A solid thriller. The characters were all pretty unlikeable, and the subject matter is certainly well-tread, but it kept me hooked.

this one was pretty good. I liked the dual POV and I definitely did not see the twist coming. will read more from this author!

Excellent writing. Characters are well developed.

A story of a homeless woman who finds herself among the rich. She wants so badly to sleep in an actual bed again but awakes to a brutal murder. Bree has to get away. She knows she will be accused of this heinous crime. Possibly two.

You get to know all about Bree and others. Several POVs and timelines as you learn what actually happened in this story. It's a page turner and will keep you wanting more. All is wrapped up nicely too. I was not left with any questions.

Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for this ARC. This is my thoughts about this book.

Four stars. I recommend this one.

This had a great plot and was a real page turner! Loved the writing and especially the short chapters, told from various points of view. A few surprises thrown in to pretty much make this a I can't put it down book!

I adore Susan's writing style and her way with words. They just flow and feel beautiful in my mind as I read them. They also draw me into the story and I can't stop turning the pages. This is a fun murder mystery with lots of little surprises along the way. I always enjoy multiple points of view and trying to figure out if there is an unreliable narrator in our cast of quirky characters. The setting is the glamorous Beverly Hills and it's the perfect backdrop for this intriguing fast-paced thriller with a little something for everyone.

If you are looking for a binge-worthy read, look no further!! I read this book in practically one sitting because I couldn't put it down! The chapters were short and ended with so many clifthangers!
It was fast paced, told from multiple POV's with an alternating timeline, and had plenty of twists. I really liked all of the characters and was able to connect with each of them. I loved seeing how the MC Bree was connected to Sophie. The big twist was clever and I LOVED it!

🌟🌟🌟🌟.5 (rounding up)
This is a page-turner from the start with the real excitement saved for the later part of the book. It begins with a slow leak of information about the characters. By the time we get to the meat of the story, the characters are rounded out and brought to life. But some of them hold onto their secrets tightly.

Even though this starts as a slow burn, the author manipulates the readers by slowly feeding hints and secrets. But that info is sketchy and scrambled by alternate timelines and various narrators. A large puzzle with scattered and missing pieces!

Bree once had everything she’d hoped for and more. A gorgeous house in Beverly Hills, a loving husband with a successful business and the start of her own blossoming career. When it all vanishes, she finds herself homeless and living in her car. With a situation complicated even more by her mysterious circumstances.

Sincere thanks to Lake Union Publishing for providing this complimentary ARC through NetGalley. As always, all opinions are my own and left voluntarily.

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Lie By The Pool is a book i read by the cover and luckily it paid off!
Bree is homeless, she is living in her car, teaching music lessons and trying to save money for a rental house, she washes her hair at a shopping centre and tries to get on with her life whilst grieving for her husband. She lets herself into an empty houses back garden that has a pool and sleeps on a sun lounger with a towel for warmth. A couple come to the house and Bree hides but the girl finds her but doesn’t let on instead she invites Bree to a halloween party to be held at the house, even leaving her a costume to wear. Sophie is excited to get to know Bree but at the end of the night she can’t find her but that’s because Bree has slipped upstairs as she wants to sleep in a bed but when she wakes up there’s been a murder and she has to get out of there as she’ll be blamed not for one but probably two murders.
This was a decent read and I liked how the book was split into character chapters as you got to get your head round the plot better. Bree was a good strong lead character and this helped with this book. Quite a few twists to make it a little different.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Aubrey ("Bree") is alone, penniless and living in her car when she climbs a fence and spends the night in the pool house of a luxurious home in Beverly Hills. Sophie and Carter, adult children of the home's absentee owner are planning a Halloween party and, after discovering Bree hiding on the property, Sophie insists that Bree should attend. The next morning a woman is discovered dead in the pool and Bree is on the run.

This story goes back and forth in time and is told from a number of pov's, including Bree and Sophie, and it's really well crafted. The plot is quite complex with many twists and turns and some surprising revelations as well as plenty of misdirection. Bree's background as a pianist was an interesting side story. I previously read "Good as Dead", the author's debut novel, and hope to read "Over My Dead Body" when time permits. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend. If you're in the U.S., the giveaway for this book is still open for a few more days!

My thanks to Lake Union Publishing via Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.
Published September 12, 2023

"Lie by the Pool" captivates with its enticing plot and masterful storytelling. The author skillfully weaves a tale of intrigue and romance, keeping readers on the edge of their seats. The characters are well-developed, adding depth to the narrative. The setting by the pool adds a delightful touch, enhancing the overall charm of the story. A must-read that promises an engaging escape into a world of secrets and passion.

Lie By The Pool was a really intriguing, twisty novel. I really thought I knew where this book was going at first but I was totally and completely wrong. It took a complete different turn than I thought, but in the best way! I look forward to reading more from this author!

I love this author’s writing style when it comes to secrets and drama. The short chapters along with multiple POV and timelines kept the pace moving. Sophie was really good at keeping information to herself which included not letting the reader in on it. Something would happen and she would hint that she knew the reason behind it. As the story progressed it was easy to start piecing together the connection but there was still one twist I did not see coming. There wasn’t one POV I liked more than the rest, but I found myself connecting with Bree more, but also being really intrigued by Sophie’s role in everything. By the end there were a lot of loose ends to finish and I thought it was done in a way that didn’t feel too rushed.

This book was a fun, thrilling read. I enjoyed how everything was connected. The chapters were easy to read and story was easy to follow. I do feel that the ending was rushed.

This one wasn’t for me, a bit of an irregular pace, jumping all over the place with the POVs given, and some really whacky plot “twists” that were hard to take seriously.

Pros: Likeable female lead. Good start, unique idea.

But, mostly shallow and predictable 🫣

Bree has had a rough go of it and is currently homeless. She has been living as a squatter in a pool house of a big luxury home in Los Angeles. When an offer comes her way that seems to be the answer to her problems she's excited. But things take a turn and her world spins out of control. Everyone is lying. Someone is dead and she's in the middle of it all.

I always enjoy multiple POV. This one teased you along the way and had some twists and turns, and was able to shock me.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I’ve been so excited for this book! I’ve seen lots of good reviews! I’m happy to report; I agree with them!

Told through several POVs, Lie By the Pool is about Bree, a recently homeless woman living in her car and crashing in empty pool houses. She runs into Sophie one night and Sophie invites her to a party at a mostly empty home. Bree sleeps upstairs and finds Sophie floating in the pool the next morning.

I loved the timing of this book- we know that Bree is on the run from something and we know that Bree’s husband has died mysteriously. She becomes homeless, but it’s not until the story goes on that we find out why. This book is utterly addictive.

Thank you @suzyapprovedbooktours @susanwalterauthor and @lakeunionauthors for my gifted book. Lie By the Pool is out now!

Crime Fiction | 276 Pages
Publication Date: 12 September 2023

A desperate woman. An irresistible invitation. An escalating nightmare of secrets, lies, and murder.

All Bree wants is a good nights sleep unfortunately for her that is not going to happen. Homeless, penniless and out of options. Well until she finds a home in Beverley Hills that is currently unoccupied. She sneaks in to sleep in the pool house. The owner’s daughter – Sophie finds Bree has been staying at the home but instead of kicking her out she invites her to stay and drops a care package off to her with an invitation to a party at the house. A dead body is found in the pool the next morning. Who is it and why?

The book is told from the points of view of Bree, Sophie, Carter and Luke on different timelines. Don’t let the cast of characters surprise you, they all intertwined very well and you can follow the along very easily. I enjoyed each and every character. It was such a gripping and fast read for me, full of mystery and suspense. I finished this one in a few days and can’t wait to read more from Susan Walter in the future.

Thank you Netgalley and Lake Union Publishing for sending me a gifted copy of this e-book for my honest book review.

A handful of perfectly ordinary young people become wrapped up in a shockingly large, organized crime ring in Southern California in this new novel by Susan Walters.

I absolutely loved everything about this book. I had very high expectations for this one because I loved 'Good as Dead' so much, but this one completely blew them away. Alternating the perspectives of some very normal people put in very high stakes situations kept the story moving so fast you can't put it down. It's hard to be more specific about things I loved without spoilers, but this book was just fantastic. I cannot wait for more from this author!!!

I'd had Lie by the Pool by Susan Walter awaiting me on my iPad for a while before getting to it. I'm not sure why I requested it, but something about it leapt out and I've seen other Aussie bookbloggers or bookstagrammers reading it too. In some ways it's a proverbial sleeper. We come into the story part-way through. Bree has lost everything - her husband and house - and is living out of her car. When we meet her she's sneaking into the poolhouse of a large house in Beverley Hills. It's obvious that it's familiar to her for some reason but that's all we know. And that's all we do know until Walter very cleverly starts pulling together multiple threads.

There are a few narrators here. Bree of course. And then there's Carter - the son of a builder who flips houses and who discovers his father has bought the Beverley Hills house. He's furious he wasn't told and doesn't understand why there's some secrecy surrounding it. Sophie, his sister - seems to be biding time waiting for her dream job, much to the frustration of her family. But when it's her turn as narrator she tells us she knows the secrets behind the house and whose belongings remain there.

Bree's a bit of an enigma and Walter purposely keeps her that way. She's retained two or three of her previous music students, so has some income - though maintaining her personal hygiene without access to showers is problematic and she barely eats. She's found quiet streets to sleep in her car at night but the temptation of the vacant pool house in Beverley Hills is too much and she returns. This time she's discovered by Sophie, who's there with Carter to scope the unoccupied house out for a party. Bree is surprised when Sophie leaves a care parcel and then invites her to the party, but attends nonetheless. And that's where things get kinda complicated. As the blurb indicates, there's a murder and Bree realises as an itinerant with no reason to be at the house, she's the obvious suspect.

Walter dips about in time here and it's cleverly done so we're not quite sure of our timelines though we're eventually taken back in time to Bree falling in love with Luke and the early years of their marriage. Not only does Walter manage to keep the threads just far enough apart that we can't quite see what's coming but she also manages to dangle hints in front of us. Just out of our reach.

There are connections that shouldn't be there and we don't know how they fit together. And while obviously there are secrets being kept, we don't know why. Finally, we're not entirely sure if those secrets involve good people doing stupid things, or bad people doing whatever the hell they want.

This is very nearly a (rare) 4.5 star read for me with the crafting of its structure the standout. The climax itself was probably a little clunky and I suspect that's because we didn't really ultimately end up with an identifiable threat (or baddie, to use technical terms!).

That said, I'll definitely be seeking out more of Walter's work as she's written a couple of previous novels and - from their titles (Good as Dead and Over Her Dead Body!) - they sound similarly twisty and dark.

I really loved this book and devoured it in one sitting. The surprised one the story line and the characters kept me reading until the very end as if their dates were in my hands. It was well written and fast paced. Great work! Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for providing me with an ARC. This is my honest review.