I really enjoyed myself with this book. Of course, things are unbelievable at times and some characters were insufferable, the ending got me, and it was great!

Thank you netgalley and Harper for the arc.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Five Year Lie by Sarina Bowen in exchange for my honest review and opinion. This book description drew me in right away and I was beyond excited to read this. Holy cow, this is one crazy book with so many twists and turns your head will be spinning trying to keep up with all of them. Just wait for the ending...OMG!

Oh my gosh, I loved this! I am not a thriller reader, but I do love a suspenseful romance. The Five Year Lie hooked me from the start. I loved trying to figure out everything with Ariel. I had some theories, some right and some not. I loved the pace. There was also some new nugget or turn in the story. I enjoyed Ariel trying to uncover what was going on with Drew, but I still really enjoyed Ariel herself and Buzz. Ariel was really interesting herself, and I loved seeing her with the adorable little Buzz. I did not want to put this down at all! I love all of Sarina's other work, and her writing a thriller was just *chef's kiss*

An enthralling 5-star read, this book was packed with suspense, mystery, and thrill from the first page to the last. There were several twists, multiple view points, interesting characters, and a fast pace that made this book hard to put down. I think fans of Laura Dave's book would really like this one!

A single mother receives a text from her deceased partner of five years. One text that changes everything. One text! I was intrigued by this premise and my interest held throughout the story. There was family drama, a bit of romance, small plot twists and a slew of unanswered questions leading up to the big reveal. A totally bingable, suspenseful mystery. 3.75 stars

I want to start with stating that this was not really a thriller, more like a romance story with some mystery added in. The writing was good but the pacing was very slow. I actually had to get an audiobook to finish it.
Overall it was just ok - too slow for a thriller and not romantic enough for a romance.

Thank you Harper Paperbacks and the author for a free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

4/5⭐
This is Sarina's first non romance specific book and I think she did a fantastic job. Even though it was totally different than her books that I normally read, I still felt very connected to her writing.

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

Well, this book has been on my Netgalley shelf for awhile, but finally crossed it off!

It checked a lot of boxes for me with some romance, some mystery and thriller-lite feel.

I kept shuffling the book around on my NG to read list and then when I FINALLY started reading it, I kept pausing with it because LIFE. But that’s not a reflection on the book, just sometimes it’s taking me longer with stuff these days.

What I liked:

I love this cover. That magenta writing is def a thumbs up!

Ariel. She could have ignored what started the whole thing. She could have dismissed it. But she wanted answers and no matter how much answers were breaking her heart (and making her trust people even less), she kept on digging.

Ariel’s relationship with her dad vs her Uncle Ray. The family dynamics are pretty fascinating.



Bottom line: I liked this book and am curious to read Sarina’s next book (Dying To Meet You- 5.13.25) soon!



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

I really enjoyed this book, it was super fast paced & so much fun to read.

This story is told in Ariel's present POV and Drew's POV from 5 years ago. I would say this is more a romantic suspense but towards the end it was very suspenseful.

Five years later, Ariel receives a text from Drew asking her to meet him. But how can that be?
Dead men don’t send texts.

I can’t believe this was a debut thriller for this author, I thought it was incredibly detailed and well written.

I originally received this book as an ARC before it officially published, but with my pregnancy at the time I had no time to read really. I finally picked it back up and I’m kicking myself for not reading it sooner!!

This novel gave me all the 5 star feels. I laughed, I cried, it was suspenseful and thrilling and overall an amazing read!! The ending was perfection and every question was answered.

This will definitely be a book I recommend to everyone and WILL be in my top five this year!!

Really great story. I love that Sarina Bowen is branching out from strictly romance. This suspenseful story has romance in it, but it’s more about solving the mystery.

I liked the premise of this book. The plot moved along at a good pace, and even though it time-hopped AND had multiple pov, the story flowed well. The ending ended up being a little bit over simplified for me; the story had been going so well, I was hoping for a bit more of an exciting ending, but that’s just me! If you enjoy a domestic thriller, I recommend this read! thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for an opportunity to review this ARC.

I liked this one ok. I think it runs more romance than thriller, which makes sense as Bowen has been a romance writer until now. It reminded me of the Nora Roberts thrillers that she writes under her own name (not JD Robb) - more romance-focused with the thriller elements underpinning that.

The thriller itself was all right. It was pretty predictable, but it kept the story moving. I loved the kid, I think he was my favorite character. I also enjoyed the fact that the whole story wasn't a helpless woman getting bailed out by men and that she was a glass blower which is such a cool art form to practice.

A huge thank you to the author and the publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

The Five Year Lie is a smart, intense, and emotional story about secrets, betrayal, and redemption. Bowen’s writing keeps you hooked as the characters work through their pasts while facing tough truths.

What a ride this book was! I was hooked from the beginning. It was a little predictable, but I still really enjoyed it.

Full review to come on Goodreads and Amazon. Thank you to the publisher, author, and NetGalley for a review copy.

I haven't read this author's romance books yet, so I'm not just a blind loyal fan. They are on my TBR though. That being said, I was so surprised by how good this book was! It is one of my 2024 favorite reads! I can't believe this is her first thriller (with a sprinkling of romance). Now, I hope she comes out with more thrillers, and I am okay if it has some romance with it because she did it well in this book.

I can still see the scenes from the book in my mind. She was also able to endear me to some of the characters. The plot twists and reveals were also good. The premise was what made me pick up this book. I was not disappointed because it was executed well. It was thrilling and suspenseful. I was at the edge of my seat, and I kept reading because I was too invested! I wanted the characters to be okay. The only reason why it took me 10 days to finish this was because of responsibilities. :D

This was amazing. Can't wait to get my hands on Dying to Meet You!

***Thank you to Harper Perennial for providing an e-arc of this book via NetGalley (no obligation to post a review).***

I'm a big fan of Sarina's romance books so I was excited to give this one a go and I'm so glad I did. It was fun, kept me guessing and I want more suspense from Sarina!

I really enjoyed this one, it was fast paced and kept me interested through the whole book. I loved the family dynamics and the romantic subplot that was happening.

This was a new author to me and i picked based on the cover. I love a bingeable book and read this in under a day! This was different then so many others that are out there, as a woman searches for the truth after receiving a text from her deceased ex.

Thanks so much for the gifted copy!