An Honest Lie had an intriguing premise, but unfortunately, it fell short for me in several areas.

First, while the story promised a gripping psychological thriller, I found it to be rather slow-paced. The buildup felt tedious at times, and instead of being drawn in by suspense, I was left waiting for something impactful to happen. There were flashes of intensity, but they often fizzled out before truly taking hold.

The characters, particularly the protagonist, felt underdeveloped. Rain, as the main character, seemed detached, and it was difficult to connect with her on an emotional level. Her decisions often felt frustrating and irrational, which pulled me out of the story instead of immersing me further into it. There were moments where I wanted to root for her, but her behavior and the plot twists just didn’t feel cohesive enough.

Additionally, the cult subplot, while interesting, felt underutilized and lacked the depth I was hoping for. The tension surrounding it never fully materialized, and when it did surface, it was too late to salvage the overall plot. What could have been a compelling element to the story ultimately felt like a missed opportunity.

The dual timeline structure, while meant to add complexity, ended up feeling disjointed. Instead of complementing each other, the past and present narratives seemed to drag the pacing down, making it harder to stay engaged.

On a positive note, Fisher’s writing style is sharp, and there are some memorable lines and moments of introspection. However, the pacing and character issues overshadowed the potential.

While I appreciate Tarryn Fisher's creativity and ambition in crafting this novel, An Honest Lie simply didn’t work for me. Fans of slow-burn thrillers or psychological dramas might still find something to enjoy here, but it didn’t quite hit the mark in terms of tension or character development.

Although, the who dun it was pretty easy to guess, I still enjoyed the plot and the characters. I really enjoyed the past and present perspectives. The ending was a little sad, but satisfying. Looking forward to the next Tarryn Fisher novel!

This was a thriller packed with action. The last part of the book was on the edge of your seat action. Rainy grew up trapped in a cult by the monstrous cult leader and now is in the Pacific Northwest trying to build a new life with her new boyfriend. A girl trip to Vegas takes an unexpected turn. I liked how this book went back and forth between the past and the present. We got a well rounded view of Rainy.

Though media about cults has almost been done to death, Tarryn Fisher's "An Honest Lie" is anything but boring. The novel follow Summer/Rainy, a girl who grew up in a cult and finally escaped many years later. Like many thrillers, she is ultimately forced to confront her past, making her spiral on a harrowing trip down memory lane. Although predictable at times, Fisher keeps a neck-breaking pace throughout that makes for an entertaining read.

I really enjoyed this thriller! There were so many twists and turns, and I loved the cult-ish stuff. This entire book was a mystery until the very last few pages.

This is one that I wanted to love because I’ve enjoyed her other books. But this was a big disappointment it was so hard to stick it out and finish. Just ok!

I am a Tarryn Fisher stan. This was my first scary read by her, though. I've loved her comedies and her romances, I was not prepared for how thrilling this book would be!

A psychological thriller is hit or miss for me, usually, and this was a hit.

I DNF this title; I could not get into it, and could not foresee myself picking up more interest, based on trusted reviews from friends that weren't so positive. Deciding to DNF so I can move on to my other titles waiting for me!

This was a decent thriller with a solid premise (girls' weekend in Vegas gone bad). I was frustrated with the blatantly poor choices the characters kept making. I would have appreciated more story line to take in Vegas itself - I feel like the full potential of this city "as a character" was not utilized and too much of the book focused on the cult plotline. Overall a decent thriller for fans of the genre.

I've enjoyed a few of Fishers' past novels, and while An Honest Lie was entertaining enough to finish, it wasn't gripping.
It's told in dual timelines and from two characters' points of view. The characters and certain elements of the plot were interesting, but I also thought it was lacking in twists for a thriller.

[TW- cults; kidnapping]

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an advanced copy of An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher for me to preview.

I went into this expecting a generic domestic thriller but was immediately drawn in by the dual timeline and cult drama. Summer was an expressive and emotional character and I did find myself hoping she could find some happiness. True, the end was pretty predictable. Yes, the current timeline plot was a little tough to believe, but I was hooked and read this very quickly! Earth-shattering? No. Entertaining? Yes!

Probably my least favorite Tarryn Fisher books thus far. This was uneventful for a 'thriller'. I liked the cultish vibes, but I wanted more twists. It was told from an alternating timeline POV, and it felt disjointed.

This book was a great surprise of a read for me and I will definitely be reading more of Tarryn Fisher’s books! Wow!
I was drawn into the mc’s world instantly and loved the mean girls kind of buildup before finding out about the cult background. I was getting a definite “She’s All That” vibe, but the grown up version and this was a brilliant move by Tarryn Fisher.

Cult backgrounds are so freaking scary to me, and this book brought that creepy feel in the most well-written way. Send me all the Tarryn Fisher books!

This book was riveting from the start! Rainy, a successful artist with a problematic past, moves from NYC to the northwest to be with her boyfriend. She is welcomed into his group of friends - women who are their neighbors. She is somewhat unwilling to get close to these people as she does not want to have to explain the fact that she and her mother were part of a cult when she was a child. The storyline moves back and forth between her childhood and current day. A trip to Vegas with her neighbor friends turns potentially deadly as her old and new lives collide. This would have been a five-star book for me but I found the ending too complicated, drawn-out, and overly dramatic. Overall, I would highly recommend, though. I love Taryn Fisher.

An Honest Lie kept my interest even though parts were disjointed. I particularly enjoyed the relationship story between Rainy and her Mother. I appreciated the parallel story lines and “Then” and “Now” sectioning. The setting of the cult compound was well done and believable. I really felt I was there alongside Rainy(Summer) and Lorraine. Taured’s character was well developed and played perfectly as the narcissist. The flip side of the novel with “Now” storyline was were I lost interest. I’m not interested in Women portrayed as middle years bullies and some of the threads were not believable such as Braithe not having at least a brain injury. I wish that Taured’s Son’s character was expanded and the whole character Ginger had been cut as the surprise villain. I liked that the book wasn’t predictable.

To say this was a page turner isn't understatement in the least! I absolutely loved this book I am actually not a fan of reading about cults. However this book truly drew me in and I couldn't put it down and it was such a non-stop read I definitely highly recommend this book!

Synopsis:

Lorraine aka Rainy lives in a remote area where she looks forward to starting a new life and hiding from her disturbing past. When she agrees to a weekend in Vegas, she's prepared for a parade of shots and slots but after a wild night, her friend Braithe doesn't come back to the hotel room. Then Rainy gets a text from Braithe's phone, someone has her - but Rainy is who they really want. If she wants to save Braithe - and herself - the only way is to step back into the past.

Review:

This was a page turner - there was a lot of suspense and a lot of awful people. As a reader, I felt bad for Rainy and how she had been let down by the very people who were supposed to love her and protect her - so I was rooting for her throughout the book. That being said, there were many characters and pieces of the plot where I felt we didn't get enough information and I couldn't understand how or why they fit into the bigger picture.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4. I received a copy of this book as host of The Gloss Book Club.

If you're a fan of cult reads and can suspend some belief, then this is the book for you.

The story follows Rainy, who is running from a past she would rather forget. Despite her best judgment, she agrees to go on a Vegas girls trip with her boyfriend's hometown friends. When her new friend Braithe is kidnapped, Rainy must move fast to find her -- all while confronting her own past.

While this didn't quite hit the mark for me, it was an easy Summer read. Thank you to NetGalley and Graydon House for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for this eARC.

Tarryn Fisher does it again, by writing a captivating thriller about a woman who has the strength to face her very deepest darkest fears, and conquer them.

An interesting novel about sla woman raising her daughter who is left with few resources, and basically becomes involved with a cult, the mother ends up paying dearly for this, however after her daughter grows up - she evens the score.

Until next time, beware of camps masquerading as harmless alternatives!