I feel a little misled, as a fan of the Women’s Murder Club series by James Patterson and thought that this book was another installment or continuation of this series.

This novel contains three short novels one WMC and the other two more stories (hopefully new books) , while I enjoyed this book I think the author and publisher should change the cover to avoid anything misleading.

I just reviewed 23 1/2 Lies by James Patterson. #NetGalley

23 1/2 Lies is a 2023 thriller novel by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro. It is a collection of three novellas, each featuring a different protagonist, different settings, and different delicious secrets.

The first novella, "23 1/2 Lies," stars Lindsay Boxer, a detective in the San Francisco Police Department. Boxer's estranged father is gunned down execution-style, and she sets out to investigate his murder. Along the way, she uncovers long-buried secrets that could change her life forever. 23 1/2 Lies is a fast-paced and suspenseful thriller that will keep you guessing until the very end.

The second novella, "Fallen Ranger," features Rory Yates, a Texas Ranger who is investigating an armored car robbery. The suspect in the robbery is a former Ranger, and Yates must decide whether to trust his own kind.

The third novella, "Watch Your Back," stars a starving artist who is paid to expose his client's cheating wife. But when the artist gets too close to the truth, he finds himself in danger.


Some additional thoughts on the book:

The first novella, "23 1/2 Lies," is the strongest of the three. It is a classic Patterson mystery with plenty of twists and turns.
The second novella, "Fallen Ranger," is a bit slower-paced, but it is still an enjoyable read.
The third novella, "Watch Your Back," is the weakest of the three. It is a bit predictable and the ending is a bit anticlimactic.
Overall, I would recommend 23 1/2 Lies to fans of James Patterson's thrillers.

If you are looking for a more challenging and complex thriller, I would recommend starting with one of Patterson's earlier works, such as Along Came a Spider or Kiss the Girls. These books are longer and more suspenseful, but they are also more well-written. Overall, 23 1/2 Lies is an enjoyable thriller that is sure to please fans of the genre. However, I don’t believe it to be Patterson's best work, and it may not be to everyone's taste. The novellas also seem to be a bit predictable and written with a certain formula common to thrillers.

📚Disclosure: I received a review copy of this #book from Grand Central Publishing - via #Netgalley. All thoughts, opinions, comments, and interpretations of the story are my own and bias free. I did not receive any money in exchange for this review. Thank you to the publisher/author for allowing me the opportunity to review. 🦄 @GrandCentralPub @HachetteUS
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Short stories aren't really my thing, but James Patterson (or the authors writing with his name for the cover) is a go-to for a quick, satisfying read. And while each of the three stories were fine, none really stood out for me. I'd recommend 23 1/2 Lies for a quick read, and I may check out the Women's Murder Club based on this into to it.

Thanks very much to Grand Central Publisher for giving me the opportunity to review this book through NetGalley.

23 1/2 Lies is a compilation of 3 short stories. The first which gives the book it's name is a Women's Murder Club mystery in which Lindsey finds out at the scene of a murder that her father whom shoe thought died years earlier is now the victim. It deals a lot with her family's relationships as she pursues the murderer. I am a fan of Women's Murder Club and is the reason I wanted to read the book.

The second novella has Texas Ranger Rory Yates investigating his former mentor in the Rangers. It's a little predictable since he's the only suspect that they are looking at. But, it's well done and I enjoyed the characters.

The 3rd short story has a broke artist getting hired by a tech giant to follow is wife across the country. The shortest and I would have to say weakest of the stories, I just didn't care much how it played out. The a arrival of a past partner/law enforcer didn't feel realistic to me.

I liked the first 2 stories and sometimes it's nice to have quick conclusions. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I'll always read a Women's Murder Club book, but I didn't realize when I picked this book it actually contains 3 novellas and they were all very different.

The first one is part of the WMC series where Lindsay is investigating the death of her father, who she thought had been dead for the last few years. A good mystery overall, but is less than 25% of this book.

The second novella, Fallen Ranger, is the longest of the bunch. I didn't think I'd like it as much as I did, but the characters and Texas scenery was really well done. It was a great mystery / thriller that had an unexpected ending IMO. I really liked Rory; this was my favorite of the bunch.

The third story, Watch Your Back, was a flop for me. It wasn't engaging and although I kept hoping it would get better, it just didn't.

I would recommend this book for the first 2 stories.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced digital copy of this book.

This is not really a full book, but rather three novellas, written by James Patterson in cooperation with three other authors. The first, 23 1/2 Lies, finds Lindsay Boxer, a member of the Women's Murder Club, responding to a murder near the police station's parking lot. When she gets there, she is warned not to look at the body, but when she does, she finds it is her father, who she thought had been dead for several years! As usual, the other members of the Club pitch in to help solve this unusual murder.

The second, Fallen Ranger, has Texas Ranger Rory Yates looking into a series of armed robberies that a colleague thinks may involve a retired Ranger. Rory is chosen to check this out because of his close relationship with the Ranger, who helped train him and served as his mentor. As he works to clear the case, things are not always as they seem, and when a San Antonio police officer is murdered, it takes a whole new turn.

The third, Watch Your Back, involves an out of work artist who is hired to tail his boss' wife and prove she is unfaithful. But things get complicated when she spots the tail and wants him to turn the hunt back on her husband. And it doesn't help that the artist is falling in love with her.

In all, a fast read, whets your appetite for more of James Patterson's style, and the differences each of his collaborators bring..

The Women’s Murder Club is always an amazing read! This novella and to have two other great short stories were quick reads but great!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC.

It came as a pleasant surprise to me when the book I requested from NetGalley turned out to be three novellas. I'll admit when I saw the author's name and the subtitle indicating it was an addition to James Patterson's Womens Murder Club series (I am a fan), I didn't pay too much attention to the description. In each of the mysteries, Patterson has collaborated with a different author.

The first novella, 23 1/2 Lies, prominently features Lindsay Boxer - a main protagonist in the Women's Murder Club as she faces bad memories from the past and uncovers secrets about her family. I enjoyed learning more about Lindsay and her past as she investigates her father's murder. Her pals from the Murder Club play only minor roles in this well-written, nicely paced mystery.

Fallen Ranger is an engaging, fast-paced read. Rory Yates - a Texas Ranger - faces professional and personal dilemmas as he is tasked with investigating an old friend. Lots of internal conflict that provides insight into the man. He was easy to identify with and like. An interesting plot, twists, surprises, and suspense make it hard to put it down.

Watch Your Back is told from the point of view of an artist being paid to follow a client's wife. Not his usual job. He shares his misgivings about the assignment, and the client, as he travels across the country. Nonetheless, the characters lacked in depth and the tale was not particularly suspenseful. It was an okay read.

A short read that starts with a shock for Lindsay Boxer.

Lindsay thought her father died years ago, but finds out he was shot to death less than 24 hours ago. Lies and secrets abound and Lindsay discovers her past is not what she thought.
Can she solve her dad’s murder and come to terms with the past?

Twists & turns make this a good read for fans of the Women’s Murder Club.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance eArc in exchange for my opinion.

This book is a collection of novellas by three different authors, and James Patterson. I've read all of the Women's Murder Club books and I enjoy them greatly. The first novella in this book was a simpler and shorter version of those books. Maxine Paetro, the usual co-writer for the Women's Murder club series also wrote this one.

Texas Ranger was co-written by Andrew Bourelle. I loved this story. Fast paced, interesting. Great characters, interesting twists, highwire antics, and a surprise ending. It kept me from going to bed on time. I recommend this collection if only for this novella. I am not familiar with Mr. Bourelle, but I will be looking for his books in the future.

Loren D Estleman is author of the last novella. This is also a quick paced book with many twists.

Each novella is very different and I found it an interesting collection.

It's a quick read about the Women's Murder Club. I wanted more. I'm not quite sure how I feel about sharing the book with 3 different stories. All three were good. Quick read.

Always entertaining and escapist, this latest installment of novellas was perfect on a recent flight. I must say that while I prefer a complete novel, it was enjoyable to read these short pieces, although I found the conclusions to be rather neat and convenient.

Look forward to the next.

James Patterson's Women's Murder Club series is my favorite ongoing story. In each novel, the reader gets a great description of characters along with a good mystery and an all around good read. His latest in the Women's Murder Club series in 23 1/2 lies. It's a novella about a crime regarding Lindsey Boxer's dad. While it's a short, quick read it's a good one. It a nice "hold over" until book 24 is released.

23 1/2 Lies by James Patterson gives readers a gift with two of his best characters - Lindsay Boxer and Rory Yates, as well as introducing a new one. As usual with Patterson, hard to put down.

A fun read! I always enjoy The Women’s Murder Club - even in a short story - and to have two other great short stories was super. Fast reads but intense with drama and intrigue on all three.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I always love James Patterson books, and the women's murder club always remains one of my favorite series from him.

Lindsey/"Blondie and her partners are in for a wild ride on this one, and I always love how there is usually more than one story weaved into his books that tie Claire, Yuki, Cindy and Lindsey together to figure out what happened.

This one surprised me, because I never read anything about Lindsey's parents (that I can remember) in previous books. Her father is shot in this one, and in trying to uncover what happened and who did it, she comes across some things that she 'thought' she knew, but aren't necessarily so.

Two novellas and one short novel. I requested the book because I love the Women’s Murder Club. This novella written with Maxine Paetro takes up 25 percent of the book. Lindsay Boxer is called to a homicide and the victim is her estranged father Marty Boxer. All the regulars in the series are there but this is a really quick procedural story. There isn’t time for red herrings. This is written for fans like me who want to touch base with familiar characters. I didn’t like that her sister kept the fact that she knew the dad was alive from Lindsay. (4 Stars)

Fallen Ranger written with Andrew Bourelle. Short novel taking up 55 percent. Texas Ranger Rory Yates investigates an armored car robbery. And it means looking into an ex-ranger. This tries to add a bit to the character as he is trying to decide between his current girlfriend and the past love of his life. The investigation is standard written in the clipped, short chapter, fast paced Patterson style. (3 Stars)

Watch Your Back written with Loren D. Estleman. Short novella, 20 percent of book. (This is the only co-author I don’t remember having read a book from previously.) Wealthy man hires an artist to follow his suspected cheating spouse as she drives cross country to a work conference. Interesting and has some quick twists. But no one I cared about or was rooting for. (3 Stars)

These are all fine for quick on the go reads. Reminds me of when Patterson was doing the Bookshots novellas. But I honestly was only interested in 23 1/2 Lies because it is part of a series I read. Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the ARC and I am leaving an honest review. (3.5 Stars)

"Enjoy three heart-racing thrillers from the New York Times bestselling master of suspense.

23 1/2 Lies with Maxine Paetro: Lindsay Boxer's estranged father is gunned down execution-style, and her investigation uncovers life-altering truths.

Fallen Ranger with Andrew Bourelle: To Rory Yates, being a Texas Ranger means absolute loyalty to the badge. But he's put through the ultimate test when an armored car robbery suspect might be an ex-Ranger gone rogue.

Watch Your Back with Loren D. Estleman: When a starving artist is paid to expose his client's cheating wife, can he paint the picture that will save his own life?"

New Women's Murder Club! Sure I'm not the biggest short story fan, but Women's Murder Club!

Well this is something new...and I like it! 23 1/2 Lies features three (3) short stories. The first story (self-titled) is part of the Women's Murder Club series with author Maxine Paetro. Lindsey's estranged father is gunned down execution style and her investigation leads to life-altering truths.

Far as Linsdsey knew, her father died years ago. Yet she is called to the scene and discovers the victim is none other than Marty Boxer. Now she questions everything from why he was murdered to how everyone but his oldest daughter knew he was alive all this time.

23 1/2 was straight to the point yet predictable. I pegged the killer upon first mention which is usually not Patterson's/Paetro's style for WMC books. Yet the personal aspect of Lindsey, her childhood and relationship with sister was in the forefront. It's always nice to read about the personal lives of main characters in a series. So worth the read!

The second short story is titled Fallen Ranger with author Andrew Bourelle. A Texas Ranger named Rory Yates is loyal to the badge. He's put to the test when an armored car robbery suspect might be an ex-Ranger breaking the law to do good. Through days of duplicitousness, Rory determines whether his longtime friend is the man behind the crimes.

The scenery descriptions make it very easy to imagine the story. I like how Rory relayed his thoughts out loud to the reader. Especially because his reasoning made sense as the mystery was revealed.

Watch Your Back is the third short story written with author Loren D. Estleman. An artist is paid to expose his client's cheating wife. He is tasked with painting the picture to save his own life. I was hoping this short story collection would be 3 out of 3 but nope. Watch Your Back was a dud. It started off that way and unfortunately never picked up speed or my interest.

All three (3) short stories can be read as a standalone. Perfect for reading-on-the-go!

Happy Early Pub Day, James Patterson! 23 1/2 Lies will be available Tuesday, September 12.

Disclaimer: An advance copy was received directly from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Opinions are my own and would be the same if I spent my hard-earned coins. ~ LiteraryMarie

I really enjoyed this short story (perhaps the 1/2?) in the Women's Murder Club Series. Although there were two other stories in the book, I did not read those. Looking forward to recommending this in September. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.