▪️𝘵𝘰𝘹𝘪𝘤 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱𝘴
▪️𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘵
▪️𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦
▪️𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴

looking for a binge? here you go! i love a toxic thriller mixed with old friendships, a daughter looking for answers, and a decades old car accident that never sat right with a community. it’s manipulative, filled with drama, and characters you love to hate. it was a bit predictable for me, but overall i enjoyed it.

“Is it better to believe a lovely lie or know the horrible truth?”

Scarlett and her best friend, Pepper, are excited to be finally graduating from high school as class of 1999. On the night of their senior picnic, an accident leaves two of their classmates dead. After losing touch with Pepper shortly afterwards, Scarlett does her best to go on with her life, despite having some secrets about that night. Now in present day, someone shows up in Scarlett's life and threatens to drag up everything from the past.

This book! I absolutely loved it! I’ve been in a bit of a reading slump the last few weeks and I’m so glad to have picked up this book to shake me out of it. Jaime’s writing is just so good- entertaining and has a perfect flow that keeps me engaged throughout her books, with A Lovely Lie no exception. I will read anything that this woman writes! I only have one book left on her back log left to read, and I'm torn between rushing to read it next and saving it for the future to savor. One of the specific things I love about Jaime's writing is how realistic and natural she writes her dialogue. It never feels forced or awkward.

I think the synopsis gives away a little too much of the book, so I personally would recommend going in blind to this one. Told from multiple POVs in duel timelines (now and 1999), I enjoyed the nostalgic additions thrown into the story. This book incorporates some multimedia in the form of police interviews throughout the story, which I loved! Very easy to follow along, right from the first pages, I was hooked on this fast paced thriller that kept me turning the pages. Unlikeable characters with long/hidden secrets? Sign me up! There were so many good twists in this book, and when I finished it, my jaw was on the floor. I didn't anticipate the ending, but was (mostly) satisfied with it (one sad part to the ending that I didn't expect and had an emotional reaction to). I thought that I had the twists figured out ahead of time, but I was really wrong. Jaime Lynn Hendricks shocked me, yet again!

This book is exactly what I needed! After a few intense and emotional reads, I needed some Jaime Lynn Hendricks in my life. Her books are so reliable for me with their quick pacing and feisty characters.

I liked the structure of A Lovely Lie. It was nice to settle in and learn about all of the players in the first two parts before the whiplash began! There was a great balance of good and nasty characters. In classic Jaime Lynn Hendricks style, the whole thing was filled with drama, twists, and sass! The alternating timelines, multiple perspectives, and constant reveals kept that “just one more chapter” feeling going until the end.

This book is so wickedly fun! I’d say it’s my favorite book of hers yet! I can’t wait for my gorgeous hardcover to arrive in May. @jaimelynnhendricksauthor

Thank you to Penzler Publishers @penzlerpub, Scarlet @scarletsuspense, and NetGalley @netgalley for the free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: I really liked it! (4.5)

This was a fast (yet kind of predictable) read for me. I still enjoyed it and will be reading more by this author! It had all the drama that I've been wanting to read lately with just about every character being unlikable. I loved the flashbacks to the 1990s (myself being a 90s baby, lol). Thank you to Netgalley, author, and publisher for this ARC!

The author is the epitome of thrillers that has devious twist, riddled with secrets an intensity that leaves you questioning everyone in the story. Absolutely loved.

Scarlett Russo and her best friend, Pepper, were in a car accident the night of their senior picnic. Two of their classmates died, and they lied to the police about what happened. Days later, Pepper moved away, never to be heard from again. Twenty-two years later, Scarlett had moved on from that night as best as she could. Until Pepper's daughter, Zoey, shows up telling Scarlett that Pepper has died. Zoey also has a letter addressed to Scarlett written by Pepper with cryptic mentions of the accident from senior night and how Pepper had wanted an abortion. Now Zoey is looking for answers about her mom's past. She wants to find out who her father is and what really happened the night of the picnic. Scarlett doesn't want Zoey to find answers to that night. She's afraid that if that happens, her life will be upended.

Oh my goodness! This book! This one is one heck of a ride! I promise you that you want to grab this one as soon as it releases. It's packed full of drama, secrets, suspense, lies, manipulation, and unlikable characters. My head was spinning the whole time I was reading this. This was such a fast-paced book, and there was never a dull moment. Originally, I thought I was going to hate this book because I did not like the main characters, but as the story progressed, my opinion changed. I don't want to give anything away, but if you enjoy psychological thrillers, don't miss out on this one.

Jaime Lynn Hendricks is the definitive queen of the twisty novel! One surprise leads to another and the shock waves keep you turning the pages through to the satisfying conclusion. A Lovely Lie is an expertly executed thriller slowly unravelling secrets dating back a couple of decades.

It all starts with a young woman who wants to know who her father is. When Pepper Wilson refuses to tell her daughter the truth, Zoey visits her mother’s hometown hoping to find clues as to his identity, going against her mom’s wishes to forget the past. Her desire to know her roots opens up a can of worms that exposes lies and destroys the lives of those who were closest to Pepper. As Zoey looks into her mom’s past, she learns of a tragic accident at the end of Pepper’s senior high school year, instigating a re-opening of the investigation into the deaths of Pepper’s classmates.

Told from several points of view, the suspense builds as each character reveals what they were doing the night of the accident. Their memory of events is muddled by alcohol and not one of them knows the entire truth. Hendrick’s use of a first-person limited narrative and dual timeline allows the reader to piece together the truth as the characters themselves solve the puzzle of what really happened that fateful night. Interspersed with transcripts of police interviews from back then, the story intertwines the past and the present.

This is the second book I have read by this author and it won’t be the last. Hendricks has a knack for building a story by providing tidbits about her characters along the way and then blowing them out of the water with a final revelation no one sees coming.

What a crazy ride this one was!!

At their Senior Picnic in 1999, Scarlett and Pepper were a part of something they swore to keep secret between themselves. After that night, Pepper disappeared and Scarlett never heard from her again.

Then, 22 years later, a woman claiming to be Pepper's daughter appears at Scarlett's job and tells her her mom has died, and she has answers about what happened that night in 1999.

As Pepper's daughter Zoey pulls at the strings of the 1999 Senior Picnic, decades old secrets are revealed.

This is a salacious dual-timelined thriller from Jaime Lynn Hendricks that her fans will devour!

Short and sweet.

This one started out great, and I was immediately drawn in. As the story went on, however, it lost me with its cast of immensely unlikeable characters. I just didn’t connect overly well with the characters or the story.

I did enjoy the book and glad I read it, but I’m sorry to say I just didn’t love it.

That said, I’ve seen so many glowing reviews for this one. So give it a try for yourself.

My thanks to @penzlerpub and @netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book before its publication date.

Wow, what a fantastic book! I loved this thriller read and it absolutely helped me overcome a huge reading slump I was stuck in. This author is absolutely now on my radar and I can’t wait for their future work and to check out their previous books! This book was so fun, twisty, and kept me on my toes the whole time.

Scarlett’s whole life was flipped upside down in 1999. She and her best friend Pepper were involved in a tragic card accident. Her class just graduated and two of those classmates are now dead. Scarlett and Pepper lie to the police to cover their tracks and keep themselves safe. They swore they would never tell anyone what happened that night. Pepper left for NYC and never spoke to Scarlett again. Now, 22 years later, Scarlett’s life is flipped upside down AGAIN. She has moved on from what happened, and is now focused on her teenage son and her marriage to her husband Vince. But now her past is threatening to come back up to haunt her. Pepper’s daughter Zoey, shows up at the hotel Scarlett works at. She has questions and she wants answers to what really happened in 1999. Also, who really is Scarlett’s father? Will Scarlett be able to keep her past behind her? Or will all of the past secrets come back to destroy the comfortable life she has built?

What I enjoyed:
- I was instantly hooked into this book. The first chapter had me sucked in and I could not put this one down. I stayed up till 3 am just to finish this read! The pacing was excellent, and the writing style had me hooked
- Multiple POVs, and timelines. We also get glimpses of the police investigation in the form of police interviews.
- We are also along for the ride trying to figure out what actually happened! This was one twisty thrill of a book. I was shocked at a few of the twist that I didn’t see coming
- The ending was satisfying!

This was a really great thriller book and I think it is perfect for any thriller fan! The pacing will keep you wanting to finish this book as fast possible. You will also be second guessing EVERYTHING that is going on. I also loved a couple of the characters and I was very satisfied with how the book wrapped up. 4 stars out of 5! Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thanks to NetGalley & Scarlet for the ARC of A lovely lie! This was a wild ride of suspense and domestic thrills at its finest. Super quick read! 📚 This fast paced read will be released on May 28th.

This is the perfect book to pick up when you want a twisty story full of characters behaving badly. Pepper is just so entertainingly awful that I couldn’t wait to learn what diabolical secrets she was hiding! The pacing was quick from start to finish, making this easily able to be read in just a few sittings. Add this one to your TBR pronto!

This was a very predictable read. The big twists which I’m sure were meant to make me gasp instead had me saying “oh. Okay, saw that coming.”

I’m not sure there were any likable characters here, which you don’t always have to have. But it can be difficult to enjoy the read itself when you don’t enjoy any of the characters.

For starters, Scarlett. I lost count of the times she referred to her son as “my boy.” Which is all fine and good, but excessive. She also can’t seem to mention or interact with her husband without harping on his past mistakes. Now I’m not saying she’s wrong, he’s definitely a scum bag, but again it’s repetitive.

Zoey was really forgettable to me. I had a hard time even remembering her name to write this review. Her character felt very minor, when she was really central to unraveling the story.

The flashbacks we get at the end of each chapter were a bit boring to me. I don’t think they added much to the already pretty simple story. Overall, I would read this authors work again but I don’t think this is a book I’d add to my list of recommendations.

Can I just say, no one picks thrillers like Thriller Book Lovers Promotions 🤩 I have had an amazing run of 5 star reads lately, and this here is the latest one.

I read this in two sittings - it is the epitome of a bingeworthy thriller!!!

Drama off the Richter scale, secrets galore, and such brilliant characters (some likeable, some not… but all brilliant!!) this book had me HOOKED!! At first Zoey annoyed me, but by the end she was a firm favourite of mine. Vince… not so much…😒 I relish a thriller than can make me loathe a character!

I loved how the flashbacks to the interviews in the 90s interspersed throughout - it broke up the story nicely without impacting the flow.

A bingeworthy thriller!!

This book was GOOD!!!

An accident after a senior graduation party in 1999… and two girls (Pepper & Scarlett) who walked away carrying secrets. After the party, the best friends stopped all communication.
Until now, when a young girl comes and finds Scarlett, and tells her she is the daughter of Pepper, and seeking answers as to who is her father & what happened the night of that party?

When I tell you, the twists and turns just kept coming! I absolutely devoured this story!!!
Short chapters
Multiple POV
Very fast paced
Flashbacks to police transcripts and events during/after the party in 1999

Do yourself a favor and add this book to your TBR!!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers for my advanced copy!

A car accident the night of their senior picnic changes best friends Scarlett and Pepper forget. The lie about the accident to protect each other. Now twenty two years later, it’s been buried but Pepper’s daughter shows up to investigate what really happened.

This was a really good suspenseful read! Boy, did I really hate Pepper; she was a horrible person and made me hate read the parts with her. She gets even worse as it goes by. There were also some really great characters, so it evens out. I loved how the entire story really leads you on; dropping more information here and there about the past. The past time period was also great. The past event took place at a senior picnic in 1999- the same year that I graduated high school!

“Our new truth: the lovely lie.”

A Lovely Lie comes out 5/28.

I enjoyed this book so much!  It was such a page turner, and I really wish I had started it on a day when I wasn't so busy.  I really didn't want to put it down!  Jaime Lynn Hendricks has been added to my autobuy list.

In 1999, Scarlett and her best friend Pepper were involved in a car accident after their senior picnic.  Two of their classmates were killed, and they decided they needed to lie to protect themselves and their futures.  Shortly after the accident, Pepper leaves town, and Scarlett doesn't hear from her again.  Fast forward 22 years, Scarlett is married to Vince and raising her teenage son living a comfortable life.  But when Zoey, Pepper’s daughter, shows up out of the blue, her life is turned upside down.  Zoey brings news of Pepper’s death and a letter she found addressed to Scarlett.  Zoey plans on finding out who her father is and about her mother’s past.  What "accident" was she involved in that made her keep Zoey?  What other secrets was her mom hiding from her?

Told in multiple POVs and dual timelines, this fast-paced thriller will have you guessing until the very end.  There were so many secrets and lies that you just didn't know who to believe.  It had so many twists and so much drama!  This book was so incredibly entertaining!  I absolutely loved it and would HIGHLY recomm

𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐫: This book may cause loss of interest in all other activities in your life! It definitely may lead to sleep deprivation! And be prepared for a book hangover!

This book demanded to be inhaled, and inhale it I did! My plan was to read it over period of 3 days with a group of lovely book lovers: @tifflovesthrillers @thrillerschillersandkillers @lil.bit_reads & @rebby.reads . I usually enjoy having a reading schedule and pacing myself. Well A Lovely Lie was not having it! Just one more chapter led to me reading it in less than 24 hours!

This book had plenty of drama, secrets and unlikable characters! To be fair, good people who make good life choices don’t make for entertaining reading. And this book not just entertained me but it took me completely out of my day to day reality, making me forget everything except my need to read!

The mind of Jaime Lynn Hendricks must be a wonderous place. I Didn’t Do It was one of my favorite reads of 2023 and one of my favorite books in general and now A Lovely Lie did it again - gave me that magical feeling of joy inspired by despicable people doing despicable things in the funnest way possible!

I am so immensely grateful to @thrillerbookloverspromotions for making this exclusive tour possible! And a shout out to @jaimelynn and @scarlet for giving us early access to such a wonderful read! Jaime as long as you continue writing them, I’ll continue reading them, that’s for sure!

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

Thank you to NetGalley and Penzler/Scarlet for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this book.

Huh. I'm not sure if I even liked this one. And yet I read almost all of it in one sitting. It's a very fast read with short chapters but zero suspense. I found myself rolling my eyes A LOT. Even though the characters are adults, it read more like a young adult novel. Granted, half the book takes place during a senior year in high school. But none of them have grown up. The characters were very unlikeable and you can figure out the "mystery" (if you can even call it that) pretty early on. Still, I'm giving this 3 stars because it wasn't awful. Just disappointing.