This is a book that is really hard to review without giving away any spoilers. It certainly kept me guessing right until the very end.

When your job involves uncovering secrets and you have to change your identity every time you get a new task it’s hard to know who to trust. Even more so when you don’t actually know who you are working for.

A brilliant thriller that will keep you hooked.

I could not stop reading this, and it completely broke .my reading slump! Morally grey Female protagonist (check!), suspenseful plot racketing along at such a pace my eyes and brain almost can't keep up (double check!) And the bonus of heist twists?! Divine. Absolutely loved it and the ending is SO SATISFYING it is unreal. Roll on this being a movie.

I loved this book, twists and turns at every corner kept me guessing until the end, I definitely recommend reading it

I really enjoyed this book, loved the characters and the story. It kept me guessing and its one of those books you think about when you arent reading it.

I don't know where to start. What an absolute cracker of a book!
Evie Porter works for Mr Smith. She doesn't know anything about him and has never met him in the eight years she has worked for him.
Ryan Sumner is the target. He has something, Mr. Smith wants, but this job is different. Evie finds herself falling for Ryan. What does this mean for Evie's future?
What an ingenious and totally different book this is. So cleverly written. I was glued to the oages till the very end.
I loved the shocks and twists, which I didn't see coming, and there are plenty of them.
I can't say anymore as it would be a spoiler, but this is a definite read for next year.
I will be looking forward to reading any future books by this author.
Thanks to Netgalley and Headline for the ARC in return for an honest review.

I found the storyline of this book very confusing at times, as it switched between not only time lines but also the main character has many guises. I really wanted to keep up with the plot but found the constant switching hard work to follow.

My thanks to Net Galley and Headline for the ARC.

Wow this was one heck of a twisty read and just when I thought I knew what was going on BANG!! along came another twist!! This is one of those books that is impossible to describe I hadn’t read much about it but just enough to make me want to read it and I think that’s what made it all the better. It’s so damn cleverly written as just when you think you know what’s going on everything suddenly becomes a huge new puzzle and I could put the damn book down.
So that’s all I’m going to say apart from don’t miss this but prepared to have your head screwed off and your day fly by because I can guarantee this is one hell of addictive read !!
My thanks to NetGalley and Headline for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Blimey, there is so much to unpack and unravel within this book, that I’m struggling to know where to start. When you read the start of my next paragraph, please don’t think this is a romance, this is a fast paced thriller, through and through.

Evie Porter is blissfully happy, Ryan Sumner is the man of her dreams; they dote on each other, they are the perfect couple. Except, they aren’t. Evie is an illusion, a puppet, a pawn on a chessboard. This is where our rollercoaster begins, and it’s quite a ride.

The storyline moves quickly, the reality of the characters is constantly moving too. As a reader, it feels like the sand is shifting beneath your feet.
There is an intensity to the book, none of the characters do anything by half measures. I really enjoyed the dual timeline, which helps us to build a full picture of Evie. To see how deep rooted all the elements of Evie’s current predicament run.

First Lie Wins is a twisty, complex rollercoaster of a ride, and I loved it.
As the story progresses, the twists keep coming, and coming. This book is everything except predictable. The tension between the pages is high, not easing until the author writes ‘The End’. I really appreciated that all the questions posed in the book, were answered by the last page.

First Lie Wins is Ashley Elston’s first foray away from the YA genre, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I look forward to reading whatever the follow up is to this gripping, highly recommended 4.5⭐️ thriller.

Fantastic characters abound in this addictive thriller, one of those that after a few pages you know you are going to be addicted to and feel excited at what’s to come
Cleverly written with a plot to match this book kept me invested all the way through and the few twists surprised me ( which is always good )
Really good fresh enticing read

An accomplished debut novel for adults, set over a number of time lines. Lucca finds herself set with numerous tasks to carry out under cover using various aliases and wondering who exactly is Mr. Smith- the person in charge! Plenty of twists, turns with an unexpected ending!

I really enjoyed this read & couldn't put it down until id finished it.
Spent a good couple of hours thoroughly engrossed whilst travelling.
I liked that not everyone was what they seemed & I couldn't predict everything in the story. Evie was a likeable character & I was rooting for her
I had a chuckle at the end at a character having the same name as my daughter, it made our day as we were on holiday together.
My thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for my E-ARC in return for my honest review.

Way too Americanised for me, unfinished. Trying to make sense of the references pulled me out of the narrative too often. A DNF. Not for me, this one.
My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

I’m not really sure if I enjoyed this or not . I loved the first quarter of the book then I got a bit bored with the story . I got half way through and nearly didn’t finish it but I carried on and the last quarter I really enjoyed. I would recommend this book as I think it may appeal to most people. It just had the tension missing for me I’m afraid

Evie Porter isn’t; nor is she any of the other names used over the last eight years. But ‘con artist’ is too weak; she is a professional avatar, she is real. Certainly, Ryan Sumner believes she is real, real enough to fall for her, and let her move in to his house. Ryan is a rich financial consultant but money is not the reason that Evie has ensnared him. Her boss, Mr Smith, usually seeks useful information or the retrieval of stolen items for clients, although grounds for blackmail are also in the mix. Evie, and other unidentified operatives, are the tools for obtaining this material. Usually she will be given the name of the mark, her new identity (including documents and background) and a location, but will not get details of the material sought until she has established her position. So, although she is gathering information on Ryan’s activities she doesn’t know why, or on whose behalf she is doing this. She is also becoming emotionally attached to him, which makes things more complicated. A further complication is her increasing suspicion that this mission is a test, following her failure on the previous one. Resolving that issue will come to dominate her future.
The story runs in two strands, Evie’s present situation trying to outsmart or out manoeuvre Mr Smith, and flashbacks to some of her previous missions. In the latter, information on her background and personality is supplied, as well as to our understanding of Mr Smith’s operation. Inserted in these are the crucial plot requirements which will facilitate the resolution of her present dilemma. The way in which that resolution is engineered is a delight to read, as is the book as a whole. In fact, the smoothness of the writing carries you along just as much as the desire to see how it all fits together.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

I really enjoyed this book - it's the perfect thriller and I'm so glad to have read it before it is a TV series.

It kept me gripped and guessing throughout. It is well written and a good read if you want to get excited.

I'll definitely more from this author.

This book grabbed me straight away and didn’t let me go till the last page. I was intrigued to know more about the main character who is really Lucca but takes on various names and identities depending on the job she is doing for her boss, the elusive ‘Mr Smith’.
It’s a plot unlike any I’ve ever red before and for that I commend the author, Ashley Elston, there are twists and turns and nothing is ever quite what it seems!
Normally, I’d give a bit about the storyline but honestly it’s a much better read if you just go into it like I did without reading much about it.
Be prepared though, you’re not going to want to put it down! An easy five stars from me!
My thanks go to the author, the publishers and to NetGalley for an advanced reader copy of this book.

This book was a stunningly well written piece of Machiavellian intrigue, with plot twists that just kept me gasping and furiously reading on into the small hours of the morning to discover what was actually the truth!
The characters are well imagined and "feel real". I love the fact that it is unlike most other books out there, in the respect that the plot is not routine and you really can't guess where this rollercoaster narrative will end.
The fact that you start with a main character, that you think you know and what motivates her, but ultimately come to the conclusion that any preconceived notions about the direction of the book or what drives the main character is peeled away later by layer until you realise that you really had no idea at all and you're just along for the wild ride and conniving things that happen throughout is mind blowing.
I highly recommend this book if you are looking for an intense, puzzling page turner that has you guessing until the very end I also felt very invested in the main character and her story.
Very well done to this author and I'd like to see more from her.

Brilliant read.

A totally unique psychological thriller with many twists and turns and the use of present day and past ‘jobs’ adds to the suspense. Complex and well constructed we follow’Evie’ as she carries out her work for ‘Mr Smith’ who seems to know everything happening to Evie.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Headline and Ashley Elston for the ARV in return for an honest review.

What a fabulous read !,fast paced ,gripping ,with plenty of twists. Full of suspenseful moments, a very clever story of Evie Porter but who is she really and does she even exist ? Prepare to enjoy ..Thank you to Net Galley for my ARC.

Evie Porter seems like a nice, homely gal but soon we learn that her name and location changes frequently. Evie works for a shady employer targeting individuals where the aim is to blackmail them or steal something from them. The novel flits between her current target and events that have taken place in the past with previous targets. At first, it is not clear why these previous events are been described but as the book progresses, their significance becomes apparent and everything falls into place (no spoilers here!). A gripping and suspenseful thriller. This is a clever and original novel – everyone will be talking about it. You will be enthralled.