I read Brianna Labuskes first book in this series (The Lies You Wrote) and thoroughly enjoyed it. Was very happy to receive a complimentary copy of her 2nd installment, The Truth You Told. I really enjoy her writing. It’s easy to dive into her books. She doesn’t add a lot of fluff or unnecessary drama in her crime books. She also clearly did a lot of (accurate) research into the world of forensic linguistics. I love her characters in this series. Flawed but likable (even that “bad people” are interesting).
Looking forward to her next installment in this series.

Loved the characters. Love the cover art. I feel like I was there. The imagery of the settings used were really vibrant to me. It felt visceral.

This was the second book in the authors Raisa Susanto series which focuses on a FBI linguist. While it can be read alone and makes complete sense. The first book should be read simply because it was great too! It also would give you deeper background to the characters. This books with its twists and turns was a fascinating read. Highly recommend this author and this series!

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the review copy of this book! When I read the synopsis, it sounded like my cup of tea and I was not wrong. I quickly learned that this was the second book in a series but funny enough, I had already downloaded the first book to listen to as an audiobook, so it worked out really well 😂😁

Gosh, I am such a sucker for a crime investigation involving the FBI and special forces and clever people. So this book was so right for me. I loved every minute of it. I just need to say that upfront. Generally, I enjoy listening to crime investigation stories, but with this one, I read it and absolutely loved every minute.

I enjoyed all the characters, good and bad, and as the investigation unfolded, I found myself so engrossed. I couldn't wait to read further and see what happens next. I particularly enjoyed Kilkenny's journey with finding out what happened to Shay and getting his answers after so many years. It was sad but it was great that he was finally getting answers.

The focus on serial killers was also very interesting and the psychologist who focused on children who were prone to become serial killers through various combinations of nature and nurture.

The linguistic element was my absolute favourite part! Deciphering codes and figuring out puzzles through written letters was such fun!

All in all, this was an incredible read for me. I would highly recommend reading book 1, called The Lies You Told and to then follow that up with this book. Especially if you enjoy crime and investigation.

This was a great thought provoking book that had a ton of twists and turns. I really liked the well-developed characters. I would recommend this book very highly. I can easily see this being turned into a movie.

Entertaining story, but a lot of different story lines that felt muddled at times. Overall entertaining and enjoyable, but could have been simplified to be better.

Conrad, a serial killer on death row challenges forensic linguist Raisa and forensic psychologist Callum to figure out who really murdered Shay.

I think in part my lack of understanding some parts of this stemmed from not knowing there was a book prior to this but that’s okay!
This took me a little while to get into. The amount of characters and connections introduced to you makes you really have to focus and reread/annotate certain parts to fully understand and keep track of what was happening.
The story line kept me significantly engaged despite the fact that throughout the book there were some predictable parts, where I was able to say “haha I knew it”, but every few chapters had me second guessing myself or changing my perspective.
In the end I was pleasantly surprised by the twist and feel like the author did a great job writing the book!

The premise of The Truth You Told is intriguing: a convicted serial killer drops a bombshell days before he is to be executed for his crimes. Did Nathaniel Conrad, known as the Alphabet Man for the tattooed codes he left on his victims’ bodies, kill Shay Kilkenny, or was it someone else?

Much of the book focuses on how psychologist Callum Kilkenny, husband of Shay, hunts down the truth behind his wife’s murder with the help of FBI forensic linguist Raisa Susanto. Chapters alternate between glimpses into Shay’s past, and her life before her murder, and present time, where the quest is on to determine the veracity of Conrad’s assertion that Shay was not one of his victims. The reader is drawn into the mystery and intrigue that builds to an ending that solves the mystery surrounding Shay’s death once and for all.

As a person with a background in psychology, I’m often drawn to books that encourage the reader to think more deeply about nature versus nurture, particularly when that debate surrounds an issue as complicated as violent behavior. Are serial killers born violent and murderous, or are they made that way through a complex interweaving of temperament and environment?

As much as I enjoyed the premise of this book, I ultimately found myself feeling conflicted as to whether the story was too complicated by the shifting focus on what motives lay behind each character’s involvement in the overarching narrative. The story is written in such a way that the reader can easily find themselves invested in solving the mystery right along with the characters. However, there were aspects of the story that seemed incongruous. For example, once we find out how Conrad met Shay, it’s tough to accept that he would’ve waited so long to reveal that she wasn’t one of his victims after all.

This was a story with a great deal of promise, but I’m not sure it completely delivered on that promise/premise. For me, there were changes I would’ve suggested in the editing process that might’ve made the story a bit more believable. This is less about the author’s writing than it is about the need for an editor and/or early reviewers to provide honest, thoughtful feedback about what elements of the story weren’t really all that important, and what elements might’ve needed to be fleshed out further. In other words, there’s something about this story that makes it feel like an idea that needed to be worked out more fully before reaching this stage of the publishing process. I’m interested in reading other work by this author to see if the “flaws” I saw here are ones that occur in other stories she’s written as well.

Finding an author who tells stories that you find interesting and intriguing is always an exciting prospect, but in the case of this particular book, I walked away feeling as though there was some potential here that wasn’t thoroughly fulfilled.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Forensic psychologist Callum Kilkenny lost his wife, Shay, to the very serial killer he’d hunted for five years. When Nathaniel Conrad―known as the Alphabet Man, for his love of tattooing codes onto his victims’ bodies―was condemned to death row, Callum thought the game of cat and mouse was over. But just before execution, Nathaniel drops a bombshell: he’s not the one who murdered Shay.

To be honest, I had very high hopes for this book, but it fell short. I feel like there was so much going on all at once. So much information was thrown at you with hardly no time to digest it before more information was thrown at you. I'm not saying it wasn't good, just not for me.

3/5

The time has almost arrived for serial killer, Nathaniel Conrad, to be executed. Not only is he responsible for taking numerous lives, but he also killed the wife (Shay) of a member (Callum Kilkenny) of the task force, who was desperately trying to identify the media named Alphabet Man. But this killer has one more claim to make. He swears he did not kill Shay leading Callum and linguist Raisa Susanto on a quest to discover the truth before it’s too late.
Told in the past by Shay, and in the present by Raisa, this was a twisty tale with so many potential suspects that my head was constantly spinning. I did not guess what really happened to Shay until almost the author reveal of whodunnit. Shay was honestly my favorite character and as I got to know her, it pained me to know that her fate was already sealed.
I just finished this book and I’m already wondering where the author will go next.The Truth You Told publishes in September, so there is plenty of time to read the first book, The Lies You Wrote. Such a great series.

WOW. It's not often that you find a sequel that is comparable to the first book. I'd argue this outdoes the first in this series. It had plenty of twists and turns and kept me guessing all the way throughout. It was a unique concept that I haven't read before. It read like an episode of Criminal Minds which I absolutely loved. Definitely recommend.

Forensic Linguist, Raisa Susanto is working with Forensic Psychologist Callum Kilkenny on a case where the serial killer, Nathaniel Conrad is condemned to death, but at the last minute denies that he murdered Callum's wife, Shay.

Raisa finds discrepancies in the letters written to the FBI after each murder, coming to the conclusion that there were two serial killers and not one.

This was an awfully convoluted book. There were so many characters and back stories to keep track of, and not having read the first book featuring Raisa, I was a little lost.
The writing is great, the story is great, but unfortunately I was floundering and lost interest, it didn't move fast enough until more than half way through.
There was a lot of detail and while this is good, I just could not concentrate on everything. I would never in a million years have guessed who the other killer was as there were so many characters to choose from who were suspicious.

This book I would recommend for those who would take notes throughout to keep track of the characters and suspects.

Thanks to Netgalley and Thomas and Mercer for the opportunity to read this book.

Story was told through two different POVs and timelines. It was a very busy story with lots of characters and a lot going on which made it difficult to follow at times. There was also too much back story that might have been better served on its own.

The writing was easy to read, however, the use of first and surnames was not consistent which made understanding which character was doing what, confusing.

Because there was so much going on, I failed to see the plot and the climax didn’t reach the heights it could have.

It all came together in the end but by then, I didn’t really care.

I would loved to have read more about the linguistic side of things, especially as the series is based upon this.

I have not read the first book in this series and from reading the reviews, the first one was better so based on this, I give this book 2.5 ⭐️rounded to 3. I’ll read the first book.

I received an advanced readers copy from Netgalley. Thank you.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

Labuskes has done quality research in forensics, as she developed this story, and this author has crafted a realistic, enjoyable and well-written novel.

This story is engaging with excellent character development and believable characters. This novel deals with themes including loss, revenge, justice and human frailty as it cumulates into a blockbuster of a police procedural.

I've read other books by Briana Lauskes and thought they were fair. This series, however, has captured my attention because of the main character who is a forensic linguist, something I find fascinating. As readers, we love words, right? That's what Raisa Susanto examines. The words of letters left for cops, ransom notes, confessions, diaries of those who have been taken and more. She also can break most codes - very cool! So, while you have the usual FBI stuff running in the background, something I've grown tired of, she is busily analyzing all of these words, writings, codes, enigmas and keeping the story incredibly intriguing.

If you haven't read the first in the series then you really should start there. There are too many references about her past that will leave you wondering if you don't understand what has happened. Stating that, I highly recommend both of these books.

This book omg I have no words. I never knew who was the Alphabet killer and I always thought it was the brother. I couldn’t put the book down. Loved the storyline of the book, loved the characters in it. Even though I said I loved everything in the book I didn’t like how slow in the beginning of the book that why I’m giving 4 stars.

The Truth You Told.
By Brianna Labuskes.

The Synopsis:

"Forensic psychologist Callum Kilkenny lost his wife, Shay, to the very serial killer he’d hunted for five years. When Nathaniel Conrad—known as the Alphabet Man, for his love of tattooing codes onto his victims’ bodies—was condemned to death row, Callum thought the game of cat and mouse was over. But just before execution, Nathaniel drops a bombshell: he’s not the one who murdered Shay.

After analyzing the killer’s taunting, coded letters to authorities—one for each victim—FBI forensic linguist Raisa Susanto believes him. The discrepancies bear it out. So was it a copycat? A partner in crime? Or something more sinister? If Nathaniel knows the answer, Raisa fears he’ll be taking that closely guarded secret to his grave."

The Review:

First off, a huge thank you to @netgalley for giving me an advanced reader's copy of the book, set to be published 09/10/24. It was a thrill to read a book before so much of the world!

This book was a REALLY slow burn for the first half. It hasn't taken me a week to read a book in a long time - I'm a fast reader. But something about the way this story was written, with two different narrating characters and two different points in time alternating in each chapter, gave me a lot to piece together. Some people will say they weren't aware this was a second book in a series and wished they'd have known before reading this one. There were only a couple times where I wished I had the backstory of the first book, but it didn't really matter. I'll definitely be going back to read the first one now!

Once I got just over halfway into the book, BOOM. There was the page-turning thriller I had been hoping for! I couldn't read it fast enough! I stayed up way too late last night and woke up way too early this morning because I had to know how it ended. The brilliant writing and the way the story was told by both characters left me guessing until the very end about how this one would turn out! A really enjoyable read!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

(I would have given it 5 stars if it were not such a slow burn at the start)

**Reviewed on Instagram @juliereads_alot and on Goodreads!**

I love a good "everyone has a secret" and "families are complicated" story!

I must admit, my mistake was reading this book first out of the series, so the initial pages didn't make much sense to me: I didn't know the characters and didn't care much for them.
However, as I got further into the pages and established the relations and timelines, I knew it was something good.

First of all, kudos to the author – I couldn't pinpoint the culprit until the formal investigation reached its climax. Secondly, I liked the relationships between the characters, the time jumps, and the change of POV. The story did feel a bit too tangled at times with the amount of details, connections, and coincidences, but all in all, it was good.

And the ending, the very last page - very satisfying.

This is a highly enjoyable read and actually quite clever with the plot twists.
It's a fast paced book that doesn't get too bogged down in anything and always brings you back to the narrative.
The plot twists I thought were clever, as was the use of forensic linguistics and it makes a nice change for an author to actually go into a bit of detail and it's obvious that she's done her research.
I also love the strong female lead who has her faults and isn't little miss perfect.
Can't wait for the next one

The Truth You Told picks up right after the first book in the series, even overlapping with the end of the first. Raisa Susanto is a forensic linguist who uses her skills to help the FBI catch killers.

This book was not as suspenseful as the first and I honestly knew who did it the first time the character was introduced, just because it felt like they stuck out like a sore thumb. That said, I didn't find the unraveling of the crimes as suspenseful or interesting as the first book, mainly because I honestly couldn't understand the WHY of it.

Also, in my mind, the main male character is Agent Hotchner from Criminal Minds. They have a similar kind of story, job and personality. Which isn't a terrible thing, but it was funny to realize.