After a bbq Jacob walked his girlfriend Rose home and saw her go indoors. But Rose is not at home in the morning and her bed hasn't been slept in. So begins 2 mothers nightmare. Jacobs mum Lucy insists he's telling the truth, Rose's mum thinks he's lying. The story then delves deeper with mounting evidence against Jacob.
Whilst I enjoyed the novel I guessed what was happening and where the story would take us. I didn't really find the characters likeable and found some of their decision making ridiculous. I understood that Lucy was protecting her son but I didn't feel really helped the situation in lots of ways.
Overall a good read

This was a very engaging read. It had me hooked right from the beginning and held my interest throughout. The Lie was a huge twist I did not see coming, I literally gasped! This book will have you thinking you have it all figured out multiple times, only to shock you and have you questioning it all. It is told from many different perspectives which was intriguing and added so much depth to the story.

I really enjoyed this book but I did still have a few minor questions after.

This was my first book by this author and it definitely won’t be my last!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

I appear to be in the minority, but this book missed the mark for me. I struggled to stay engaged. Plot points were quite predictable, even the ending twist. None of the characters really grabbed me and made me want to root for them. The pace seemed off (often too slow, perhaps due to some unnecessary info and overdetailing). The premise was good, but the delivery fell flat.

Many thanks to Net Galley and Bookouture for opportunity to read this engrossing book. I loved the fact that there weren't too many characters to keep track of and that there were no time jumps. There were more than one liar and that made for a guessing game to try and figure out who was actually telling the truth. The story is told by three narrators - Lucy, Carrie and Rose. Rose was the most intriguing as she hints at the beginning about something big about to happen and it's what keeps the reader invested as to what she's referencing. I was sure I knew who was guilty until the twists and turns which made me rethink things again. It was a satisfying book, and I would recommend it to anyone.

I read this in one afternoon, it was hard to put down. It will keep you guessing until the end. I really enjoyed the story.

Sixteen year old Rose Nyler, is missing. Her boyfriend, Jacob, says he walked her home last night and waited till he saw her go in!
But Rose's mother says her bed hasn't been slept in and there were no signs that she had come home the previous night!
When the police get involved, things start looking really bad for Jacob because the neighbours report that they saw Rose and Jacob arguing.

The only person who believes Jacob and is determined to prove his innocence is his mother.
But as new facts emerge, it becomes clear that everyone in this story is hiding something!
Is someone hiding information about a murder?

What I liked:-
There is a feeling of tension and dread that grips the reader from the very first chapter. Rose is missing and you just know that this can't end well.
I guessed what was happening very early in the book - but that didn't take away from my reading experience because the author does a great job of maintaining the atmosphere of uncertainty!
I was curious about how they would catch the culprit - and thats where the book shocked me! The last paragraph literally has you re-evaluating and reassesing all the characters and situations you have read so far!

This book releases on April 20th, 2023
Thank you #NetGalley for an ARC of this book

I have enjoyed many of Kathryn's books and this one was also a good read.

The Lie by Kathryn Croft is an enticing psychological thriller that kept me entertained from start to finish.
Full of twists and turns, lies and deceit, the pages just turn themselves.
Perfectly plotted and executed with strong characters at the helm, and a satisfying ending, makes The Lie such a thrilling and gripping read.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

Thank You NetGalley and Bookouture for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I really enjoyed “The Lie”. I felt that the plot was set up nicely especially with flashbacks into Rose’s vlogs. I did predict one twist pretty early on but I chalk that up to reading a lot of similar types of novels and have come to guess many twists. But even after guessing what was going to happen, I was still engrossed in the storyline and characters. I definitely recommend this book and look forward to reading more Kathryn Croft in the future!

Another fun, suspenseful book form Kathryn Croft. It definitely kept me guessing until the end! Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!

This was my first read by Kathryn Croft and it was good. A story that could really happen and totally believable.

Jacob, a newish boy from London, unique in a way that stood out to Rose’s best friend.. she seemed to think he was a lot like Rose, not caring about what others thought of him. But what secrets does Jacob have? Carrie, Rose’s mom, thinks he knows more than what he is letting on about the murder of her daughter.

But is it really Jacob? Jacob, has done some not so great things in his life and has a rap sheet. But does anyone even know the real Rose and the secret life she has or the men her mother has exposed her too?

This book was very good, took me a while because I had a lot going on but I am glad to have read it and truly enjoyed it. I did find I had it figured out early on and was expecting more twist that what was actually written but in the end and overall, it was still gripping. It definitely had more “thriller” potential than it actually gave us as readers. You will enjoy this one. So do not miss out.

A special thanks to Netgalley and Bookouture for letting me receive an ARC on this book, for an exchange of a honest review.

I love novels by Kathryn Croft, this book did not disappoint at all. I devoured it within 2 days, which for me is very, very good.

We get started straight away by being plunged into a back garden BBQ being held by Lucy and her husband Tom. They are quite new(ish) to the neighbourhood and have thrown this to become more acquainted with them. Lucy and Tom have two children, Jacob and Ava. Jacob has a girlfriend Rose who is chatting away to Ava as Rose is very close to their family. Jacob walks Rose home after the BBQ.

Early next morning, Carrie who is Rose's mum, rings Lucy to see if Jacob knows anything about Rose's whereabouts as she has not slept in her bed the previous night. This then opens the main premise of the story and we are told the story through the eyes of Lucy, Rose and Carrie. Jacob obviously being the person to see her last, is the main suspect but he protests his innocence.

Unfortunately, Rose is found murdered and this really opens the story up as to who has murdered Rose. The reader is taken on a really thrilling ride and I just love this story. There is a big twist in the novel and I did not see it coming to that conclusion at all.

If you love a good thrilling read, with characters that aren't too complicated then this book will be right up your street.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publishers and Kathryn Croft for allowing me a ARC.

This is one fantastic read!
What teenager does not lie? Every time Lucy tries to get any answer out of her son Jacob, she notices she’s not getting the full story… His girlfriend goes missing, and he seems to have no answers, and he seems to be the number one suspect.
Each chapter is told from a different point of view, and I loved this writing style.
This is one book you will not want to put down!

My son said he walked his girlfriend home. But now she is missing…cut and her family moved to Surrey for a new start. She organises a barbecue for their neighbours and dates to dream everything will be ok. Until she receives a call from Carrie saying her daughter is missing. Lucy’s son Jacob was the last person to see her.

Although I worked the plot out fairly early on, I really enjoyed this novel. It’s a pact thriller that will keep you hooked to the end. Thank you to NetGalley, Bookouture and the author for the chance to review.

This kept me guessing.
I sort of suspected the killer after we read Rose's POV but it was still a WTF revelation.
Lucy is one determined mother.
I wish we had found out everyone's secrets. It seems like there's more going on with Jacob and I'm so curious about it.
I received a copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I had a hard time with The Lie. It started off really slow and repetitive. Told though 3 different pov of views one the mother of the missing girl, two the mom of the boy everyone is blaming and then the girl “missing”. I could not connect with either mother. I was shocked by this as I am a mother but they just weren’t likable and not because of what everyone was dealing with it was just they were so not deep. There were a bunch little bits dropped through out to make you think it was a certain person but they never came back to some of those bits. Once we got more chapters from the missing girl I knew exactly who was to blame. As slow build as it was the ending and “OMG” moment was rushed and I feel like a lot of things were overlooked and other things were over analyzed. I actually felt bad for the missing girl because the story wasn’t about her and the justice for her. It was just weird the things that happened through out the book.

I enjoyed this book. It had many twists and turns that I really love in a thriller. Thank you for the ARC NetGalley.

I'm afraid I can only judge this book as ok, nothing really special. The big twist was obvious as soon as we start hearing from Rose. I felt the timelines didn't make sense and some of the writing was quite stilted, for some reason the chapters written from the POV of Cassie seemed to be overusing people's names. I have read a few books from this author and enjoyed most of them, but this one didn't quite hit the mark for me.

Wow edge of your seat tense chilling.I was immediately drawn in to the story read late into the night trying to figure out a who was guilty I was wrong each time,.My favorite type of thriller so many clues but none I could figure out.#netgalley #bookouture

This is the 4th book by Kathryn Croft I has read and it reminded me why I enjoy her books. The book is told from the perspectives of different characters which I love as it keeps the interest going. Rose and Jacob are boyfriend and girlfriend but Rose goes missing one evening after a BBQ at Jacob's house after he walks her home. The book is full of what you think are hints at who took Rose but nothing is what it is. I was convinced a few times that I had the book figured out early on and wanted to put it down, but I knew it could not be that obvious so I trudged on. What a surprise "who done it". I am so happy I kept going with this one. Some of the characters I didn't care for but as the book went on I started to better understand them. This is definitely worth the read.

The Lie was very middle of the road for me. I liked the author's writing style; the story had potential, but this book felt slow and repetitive. Jacob always seems to be running off somewhere. I didn't connect or care about most of the characters. Things started to get more interesting toward the end. Thanks for the advance review copy.