Member Reviews

Everyone is Lying to You by Jo Piazza is the perfect summer read! I devoured this #tradwife influencer novel in no time at all. Piazza writes a fast-paced suspenseful modern thriller leaving readers on the edge of their seats the whole way through. It's a women's fiction redemption novel that also serves as a primer for wanna-be influencers worldwide!

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The word I keep landing on when trying to describe this book is delicious- I absolutely devoured it! It is a wild ride through the world of trad wife influencing, which the author has researched extensively, mixed with an intensely suspenseful mystery/thriller. Lizzie, a struggling magazine writer, reconnects with her former best friend Bex, who strangely ghosted her years earlier. Bex, now an enormously popular trad wife influencer, promises Lizzie the scoop of a lifetime, and Lizzie can't resist, despite her anger and sadness at Bex's past behavior. The two meet up at a mom influencer conference, and the wild ride begins. Twists and turns and memorable characters abound, grabbing you right from the first page and not letting you go. After reading a lot of historical fiction, it was fun to read something so contemporary, and to get a glimpse behind the curtain of the influencer world, and even better that it was done so with such a deliciously entertaining and suspenseful narrative.

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This is the ultimate tradwife story that shows not all that glitters is gold. A suspenseful story focusing on the relationship of two friends and the disappearance of one. Highly recommended!

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Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for the chance to review this book!

I would actually give this book more like 3.5 stars if it was an option. I really liked the character of Lizzie, and I wanted to stay longer in her world. With financial and parenting struggles, she is a very relatable character. Alas, we are whisked off to the desert (or prairie?) for a deep dive into the world of mama influencers. This aspect is really what drew me in and made me curious to read this book. After all, we all know so much of what we see on social media is fake, so it was nice to peek behind the curtain. I would have enjoyed more focus on this aspect. Overall the book felt like it was trying to squeeze too much in and the direction was a bit off. Is it a tale of estranged best friends trying to reunite? A study of influencers and social media? A murder mystery? The ending really required too much suspension of disbelief and felt a little rushed, with an odd focus on characters that we didn't really meet until the end. It also felt almost like it was trying to set up a sequel, with some of the unanswered questions being brought up in the last few pages and no resolution.

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Reading Everyone Is Lying to You by Jo Piazza was a thrilling and immersive experience that had me questioning every character's motives. I was captivated by the dark undercurrents of social media influencer culture, which added layers of complexity to the plot. This book left me reflecting on the nature of truth and deception in our digital age, making it a compelling read that I couldn't put down.

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I know very little about social influencers, so I thought there was too much about it at the beginning of the book. It got a lot better as it went along and the characters started to stand out. I was not impressed by the convention of influencers, could not see the point of it,

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I am so impressed with Jo Piazza's commitment to the trad wife suspense novel! It's a seering social commentary on the current state of influencers and work from home moms/the new wave of trad wife popularity, all wrapped up in a delicious murder mystery. I believe it will be the first of its kind, but I foresee a LOT of copycat trad wife stories about to hit the market, and I doubt any of them will be as good or innovative.

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Who Can You Trust When Everyone is Lying? 🤔
Imagine scrolling through Instagram, watching a picture-perfect influencer live out a dreamy, curated life—only to find out that behind the aesthetic farmhouse and perfectly arranged family photos, there’s murder, scandal, and secrets darker than a badly lit Reel. That’s exactly what Jo Piazza delivers in Everyone is Lying to You, a fast-paced thriller that dives deep into the twisted world of social media, friendship, and deception.

The Ultimate #Tradwife Scandal 💍🔪
Bex—now Rebecca Sommers—is the ultimate influencer, serving up wholesome, Pinterest-perfect tradwife content to millions of adoring followers. But when her husband turns up brutally murdered and she mysteriously vanishes, things take a turn from cozy country chic to full-blown crime scene. 😳

Enter Lizzie, her former best friend and struggling journalist, who is suddenly pulled into the chaos. What starts as a golden career opportunity quickly turns into a deadly investigation. And in this influencer world, the filters don’t just blur reality—they completely distort it.

Why You’ll Be Obsessed 📱🔥
A Murder That Breaks the Algorithm: The pacing is as addictive as doom-scrolling your For You Page. Each twist is juicier than the last.

Toxic Friendships & Social Media Fakery: The novel brilliantly skewers influencer culture, showing the unsettling contrast between what’s posted online and what’s happening IRL.

Unputdownable Suspense: Every chapter ends with a what-the-heck moment that makes you say, “Just one more page…” until you realize it’s 3 a.m. and you’re still reading.

Final Verdict: A Must-Read Thriller 🏆
If you love juicy, unfiltered mysteries (Big Little Lies vibes, but with an influencer twist), Everyone is Lying to You is the kind of book you’ll devour in one sitting. Dark, twisty, and downright addictive—just like the best true crime podcasts and scandalous TikTok exposés. Grab your iced coffee, find a cozy reading spot, and prepare to be influenced by this must-read thriller. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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This book had so many secrets hidden in it! Everyone has ulterior motives and nothing is as it seems.
This was a quick read for me, because I needed to get to the end! I hope there’s more for some of these characters, there are so many other juicy secrets to get into. Like a bingeable tv show I’m ready for the next season!

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Started strong, but the last quarter of so required more than a small suspension of disbelief. And while I'm no fan of fundamentalists, these people were out of Rosemary's Baby.

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I love the idea of lifting the curtain from the influencer lifestyle, even if it is via a fictional murder. And there's a certain level of schadenfreude in watching all about these seemingly perfect influencers spiraling. Definitely an engaging read.

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Solid 3.75. Received this book as an arc from Dutton Books. I thought it was good but the pacing felt a little off. I had too many questions and too little answers until about 80% when everything really picks up. I wish it would delved more into some of the influencer moms and their world but I enjoyed the characters.

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I wasn't sure if I was going to like this one as it revolves around social media. Not one of my favorite tropes. But I'm happy to say I really enjoyed it. The characters were what I loved about this. So much drama that I could not put it down.

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Everyone Is Lying to You is a fast-paced, twisty thriller that keeps you hooked from start to finish. It pulls the curtain back on Momfluencers, exposing the dark side of curated perfection, which feels even more sinister in the wake of the BallerinaFarm drama on TikTok. Lizzie and Bex are fascinating, complex characters, each bringing a sharp edge to the unfolding mystery. The book’s quick chapters and suspenseful storytelling make it impossible to put down. A thrilling and fun read that will leave you questioning everything.

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This was my first time reading Jo Piazza but won't be my last. I was never quiet sure where this story was going and there was at least one twist I didn't see coming. I fully expect tradwife fiction to be a new genre going forward.

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So fun and fast and thrilling - I was invested from the get-go. Lizzie is working for a struggling magazine when she gets a message from an old friend, Bex, asking how she's been. Bex has it all - beauty, children, husband, land, and an instagram following in the millions. Think Ballerina Farm. Bex invites her to a convention for influencer moms, and Lizzie dives into the culture both to write about for her magazine, and to catch up with her old friend. Things go awry when Bex's husband is found murdered and she goes missing. Lizzie must investigate to find out whether her friend needs to be saved... or convicted?
Piazza was likely inspired by Ballerina Farm - there's so many nods to Hannah Neeleman, from the age difference in the kids to the special oven, sourdough, farm work, and days spent in bed recovering from it all. I have to think that Megan Agnew's profile on Neeleman for The Times at least partially inspired Bex's character. At the same time though, Bex is an amalgamation of multiple real-life momfluencers and famous instagram accounts.
I really enjoyed this story, especially as someone who struggles with what to make of many of these momfluencers.
The publisher has asked that advanced reviews be kept spoiler free which I will do, with one caveat (sort-of spoiler ahead): comparing this to Gone Girl - which this book does on the cover - is the biggest spoiler and really gives away too much in my opinion. I prefer my reading experience spoiler-free, and that promotional blurb kind of ruined it.

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As a semi-regular listener of Jo Piazza's excellent podcast, Under the Influence, I was VERY excited to finally read this book - and, I'm pleased to report that it did not dissapoint! If tradwife content is something you are even remotely aware of, this book will resonate with you. Jo knows these content creators in and out, and she spares little in skewering them. And, its a very satisfying murder mystery! This one definitely hit all of my sweet spots, and I'm guessing that it will for a lot of others as well. I'll be heartily recommending this one all summer!

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This is a local author I've met and always read her work. A former journalist, she is incredibly smart and a jack-of-all-trades kind of person who is just plain interesting at everything she does. This particular novel of hers is a trad wives murder mystery. It's quick and compulsively readable, but don't expect your average thriller. This one is more of a dark comedy akin to The White Lotus. It's really over the top and exaggerates everything that influencing and trad wives are to create a thrilling narrative at the same time. It was a fun read!

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A tradwife influencer, a murder, and a whole lot of secrets—Jo Piazza’s Everyone Is Lying to You had me completely hooked from the start.

When journalist Lizzie reconnects with her old college friend Bex—now Rebecca, a wildly successful influencer with a seemingly perfect life—she never expects to be pulled into a murder investigation. But when Rebecca’s husband is found brutally killed and she disappears without a trace, Lizzie is forced to untangle the truth behind the carefully curated facade. As she delves into the dark side of social media, she uncovers layers of jealousy, betrayal, and secrets that could prove deadly.

Piazza masterfully weaves a fast-paced, sharply written thriller that kept me flipping the pages. The twists are perfectly timed, the tension is palpable, and the social media commentary feels both timely and chilling. If you love thrillers with a side of influencer drama, this is the perfect summer read.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

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This book is engaging, timely, and interesting. While there is is a mystery and it’s a doozy what makes the book stand out is the foray into the momfluencer and tradwife trends that populate our social media feeds. The momfluencer conference backdrop serves as a window into issues of motherhood, patriarchy, sexism, and more. Strongly recommend.

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