Member Reviews

Listen, if my husband buys a $2 million home without asking me KNOWING I’m not okay with it (which is why he did it behind my back) I would physically fight him. Then, if he goes missing, I would celebrate. 🤷🏻‍♀️ After Dan disappeared, I would have been so happy to see that leech gone.

I stayed up way too late to see how this one played out. It goes back and forth from present day and to when Lucy’s brother disappeared without a Trace. The more I read, the stronger Eliza’s character became, and the stronger my own paranoia became. Where did they go? Is Eliza real? WTF is happening?

Macmillan gripped me from the jump and I do not mind the yawns and sleep deprivation I’ll be having tomorrow because of it. There were some parts I felt were unanswered, but I think that just adds to the eeriness of it all. Thank you so much William Morrow & Net Galley for the gifted copy.

Was this review helpful?

I read this novel in two days and was completely absorbed as I am with the novels by Gilly I've read in the past. The novel hits on all the emotions you get when you wonder who can you trust, jealousy and disappearances of people in ones life.

Was this review helpful?

I have just finished reading this book and loved it. Kept me guessing until the end who the guilty party was. If you are looking for a good easy read, this is the one for you.

Was this review helpful?

Lucy is a popular author and one with a history. Her little brother disappeared when he was three when he was with her. He has never been found, and they suspected her.

Lucy also has an imaginary childhood friend, Eliza, who has made herself famous in Lucy's books and who Lucy hears talking to her and giving her advice even today.

But...Eliza has run her course, and Lucy takes her out of her newest novel.

Was that a wise decision? Lucy finds out it is not a good idea because her agent won’t accept the new book with Eliza missing.

Lucy has a bossy, domineering husband who bought her a house in the same area where her brother disappeared with "her" money. He has none of his own...he is a has been author and controls her finances, but then he disappears.

When her past is uncovered, the police question if Lucy could be responsible for his disappearance too?

The book follows Lucy in her childhood and tells about the disappearance of her brother and her life now in a huge house she didn't want to be in and especially when she isn't sure what Dan was up to with buying the house and with other things that occur.

When these things happened, Eliza was always there with advice. Was Eliza really talking to Lucy or was it her imagination?

The book has a slow build up, but once Dan, her husband, disappeared, the tension kept the pages turning.

I didn't like Dan at all - he was a bit shady and definitely jealous of his wife's success.

TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH is a page turning, emotional read with twists and surprises you won’t see coming. 4/5

This book was given to me by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

When Lucy was young, she snuck off into the forest with her little brother and her imaginary friend Eliza to watch for fairies. Lucy and Eliza returned but Teddy did not. Lucy grew up living with guilt but she pushed it aside to bring Eliza to life in her novels, making her an award winning author.
Lucy's husband, Daniel, decides to surprise Lucy by purchasing a home near the woods where Teddy went missing. Lucy's world then starts to spiral out of control as she is unsure of what is real and what is imaginary. When Daniel goes missing like Teddy, Lucy wonders what she did.
This story weaves the past with the present. It is thrilling to watch the story unfold piece by piece as secrets slowly break free, unraveling the past and the present. Lucy begins to finally find herself as she learns To Tell The Truth.
This is another excellent story by Gilly MacMillan. It is a keep you on the edge of your seat type of story. You keep reading because you don't want to put the book down and you need to know what the truth really is. The ending leaves you wanting to see more of Lucy as it feels a bit unresolved but otherwise it is an excellent book.
Thank you to Netgalley, William Morrow, Harper's Collins, and the Scene of the Crime Early Reads for the advanced copy of the book. The opinions are my own.

Was this review helpful?

Lucy Harper is a bestselling novelist who is married to Dan who is an author who has had zero success. Dan vanishes in the middle of the night. This isn't the first time that Lucy has had someone important disappear from her life. When she was young, her little brother Teddy went missing and was never found. Lucy was the last person who saw Teddy and tells multiple stories to the police about where he was last seen.


I very much enjoyed this book. Dan was a very unlikable character and I felt there were many twists that made it difficult to know who and what he was involved in throughout the book. I found myself guessing throughout the book trying to figure out what happened to both Dan and Teddy.

Was this review helpful?

This is the first book I’ve read from Gilly Macmillan and it won’t be my last. Right from the beginning, the story draws you in. I stayed up late once I started because I couldn’t put it down. I was hooked! It switches back and forth between the present and the past. Or does it? There was a dark vibe that settled over me, urging me on. I happily obliged. I was curious about Lucy. She had secrets that seemed to burden her. I admit I didn’t know who to trust. Everyone seemed shady. The author kept me guessing till the very end. I did not see ANY of that coming!!! The whole book was one twisty ride and the ending gave me mixed feelings and maybe that was the goal.

The book as a whole is enjoyable and thrilling. It will have you on the edge of your seat. The writing was great. The characters were great. I look forward to reading more from this author!! I give this 4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars.

Was this review helpful?

I had two starts to this book. The first one, the timing was bad for me. A few days later I started again. I only got a quarter of the way through when things happened again. I picked it up last night intending to read for an hour. I read until I finished it. It was that good!
The book is told along two time frames in the narrators life. When Lucy was a child she went out in the woods with her three year old brother. It was solstice night and there was a celebration in the woods. Two children went into the woods. One came back. Now, years later, Lucy is married and a very successful author of a mystery series. Dan, her husband, surprises her with a new home, near where she grew up. Now Dan is missing.
My thoughts. Lucy is a complicated character. She has an imaginary friend who became the main character in a mystery series Lucy authors. The fantasy/reality line is blurry for Lucy. I found her to be a fascinating character who, despite knowing she embellishes the truth, was someone I liked. Eliza, the imaginary friend, seemed to be the stronger of the two who was protective of Lucy. Possibly too protective. Dan I wasn’t fond of though he did support Lucy’s work. But, of course, he also benefited from her success. My heart wept for Teddy. A missing child always tugs at my heart. The stories are told along side of each other. You can clearly identify which is the story of Teddy and which is present day. I had no problem with going in and out of them. The author kept me riveted with both mysteries. There were enough twists to keep me turning pages. I even forgot my coffee which was ice cold by the time I remembered it. I absolutely recommend this book to fans of mystery and psychological thrillers.
I received an advanced readers copy, uncorrected electronic copy, for review consideration from William Morrow through Scene of the Crime and NetGalley. My review is voluntary.

Was this review helpful?

This is a good psychological thriller about Lucy Harper an author with a secret past. It was fast moving and hard to put down. I would recommend this book to others. I want to thank William Morrow and NetGallery with this ARC ebook.

Was this review helpful?

At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book. Woman in house questioning her sanity and her husband’s motives...I felt like I had read it all before. But I stuck with it, and I am really glad I did. There are several different moving pieces in this thrilller and two different mysteries happening- one very old and one very new. Lucy is a famous author of the Eliza mystery series and is wildly successful. Except she’s trying to break out of the mold of writing Eliza stories- but no one seems to want to let her. Complicated by this is a move to an area and a house that her husband insists on, but that Lucy hates- for good reasons from her past. There is an underlying quality to the protagonist and her “friend” that I found to be fascinating. She has a friend who helps her through her hardest moments- and I won’t say too much more. But I will say the relationship with this friend is what made the story line for me. I also love when an author doesn’t give me neat and tidy resolutions but instead lets me make my own conclusions as to what happened- in this story you get both! Yes read this captivating thriller. It’s not just a fun and exciting read, but the end left me thinking as well. 4.5 stars Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC!

Was this review helpful?

I just started reading this book, I'm only a few chapters in, and already I hate Lucy's husband, Dan. I can't believe he would buy a giant house without telling Lucy anything about it. And in the location of her childhood trauma. What a jerk!

I am 72% finished now. The more I learn about Dan, the more I hate him. At the same time, Lucy is becoming more and more unreliable. And all of Lucy's neighbors seem a little shifty too.

Whew! I just finished the book. I found the ending satisfying. I was surprised by the identity of the murderer. It made sense but was a convenient way to tie things up. This was a fun way to spend a few hours.

I received a free copy from Scene of the Crime Early Read program via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Was this review helpful?

To Tell You the Truth is the first book by Gilly Macmillan that I have read. It's the story of Lucy Harper, a best-selling author of a series of crime books based on her imaginary companion, Eliza Grey. Lucy's life becomes the story when her husband, Dan, disappears. Dan isn't the only person in Lucy's life to disappear - when she was a child, her younger brother, Teddy, also went missing and was never found. What happened to both of them? Did Lucy hurt them? Someone else? Why?

Overall, I didn't love or hate this book. I found the plot to be intriguing and it kept my curiosity piqued enough to want to keep reading. However, the ending left too many unanswered questions for me, which was a disappointment.

Was this review helpful?

The book was written by a Best Selling Author and I have heard many praises about her books but this one didn't really work me. BUT THIS WON'T STOP ME FROM READING HER OTHER WORKS. Not because this one isn't really my favorite doesn't mean I won't give any works a chance.

Was this review helpful?

I give this a 3.5. It's definitely a page turner, but the ending was a let down.

When Lucy was 9, she (and her imaginary friend Eliza) snuck her 3-year-old baby brother out of the house in the middle of the night. And while she returned home, Teddy never did. Now, Lucy's all grown up and married and has become a best-selling crime writer with her lead detective based on her imaginary friend (who she still can see and talk to.) Her husband -- who has his own failed writing career -- suddenly disappears, too, and while one disappearance around Lucy might be random, are two disappearances more than just a coincidence?

I really liked the unreliable narrator device in this book. And while I didn't really like Lucy, she was interesting and seemingly complicated. The idea that she never outgrew her imaginary friend was definitely strange, and I liked how it built the suspense. However, it also didn't really go anywhere, which was disappointing.

I also couldn't figure out why she was with her husband. He was a creep from the first page, and it seemed like she could have done better. (Lucy hiring a real assistant and losing the husband would have been better.) When he disappeared, I thought it was the best thing that could have happened to her (which wasn't necessarily the author's intention.)

And without giving away the end -- Dan's disappearance was fine with how it ended. But the disappearance of Teddy didn't wrap up in a way that I found satisfying.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the arc of this book. It has not influenced my opinion.

Was this review helpful?

Interesting read and enjoyable. Not exactly what I was hoping for from this author but overall a good book. Would recommend.

Was this review helpful?

This book is WOW!!! Very edge of your seat moments throughout the whole book!! There was more than one story line, and I liked how it was a double mystery thrill between past and present, and how it all intertwines..... such a great read!! I liked that Lucy is a writer in the book, and her viewpoints trying to figure out what is reality and what is fantasy to her. I didn't think the ending was going to be what it was, but very suprised and impressed with it! I didn't know until it was right to the moment who was the villain in this, although I personally think all the neighbors on her street are creepy and it isn't where I would want to ever live! Shame on Dan and his "accomplice" for their try at exploiting a tragedy. Great fast paced engaging read! It was a ride, I finished this book in 3 days between parenting over 3 kids and 7 dogs so that is a definite win in my book! Thank you Netgalley for the read and to give an honest review, definitely on my top 10 list for 2020!!!

Was this review helpful?

At the age of nine, Lucy has an imaginary friend named Eliza Grey, that has helped her cope with being bullied and feeling alone.

Now, Lucy Harper, is married and a famous author, who writes about Detective Sergeant Eliza Grey, books based on her imaginary friend. Eliza Grey has a social media page with a large fan base. Eliza is still very much a part of Lucy's life. Lucy's husband, Dan, hasn't been so successful as a writer, and works for Lucy.

Dan enjoys the life from the income that Lucy's books provide. He takes it upon himself to surprise Lucy with a purchase he made.

Lucy is less than thrilled with the surprise. She is far too close to her childhood home and memories associated with it. Memories of sneaking out of the house early in the morning with her three year old brother, Teddy, in tow. She returns home without him, and doesn't know where he is. Dan doesn't seem to consider her feelings. After an argument, Dan leaves and doesn't return home. Something Dan has done before, and Lucy doesn't worry until the police show up on the doorstep.

When Dan's body shows up, and the police start to dig, it won't be long before they discover Lucy's past!

This is about two mysteries, where one gets solved and the other keeps the reader guessing as to what happened. The end left me trying to figure out if parts of the story were from the past as they happened or a 'what if' situation. It appears that Eliza came about as a way to cope as a child and later, Lucy creates novels based on Eliza because she also struggles to cope. Intriguing read that kept me pondering!

I would like to thank, William Morrow, Scene of the Crime, and NetGalley for providing me an ARC to read and review this book.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you to William Morrow and Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Lucy is a successful author who has a past. Her husband seems to push her. Is it for the success, money, or is it jealousy? He ends up going missing and Lucy is pulled into a police investigation. Her past and present collide, Can she keep reality and fiction separate?

I enjoyed this book but felt like I could scream at Lucy. She’s not a very likable character and I found I disliked her more as the book went on. I kept rooting for her though. Everyone deserves a happy ending.

Was this review helpful?

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishing for the ARC of this novel. The premise for this story was very good and for most of the book, I was engaged; however, I wanted more of a domestic psychosocial thriller. It was a quick, easy read with a few twists and turns and I was invested in the main character, Lucy, I just wanted more.

Was this review helpful?

Wasn’t sure of how would end until the very end. Would of liked more closure at the end tho. Enjoyed reading and the suspense.

Was this review helpful?