This was my first Karin Slaughter book and I am looking forward to reading other Will and Sara books . The book was at times a disturbing read but Will and Sara who are on their honeymoon brought some normality. The hotel is owned and run by a very dysfunctional unpleasant family with lots of secrets. Other guests, some of whom have visited the hotel before have their own secrets. There are lots of twists. I will admit that I worked out who the murderer was but not the whole reason for the murder. Karin Slaughter fans will not be disappointed. Thank you Netgalley for giving me the chance to read this book ahead of publication.

One of my all time favourite authors and once again she does not disappoint. The novel opens with Sara and Will embarking on their first night of honeymoon at a lodge. The place has a certain reverence for Will as nearby is a campsite he always wanted to visit but was denied by his church appointed care home.
The lodge is owned by the McAlpine family who immediately radiate a dark and foreboding tension. There is a division, as they want to sell up and move into town, whilst Mercy their daughter vows to do everything in her power to stay. It is a legacy she wishes to pass on and she really has no other option of earning a living.
The action begins on the first night with a terrible fight between Mercy and her son Jon. Hours later Mercy will be found murdered lying in the lake. Her dying words left with Will to communicate.

Will and Sara must break cover to help in bringing the killer to justice. There are many triggers in this: child grooming, rape and domestic abuse etc., which are unveiled through a series of letters, diary entries and interviews. This is one dysfunctional evil family whose crimes seem to span generations. Slaughter isn’t for the faint hearted but boy is she a powerful writer delivering high-octane tension and suspense this thriller will remain in your mind long after the final page is turned.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this.

What a roller coaster of a read, I loved every twist and turn!

This was my first time reading a Karin Slaughter book and I was a bit dubious about reading the book, as I thought I might not understand the character relationships.
However, it didn't matter at all as their background was explained nicely.

This is Why We Lied is the 12th book in the Will Trent series. Will and Sara are on their honeymoon in a remote location up in the mountains, on what should be a nice relaxing break from their day jobs of investigator and medical examiner.
It is only there second day there when a violent murder takes place and it is up to Will and Sara to solve the crime.

This is a fantastic locked room mystery that will keep you on your toes.

I’ve loved all of the Sara Linton/Will Trent books and this is no exception. I don’t think you have to have read the previous books as it is a self contained story, but it does help with the background of the characters.
I read it in one sitting.
Many thanks to the author, publisher and to netgalley for providing me with this advance digital copy.
Highly recommended

Karin Slaughter has always been one of my favourite authors and I have devoured both the Grant County and Will Trent series. That being said this one wasn't my favourite. It might have something to do with it being a locked room mystery which isn't my cup of tea. As with all Slaughter's books, it's long which I normally love but this one dragged a bit. It's definitely a slow burn. I think the constant mentions and descriptions of the Lodge and the various trails took me out of the story. Will & Sara's honeymoon level relationship felt a bit awkward as well but I am so happy they are getting their happily ever after. Well at least for now because you can never trust Slaughter

There are a lot of characters to keep track of which also gives us a lot of suspects. Pretty much every character is hiding something. As the book goes on more and more secrets are uncovered which adds so much drama. The McAlpine family is seriously messed up. I did have my suspicions about the killer but I couldn't work out a motive and damn was that reveal dark. We all know Karin Slaughter loves a dark topic so just be aware of the trigger warnings before delving in because there are a lot of traumatic events involved. I loved getting to know Mercy more through her letters to her son but it made her murder even more devastating.

I would say this is probably one of the few books in the Will Trent series that can be read as a standalone but obviously, you would miss out on some of Will & Sara's growth. As always Faith was my favourite character and I would love to see more of her. The same for Amanda. They both add so much to the series and always make me laugh. While this book wasn't my favourite from the series, it's still a fantastic read and I will always read her books. I think Slaughter has set the bar too high for her books and the slower pace threw me off.

This is Why We Lied is the newest book in the Will Trent/Sara Linto series by Karein Slaughter. It's different from prior books in the series becasuse it's a locked room mystery set at a resort where Will and Sara are on their honeymoon.

On the first night of their honeymoon, Will and Sara are relaxing in the lake when they hear scream. Mercy McApline, a member of the family that runs the resort, has been stabbed multiple times and is near death when Will gets to her. Who murdered Mercy? Was it someone in her family? One of the guests?

This was a good read, not as heavy as some of Slaughter's other works, though it does delve quite a bit into abusive situations. It felt a little slow in the beginning and definitely was not my favorite, but if you're a fan of the series, you don't want to miss this installment!

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to the publisher, the author, and Netgalley!

This book was well on the way to being an ok 3-star read. I found it to be quite slow and it dragged a little in the middle.
That said, the ending blew me away, I didn't see it coming at all. Lots of twists and shocking reveals.
4.5 stars.

An absolutely, blindingly good read. Honeymooners Sara and Will go to an exclusive, family run retreat for a week away from the world. More than Will could truly afford, but worth it when he sees Sara's face light up when she realises what the surprise honeymoon is. The family has had the estate for six generations. That's plenty of time for secrets. So remote that the secrets are good and buried and the dysfunctional family members gradually come into focus as events unfold. The story is as rotten as it gets; but don't get complacent before the end.

This was a great read but not my favourite by this author. It had great suspense and lots of twists and turns. It was horrifying and gritty but seemed to lack the connection I normally have to these characters. It was still a fantastic book but this author is normally 5 stars from me and this book gets a 4. I did not love the characters (aside from the mains we know and love) and there were quite a few main players to get to know.
I also found the plot to be relatively easy to see.
However this is still a 4 star must read. This author is a great writer and this is a great book. My review is solely based on comparing her her other books. Compared to many other reads out there this one is high rated

Brilliant read. I was expecting this to be a good read but this book was something else. This is a dark, complex, crime thriller but somehow it manages to get you to think and pull at your heart strings all at the same time. This is one
of the best ‘locked room’ mysteries I have read, it seriously keeps you hooked right until the end with everyone a very plausible suspect.

Will and Sara head off to a secluded mountain getaway for their honeymoon. The getaway is run by the McAlpine family, although Mercy McAlpine seems to do the majority of the work with no thanks at all.

After hearing screams whilst he and Sara were at the lake, Will soon stumbles across the body of Mercy. Earlier that evening, she had threatened to expose the secrets of all her family - so who wanted her dead? Will and Sara’s honeymoon didn’t last long!

It was so good to have Will and Sara back again. The author always writes a great story and it was lovely to have the whole team back together.

I did guess correctly on certain aspects of the book, but it didn’t take anything away from the story.

There were a lot of layers to work through with this story, and this included many twists as well. The ending was a huge shock and the author did well at keeping the evidence from being revealed too early.

My thanks to Harper Collins UK and NetGalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter (review, no spoilers) (releases 20th June UK)

"I'm not going to fail her this time"

Score 5 out of 5

It is hard to state how brilliant and devastating this book is. Karin Slaughter once again writes a deep story which includes some of the most depraved characters. I felt both excited to read this and thoroughly pained by what I was reading.

The story opens on Mercy McApline's death then for the first 30% of the book we learn what happened in the leadup to her murder. I was concerned the story was conventional until I realised what Slaughter was doing, she wasn't simply giving us context or background but was showing us a person who has been treated despicably. Instead of reading a whodunnit, we are reading a pursuit of justice, we don't simply want to know who commited the murder we want Mercy to finally enjoy some vindication.

This sets this story above many other murder mysteries. You aren't simply following a case to the conclusion, you get to desire the outcome. When we get to the conclusion it is both impactful and disturbing.

There are very few books that have made me feel visceral reactions to the characters but in this there are characters you come to despise. In particular there is one moment towards the end of the book that truly made me feel sick. This is not an uplifting read.

Finally, it needs to be said that Slaughter has yet again proven her prowess in this genre. Few people come close to her brilliance. The research she does is exceptional (there's an interesting discussion on body bags), her character development is some of the best I've read, and the story unfolds like a rancid flower. She deserves her place on the pedestal of thriller royalty. (She even manages an Easter egg to a Hulu show).

For murder mystery fans this is a must-read but it is extremely uncomfortable reading. There are discussions of rape, domestic violence, child abuse, and many other difficult areas.

If you haven't read Will Trent before this is fairly standalone with references to the character's history but little knowledge is expected of the reader. If you're intrigued jump right in.

I won’t lie this book was a hard read. The story stripped me of tears and I felt emotionally wrung out at the end. However, this book will stay with me for a long time. It’s a must read for anyone who wants to take the time to understand what a human being can deal with in the name of self preservation and unquestioning love for their child/children. A gut punching, heart warming and incredibly sad and brave tale of human endurance. Mercy!

This is the first book I have read by this author and didn't feel like I needed to have read the previous 11 books to know what was going on with these characters. This was in effect a locked room mystery albeit they are 'locked' in the wilderness. The backgrounds of some of the characters was quite sad but worked for the story. I will definitely look into the Will and Sara back catalogue.

Found this a really gripping book. Very easy to read and an absolute page turner. This was a perfect thriller

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins UK Fiction for the arc of This is why we lied by Karin Slaughter

5 stars⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: This is the next installment in the Will Trent series and Karin Slaughter has done it again! What an amazing gripping read! I devoured this book so fast within a day! It had me from page 1! Highly recommend! So gripping and had me on the edge of My seat wanting more! Karin doesn't fail to impress!!

So being me, I haven’t read all of the series but have read, I think, two of them, so have some vague recollection of the characters. I honestly don’t think it matters because the plot of the novel is stand alone and will leave any thriller fan feeling exhausted (because you’ve had to stay up all night to finish it) but satiated.

I’m not generally a big believer in trigger warnings because if you read thrillers you know that things will happen that are awful but there is genuinely a lot in this book that will turn stomachs. However, if you can accept that, this is an absolutely stonking read, with oodles of plot and brilliantly drawn characters that come off the page and make you feel that you know them.

Lots of more established writers create central characters who you come to know well and care about but few take the time to make you feel the same level of commitment to characters who aren’t going to re-appear. Slaughter really is a fantastic writer.

With thanks to NetGalley, Karin Slaughter and the publisher, Harper Collins, for an arc of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

You can quickly tell that the high quality novel that you expect from this writer, continues to ooze from the pages. Karin slaughter is full of excellent and dramatic writing and appears to invent very clever phrases consistently, Ones that you had wished you had created yourself. Individually, I enjoyed both the Will Trent and the Sarah Linton series of books and stories in the past. I did find it a bit strange or odd that the two of them had got together as a couple and this book starts with their honeymoon. I did find their relationship just a tad too perfect. As soon as I realised they were on their honeymoon I knew a murder and some forensic science was probably just a few pages away. Slaughter quickly provides at least a dozen potential candidates for the murderer, but equally, she also introduces several different reasons why the murder may have taken place. The read is not for the faint hearted as many parts of the story dig deep and if you were expecting a cosy mystery you are certainly in the wrong place. There are a variety of secrets which you will gradually learn as you turn the pages. Earlier you will have learned about some of the corruption and unlawful activities that involve the main family and the people they know. If you claim to name the murderer before they are actually revealed, then you have either been extremely lucky or bending the truth as it is impossible to separate certain characters and their motives for murder. If you thought that Slaughter’s writing was becoming in any way boring or straightforward, this novel takes you to the best of her work and I quickly look forward to the next.

Another great mystery with the brilliant Will Trent and Sarah Linton. They plan a honeymoon away on a remote mountain resort but nothing is as it seems and when a blast from the past encounters Will he’s left feeling something’s going to go wrong.
Catching up with the honeymooners as they wade through another difficult case which is personal this time,
Great read finished in one sitting.

I’ve been following Sara’s story ever since I picked up Blindsighted all those years ago, so I was thrilled to be offered the chance to ARC read This is why we lied.

If you’re familiar with Sara and Will, it won’t surprise you a jot to learn that they cannot even honeymoon without falling into a murder mystery. Though you don’t need to have read any of the preceding books to read this, as Karin cleverly writes to both old and new readers alike, without sacrificing the story. And, as ever, it’s a compelling story that keeps you engaged and guessing to the end.

Karin has long been one of my favourite authors, and she hasn’t lost any of that magic. And more so than a great whodunit, it’s also wonderful to see who Sara has become, from the early days to now. Thank you to NetGalley, Karin Slaughter and HarperCollins U.K. for sending me this ARC in return for an honest review.