I cannot begin to example how perfect of a thriller this is. I instantly wanted to reread it once I finished it. It’s a perfect choice for a buddy read or a book club pick. There are so many talking points

This was a fast read which was both fun and tension filled. Although I didn't like most of the characters the mystery kept me intriqued and flipping pages furiously. It is told in two timelines and several povs with police interviews from 1999 woven throughout. The twists were unpredictable and the ending satisfying. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for my ARC!

Definitely kept me turning the page. I really enjoyed it, and the breadcrumbs were fun to follow. I hadn't read anything by this author before and was pleasantly surprised! I'll be checking out her other works

I loved this!! I couldn’t put it down and ignored all my responsibilities to finish it. Highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A deliciously fun and quick read!
I love books with dueling timelines, and multiple POV's, and this book does not disappoint. Set in 1999 and present-day, A Lovely Lie tells the twisty story of best-friends, Pepper & Scarlett, and what happened the night of the Senior Picnic when 2 teens were killed in what looked like a terrible accident. That night had consequences that were still reverberating 22 years later. You think you know the truth, but you have no idea.
If you're a fan of Jaime Lynn Hendricks' "I Didn't Do It", you're going to love this book.
Thank you to NetGalley & Penzler Publishers, Scarlet for advanced readers copy of this ebook. Look for this wherever you get books on May 28, 2024!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this ARC to review.

Twenty-two years ago, two fresh high school graduates were killed in a car accident. Everyone thinks they know what happened, but only Scarlett and her best friend Pepper know the horrifying truth. Since she and Pepper lost touch, Scarlett thinks that part of her life can remain in the past – until Pepper’s daughter Zoey shows up at her place of work asking questions that threaten to expose what really happened that night.

Told from the viewpoints of Scarlett, Zoey, and Pepper, this is a gossipy, fun read perfect for a beach vacation. Even though there are flashbacks in the book, nothing feels unnecessary to the plot, and there are plenty of twists and turns to keep it interesting (albeit not always believable). Additionally, none of the characters serve as reliable narrators, so it is almost hard to know who to root for (although Zoey and her sleuthing ways comes the closest to being the hero of the story); that being said, it is an entertaining enough read where the likability of the characters is not essential.

This is a great pick for thriller lovers who like stories told from multiple points of view (and times) and a healthy dose of narcissistic characters. It is a little over the top in parts (of course Pepper is a failed soap actress), but is ultimately fun and light, making for an enjoyable read to pass the time.

Thank you NetGalley, Scarlet, and Jaime Lynn Hendricks for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Pretty convinced Jaime can only write 5-star books at this point. Everything she touches is gold!

The pacing in her latest thriller is top tier, I would’ve finished it in one sitting if I’d been able to.

Not only was the big twist excellent, there were several smaller twists along the way that I didn’t see coming at all. (Particularly the one at the end of Part 2)

I will continue to worship the ground Jaime walks on, pre-order this one today! Pub date: May 28

A Lovely Lie, a thriller novel by Jaime Lynn Hendricks-
My rating is a GENEROUS 2 stars.

This is the only novel that I’ve ever read by this author. This was marketed as an “intricately twisted thriller,” though I didn’t find that to be true. Twisted? Yes. Intricate? Not necessarily. Thriller? Hardly.

When I think of a thriller novel, I imagine that it should be a gripping, page-turning experience that gets my heart rate pumping while I try to figure out the plot. This book elicited none of those feelings from me. There were a lot of “moving parts” to this plot and it resulted in a slowly paced story that was severely disappointing.

There is a large cast of characters and it’s difficult to pinpoint which characters to focus on. The primary characters are Scarlett and Zoey. Zoey shows up at Scarlett’s place of employment one day, stating she’s the daughter of Pepper, Zoey’s high school best friend whom she lost contact with right after graduation. (22 years ago.) Zoey informs Scarlett that her mother recently passed away and she had found a letter addressed to Scarlett in Pepper’s belongings. The letter references an accident that happened just before their graduation. Zoey has several questions for Scarlett, who is panicked at the mention of the accident all those years ago…a night she’s been trying to forget for the last 22 years.

This book was all over the place. The characters are memorable but only because they were all insufferable, with the exception of Luke. He rallies at the end and literally saves the day for his mom, Scarlett. The timeline jumps back and forth from present day to 22 years ago, with a mishmash of unbelievable events. There was zero suspense and a few attempts at plot twists that were so predictable, they failed.

I’m salty. This novel was a waste of time and I should have DNF’d it.

I received an advance reader copy and am leaving my review voluntarily.

Fast paced and entertaining!

Scarlett doesn’t think about that night in 1999 after the senior picnic. She can’t afford to. For all anyone knows, there was an accident and she and her then best friend Pepper had nothing to do with it. Now, Scarlett is hanging on to her marriage by a thread and hasn’t spoken to Pepper since that night. When Pepper’s daughter, Zoey, comes waltzing into the hotel where Scarlett works with news of Pepper’s untimely death, Scarlett’s whole life may be at risk. Pepper wants to know who her dad is and she also wants more information about an accident her mother talked about in a letter. Scarlett has the answers, but she’ll never tell a soul. Too bad Zoey is training to be an investigative reporter.

This was such a good story! It had a great premise and a lot of layers. Too bad I couldn’t get in to the writing or actual execution of it. However, it was fast paced and entertaining, even if predictable. There were some twists in there, but sadly I saw them all coming.

I hated the characters for the most part. Each were unlikeable to the point of I didn’t care what happened to them at all. The only one I really liked was Scarlett’s son, Luke. I didn’t mind Zoey as much toward the end, but she had her quirks too.

I was so excited to read this and it was good, but it had so much mor potential. I think there will be a whole bunch of people who love this, however it was just to telling and matter of fact for me.

This one was... Okay? I don't want to judge the author too much for this but the format of this digital ARC was hard to read. Otherwise, I didn't gel with these characters at all and I felt the story dragged on and on for an ending that was clear at about 50%. Wasn't the worst thriller but this is the 3rd straight 3 star read by the author for me.

Scarlett and Pepper were the best of friends all throughout high school until tragedy strikes the night of their senior picnic. Now two people are dead, and these two friends vow to share a lovely lie all the way to their graves. 22 years later, Pepper’s daughter Zoey shows up in their Florida hometown wanting answers as to who her father is and what really happened that night over two decades ago.

This is my first Jaime Lynn Hendricks novel, but I’d heard good things about her previous ones so I was intrigued. The book starts out extremely slow. The first 1/3 is almost so unbearably slow that I genuinely considered DNFing, but I pushed through and around 50% the story picked up steam and caught my attention. One of the hardest parts of the slow burn with this novel is an extreme use of over descriptive text. I understand wanting to use vivid imagery for the reader so they can really get a sense of the setting, thing, etc but when it’s overly descriptive again & again, it’s a bore to read. I really didn’t need two sentences to describe how pink something was. The repetition and drawn out “fluff” had me wanting to skim pages and really put a strain on the enjoyment level of the book.

While it did pick up in the second half, there were no real unpredictable twists that made this novel worthy of the thriller genre. Was it a decent story? Sure. You could see the ending coming a mile away. Also, the characters were all extremely unlikeable. 🥴 On the plus side, it’s a fast & easy read.

Because I did enjoy the second half of the book, although definitely not a thriller…. 3.5 ⭐️ rounded down

Thank you to NetGalley & Penzler Publishers for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

This was a real page turner that some would deem a "popcorn thriller," and for me, I love these types of books. It was a highly entertaining read that I flew through and completely lost myself in. The characters were either a love or hate type, with the hate being high up there and the secrets piling up as the story progresses. The only thing that the reader would kind of have to suspend disbelief for is the police procedure/competence. I won't say more than that because I don't like leaving any spoilers of any kind. This was the perfect read for me right when I needed a breath of fresh air and not having to think too hard. Four stars.

Thank you Netgalley and Penzler Publishers for this ARC.

I freaking loved this book! So much drama and so many lies. I really never knew what to believe. Jaw dropping twists all the way through. Fantastic book!

Secrets, lies, twists and turns. Loved this page turner. I even learned to love a couple of the main characters that were hard to like. A 4.5 star read!

A decent 3 star read. A few twists were surprising to me, and while I hated all the characters in the beginning, some did grow on me by the end. This author is hit or miss for me but this is one of her better ones, and it was a quick read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I requested to read "A Lovely Lie" as I was in the mood for a good thriller and I have heard wonderful things about Jaime Lynn Hendricks.

Scarlett and Zoey were two best friends, but an accident that caused two deaths led to lies being told, secrets being sheltered, and Pepper disappearing. Two decades later, Scarlett is married with a teenager when she is contacted by Pepper, Zoey's daughter. Pepper has died and Zoey has questions about her mom and those skeletons that have been rattling around Pepper's (and Scarlett's) closet.

The story of adult females facing the past that they tried to hide is nothing new but Hendricks handles it in a fresh and intriguing way. There are more twists and turns than the reader can keep track up but if you like a good roller coaster, you're going to love this novel.

I plan to go back and read Hendrick's earlier work. Four out of five stars for this heart-stopping read.

My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for this nail-biter.

Sometimes the past should stay buried….
High school seniors have the worst night of their lives, that comes back to haunt them 20 years later..
it’s a well-worn rope, but Ms Hendricks makes it fresh with some extra twists and secrets.

Jaime Lynn Hendricks is the Queen of Twists and has not let us down with A Lovely Lie. From page 1 I was engulfed in this book and could not put it down for the life of me. Luckily I received this book during a snowy weekend and had an excuse to not move from my couch.

In 1999, the day after graduation, at the senior picnic two classmates end up dead after a car accident in which Scarlett and her best friend Pepper are in. They lie to the police about what caused the accident to protect each other from any consequence, then swear never to talk of that night again. Then Pepper leaves town, never to contact Scarlett again.

Twenty Two years later, Zoey arrives at Scarlett's workplace proclaiming she is Pepper's daughter and Pepper has passed away. After Pepper passed, Zoey finds a letter to Scarlett that was never mailed alluding to the accident. Zoey, studying to be an investigative journalist, will stop at nothing until she learns what occurred that fateful night, upturning several lives in the process.

The book is told from various points of view and interspersed with dialog from the police interviews the day after the accident. This non-linear story line will have to on the edge of your seat thinking you know what will happen next - but with each turn of the page another twist presents itself.

Jaime has outdone herself with this one.

Thank you NetGalley and Penzler Publishers, Scarlet for the copy of A Lovely Lie by Jaime Lynn Hendricks. This was a really great story! It’s a shame the writing didn’t keep me engaged and the characters weren’t interesting enough to care about. If you love a good story with some amazing reveals you might love this book, but I think it wasn’t really for me.

Another great read by Hendricks!! I loved I Didn’t Do It and this was just as good! From the unreliable narrators, to the multiple POVs and suspenseful nature throughout the entire book, I was hooked from chapter one! What I love most about Hendricks’ writing style, is the way she just jumps right into the storyline and keeps the reader guessing after each plot twist. The ending was amazing and I loved how everybody was lying, including some of the protagonists!

Thank you NetGalley and Jaime Lynn Hendricks for an advanced copy.