A very twisty read
There’s a dryness about the writing style of this book that at once compels and repels. I found it hard to like Lucca, the main character even though we learn about her difficult start in life. When the story begins, she’s working for the mysterious Mr Smith, living an undercover life and getting close to the ‘targets’ chosen by him in order to extract information or other goods. The current target is a personable young man and there is a hint that she would like to know him more honestly. But it’s repeatedly made clear that she can’t do that.
I was interested to find that I really wanted her to show a more forgivable trend and it needed the relentless reminders, that whatever she did was mandated by her need to stay undercover and to give no truths away, to keep me from being more sympathetic
The plot was very complex but well worked out without ever quite giving away Lucca’s true nature. And this was a salutary reading experience for me. I never realised before how much I assume the writer will give me clues which will add up to a firm conclusion – preferably that the protagonist is really quite ok and that good will triumph somehow. I felt that this ambiguity was quite an achievement!
There is a big twist, early on when Lucca meets a woman at a party who is, apparently, her doppelganger, uses her name and seems to be infiltrating the life of her target. How she deals with this propels the story into new revelations, all very interesting and unexpected.
The relentlessly pragmatic view, through her eyes, of her early career as a con woman and thief was somewhat repellent. But I suppose this must be quite normal for people in situations and lifestyles like hers (assuming that there are such people and in the end I wasn’t totally convinced that there are and that this is how they would live but it made for plenty of thought).
Overall, I found it impossible to put down and while I never warmed to Lucca, I wanted to know what happened to her and I found the story fascinating and gripping.
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC

Evie Porter’s life is picture-perfect, apart from one small detail: She isn’t real. Evie Porter is a false name with a fake life, provided by her employer for her current job. But this job feels different from the others. The mark, Ryan Sumner, has gotten under her skin and, as her past begins to catch up with her, Evie struggles to stay one step ahead in order to save her future.

First Lie Wins is a pretty good book. I enjoyed the plot and the way the mystery unfolded. It’s intricate and unpredictable in the best way, with some great twists and turns to keep things interesting. However, the story isn’t told chronologically and it sometimes felt like an idea had just occurred to the author and they just slotted it in where they were, instead of going back and fitting it in somewhere it would make more sense. It does all add up at the end, which suggests that this style is entirely intentional, but it didn’t feel completely thought out and planned as I was reading it.

Evie is a great heroine. She’s in a morally grey area and has made some very questionable lifestyle choices, but she’s likeable enough that you still root for her, and she’s up against some very bad people which makes her the lesser evil, even if you’re not sure you can trust her. I personally could have done with a faster pace in the first half, but it picked up a lot in the second half and kept me engaged enough throughout.

This was great, I found it difficult to warm to the main character but by mid way I loved her. The story is one of a kind and as an avid reader one I’ve not encountered before it was a great book and I would recommend

A really well written and engaging cat-and-mouse thriller. Well paced, with a good couple of twists thrown in. Nothing incredibly new here, but fans of Alias, You, The Perfect Husband etc.... will enjoy.

First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston and Narrated by Saskia Maarleveld was a brilliant and intense psychological thriller from start to finish and I found it hard to put down once I started to listen to it. especially as it was dark, with lots of twists and turns throughout.

I loved the character Evie Porter but she has everything you could ever dream of! a perfect, doting boyfriend, a house with a white picket fence and a garden, a fancy group of friends.
WoW Evie is just Perfect in every way! But, the only catch is: That Evie Porter doesn’t exist.

So who is she?

The identity comes to Evie Porter. Once she’s given a name and location by her mysterious boss Mr. Smith, she learns everything there is to know about the town and the people in it. Then, the target who is: Ryan Sumner. The last piece of the puzzle becomes a the job.

Evie, isn’t privy to Mr. Smith’s real identity, but she knows this job will be different and maybe fun to do. Ryan has gotten under her skin, and she’s starting to envision a different sort of life for herself.
However, Evie can’t make any mistakes, especially after what happened last time, everything has to be perfect to get this right!

Wow This book is so good and Evie has always liked a challenge........What could ever go wrong?

I wonder?

The Narrator by Saskia Maarleveld was excellent and perfect for this book.

I highly recommend this book and the cover was eye catching!

Big Thank you to Netgalley and Headline for my advanced listening copy and book.

I absolutely love the concept of this story — a woman who spends her life assuming false identities having her own taken away in front of her very eyes and being unable to say anything. It’s a strange kind of suspense where anything is possible, everyone is lying and you’re never really sure if you’re getting whole story even from the narrator.

Our main character sets the scene well, deftly creating a curious sense of mystery and introducing us to her boyfriend-slash-target. She was aloof and cold at times, but there were moments when her personality slipped through and we got a little closer to finding who she really is.

Unfortunately for me I found the narration very slow, with little real progress in the story until the end when it all happened too quickly in a very straightforward this happened/that happened style that kind of flattened the brilliant tension it had built up throughout the story.

I loved this book and all of the twists and turns. Part of the time it felt as if she loved what she was doing, and at other times she was petrified. I did not expect the ending.

The author breaks into adult fiction with a pretty slick thriller that ticks many boxes - tension builds through the novel; there are plenty of red herrings scattered through the plot; the way the plot unfolds leaves the reader keen to find out how the story ends for the lead characters; and the ending wraps things up tidily.

The author’s previous focus on young adult fiction may, perhaps, be detected here and there, especially in the occasional passages where a more sophisticated consideration of real world crimes, criminal masterminds and crime detection techniques would have helped. But these issues are not the monopoly of young adult fiction so this is not a substantial criticism.

An enjoyable thriller that is likely to please most readers. Recommended.

It’s only January and I already know this is going to be one of my favourite reads of 2024. This is a brilliant cat and mouse thriller, with plenty of twists and great characters. I read it in one sitting and loved it.

I always love a good thriller, and that's exactly what this is. Twisty, intense and clever, this was an absolutely fantastic read that had me hooked from start to finish. Featuring plenty of suspense, high stakes, well-crafted characters and a brilliantly thought out plot, it's hard to believe that this is Elston's first adult novel. An incredibly talented author, I can't wait to see what else she has in store!

What a fabulous debut thriller. Welcome to the world of grifting where no one is who they seem & the truth is a very rare commodity. Told across multiple timelines but from Evie’s POV, we follow our protagonist as she sets her sights on the given target.

Evie Porter’s new assignment is Ryan Sumner. All is going to plan until she attends a party with him & they meet James with his girlfriend Lucca Marino. Except Evie is really called that, so who is James’ girlfriend?

A brilliant plot concept & I can’t really say anymore without giving the game away. Twist after twist kept me reading until the early hours. More please!

I knew as soon as I heard about First Lie Wins that this was going to be my kind of book - it has been getting lots of positive reviews and trust me when I say that it is worth the hype and you’re going to be hearing lots more about it. It is a clever, twisty and utterly addictive cat and mouse thriller that I raced through in a couple of sittings - what a great way to start 2024!

It is the story of a female con artist who works for a Mr Smith - he provides her with an alias and new identity at the start of each job; this time she is Evie Porter. Evie is enjoying her latest job as girlfriend to Ryan Sumner a little too much and a real future with him is an appealing prospect - but she is on thin ice with Mr Smith, her last job not having gone to plan, so she needs to keep her head in the game ….

There is so much to love about this book - the way in which the plot unfolds, with twists that keep coming and keep the reader on their toes and, if you’re like me, frequently blindsided, and a cast of characters none of whom you can really figure out so have no idea who to believe or who to trust. And in Evie, Elston has created a great main character - moving between her past and present we get to know her and understand what a complex character she is, undoubtedly morally grey but with so much to like about her that you find yourself unexpectedly rooting for her despite her profession.

I do think this is a book worth going into relatively blind so I don’t want to say too much about the plot. But if you are looking for a fun read that will take you on a wild ride and keep you guessing right to the end, then the sooner you read it the better!

I was lucky enough to receive an early copy of this, it is out now!

We meet Evie, just as she is about to move in with her boyfriend. It appears she has it all, the gorgeous partner, house and job in a beautiful town.

And then she meets ‘herself’?! What?! Yeah she isn’t really Evie, all this is a lie and someone else is using her real identity.

This took me a few chapters to get into but when I did, I was hooked! It’s such a well thought out plot, and as we get closer to the end of the present day, Evie is taking us back through her past and so it all comes together nicely with lots of ‘ah’ moments.

Brilliantly plotted, twisty and full of suspense! This cat and mouse drama is executed brilliantly, a must read! 📚❤️

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

Wow this book was so cleverly written it absolutely blew me away.

It’s hard to say to say much without spoiling the plot! But all the characters were so well written and it didn’t get confusing at all.

It will definitely be in my top 10 books of this year!

Absolutely loved this book! It’s so clever. The lead character is a woman and is set in present day and also has snippets of her life in the past eight years. It’s difficult to write a review without spoiling the plot, I was hooked from the beginning and really enjoyed the story. It would make an amazing film, I definitely recommend it and will be patiently awaiting other books from Ashley. Thank you net galley.

Great book. This is well written and the characters are easy to follow. A bit of a twist at the end which is always good to. Looking forward to reading more from this author.

A complete gem! I was on the edge of my seat for the entire book. If you love THE LIES I TELL, this will be right up your street!

This is my first five star read of the year. I listened to this on audiobook and I was completely addicted from the first chapter. Such a brilliant and original thriller! I read quite a lot of books in this genre and although I'm never that good at making preductions this one was impossible to guess. I actually went into this book blind and I think it made it even more enjoyable but I've copied the synopsis below.
This is going to be my recommendation for everyone in the weeks to come. I think it might even be my top thriller for 2024. It will be hard to beat!

This book is so hyped and I'm struggling to understand why!

I made a short video about it:
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bxUK4m...

1. Intriguing premise and that's why I picked it up.

2. It's slow, boring, far-fetched and nothing really happens till the last chapters.

3. I like it more when clues are peppered throughout the book and I get to work out the mystery myself, instead of having the reveal at the end.

4. This is the second book I read this year in this "tell me, don't show me" vibe and I hope this is not a new trend :/

5. Might be your next cup of tea, it just wasn't mine.

What a very apt title for this book as titles so rarely, truly reflect what follows.

A really good story in so many ways. It kept me page turning to the extent that I had to say goodnight at one point or I would have kept going until the last page. Frankly, the break was a good idea as it offered an opportunity for parts of the plot to clarify themselves and crystallise.

Whereas so many books of fiction really do need total suspension of disbelief in order to enjoy same, this book is not one of them. For sure, the odd question or two pops up but, for me at least, nothing to derail the story.

I am now waiting patiently for Ashley Elston's next offering.