Having read and enjoyed several books in the Frieda Klein series by this writing duo, I was interested to check out this stand-alone thriller. The story begins with a mid-life crisis. A middle-aged, married woman named Neve is having an affair with her married boss, Saul. Their trysts have given her a spark that she knows is wrong, but she is nevertheless drawn in and carries on with the assignations. Neve's secret world is turned upside-down when she discovers Saul's body in their pied-à-terre after receiving a text to join him there that morning. Rather than calling the police, she first scrubs the apartment of every trace of her existence in Saul's life. She seems to believe that she will be able to keep her indiscretion secret and go back to her normal life without any consequences.

After leaving the apartment and calling the police, she begins to worry that she has forgotten or overlooked something that will upend her life. The detective in charge of the investigation seems to have zeroed in on her and she finds herself struggling to hold everything together as her suspicions grow about who around her might be guilty of Saul's murder. DCI Hastings seems to know more about Neve than her closest friends and family, suggesting her secrets will not stay hidden for long. There are many twists and turns along the way before the killer's identity is revealed. I did not deduce the perpetrator, but felt that the authors had played fair with the reader after I thought back about the clues/hints. I did not expect the story to end the way it did and appreciated it was not an entirely tidy.

This review was based on a NetGalley copy I received from William Morrow and the Book Club Girl Free Friday program. Many thanks for the opportunity to read this suspenseful thriller!

The main character Neve Connolly has many roles with her family and friends. She also has many traits that make her both a memorable and flawed person. She draws everyone around her into her world which becomes dangerous for them as well as herself. Now the consequences of her choices leave her no opportunity to tell the truth. So how far will she go to protect those she loves.

A woman, Neve, is having an affair with her boss, Saul. When she goes to meet him for a tryst one morning, she is stunned to find him dead in the flat where they would meet. She then decides to clean up the murder scene to wipe away any trace of their affair. However, when she discovers that she left something in the flat, and goes to retrieve it, she makes a terrifying discovery. Now she knows that someone knows about the affair and she doesn’t know what to do.
Neve tried to balance her family, her co-workers, and the detectives as she tries to find the truth about Saul’s murder. Unlikely relationships and secrets come out, and Neve is troubled more and more.
I liked the tension in this book, but I was not convinced of Neve’s ability to be so methodical and to find out the murderer. I found this to be unreal, which prevented me from liking this book more.
#TheLyingRoom #NicciFrench #NetGalley

I really enjoyed this book. Neve, a married mother of 3 finds a man she was having an affair with dead. Unsure what to do she cleans up the murder scene of her presence to avoid the scandal of having had an affair. In her mind she is protecting her oldest daughter, who has had some problems and her own marriage. The book continues with her every day life at home and at work. There are some twists in the plot.

I was so excited to get this one when it was offered as the Scene of the Crime book club Friday pick. Unfortunately, I wasn't keen on it at all. In fact, I wanted to DNF it about a quarter of the way through, but ended up speed reading to get to the end to see if there was anything of note I could salvage.

The Lying Room started out great--Married mother Neve Connolly pays a visit to her secret lover and finds him murdered. This should be the set up for a thrilling whodunit. But it just meanders for far too long. There are so many unnecessary details and descriptions that don't move the story forward and it's populated by the most unlikable cast I've ever met in literature. I couldn't connect at all to Neve, her husband is a drip that goes from a just-leave-me-in-a-hole-to-die persona to a sure-let's-invite-all-your-friends-to-dinner! one. Neve's sons are virtually background noise and Mabel is just...awful and so much so that I didn't even care to find out if there was backstory why. With all the detail given, I'd be expecting some insight to all these characters, but nothing was satisfying. Even the ending and the reveal of the 'bad guy' was a let down. It all left me with a very "who cares about any of this" feeling.

I do hate leaving reviews of this nature, but this wasn't the book for me at all. This couple has quite a number of books out that seem to be quite popular, so I seem to be in the minority, but it is what it is.

Thank you to William Morrow through the Scene of the Crime book club and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.