4.5 stars

Listen for the Lie is the first novel I've read by author Amy Tintera and I hope it won't be the last. This book was a great mix of dark humor and mystery and I was here for it.

Everyone in their small town in Texas believes that Lucy killed her best friend Savannah (Savvy). There was never enough evidence to convict Lucy, and she has since moved away and moved on (still with no memory of the events of that terrifying night). Now, five years later, Lucy is "called" back home to Texas for her grandmother's 80th birthday party. She soon finds out there is also a podcaster in town with Lucy and Savvy's story as the topic of the new season of his podcast, Listen for the Lie. As Lucy and the podcaster interact with each other and with the locals in town, they uncover many secrets which we find out alongside them.

As an avid listener of true-crime podcasts, I really enjoyed that aspect of this book. I thought it worked well to break up the story. Short chapters from Lucy's POV alternating with episodes of the podcast really helped the story move along. I really enjoyed Lucy's character. She was full of sarcasm and was an interesting main character. I loved that she talked to the voice inside (which was quite adamant about murdering various people...).

If you enjoy podcasts and small town mysteries, you'll enjoy this novel. It's a quick read that didn't reveal itself too early in the book and I'm hoping to read more from Ms. Tintera in the future.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGallely for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera is an engaging read that hooks you with its unique premise and suspenseful narrative. The story follows a young woman with the extraordinary ability to hear lies, which she uses to unravel a complex web of deceit. Tintera weaves a plot full of twists and turns that keeps the reader guessing until the end.

The characters are well-developed, and their interactions add depth to the story, though some plot twists might feel a bit predictable. The pacing is generally strong, though there are moments where it slows down, which can impact the overall tension.

Overall, Listen for the Lie offers a fresh take on the mystery genre with its intriguing concept and strong storytelling. It’s a solid choice for readers who enjoy a psychological twist to their mysteries, even if some elements might be familiar to seasoned fans of the genre.

This was just OK for me. It pains me to say that after all of the 5 star reviews. Giving it 3.5 rounded down

What I liked:
- the strong female friendship, the hilarious banter between friends (dead and alive) made it fun at times (Lucy & her grandma will definitely be on my most memorable list for 2024!)
- fierce female friendship
- short chapters
- the podcast element.

Dislikes:
- the same theme of amnesia (I forgot about that night…did I? Didn’t I?) to create the unreliable narrator was WAY too repetitive for my taste
- It reminded me too closely of Lisa Jewel’s podcast novel, None Of This Is True. (I read that one two books before this one, so this could be a "me problem".)
- The sleeping around and infidelity! way too much without a care in the world
-The ending was rushed and underwhelming

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy to read and review! (I'm truly sad about this one)

This was a great read. I figured out the killer because I never trust people, and I’m glad I was right! Grandma was great. Can’t wait to read more from Amy Tintera!

I really enjoyed this thriller. Sometimes an unreliable narrator gets annoying or tired by the end, but I enjoyed the FMC’s story throughout and I liked how the story slowly unraveled. Great ending too!

Loved the concept of this book. Character development was great. Looking forward to reading more books by Amy.

Thank you to the author, publisher and @NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Okay, this was a GREAT read for me. I liked the pacing. I loved the setting and the whole deng plot. This did it for me and I’m giving it my first mystery/thriller 5-star of the year!

I felt for Miss Lucy and usually that’s not the case when our FMC is the one suspected of murder, but Amy Tintera wrote the ‘unreliable’ (aka severely concussed with memory loss) character so well. This had some dark humor too and I think that made me enjoy it a little more… what that says about me, we will never discuss 😜

Lucy Chase is hiding in plain sight--she's left her life in small town Texas to get lost in California. She writes novels under a pen name, and is doing her best to escape her past, because her past is very, very dark. Five years ago, after a wedding, she was found wandering around the woods covered in blood, and later her best friend Savvy was found murdered. While there was not enough evidence to convict her, the town certainly did, so she swore to never go back there. Unfortunately, an new true crime podcast is in the works about her case, and her cover is about to be blown. The podcaster is dying to talk to her, and her Grandma convinces her to come for her birthday party. Her boyfriend is probably about to find out and kick her out anyway, so she reluctantly agrees. What follows is a suspenseful, funny, sexy, wild ride of a story with lots of fun twists and turns. A little silly, but definitely light and entertaining.

A really fun thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time. I don't usually love an unreliable female narrator, but I think it's done really well here.

I LOVED reading this book - such a great experience (especially on audio!). I didn't see the twists/turns coming & loved it!

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera
Celadon Books
5 March 2024- Available Now!
5 ⭐️

Thank you, Netgalley and Celadon Books, for the opportunity to read and review this book!

This book was absolutely amazing and I loved it! The characters, the writing style, the plot development kept me invested in the book from beginning to end. Also, I highly recommend listening to the audio!

This book had me from
Page one. Wanting to follow this story was easy and engaging. I didn’t have any clue what was going on until the end. This book wrapped up so well, and I will be recommending to anyone I can.

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera. Pub Date: March 5, 2024. Rating: 2 stars. I think I am an outlier on this one because I did not understand why people rated this one higher/enjoyed it more than I did. The premise is great with a true crime podcast moving the storyline along about a female who once upon a time was found wandering in the streets covered in her best friend's blood. Lucy, the main character, swears she has no idea what happened but the podcast is determined to get to the truth which forces Lucy to go back through her past. Personally, I thought the best part of this novel was the podcast and Ben, the host of the podcast. I found the other characters to be weird, gossipy and just not interesting at all. This was a miss for me. Thanks to #celadonbooks and #netgalley for this e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintura is a psychological thriller written about a true crime podcast. This novel is perfect for true crime podcast fans. I’ve read similar books in the past and never enjoyed them because the plot fell flat and rested too much on telling a podcast story. This book was not like that at all. This book’s twists and turns will keep you guessing throughout and you will not be able to put it down. The podcast is element was fun, but the story did not completely depend on it. This book will keep you thinking long after you are done reading it. I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

Superbly plotted with great characters. It did keep me guessing all the way until the end. I was satisfied with how it resolved although I wouldn't have minded one last plot twist :)
Thanks you NetGalley for the ARC, I loved it!

Definitely enjoyed this read! It’s been a while since a mystery hooked me, and this one definitely got me. The format (switching between narrative and podcast styles, with the occasional flashback) was intriguing and I feel like it worked well, the pacing was great, and there were some fun red herrings and false trails throughout. Was the ending a smiiiidge dramatic for me, yes - but as a whole I had a great time reading it.

I love a good thriller with a podcast and thankfully, this one truly had a solid podcast element too (I hate it when there's 2 seconds of a podcast in a book just to say it's there). The hype around this book was unreal 🫣, I definitely got FOMO. I wasn't super hooked on any of the characters and found some of the decisions the FMC made a bit questionable but overall I enjoyed the mystery. If you enjoy amnesia trope, then you will be happy with this one! Personally, I'm not sure how Lucy didn't panic and go mad trying to find out what happened ASAP but to each their own I guess. Her dark humor got a couple chuckles out of me and I enjoyed the darkness of the book overall.

I went between the audio and ebook while reading this one but enjoyed the audio much more with the podcast element so I finished the book off that way!

Thanks to Celadon books, Macmillan audio and NetGalley for the ARC/ALC. All opinions are my own.

Overall, I really enjoyed Listen for the Lie. I was enthralled with the pacing of the story, and I found the podcast transcripts engaging and that they added a lot to both Ben's and Lucy's character development. However, because there were so many characters, I found myself getting mixed up every time I dove back into the book. I wish each side character (Emmett, Nina, Savvy's brother, Savvy's mother, etc.) had a bit more distinct development so I could more easily track who was who.

initial thoughts: had very, very high expectations going into this one based on reviews from others on BookTok & Instagram.

I enjoyed the short chapters, the podcast chapters, and the premise of the story. overall, it was a solid mystery, but fell just a bit short from other five star thrillers I've read.

I LOVE(D) LUCY 🖤

I waited entirely too long to read this, it was fantastic!! I haven’t been this excited over a book in quite awhile, especially a suspense story. Lucy’s sarcastic humor was right up my alley! I loved her character, if I could bring her to real life to be my bestie I totally would ha. The characters were individually a perfect recipe for a suspenseful mystery of whodunnit. Beverly aka Grandma was hilarious. Most of the story is done in podcast form by “smug” Ben who grew on me pretty quickly. In general, in the world of books, I feel like the podcast storyline is overdone and typically not something I enjoy BUT the way it was done I loved every bit of it. I read this in about a day, so obviously I devoured it 😍 I didn’t expect for a minute who the villain of this ended up being & actually I did not expect a lot of what transpired between all the characters.

I’m sad it’s over 😭

Thank you NetGalley. Thank you Celadon Books. This book was perfection & I appreciate the opportunity to have been given an arc in exchange for a review. Thank you!!!