Each chapter of Laura Leffler's debut novel is told alternating between the past and the present. How things started and how they ended up. In the present, Willow is missing. The chaos of September 11th being used as the background, Anna's decision to have Willow "mugged", and the ultimate mystery - "Where is Willow?" - converge to create a compelling narrative that propelled my curiosity through this cast of dislikable characters.

Anna and Willow meet freshman year of college. They are both determined to be artists and make their mark on this world. Anna is desperate for attention and gullible, this makes her easily manipulated by her supposed best friend. Throughout flashbacks, we see Anna's almost Godlike worship of Willow, the formation of their friend group, and the different ways Willow used the people around her - puppets on strings. The unraveling of how Anna came to envy Willow so much that she concocted a fake mugging to "soften her up". It's bizarre, it's twisted, but so are both Anna and Willow's psyches.

In present day, Anna doesn't know who or what to believe. The same day she planned to hatch her scheme, NYC was attacked. The Twin Towers fell. But no one has seen or heard from Willow. Was she close enough to be killed when the buildings collapsed? When things start coming up missing from their shared apartment, Anna is convinced Willow is just up to another one of her larks. But she hasn't made contact with anyone in their friend group. She hasn't made contact with her dad.

Police believe that Willow may have been having breakfast on top of the World Trade Center with a coworker and artist friend on the day she disappeared. Is Willow dead? Anna uses this as an opportunity. She curates an exhibit of Willow's photographs with an acquaintance from college. Willow's family co-opts the piece and calls it Vanishing Act. Is this a performance piece? Is Anna crazy and the whole art world in on it? Or is there something even more sinister afoot?

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for the ARC of Tell Them You Lied for my honest review. Looking forward to seeing more of Leffler's work.

Having the privilege to read this before its publication was an honor! The book is thrilling and filled with amazing twists at every turn. Despite the challenge of following the shifting timelines, it was a rewarding experience to keep pace with the narrative. This book delivers a journey of friendships, hardships, and much more right to our doorsteps!

I really liked the way this one started. It's entirely possible that 9/11 is still too difficult a topic for me to read about, given personal experiences. The idea of someone using the tragedy as an excuse to seek revenge did not sit well with me. I thought I would find it to be an interesting coincidence, but instead it felt manipulative.

I also think I'm over reading about toxic friendships and personalities. I found myself worn down by all of the passive aggression and manipulation and really struggled to keep reading. The characters were pretty much odious to a man, and I just had a rock in the pit of my stomach the entire time I was reading... I suspect that all of my negative feelings were, more or less, what the author was going for here in capturing difficult personalities . So in that sense it is successful, but it was not at all a good fit for me.

What worked for me:
This was my first ARC via Netgalley, so I wasn’t sure what to expect! I was drawn by the description because there’s nothing like bad decisions that lead to consequences. I enjoyed that it was told in two timelines, culminating on the date everything transpired. It was also the first book I’ve read where 9/11 played a large role, and it was done respectfully. Also, I did not figure out the ending, which rarely happens.

What didn’t:
Unfortunately, that was all I really enjoyed. The main character is an artist, which is the foundation of who she is, but you REALLY need to like art to get into the story. So much of the narrative revolves around art—techniques, methods, artists, inside art references & jargon. I found myself getting bored. I wanted less art and more suspense! I also hated the main characters. The girl who goes missing is a horrible human being, and despite her screwing over the MC multiple times, she can’t help this obsession for her approval. It was very toxic.

Straight to the point:
If you’re looking for a book with art references, toxic relationships, and a touch of American tragedy, then this is for you.

OOOOO Giiiirrrrlll this was so good. I love a duel timeline. Thank you netgalley. I can't wait to put this on my shelf.

3.5 stars, but I'll round up to 4.

This book was... odd. It follows a dual timeline. In the present, Anna's friend Willow vanishes on 9/11/2001. The flashback scenes are Anna's life when she meets Willow at college and how their friendship develops over their college years. They're art students and there are definitely a lot of art references and terms I didn't get!

I thought the author was going to go with a clever twist: Willow faked her own death to get recognition for her photography. Unfortunately, the author ends up going with a cliche: Mean Gross Art Professor from their college murders her because she blackmailed him about an affair they had.

I was honestly super disappointed in this book. I almost DNF'd at around 150 pages, but since this was an early copy, I decided to stick it out. My biggest complaint is that it's about 100 pages longer than it needed to be. There were so many anecdotes that didn't drive the plotline that would take up chapters on chapters. The major "plot twist" was insanely predictable and I found myself thinking "that's really it?" once I finished the book. I also hated all of the characters and wasn't routing for any of them at all. With all that being said, I HAD to know about Willow and what happened, even if I guessed it. Every time I wanted to set the book aside, I couldn't stop thinking about where Willow could be. The writing was also really great and easy to binge!

I enjoyed this book! I received it from NetGalley as an ARC and I’m so glad I did. It takes place in 2001 during 9/11 and was very nostalgic for me because I was a senior in high school that year.

Anna has a frienemy relationship with her college friend, Willow. While in college, Anna couldn’t get enough of Willow. She was fun, mysterious and full of life. But now that they both live in New York City, Anna is so jealous of Willow’s success and relationships she can barely function. She and a friend decide to teach Willow a lesson by paying a mutual acquaintance to mug her. But it isn’t just any day, it’s the day the planes hit the Twin Towers. As the hours and then days pass, Willow doesn’t return home. Anna looks for her everywhere but can’t find her. She worries her prank went too far. As she continues to scour New York for Willow, Anna is convinced Willow is playing mind games with her.

The book flashes back to the girls time in art school and the “present day” (which is September 2001). This was a fascinating read I thoroughly enjoyed. Anna and Willow’s relationship is contentious and also very common for women in their late teens and early twenties. While I never would have had a friend mugged, I could relate with how hard female friendships can be. Especially in the early 2000’s when women were taught to see each other as enemies.

You can get your copy May 27, 2025.

This book was wild. The extent that Willow was willing to go for her art and also have it touch on a serious issue is one thing that made this book so entertaining. You also get to experience the shift in timelines between present-day September 2001 with the chaos of 9/11 and their previous years in college. Laura Leffler mentioned a lot of difficult topics in this, and she handled it well. It primarily focuses on their toxic friendship that seems to borderline obsession with Anna. I think the main reason this isn't five stars for me is because it got very repetitive with Anna freaking out, but I mean, with her resilience, she was able to uncover the truth at the end so 🤷‍♀️. I will definitely read this again when it comes up in 2025. Thank you for the ARC through Netgelly!

"Tell Them You Lied" is a haunting and unsettling read, crafted with the clear intention of disturbing the audience. The author masterfully immerses the reader into the gritty atmosphere, evoking emotions that range from disgust to a lingering sense of regret. At its core, the story revolves around a toxic friendship that spirals into even more destructive relationships and situations. The characters aren’t meant to be liked, but instead, you're drawn into the whirlwind of obsession, isolation, jealousy, and unbridled ambition.
Anna, the protagonist, anchors the narrative. The story alternates between present-day New York City, in the wake of the September 11th attacks, and flashbacks to Anna’s time in college, when she aspired to be a successful artist. During her college years, she met Willow, a photographer, and their relationship developed into a complex mix of love, influence, and betrayal. In the present, Anna and Willow are roommates, but a sinister plot unfolds as Anna arranges for Willow to be mugged, a punishment of sorts. As the story progresses, the reason for this 'lesson' is gradually revealed through flashbacks, exposing Willow’s past wrongdoings. Meanwhile, Anna grapples with the possibility that Willow has turned the tables, either toying with her mind or, perhaps, falling victim to the 9/11 tragedy herself.
The story is both captivating and unsettling, filled with flawed characters in dire circumstances, creating a compelling but uncomfortable experience. While certain parts may linger longer than necessary, the sheer intensity of the narrative makes it impossible to set the book aside.

Ambition, toxic friendships, murder - what was not to love. Devoured this book while on vacation. An absolute page-turning thriller.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for providing this book, with my honest review below.

Tell Them You Lied was dark and upsetting but written incredibly well in that I believe the author means to upset the readers, to write so vividly she places you in the setting and evokes emotions of disgust and shades of regret. Focused on a toxic friendship that begets equally toxic relationships and circumstances, you’re not meant to like any character, but rather follow the wave on obsession, loneliness, jealousy, and ambition.

Anna is our main character here and throughout our reading of present day, which just happens to be September 11th and its aftermath in NYC, we are taken back alternatively to Anna’s start in college as a yearning to be successful artist. Anna meets Willow, a photographer, in school and grows up with her, influenced, in love, and betrayed in equal measure. In the present day Anna and Willow are roommates, but Anna is involved in a plan to have Willow mugged and taught a lesson. Why the lesson? We find out as the story continues, visiting the past for Willow’s transgressions while in the present Anna tries to figure out if Willow has turned the tables on her and is teasing her sanity or if she could, somehow, have gotten caught in the terrorist attack that killed so many.

This is fascinating, with terrible people and terrible circumstances but the type you can appreciate in a work of fiction. There’s a lot going on, and parts do go on for a bit longer than I found a good balance, but I could not bear to put this down.

3.5 stars, rounded up for this one.

Willow was amazing and Anna had never met anyone like her. They met at art school and Willow was the epitome of cool.

But five years later Anna has grown tired of the cutthroat NYC art scene and equally tired of Willow’s selfishness and constant cruelties, so she decides to stage a mugging to knock Willow down a peg and to restore Anna’s power. I’m a little bit hazy on how this is supposed to work, exactly, but, okay.

Only Anna schedules this prank for the morning of September 11, 2001. And Willow never comes home. What has happened to Willow?

The story is told in alternating times between Willow and Anna’s time at art school and 2001 NYC.

I quite enjoyed this story of toxic friendship and an examination of a woman as muse. It probably could have been a bit shorter, but, still, entertaining.

I found this book to be incredible. I loved the shift in timelines, the toxic college friendships, and Anna trying and somewhat failing to come into herself. The tension was perfectly executed between Anna and the rest of the characters, and I wanted to learn more about her friendships even though we've learned SO much.

A great Art School psychological thriller. Anna's friend Willow is everything she wishes she was. But Willow is much more than that, and not good for Anna. This story of toxic friendship, obsessiveness and cruelty will make you gasp! The lengths that Anna has gone are unbelievable.
Pick up this story for a nail biting ride ! #tellthemyoulied #lauraleffler #hyperion

Holy heckballs. These characters define toxic relationships. There are such hidden dynamics between all the characters that all you can do is sit back, watch how things play out, and thank your lucky stars that you don't count these people amongst your friends. The plot was intriguing, the characters were horrible people, and I loved every darn minute of it.

This novel is a gripping exploration of art, friendship, and the weight of choices set against one of the most pivotal days in modern history. From the beginning, Anna’s fascination with Willow—an enigmatic, moody artist—is both compelling and unsettling. The author does a fantastic job illustrating the intoxicating power dynamics in their relationship. Willow initially appears as Anna’s muse and guide, only to reveal her selfish and cruel nature over time.

The staged mugging, intended as a twisted reckoning for Willow, is an intriguing plot device. Anna’s desperate attempt to reclaim control over her life and friendship makes for a profoundly psychological narrative, with the events of September 11 adding an unexpected layer of intensity and urgency.

The novel shines in its character development and the unraveling of Anna’s psyche. As the hours tick by and Willow remains missing, Anna’s inner turmoil becomes almost unbearable, which makes me question who truly holds the power in their relationship. The themes of art, ambition, betrayal, and survival are beautifully woven into the backdrop of the New York art scene, creating a vivid, emotionally charged setting.

This haunting, atmospheric novel lingers long after the final page, raising questions about responsibility, guilt, and the cost of trying to manipulate others for personal redemption. It is a must-read for those who enjoy stories where personal relationships collide with larger historical events.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I truly loved this book! The author did a fantastic job creating tension with the timeline going back and forth between college and the present-day of the story. The art world/yearning to be an artist element was extremely well done, and really made this a fascinating and unique read to me—I've never read anything set in that specific arena. 9/11 as a backdrop was so, so well done—mixing the character's stories with the story of that huge historical event elevated the entire book and grounded it in precise moment in history in a way that felt authentic and key to the story. The writing on a line level was just outstanding—the author's imagery and dialogue really shone, and I ended up looking up many of the artists she referenced so I could visualize the world of the book even more clearly. I cannot wait to see what else this author has up her sleeve—one of my absolute top reads of the year for sure!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC! A story about a girl finding herself, this is a great read.

The blurred line between female friendship, obsession, and hatred was done so incredibly well. Using a tragedy as the backdrop for this story was an interesting choice, I am still unsure how I feel about it. There was not one character in this book that I genuinely liked, yet the story had me hooked. I'm very interested in this author's future work!