Slow build with interesting plot twists. I didn't love the characters. Liked the idea of a book within a book and the influences of an author.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for the copy of The Woman Who Lied by Claire Douglas. This book had a slow start so it took me some time to really get into it. I loved the premise of the story, though, so I kept reading to find out the ending. There were a lot of characters so it took me a while to remember who everyone was, but when I finally got used to them I really enjoyed this book with all of the surprising reveals. I really loved how everything came together and I though the end was great! 3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

I always Douglas' books so addictively entertaining, and can always recommend her books for a satisfying thriller. The Woman Who Lied is definitely another winner, so make sure you add this one to your wishlist!

3.5 stars
I really enjoyed this one, and it kept me guessing to the end. But there were a few downsides that kept me from loving it as much as I’d hoped.

It has a slow start and really took a while to hook me, and I felt like the plot became a bit complicated at times which really distracted me from the tension I was hoping to experience.

With that said, it was a very entertaining read.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to @netgalley and @HarperPerennial for this ARC. Emilia is a best selling thriller author. The last book she wrote is the end of her series of Detective Miranda Mood because she doesn't survive her last case. In real life, Emilia is receiving "gifts" that relate to each book of her series. She is afraid if this harrasment continues, she will end up like Miranda in her last book. The big kicker? Her book isn't published yet and only a handful of people have reviewed it. This means, the culprit is someone close to her. #TheWomanWhoLied #ClaireDouglas #HarperPerennial #July2024

Emilia is the successful author of a popular series about detectives. But she’s feeling burned out and has writer’s block. When a friend suggests a storyline, Emilia takes the gift and writes her last book of the series. Then weird things start happening at her home and things escalate from there. A unique and interesting story!

Emilia is a crime writer with a popular series when her stories begin literally happening in eerie similarity to her fictional serial killer. She lives in London with a son and daughter, an X- husband, her current husband, a former best friend (now her X’s new wife!), a stressed editor - what a tangled mess! There are hard feelings, secrets and lies. Its not the perfectly blended family. She’s finishing the last book in her series. She’s only shared her drafts with a select few trusted people. How could a killer be using her methods and leaving the same descriptive symbol on his victims? When she takes her suspicions to the police they aren’t receptive. Does she know the killer, is she in danger too? There are plenty of suspects, a few red herrings and lies from everyone. I had strong suspicions about the secrets Emilia was keeping, but didn’t unravel the twisty plot. I’m a fan of the author and can’t wait to see what she’ll do next
An uncorrected Advance Reader Copy of “The Woman Who Lied” by Claire Douglas, HarperCollins Publishers, publication 07/06/2023, was provided by NetGalley. These are my own honest thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without expectation of compensation.

I was really excited about this one but it lacked so much for me. It took a while to get hooked, there were too many characters, the ending was boring, the pacing was slow. Just a no from me. Sorry.

Thanks to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It took me a while to get stuck into this, but once I got into it, it was quite good.

Emilia is a mystery novelist whose latest book (as yet unreleased) kills off her long-running MC. Events from her books start occurring in real life to her and those around her, until finally the events are from her latest book which is still waiting for publisher approval, but Emilia has sent uncorrected proofs to her family and close friends (also, weirdly, to her ex husband and his new wife, who was once Em's close friend, I assume to embiggen the suspect list and toss a few red herrings around). Thus, it seems clear that the perpetrator, who eventually resorts to murder, is one of her close circle.

Douglas keeps the pages turning, and the book is well-written, but there are SO MANY complicated plot twists (it's been a couple of weeks since I read it, don't @me), many red herrings, that I felt like it got a bit bogged down. This is the culprit - actually, no, it's this person! I'm glad it didn't turn out to be who Douglas was breadcrumbing us along towards, but so many books now require a BIG TWIST and this one delivers, if that's your thing.

One more quibble: <spoiler>in this era of "ripped from the headlines," (which has been going on for the past 20 years?) would it really be that big of a deal for an author to admit that the inspiration for her story came from a real-life case? Emilia's reluctance to 'fess up about something seemingly minor was frustrating.</spoiler>

This was my first Claire Douglas book and I really enjoyed it. I love the theme of this book, an author kills off a character in her book and then things start happening in real life. Someone is obsessed and stalking this author so it takes you on a rollercoaster.

I tried really hard to get into this one, but I am still really thankful to the publisher, author, and netgalley for granting me advanced digital access to this book before it hits shelves on July 30, 2024.

3.5⭐️
this had the makings of a great domestic thriller, but it also had a main character that made absolutely ridiculous decisions (one of my biggest pet peeves)! i also found it hard to keep all the main characters straight in the beginning because they were introduced so quickly and all at once. i did find the second half of the book more thrilling, but saw the majority of the twist coming. overall, it was a quick, enjoyable read, but not an outstanding thriller!

thanks to netgalley and harper perennial for my advance copy of the woman who lied by claire douglas. all opinions are my own.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5 stars

I personally was obsessed with this book and what was happening to Emilia and her little family. I have discovered that a common theme of the 2024 for thriller/mysteries are books based about books/authors/libraries and mysteries that surround them. I was starting to get a little bored with the theme even though it is normally a theme that would draw me in, but Claire Douglas drew me in and kept me curious throughout the whole story. I guessed who I thought was the culprit of the mystery and pleasantly surprised to found out that I was wrong. And when I guess about things I tend to be able to guess who the villain of the story is and this made me like the book more and more when the twists would be introduced.

Claire Douglas also made Emilia easy to connect with and understanding about the chaotic energy she brought when she starts to realize that she is being stalked and intimidated by someone. Emilia is an author that has decided to kill off her main character in the final book of the series and things begin to happen in order of her previous books showing that the stalker is a fan of her novels, but things keep on-upping the stakes when the person starts messing with her house and her family.

This was so enjoyable and I am being purposefully vague because I believe it is best to go in blind or with little information and allow Douglas's story style to lead you through the plot to the ending. I recommend this for people who love books about books, and a stalker story that can make you slightly uncomfortable alongside the main character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Paperbacks for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Get me hanging on until the end even with some slow spots. A bit too much detail in places but what an ending! I wasn’t familiar with this author but now I will be on the lookout for her books.

3.75 stars

In THE WOMAN WHO LIED, Claire Douglas weaves a suspenseful thriller about an author who is seeing her books come to life in a threatening way around her. Even more distressing is that when things occur in her not-yet-published final book in a series, she knows that one of her early readers - all who are very close to her - is the culprit.

If you're not already paranoid, a plot like this will have you (or the main character Emilia) climbing the walls. Could it be Emilia's ex-husband Jonas, now husband Elliot, new friend Louise, old friend Ottilie, Elliot's father Trevor, her editor, her agent, or someone else that one of these people in her inner circle passed off the manuscript to?

Aside from the main plot, there are two other narrative threads throughout the novel - one from Daisy and one other.

Like many in its genre, there were a lot of twists. I also noticed that Chapter 5 had an influx of characters introduced, especially parents of other characters.

I did enjoy this one for being a fun, twisty romp that held my interest, but it probably won't land in my favorites of the year.

I’ve never read characters that were so lush. The mystery plot was nearly perfect. It’s very detailed which does make some areas slow to get into but the way it all comes together is so worth it.

This was a really good read! There were so many things I didn’t see coming. The characters are absolutely amazing. Highly recommend

Emilia Ward, a bestselling author of detective stories, finds her real life shadowing the eerie events of her latest book, leading to a wave of unsettling incidents that culminate in a friend's death mirroring the plot. As Emilia grapples with the mystery of how someone knows the unpublished contents of her book, a sense of threat looms over her family. While the premise captivates, the novel's slow start, over-detailed explanations, and convoluted plot hinder the narrative's pace and tension. Despite well-fleshed characterizations and clever plot twists, the execution falls short compared to the author's previous works. Though showing promise, the book struggles to fully deliver on its intriguing premise.

Emilia Ward resides in London with her second husband and two children. She is also a bestselling author known for her captivating Miranda Moody detective novels. As she gears up to write the series' tenth installment, she plans to conclude the series by killing off the main character.However, Emilia's life takes a sinister turn when events from her novels begin to unfold in real life. To her horror, someone she knows meets a fate eerily similar to a character in her current work-in-progress. With her life hanging in balance Emilia is forced to confront the question of whom she can truly as only those closest to her have access to her latest manuscript.

The Woman who Lied by Claire Douglas is a well crafted gripping story with numerous unexpected twists, which kept me guessing until the very end.

I would like to thank Harper Perennial and Paperbacks , Harper Paperbacks & NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest and fair review

I enjoyed the book overall but did find it confusing at times with a lackluster ending. I also thought the pacing was a bit slow. This was not a book I was looking forward to picking up, but it was just good enough to keep me interested. I do enjoy books about books and authors writing about authors, and that honestly is what kept it from being a 2 for me. It felt like the author rushed the ending and tried to do too much in general.