I've been a big fan of Gudenkauf's writing for years now and I always keep an eye out for anything new of hers, so I am always excited to start her latest book! Set in a small Iowa town, and told across carious narrators and timelines, this book focuses on a 1995 murder of a fifteen year old girl, Eve Knox. The modern element of the story comes in when new evidence into Eve's murder comes to light. Eve's best friend, Maggie, is not a detective herself, takes on the cold case as "desk duty" while she enters her third trimester of pregnancy.

With plenty of suspects and motives, Gudenkauf weaves a very fast-paced and engaging mystery. the plot definitely holds surprises as the narrative crosses both timelines and multiple voices. There are plenty of villains to go around, and while it's not always easy to root for any of these characters, the story itself is engaging enough to make this one genuinely hard to set down for any reason. I always enjoy Gudenkauf's books and this one is no exception. As always, finishing it makes me eager to see what she will write next!

Once I started to read This Is How I Lied by Heather Gudenkauf, I could not stop. What happened to Eve Knox all those years ago? Discovered by Maggie and Nola, the death has haunted Maggie for years. Decades later, Maggie is married with a baby on the way, but also a detective. When new evidence is found, can she find new clues to finally catch the killer? But with so many secrets and lies surrounding this case, can she find the murderer before it’s too late for anyone else? Going back and forth between the past and present, we slowly learn more about each character and action taken by each. I was literally at the edge of my seat until the very end!

Favorite Quotes:

Dex Stroope is in his midsixties, big-bellied with a face that always looks like it could use a good nap.

I found Nola standing there looking up at me with those big glasses and green eyes like some kind of click beetle… Right away I was concerned, but by the casual look on Nola Knox’s face, you would have thought she was selling Girl Scout cookies or popcorn for her basketball team or something. But instead of asking me if I want a box of Thin Mints or Do-Si-Dos, she says, My sister is dead. She was so matter-of-fact I thought I heard her wrong.

My Review:

Cunningly penned from multiple POVs, this diabolical tale kept me taut with tension and my shoulders in my ears while it funneled me in so many directions the little pea in my brain was swirling with theories. I was so sure I had it solved and was feeling rather smug, but NO, this sneaky scribe had me bamboozled as I never saw this ending coming.

My cold heart was squeezed for the character of Eve, the murder victim. Poor Eve couldn’t catch a break, even from her best friend and least of all her immature mess of a mother or younger sister, who was brilliant yet also a deeply disturbed young sociopath. Their small Iowa town appeared rife with social issues and devious characters. This was my second time reading the wily and treacherous wordcraft of Heather Gudenkauf and I am hooked. I am greedy and want all her words, ALL of them!

For the majority of this book I had no chance sea who was lying or what was being lied about. Because of this I was extremely distrustful of all the characters, which made it really enjoyable for me because it felt like a classic “whodunit” murder mystery. To be honest I was disappointed at the end when most of the characters really weren’t bad people afterall—I was hoping for something darker. The end of the story was completely implausible though. After giving birth in a cave with no anesthesia or medical help, the main character is able to overpower her captor, pick up her baby and run to her car, while delivering the placenta. I’m all about tough moms but this was just nonsense. Overall though I did enjoy the story and liked that I had no idea who the actual villain was until the very end. Four stars.

Detective Maggie Kennedy-O’Keefe grew up in a small Iowa town. Her family lived on a cul-de-sac alongside a few other houses. Her best friend lived next door. When she was fifteen her best friend was murdered. Now, twenty-five years later, Maggie is in charge of going over the files of the cold case. A clue has been found and, in the new age of DNA evidence, the chief of police wants to re-open the case.

This Is How I Lied is a dual-timeline whodunit. Told from Maggie’s POV and the dead girl’s sister the story moves between 1995, the year of the murder, and 2020. I thought Heather Gudenkauf did a great job revealing a trail of clues and although I had a strong suspicion of who did it, I wasn’t absolutely sure. There were plenty of possibilities.

This was a page turner that I read in a couple of days. There’s a creepiness factor that I don’t usually like to read but it was important to the story and made it more than a popcorn thriller. I appreciate that all of the characters were flawed to some degree – it made them more believable. All told, I’m glad I had a chance to read This Is How I Lied and look forward to reading more by this talented author.

Maggie is a detective in Grotto, Iowa, married and expecting a baby very shortly. New evidence in a twenty-five-year-old case has surfaced and Maggie willingly takes on the investigation. The case is very close to her as it was the murder of her childhood best friend Eve.

As Maggie tries to solve the case, suspects from the past come back to haunt her. Eve’s sister Nola who was always acted a little strange, is certainly up to something, Nick, Eve’s old boyfriend was a strong suspect at the time, and Maggie herself is hiding a secret she has kept since the night Eve disappeared. When Nola confronts Eve about that horrific night, new things come to light, and Maggie is being threatened to lead the investigation to convict someone who may not be guilty.

This is an extremely well written psychological thriller by Heather Gudenkauf. You are on the edge of your seat throughout the book. The characters are so well written that you begin to shudder every time Nola’s name comes up. Each character brings such suspense to the story and you begin to question each one as Maggie gets further into the investigation. Then there is an unexpected twist that leaves you once again wondering what the truth really is. An excellent read and I would like to thank Harlequin, the author Heather Gudenkauf and NetGalley for an advanced copy to read and review.

I always enjoy Heather Gudenkauf books and was excited to get this one from NetGalley for review. In this book the murder case of a 15 year old girl has been reopened and is being investigated by the girl's former best friend. Now, years later, Maggie is hoping that with new evidence, she will be able to put the murder of Eve to rest and solve the mystery of who killed her. There are a lot of suspects starting with Eve's strange sister Nola. I enjoyed the twists and turns and at one point, the book was heading in the direction of a suspect that I didn't really want to be the one! I had to keep reading to see how everything was resolved. In a genre with lots of options, this was a stand out read.

Maggie Kennedy O'Keefe is seven-months pregnant and expecting to have her detective duties moved to just desk duty any minute. Then an additional clue is found to her best friend's murder in the caves 25 years ago. How can she say no to a case that has so much influence on her life?

Soon Maggie is not only rifling through additional random calls - including confessions from people not born when the crime occurs. What is with people? Maggie is also targeted and rumors start flying that she's involved with a married man who isn't her husband. Then things start showing up that reference her teenage love life - from back when her best friend was murdered.

Plenty of suspects to choose from, and the author gives each one a little time in the spotlight to make them all seem plausible. I have to admit, I kind of did figure it out, just because I questioned the actual physicality of one of the initial suspects. The ending was definitely satisfying for more than just the committed crime.

I did question the true craziness of the crazy character - she still seems more dangerous to me than the author finally gave her credit for. And one of the fake suspect focuses left me not liking another character - perhaps unfairly. LOL

Overall, I'd give this book 3 out of 5 stars. I definitely couldn't put it down toward the end as I wanted to know who really dun it! I'd recommend this book as an interesting thriller.

This Is How I Lied has a little something different here with the creep level to the story and Heather Gudenkauf had me a little worried as she created a sense of dread for me like I haven’t felt before while reading. I enjoyed that feeling of not knowing what to expect with that sense of dread. I put my trust in her and was rewarded with a chilling, dark and twisty entertaining read.

For me, this one was all about Nola. She is one odd, dark character with an interesting creepy side to her. She has an exciting, mysterious side to her that created some great tension and suspense to the story that had me turning those pages as fast as I could. She brought something a little different to the story and she was a character we wanted to talk about.

The crime here centers around the murder of Eve, Nola’s sister and Eve's best friend, Maggie. Well, things didn’t really add up the way I would have liked them to, I loved the dynamics between Nola and Maggie. Maggie also brings something a little different here with the tension in the story with her pregnancy and I feared the danger she might be in. I enjoyed how things came together with Nola and Maggie and thought it all wrapped well. I recommend it!

I was familiar with this author from my review of her book One Breath Away https://petalfrog.wordpress.com/2012/06/22/review-29-one-breath-away-by-heather-gudenkauf/

Turns out I gave a review for a completely different book--oops! Try # 2

Maggie is a small-town detective, pregnant with her first child, who has never recovered from the brutal murder of her best friend Eve. 25 years later, new evidence has surfaced that re-opens Eve's case, requiring Maggie to face her past which includes Eve's psychotic sister Nola.

This book was told from the alternating viewpoints of Nola and Maggie, along with some flashbacks. The story was interesting enough but there was some significant plotholes throughout the narrative, as well as some unnecessary flashbacks. Nola, despite her disturbing history, is somehow a successful farm veterinarian which seems a strange characterization. Maggie doesn't so much do detective work as she stumbles on information. This was a decent enough thriller that kept me mostly engaged to the end.

THIS IS HOW I LIED is a riveting crime thriller of an unsolved murder cold case, and the Author takes her finely crafted skills to another level. Atmospheric, heart-pounding, adrenaline-filled, intense, and extremely satisfying.

Another superb edgy thriller from one of my favorite authors. Powerhouse Author Heather Gudenkauf is a master of smart, chilling, and psychological thrillers. I have read each of them and anxiously awaiting the next.

THIS IS HOW I LIED is the best psychological thriller I have read in 2020! Don’t expect to get anything done once you crack open this stunner. Deadly menace and dangerous secrets are uncovered in this small rural town in Iowa. Murders, monsters, predators, and thieves live among us.

A taut cat-and-mouse thriller that relentlessly uncovers a multitude of secrets, leading readers down a delicious path of fear, lies, and long-awaited justice, with a jaw-dropping ending.

Gudenkauf effortlessly introduces and paints many interesting characters in this fast-paced and gripping crime thriller. Rich in description, as well as delving into the motives and thoughts of each of the characters.

Let’s dive in:

Set in Grotto, Iowa, in a small river town of ten thousand that sits among Grotto Caves State Park. As the novel begins, it is 1995, and we meet Eve Knox, a fifteen-year-old girl who knew the paths and caves better than most.

Many times, she had come here before to clear her head and think about things, but today she fears she may not make it out alive. Her worst fears came true. How did things go so wrong?

Now twenty twenty-five years later. Fast forward to the summer of 2020. Maggie Kennedy-O’Keefe is a detective with the Grotto Police Department. She is married to Shaun and eight months pregnant with a girl. They also own an apple orchard and tree farm.

A cold case comes across Maggie’s desk. A piece of new evidence in the Eve Knox case. Eve was Maggie’s best friend. A boy and his friend were in the Ransom Caves and found a boot. The graffiti-style flowers and leather Doc Martens were among Eve’s prized possessions and matches the one in the evidence bag.

All the fears and horrors surface; the secrets and the lies. Maggie and Eve’s sister Nola had been the ones to discover the body when she went missing.

Maggie is on the case and is forced to relive memories from the past. She has held on to this secret for years. There are so many suspects.

There is Nola, now a vet with a mentally unstable background (she is one freakish, scary character- and gave me the shivers each time she appears on the page, not knowing what she will do next). There is also the rich, jock, and abusive boyfriend, Nick, and a pedophile neighbor, the neighbor in the BMW, crazy mom, and others, which are possible suspects.

Maggie’s father, Henry William Kennedy, was the former police chief of Grotto at the time of the arrest and is currently suffering from dementia. Her older brother Colin is a budding artist and is their father’s caretaker.

However, Maggie is fearful, and events of that day long ago are blurred. What really happened? She recalls being very upset, but Nola seemed to be hard, cold, and unemotional when they went to a nearby neighbor’s to seek help that day.

Maggie puts her excellent sleuthing skills in motion. Her life may depend on it. She dives deeper into the case, the events leading up to the death of her best friend began to surface. These were two teen friends, but each of them had their own secrets to bear. A loss of innocence, and two teen girls with the weight of the world on their shoulders.

Maggie is stressed, pregnant, and begins to suspect another person and begins to monitor. She also begins receiving threatening phone calls, then their barn is set on fire, and now someone wants her to tamper with evidence and is blackmailing her.

How much did her father know? Was he trying to protect her years ago?

She is left with three pieces of evidence. She has the power to decide which one is sent to the lab. Will she cross moral lines? She can attain justice for her best friend plus more, but what will she do?

When given the opportunity when blackmailed, which killer will she choose?

OMG! I have never read a book so atmospheric, suspenseful, gripping, and INTENSE. A multi-layered astute and engrossing crime thriller. From past to present, you will be sure you know the identity of the killer, and then your suspicion changes the more you read. Up until the killer in the cave is revealed, you will be breathless. We go back to ground zero.

A sensitive exploration of trauma and its insidious, lasting effects told with compassion. The author is in complete control as she brilliantly maneuvers this tale. She takes readers deep inside the minds of the victims. Blurring the lines between right and wrong..

A satisfying ending, showing that crimes and secrets are never indeed buried and often people get what they deserve in the end, but it may take a while to get there.

What made this sophisticated crime thriller so engrossing is the POV from different characters (Eve, Maggie, Nola, both past and present, infused with snippets of The Willow Creek Gazette, comments from readers, therapy transcripts, autopsy reports, and 911 transcripts.

There are so many evil characters you are not sure which one is worse. But what if you held all the cards? You have the evidence to make one person pay? What would you do? The lines are of right and wrong are blurred.

I really enjoy the Author’s talent of writing teens’ narrative and the timeline from past to present. You feel the raw emotions and different events which lead them to desperate actions. Underneath the darkness lies a young girl who has held on to a secret. Now years later, will she be able to share the truth, and will justice be served?

The scene at the cave with the baby put me into super tachycardia. You never know what to expect. These dark characters will have guessing which one is the evilest. Who is the killer?

An impressive, intriguing, well-written, and irresistible thriller that held my attention from the first page until the jaw-dropping hold your breathtaking explosive ending. I stayed up until 7 am two mornings to finish because I could not wait to see how it would end. This book exceeded all expectations and then some.

Her BEST yet! Fans of Authors Karen Slaughter, Lisa Gardner, and Lisa Unger will find a lot to like here. Trust me, you will devour it. Gudenkauf is at the TOP of her game.

THIS IS HOW I LIED is a perfect title. Prime for the big screen or TV series. This is Stephen King quality, readers. (Nola’s character is like no other). I am hoping to see more of Maggie in a series. Well-done.

#JDCMustReadBooks

A special thank you to Park Row and NetGalley for an early reading copy. I also purchased the audiobook and currently listening.

This book was really good! I loved how the story jumped around between character"s perspectives and time periods. I also liked how I really wasn't sure who killed Eve until the end- and I'm so glad it wasn't Maggie! And how sweet that her dad covered her secret the whole time. Great book!

From my blog: Always With a Book:

I've read a few books by Heather Gudenkauf and I know when I pick up a book by her, I am in for a thrilling ride and that was exactly what I got here. This latest book clearly proves she is a master at her craft.

This book opens with such a haunting scene that it hooks you right away and it never really lets up. The intensity of this book, the characters that all have their own secrets, and as we come to find out, lies about what really happened the night Eve Knox was killed, will chill you to the bone. This book is such a layered, multi-dimensional psychological thriller that you will not be able to put it down once you start reading it. It's the type of book that totally gets under your skin and I love books like that. Every time you think you have it figured out, something new comes to light to change what you are thinking.

I loved the way it was told, alternating between the present and the past, so that slowly you get a full picture of what ultimately happened. You begin to understand who these characters are and just what they have been carrying with them since that fateful day.

I could not flip the pages fast enough, and all the while the tension was building to bring us to what can only be described as a brilliant ending. I cannot recommend this book enough - it is the perfect book to binge-read. Heather Gudenkauf is definitely on my must-read list and while I now wait for her next book to come out, I will reading the few books on her backlist that I somehow missed.

The summer that she was fifteen, Eve Knox was found brutally murdered by her friend, Maggie and her sister, Nola. That was twenty-five years ago and Eve's case was never solved. Everyone else has moved on. Maggie is now on the police force, following in her ex-chief father's footsteps. Nola is a veterinarian. Both have lives changed forever by their discovery of Eve that day. Who would beat her and then strangle her?

Unfortunately, the list is long. Eve was dating the rich, handsome teenage son who everyone thought could do no wrong, but Maggie and Nola knew he was different in private and was physically abusing Eve. There was the teacher who seemed to have a crush on her. Nola was considered the town weirdo and had a propensity for dissecting animals, roadkill mostly but there were tales that if she couldn't find a dead animal, she would kill one. Maggie's husband, Shaun, had been one of the last to see Eve that day and has never confided in Maggie about that. There was the drifter who came through town most weeks and seemed to lurk around young girls. Even Maggie and Eve had an argument that day as Eve had discovered Maggie's biggest secret and was threatening to tell someone. Will Maggie find the killer before they find her?

Heather Gudenkauf has written an interesting mystery. She is a new author to me and I'm now interested in reading her other seven novels. The book is written in a mixture of present day events and throwbacks to twenty-five years ago. It is fascinating to watch Maggie reevaluate events that happened then with the eyes of an adult rather than those of the teenager she was then. The only caveat I have is that in books and films, it is a miracle whenever someone has a routine pregnancy and this was not that miraculous book. This book is recommended for mystery readers.

This book pulled me in right from the beginning. I kept going back and forth as to who the murderer really was. There were so many twists and turns that I could not really figure out the murderer until the very end. I did not want to put this great suspense book down. I also know that I never want to go in a cave by myself. I received a copy of this book from Harlequin Trade Publishing for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

This was a great suspense novel. It had a possible psychopath as well as other potential suspects for the crime. You kept wondering who the heck committed the murder until there was a big twist in the middle of the book. It was shocking and unexpected, but I felt maybe it should have been put further down into the book. It just felt like a jolt downward from the building climax. There were quite a few twists but that big one made it not quite the page turner it was in the beginning.

This is How I Lied certainly kept me on my toes. Heather Gudenkauf gives us a tragic loss, an unsolved murder, and more suspects than you can shake a stick at. I think at one point there were seven possible suspects to weed through, but that count could be off considering how things move from past to present and back again between different characters. The story does get rather convoluted, which serves to keep the reader guessing, but it's not a technique I'm fond of. Nevertheless, this tale of teenage angst, small town gossip, and murder is an interesting way to while away a day or so, and I'll admit it - I didn't see the answer to the whodunit until pretty late in the game, but I did guess a few others along the twisted path to the big reveal. The book is well-written, fast-paced, and all in all, an intriguing read.

Eve Knox was murdered 15 years ago but her killer was never discovered. Now, new evidence comes to light, and of course, DNA testing has come a long way. Can justice finally be served?

Officer Maggie Kennedy O'Keefe is now in charge of tying up this cold case her father couldn't solve. But, things are tricky. Maggie was Eve's best friend, and found her dead, along with Eve's sister Nola. Maggie is seven months pregnant but determined to close this case. But everyone has secrets that threaten to be exposed even 15 years later, and Maggie starts receiving threats as she continues the re-investigation. 

Full of unpredictable twists, red herrings, and a lot of suspicious characters, I really enjoyed reading this one! Just when you think you know how it ends, you're thrown for a loop. My heart was pounding reading the final chapter! 

Thank you to Harlequin and Park Row Books for my copy and for letting me take part in this blog tour!

A small-town secret is revealed, and it seems as if everybody involved has something to hide…and has no problem lying about it. At any given point, I couldn’t tell who was being honest and who knew more than letting on. There was an interesting cast of characters, from the disturbed sister of the victim to the daughter of the former police chief (herself a police officer). It’s a pretty tight plot, but it did seem a bit rushed at the end, and a few questions were left unanswered. But it was still an exploration of the long-reaching effects of a crime in a small town. For more thoughts, please visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks. Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin for a digital ARC of the book.

This is a good solid mystery. Just enough tragedy, just enough bad guys to keep you guessing, and an emotional pull with a pregnant detective looking to finish looking for the murder suspect on the case her father started 25 years before. Holds your attention and the end felt solid. Enjoyed reading this and would recommend to others. Thank you NetGalley and publishers for providing a digital ARC for review.