I'm a big fan of Emily Giffin and a sucker for 9-11 themed books. And while I thought that maybe this book was a bit too "neatly wrapped" it was a solid relationship drama with a satisfying plot.

I'm sadly disheartened by The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin. While the pace felt really quick and I wanted to flip through it as fast as I could to inhale it all, it really left me wanting in certain areas. There was so much drama in the plot (almost to the point of being over the top), so the journey was often enjoyable. I didn't enjoy the ending as much, however.

The 9/11 terrorist attack is not fodder for entertainment, in my opinion. The fact that this was central to the plot, but not treated as emotionally significant as it is to so many people, is a disappointing and insensitive choice of the author's. I would have liked to see more of an emotional connection there. I feel like this will be a hard issue for lots of people.

I also had a really tough time connecting with some of the characters - I like imperfect characters, but I still want to connect to and understand them and just couldn't.

Overall, a wild ride that could have connected better.

The Lies That Bind by Emily Giffin is centered around Cecily, a news reporters unhappy in her career and newly broken up with her boyfriend. One night she meets Grant and soon falls head over heels for him. Grant seems almost too good to be true. Hmmm, maybe there's a reason for that. This story is set in NYC both pre and post 9/11. A good summer story. Read and enjoy!

3.5 stars Cecily has just broken up with her long-term boyfriend, Matthew, when she ends up in a bar late at night. She meets Grant, and they have a whirlwind month before he moves overseas. He comes back on September 10, 2001, but then he disappears, and Cecily ends up with a lot more questions. The book examines love, relationships, friendship, and family. It raised a lot of questions, like why are people dishonest, and what are they willing to hide? I felt for Cecily as she navigated her relationships and discoveries, and I enjoyed watching her gain strength to figure out what she wanted and move forward.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

49 // “‘The truth is the point’, Jasmine says. ‘The truth is always the point.’”
▫️
are you a fan of Emily Giffin’s books? I’ve read and enjoyed all of them, and I was really looking forward to her newest one. THE LIES THAT BIND is the story of a woman who falls in love with a man she has just met, but as their relationship progresses she begins to question his love for her. when he disappears during the attacks on 9/11, she realizes how little she knows about him. the book honestly seemed a little far-fetched to me, which made it a hard sell. the second half of the book was a little more enjoyable to read, but I thought that’s when the plot kind of went sideways. this was definitely not my favorite book of hers, but I’d be curious to know how others like it! 3/5⭐️—it was fine. Out June 2.

I've liked Emily Giffin books in the past, but this book was so frustrating. Cecily is the kind of girl that seems to like whatever is convenient, including whatever guy seems to be into her at that moment. She doesn't seem to have any original thoughts and just goes along with what everyone else wants for 75% of the book. When she finally starts making decisions on her own she seems surprised that her fiance isn't on board, even though it would totally derail his life. All of her decisions made me mad, when she actually made them. On top of that, I think this went into way too much detail of 9/11 and the things that are common knowledge. I didn't think there was any point in rehashing that for us.

The idea of this book is good, but it failed to deliver.

Normally, I love Emily Giffin's books, and I wanted to love this one. It starts off as an interesting read but about halfway through I was struggling to continue. I read on hoping it would rebound and end on a good note, but for me, it didn't. Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for providing me with an ARC version in exchange for an honest review.

I received this book free of charge from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

I don’t know. Reading this, the plot line seemed really familiar to me, like I’ve read this story elsewhere. Lots of crazy things that just “had to happen” in order for the story to come together. Seemed a little unrealistic. And the 9/11 angle was...odd?

If you put all of that aside and just focus on finding an entertaining story to read, this might work. I might suggest this to friends who have no other options, but it’s definitely not a book that immediately goes to the top of my to be read pile.

Probably 2.75 stars, but I’ll run up to 3.

I struggled with this title. I was uncomfortable with the 9/11 setting and frankly uncomfortable with what Emily Giffin has posted online recently.

The Lies That Bind is one of the best books that I've read this year! The plot is so suspenseful and the ending completely blew me away!

Emily Giffin is a national treasure. Her bestselling books are something I look forward to every two years, and THE LIES THAT BIND lives up to that anticipation and more. In many ways, this book feels like a callback to the SOMETHING BORROWED and SOMETHING BLUE books which made her famous, and not just for a cameo here and there. The questions of right and wrong, morality and immorality, fate and predestination are found in this novel as well, all with a backdrop of nostalgic early 00's NYC. Sure to be another bestseller, and I find myself already looking forward to two years from now, when we can hopefully expect Giffin's next page turner!

Girl and boy break up. Girl goes to bar to feel sorry for herself. Girl meets new boy, a boy who is too good to be true.

TRAGEDY STRIKES.

Ugh. I should have known better. I HATE when things like 9-11 are used as a plot device. It's a cheap ploy for emotion and a quick way to insert some sort of relevance in 'modern' settings. I hate it so, SO much.

This was ....fine. And I'm sure, much like her other books, Emily Griffin has a best seller in her hands. That said, I would never buy this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Title: Fame: The Lies that Bind

Author(s): Emily Giffin

Publication Date: June 2, 2020

A twenty-something year old journalist living in NYC during 9/11 ponders the one who got away, perishing in a tragedy while she settles on Mr. Dull but Steady.

Cecily is living a young Midwesterner’s dream, working as a fluff journalist in NYC, covering the trivialities that seemingly make the world turn when in fact the meaninglessness is never more than a tragedy away. She is reeling from the breakup of the man she thought she would marry. One pitying night in a local bar, she meets man number two, the one we would typically think of as the rebound but Grant seems to have far more going for him and Cecily falls head over heels, a little too quickly. But, Grant is nothing if not mysterious. Red flags are waving as our protagonist proves herself a typical idiot over and over despite the sage advice and warnings from those near and dear, especially her best friend Scottie, a gay but yet to come out, true blue companion.

Then 9/11 occurs and Grant is nowhere to be found. As Cecily faces the worst of possibilities, she discovers that Grant has been keeping a few big secrets. Hard to imagine but our Cecily is floored as she painfully discovers that Grant is not the man she thought he was.

Or is he?

It’s a fast yet unmemorable read and not Giffin’s best work. The story is reaching at best. Hard to relate to and filled with lackluster characters, it’s a skip.

BRB Rating: Skip It.

I really wanted to like this book and did for most of the plot. However, I started to hate the characters, ugh Grant, and Cecily has to be one of the worst female characters I've read in a long time.

This book was good in that I wanted to keep reading it - but the twists were contrived and predictable.

As Cecily Gardner is sitting alone in a bar thinking about calling the guy she broke up with, a handsome stranger walks up and says “Don’t do it—you’ll regret it.”. She listens to him, he buys her a drink and they end up together at the end of the night. They spend the next several months falling in love and everything is perfect until 9/11 when he goes missng. Weeks later when she finds a missing poster with his picture on it she realizes she is not the only one looking for him and and calls the number, only to find out Grant wasn't who he seemed to be after all.
I loved this book. I am a huge fan of this author's books and this one may be my new favorite. I did not want to put it down. This will make an excellent beach read.

So so so many lies! Cecily wanders out one night in 2001, sad about her breakup with Matthew, and meets Grant in a bar. They fall fast and hard for one another but don't have sex. She even travels to London with her friend Scottie to see Grant and his brother, who is in an ALS trial there. Then Grant surprises her when he comes back with a night of passion- on 10 September. Trigger warning for those who still hurt from 9/11-Giffin clearly rewatched and quotes some of the TV coverage. Grant was in the World Trade Center, Cecily is devastated, and then she finds out he didn't tell her the truth. When Matthew comes back into her life, Cecily has to make a choice. There are lots of twists here, some of which are implausible (especially the one at the end) but they come at junctures where you're about to toss this over so you'll keep reading to find out what happens. Honestly, Grant is pretty unlikable once you know it all and I wasn't too pleased with Cecily either but that's what made them realistic characters. Giffin is taking a lot of hits on line and in her reviews for her comments about the Duchess. If you can ignore that, this is a classic Giffin plot. It's a fast, page turning read (admittedly, I didn't read the pages re 9/11) with a conflicted protagonist, two men, and well, no spoilers. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Her fans, of which I have been one, know what to expect. Others who are new, give it a try.

I did not enjoy this book which is really disappointing because I did enjoy this author's previous works. It feels contrived and showy in a way that doesn't relate to me at all and I was very disappointed. There was no depth to this book. What I especially did not enjoy was that it felt like an important, tragic, historical time in our lives was used to manipulate a story just for the sake of being able to use it as a plot device rather than injecting any kind of emotional depth or growth or education. And really that's how the whole book felt to me: flat and stunted. It was surface level.

Ms Giffin does it again, with this heartwarming & engaging tale that pulls you in from page 1. She leaves us flipping pages, excited yet also sad - knowing the end is approaching.
Give this a read, y’all - it’s great!

I have read some of Emily Griffin’s prior books and I was in the mood for an easy going story. I have noticed from prior reviews that some reader’s loved this book and others gave it only one star. I am right in the middle on this one. The book certainly held my interest. I would classify it as a romance and there were a few surprises and some quite predictable outcomes. If you are looking for a light summer book, this one is a good choice.
I received an ARC from Netgalley and the publisher. This is my unbiased review.