Everyone thinks that Lucy killed her best friend, Savvy. Often even Lucy herself, but a severe concussion removed her memories of that night. Convenient, people think, if they even believe that she has amnesia. Now Savvy’s murder is going to be the focus of a popular podcast, and with Lucy returning home for the first time in years, it looks like answers are finally going to be found. Whether Lucy really wants to know or not, in Amy Tinterra’s engrossing adult debut, Listen for the Lie.

While liking the protagonist is not a necessity for a good book, it certainly doesn’t hurt. For the first chapter or so, I thought that Listen for the Lie was going to be one of those novels where I disliked the protagonist as Lucy appeared snarky and mean, totally dislikable. Those characteristics, however, soon proved to be methods of protection for her. Lucy did remain snarky, not mean though, well, not really. Let’s just say that I understood where she was coming from. Some of Lucy’s comments and observations were unexpectedly lol-worthy. Unexpected laughs in the middle of a murder mystery add a welcome layer. So, yes, I came away loving Lucy, feeling empathy and distress for her.

Listen for the Lie is told with flashback sections that illuminate the past and the characters. We see that dead best friend Savvy might not be as wonderfully sweet as everyone says but not unlikable either. Those observations ring true for many of the characters whose outward appearance shows a different personality from whom they are. (A lot like life.) Tinterra obviously has a good handle on human behavior and depicts it accurately, sometimes heartbreakingly so, on the page.

With an engrossing story, good pacing, and one of my favorite characters of the year, so far, in Lucy, Listen for the Lie is a thriller to enjoy. I hope you do.

Many thanks to Celadon Books for sending me a copy.

So excited for this one! Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. This ended up being a March 2024 BOTM pick as well as a Top 10 Thriller for me! I enjoyed this one from beginning to end, I promise you won't be disappointed!

3.5 stars.

I really liked the protagonist of this story. She felt real; obviously quite flawed but like a real character. The story was pretty interesting but got repetitive. I also found the actions of almost everyone in this book hard to understand... I just couldn't believe anyone, let alone almost every single character, would make the decisions they did.

A quick, suspenseful read with a satisfying twist and ending.

I really liked this book, it got me out of my reading slump (but now I'm back in it). It was really engaging, and I really like fictional true crime podcast types of books. Highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley for the advance copy!

One night years ago, Lucy was found roaming the streets covered in her best friend's blood. She has no memory of the evening as she suffered a terrible blow to the head. Everyone in her small town is convinced she murdered Savvy and is faking amnesia, her own parents and ex-husband included. She moved away to distance herself from the tragedy and accusations, but the case is at the forefront of everyone's mind now that a popular true crime podcaster is covering the story. Against her better judgement she returns home for her grandmother's birthday, but also to see if any memories will come back to her.

LOVED & OBSESSED. This is the best audiobook I've listened to in a long time and definitely one of the best thrillers. I was hooked from the beginning and on the edge of my seat the whole time. I thought Lucy was a great MC and enjoyed not knowing who or what to believe. I liked how she always said and did what she wanted regardless of what people thought - the reactions to her candidness were priceless. There were so many loveable characters (hi grandma!) and plenty to root against (ew, Matthew). The narrators were fantastic and I highly recommend listening to these because I loved the podcast episodes being sprinkled throughout.

Loved loved loved. I will be recommending this one to anyone who will listen!

4.5 stars.

I couldn't put this down! The story had me fully engrossed and I couldn't wait to find out what happened. It's been a minute since I've found a thriller I truly love but this fully hit the spot. It's the perfect kind of thriller to me: reveals are peppered throughout the book, and while it contains violence, it's not overly gory or rapey in a way that makes me feel emotionally scarred, lol. I can't say much more without spoilers, but I think this fully deserves the hype it's getting and can't wait for more people to read it.

Thank you Celadon Books for the gifted finished copy and NetGalley for the e-ARC.

If you are looking for a fun thriller filled with dark humour then this is for you. I enjoyed the unique voice of protagonist Lucy- her snarky, sarcastic personality added depth to the book. Lucy returns to her Texas hometown for her grandmother’s birthday. However, she hasn’t been home in years because she is trying to escape her traumatic past, one where she was covered in her best friend’s blood and accused of her murder. A popular podcast is re investigating the murder, so once again Lucy’s life is thrown into the spotlight. Tintera created a book filled with things I love in a story- small town setting, murder podcasts interspersed through out, unreliable narrator, amnesia, and twists with a satisfying ending. I found myself engaged throughout the book and I questioned several times if Lucy was guilty of murdering her best friend Savvy. There were well developed supporting characters, many of them unlikeable but I loved Lucy’s quirky grandmother.

My rating: 4 out of 5

Thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for this eARC which will be published March 5 2024.

I know people have strong opinions on this, but as a huge reader and an avid true crime podcast listener, I have been loving books that combine these two mediums! Listen for the Lie is a terrific adult debut and read like a fast paced thriller. I also think this book read as if it would be fantastic on audio too (if only to add the "podcast effect"). The goodreads blurb was short and I appreciated this- this is definitely a good book to go into blind! I enjoyed it so much it was also my March BOTM pick to get a hardcover copy for my shelf.

Thanks to Celadon books for the ARC!

Thank you, NetGalley for this advanced reader’s copy. This book was a lot of fun! What if everyone thinks you murdered your best friend, but you can’t defend yourself because YOU CAN’T REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED?! Do you feel horrible and just go along with it? Do you find out what really happened? Do you run away in shame? All of the above! This book has some twists that I predicted and then some things I definitely didn’t see coming!! Very good thriller with a timely “murder blog” theme. I’ll be on the lookout for what this author comes up with next.

I LOVED this book. I couldn't put it down. I think it will be all over the place when it comes out!

It has so many of my favorite things in a book:
- sassy, sarcastic main characters (Lucy & her grandma will definitely be on my most memorable list for 2024!)
- fierce female friendship
- short chapters
- more, but I don't want to spoil anything!

Things that sometimes don't work for me in a thriller but worked in this book:
- amnesia storyline
- romance

I saw the audio will be done by January LaVoy and her husband, and I love that! I plan to re-read via audio at some point.

I can't wait to see what this author comes out with next!

Rating: I loved it! (5)

Listen For The Lie is a thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat till the very last page. I really enjoyed the format of this book. The podcast aspect was so interesting and brought a lot to the story. I also loved the characters. They were raw and flawed and awful people. It was refreshing to read about people that weren’t perfect. I have to admit I have a soft spot for an unlikeable main character.

I will say this book has a lot of cheating and it felt like a little too much. A lot of it wasn’t necessary to prove the authors point that all the characters are flawed in some way.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. I would love to read more from this author in the future. If you love a thriller with a podcast element you should definitely check this one out.
3/5 Stars

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for sending me an arc copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Celadon Books for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. I loved this one!! I don’t always love books that are podcasts, but this setup really worked! Sometimes in that format it feels like you’re getting a lot of duplicate information but I didn’t feel that way at all in Listen for the Lie. The podcast interviews were sneaky little bits of extra information! I had several ideas of where I thought the story was going, that evolved as we got more information. I didn’t figure it out until right as it was revealed. I also really love fun grandma side characters!

Twisty solid thriller dealing with an unsolved murder in a small town. Lucy is suspected of killing her best friend five years ago but was never formally charged and she has no memory of what happened. Since then she moved away and tried to start over and be anonymous. When the case comes back into public eye because of a new podcast she has to go back home and face what happened to find out if she's guilty or if it's someone who's been behind it. I really liked this book enjoyed the shifting between the story and the different podcast episodes to move the story along. Rating this one 3.5/4 stars enjoyed the story and had a good twist ending will look for more from this author. I want to thank NetGalley and Celadon Books for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I loved the beginning and Lucy's sarcastic, snarky personality. I liked the true crime podcast element. While it did start to drag a bit towards the middle and become a little repetitive, it kept me hooked. A solid debut for Tintera's first adult novel.

First of all, thank you so much to NetGalley and the publisher for this E-ARC. I absolutely LOVED this book. The combination of the murder mystery sprinkled with so much dark humor throughout, had me trying to squeeze in chapters whenever possible because I truly couldn’t get enough. I can’t believe this is her adult debut- sign me up for whatever the author writes in the future. Five stars!

This was a clever, well done thriller that plays with the very popular podcast solving a murder trope./unreliable narrator trope. I didn’t solve the mystery until the very end, and thoroughly enjoyed the ride. The narrator is darkly funny, which I appreciated, and the setting was perfect. This was highly entertaining and I think it will do well!

Thank you, Netgalley and Celadon, for allowing me the opportunity to read this ARC. I really enjoyed reading this book. It hooks you from the beginning, and you can’t help but continue to read. I was constantly trying to figure it out who did it, and the twists kept coming. 5/5. The classic whodunit book has twists and turns you don’t see coming. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a fast-paced, twisty, unexpected thriller. Fantastic writing throughout, easy to follow, and keeps you entertained. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Listen for the Lie had me absolutely HOOKED from the very beginning. This book kicks off with the main character and her very intriguing yet concerning inner dialogue. Lucy is a girl from a small Texas town who has been accused of her best friend’s murder five years prior but never charged with the crime. After the fallout she moved to California and never looked back. She has easily disappeared into the hustle and bustle of LA until now. It seems people have been catching on that she is indeed a suspected murder, all thanks to podcaster Ben Owens. Ben happens to run an extremely popular true crime podcast and his next cold case to investigate is yup, you guessed it, the case in which Lucy was the prime suspect.

While her life in California is crumbling her grandmother calls and asks Lucy to please come back home to Texas for her birthday, which will be her first return to town since the murder. And who happens to be there when she arrives? yup, the podcaster.

I have really grown to love thriller books with a podcast element. They never let me down! Seeing a story unfold from the main characters POV as well as being provided a full overview via the podcast episodes is just too good. I could not read this fast enough! If you love a fast paced thriller that makes you question everything and everyone, pick up Listen for the Lie! Publishes on March 5,2024. Thank you to Celadon books and NetGalley for the ARC!

This was my first Amy Tintera novel and I really enjoyed it! I love true crime podcasts so the format was perfect for me. I was all over the place guessing who killed Savvy and in the end was completely wrong! Great thriller, excited to read more by her in the future.

Absolute page turner. I loved the set up with the podcast weaved in through the story and it just kept me guessing the whole time. The small town felt very authentic (I’m from a small town myself) and I felt like each character had me pointing my finger at them at one time or another!
One of my top thrillers that I have now read and will definitely be recommending!