quite a good story but a bit heavy compared to what I usually like to read, the characters were well described and the female MC was good, I would probably read another from this author as I thought she wrote really well, just maybe with a lighter storyline!

Tense, Compelling..
A fractured marriage, a catalogue of lies and secrets, an investigation and a series of brutal crimes combine in this tension fuelled, propulsive suspense. The exclusive neighbourhood of Mirror Lakes becomes a crime scene following a grotesque killing with several more following in swift succession, the Velkys are called in to investigate. Nothing is quite as it seems. Tense, engaging and compelling with a swiftly moving plot populated with a credible and well crafted cast.

Rowan Velky, finds herself paired with the town heartthrob, Kellan, as her new trainee. However, their partnership takes a dark turn when three women are gruesomely murdered, their bodies mutilated, hinting at the presence of a serial killer haunting their small community.

Rowan is in a loveless marriage, she and her husband never talk. But they have been together for so long, its hard to imagine life without him.
I mean just read this:

My husband is lying. The minute he came home with alcohol on his breath and unable to look me in the eyes I knew it.

We used to be in love – the intense ‘I can’t be without you for a second’ kind. Where it hurts deep to be apart.

But now, we’re the couple that keep secrets from each other.

We hide the truth.

He thought I wouldn’t find out. I’m a detective – it’s literally my job to uncover clues and solve mysteries. I know what he did.

And now I’m sitting here, in a police interview, being asked the question ‘did you kill her?’ to which I utter one life-shattering ‘yes.’

So you want to read it now right????

I absolutely adored this book. I raced through it - it was an addictive and compelling read. I very highly recommend this one to anybody who wants to lose themselves in a story. Just wonderful.

This book was definitely a page turner! A Marriage of Lies is an intense thriller that will keep you entertained all the way through. I enjoyed how this story unfolded and loved the ending. The only thing keeping me from giving this 5 stars was that I would have liked more. Some of it felt very surface level, and I would have liked a deeper dive into the characters and their motivations.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Quite a short book, it felt a little fragmented at first as chapters are narrated by different people who do not appear to be connected. However as the connections start to become apparent, the plot hooked me in. I liked the (flawed) characters, though there are triggers for child abuse .
The book is set in the US so some stuff was foreign to me (therapy, the health system, FBI) . The crimes ok, though the way it is solved leaves me scratching my head a little. The chapters are short and make for quick reading.
All in all a good read, thanks to Net Galley for the ARC

I flew through this book! My first book by Amanda McKinney and definitely will not be my last! A thriller that sucks you in on the first page and I could not put down. While the ending was a little predictable, there were still plenty of twists and turns throughout the end. Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

Detective Rowan Velky is investigating a brutal murder in Blackbird Cove, TX while training her new partner, and object of her crush, Kellan Palmer. Soon one brutal murder turns into three and police fear a serial killer with a strong message to convey.

In the meantime, therapist Amber Bailey, is struggling with her marriage to her husband Mark, her son Connor, and her therapy practice.

Soon the two women's lives intertwine and a well-written thriller is underway.

Positives:
Different points of view where you are trying to figure out how they will all come together
Fast paced, compulsive read
Twisty in the best possible way
Short chapters
Good red herrings

Negative:
The ending was just a bit weak to me, but not enough for me to change my overall positive impression of the book.

I would actually love to read more about Roman Velky and will definitely read more by Amanda McKinney.

I totally loved this book. It was impossible to put down. It was a gripping and anxiety induced wild ride.

Wow, this book was SO GOOD, that I didn’t want it to end! It will definitely be in my top ten for the year and I’m going to need to purchase a physical copy for my shelves! I am definitely anticipating Mckinney’s next book.

Synopsis:

Detective Rowan’s life was thrown for a curveball when a young affluent woman winds up dead with her eyes Xed out. It’s apparent that it’s the work of a serial killer when two other women are killed in the same fashion. What do these women have in common and what is the killer’s message? It’s revealed through the multiple POV found in the story, but primarily through Rowan and her therapist, Amber. Rowan will have to let go of past trauma to solve this one.

What I liked:
I knew as soon as I started this book and couldn’t put it down that I was going to love this one.I loved the depth of Rowan’s character. She was such a strong female character despite her troubled past. She was also a very relatable character. I could identify with some of her feelings towards her husband and the being trapped in a loveless marriage. One of my favorite aspects of dual POV is figuring out how all the characters connect and this book had a lot of tension before the reader is privy to that infomaition had plenty of red herrings and plot twists to keep the reader engaged. I was so thankful for the ending because when i was a little over 80% I didn’t love what was happening to some of the characters at that point but the ending was very satisfying! The unscrupulous therapist in the book reminds me of a marriage counselor that I saw with my ex.

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was a little predictable, a little cliched, but it was an interesting way to pass a few hours. I would probably try this author again.

This was a very mind stretching story., twists,twists and more twists. Lots of hidden things going on with various false relationships and undercurrents. Fantastic conclusion.

EXCERPT: 'Mrs Velky,' Agent Briggs says, 'as I'm sure you're aware, this is pretty much a slam dunk case. By denying legal counsel, and by your continued silence on the matter, you are basically admitting guilt. Do you understand that?'
'Yes.'
'So, you are admitting guilt?' Zeal asks. 'Did you kill Cora Granger? Would you like to make a confession right now?'
'Yes.'
A moment of shocked silence fills the room.
I look up, my teary eyes as cold as ice.
'I killed Cora Granger.'

ABOUT 'A MARRIAGE OF LIES': Beneath the surface of every marriage there are secrets. This one is deadly.

My husband is lying. The minute he came home with alcohol on his breath and unable to look me in the eyes I knew it.

We used to be in love – the intense ‘I can’t be without you for a second’ kind. Where it hurts deep to be apart.

But now, we’re the couple that keep secrets from each other.

We hide the truth.

He thought I wouldn’t find out. I’m a detective – it’s literally my job to uncover clues and solve mysteries. I know what he did.

And now I’m sitting here, in a police interview, being asked the question ‘did you kill her?’ to which I utter one life-shattering ‘yes.’

MY THOUGHTS: This is my third book by this author and, while I loved the other two I have read, A Marriage of Lies fell short for me. I didn't feel clever solving this mystery early on; I felt disappointed that between the book blurb and the first few chapters, the solution jumped out at me. The clues are all there in flashing neon. The only thing that kept me reading was the 'why?' and trying to figure out how all these people were connected.

The author doles out that information very sparingly initially, kind of like giving someone on a diet a little chocolate to keep them invested. It works.

The story is told mainly from the POV of Detective Rowan Velky and her therapist, Amber. There are occasional chapters presented by various other people. Rowan is a complicated character - she has had a bleak upbringing, one which brought her into contact with her husband, Shep. She cares for her aunt Jenny who has Alzheimers. Her marriage isn't great, yet Rowan feels indebted to Shep and is reluctant to end it despite her suspicions that Shep is playing away. This is only one of the reason's she is seeing a therapist.

The story moves along at a good pace, there is a great sense of place, and the mutilation of the bodies adds a certain frisson of tension. I really liked the why of it all, but the ending lets the whole book down. It was all too easy, too quick and quite deflated my balloon. There's also quite a bit of 'telling' rather than experiencing at the end.

I had another major niggle - the medical aspects of Connor's condition. Authors, please, if you are going to throw in a complicated medical condition - do your research. You need to get these things right.

I didn't think the sexually explicit scene between Rowan and Shep was necessary - in fact I found it quite gross. I don't normally mind sexually explicit scenes, but this felt like it had been inserted just to provide the obligatory sex scene.

Although this is a decent read (except for that one scene - pun intended), quick and easy, it could have been better.

⭐⭐.5

#AMarriageofLies #NetGalley

THE AUTHOR: Set in small, Southern towns, Amanda’s books are page-turning murder mysteries peppered with steamy romance She lives in Arkansas with her handsome husband, two beautiful boys, and three obnoxious dogs.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Storm Publishing vis NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of A Marriage of Lies by Amanda McKinney for review. All opinions expressed in his review are entirely my own personal opinions.

This book was so good! Kept me engaged from the beginning and had a hard time putting it down! Mystery, drama, twists and turns throughout! I will certainly be checking out more of Amanda McKinney's books!

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this ARC.

**4.5-stars rounded up**

A Marriage of Lies is a tense Psychological Thriller from Amanda McKinney. I was seeing a lot of early buzz for this release and needed to find out what it was all about. After reading it, in a day (!!!), I am so happy that I took a chance on a new-to-me author and have officially joined the Hype Train. I was left with whiplash after finishing this twisted tale of love, devious deception and lies.

I don't want to say anything about the plot. I knew nothing going in and that's what I would recommend. I will say that I loved one of the main characters, Rowan, and her trusty companion, Banjo. Rowan is a Detective and I was pleasantly surprised to have an MC with that career leading the show here.

This also went pretty dark, as far as the crimes are concerned, and I definitely wasn't expecting that either!

As mentioned above, this is the first time I have read from Amanda McKinney, but I'm absolutely ready to pick up some more of her Thrillers. If they're anything like this, I know I'm in for a good time. While I did find some aspects slightly predictable, particularly towards the end, that didn't diminish my enjoyment. Overall, I found it to be extremely engaging, as well as highly-readable and incredibly entertaining!

Thank you to the publisher, Storm Publishing, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This was a delightful surprise!

As I read through this book, I found that it was more predictable than I was hoping for. Overall, it was a good read, but most of the characters felt flat. I wasn't as thrilled with some of them, and even shook my head several times at the "I can't believe this cliche just happened" feeling.

Decent suspense read, with characters you will grow to despise.

A mystery with a little bit of everything from drama, to twists! Wow! Loved this one more than I expected to! This was my first with this author and I’m happy to read more

This book was so good! Kept me gripped from
Page 1 and did not let go!!! Such good tiwsts and turns!! And loved the main character!! Five star read for sure!!

This is my first time reading from this author and I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it. The book grabs you in and keeps you intrigued the entire time. There are multiple POV's but most of the story is told from the perspective of Rowan, a homicide detective, and her therapist Amber. The bodies of three women have been discovered with mutilated markings and Rowan and her partner are working to solve the case and catch a serial killer. Both Rowan and Amber are trying to maneuver through their day to day lives and strained marriages. There are secrets, lies and jealousy in both of their lives and you feel like you are working two different puzzles and trying to fit all the pieces together. All of the characters are well written, and the plot comes together nicely with a twist at the end. This is a great psychological thriller and I will definitely pick up more books like this from this author.

Thank you NetGalley & Amanda McKinney for an ARC of this book. #Amarriageoflies #NetGalley

I enjoyed this book so much. It was my first book by this author and I can’t wait to read more by her. I love the plot twists and the character development and I especially Loved Rowena’s repeated to her in so many ways. Thank you so much for the advance opportunity to read this book.