4.5 stars

A little slow in the beginning, but oooh, did it speed up!

I really enjoyed the plot, but mostly, I enjoyed the twists. This thriller had me on the edge of my seat, and I was dying to know who the perpetrator was. There were a lot of suspects and a lot of red herrings, and it kept me zeroed in. Unfortunately, I was tripped up by some of the red herrings lol, but I found the reveal very satisfying! The epilogue was a nice touch and I really enjoyed the way the story was wrapped up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this earc in exchange for my honest review.

This is an excellent read! I enjoyed the different points of view and not knowing if it was past/present/part of the book being written. I thought I had some parts figured out, only to realize I had it all backwards. I highly recommend this book!

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Paperbacks for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book officially publishes on 7/30!

I really enjoyed the ride that this book took me on. This book featured different POVs in a way I don’t believe I’ve experienced before as a reader, so that kept me intrigued throughout. When everything came together, I found myself reading with my mouth hanging open because what the author led me to guess was not the case at all. I think the character development and backstories in this book are integral to the plot, and something the author did well. As I read a lot of this genre, at one point while reading I did think I had the end twist figured out but I was pleasantly mistaken! This was a fun read and I would recommend.

4.5⭐️

Emilia Ward, a mother of two, lives a quiet life with her second husband in a London suburb. A bestselling author of a successful detective series, Emilia is almost finished with her latest and possibly the final installment in her series. Writing a best-selling series has been taxing and this last book has proved to be especially challenging. But truth becomes stranger than fiction for Emilia when an incident mirroring a scene from one of her books occurs in real life. This is not an isolated incident and it seems that someone is trying to send her a message using her own fiction against her. After a shocking incident that is eerily similar to a plot point from her unpublished manuscript, Emilia begins to suspect that the threat is closer to home since the draft was shared with a select few in her close circle and Emilia begins to fear for her family’s safety.

Does someone know Emilia’s secret – a truth that has been hidden from most in her close circle? Is she being targeted for the same reason? Is her family in danger? Could someone close to her be responsible for all that is happening or is she being paranoid?

Exceptionally well-written and intricately plotted with an intriguing premise and several interesting twists and red herrings leading up to a satisfying ending – what else could you ask for in a psychological thriller? The Woman Who Lied by Claire Douglas checked all those boxes for me. I really liked Emilia and found her to be an interesting protagonist. I’ll admit that initially, I presumed that the story would be formulaic and predictable, but I was so wrong! There was a point in the novel where almost no one in Emilia’s close circle was above suspicion. The narrative is presented from Emilia’s perspective with segments from another unnamed narrator’s perspective interspersed throughout the narrative. Cleverly structured, these segments had me confused (Who was the narrator? Segments from her unpublished manuscript? Segments from her previous installments? A new character or someone we knew? ) but as the narrative progresses, the author dials up the tension and the threads converge in a riveting denouement. The final reveal really threw me and being proved wrong always elevates my overall experience! I was glad that the author did not incorporate some of the annoying (personal opinion, no offense intended!), overused tropes that are common in this genre to manipulate the plot.


This was my first Claire Douglas novel and I can’t wait to explore more of her work.

Many thanks to Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for the digital review copy via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Woman Who Lied, by Claire Douglas, is a smartly written mystery novel, with complex, layered plotting, sinister doings, and a colorful cast of characters.
Successful author Emilia Ward has written the popular Miranda Moody detective novels. She is happily married to her second husband, has lovely children, and a nice modern home. Then her world is rocked by a series of murders that emulate the crimes in her ten novels!
Emilia is a likeable main character, full of love for her family and her life. She tries to figure out the connection of the crimes to her novels, but unfortunately is surrounded by friends and acquaintances who are unreliable, or could even be involved in the murders. So Emilia seems to be constantly swimming in a whirlpool of solid clues, subterfuge, and red herrings
I like Claire Douglas’ prose and her exploration of the characters’ inner thoughts and motives. Conversely, sometimes I wished Emilia could get out of her own head and away from seemingly obsessive thoughts about her emotionally distant, cold parents. The plot twists are many, a few really surprising, and the inclusion of excerpts from Emilia’s unpublished latest detective novel is an added treat, further immersing the reader in the story.
All in all, I recommend this well-written novel, combining a domestic thriller with a whodunit and police procedural. It is a very entertaining read!

Thank you to Harper and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

I recently finished "The Woman Who Lied," and while I appreciate the effort and creativity behind it, I must admit it didn't quite hit the mark for me. The plot had a unique twist with a fictionalized serial killer, which initially drew me in. However, I found the story to be rather slow-paced and predictable. Despite the book's attempts to throw in red herrings, I found them to be more misleading than intriguing, and I ended up guessing the plot twists long before they were revealed.

The book's multiple perspectives and shifting character names only added to my confusion, making it difficult to keep track of who was who and what was going on. The ending, while neatly wrapped up, felt a bit too convenient and left me feeling more frustrated than satisfied. I often found myself putting the book down and struggling to pick it back up, which is unusual for me since I usually devour books in one sitting.

Thank you to the publisher, NetGalley, and the author for the gifted copy. While "The Woman Who Lied" may not have been for me, others might enjoy its creative premise and intricate plot.

I really enjoyed the book within a book storyline. Loved the storyline and it was quick paced and kept me engaged the entire book.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for gifting me an e-ARC.

This author never disappoints! You are in for a ride with this story. So many twists and turns, it'll leave you gasping and unable to put this book down! Great character development, great plot and everything comes together in the end! Love it!

Thank you for this arc!

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perenial for the eARC.

A book within a book. Sometimes it works and other times it doesn't. For Claire Douglas' book, it worked. I really found this to be a bingeworthy read. 4/5!

3.5 stars

Emilia is an author who's writing her 10th crime thriller book. Her family, friends, and fans are anxiously awaiting the release, when suddenly creepy things from her books start happening to her in real life. And some of them are from her unpublished book, which means someone she knows must be responsible.

I binge-read this and was engaged throughout, but I didn't love the big reveal. There was also a weird sense in this book that I had picked up something in the middle of the series, with how many characters were that weren't introduced as much as suddenly being present, but apparently that was just a writing choice. The characters did feel pretty realistic for the most part, like real people, just not people I liked. I am curious about this author's other work since I was absorbed in the writing until the ending, if maybe this plot just wasn't for me. I did have a good time, though! Thanks to Harper Perennial and the author for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial for gifting me a digital ARC of the new psychological thriller by Claire Douglas. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4.5 stars rounded up!

Emilia lives with her husband, their young son, and a teenager from her first marriage. While she's an average mom, she's also a bestselling author of the Miranda Moody detective series. Her latest book has been a struggle for her, but she's finally done and turned it in for reviews. But then an incident happens that mimics the plot of one of her novels. Then it happens again.

This story spools out and includes a book in a book format, which sometimes works for me and sometimes doesn't. It did here. I was engrossed with this book, and felt for Emilia as her life started spinning out of her control, and she didn't know who she could trust. There are a lot of characters in here that look untrustworthy too, plus Emilia has secrets of her own. The truth will keep you guessing until the final twist. A great novel of domestic suspense that will keep you glued to the pages!

This thriller was amazing!! I didn't want to put it down. So intense and fast-paced. Constantly thinking I figured out whodunit only to be wrong or not imagining the twists would happen the way they did. The last 70% was unputdownable and loved the ending. This story deserves to get more attention, highly recommend!

While the plot may not be original, Claire Douglas adds enough twists and turns to keep the pages flying while building depth into characters that caused new questions with each chapter. Who was obsessed with Emilia and her Miranda Moody character enough to recreate the books? How can she stop them? This was a quick read as it drew me in to the confusion that doesn't clear until the reveal.

I really enjoy books by Claire Douglas and this was no exception! There were so many twists and turns and possible suspects in this story that I couldn’t guess who the killer would turn out to be. I loved the fast pace of the story, and it kept me turning pages!

Thanks to #NetGalley and #HarperPerrenialandPaperbacks for the book #TheWomanWhoLied by #ClaireDouglas. This book is amazing and I had to finish it and find out. Emilia is a famous author who lives with her family and has a great life. Until she doesn’t. Someone is acting out her books and now they have started on the one she is writing. How do they know what she’s writing? Who is doing this?

This book was so good. I love this author. This follows Emilia who is an author and lives a perfect life with her husband and kids. She’s writing her tenth novel and something she wrote in one of her books ends up happening in her real life and the crazy thing is this continues to happen as she writes her current novel.

I've recently read two books with this premise of things from an authors book starting to play out in real life and I have to say: this is a sub-trope I never knew I liked, but now I can say is a favorite.

This was so good, the tension and angst that built up throughout the story was paced so perfectly - This was SO FUN to read.

"The Woman Who Lied" by Claire Douglas is a gripping psychological thriller that will keep readers guessing until the very end. The story follows a woman named Holly, who is struggling to come to terms with a tragic event from her past. As she tries to uncover the truth, she uncovers a web of lies and deception that threatens to destroy everything she knows. Douglas's writing is sharp and suspenseful, building tension with each twist and turn. Fans of twisty psychological thrillers will be hooked from the first page to the last.

As author Emilia Ward works on the latest, and last, book in her popular Miranda Moody detective series and finally submits the manuscript to her editor, she realizes that strange things happening around her are events taken straight out of her books. As things escalate, Emilia's concern for her family's safety, and her own, grows, especially when she starts to suspect the person behind the worrying incidents is someone close to her. I liked Emilia, and thought the plot pacing was excellent. Claire Douglas does an excellent job of encouraging the reader to suspect everyone around Emilia in turn before finally revealing all.

The Woman Who Lied by Claire Douglas is a twisty thriller. I loved the atmosphere and was drawn in by the mystery.
This is another gripping story from Douglas. Full of mystery and suspense that keeps you wanting more.
Claire Douglas’ writing skills are truly remarkable. The author's gripping plot that immediately grabbed my attention and kept me engaged throughout.
The author did a nice job of crafting an entertaining and compelling mystery.

Thank You NetGalley and Harper Paperbacks for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!