Although I was expecting this to be more of a "thriller," it was an enjoyable read with a couple twists and turns. I guess I was expecting something BIG to happen with the way the story was leading but it never happened.
But the plotline itself was entertaining (with unlikeable characters) so it did pull me in from page one.
I'd rate it a 3.5

I went into this book knowing it was going to be awesome just because I loved Carola’s writing in her first novel. This, of course, did not disappoint. I think what made this book even better was that she tricked me in the suspenseful twist! I didn’t think she could, but she nailed this genre! I don’t want to go too much into detail about this just because I think it’s even better if you go in on reading this one blindly. I highly recommend it!

Too Good to Be True had me hooked from the beginning! I really enjoy books that switch from different character’s views, which this book did flawlessly. I loved the journal/letter aspect that helped give me more details into the history of the characters. The twist was predictable, but I thought the author did a great job tying up loose ends and explaining everything. I stayed up way too late finishing it because I had to know what happened before I could sleep! Overall, this was a fun, twisty, addictive read.

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

QUICK TAKE: I was no fan of Lovering's previous book, TELL ME LIES, but I ended up really enjoying her latest, TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. Reminiscent of Hendricks/Pekkanen's THE WIFE BETWEEN US, I really enjoyed the alternating POV between a young woman and her fiance, who may be sitting on some very big secrets. I thought Lovering relied a little much upon the "diary entry" narrative device, but I enjoyed the twists and turns in this one (i figured out a few of them but still enjoyed seeing them play out) and I'm looking forward to whatever Lovering comes out with next.

I was glued to the book from the very first page. Enjoyed the style of the novel was written - the three timelines narrated by three main characters.

After many years of suffering from OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder), Sky finally found a man who did not only accepted her quirky behavior, but loved and shared her passion, future goals, and showered her with his attention. After a short six months, Burke proposed, and another six months later they exchanged their vows in a lavish ceremony in front of family and friends.

However, the happiness was short-lived. After the spectacular honeymoon, Sky returned home to a devastating discovery. Burke, the man that vowed to love and protect her for the rest of her life turned out to be an imposter. More than that, Sky and Burke's history was way more complicated... it began more than twenty years earlier and involved her mother and... Burke's real wife.

I must say, I could not put the novel down till probably 2/3 of the book. It turned into a sappy love triangle afterward. Unfortunately, I was disappointed with the ending, and in my opinion, it didn't stand up to a strong begging of the novel. Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin's Press publisher for a free and advanced copy of the novel.

Carola Lovering's Too Good to Be True was a page turner from the very beginning. Highly recommended for fans of a modern thriller!

I really enjoyed the story told from the perspective of each of the main characters. Every time I thought I thought I had things figured there was another perspective to consider. An intricate plot that sucked me in and took me on a roller coaster ride.

**I received an electronic ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review of this book.

Multiple POVs. Heather and Burke who have known each other since childhood, surviving broken homes and a community filled with run down homes and drug infested. Heather, a stay-at-home mom of three only wants to live a balanced, wealthy life with her husband Burke. Burke’s selfish act causes them to lose everything they’ve worked hard for. Skye, a 30-year-old, trust fund baby who suffers from chronic OCD and wants to be loved and accepted. One evening Burke was out at a bar and bumps into Skye. Skye finds Burke attractive and gives him her number. Burke and Skye start a relationship. Was this Skye’s lucky night?
I found this to be okay. It lacked the suspense I was looking for and found myself skimming through the last 10%.

Thank you NetGalley, Publisher and Author for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed Too Good to be True. This book had a lot of unexpected twists and turns! I found myself reading with my jaw dropped open several times. The story is told from the point of view of 3 different characters, which I always enjoy. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends and family!

▻ Thanks St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the free book. ◅

𝙱𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗳: One love story, or is it two? Is it even love or just opportunistic, insecure, dumb people connecting?
𝙻𝗶𝗸𝗲𝘀: I have more dislikes than likes with this book: shallow characters, no emotional hook, predictable, boring.
𝚄𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: None
𝙴𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲: I learned everything I needed to know within the first half and simply trudged along through the rest.

The premise of a love triangle-married man, wife, and girlfriend-is one that has been explored a lot in many psychological thrillers in the last few years. But Lovering expertly manages to create and explore a brand new take on this concept.

What works most effectively here are the twists and turns. I was completely shocked by every single expertly laid surprise. There was one in particular at the beginning of the second part that made me actually gasp out loud and just stare at the book for a minute. And when I looked back, every bit of the twist made sense.

I love that not only the big storylines, but the small details, all end up mattering. The beginning of the book moved a little slowly for me, but I was still intrigued. Once the story really got going, I couldn't put the book down.

Too Good To Be True, the new book by Carola Lovering is a psychological thriller that has all the things you want in one…a clever sociopath, revenge, and lies. But it is also hard to review because if you say too much you will give a lot away.

The book is definitely a page-turner that will keep you guessing and at times will have your jaw-dropping, unfortunately, that all seems to take place in the first half of the book, which ends with a huge twist. For me the second half of the book just didn't live up to the beginning, it seemed to fizzle out and was not as strong. I also thought the ending was a bit anti-climatic.

The story moves back and forth between three narratives, and all three of the POV’s are compelling. The story will have you questioning the truthfulness of each character. You never seem to figure out who you can believe and who you can't which I think helped with the suspense of the book.

Lovering’s writing is fantastic and the character development is wonderful. The story is driven by the characters and their actions and is full of suspense that will thrill any thriller reader. Even with the slowness of the second half of the book, I think Too Good To Be True is a good read, and I would definitely recommend it to fellow thriller readers.

What would you do, if you found yourself in a scenario that seemed too good to be true? That is the question Carola Lovering asked, when writing Too Good to Be True, a psychological thriller and mystery.

Sky Starling knows a good thing when she sees it. She has had her ups and downs in life, and thus she knows to appreciate having a boyfriend like Burke Michaels. He's older, more sophisticated, and loves her for who she is.

Only, that is only part of the story. They say that every story has two sides, but in this case, there are actually three sides to the whirlwind romance that Sky has been wrapped up in, and two of those stories will break her heart.

“All I'm saying is that if he seems too good to be true, he probably is.”

First of all, can I just say that I love love love the tagline for Too Good to Be True? “ONE LOVE STORY. TWO MARRIAGES. THREE VERSIONS OF THE TRUTH.” Um, who could turn away from a book like that? Not I.

For the most part, Too Good to Be True is told through three different perspectives. The obvious one is Sky, but the other two are a bit more surprising. Okay, one of the others might be obvious as well, since you can probably guess that Burke gets a chance to talk.

I'm a huge fan of switching perspectives in thrillers – I think it does a great job of showing more of the story, while leaving things surprisingly up in the air. That applies here as well, though naturally there were some arcs I enjoyed more than others.

There were times where I really did want to reach out and shake Skye's shoulders. Just a bit. I wanted to be able to tell her what was happening right in front of her, or remind her that mental health issues don't make her less of a human being. I'm sure I'm not the only reader that had that urge, either.

One of the many things that did impress me with Too Good to Be True would absolutely have to be the sheer number of surprises within. When I picked this book up, I sort of expected a few obvious yet standard twists (no offense meant, of course). But I was wrong. I was so very, very wrong. This book packs much more of a punch than I expected, and with it, many more surprises. And I couldn't be happier about that.

This is the first book I've read by the author but will definitely not be the last. This was such a great domestic thriller that had my complete attention from start to finish. I read this book in two nights because I couldn't put it down. I will definitely be recommending this book to friends and family.

Enjoyed the book! I had fun from start to finish and could not put it down. I'm a big fan of Carola Lovering!

From my blog: Always With A Book

This is the first book I've read by Carola Lovering but after reading this one it definitely will not be the last. If all her books are as addicting as this one, I will be first in line to read them!

I love nothing more than a book that explores toxic relationships and boy oh boy does this one do that in spades. I was immediately drawn into this one, thinking that I thought I knew where it was heading, only to be blindsided halfway through. I love a book that had twists but this one kept me glued to the pages because everything I thought I had pieced together what was going on, something new would be revealed that would shift things around again.

Having the book told by three points of view really keeps you on your toes and I loved that. You will end up with all sorts of feelings about each of the three characters...and that to me is such a great sign of the writing. But it also begs the question...how well do we really know the one we love? Can we really trust everything we see or do we only see what we want to see?

Things move fast in this book and it's probably best to pick this one up when you have lots of time because you are not going to want to put this one down. It's addicting and one that gets under your skin because you just need to have all the pieces to see here things are heading.

I know I'm being a bit vague here, but I really don't want to give anything away. This is one you just have to experience for yourself. It is so cleverly plotted and I loved how it all came together in the end. It's one heck of a ride and I definitely recommend picking this one up, especially if you like a good domestic thriller.

This is an early 2021 release, so I don't want to give too much away, but if you love a toxic relationship tale, interspersed with a love triangle, intersecting backstories, and unreliable narrators, you will love this one. It is told from multiple POV's of the three main characters, Burke, Skye, and Heather. I really liked the journal entry chapters, as from those, the reader is privy to the character's most intimate thoughts (or are they?), and I thought the narration traveled back and forth through the multiple perspectives pretty seamlessly. The second half of the book was the only part that somewhat disappointed me, as I had several things figured out, and the ending just didn't seem to "fit" the rest of the story, but that is a minor gripe.

I think this had some potential at the start, but it was too long and the writing too...what? Trite maybe? The characters were flat. Not recommended.

I can’t handle the truth...🤦🏼‍♀️

Shortest Summary Ever: Skye just found the right guy - older, handsome Burke, except whoops - he’s already married to Heather. Flashback to Heather and Burke’s story as young people ready to take on the world... now back to Skye and her battle with OCD and Burke’s scheme and a psycho ex.... well now you’re in the middle of the crazy ride.

Thoughts: before my opinion let me say - many of you WILL like this book. It IS twisty. It IS different, and the alternating POVs are enthralling for about half of the book. But I just ain’t the kind of woman going for this.

I am the kind of woman who uses her head above all else. I’m a rare female INTJ (if you know your Myers-Briggs, we are crazy rare “like a dude” types who make for good CEOs), it suffices to say I’m not prone to falling with emotion. I fall in love between my ears, and because the 3 characters in this book are evocative of the dysfunctional “dumbery” of Jerry Springer (well that’s EVERY episode), thus...I’m out yo.

I can’t tolerate what I view as stupidity. Don’t get me wrong... I love love. I FEEL, but well... the actions of all three characters kind of had me cheering for the villain. So mostly I felt smug. I admit it. You may not feel the same, and I fully acknowledge this is MY personality. For me, My main comment was, “Really? Really?” Like Seth Myers. Over and over. So much seemed unrealistic because I couldn’t relate. I couldn’t empathize because there’s certain deal breakers shattered here that made me reel. And felt unreal. Not. For. Me.

I have the O part of OCD so I appreciated that a mental health disorder was incorporated in a novel so well.

But I can’t spoil it for you because I’m not that twisted or unfeeling. Really. I promise.

All my reviews available at scrappymags.com around time of publication.

Genre: Domestic Fiction/Women’s Lit

Recommend to: Those who just love the love and feel GUSH that love conquers ALL.

Not recommended to: If you’re like me and can’t tolerate weak female leads. Or believe that there are deal breakers to love.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for my advanced copy in exchange for my always-honest review.

A lot of thrillers claim to be 'Gone Girl' type books when they really aren't; but this book IS!! Full of great characters, a chilling, twisted story, and excellent writing that ties it all together. It switches back and forth between characters and timelines - but I appreciated that the switches were clearly labeled.

I was enjoying the book and thought I had things figured out, but THEN - - about halfway through the book - - WHAM!!! What a twist!!!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book!!