Holy crap. I can already tell this is going to be in my top 3 reads of 2024, if not my favorite! I cannot believe what I just read. I was on the edge of my seat, my jaw on the floor, in complete disbelief pretty much the entire book, but especially the last 20-30% or so. I suspected everyone. I had two hundred theories. None of them were correct. My heart was literally racing in the last couple of chapters! 100000/5 stars

I was on a rollercoaster for this book but the rollercoaster was me -- from being engaged to unengaged. I thought the narrators were fantastic, especially for this style of book, and thought the premise of the book and writing style made it a perfect contender to enjoy via audio. But, for me, it was a little all over the place and hard for me to stay focused. I wanted to love this and I can't put my finger on just why I couldn't fully connect with and commit to the story.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to review this ARC in audio format.

4.5⭐️

Exceptionally well done. This is how you do this sort of story.

Taught, twisty, suspenseful, with a likable but flawed, delightfully snarky protagonist, I ended up finishing this story in one sitting, unable to put it down. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook if you have the chance, as the narration and the realistic podcast vignettes really add to the experience - but whatever format you prefer, definitely do read this one.

January LaVoy and Will Damron did a fantastic job narrating the audiobook.

Thank you Amy Tintera, Celadon Books, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

I'm not sure what caused me to pick up this one, because I usually am not a fan of true crime or podcast themes. I'm so glad I did, though, because "Listen for the Lie" was fun from start to finish!

Lucy, a pariah in her hometown, has reluctantly returned for her grandmother's birthday party. She hasn't been back for years, following the murder of her best friend, a crime that she was suspected of committing. Never convicted in a court, she's nonetheless found guilty in the court of public opinon, and with amnesia surrounding the night in question, Lucy isn't too sure they are wrong.

While back in town, Lucy finds herself running into Ben Owens, producer of a true crime podcast that has been looking to profile her story. To his surprise, Lucy agrees to speak with Ben, and the two soon find themselves working to unlock the secrets of what happened the evening Savannah died.

Lucy has a dry, self-deprecating sense of humor that feels like a genuine fit with her position as a social outcast. While I did find her internal monologue and lust for violence a little abrasive at first, it doesn't take long for it to make sense within the context of the book. I read enough thrillers that I did sleuth out the culprit partway through, but that didn't take away from my enjoyment in the least. Lucy's grandma, by the way, was by far my favorite.

While Amy Tintera no doubt gets full credit for crafting an engaging story that isn't what it seems on first look, January LaVoy and Will Damron also get high marks for delivering excellent performances as narrators.

4.5 stars rounded up.

I love true crime podcasts and I was excited to read this book about a murder being investigated via a podcast titled "Listen for the Lie". This book was done so well. I really like how the book goes back and forth between Lucy's POV and the podcast POV. I enjoyed Lucy's humor, and her kooky grandmother Beverly. I also really liked Ben, the podcast host. This book definitely had me guessing right up until the end.

The audio narration in this book is spot on and I applaud the narrators January LaVoy and Will Damron. This could have been a mess without the proper narrators, and I'm happy to say they did a wonderful job.

This book is filled with humor, mystery, suspense and a bit of sexy time to keep every reader entertained. 4.5 stars!

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and Amy Tintera for the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVE LUCY. Her banter was sarcasm was top tier. I loved how the story unfolded slowly but steadily. It was shockingly easy to keep the characters sorted, which is usually difficult with so many moving parts. Great book!

The audiobook was fantastic. I loved the production for the podcast clips as well as the narrators.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

Wow- what an easy audiobook to listen to. The production was so well done and I loved all the special sound effects. I will never not want to read a thriller with a podcast element!

This is the story of Lucy. She's just like you and me except for the minor detail that everyone thinks she murdered her best friend. The crazier part is that she doesn't even know if she did or not because she has no memory of the night she was found covered in her friends blood! UM TALK ABOUT CRAZY!

Now enter a famous podcast writer who is trying to find out what even Lucy doesn't know: who killed Savvy? And why? The podcast "Listen for the Lie" is interspersed throughout the story as well as present tense and past tense stories of Lucy's life unfold. I loved all the literary and audio variation, it really helped keep things interesting.

Personally, I don't looove when my thrillers have a side of romance, so I could have done without that as well as excessive (imo) strong language. Both of those things to me became a distraction that actually took away from the enjoyment of the story for me.

Overall, I thought the ending was wrapped up well and I didn't see it coming!

3.5 stars rounded to 4 for GR

This will be available for purchase on March 5, 2024.

Dare I say this is the best mixed media book I’ve read/listened to since A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder???

I usually have to tandem read if I listen to an audiobook. For some reason, I can’t absorb a story solely via audio, but mixed media books are the exception. Especially THIS story. Amy Tintera did a masterful job of balancing the actual story with the podcast episode chapters. Each chapter from Lucy’s POV would end on a comment about a person, place, event, etc. and then we’d go into a podcast episode where Ben was interviewing someone about said person, place, or event. Not only did the story flow effortlessly, but Lucy is a really funny main character to follow. But it’s not the over the top, try-hard, quirky kind of funny. I actually believe that Lucy is that snarky, I believe that her grandma is the life of every party, and I believe how biased and gossipy the small town is.

My two nit picks: 1) the fact that Lucy’s family is a “founding family” and Savvy’s family aren’t from Texas, and anyone from a small town knows that the founding families are untouchable, so it rang untrue to me that the whole town would see Lucy as the villain. 2) the voice inside of Lucy’s head. I honestly don’t know what it even added to the story or Lucy’s character arc.

I can see how some might find the mundanity of Ben interviewing someone, asking Lucy about what that person said, Lucy not remembering anything, rinse and repeat, kind of annoying. But I enjoyed the story for what it was, and it was an entertaining listen. Everyone likes to throw around the term “gaslight” without knowing what it means or what it looks like, and I think Lucy’s story is a really heartbreaking but accurate example of what manipulation and gaslighting from the people you trusted the most is like. Not being able to trust your own judgement or your own memories, feeling betrayed by your own mind; Tintera did a great job balancing the dark humor and the seriousness of the subject matter.

January LaVoy and Will Damron are award winning narrators for a reason; their performances are top notch as always! I highly recommend the audiobook.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing this ALC of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely love this new thriller. It is dynamic, witty, and fresh. It changes back and forth from what's transpiring with a suspected murderer and a true crime podcast titled Listen for the Lie.

Lucy, the main character, has her dead best friend as a hallucinatory dark passenger to go along with her intrusive thoughts. Part of the reason for these disturbing mental health issues is that her bestie, Savanah, was murdered...and Lucy was the prime suspect even though none of the other evidence stuck, and she can't remember what happened the night Savanah was killed due to a head injury. So, did she or didn't she kill her BFF?

The mystery unravels as memories resurface and a well known true crime podcaster works to solve the case and uncover the truth of that night.

The audio was excellent! I highly recommend this route. The podcast portions were fun and the multiple narrators did so great capturing the voices of the characters.

This would be a four star read for me, which means I really enjoyed it. But the audio bumps this review up to 4.5 stars because I thought it was so well done and really loved listening to it and rounded up to 5 stars for this review post of the audio.

I loved listening to this one. Great narration plus with the podcast piece, these are just so much more fun to LISTEN to then read. Fun, suspenseful read. I’m sad it’s over! Highly recommend. Thank you for the early review!

I loved every second of this book.

I can only hope to become as amazing as the grandma in this book lol she was truly an icon.

the book managed to be thrilling, mysterious and funny all at the same time. I loved the writing.

if you know me at all you know im a sucker for books with podcast elements so this was just *chefs kiss*

Whatever reason Amy Tintera decided to try her hand in adult fiction, I am thankful! This book did not seem like an adult debut! The audio was done so incredibly well, I’m sure due to the talented January LaVoy! I could listen to her read all day. This book kept me listening every single chance I got! The narrator was hilarious and dark! Her responses were sarcastic and most of the time inappropriate and I was here for it! Listening alongside Lucy as she is trying to figure out who killed her best friend all those years ago, and if it was her was enthralling. I did not see the ending coming and was very pleased with how the book wrapped up! I also really enjoyed the podcast element added to the book! Cannot wait to see was Tintera comes out with next!

4.5 stars

It was 5 years ago that Lucy Chase was found dazed and staggering down a highway with the blood of her best friend on her dress. Having suffered a traumatic brain injury resulting in no memory of what happened, Lucy was the main suspect in the murder of Savannah "Savvy" Harper, known to be the nicest girl in the small Texas town of Plumpton. Hearing Savvy's voice in her head saying "Let's kill" did not make things any clearer for Lucy.
There was never enough evidence for police to charge her, but the court of public opinion had no problem getting a conviction.

Lucy moved to LA to and wrote romance novels under a pseudonym, since murder suspects are hard to market. It was a call from her beloved and spirited grandmother demanding she come for her 80th birthday celebration that got her to return to Plumpton. That and the fact that there was nothing to stay in LA for. She lost her job, and her relationship was all but over. This was in part due to a true crime podcast on the death of Savvy Harper. called "Listen for the Lie" created by Ben Owens.

When Lucy arrives in town, she discovers that Ben Owen is there too. Is he there to take her down, or, as he claims, just get to the truth? Lucy finally decides she needs to know once and for all what happened that night, even if it means working with Ben to get the truth.

I had the pleasure of listening to the ALC of this book which had a wonderful way of flipping between the "podcast" and what was happening during their investigation. The dialogue was so true to life - witty, sarcastic, emotional - there was a voyeuristic feeling to it. You were behind of the scenes of the investigation and then listing to how the podcast would present this to the audience. This was a clever device that Amy Tinera used in a creative way. I would recommend listening to the Audio book for just this reason, but traditional readers will still find the story just as enjoyable.

I look forward to more books from Amy Tintera and would recommend Listen to the Lie for any true crime podcast and book lovers!

My thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio ofr the ALC of this book.

Wow! Since I read so many mystery/thriller novels, not many can surprise me. I tend to get bored in the middle. Listen for the Lie was more complex and unique than many in this genre. I love the fact that main characters are morally grey and you can't trust them completely. Nevertheless you still root for them. That's a hard thing to accomplish. I will definitely read other books by this author.

This was definitely a good read! It kept me guessing most of the time. I liked being able to hear the different sides from a lot of the people in the town. Made it more life like and relatable in a sense that this would be how people would truly view a murder in the evidence they were given. Yet, is it really the truth and it makes you look at how far someone could go to keep secrets. I will definitely be recommending this one to other readers and I need to check out more from the author asap. Thank you netgalley for this opportunity!

What if you thought you murdered your best friend? And if everyone else thought so too? And what if the truth doesn't matter?


💭 My Thoughts 💭
Now this is a thriller done right!!!! I devoured this book in a day. The story goes back and forth between Lucy’s POV and the other characters’ POV through the true crime podcast that is trying to solve who killed Savannah aka Savvy. Was it Lucy, her best friend, or someone else. I loved how the narrators, January LaVoy and Will Damron, embodied and portrayed each of the characters. The narrators played their roles so well, that at times, I thought that there were more than two narrators. That’s how well they changed their voices to match each characters voice and personality! I’m recommending this book over and over again!

✨Good To Know ✨
🎙️Murder Mystery with humor
🎙️True Crime Podcast
🎙️Multiple POV
🎙️Nonlinear Timeline
🎙️Page Turner

Thank you @netgalley, @macmillanaudio, and Amy Tintera for an ALC of Listen For the Lie.

I have to say that this is definitely one of my favorite thrillers. The main character, Lucy, who doesn't remember what happened to her and her best friend, Savannah, 5 years prior at a wedding, had always been suspected of killing her best friend that night. There was not enough evidence to arrest Lucy. Five years later her grandmother reaches out and wants her to come home for her grandmother's birthday. I have to say I absolutely adore Lucy and her grandmother. Lucy is hilariously sarcastic and her relationship with her grandmother is everything! Her grandmother admits that she reached out to a true crime podcaster to try to solve the death of Savvy (Savannah). Lucy reluctantly agrees and much is uncovered about the true events that happened. I definitely recommend this book to thriller fans.

Are you seeking an electrifying whodunit filled with humor, sarcasm, and a murder mystery? Look no further; LISTEN FOR THE LIE is the book for you! Meet Lucy and her grandmother, two unapologetic characters who speak their minds. And the best part? Their witty remarks will have you laughing out loud!

But that's not all – this book also includes a podcast narrative that will leave you on the edge of your seat! Hosted by the oh-so-sexy Ben, the podcast probes into the unsolved murder of a young woman in a small Texas town. And guess who was the main suspect? None other than her BFF—Lucy! As the podcast unfolds, we discover new information about the case that will keep you guessing until the very end.

And here's the kicker – Lucy can't even remember what happened that night. Did she do it? The fact that even she isn't sure will have you biting your nails with suspense. Lucy returns to her hometown to face her demons and the podcaster who has unburied them.

Trust me, this book is a must-read for anyone who loves a thrilling mystery with a healthy dose of humor and sarcasm, but I recommend the audiobook. The narrators are fabulous, and you’ll immerse yourself in the exhilarating podcast experience!

#ListenForTheLie #Tintera #NetGalley #ARC #HonestReview #MacmillanAudio #ReadersOfTheLateArc #TalkWordyToMe #LoveToRead #BookAddict #ThrillerBookLovers #BookReviewer #Thriller #LoveBooks #ThrillerBookLoverPromotions #ThrillerFriendsUnite #ThrillerObsessedBookishClub #Bookstagrammer #BookReels

Thanks to NetGalley for an audio ARC.

While I enjoyed the premise of this and thought it worked especially well as an audiobook, I really didn’t enjoy it overall. I found the main character Lucy pretty unlikeable- not sure if I was supposed to or not. I actually found almost all the characters unlikeable, which is probably why I didn’t enjoy it as much as many others seemed to.

I absolutely loved this audio. I'm becoming a fan of audios/books that have mini "podcasts" as part of the narrative. I loved how sarcastic and glib Lucy is, because what else can you do when no one believes you lol. Excellent because I had no idea whodunnit as they say. Excellent thriller for the beginning of the year!