This was a good one! Two teens died back in high school after graduation and a night of drinking. Present day, the other kids now grown, have some secrets and lies that they are trying to protect.

I enjoyed the past and present timelines, as well as the detective interviews after the accident. It is divided into parts—different characters points of view. The characters were really pretty unlikeable but that never bothers me in a book. You won’t want to put down this easy read when it is available MAY 28! It is twisty and the characters definitely behave badly! It was a fun ride, this author always knows how to capture your attention and hold it!

OBSESSED!!! Thank you NetGalley and Penzler Publishers, Scarlet for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a sinfully delightful, irresistibly addictive, meticulously plotted, emotionally absorbing, thoroughly beguiling, and utterly binge-worthy mystery thriller that refuses to release its grip!! "A Lovely Lie" immerses readers in a labyrinth of deadly secrets, lies, betrayals, and murder all while maintaining an intense and cleverly plotted narrative. With its swift pace, the story delivers jarring twists and turns that keeps readers guessing until the very end. The spellbinding suspense and moments that will make you gasp out loud, is complemented by richly developed characters. All culminating in a flawless ending!! This is my first read by Jaime Lynn Hendricks and it exceeded my expectations, leaving me eagerly anticipating more of her work. I deeply enjoyed immersing myself in this fascinating book, and it has solidified its position on my list of top thrillers for 2024!! 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

Is it better to believe a lovely lie or know the horrible truth? In 1999, Scarlett Russo and her friend Pepper were involved in a fatal car accident, leading to a web of lies to protect each other. Now, over two decades later, Scarlett's tranquil life is disrupted by Pepper's daughter, Zoey, seeking answers about her mother's past. As Zoey investigates, Scarlett's buried secrets risk resurfacing, forcing her to confront the truth she's long avoided!!

If you crave a compelling and unputdownable mystery thriller brimming with intense emotions that will captivate you from start to finish, then this book is an absolute must read! I wholeheartedly recommend it and firmly believe it deserves all the stars!!! 💫💫💫💫💫

Could you keep a secret for 20+

Scarlett has kept a secret about her friend Pepper for 20 years. Now a stranger shows up and might unravel everything.

This was a good faced thriller. It wasn’t anything too deep but it kept my attention the whole time. Some parts did feel a little predictable but it didn’t bother me.

It had a good ending tying the whole book up neatly. I don’t think there was any mind blowing twist but still a good book.

Genre: Thriller
APK: Ebook
Pages: 305
Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️
Series or Standalone: Stand-alone

Thank you Penzler Publishing for sending me a free copy for an honest review

I really enjoyed this one! The characters were awesome. The plot moved at a great pace and there were so many twists and turns that left you reeling.
Fast paced and dark! This had an amazing atmosphere and vibe start to finish. Emotions about each character change throughout as they are complex and layered.
This read kept me up way too late and I was sad at the end when I had to say goodbye to characters I was invested in. That’s a sign of a great read!

I absolutely devoured this book. I loved the POV & that the villains kept changing throughout the book. This book had the best ending & the plot twists throughout had me questioning so many of my initial thoughts. I loved it. Look forward to reading more by Jaime!

▪️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!