Truth Truth Lie is my type of book. It had plenty of twists and turns that kept me gripped and made me want to keep reading. I loved the setting and enjoyed the characters - Overall a fantastic read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas & Mercer for my ARC.

Headline: Finely crafted locked-room thriller with a wholly unexpected finale

Book Review: Truth Truth Lie by Claire McGowan
Published by Thomas & Mercer, May 21, 2024

★★★★☆ (4.25 Stars!)

Mallacht Island, Scotland
Mallacht Is. (fictional), described as a "...desolate lump of rock..." barely a mile across, ten minutes by ferry off the Scottish island town of Tarne.

Mallacht features a house, some ruined cottages, and about two hundred seals, heads of sheep and seabirds. It boasts of a recently installed $2MM wind turbine to complement a fossil fuel electrical generator. A radio is available for emergencies. Inexplicably, the island lacks a relatively cheap satellite dish for WiFi and communications.

And thus the stage is set.

Friday.
It is a cold and blustery February day when eight adults, old university friends, plus their children - a teenage girl and twin five-year-olds land by ferry on the island. The friends had booked it for a weekend birthday bash, non-stop boozing, good food, nature walks and parlor games.

Including a game called "Two truths and a lie".

Sunday.
Tarne Island's chief police officer Sergeant Mhairi Douglas, one of the island town's two-person police force, the other a parttime hire, finds her quiet Sunday ruined and her hands full when the Tarne ferryman booked to ferry the raucous party group back from the island, reports that instead he'd found two dead bodies in the house at Mallacht with the whereabouts of rest of the urbanite group unknown.

The Mallacht party group of old university "friends".
As it turns out, likeability is the least appropriate word to describe their tight group's ethos, with the concept of amiability wholly anathema to each of their personae.

Take a pair of siblings whose family once owned the island and who'd shared a tragic history with the local island townsfolk, far from long forgotten. Add two pairs of ex-spouses along with the new wife of one of the exes, also invited for the weekend, this alone a recipe for disaster.

Plus, far from successful, economically strapped members who'd show up to keep up with the Joneses, topped with two less than highly regarded foreign-born spouses.

Over a long, alcohol-infused weekend, long-harbored, deep-seethed issues ever so slowly surface as class envy, racism, infidelity and resentment manifest themselves.

But would all the animosity be enough to have any one of them murdered?

A finely crafted island locked-room thriller by author Claire McGowan as she builds up the suspense through twists and turns to a wholly unexpected finale.

Review based on an advanced reading copy courtesy of Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley.

I really enjoyed "Truth Truth Lie" by Clare McGowan. From the very first page, I was hooked by its rapid pace and gripping suspense. The plot is intricately woven, constantly keeping me guessing and second-guessing every twist and turn. McGowan's ability to maintain such a high level of tension throughout is truly commendable. It's one of those rare books where you find yourself thinking about the story even when you're not reading it, eager to return and uncover more.
One thing that stood out to me was the characters. While I can't say any of them were particularly likeable, I don't think they were intended to be. Their complexities and flaws made them feel authentic, and it added to the overall tension of the story. The protagonists are far from perfect, each hiding secrets and driven by motives that are sometimes questionable. This lack of clear-cut heroes or villains makes the narrative more compelling and realistic, as it reflects the ambiguities and moral greyness of real life.
I also appreciated the interspersed stories from other people. At first, I wasn't sure how these vignettes fit into the main narrative, but as the book progressed, their relevance became clear, adding layers of intrigue and depth to the plot. These snippets initially seemed disconnected, almost like red herrings, but their purpose becomes apparent, tying back into the central mystery in a satisfying way. It's a clever narrative technique that keeps the reader on their toes, constantly piecing together the puzzle.
McGowan's writing style is another highlight. Her prose is both crisp and evocative, painting vivid scenes without overloading on details. This balance ensures that the story remains fast-paced yet immersive. The dialogue feels natural and contributes to character development, revealing much about their personalities and hidden agendas.
The themes explored in "Truth Truth Lie" are also thought-provoking. It delves into the nature of truth and deception, the masks people wear, and the lengths they will go to protect their secrets. The psychological underpinnings are fascinating, offering a deeper layer to what might seem like a straightforward mystery at first glance.
Overall, this was a fantastic read that I simply couldn't put down. Clare McGowan has a talent for crafting compelling mysteries, and "Truth Truth Lie" is no exception. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a thrilling and unpredictable read. This book is a testament to McGowan's prowess in creating a narrative that is as thought-provoking as it is entertaining. If you're a fan of suspenseful, character-driven stories, this one should definitely be on your reading list.

At first I hated all the characters, which made this amazing! Amira is so judgy and whiny and she's all "I don't fit in. No one likes me." Maybe trying being nicer!
and Daniel! Ugh.
Vicki is annoying but I get her.
Rachel is a wh0le other issue and so is Johnathan.
Fiona and Louise seem okay and I kind of like Paddy.

The kids are normal kids.
Anyway after all the twists and drama and deaths my opinions changed. Lovely.

When a group of Uni friends go to a remote island in Scotland to celebrate 40th Birthday's a game an innocent game of Truth Truth Lie quickly turns dark when past secrets come back to haunt them!

One of the notes states the following:

Everyone here has killed someone.

There is no way off this island.

You will all either kill or be killed here.

Which one of the above is a lie!!


As things turn sour, with everyone questioning the above past secrets come out and are they all be honest with each other?

The twists and turns, will have you guessing from the start and I can guarantee you won’t be able to put it down.

This was a real edge of your seat read and I loved it!
A group of friends are stuck on a Scottish island and they are being picked off one by one! Who’s responsible?
I love a story that keeps me guessing and this was one of them, I was suspicious of all of the friends at one point or another and kept changing my mind as to who I thought was behind it.
The ending was also superb it was so well done and just shows how dangerous people can become when pushed to their limits.

The weekend starts out with a ferry ride and small boat transport to a remote Scottish Island. Amira isn’t expecting much. After all, she joined the group later. Her friendship wasn’t formed from university parties and pranks. Now she and her husband Paddy have travelled to celebrate the joint fortieth birthdays of twins Vicky and Jonathan. They are joined by Jonathan’s ex-wife Fiona, their teenage daughter Darcy, his new girlfriend Rachel, Vicky’s husband Daniel and their five year old twins and Louisa, a doctor at a refugee camp. Tensions are running high at this reunion before Daniel proposes a game of Truth Truth Lie. Fueled by alcohol, this diverse group shares their own two truths and a lie until they are shocked by an extra threatening prediction. As their friendships fall slowly and dangerously apart, they discover that there is a killer among them. Could it be someone from their pasts? Or is it one of them?

Truth Truth Lie begins as a police officer travels to the island knowing that two bodies have been found there. There is no one else on the island. Where could they have gone? Multiple POVs tell this story of jealousy, anger, resentment and long held grudges. The bleak island setting with almost no way to contact the mainland is almost a character in itself. With flashbacks that at first seem unrelated, this thriller moves to a surprising conclusion. 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Thomas & Mercer and Claire McGowan for this ARC.

I enjoyed this book, set on an island, no internet, no phone signal, and you need a boat to get to the mainland. What could go wrong?

Similar to other similar stories of this sub-genre, I enjoyed the backstory of the group of friends and the build-up to the reveal. I found it very entertaining and quite the page turner.

Truth Truth Lie is a mystery/thriller about a group of friends who go on a Scottish Island for vacation and it goes really wrong. There is a group of friends who became friends in college and now they are coming together for a birthday party. When they play Truth Truth Lie, someone writes something very dark and things quickly unfold.

I thought this book was just ok. I loved the setting and the Scottish island. I love when a group of people are cut off from the world. I also enjoy when a vacation goes wrong. I tend to enjoy when a group of friends have a history and a past and I did like that aspect of this book.

My biggest complaint was that there were so many characters. It was hard for me to remember who was who and how everyone was connected. The chapters bounced around a lot and it was just a little much for me.

I liked a few things about this book but it was not my favorite. Thanks so much to netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for the arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Ah, the perfect storm.

Mother Nature provides the craggy, rocky Scottish island. Access can only be by an occasional boatman from the mainland. February provides the coarse winds and deep chill. The aging house creaks with its history of non-repair and brittle bones.

And add the sauce of human discord and strife and you have the makings of an impactful event. 'Twas the beginnings of a long-awaited birthday celebration for forty year old twins, Vicky and Jonathan. Originally, it seemed like a great idea. Friends and family gathering for a birthday weekend guaranteed to center on lively talk, delicious food, and plenty of adult beverages.

But when the games were afoot.......the weight of deadly conflict seeped in. It began with scraps of paper in which each participant jotted down two truths and a lie. The party members had to guess which paper belonged to whom. Just when you thought you knew every detail of your friends' lives, shocking tidbits shoot rapidly to the surface.

Claire McGowan creates weird, hair-raising circumstances in Truth Truth Lie. The premise leans heavily on coincidences that fall into place at just the right juncture. We also have a bevy of totally unlikeable characters bunched up in this weekend. The gloves come off and chaos and deadly results take residence. No one seems safe in this boiling kettle of soup. But Truth Truth Lie provides moments of uncertainty and questionable actions. Just who is save-worthy and who is not?

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley for an honest review. My thanks to Thomas & Mercer and to Claire McGowan for the opportunity.

Thank you netgalley, Claire McGowan and Thomas & Mercer publishers for the e Arc of Truth Truth Lie.

This is a great mystery thriller and ' Whodunit" involving the game Truth, Truth, Lie. I felt that the book is well paced and the characters fleshed out well. I also loved the dynamics between the group in their early 20s. All of them knowing each other, bar one, Amira. As the truths start to spill out, no wifi or internet and a killing. Amira starts to piece together the secrets that these people, including her husband have been keeping.

This was my first book from Claire McGowan ( Ive been eying her books up on the shelves for a while!) so ill be seeking out more from her!

This is another author who I discovered through a police procedural series (Paula Maguire) and have gone on to also love her standalone thrillers. This book was no exception to that even though, at times, it did skirt the line of bonkers and I did a few eye-rolls along the way. It was fun fun fun nevertheless.
So... we start with fraternal twins celebrating their 40th birthdays on a remote Scottish island, the one their family used to own but sadly had to sell due to, consequences.
Along with them are 6 friends - two from their university days, and various other halves. We also have three children.
As the party starts on the first night, a game is suggested... The one referenced in the title of the book. Two truths and a lie. Which is exactly what it says on the tin. Everyone writes down two true statements and one lie, puts them in a hat, pull each one out in turn, and guess who wrote it and which is the lie... drinking forfeits occur, obviously...
All goes relatively well-ish until they realise that there is one extra piece of paper. On it is written...
Everyone here has killed someone.
There is no way off this island.
You will all either kill or be killed here.
And that's all I am saying as you really need to read the warts and all as the author intended for maximum oomph. Suffice to say it all degenerates into a bit of a accusation and fight fest as they all throw dirt at each other. Until the first death, and then it all escalates...
It's a bit bonkers and does skirt the line of farce a wee tad but, when all is said and done and the whole truths laid well and truly bare, you have to sit back and applaud the author for a cracking plot. Interesting, intriguing, interconnected and very very clever...
Most of the characters are all completely horrible. Deliciously so. And for that, I loved each and every one. Some of them were unlucky and got a bad deal but others were downright despicable and well deserved of their comeuppance. Differentiating them was often tricky!
And the ending, the sting in the tail... Brilliant!
All in all, another winner from another favourite author... Roll on next time. My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Having been let down by her husband, Vicky arranges her own 40th Birthday Party on a remote island that used to belong to her parents. She invited a group of her close friends along. Playing Truth Truth Lie starts to reveal secrets about deaths that no-one knew about. An extra piece of paper with a set of statements was found among theirs but who was it written by? and can they all really be blamed for someone dying?
When some of the group start to be killed they realise there is no escape from this island, no contact to the outside world. Is there a murderer amongst them or is someone else hiding on the island. Who will be next to be killed?
Another great read from Claire McGowan.

Thank you to Netgalley, Thomas & Mercer and Claire McGowan for an ARC in return for an honest review

I was hooked on this story, as we try to work out just what is going on when a game of two truths and a lie gives a rather unsettling result.

From there we get to see a group implode on itself, and no one is safe.

This is a group of friends on a remote Scottish Island that is very hard to get to. We get chapters from various characters' points of view, and it really does make for compelling reading.

I really wasn't sure who was behind everything, and loved discovering things at the same time as everyone in the book. It's an addictive book that I couldn't get enough of.

Slightly claustrophobic, it feels like it is kill or be killed, but who can you trust to keep you safe. And just what are you capable of when pushed to extremes.

This was certainly a weekend away to remember for all of the wrong reasons. Which made it into a fabulous story for the reader.

Thank you to Thomas & Mercer and Netgalley for this copy which I have reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

A familiar plot line- someone on the island is a killer- but McGowan has layered in a few extras with the truth truth lie aspect. Amira thought it was going to be a party and it is, sort of, except that it's also a round robin chase to figure out who the villain is. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC, Would be a good travel read.

Wow, this is some book! So many twists, you just don’t know where to look. While almost 99% of the characters were unlikable. This didn’t take away from the enjoyment of the story. The book primarily takes place on a small Scottish Island. There are multiple narrators, but it’s easy to keep track. Everyone is there to celebrate twin brother and sister’s 40th birthdays. I’ve read several of the authors other books, and this one is just as great as the rest. I’ll be looking for more of her novels to read in the near future.

I loooooved this super compelling mystery from Claire McGowan, which follows a group of friends who come to a private island to celebrate two of their 40th birthdays only for them to start dropping like flies. It felt super reminiscent to And Then There Were None which I thought was absolutely fantastic, and had the added benefit that every single character was kind of despicable so it didn't result in you feeling bereft when any of them started dying.

The pacing of this was superb with an almost non-stop succession of deaths and plot twists that really paid off in the end. At no point did I have everything figured out, and I loved that nothing that happened was predictable.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Everyone here has killed someone.

There is no way off this island.

You will all either kill or be killed here.

One of these statements is a lie. But which one?

Amira’s less than thrilled to be spending the weekend with her husband’s university friends. Two of them are hosting a joint fortieth on a private Scottish island, with vintage champagne, expensive gifts, and soaks in the wood-fired hot tub. Despite the luxury, Amira knows she’s going to feel left out, not to mention freezing cold and cut off.

When they decide to play ‘two truths and a lie’, anonymously posting three statements about themselves into a box, years of resentment and secrets start bubbling to the surface. Then an extra slip of paper emerges, scrawled with three chilling threats. Who wrote it? Are two of the statements really true—have they all been responsible for someone’s death?

This is one wild thriller! Truth Truth Lie is a lot like And Then There None. A group of characters headed to an isolated island with no way off. Bodies start dropping. There isn't a single likeable character. I spent my time trying to figure out who, what, and why. And I was fascinated by people's thoughts and behaviors. Can they really be that nasty, I wondered.

We get most of the story from two character's perspectives. It took me a while to figure out the characters and their relationship with each other. We also get several more short chapters here and there from people we don't know. You'll be wondering for a while what they have to do with anything.

There are so many secrets, maybe a few too many. It's the characters' actions though, before and during the party, that grab your attention and keep you stuck with them on an island that quickly turns into a nightmare situation. If you're willing to suspend some disbelief you'll enjoy watching the characters play the game!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/196218505-truth-truth-lie?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=mhXgIJROM3&rank=1

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this arc. Loved the plot on this one, a vacation gone wrong. What to do with no phone service and some scary notes? Definitely a mystery whodunit.

My thanks to Thomas and Mercer, Claire McGowan and Netgalley.
Had you asked me a very few, scant years ago about this author, then I'd have said to stay clear. But...It's this author has proven to me that she can fucking rock some shit!
This book? Yeah, that's the good shit! Sniff it. Snort it. Smoke it.
You do any of that and lol, you're probably too messed up for this!😜
Seriously? This story came together more than I would have guessed.
Good stuff.