Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy. This book is a quick read about a famous author and up-and-coming actress and how their pasts are intertwined. I think it had potential to be really interesting, but I did not connect with any of the main characters at all. They all felt a bit like caricatures rather than fully fleshed out characters, so it was hard to buy into the story. Overall, I do think this had potential, but was missing the character development to make it a rich, compelling story.

Jillian Cantor’s “The Greatest Lie of All” pulled me in from the very first chapter and didn’t let go. It is a breathtaking exploration of love lost and found, ambition, and the delicate balance between fact and fiction. Set against the glamorous backdrop of Hollywood and the secluded Pacific Northwest, the story is a mix of Hollywood drama, buried secrets, and heartfelt emotion that makes it so hard to put down.

Aspiring actress Amelia Grant is at a low point in her life—still reeling from her mom’s death and a messy breakup—when she lands the coveted role of portraying Gloria Diamond, a legendary romance author, in a biopic. Spending a week at Gloria’s secluded estate sounds like the perfect escape for Amelia, but instead of glamour, she finds a prickly, closed-off woman who seems nothing like her public persona.

The story flips between the present day and Gloria’s past, which makes the unraveling of her secrets so satisfying. The tension between Amelia and Gloria’s son, Will, adds depth and a touch of romance. Then Amelia stumbles onto something that changes everything. This book isn’t just about the lies we tell others—it’s about the ones we tell ourselves, and how those lies can both protect and imprison us.

Cantor’s writing is lush and emotionally resonant. The themes of friendship, grief, and self-discovery are beautifully handled. This is easily one of Jillian Cantor’s finest works!
Thank you to Park Row and NetGalley for the advance copy. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

The Greatest Lie of All by Jillian Cantor is a captivating tale that follows a glamorous romance novelist and an aspiring starlet as they navigate an unexpected secret. This addictive story delves into themes of love, ambition, and the lengths we will go to protect our hearts. With its irresistibly juicy plot, full of twists and layers, this novel explores the narratives we create to hide our true selves and the sacrifices we make in the name of love.

Never Meet Your Heroes - You Might Find Out More Than You Wanted To. Seriously, this book takes that age old saying to heart in its basic premise... and then spins it on its head in the actual execution of the tale at hand and in showing all that has transpired in these characters' lives.

This is one of those inventive enough tales that it seems almost completely implausible... and yet real enough that it feels all too real at the same damn time. Surely, *nothing* could be *this* convoluted, right? (Says the guy whose mother in law is best friends with her husband's ex-wife and whose grandparents lived together on the same property - at times even in the same house - even after they divorced and remarried.) In other words... yes, life can get quite messy at times, and this book does a tremendous job of showing this to great dramatic effect.

This is one of those women's fiction/ romance genre benders that actually has the *cajones* to walk right up to the RWA/ RNA gatekeepers and say "Really? You're going to try to tell me that *this* isn't a romance for the ages?". There is even at least one element of this book that will certainly, if the book reaches enough people, prove quite controversial indeed, and while I know *exactly* what those arguments will be and who (in general) will be making them, revealing even the specific nature of that particular debate pretty well spoils what this element is, so this is about as close as I can get to noting its presence without spoiling it.

Releasing late in the year when Yankees are seemingly already snowed under and largely inside their might-as-well-be Igloos for the winter and thus needing much reading material (at least that is how this Southern boy who has never lived any further north than the Atlanta exurbs tends to look at these things), this is going to be one of those great ones to read while huddled up trying to stay warm. Yes, even for us Floridians in our heaviest Arctic gear getting ready for temperatures that begin with "5" for a few days.

Very much recommended.

When I first read the blurb on this story, I pictured a sweeping love story that would be told in the past as we learn of Glorias' live and in the now as Amelia experiences it. I was both right and wrong.
Before I jump into that explanation and what I liked and didn't like about this book, I am reminded of something I heard years ago. "You can trace your entire live to one moment, one act." For Amelia, that act as the author tells us started with a red bra and set her onto a collision course with Gloria. That incident also colored my opinion a bit of Amelia, she seemed to retreat into herself a bit instead of standing firm and taking back what was hers. The author did soften her lack of engagement with the first person who wronged her by putting her in an extremely emotional place with the loss of her mother. That also setup a dynamic that followed through the story and that is simply family and how it motivates the actions of the characters in this story. For example, Amelia was excited to work with Gloria because her mother loved Gloria's book. Another example is how Gloria's son was part of the reveal of Gloria' truth.
From the jump with this story, we knew Gloria was not what was anticipated. Amelia expected a fancy home and a fancy lady, instead Gloria's home was lived in and her demeanor while cold was that of just a person. As the story unfolds we learn what shaped Gloria and what secrets she was hiding. The story was not really a happy one and while there was love that I would have expected there was also pain. Gloria was flawed and learning her history helped us understand why.
The earliest scene in the story contained a bit of tension and drama. In my mind, it setup a story that would be full of drama but the execution of the rest of the story felt a little flat to me. The story did not live up to my expectations based on the blurb. After reading other reviews, I wondered if I was being harsh so I will leave you with the story was definitely not for me but I think perhaps it might fit a different audience better. I am sticking with 3 starts but objectively speaking it might be closer to 3.5 stars.
Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing | Park Row for the opportunity to read this ARC.

This book was honestly very captivating and a great palette cleanser! I loved reading about all the interconnections between the 2 charaters.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Wow! This novel captured me from chapter one. I ‘m going to remember these characters for a long time. It has Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo vibes (but not the same at all) which I also loved.

This novel dives into the glamorous life of Hollywood (actors and authors) and covers truth, lies, ambition, romance, heartbreak and so so many secrets. There were quite a few twists. I guessed a couple but I didn’t see the rest coming.

It is a well written story with dual POV and past/present narratives. The author tied up the story perfectly. Not one loose end. I recommend this book to fans of Taylor Jenkins Smith and anyone who loves mysteries, thrillers with a touch or two of romance.

Thank you NetGalley, Jillian Cantor and Park Row for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Releases 12/3/24

The Greatest Lie of All by Jillian Cantor is one of my favorite romances of the year!

Jillian Cantor is a masterful storyteller. She wove historical fiction, Hollywood, and love to capture me and encapsulated me in their world. Told over multiple story lines and different points of view, I couldn’t put this book down. I’ve read a few Jillian Cantor books in the past, each one just gets better. I’ll be first in line to read whatever she writes next.

If you enjoyed Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by TJR and you’re looking for a beautiful love story pick up The Greatest Lie of All in December.

Thank you to NetGalley and Park Row for an advanced copy of this book!

Amelia Grant is given the role of Gloria Diamond, an author she and her mother loved. As she spends time at the author's house she gets to know another side of the author and what made her the woman she is today. As she speaks to Diamon's son and he reveals who is mother really is, Amelia finds a connection to her that she was not aware of. The reveal seemed sudden and took a little away from the story for me.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

The Greatest Lie of All by Jillian Cantor is a mixed first and third person multi-POV contemporary that takes place in the present day and in the 1980s. Actress Amelia has recently discovered her boyfriend cheating on her with his co-star and is throwing her all into her next role to help her move past the situation. Gloria Diamond, the Queen of Romance, has weaved a very careful, curated identity of herself for public consumption that hides a much deeper story and she’s not very forthcoming when Amelia wants to learn more about what makes Gloria Gloria.

One of the things I really liked was Amelia discussing Method acting and how her ex, Jase, used it as an excuse to try to explain away his affair. Method acting has come under fire in recent years mostly because some of the actors who subscribe to it act like jerks to their fellow cast members and the crew. I’m sure there are some actors who subscribe to it who aren’t jerks and who use it in the way it was originally intended in terms of craft, but for the sake of a story, the way Jillian Cantor used it worked really well without completely demonizing it.

Amelia has a connection with Gloria’s son, Will, pretty quickly. The two have the traditional misunderstanding of a romance novel (while this book is definitely not a Romance genre book, the author understands the conventions of the genre) and grow closer together the more time they spend together in Gloria’s home as Amelia tries to learn everything she can before playing Gloria in a biopic. It was interesting to see Amelia being concerned that there would be consequences for her having a relationship with the son of the woman she’s portraying, but I guess it would be strange to a lot of people even if both are consenting adults. I personally liked their romance arc and I liked how Will respects both Amelia and his mother even if there are complications in those relationships.

The real intrigue of the story is the truth behind the very careful veneer Gloria presents to the world. Her and Amelia have both taken names for the sake of publicity, they both have public personas, and they both have faced tragedy in their lives. But Gloria sold the world on her past being one with a tragic romance and Amelia keeps her tragedies pretty private. It makes Amelia curious about Gloria’s deceased husband and makes the rest of the world sympathetic, helping to boost Gloria’s public image. It’s not wrong for Gloria to talk about her past, but she also wasn’t being completely honest. Seeing the layers peeled back so we get the full picture made me better understand why Gloria would make the choices that she did and I cannot say that I blame her for those choices even if many would probably condemn her.

Content warning for depictions of cheating, domestic abuse, and pregnancy

I would recommend this to fans of contemporary books with a strong mystery element that isn’t a mystery, readers who love the set-up of an actor learning more about the figure they are portraying, and those looking for a book that delves into public personas of artists

This a quick read with a great characters and good writing. I enjoyed how the story bounced between the present time and the past to tell bits of the story until close the end when the reader finds out how the pasta and present intersects.

Some of the plot was easy to guess what was coming, but there was a couple of surprises. I liked how the story wrapped itself up and the author didn't leave any unanswered questions.

Thank you to @netgalley and @HarlequinTradePub for this ARC. Amelia Grant has been cast to play romance novelist Gloria Diamond in her biopic. After finding her boyfriend in bed with his co-star, she decided it would be best to stay with Gloria for a few days to study her as a person. What Amelia learns in their short time together is way more than she bargained for and realizes that Gloria's life is as fiction as her books. I loved this book! What a great story! #TheGreatestLieofAll #JillianCantor #HarlequinTradePub #Dec2024

I would like to thank Net Galley for the opportunity to read this as an ARC. I have read several other books by Jillian Cantor and have enjoyed them. This was no exception. Amelia Grant is an actress. Her mother has recently died, her father lives across the country with his new family and her boyfriend is cheating on her. This sounds like a recipe fo disaster, but Amelia is strong. She gets a part in a biopic of a romance writer which will film in Seattle. Her mother has all of the writers books in her library and feels like this is a rile she should take. The movie talks about the love story of the romance writer, Gloria and her late husband. As Amelia begins to study Gloria for the part, she begins to think that not everything was as it was written. And when Amelia meets Gloria's son, she starts to have strange dreams and flashbacks-what is Gloria's true story? This is a good study of people, and love and the lies they tell for the people they love. I really enjoyed it.

I really enjoyed reading this book. I felt I really got to know the characters of Amelia Grant and Gloria/Mare. I love how they were intertwined in the end. I liked how the author gave us the story of Gloria in little bits through the book which made me want to keep reading to find out what happened. Her story was sad and she had a lot of loss. There was many lies in this book but they all come to light in the end. I want to read all the other books by Jillian Cantor now!

Thirty-something Annie, better known as Amelia Grant, was ready for some better luck. Her mom died suddenly, her partner of 10 years was caught in a very compromising position with a younger actress, and Amelia's career was not going as well as she had planned. Luckily her agent called with great news-the current lead dropped out and she was selected to play Gloria Diamond in a biopic of the great romance writer's life (think Danielle Steel.) But she had to be off script in a hurry as the shooting commenced in two weeks. Her mother would have been so happy for her as Diamond was her favorite author.
Annie was a Method actress and wanted to study her subject up close and personal. Diamond's biopic was based on the memoir of her early romance and marriage to her husband George, who tragically died at 32. She never remarried, and George was the inspiration for her first bestseller.
Annie is allowed to spend a week with a very reluctant Diamond as she prepares for the movie shoot, Diamond seems to be angry with her for some unknown reason, and is extremely uncooperative...but Annie finds an ally in her son, Will, who has taken a week off from his law practice to help his mother. Why is Diamond so negative towards Annie, when her reputation was made on being nice? Why does her memoir seem too good to be true? And why does Annie begin to dream of childhood incidents that never happened-or did they?
In alternating chapters, Annie narrates the story of making the movie, while Mare (Diamond's real name) delves into her complicated past and why Annie might be a part of it. Can't give away more than this, just that I enjoyed unraveling all of the lies and secrets in this book...especially "the greatest" one.

Advanced Book Review! Thank you @htpbooks, @parkrowbooks and @netgalley for sending me this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
“A glamourous romance novelist and an aspiring starlet share an unexpected secret in this addictive story about love, ambition and how far we’re willing to go to protect our hearts.”
I really enjoyed this book – couldn’t put it down. It definitely has Evelyn Hugo vibes, which is one of my favourite books.
Actress Amelia Grant is coming off of a really terrible couple of months, with the death of her mother and catching her tv star boyfriend cheating on her. She gets the opportunity of a lifetime to portray the world’s biggest besselling author, The Queen of Romance, Gloria Diamond, in her biopic. Amelia heads to Seattle to spend a week living at Gloria’s house, getting to know her before shotting the movie. Amelia, a method actor, says that “to play Gloria, I would have to become Gloria, understand what she was truly like beneath her dazzling, but always guarded, public persona.” However, Gloria, values her privacy “above everything else.”
I’m a big fan of dual timelines so I loved getting Gloria’s backstory throughout the novel along with Amelia and Gloria’s son, Will, in the present day trying to figure out her secrets. And I obviously knew it was leading to something but I wasn’t fully sure what. It kept me fully absorbed and on the edge of my seat right up until the end.
While I did feel that some of the aspects of the plot probably could have been beefed up a bit, I thoroughly enjoyed it and stayed up late to finish.
The Greatest Lie of All was my first book by Jillian Cantor, but it definitely won’t be my last.
4.5 Stars

Actress Amelia Grant has been chosen to play reclusive romance author Gloria Diamond in an upcoming biopic. To prepare for her role, she spends a week living with Gloria. She soon realizes that Gloria Diamond is not the person she shows to the public. We learn Gloria's past through a dual timeline. This book has romance, mystery, betrayal, and an ending I did not see coming. I flew through this book.

Thank you, Harlequin Trade Publishing and Net Galley for an advanced copy of this interesting book..

Amelia Grant is an actress who needs a break in life, and she receives it when she is offered the lead role in a biopic about romance author Gloria Diamon. She spends time with Gloria to learn more about her before filming begins, but Gloria is quite guarded about her past. After connecting with Gloria's son Will, the two of them explore old pictures, memory flashes, and uncover some secrets. This story explores some deep emotions, love, and ultimately, the truth about Gloria.

OUTSTANDING and A MUST READ!!!
The latest novel by Cantor is another MUST read! Gloria Diamond is a romance author who is a bit of a recluse. She is best known for her romance novels inspired by her tragic love story.
Amelia Grants is an actress who signs on the play the famous author in a movie. Part of the deal Amelia gets the chance to meet with Gloria to find out more about her than the tradition stuff posted. When they meet Gloria does not present the way her “the world” sees her. She is cold, rude, and stand-offish allowing Amelia limited access to her. She also meets Gloria’s son, which provides a tension, and some romance. He knows how his mother is, and the tension between everyone is felt in many levels.
Already pre-ordered to add to my other Cantor books. Thank you Park Row for the gifted e-ARC.

After actress Amelia Grant finds her actor boyfriend in bed with another actress, she retreats to her mother’s home, her mother who has just passed away.

Shortly afterwards Amelia is selected to be the lead in a bio of Gloria Diamond, a romance author who used her own tragic life for the base of several of her novels, and her mother’s favourite author. Amelia goes to stay with Gloria for a few days to get into character, but finds a cold, aloof woman not the friendly author she saw on Oprah.

Why does Gloria seem to despise Amelia and why does she insist that Amelia stay away from her son, Will? As filming begins Amelia and Will discover a secret that Gloria has been keeping for 3 decades.

For fans of Barbara Taylor Bradford and Taylor Jenkins Reid, who both tell stories of behind the scenes in Hollywood home. Excellent read