4.5 - What a fantastic thriller/mystery this was!! Listen for the Lie is a thriller, following Lucy after the death of her best friend Savvy. Everyone in Lucy's hometown believes that Lucy killed Savvy, because the circumstances in which Lucy was found and her amnesia over how Savvy died.

I thought this thriller was so well done because of the modern concept of the podcast, and following along with Ben, as he interviews all the major players in the murder of Savvy to try and determine who actually killed her. I loved how the title, "Listen for the Lie" was the overarching theme of the book, where the reader has to read each interview and conversation with all the major people in Lucy and Savvy's life, and try to determine who knows what, and who is lying about what happened the night of Savvy's murder. This book kept me on my toes, constantly second-guessing whether Lucy killed Savvy or not, and the end caught me completely off guard!

Listen for the Lie had me hooked from the start and I truly enjoyed it so much. I think it is such a fantastic thriller/murder mystery and I can't recommend it enough! Thank you so much to NetGalley and Celadon for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Lucy was found stumbling in the woods covered in her best friend Savvy’s blood. Her best friend who had just been brutally murdered. Did she do it? Lucy doesn’t remember. But everyone in her small Texas town seems to think so. No charges stick, so Lucy is free to start a new life in LA. 5 years later, she returns to her town for her beloved Grandma’s birthday, and who happens to be there but famous podcaster Ben Owens who has a knack for solving cold cases….

This book is entertaining, dark, funny, and twisty. Lucy’s inner monologue is enough to convince anyone that she is indeed the killer. She’s not especially likable but she is honest. The development of Lucy’s friendship with Savvy and her marriage with Matt are in interesting juxtaposition as to who the real Lucy is. The use of the podcast to drop juicy tidbits into the story made Listen for the Lie such a unique reading experience.

Even knowing the outcome, the scenes of Savvy’s attack and then death are absolutely brutal. I finished right before bed a few nights ago and I do not recommend others to do the same if you value a good night’s sleep. I did guess the culprit, but it in no way altered my enjoyment of Tintera’s storytelling. Listen for the Lie gripped me from start to finish- this is one you won’t want to miss!

Listen For the Lie by Amy Tintera
Pages: 352
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

HAPPY PUB DAY TO AMY TINTERA!

WOW! This book is amazing!!! I want to thank Amy & Celadon for an ARC copy. I fell in love with the cover and I knew it was a thriller but other than that, I was clueless as to what I was getting myself into! Not only was this book thrilling and captivating.. I was laughing so hard at the dark humor.

I was seriously laughing my 🍑 off in the first 3 minutes of reading. I IMMEDIATELY fell in love with the main character Lucy. She is the witty banter, dark humor, badass that we all desire to be. Her jokes are so dark and disturbing that your grandmother would be clutching her pearls. (Not Lucy’s Grandma Beverly though, who is also a badass. Does everyone have a feisty grandma named Beverly? Because Lucy & I have that in common…)

The one downside to Lucy’s personality… she might be a murderer. Lucy comes from the small town of Plumpton Texas, we’re small town gossip is exactly how you would imagine. Lucy’s best friend Savvy ends up dead and the whole town thinks Lucy did it. A smug podcaster named Ben is determined to dig up the past of Plumpton to figure out if Lucy killed her friend.

To Quote Lucy “I’m riveted. Can’t wait to find out if I did it.” 😂😂

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Listen for the lie:

“A podcaster has decided to ruin my life, so I’m buying a chicken.”

“Now I’m just staring at recipes on my phone, dreaming about sticking lemons up a chicken’s butt. It’s an apology chicken, for my boyfriend.”

And last but not least

“We do a book club sometimes, but not today. We just did a book last week.” “Which one?” “Oh, I don’t know. I never read them. Who has the patience for reading anymore?”

😂😂😂

Y’all may die laughing at this one. This may be one of my top reads for 2024.

#readingreviews #reviews #books #read #booknerd #bookstagram #bookgoal #100books #listenforthelie #pubday #netgalley #celadonbooks #thrillers

Five years ago, twenty-four-year-old Lucy Chase was found injured and barely coherent, wandering on a highway covered in her best friend's blood. Her friend Savannah “Savvy” Harper was found dead and despite her traumatized state, Lucy was deemed the prime suspect though no solid evidence was discovered to prove her guilt. Almost everyone who knew her including her parents, believed that Lucy was responsible for Savvy’s death. Subsequently, her marriage ended and she left her hometown Plumpton, Texas for Los Angeles. Lucy still doesn’t remember what transpired on that fateful night and the voices in her head do not let her forget that she might be guilty. Lucy is drawn back to Plumpton when popular podcaster Ben Owens decides to investigate the case for his true-crime podcast, Listen for the Lie. As Ben embarks on a deep dive into Lucy’s life and the events from five years ago, Lucy decides to cooperate with him hoping that the facts uncovered in the process will help her recover her memories from that night and find the killer.

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera is a well-crafted, engaging mystery. Consistently paced, the narrative is presented from the perspective of Lucy with segments from the podcast interviews interspersed throughout the narrative. The author has deftly woven issues such as domestic abuse, psychological trauma, and infidelity, among others, into the narrative. I liked Lucy and was rooting for her. I liked how the author portrays small-town dynamics and the cast of an interesting cast of characters (mostly unlikable with a few exceptions) with more than a few secrets to hide made for an interesting read. Few characters were above suspicion and I had fun trying to guess the identity of the killer. I enjoyed the suspenseful build-up, the surprises along the way and the dry humor injected into the narrative (with several laugh-out-loud moments).
I should mention that the plot relies on several overused tropes and the final reveal isn’t completely unpredictable, but the overall skillful execution renders this novel an entertaining read.

This was my first time reading this author and I would be interested to read more from her in the future.

Many thanks to Celadon Books for the digital review copy via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

3.75/5

Holy moly. What a ride. I absolutely LOVED this podcast thriller. Listen for the Lie follows Lucy as she's 5 years past a traumatic date....the apparent murder of her best friend. And spoiler, she did it... or she is at least blamed for it in her small Texan town. After the death of her best friend, Lucy has amnesia and cannot remember details of that night. But Ben, Host for Listen for the Lie podcast has picked up her case and digs up details that weren't found before. This is an extremely bingeable read. So, make sure you give yourself a little chunk of time because you won't want to put it down. Lucy was such a well done, but extremely unique character in the fact that she has a voice in her head. The formatting of the book was great with podcast transcripts woven throughout, and a couple of flashback chapters. I was just really impressed with this one and cannot recommend it enough. A huge thank you to Netgalley and Celadon Books for an advanced e-copy!

Five years ago, Lucy was found walking down the road looking dazed and covered in her best friend’s blood. Her best friend, Savannah “Savvy” was brutally murdered and Lucy sustained a terrible brain injury that wiped away her memory of that dreadful night.

For five years she’s been accused of killing her best friend, and who knows, she probably committed the crime but the lack of evidence and witnesses has kept her out of prison.

Lucy’s Grandma convinces her to come back to her home town for her 80th birthday party. The same town where a famous podcaster, Ben Owens, is currently staying to figure out what happened between Lucy and Savvy that night. Being back in town has brought Lucy’s long forgotten memories back to life. Who killed Savvy?

This book was fun, I’m a sucker for murder mysteries set in a small town with a bit of humor and drama. I think I would’ve enjoyed this book more on audio since it has the podcast aspect to it, but overall, I enjoyed the storyline and the suspense. The only criticism I have is the voice that was in her head throughout the book, I didn’t quite understand the importance of “let’s kill…” and why she was having these intrusive thoughts inside her mind.

What would you do if you were accused of your best friend’s murder, but couldn’t remember any of it? Go on a true crime podcast of course! Lucy was accused of murdering Savvy, her best friend. But in the 5 years since the crime, none of her memories of that night have surfaced. Now, she’s heading back to her hometown where it all began to meet up with Ben, a true crime podcaster itching to get to the bottom of the story. And maybe find out who is lying after all.

This book was EXCELLENT! Quirky and funny with the perfect mixture of crazy twists! Thank you to Celadon books and NetGalley for this ARC!

I'll admit, this book isn't my usual genre, but I flew through it! The main character, Lucy, is a bit unreliable (and at times, unlikable, but always funny), but that made the story all the more interesting. I loved following along through the podcast episodes and found myself guessing and guessing again. Looking forward to reading more from Amy Tintera!

Lucy is unable to remember what happened the night her best friend, Savannah, whom everyone calls Savvy, got murdered. Everyone in her hometown town of Plumpton, Texas, believes Lucy is guilty since they left the wedding together, and soon after, she is the one found wandering the road covered in Savvy's blood after the gruesome murder. But why would Lucy murder her? She married the dreamiest guy in town and had everything she ever wanted. Or did she? Savvy was also the social butterfly around town, always kind and welcoming with a smile to everyone. They were known for being best friends around town. After the murder, Lucy leaves Texas to live in Los Angeles and start a new life. But when a podcaster, Ben Owens, investigates Savvy's murder for the second season of his famous podcast, Lucy returns to her hometown after speaking with her grandmother, who guilts her into attending her eightieth birthday and informs Lucy of her mother's broken leg. While in town, Lucy ends up investigating the murder. So, will she recall what happened that night? And uncover herself as the murderer? Or will she uncover something more dangerous and shocking?
I did not expect to love this book as much as I did! I usually take a hard pass when I see a podcast mentioned in books. However, this book was getting a lot of hype, and I had FOMO Feelings. I finally took the plunge and picked it up, and I am glad I did!
Listen For The Lie is my first time reading a book by Amy Tintera, and I was surprised in the best way. And I am looking forward to seeing what she writes next.
It's a twisty whodunit with grit and humour; I don't think I've laughed so much reading a thriller, and it was for all the right reasons. This book had from the beginning.
The character development in this book is top-notch, with each primary and secondary character having a distinct personality and fully developed, making every interaction so much fun to read. The dialogue was so witty and fresh. Lucy had this dark, sarcastic humour about her that made me laugh out loud and instantly connect with her and her grandma, but I can't say there wasn't a character I didn't think was entertaining. Listen For The Lie is not your traditional thriller; as much as I wanted to know what happened to Savannah, lovingly known as Savvy, I was not rushing to find out because I loved reading about everything happening in Plumpton, Texas—the snarky and shady back and forth between the characters were clever. It kept me on my toes and kept me guessing.

The other great thing about this book is that the author hits the mark with the right tones at the correct moment. (IMO) There are some hilarious parts, but the author doesn't forget that the police must also investigate someone who committed a gruesome crime. And those parts are riveting and intense in equal measure. There are enough twists in the story that it's not easy to figure out who is ultimately guilty of killing Savvy, so the author also does the thriller portion of this book justice. I paired my ADC copy with the ALC for
I was lucky enough to get this book in both digital and audio formats, and while both are fabulous, the audio was brilliant. I liked that there was a podcast format within the book. I liked that we had an unreliable narrator and that she didn't even know what happened again until the end, making the audiobook great to listen to.
It sounds like a podcast with the theme music played at the beginning and end and the different characters' POVs throughout the podcast.
I felt like I was listening to an actual podcast. January Lavoy and Will Damron did a fabulous job narrating. They both brought life to the primary and secondary characters and made me feel like I was with them. It was a realistic and fully immersive experience. I highly recommend
<b><br />Fun Fact: January Lavoy and Will Damron are a married couple since 2022-present
<b><br />I want to thank Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for the ADC and ALC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an extremely interesting mystery thriller. I loved the podcast element and I definitely want to listen to the audiobook version soon. I think this will be an entertaining audiobook.
The mystery was compelling and I had a fun time trying to figure everything out. I liked the main character, but I loved the MC’s grandmother (she was hilarious!). There were some things that I predicted but other moments that I did not see coming.
I definitely recommend this book, especially to mystery/thriller lovers. I look forward to reading more from this author.

At first I was starting to think this book was not for me until about 13% where I got invested! Then I couldn’t put it down until I found out whodunnit. This book got me pointing to everyone! This is very fast paced and addictive.

4,5 stars rounded up to 5
Thank you NetGalley and Celadon for this ARC.

Lucy’s life is disrupted when a podcaster decides to take on an unsolved murder where she is the only suspect. The problem is that Lucy doesn’t remember anything about the night in question and does not know if she killed her best friend.

I could not put this book down and finished it in less than a day.

In Listen for the Lie, a podcast host, Ben, is helping Lucy remember whether she murdered her best friend, Savvy, years ago. The book features a long list of twists and turns featuring a large cast of complex and untrustworthy characters. The details of that night unfold as Ben interviews members of the community and Lucy regains her memories. The story kept me engaged (I finished the book in one sitting) and I wasn’t able to predict the ending. I sometimes find mystery/thrillers to be underwhelming, but I enjoyed this one and would recommend it to others.

4/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had so much fun with this book! It was one of those that I couldn't stop thinking about when I wasn't reading it. I loved the main character and all of the relationships. I could see this being a movie (which I would also devour).

I love fun thrillers!

Imagine being found, covered in your best friend’s blood, with no memory of what happened.

Everyone thought Lucy was a murderer. She has since moved away and started her life over, but the hit podcast “Listen for the Lie” decide to cover this story in the hopes of finding out what truly happened that night, many years ago.

I absolutely loved this book! I liked how the information was slowly revealed through the podcast. I continually guessed the plot twist wrong lol but that’s a positive for me! I can’t believe this is the author’s first novel for adults. It’s definitely well thought out and I feel like no details were left out of this story.

Ps: Grandma Beverly was my absolute favourite character 😂 I’d love to have her as my grandma!!

Pick up this thriller if you like podcasts, dark sarcasm, a plot that keeps you guessing and a side of romance.

Trigger warning: there was a whole lot of cheating involved, so just keep this in mind, when picking up this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I really enjoyed the format of this book with what was happening and the podcast episodes. The characters were great and loved the grandma.

This book was such a quick read for me! The FMC was so relatable, especially her dry and witty sarcasm. I don’t usually gravitate towards “podcast books” but this one was different. I loved the integration of podcast episodes into Lucy’s story, and think the author did a stellar job with the ending. I was invested from beginning to end.

This book kept me on my toes! I’m not usually that big into books involving a podcast because it feels like it’s starting to be overdone, but I really enjoyed the way this one was done as it felt really true to the title of the book! I loved the sarcastic banter between Lucy and Ben and audibly laughed at some of their conversations. The end was a bit predictable but I still enjoyed that it was the completely obvious ending!

Thank you to NetGalley & Celadon Books for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book officially publishes on 03/05/24!

A deliciously, dark delight!

Listen for the Lie is the second true crime podcast book I've read lately, and I'm loving that whole vibe!

Book Description:
Thanks to a little grandmotherly manipulation, Lucy returns to her hometown for her grandmother's birthday. She's expressly been avoiding it since leaving five years ago. You see, Lucy Chase is the most hated person in Plumpton. Ever since she "got away" with murdering her best friend, Savvy, no one wants her around. Found wandering down the road, covered in her best friend's blood, Lucy has no memory of what happened. All she knows is that her best friend is dead, and everyone thinks she did it.

Ever since moving across the country to LA, Lucy has somewhat been able to hide away from it all, until Ben decided to make her the subject of his latest true crime podcast.

With Lucy's POV interspersed with the podcast interviews, Amy Tintera takes us on a quest to find out what really happened on that dark, rainy night in the middle of the woods. Was Savvy brutally murdered by her closest friend? Or were they both attacked by someone else?

My thoughts:
I loved every second of this book! Lucy and her razor sharp wit charmed me from the beginning and kept me chuckling throughout. And y'all the people in Plumpton, TX... man, they are something else! I love how artfully Tintera revealed Lucy's story, enticing the reader with twist after twist. Lots of "OMGs" and "Whaaat?!?" were being yelled at the end. If you're looking for a thriller with some snark, some juicy secrets, and a true crime twist, add Listen for the Lie to your tbr now!

Read this if you like:
• Thrillers
• True crime podcasts
• Dark humor
• An ending you will NOT see coming!

This is my first book by Amy Tintera and it will definitely not be my last. I loved this book and couldn’t put it down!

Listen for the lie is a mystery thriller that will keep you hooked till the end. I loved the dark humor, the handsome podcaster, the super cool grandmother and the sarcastic & snarky protagonist. I laughed out loud several times!

It’s the perfect whodunnit murder mystery and my absolute favorite one so far!

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6292110844