The Lies That Bind is an interesting novel that includes email texts and post cards within the story. The heroine is caught between a long term steady relationship and a passionate summer affair with a mysterious stranger who is fervently searching to find a cure for his dying twin brother. She feels she loves them both. Her quest is to discover which type of love is the right one for her. Before she can make much sense of the pros and cons for both men, September 11th happens. As a newspaper reporter in New York City, she takes us through the shock, panic, and sadness, And there among the photos of those missing is the picture of her summer fling. As a journalist, she follows through, contacting the phone number listed, sick and desperate enough for information about him to interview the wife she did not know he had. Complex layers are added as the two women become friends, and at her urging in the aftermath of such tremendous 9/11 loss, she reunites with her former steady boyfriend who happens to be family friends with the new widow! As she tries to untangle truth from lies, she discovers she is pregnant, and due to the bizarre circumstances of 9/11 reactions, she is uncertain which man is the father. The ensuing storyline depicts a realistic search for a woman searching for the right decision for her and the new life created within her. Throughout her journey for truth, she encounters many more unexpected twists. All in all, the varied relationships are examined, keeping the reader engaged in the plot twists, waiting to see what the ultimate resolution or choice will be. A great read!

SPOILER: As always, I am such a big fan of Emily Giffin's writing style - her books are digestible, easy to read, and I always feel attached to the characters. I found myself really feeling for Cecily during this time. However, this was definitely not one of my all time favorite Emily Giffin novels.

At the start, I found myself enamored by Grant & Cecily, then I started to feel more and more confused by Cecily's actions throughout the book. In the very end, when she ends up with Grant after he FAKED HIS OWN DEATH AFTER 9/11, I couldn't believe it. There's lots of forgiving when it comes to reading a book - I never know how I would act in a cheating situation, etc., BUT this just felt kind of out of this world crazy. It kept me from really getting into the book and enjoying it when I was guessing that ending. 3 stars for me.

Cecily has recently broken up with her long-time boyfriend Matthew as he cannot seem to make a commitment. She is having a drink in a local bar, trying to decide whether or not to call Matthew, when a handsome man starts to talk to her and persuades her not to make the call. She feels an instant attraction to him and they end up together before they even know each other's names.
Later they meet again and he tells her his name is Grant and some details about his life. Cecily is really falling for him and then tragically 911 happens and he is missing. One day Cecily sees a missing poster for Grant and calls the number on the poster.
This is basically a romance with some mystery included. I guessed the ending and though it was a good fast read, it was predictable.
I do thank the publisher for my ARC through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review

Wow! I love, adore, and devour anything by Emily Giffin. While The Lies That Bind felt a little different than her usual, I was still hooked from the start. This was set during 9/11 in New York City but was handled delicately and factually, in my opinion. And talk about plot twists! I couldn’t put it down! Thank you, NetGalley for the ARC!

Wow!!!! I am so proud of Emily Griffin for this book. I love that she really explores the idea of these “grey areas” and things not being perfect. Love the twists in this book too!! Really great work by EG!!

As a longtime fan of Emily Giffin's books, I was excited to have the chance to read The Lies That Bind. This newest release has her trademark compulsively readable style and has some thematic elements that will feel reminiscent to readers of Something Borrowed.

When Cecily meets Grant, she's fresh off of a breakup, and she doesn't expect to fall so hard, so fast. When 9/11 happens, the connection she had is severed when her world (and all those around her) is turned upside down.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Another quality book by Emily Giffin- and this one will bring you right back to the year 2001, before and after the events of 9/11 changed the world. The use of many pop culture references to that year really makes the book nostalgic and helps to set the scene. Giffin continues to write strong female characters who you instantly feel bonded to. Anyone that lived through 9/11 and wants to experience that time period, while still enjoying a feel-good story, will be attracted to this!

What starts out promisingly gets an unnecessary injection of melodrama and becomes a mess by the end. I knew what I was getting into, as I'm familiar with Giffin's style and was aware of the historical event within the plot; that particular development, although somewhat manipulative in usage, thankfully didn't catch me off guard. Once the book reaches this point and sets off a ripple effect, I was intrigued when the story started to focus on two women who find themselves bound together in an unexpected way. Unfortunately, Giffin instead introduces new problems at nearly every turn and employs a ridiculous, infuriating twist late in the book that leads to an unsatisfying ending, invalidating a lot of what preceded it. I was rooting for Giffin after All We Ever Wanted managed to tackle some serious issues with grace while being told in an entertaining manner, but this is a disappointing follow-up.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

After breaking up with her long time boyfriend who wouldn’t commit, Cecily knows better than to go out and drown her sorrows but does so anyway. She meets handsome Grant, who could just possibly be her true soulmate. Her friends tell her that something too good to be true most likely is, but she gives Grant the benefit of doubt , especially after he tell her he’s taking his twin brother Byron who has ALS to England for medical tests. Grant returns home to NYC on September 10, 2001 and that’s the last time Cecily sees him (he works at the World Trade Center)

Things really get crazy from here and I can’t say too much without spoiling the ending. I had several possible scenarios in mind as I read but none of them happened and I didn’t think that the ending was very realistic so 3 stars.

If it's written by Emily Giffin, chances are that I will love it. And I did. To be honest, I thought it was an unusual follow-up to her last novel - lighter - and much more reminiscent of her earlier books. Since I adored her first few novels, I had no problem with this! It was fun to revisit the cast of Something Borrowed (although I could have sworn that Darcy and Dex were already engaged by the time Ethan moved to London and that wasn't the case here). The scenes during September 11th were riveting and brought me right back to that horrible day. Finally, The Lies that Bind was full of surprises, and while I was afraid I would not be satisfied with the ending, the author threw in a twist at the last minute and my wish came true!

The Lies that Bind made me a fan of Emily Giffin as I look forward to reading more of her works. A quick read during the stay home order for Covid-19, it is ironic that in opens up in New York City bar as we are actively social distancing. A plane to London is equally impossible, but reading about it enabled me to look forward to returning to those times. If you can relate to the notion that this is a small world, you will thoroughly enjoy the many occurrences that connect the characters together. Giffin does an excellent job of developing the primary characters, Cecily, Matthew, Grant, Scottie and Amy. I thank Net Galley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review of this 4 star upcoming release.

Thank you to NG for the ARC of “The Lies That Bind” by Emily Giffin.

In the Spring of 2001 Cecily Gardner finds herself sitting alone in a diver bar in NYC. Feeling lonesome and homesick she reaches for the phone to call her ex-boyfriend, Matthew. As she is about to call she hears a guy on the barstool next to her say, “Don’t do it - you’ll regret it.” A start of an unlikely relationship begins - Grant and Cecily. However, 9/11 happens and Grant disappears. Fearing the worst she spots a missing-person poster and realizes she’s not the only one searching for him.

I’ve been a huge fan of Emily Giffin for over a decade her books somehow always pull at the heart strings and this one was no different. Prepare to ugly cry. First off any book involving 9/11 will involve a crying scenario, but then throw an unlikely “coming of age” romance and I am hooked.

Cecily is an adoring and relatable character. She’s a small town girl trying to make her writing dreams coming true in the big city. When she meets Grant you can’t help but just love him and their relationship. But in good ole’ drama fashion nothing is what it seems. After the shocking happenings of 9/11 you find that Grant had this whole other life that he hid from Cece. I wouldn’t say you hated Grant, but you for sure was “team Cece.”

I also have to admit that you don’t have too many twisty romances - usually in thriller land is the need to keep reading to find out what happened. But this one after you find out the shocking truth of Grant you need more and you need it NOW! There is a twist towards the end of the novel that I personally did not see coming.

Overall, highly recommend adding this to your Summer read list!!
Pub: 6.2

I could not put this down! An utterly gut-wrenching tale with a few twists and turns you don't see coming.

It's May 2001 and Cecily can't sleep and wants to call her ex-boyfriend. She goes down to a bar to take her mind off of him, and to hopefully not call him. While at the bar she's starting to reach for the phone with a voice behind her tells her to not do it. Cecily then meets Grant in instantly feels a connection with him that she never felt with her ex. She brings him home and he spends the night without even having sex. Grant and Cecily spend more time together. He tells her about his family and his brother who has ALS. They are going to spend the summer in London doing a clinical trial which eventually doesn't work. They return home on September 10th and Grant spends the night at Cecily's but leaves early in the morning to head into work quickly. He works in the World Trade Center on the 75th floor. Cecily never hears from after that, all calls going to voicemail then the phone disconnected. She then sees his missing poster and her friend calls the phone number listed. The phone number belongs to Grants' wife.

Thank you to Net Galley for provided me with an ARC of The Lies That Bind. This book started out just as expected, basic light Chick Lit, and then took some interesting turns in all different directions..The main character, Cecily started out with a sort of platonic one night stand after a breakup with her boyfriend. The platonic guy, turned into her passion, and then because a twisty all over the place situation. Cecily ended up back her her original boyfriend following the tragedy of 9-11,but seemed to mature and realize what she was actually looking for in her life. I liked the book more and more as I kept going, and I felt like the story developed more layers , the more I read. I needed something quick and light and easy, and The Lies that Bind definitely delivered. on that. Not my usual read, but kept me entertained

Cecily has just broken up with her boyfriend because he couldn’t commit. The pull to call him is too strong so she leaves her phone and heads to the local bar. When she asks the bartender to use the phone, a voice tells her “don’t do it.” The voice turns out to be a very good looking man, who Cecily ends up talking to until last call. Suddenly, life isn’t looking so bleak…

3.5 stars! As always, Emily Giffin didn’t let me down. I flew through this book and stayed up way past my bedtime to finish it, though what does bedtime even matter anymore right? I really enjoyed this book, but there was one part that bothered me. I felt like like Cecily and Grant moved wayyy too quickly. Meeting and spending the night together (not drunkenly) and then taking a vacation together just a few days later? It just felt like she should have been more cautious as a young female. She really took him at his word on everything, which to me just stood out as a huge red flag. Other than that, I did enjoy the rest of the story, and I felt like Cecily handled things the way many 20-somethings would. Besides that minor plot point, I still really enjoyed this one and would recommend it. It was a quick read that left me wondering what would happen and when the lies would cause a rift.

Thank you Ballantine Booiks and Netgalley for my gifted copy of this book!

I’m really disappointed with this book. I really loved her last book and was super excited to read this. I didn’t know anything about the plot going in and was just bummed about how slow it was. It was also had some unbelievable plot points and I am not sure that there were and characters that I felt were really compelling or more than two dimensional. I just finished it with a meh feeling. I don’t think I would recommend it if you have anything else you’d rather read.

A so-so book until the ending. In reading the other reviews, apparently I’m in the minority. I loved the ending. She found herself, and ended up being with her one true love. Kismet!

Thanks Net Galley for opportunity to read and review.

ARC provided via #netgalley⁣⁣
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This may sound harsh, but I am just going to come right out and say that this was one of the worst books I’ve read lately. The premise started out strong, and then midway through, the book just dove straight into the ground. I feel like I just watched a horrible Lifetime movie (and that’s saying a lot!) ⁣
The premise sounds promising-Cecily meets a stranger in the bar named Grant, who talks her out of drunk dialing her ex. They forge an incredible connection, but after the 9/11 attacks, Grant is presumed dead. Cecily can’t begin to forget Grant or the love they shared, and the more she tries to move on, the harder it is. One day Cecily sees Grant’s picture on a Missing poster, and she becomes determined to find out more about Grant’s life. ⁣
I was quite invested in the book until Cecily dials the number on the poster, but then events become simply far fetched after that. Characters that I was once rooting for became at once utterly deplorable. I grew quite tired of Cecily’s back and forth between Grant and Matthew, her lying, how close she became with Grant’s wife, Grant’s deceit and how he all but gets away with it at the end (there is no way he wouldn’t have gone to prison longer, no matter how tragic his motivation for the crime) and the fact that Cecily FORGIVES him after all of this and they rekindle their romance! Are you kidding me?! Once she finds out about Grant’s deceit she spends the rest of the book bemoaning his behavior and how betrayed she is, but then he shows up like a stalker at her house, makes a big speech, does his time, and proposes to her. Before all of this, Cecily made a big show of proclaiming that she is stronger on her own and is going to be more careful about speaking the truth and who she trusts. Yikes. What kind of message are we sending to women here? ⁣I understand forgiveness, but after being privy to Cecily’s inner feelings, I’m just not buying it.
The only book I’ve read by Emily Giffin was “All We Ever Wanted”. I quite enjoyed that book and was looking forward to this one, and this one just seems like it was written by a completely different author.

I am so grateful to Random House and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC, what is sure to be one of the hottest summer books of 2020. I love Emily Griffin’s work, and The Lies That Bind did not disappoint. It was just multilayered enough to keep me guessing, and the characters truly came to life in Griffin’s hands. There was poignancy amidst a most interesting tale of love’s journey, and a welcome break from the serious issues of the times. Truly a delight and highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley, Emily Giffin and the publisher first allowing me to receive an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

If you read one book this year, pick this one. This amazing read got me out of my reading slump and I was able to start and finish this in one day.

I truly enjoyed the romance part of this read as well as the total hard to re-live accounts of what happened on 9/11. This book truly pulled my heart strings and I wasn’t expecting how this book ended but I really enjoyed it and it was very relatable.

If I could give this a 10/10 I would!! Thanks Emily Giffin for an extraordinary book and can’t wait for the next one.