Glad that I got to read this early. Have read all of her books. This was an interesting and sad story. Go Will Trent! ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

Thank you NetGalley for my gifted copy!

Karin Slaughter continues to blow me away. Will Trent continues to be freaking awesome. I just cannot get enough of these books. I'm positively obsessed.

This plot was so dang good. I have been giving up on a LOT of thrillers lately due to the predictably and unoriginality. This story had me hooked. I found myself constantly trying to find time to squeeze in a few pages. I cannot wait for this to be released and I can talk with everyone about how incredible this book is! I can't wait for her next 💕

As fans of the critically acclaimed Will Trent television series celebrate news of the show's renewal for another season, Author Karin Slaughter prepares for the August release of THIS IS WHY WE LIED, Will Trent book #12, a locked room style murder mystery that derails the idyllic honeymoon Will Trent planned for his bride Sarah Linton. As in previous series books, the subject matter is dark, disturbing and brutally in-your-face honest highlighting the life shattering effects of drug and alcohol abuse, domestic violence and child abuse on victims and their families. Isolate yourself in your own locked room with minimum interruptions before diving into this one as it's a cover-to-cover, break your heart, edge of your seat thriller.

GBI Investigator Will Trent and his new bride Medical Examiner Sarah Linton tell a trivial lie to conceal their real occupations when signing in at the McAlpine Lodge as a honeymooning mechanic and chemistry teacher. Will surprised Sarah with the remote getaway, hoping to celebrate their marriage by leaving work behind for long days and nights in each other's arms. The secluded location boasts breathtaking scenery, private cabins, a large scenic lake for fishing and swimming, and a luxurious lodge where guests gather for drinks and meals. When their first lodge dinner ends in an ugly, threatening family quarrel, Will second-guesses his choice of venues. His reservations prove true later that night when his romantic skinny-dipping outing with Sarah is shattered by a bloodcurdling scream, sending them scrambling to find a woman succumbing from fatal wounds. Will and Sarah are sickened by the lack of grief exhibited for the victim and concerned when they discover each family member, as well as several guests, has a motive for wanting the victim dead. As ties to the outside world are severed by a raging storm, Will manages to send an SOS to Amanda receiving a reply indicating Faith and Amanda are on the way. Will they arrive in time to stop a psychotic killer before he/she strikes again?

THIS IS WHY WE LIED unfolds through the dual points of view from Will and Sarah with Mercy's point of view and backstory revealed via journal entries written to her son over the years chronicling her mental and physical abuse as well as the resentment festering within her toxic family. Slaughter doesn't sugar coat anything as she expertly manipulates characters and readers through a complex, twisted plot line with the remote setting and fury of Mother Nature playing a key role in creating havoc while setting the stage for a highly volatile, locked room situation where every stranded character on the mountain is a viable suspect. An ill-fated, malignant tone saturates the air driving a frenzied pace through a minefield of shocking revelations waiting to detonate. While my suspicions on the identity of the killer proved true, reasons surrounding the savage stabbing left me reeling and heartsick. Warning triggers include domestic violence, addiction, child abuse, rape and incest with each one professionally managed within the context of the story by Author Karin Slaughter. The darkness is lightened with evidence of the power of love and trust to heal and reform woven throughout. Fans of the series will love seeing Will surrender to his love for Sarah and enjoy the interaction between Will and his boss Amanda with comic relief provided by Faith's inner monologue soothing the heavy load.

THIS IS WHY WE LIED has it all. A secluded setting with a raging storm. A hate fueled murder. A malevolent, dysfunctional family. Eight conspiratorial guests. A race against time to unmask a deranged villain. Everyone has a reason why they lied in this gritty thriller by the queen of psychological thrillers. It’s up to readers and Will to sift through all the lies and red herrings to deduce which liar is also a killer. Intense, gripping, gutsy, multilayered and highly emotional, THIS IS WHY WE LIED is Karin Slaughter at her best. Highly recommended to fans of the series and all readers who enjoy a fast-paced, dark suspense thriller.

I have read all the Will Trent books, and if you were to pick one to read as a standalone this one is it.

Synopsis: GBI agent Will Trent and his new wife/ medical examiner Sara Linton are spending their honeymoon at a remote family lodge. However, when one of the owners is found brutally murdered, their quiet weekend away takes a turn.

Thoughts: Karin Slaughter doing a locked-room Agatha Christie style mystery was a surprise and it took me some time to war up to this storyline, but I ended up really loving the book. The thriller is a slow-burn, and the first 50% focuses on a cast of very unlikeable characters and learning about their tragic backstory. However, once the story shifts to more of Will, Sara and Faith solving the case, the pacing speeds up and the classic Karin twists come out.


Read if you like:
-Locked room thrillers
-Dysfunctional families
-Remote woodsy settings

When a woman is murdered at the McAlpine family lodge everyone scrambles to find out who was to blame. The McAlpine family alone has more secrets than you would imagine, but what about the guests of the lodge?
The mystery of the murder of Mercy kept me guessing up until the very end and I can say I didn't see the twist coming. The entire story was filled with suspense and juicy details to keep me interested. I love how the author really considered human psychology when building her characters and their conflict. I also enjoyed the battle of right and wrong throughout the story. I was in so much suspense with this book the entire time I felt like was dying waiting to figure out the full grasp of the story. The ending did not disappoint as an audible gasp left my body when that final twist was read. I would absolutely recommend!

I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book and almost quit, but then I got sucked in. Will and Sara are on their honeymoon at a cabin resort as they meet all of the different guests and owners they start to realize something is off. As they go through their time there they get to know and reevaluate getting to know the different characters. You just never know when a murder will happen. I ended up really enjoying the book!

Poor Mercy. She just wanted to give her son a good life, but the cards were stacked against her.

Will and Sara are on their honeymoon in a picturesque resort getaway. Things seem absolutely perfect until dinner and there is a huge blow up with the family that owns the resort and Mercy, the daughter ends up dead.

Of course, even on their honeymoon they want to find out what happened to Mercy and how the cast of characters figure in to the murder. This was a total 5 star for me. I loved it.

I was so excited to get an advanced copy of this because I’ve been reading this whole series for a while. This one was so so good! Will and Sarah are finally married and on their honeymoon at a lodge in the mountains when tragedy strikes. The amount of twists, turns, secrets, and VC Andrew’s style family dynamics are insane. I really didn’t see the murderer coming until the very end. This one was well worth the wait!

Will and Sarah are enjoying their honeymoon when it’s suddenly interrupted by a deafening shriek. This is the start of unravelling the mystery of who murdered Mercy. The story goes back into the pov of Mercy, which made me feel quite connected to her along with the letters she has written. This is a very dark mystery that exceeded all my expectations.

⭐️: 5/5

When Sara and Will go on their honeymoon to a reclusive, upscale, mountain resort, they’re expecting a week free of work and stress, but when one of the staff members is murdered, and they’re the ones to find the body, they are drawn into the investigation. With the help of Will’s partner in the GBI, Faith, and his boss, Amanda, they find themselves racing against the clock to catch a dangerous killer.

I am a HUGE Karin Slaughter fan, and the Will Trent series is the peak of what thriller/suspense books should be, in my opinion. When I read the blurb for this one, I thought it was going to be Slaughter’s take on a locked room mystery, which she hasn’t written before. I was a little disappointed at first, since that’s not a thriller genre I particularly enjoy or seek out, but if Slaughter writes it, I read it, so I was still excited. As the book starts, we follow Will and Sara, on their honeymoon after their wedding, which was preluded to in the previous book. I was REALLY worried that Faith wouldn’t show up in this one, since she’s my favorite character, but this one ended up being less locked room than I initially thought it’d be, and actually goes as far as to poke fun at typical locked room tropes in a tongue in cheek kind of way, which I loved. In true Slaughter fashion, this one has twists, turns, and reveals that I couldn’t see coming, and by 50% in I was so immersed that I couldn’t put it down until I was done. The only negative is that now I have to wait for the next book she writes!

On a side note, the shoutout to Puerto Rican food, and the connection to the ABC show was also a fun little easter egg.

Thank you to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for this free eARC for my honest review!!

This Is Why We Lied
by Karin Slaughter
Pub Date: Aug 20 2024
Oooo...this was a fun one! Will, an awkward police investigator, and his wife Sara, a medical examiner, are on her honeymoon to a secluded lodge with private cottages, a hidden pristine lake, and miles and miles of woods. The only way in for guests is to hike in (yes, it's that secluded). It's a perfect place to spend their honeymoon, but, to avoid questions, they lie about the jobs telling the operators and other guests they are a boring old teacher and scientist.
Everything is picture perfect until the hostess turns up dead just hours after confiding in Sara that just about everyone on the mountain would like to see her die. And none of her family or other guests seem too bothered by her death.
Will knows the window for clues is fast closing so he and Sara jump on the case. With every new discovery, they find they weren't the only ones lying. Who killed Mercy? Are more deaths on the horizon? This isn't the honeymoon they signed up for, but it's one they won't forget.

#ThisIsWhyWeLied
#KarinSlaughter
#netgalley

Karin Slaughter nails it again with "This Is Why We Lied." I practically begged for an early copy, and boy, was it worth it! If you're into thrillers, you gotta dive into the Will Trent series.

In this book, Sara and Will finally get hitched and head off on their honeymoon. But their bliss is shattered when they stumble upon a whole mess of secrets and drama. Slaughter keeps you guessing at every turn. I also loved getting a glimpse into Will's past as he runs into someone from the boy's home.

Just a heads up, though: if you're sensitive to certain topics, watch out for trigger warnings. And if you're not into gritty, intense reads, skip Karin Slaughter altogether.

Thank you so much, Karin and Harper Collins, for this E-Arc provided via NetGalley!!

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars

Will Trent and Sara Linton are on their honeymoon at McAlpine Lodge, a remote high end vacation spot. While the honeymooners are there, they hear a scream and they find a dying person and work to untangle many horrible family secrets.

Probably the best Will Trent book that I can remember. Lots of trauma in a horrible family.

This one is on the darker side as it deals with childhood trauma and child abuse. Will and Sara are married and going away on honeymoon to unplug and enjoy nature in a romantic cabin in the woods. All is going great until a scream in the middle of a night. Will finds Mercury McAlpine dying and she shares her last words with him. This was a murder and Will vows to figure out who did it and why.

This is a great locked room mystery as the family and guests all have secrets. Will and his team all look for clues so solve the mystery. The McAlpine family is one creepy, bizarre, twisted family but so entertaining. Seriously, some parts made me cringe as it was so disturbing.

This book works as a stand alone but you get so much more out of it if you read the whole series. I have loved this whole series so much! It was heart breaking to read of the abuse that Will went through as a child. In the book it describes this as a locked room mystery with a VC Andrews twist and that is funny but accurate.

What a fun read. I’d never read a book in this series before although I did watch a few episodes of the TV series. I didn’t think you needed to read previous titles to understand this book. Great character development, good story line and plot although it was a bit easy to figure out the killer :). In any event glad I requested it.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC! This is the 12th book in the Will Trent series but the first I’ve read. I honestly didn’t even realize it was part of a series for a long while. It stood alone just fine and was an intriguing singular case. The GBI agent, Will Trent, is on his honeymoon with his wife in an obscure, small family lodge where a grisly murder occurs just one day into their vacation. The book starts with the murder of Mercy McAlpine, who currently manages the resort and then goes back in time to unwind the time leading up to the murder and then the investigation following it.
I was intrigued the whole way through and was continuously surprised by the twists and reveals. The toxic and twisted McAlpine family is at the center of the story; not your run of the mill dysfunctional thriller family. That being said, there were definitely some sickening parts of the story that may be triggering to some (SA/physical abuse/etc). I was surprised by the ending and was happy with how justice was brought but honestly it was a lot darker than I prefer my thrillers. That’s just my preference though; Slaughter did an incredible job laying out the story like a puzzle and with character building.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation Inspector Will Trent and medical examiner Sara Linton are off on their honeymoon which they are going to spend at McAlpine Lodge, an off-the-grid mountaintop location that guests have to hike up a mountain to get to, which really made me want to throw the book across the room. Will and Sara decide not to tell any of the other guests what they do for a living. Until….

Mercy McAlpine, the manager, is found dead, murdered. Then there is a terrible storm and the only road to the Lodge is washed out. The murderer must be someone on the mountain and it seems like everyone at McAlpine Lodge is lying…not just Will and Sara.

This is part of a series (which is, apparently, a TV show), but I’m a sucker for a locked room mystery. However, turns out the book’s description isn’t really fair, the road doesn’t wash out until well after the murder and one of the couples staying at the Lodge just up and leaves (weird. Could have been one or both of them as murderer, right?) and, since road open, anyone could have come to Lodge and killed Mercy, then somehow gotten away…just walked down the road, I guess? Anyway, the door was open on that locked room.

There was a lot going on here but I enjoyed the mystery/thriller aspects. I’m not sure what earlier books were like, but this should really be a Will Trent/Sara Linton book, not just a Will Trent book. Men.

An excellent addition to the series. Will and Sara have finally gotten married and have taken time off for their honeymoon. Of course, nothing is as peaceful as it appears to be, especially after a woman is murdered and dies in Will's arms. Secrets abound and it's up to Will, Faith, and Sara to figure out what the truth really is. Highly recommend.

This is Why We Lied is the twelfth title in the Will Trent series written by Karin Slaughter, and another excellent addition to the group.

Will and Sara have finally caught a break from the world and gotten married! While on their honeymoon tragedy strikes again taking out an employee at the deep woods cabin resort they are staying at.

Over a twelve hour time span, Will and Sara must work together to solve the murder while secluded away from the rest of the world, among a group of shady vacationers and horrifying family members that manage the resort.

This was another great book in the series, completely traumatizing, but insanely good!

Overall score:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this title!

Karin Slaughter never disappoints and once again has written a gripping novel of suspense. In this book, we get to take a look into the heartbreaking life of new character Mercy, whose life is ended at the beginning of the book. Readers then work backwards with Will, Sara, Faith, and others to find out details of her tragic end.