Short synopsis: Lucy is accused of murdering her best friend, years later the case is being investigated by Ben Owens the host of a true crime podcast.

My thoughts:
I am always drawn to a podcast themed book, and this one did not disappoint! The interviews and podcast portions added such a fun element to the story and made it feel so real. The red herrings and twists kept my attention engaged throughout the entire thing and I couldn’t help but binge it!

The end left a little something lacking in my opinion, and there was a whole lot of “everyone sleeping with everyone.” The amnesia trope in general can be a bit iffy but I actually felt like it was done well in this instance.

Read if you love:
- Small town popcorn thriller
- Amnesia trope
- True crime Podcasts
- Romance subplot
- Great audio accompaniment

Our main character Lucy Chase was found stumbling by the side of the road covered in her best friend Savannah's (Savvy) blood. Savvy is dead. The event occurred five years ago and poor Lucy has no recollection of what happened. Everyone in her small Texas town believes that she is the murderer and that their local DA simply didn't try hard enough to collect all of the evidence. Even her own parents believe that she killed Savvy. Since this, Lucy has moved to Los Angeles to escape and to start over from this horrific event. She anonymously writes romance books under a pseudonym because she thinks no one would want to read them if they knew about her past.

One day, she receives a call from her grandmother, who perhaps is the only person on her side and believes in her innocence. Her grandmother has invited Lucy back to Texas to attend her 80th birthday party. Initially, Lucy brushes off the request, telling her grandmother that it will cause a scene or that no one will want to see her. Ultimately, her grandmother convinces her because grandmas do what they want. Lucy leaves her current boyfriend and their rocky relationship behind and travels to Plumpton, TX. Another piece of the puzzle is that Lucy fears that Nathan (the boyfriend) has listened to a true crime podcast for which Lucy is the main subject. Does Nathan think that Lucy is a murderer too?

The true crime podcast is called "Listen for the Lie" and the host Ben Owens is also traveling to Plumpton in order to see who from this small town will be open to an interview and what kind of evidence can he uncover. At the end of every chapter, the reader gets to read the transcript from the podcast episodes. Slowly we get clearer picture of what happened that night. While getting breakfast at a diner, Lucy meets Ben in person. Is he trying to help her or hurt her? Is he trying to exonerate her or prove her guilt? What kind of secrets about their small town will he uncover?

Overall, I loved this book! It is very engaging and moves very quickly. There is seldom a dull moment. It is a thriller but there is a little bit of romance involved. Generally, if you love Thrillers, you will likely love this one. I enjoyed the vibes of the TV show "Only Murders in the Building" as the true crime podcaster slowly uncovers the murder. 5/5 Stars

Happy pub date, two days late to Amy Tintera on the buzziest of March books. Both a Book of the Month and Good Morning America Book Club pick, I felt lucky getting able to read this one early.

I was just telling someone in my own book club there have been a lot of podcaster thrillers lately; maybe it’s becoming its own trope. In this one, Lucy has been marred by the death of her best friend, Savvy who was murdered five years ago.

Turns out, Lucy was found covered in Savvy’s blood at the time, and everyone thinks she did it. However, she was never charged with the murder, nor does she even remember what happened.

Major yikes.

Enter podcaster Ben Owens, who is investigating the murder on its 5th anniversary, and poking around Lucy’s life for interviews and clues. I don’t know if the name of his podcast (and the book) “Listen for the Lie” really applies to the story, except Lucy hears voices telling her to kill.

So, there’s that.

As in, when she’s talking to someone in a regular conversation, the voice tells her ways she could kill them. It doesn’t sound funny, but the way it was written, it’s so ridiculous it is. Whether it was meant to be comical or I have the darkest sense of humor, unclear.

The book was fast-paced with zero likable characters, so pretty much your average thriller. And while I was entertained by Lucy’s snarkiness, as I enjoy being snarky myself, it almost got to be TOO much.

But since thriller/suspense/mystery is my favorite genre, I just go wherever the story takes me.

Listen For The Lie is a mystery surrounding Lucy and how she finds herself entangled in a murder involving her best friend, Savvy. With her memory of the night lost, Lucy grapples with the uncertainty of her involvement in the murder. Even with heavy suspicion placed on Lucy, she wants to figure out what truly happened. A podcaster brings light to the story several years later and Lucy's visit to her hometown coincides with the podcaster's visit to the town to interview people involved in the story.

As layers of the truth to start to be revealed, the story keeps readers interested by testing out different theories of who could be involved until the end. The pacing of the novel is great and weaves suspense and intrigue throughout. The podcast interviews offer a glimpse into each character's perspective and shows the complexity of relationships and possible motives for each. Lucy's haunting visions of Savvy guides her in her quest for answers and clarity of the night in question and adds a nice supernatural element to the story. The Grandma character also stands out adding warmth to both the character Lucy and the story.

Overall, Listen For The Lie captivates with its storytelling, and keeps readers interested as they untangle the truth amidst a backdrop of uncertainty, secrets and deception.

I loved this one! I've read thrillers with the murder podcast theme, and I feel like this one was done in a fresh, interesting, & slightly quirky way. I loved the MC and her dark sense of humor, as well as the humor throughout. Such a fun, easy read, that was hard to put down. For the audiobook lovers out there, I think this would be a good one to listen to.

Fun, fun, fun, fun. I enjoyed the heck out of this book. What captured my attention to Listen For The Lie by Amy Tintera was that it had a plot that involved a true-crime podcast. Though that is being done a lot lately, I enjoy that theme as it covers two of my favorite genres: True Crime and Thrillers. One unique facet of this novel was that the main character was kind of a jerk, but somehow she grew on me. She doesn't know if she killed her best friend, but she is fully down to figure it out. The voice in her head was annoying, but also played a bit for dark humor. At the end of the novel, it was not an ending I predicted, and nothing in the story was life changing, but it was just a really good time. I would recommend this to any thriller lover as it is just enough unique in tone and characters that it will be a refreshing change. And if for no other reason, read it for the hilarious grandma!

Would recommend for fans of…
🎧 The Hunting Wives
🎧 Gone Girl
🎧 The Night Swim

Podcast thrillers are EVERYWHERE right now, and while I enjoy the format, I am always on the lookout for an author who can put a unique spin on the trope and that’s exactly what Amy Tintera has done with Listen for the Lie.

The novel follows Lucy, a woman with a concerning little voice in her head who might just have had something to do with her best friend’s death. Everyone in town thinks she did it, until podcaster Ben comes along, searching for the truth.

Listen for the Lie is ultimately a plot-first thriller, but surprisingly the characters are what made this book stand out for me. Lucy in particular had such a distinct voice. She’s lemonade that’s just a bit too sour and her unfiltered commentary throughout added a lot to the story. I think she’s one of the best “unlikable” female protagonists in a thriller since Amy Dunne in Gone Girl.

Yes, the mystery itself was a little predictable, but Lucy’s voice combined with the podcast script elements made this such a great read (which I’ve heard is also fantastic on audio). I’m already eagerly awaiting Amy Tintera’s next book!

Listen for the Lie is out now. Thanks to Celadon and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I happily requested an ARC of Listen for the Lie after reading the description. I love a good murder mystery with a podcast plotline. Tintera's writing style reminded me so much of Elizabeth Little in Dear Daughter. I loved the sassy, sharp witted protagonist, who kept me entertained for the entire book. This was truly one of my favorites for this year, and I cannot wait to see what Amy Tintera comes up with next!

Very impressive debut! At first I thought “not another podcast driven story”, there’s alot of them these days, but this was fresh and unique as it gave us full episodes as well as making the host a main character of the non-podcast chapters. Lucy, our main character, is sarcastic and witty and downright dry at some times and I freaking LOVED. HER. Cracking jokes as a trauma response is quite common irl and Lucy nailed it every single time. I also loved that Savvy was her little shoulder devil throughout the book.

What did not work for me was there being a few too many characters for my liking. Which of course was done so we couldn’t figure out the who done it part, but in the end I was disappointed in who actually done it 😅. Lucy’s parents were definitely featured too often and her mom’s storyline was ick. I’d have been happy with more grandma and her being the only family character of Lucy. And lastly, while domestic abuse is a very real thing in marriages, Matt’s character and the way Lucy interacted with him wasn’t realistic imo and then to bring Emmett into that same fold was over the top.

Overall I’d love to see this turned into a series with Ben as the lead solving a different case. Married to Lucy, because we need her sly remarks to add comedy to the tragedy. Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a buzzy book about town. I am always kinda half and half on enjoying thrillers but this was definitely one i enjoyed. The audio itself wss really well done and i could see this being made into a series.
I loved the podcast vibes and the characters, the grandma was amazing, What made this for me was the dialogue and the writing, The mystery was kinda meh but in the end i still enjoyed the ride.

One of the best thrillers I’ve read this year! Well written, surprising ending & kept me locked in the entire time. Loved the character of Lucy, flaws and all & was rooting for her the entire time. Also loved the character of Beverly, Lucy’s grandmother. This is one book that I’m recommending to everyone

I really liked this book! It was super captivating and I loved the podcast format. The ending felt a little rushed and like it was missing some things, but overall a great read.

Thank you to Amy Tintera, Celadon Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon for a copy of this book! This was good! I love the sub genre of “true crime podcast” in the thriller genre and I think this book fits perfectly in it. I think Amy is a great author and I’m looking forward to future books.

However - the MC, Lucy, made some really stupid decisions and having dumb MCs is one of my reading pet peeves. Also the theme of cheating was so common in this book that I kept rolling my eyes each time the “secret” of someone cheating was revealed.

𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4 ½⭐️✨
LISTEN FOR THE LIE 🎧
🤍𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: thriller
📖 352 pages
𝗘𝗺𝗼𝗷𝗶𝘀: 🎙️🩸💍✍🏼

🖤𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲🖤

Thank you @netgalley @mac.millianaudio for the #gifted copy!

Wow what a bingeable story! Thrilling, immersive, & utterly addictive! The audio is definitely the way to go on this. The sound effects (music, breathing, laughing, even characters interrupting one another) was so immersive, realistic, & fun!

With a myriad of complex characters & a protagonist whose inner voice adds depth, unraveling the mystery becomes a deliciously suspenseful journey. There are a lot of supporting characters with different motives, making it hard to know who to trust & who the killer really is. Plus, Lucy's secret life as a bestselling romance author adds an intriguing layer.

Highly recommend this!!

The story follows Lucy, once part of a picture-perfect duo with her best friend Savvy, & finds herself accused of Savvy's murder after a night she can't remember. Despite moving on with a new life in LA, the shadow of suspicion looms over her. When a popular true crime podcast decides to delve into Savvy's murder, Lucy is compelled to confront her past & uncover the truth, even if it implicates her. With the help of the podcast's host, Ben Owens, Lucy returns to her hometown, where secrets & lies await her. As the investigation unfolds, Lucy must grapple with the possibility that she may be guilty of her friend's death.

𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲:
◽️ podcasts
◽️ who dun it
◽️ books where everyone is suspicious

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera has such hype leading up to it's release. I truly appreciate the ARC from Netgally. Lucy and Saavy are best friends until Lucy is found wandering the streets of their small town covered in Saavy's blood. It is thought that Lucy survived their attack, but most people believe that Lucy killed Saavy. Lucy moves to LA in hopes to leave the memory of her best friend and her brutal murder behind. That is until a popular true crime podcaster decides to investigate Saavy's death, and Lucy is drawn back to her hometown find answers of her own. I literally could not put this book down. Suspenseful, fast paced and you'll never guess the ending!

Wowwww!!! This took me for a RIDE! This story had me instantly hooked and I needed to know what happened to Savvy! I like the way this story was set up, it had chapters in Lucy’s POV, and then the podcast interviews from Ben in-between most chapters.

I felt so bad for Lucy because she could not remember anything and all she wanted to do was find out what actually happened to Savvy, the one and only person she could actually depend on.

The way these characters in a small town were all interconnected made it feel like you couldn’t trust anyone! It made you have a roller coaster of emotions for each character, one second you absolutely hate them, then the next second you hate to love them!

If you love stories that make you think, small town vibes, romance, mystery, and interconnected characters and relationships I would highly recommend this book to you!! Don’t miss out on this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the e-ARC of this novel in exchange for my review. LISTEN FOR THE LIE is available now!

CW: infidelity, domestic violence, murder

I think this is my first dark comedy, and it won't be my last. This had key thriller/mystery elements - suspense, tension, dysfunctional characters - but then it was also funny?! I was not expecting to laugh so much when I started reading this. The dark humor in this was great and definitely made me question myself at times. I had a hard time putting this down when I needed to found myself always wanting to read "just one more chapter." If you like thrillers and also dark humor, I recommend picking this one up. I read the e-book of this, but the audiobook is probably even better and may have given this an even higher rating. I was let down by the big reveal, which is why this isn't a five-star read. Lucy's grandmother was my favourite character!

Incredible!
Lucy wanders the streets, covered in her best friend’s blood. Lucy can’t remember anything. Years later, living in Los Angeles, she returns back to her hometown as a podcaster is researching the murder for his show “Listen for the Lie”
Lucy is a very complicated main character. She is surrounded by many friends and family that had opportunity to kill her friend. A fast paced thriller, with no lack of suspects.
My only complaint is the language. I am not a fan of bad language in books. Even with that gripe, I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon for the ARC of this book

Fun and funny and murder! I loved this book. Totally witty and cool. Part podcast transcript part unreliable characters
It just worked. Loved it.

There has been a lot of hype around this one, but it was just okay for me! I typically love the true crime podcast vibe so I was excited for this one, but I just didn’t really care in the end? 🤷🏻‍♀️ I enjoyed the writing style a lot though, so I’m curious to read more from this author.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the gifted copy!