Tell Them You Lied is Laura Lefler’s debut novel. The plot is fascinating, and the book is hard to put down. On one level, the book is based on a toxic friendship between two young women — Anna Vaughn and Willow Whitman — who become fast friends and competitors in art school, and later move to New York in 2001 after graduation seeking success. On another level, the book is a condemnation of the culture of the art world, where the works of women artists are trivialized, and women are too frequently objects of paintings by male artists or their muses.

While well-written, the novel’s plotting is uneven and often confusing, moving back and forth in time between art school (written in the third person) and
New York in the months between graduation and post-September 11th (written in the first person from Anna’s point of view). Nonetheless, the book has much to recommend it, and I think it will be well-
appreciated by fans of art and psychological thrillers equally. 4.0 out of 5.0 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue/Disney Publishing Group for a complimentary copy of this book.

Such a twisted story of an extremely toxic friendship. So well written that it kept me addicted to every word! Can't wait to read more from this author!

This one is hard to review—the toxicity between the two main characters, Anna and Willow, is off the charts. Alternating between two timelines, the author slowly closes the gap from when they first meet to a tipping point in NYC.

At a small liberal arts college, both art majors, Anna—a small-town girl with few friends and surprising talent as a painter—is immediately drawn to the sophisticated and enigmatic Willow. Willow grew up on Chicago’s Lake Shore Drive, draped in designer clothes and armed with a sharp eye for photography. The two seem like opposites, but somehow, they click.

After graduation, they find themselves together again in Brooklyn, each trying to break into the New York art scene. But Anna—still naïve—is finally starting to see Willow’s true colors. Tired of the manipulation and mind games, Anna hatches a plan to give Willow a taste of her own medicine. Then 9/11 happens, and everything unravels—both in the city and in Anna’s life.

What could have been a compelling exploration of toxic friendship and artistic ambition ultimately fell a bit flat for me. Anna came across as petty and, frankly, a little dim—even though she had every right to feel hurt and angry. Her character lacked the nuance that Willow’s seemed to have. I did appreciate the detailed art lessons woven into the story, which offered insight into Anna’s development as an artist. However, the 9/11 subplot felt tacked on and unnecessary to the emotional core of the story.

This angsty novel just wasn’t for me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hyperion Avenue, and of course the author Laura Leffler for the advanced copy of the book. Tell Them You Lied is out now. All opinions are my own.

In Laura Leffler's TELL THEM YOU LIED, the scenes set at college are fantastic. They spark with tension between the main characters Anna and Willow as well as between classmates. The competition is fierce and the divide between the artists with money and those without is sharp. I could have read a whole novel on that campus with those characters.

But that's not the story of TELL THEM YOU LIED. Instead, it's a story that jumps five years after college, when Anna, Willow, and several of their classmates have moved to NYC. The competition is still there. The facade of friendship is still there. However, Willow disappears, which creates a new, fervent appreciation of her art. And causes even deeper jealousy in Anna. This made sense in the same way that people obsess over even the most tangential connection to someone when they are suddenly considered a star.

What does not work is using the setting of September 11, 2001 as the background. Of course, at some point, it's going to be in stories like any other historical event. But the way it is used in the plot feels ... not right. All of the characters were toxic, which made the 9/11 timing seem like it was designed to create a sense of sympathy the novel did not earn.

This book was really well done if the author was going for unlikeable characters- but it was genius in the execution. I could not stand either Milo or Willow. Milo was rude when it wasn't necessary. Willow was the quintessential mean girl- who ultimately got what she wanted at the end. This book captured toxic relationships flawlessly!

WOW, what exactly was this mastermind ? It was an unexpected BINGE worthy read that I couldn't read fast enough. I loved the pace and the twists and thought I had figured it out. SURPRISE! I hadn't.

9/11/01 a day of tragedy for the world turned into a nightmare for Anna and Milo. Anna, insecure, sets up a robbery of friend Willow. Little does Anna know that Willow isn't as trusting as Anna hopes.

I loved how Anna got what's coming to her. It relied heavily on the 9/11 plot but it was a backdrop event.

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue, Laura Leffler and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.

Written in alternating storylines, this suspenseful story of friendship, power and the plight of young women is addictive and thought-provoking. This dark and twisted book explores a co-dependent friendship of two ambitious artists in NYC. The author excels at creating tension and the story finishes strong. I highly recommend this sharply written psychological thriller!

The authors first book
Great story about college kids and getting into the art world
Had mystery to the plot and you don’t know who did what until the very end.

I was interested in finding out what happened to Willow, which kept me reading/invested. Otherwise, I really struggled getting through this book. I found the characters so unlikeable. Willow was such a selfish, manipulative person, and Anna ended up becoming so similar. I will say I didn’t see the ending coming and enjoyed the twist/how it wrapped up.

This follows a group of friends from freshman year of college through shortly after graduation. Each and every character was selfish, duplicitous and lacked any redeeming qualities. I can only assume mental illness was a major factor but it was never truly explained--we just follow along while these so-called friends treat each other abominably and yet they remain friends. Bizarre. The structure of the novel was a problem in that the POV switched between Anna narrating the story and then having a conversation with Willow inside her head. While the author did not truly use second person, the use of 'you' was very awkward and often leaves the reader wondering which 'you' is being referenced--Willow or the person Anna is actually with. The style the author used involved leaving the reader in the dark and occasionally dropping in some strange or curious in order to develop intrigue, I suppose. This tactic was not effective in my opinion and I was often left feeling a bit annoyed because it seemed the author was toying with readers. feeling annoyed rather than intrigued does not enhance a reading experience. There was also a LOT of name dropping with regard to art history--far more than was needed so the story got dragged down by it. Additionally, the extent of art media and technique woven throughout was more than was needed and usually did not enhance the story. Overall, this was just okay. If you are quite into art history you might find this book a bit more engaging. It has some good bones but it just was not a great read for me.

This was hard to put down! It's not the kind of thriller that relies on twists, it's the kind that draws you to the characters and the uneasy dynamic between them.

Set in New York City against the backdrop of 9/11, the story follows Anna and Willow, two art students whose intense friendship takes a dark, obsessive turn. What begins as creative admiration quickly turns into control, jealousy, and long-lasting consequences that ripple through both of their lives. The book doesn’t rely on shock value or overly dramatic reveals. Instead, it explores how manipulation can creep into even the closest relationships, and how ambition, power, and desire can shift the dynamic in ways that are subtle but deeply unsettling.

What makes Tell Them You Lied feel so refreshing is that it didn't follow the typical thriller blueprint. Leffler is more interested in psychological intricacies and how people justify their worst impulses, and even how art can both reveal and conceal the truth.

The author’s background in the art world gives the novel a strong sense of authenticity. Her portrayal of gallery culture, creative identity, and the quiet competitiveness between artists feels specific and real without veering into caricature.

Anna and Willow aren’t particularly likable, and this book didn't try to make me sympathize with them. Instead, I was left to consider how people shape their own stories, and what gets lost, or even deliberately erased in the process.

I thought this book was sharp, original, and quietly devastating. If you're tired of thrillers that start to feel the same, this one offers something more complex, intimate, and memorable.

Anna's obsession with Willow is just too much to handle after a while. I understand that Anna is supposed to be this wide-eyed, small-town girl who doesn't see the conniving Willow's ways, but it just doesn't work. Also, the connection to 9/11 doesn't seem important at all. It feels like the time setting was chosen just to do something different.

My biggest problem with the book, though, was that the "prank war" that is supposed to take place never actually does. Willow does mean, manipulative things to Anna and their friends, and Anna "fights back" by doing dumb things like stealing Willow's keys or her jacket on a cold day. More than anything, Anna's confusion and her helplessness made me sad for her. As a book, I didn't enjoy this one at all.

3.5/5⭐️
This was a tough read. I was in 8th grade when 9/11 happened and I haven’t read a book that had it be at the center of all the drama. I thought the story was good, but I didn’t like a single character. The toxicity of their friendship was well described. But I just couldn’t like any of them and i was okay with that for the story. I liked how the story dives into how everything unravels, but it was a bit slow in some parts. Over all I did enjoy it, the ending was what I expected but it didn’t disappoint. I did like the narrator though, she did an amazing job conveying all of their emotions. So I recommend the audiobook if you are having trouble with it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for gifting me a digital ARC of the debut novel by Laura Leffler. All opinions expressed in this review are my own - 4 stars!

Anna and Willow met at art school, and Willow quickly became the most important thing in Anna's world. But 5 years later, both living in NYC, the cracks in their relationship have become too big to ignore. A prank is supposed to send Willow running back to Anna, evening out the power between the two. But that morning is 9/11 and Willow never returns home, leaving Anna to worry whether the prank went badly wrong.

This is a fascinating book, looking at a friendship that becomes fraught with envy and ambition, as well as how the art world views women. Told from alternating timelines between their art school years and their lives in NYC, the story is told in both 1st and 3rd person format, which was interesting and pulled you into the current mystery a little bit deeper. This book explores women's friendships at such a vulnerable time in their lives, when they are pulling away from home, wanting to be more, scared about the future, keeping secrets. Add in the events of 9/11, with cell phones down and Willow missing, and it became a taut thriller with multiple twists. Great debut and can't wait to read more from this author!

This was a tough read. The bases of the storyline was intriguing, but it dragged quite a bit. The characters were just unlikable and it made it difficult to want to read to the end. There was so much potential with this plot, but the execution just wasn’t there. I felt as though the timeline falling on 9/11 could have been played up so much more, but it almost felt like it was irrelevant to the entirety of the plot other than the very beginning.

This was a tough one to rate. When I realized I didn't care enough for the characters to really go back to finish the book, I knew this was going to be tough. But the thing was - I was still so curious of how the author was going to play this out. Most of the meat of the book was weirdly both relatable and unrelatable, which made it quite a chore to finish.

Everything about this book was attractive. The art world, the unsettling tone with both Anna and Willow, and the background of 9/11. But it was like being invited to a group and wishing I never accepted the invitation. But yet I couldn't turn away because for some odd reason, I wanted both good and bad things to happen to them. I never was bought into Anna - she seemed obnoxious enough even though she was supposed to be the timid one. Never cared for Willow. And with that, like I mentioned, it was quite a chore to finish. There were a few moments that the book shone, though, and somewhat redeemed itself.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I had a really hard time getting through this book. Nothing stuck in my mind and I found myself having to go back and re-read chapters.

Friends in art school vie for attention and the limelight for their chosen mediums. Willow is the wealthy, outgoing and persuasive photographer while Anna is a quieter broader who is into mixed media. The current time frame is September 11 in NYC and the chapters are interspersed wirh college years .The art school setting was an interesting backdrop and I enjoyed the artistic and literary references. The missing person aspect which drives the current day narrative is especially intriguing as the disappearance could be from the WTC or something more individually targeted. The characters and action are a bit jumbled but makes a strong finish. Geared more towards a young adult audience. However, I would read this author again!

Copy provided by the publisher and NetGalley

Tell Them You Lied delivers a deliciously sharp take on toxic female friendship, set against the backdrop of the art world and anchored by one of the boldest uses of 9/11 as a plot device in recent memory. Messy, moody, and full of razor-edged observations.