Sloane Caraway has a problem.
As the title suggests, she is a liar.
Not a fib here and there. But all the time!
And a chance meeting with a Dad, Jay Lockhart, in a park sets off a whole new series of lies.
What’s her end game?
An affair?
Money?
A new life?
Maybe all of the above.

The story develops slowly as under the name Caitlin, she imbeds herself into the Lockhart family’s life. I thought the story would take a predictable direction from there.
But NOOOOOO!!
A twist and a new POV turns the story on its head. Things presented earlier begin to make more sense. And a devious plan takes shape.

I also loved the last minute twist, another one I didn’t see coming. Loved it!

I love an unreliable narrator and Sloane Caraway is most certainly one. She lies to everyone, even herself, making her untruths her life. When her lies entangle her in the lives of a privileged New York couple, Jay and Violet Lockhart, she knows only one thing - don't get caught in the lies. Sloane, known as Caitlin to the Lockharts, accepts a job to nanny their five-year-old daughter. She slides into their perfect life and finally feels accepted. Is it too good to be true?
What Sloane doesn't know is that this perfect couple may not be what they claim and her biggest mistake is believing the lies someone else is telling her.

A quick, entertaining thriller.

Just when I thought I knew where Sophie Stava’s Count My Lies was going, she would throw a twist into the mix, and I was left wondering if I really knew what I thought I knew. Sophie Stava has the best use of multiple narrators in my recent memory. This is exactly how they work best, for each character’s perspective and opinion of events, and I eagerly devoured all of them. The final twist got me, and I’m keeping my review spoiler free, but, in a plethora of “popcorn thrillers”, Count My Lies has some depth, gritty realistic characters, and it kept me entertained from the very first sentence to the very last.

A pathological liar ends up as a nanny for a family that has its own issues. I'm not a huge reader of psychological thrillers and therefore am not that critical of a reader of them. This was a page-turner that kept me guessing what was going to happen until the very end.

Count My Lies is the kind of psychological thriller that reminds you why compulsive books are a gift. There’s nothing quite like tearing through pages, utterly engrossed, as tension builds and secrets unravel. And for a while, this one delivers.

Sloane Caraway, a chronic liar whose many, many small deceptions usually serve no greater purpose than making her seem more interesting, spins an on-the-fly lie—pretending to be a nurse to comfort a child—which she massages into a gig as a nanny for a wealthy New York couple. Violet and Jay Lockhart are glamorous, curated, and—it is a thriller, after all—not remotely who they seem. As Sloane embeds herself deeper into their world, she starts transforming—mirroring Violet's looks, her mannerisms, her life. But the course of true lies never did run smooth, and before you can say Gone Girl, her plan has spun wildly out of control.

It is not a lie to say I blew off any number of things I really needed to do in order to read this book. For most of its pages, Count My Lies veers close to thriller perfection—it’s fast, voyeuristic, and laced with just the right amount of dread. But then the final pages arrive like an ill-timed plot twist in real life: jarring, unbelievable, and frustratingly preachy. A truly great thriller earns its ending; this one mistakes escalation for payoff.

None of the leads are remotely likable. Sloane has the ethics of a self-absorbed grifter, Violet is the kind of woman I’d never invite to my book club, and Jay is man at his horndog worst. And yet, I kept reading. Maybe I was rooting for their comeuppance, or maybe Stava just knows how to pen compelling bounders. Either way, I was in.

And, without any spoilers, the midbook twist has been done better elsewhere.

But do I recommend it? Well—here’s the thing. Books that make you turn the pages as fast as you can are a gift. But when they sabotage themselves with a ridiculous ending, they land in that purgatory: not quite worth returning, but not the kind you press into your best friend’s hands, insisting they have to read it. If you love a fast, twisty thriller with an unreliable narrator, Count My Lies is worth the ride. Just expect to roll your eyes at the destination.

Prepare to cancel everything you have on your schedule when you start Count My Lies, because you will not be able to put this one down!

Sloane, a compulsive liar, lies to the father of a girl she sees crying at a park, saying she's a nurse who can help. This lie coalesces into Sloane becoming a nanny to Jay and Violet Lockhart, an elite NYC couple. The longer Sloane works for Jay and Violet, the more she realizes she may not be the only one with a penchant for lying. Perhaps the Lockharts aren't as picture perfect as they seem.

You don't want to know much more about this twisty domestic thriller, because encountering each reveal is a huge part of the fun for this one! Fans of None of This is True and Greenwich Park will love Count My Lies!

This book sucked me in right from the beginning and kept me guessing the entire time. I enjoyed the many plot twists and will be recommending this to customers who want a book to read in one sitting!

This is a good thriller - one that I couldn't put down, mostly because of my curiosity of where it was going.
Sloane is a liar...and she weaves a complicated lie with a family, but little does she know that the family has secrets and the wife/mother Violet is creating her own plan for a change in her life.
I wasn't a big fan of the main character (Sloane), but kept reading because I was so intrigued of what the twist would be!
Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher, for access to this eARC.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. This thriller is a page turner filled with twists. I can definitely see this becoming a movie. The story was compelling and definitely kept me interested.. I wanted to find out how it would end. But Sloan’s whole story, her reasons for consistently lying don’t make a ton of sense. Then you get to Violet and the “twist” and I had to suspend so much disbelief to get through the story. Also why would Violet leave her precious daughter under Caitlyn’s care (even given the motivation, once revealed) didn’t make total sense to me. Anyhow, it was entertaining. And that’s no lie!

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and Sophie Stava for providing this ARC for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

"Count My Lies" is one of those fun domestic thrillers where you try to figure out who is setting up who, and for what. It's a layered novel with multiple POVs and characters you aren't expected to like, although you may sympathize with them. Twisty, escapist reading! Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC. Pub Date: March 4th, 2025.

#CountMyLies

Entertaining and easy to binge. While I had some sense of where it was headed, I very much enjoyed the ride. It was a welcomed escape read!

Overall I liked this domestic psychological thriller. There were moments when it went on a little too long, could have been tightened up for more impact. Three main characters, a strong start, three characters, all liars. It was mostly the women's story and a story of longing for acceptance and love . i think my students will enjoy all the twists

This attention-grabbing book had me all in within a few pages, it was so addictive, I had to see how it would all turn out! Nothing could have prepared me for the ending I found waiting for me, it was definitely a unexpected jaw dropping blow! With so many lies being told it's hard to figure out who to trust as you travel through the pages, but I promise if you stick with the pages will treat you to one heck of a thrilling ride! Highly recommend!!

I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Gallery Books for this copy!

I enjoyed this book, although once again this was a book where I could not stand the main character. However, it held my interest if only to see how it all ended. I would recommend and would give it three and a half stars if I could.

I really wanted to like this one, but I just couldn’t get behind the main character. I may be in the minority, but I really do need to be able to like the lead to be able to read the book so I did DNF this. I was also expecting it to be quicker, more fast paced, but it seemed on the slower end.

Twist after twist after twist! Count My Lies was such a wild ride, immediately demanding my full attention. This book was so fun and had such a satisfying ending! Go in blind and see if you can piece together the story! Thanks to Net Galley, Sophie Stava, and Simon and Schuster for the advanced copy

This is a thrilling thriller!
I love a cat and mouse tale with more than one viewpoint and Sophie Stava does not disappoint. Meet Sloane - she isn't who she says she is and she tends to get attached quickly. There are some accusations that have followed her and she is looking for her next employement.

Luck brings her to a new household needing a nanny. But all is not what it seems.
Very well written, plotted and imagined. This is a great thriller to get your blood going! #gallerybooks #countmylies #sophiestava

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an ARC of Count My Lies.

I was very intrigued by the beginning, but at about 60% this truly became one of the silliest books I've ever read. While I appreciate trying to do something new and fresh in the domestic thriller category, the story should at least have some basis in reality. If you can completely suspend common sense about the way medical services and the legal system work, this may be a read for you but sadly it was not for me.

2 stars.

The first section with Sloane/Caitlin went on a little too long before we heard from Violet. You know something isn't quite right but I kept getting bored with Sloane. Luckily it picks up the pace and finishes strong. There could have been a lot of endings but the one we get is pretty good (or at least, I can live with it).

Kindly received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was amazing. I really enjoyed the story and all the twists along the way. Some of the smaller twists I saw coming but some I definitely did not. Sloane is a liar but is she the only one? This one will keep you guessing and flipping the pages right until the last one. Excellent thriller by Sophie Stava.

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books | Gallery/Scout Press for access to the ARC in exchange for an honest review.