan's internal thoughts and we get a LOT of her internal thoughts. I mean granted her childhood was horrific and her adulthood wasn't much better but I didn't feel like I needed to be in her head quite as much as I was. As well I had a hard time believing Rowan was as accomplished as she supposedly was. At times she seems weak or makes spectacularly bad decisions and it didn't go along with what her background was supposed to be. Despite all this the pacing was good and it was an entertaining if disturbing read!

The Lies We Tell is the second book in this series and I enjoyed it as much, if not more, than I did the first book.

Debra Webb has joined my auto-purchase list because both of these books kept me intrigued and on the edge of my seat from the beginning to the end. If you like a fast paced, tightly plotted, exciting read, this series is for you.

I can't wait for the next in this series, but sadly, I'm sure that's at least a year away!

Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an ARC at my request. Thoughts in this review are my own and happily given because this was a great book.

The Lies We Tell starts off well enough, and there is a mystery here, but for the life of me, I'm not quite sure exactly what that mystery was. Is Julian out to get Rowan? Did her mother have some involvement in it all? Was her father the man she thought he was? Oh, and then, we have two murders that have Rowan and Billy running around and asking questions. And exactly why is the undertaker so involved in a police investigation anyway? So, yes, there were questions, loads of questions with very few answers. I suppose this story is several mysteries in one with none of them getting the focus they need.
The thing is this is part of a series, and I'll admit that I didn't know that when I started reading. That said, it didn't take me long to figure it out. I'll just add here, that I would not recommend this book as a standalone. The author does give some backstory, but it's not really enough to get a good feel for what's happened so far and at the same time, it's repetitive. Yes, that left me a little befuddled too, but it is what it is. I'm not even sure how many times we're told that Julian is a prolific serial killer. I get it, this dude has killed a lot of people, and he's obsessed with Rowan. I can remember that without it being repeated. So, it's safe to say that the repetitiveness of this one annoyed me.
Quite often, I'll grab a book in the middle of the series and like what I find enough to go back and start at the beginning - Even if I don't understand everything that's mentioned in said mid-series book. That is not the case with The Lies We Tell. To sum it up, the story is convoluted, and parts of it seem to almost go in circles. I was less than impressed with Billy and Rowan who spend an awful lot of time running in those previously mentioned circles. For a smart woman, she wouldn't even remember to eat if Billy didn't constantly provide meals for her. Basing my opinion on what I've found here, I won't be bothering with earlier books in the series.
At the risk of being spoiler-ish, I'll add that Julian isn't the only serial killer I learned about in this book, so I can only deduce that Rowan is some kind of serial killer magnet. If that seems a little farfetched, I thought so too. On a positive note, one case is solved in this winding road of a story, but I still ended up with more questions than answers, and then it just ends. It's more open-ended than cliffhanger, but it felt like this whole thing was just one big set up for the next book in the series. One that I won't be bothering to check out.

DID Not realise this was book 2 of series, When reading this I was not sure what as happening or who was who, I was told you could read this on its own but honesty for an avid reader who likes to read books in order this wasn't for me.

Doctor Rowan Dupont knows a serial killer is coming for her. Julian Addington has been waiting. Watching. And it’s only a matter of time before he strikes. But what Julian doesn’t know is that Rowan is ready for him. And more than anything she wants answers. How well did the depraved killer actually know her mother? And how many lies have been spun in the years since she took her own life? Working alongside her childhood friend Police Chief Billy Brannigan, Rowan is determined to get to the bottom of her mother’s puzzling suicide once and for all—even if it means exposing an unsettling past. It certainly seems like her family’s Victorian funeral home has borne witness to more than one dark secret, but when a recent double homicide leads to an even grislier discovery, separating the truth from the lies might be the last thing Rowan does.
This was a pretty good book that I enjoyed. I hadn’t read the first book, but the author fills you in enough that it’s not really needed. However, I’ll probably be reading it next. I enjoyed following Rowan and she uncovers more about her parents, particularly her mother, and prepares for her final confrontation.I highly recommend.
**I voluntarily read and reviewed this book

The main character, Rowan grew up around death being the undertaker's daughter but now even worse she has a serial killer after her. Rowan has lost her twin sister, her mother when she was 12 years old and more recently her father. How many secrets did her parents have never tell her about? She is trying to figure out what the real truth is all the while staying one step ahead of the killer, Julian. This is book #2 in The Undertaker's Daughter series but I was able to read it as a stand alone. I am finding myself so intrigued that I want to go back and read the first book. The author did a great job of weaving the characters together and making it a real page turner. I love how this was really more a crime, suspense book with a hint of a blossoming romance between Rowan and Billy (the police of chief and life long friend). So many murders and are they all connected? I couldn't put this book down and I didn't want it to end. I can't wait for the next book to release! I am also very much interested in reading other series by Debra Webb in the future.

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars!

This is a first. In all my years of reading suspense, I’ve never read about an undertaker. It’s a brilliant role, and Ms. Webb created a wonderful character in Rowen. I really enjoyed snooping around in her head. I know so much more about the process and it didn’t entirely creep me out. What did creep me out was this story and how this book ended ( yes, a cliffhanger – it is a mystery/thriller after all) that left me wanting more ( in a good way).

Debra Webb created a captivating read putting Rowen firmly in the crosshairs of a serial killer. There’s a great buildup about the past, about Rowen’s parent’s involvement with the serial killer Julian Addington, and Rowen’s return home to run the family business. For her, death literally comes a-knocking. But things get crazy when a series of murders equal break-ins at the funeral home and stolen bodies. There to attempt to protect her is her best friend and Sheriff Billy, from whom she is keeping a few secrets. One or two may be personal, but certainly, a few are related to the cases they face. The FBI’s involvement also creates distress and disharmony as they muscle in on the multiple signs of multiple serial murders. There’s a bit of domestic drama and potential for romance too but overall there’s an atmosphere that is entirely menacing.

The Lies We Tell is the second book in this series and while I haven’t read book 1, I was able to enjoy this story as a standalone. Of course, I am really intrigued to go back to the start and learn more about Rowen so I’ve picked up The Undertakers Daughter. But I am really looking forward to the continuation of this story! 4.5 Stars and recommendation!

A good thriller, gripping and quite chilling. Even if it's out of my comfort zone I liked the plot, the cast of characters and the atmosphere.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
Recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Dr. Rowan Dupont is the Undertaker’s Daughter. After the death of her father, she moves home to take over the family business but when bodies start piling up she must work alongside Chief of Police Billy Brannigan to find the killer…even if it means digging into the unsettling past that haunts her and watching for the serial killer who will stop at nothing to have her.

 If there is one way to get me interested in a book, bringing a smart, notorious serial killer into the mix is going to do it. I think I may have actually salivated a little when reading the blurb because The Lies We Tell sounded like it was written for me. I couldn’t wait to get started!

 Debra Webb is a new author for me and, after doing a search for more books by her, I have to say I’m surprised that she has somehow stayed below my radar as a thriller writer. I really enjoyed this book. The Lies We Tell is a smart thriller that lives up to its genre with dark themes, a thrilling fast pace, and just enough mind bending curveballs that my twisted reader’s heart was pounding for more.

While Rowan and Billy kept me guessing at what bizarre twist they would uncover next, I do have to admit that personality wise…I was left wanting. Rowan is a character that I desperately wanted to connect with. This girl has been through hell and back…and back…and back again. Not only has she lost her entire family, in horrific ways, but she has a serial killer obsessed with her. Does that get her down? Nope. She just keeps trudging forward; reconnecting with the police and FBI to consult on the homicides happening around her all the while keeping up to date on her now-regular job as an Undertaker. AN UNDERTAKER! This has to be the part I loved about her the most. Females Undertakers are NOT something we see in books very often and this profession was not only a perfect choice for Rowan but it also added an extra, creepy tone to the book in general. She’s a powerhouse and I wanted to continue seeing her as one but there was so much monotonous reflection on her part about her past, about Julian and about Billy that all the badass-ery was completely overshadowed. I get it – your mom died, who was she really, Julian broke your trust, where do you stand with Billy? – you have some issues…but I don’t need to be reminded of them in every other chapter. On the other side, we have Billy. Billy. Billy. Billy. Oh how I would have loved for there to have been no Billy. Honestly, he wasn’t that bad of a male lead and I did find that him and Rowan worked well together but that over-protective, “must worry over Rowan every second of the day” side to him drove me absolutely nuts. You can be protective over someone and not be a complete and utter ass about it. Stop trying to be such a man…it doesn’t look good on you.

 Aside from forcing myself not to skim over Rowan and Billy’s mundane stream of consciousnesses, I was impressed with just how much Webb managed to pack into this book. The actual investigative moments and plot changing twists scattered throughout kept me on the edge of my seat and I found myself constantly fighting between wanting to savor the story and needing to rush through to find out what would happen next. To say this thriller kept me up long into the night is an understatement!

I came into this series with The Lies We Tell so it can be read as a standalone but, honestly, I wouldn’t recommend it. Webb has created a pulse-jumping story that has so much going on and so many factors playing for it that you’re doing yourself a disservice by not reading this in order. I have already downloaded the previous books and am looking forward to the next installment in the series. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Harelquin Publishing for providing me with a copy of this book to read and give my honest opinion.

WOW! I wasn't sure how if I was going to like this story, I'm thrilled to say I was wrong! I went back and read the novella and book one before I read this one so that I knew what was going on in the storyline. I'm glad I did, I didn't feel lost! Usually at the end of a mystery/thriller the killer is captured by the end of the story, in this case he's still out there killing and stalking our heroine Rowan. Every murder in her town could be because of Julian, and Rowan is just waiting for him to come after her. I can't wait to read the next book and see if Julian is found.

This review is based on an ARC from NetGalley, courtesy of the publisher. All opinions are my own.

There is a lot of disturbing history in Rowan DuPont's past. As a child, her sister Raven was murdered, and her mother killed herself shortly after, devastating Rowan and her father. She moved away and ended up qualifying and working as a psychiatrist whilst her father remained in their home town of Winchester running the family funeral home. When her father himself was murdered, she had to come home and suffered greatly at the hands of a man who has taken an unnatural interest in her all her life, unbeknown to her. Not having read the first book in the series I found all the past events referred to a little bewildering and I would definitely say read book one first to make sense of it all. There is still a lot of confusion around who exactly was responsible for which deaths, but at the start of the book we find her father's old trusted employee incarcerated for dealing in body parts and Rowan trying to run the business with help from one employee. She has a hard time knowing who she can trust and is still trying to get over the horrific past events that surrounded her, leading to her giving up her job working with homicide detectives in Nashville's Special Crimes Unit, but the one good guy she can rely on is Billy Brannigan, Chief of Police and childhood friend. Rowan knows she will never be truly safe until her tormentor and serial killer Julian Addington is dead but she needs him to reveal the truth about her mother first. The more she digs, the more she realises how little she actually knows about the family she grew up in. It is a good job there is still an undertaker in Winchester since the bodies soon start to pile up, starting with two homicides which may not be all they seem, and then the discovery of many preserved skinned faces and piles of bones which puts detectives on the track of another killer. All this means Billy has his hands full whilst trying to protect Rowan, and clearly no one around her is safe. This was an enjoyable story with well drawn characters, and feels very much like an episode in a much bigger saga. With more questions than answers and a definite cliff hanger at the end I am looking forward to book three to see what happens next. 3.5/4*

The Lies We Tell is a fantastic suspense. The plot has many twists and turns to keep the reader guessing and on the edge of their seat. Suspense and mystery fans will enjoy this book. Thanks to the publisher for my advance ebook. This is my unbiased review.

The Lies We Tell by Debra Webb
The Undertaker’s Daughter #2

Not having read the prequel or book one in this series I do feel I might have been at a disadvantage. We know a serial killer is after her and there are secrets to be learned about the past. As I read I found out that Rowan once worked as a psychiatrist with the Nashville Police Department but left because of her inability to “see” that another psychiatrist was a serial killer. The killer is still on the lose and Rowan has gone back to Winchester to take up the family funeral business while sometimes helping out her buddy police chief Billy Brannigan.

In this story there are several murders but whether or not they are related is unknown for most of the book. Two murders are solved but a few others are not. The FBI makesa an appearance, t here is a kidnapping and torture and a bone pile is found and a romance begins. We learn from a wise woman that both Rowan attracts death and that her mother did, too.

Again, I did feel lost at times and felt there were some strange occurrences that were not explained. I have a feeling that the main psychiatrist serial killer may be a recurring theme in this series until he is caught and also feel other serial killers might pop up from time to time.

Did I like this book? Not sure
Would I read more in the series? Maybe

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin-Mira for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3 Stars