The Truth in Our Lies

I truly don’t know how I feel about this book or how to review it. It was a very informative story of historical fiction during WW2 that some might enjoy. For me it just didn’t seem like a book on characters that I was reading and seemed more like an a very long article. It felt flat to me. It would be a good read for a school study or an essay. Don’t think I would recommend. Thank you netgalley for letting me give an honest review of this book.

The Truth in Our Lies, by British author Eliza Graham, is a phenomenal book about the clandestine radio broadcasts aimed at Germany during WWII. Told through the eyes of Anna, one of the writers, the author reveals the struggles of the group to make the broadcasts sound like a legitimate German station while surreptitiously inserting tiny untruths aimed at causing doubt and unrest within the audience. The book is so much more than a war story, however. Readers will quickly become aware that each character has their own deceptions going on...half truths that define what each presents to the others. What is true and what is false kept this reader totally engaged to the very last line. This is more of a psychological thriller, a character study to be savored and contemplated and should appeal to a wider audience than just readers who enjoy war stories. I voluntarily reviewed an advance copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

This is a great story with great characters and plot. Will read more from this author in the future. Highly recommend.

Anna Hall suffers a major setback in her much loved career as a highly respected Second World War RAF Sergeant, guiding pilots through the Battle of Britain. The disaster occurs when she is at home with her father, a parish vicar and her handicapped sister. It happens when a bomb is dropped on his church whilst she and her sister are trying to rescue artefacts and religious valuables from St Paul’s Church. It kills her sister outright and severely burns her. Once extremely attractive and with a new boyfriend, she is left with grotesque facial burns and feeling guilty that she was the cause of her sister’s death.
Upon her recovery, Anna meets a male acquaintance from University and he recruits her to work in a secret radio broadcasting facility in a small rural village. Here they are posing as a German broadcasting unit and her job is to write scripts broadcast for Germans, and mix in with certain truths, pieces of propaganda (outright lies) to destabilise the Nazi German audience. Gradually other workers join the covert group, some POW’s and other disenchanted German personnel, and also a young female gymnast. She loves her new job where the truth is blurred with lies. Their work is good and authentic too, but very tenuous and dangerous. Soon an easy camaraderie builds up in the team and they all hope they can keep up their important war effort and succeed without being detected and exposed
This is a top-notch novel, intelligent, meticulously researched and totally involving. The characters are an eclectic mix but relatable and built with considerable skill. I felt their tension and worry and at times my heart pounded at an alarming rate. The author has an outstanding talent for this genre, veiled news and yet clearly credible. I loved the emerging relationships built up within the team and was totally shocked by a few amazing plot twists that left me in awe of the flair and imagination used within the storyboard. I cannot find my words to commend this novel highly enough. It’s exceptional, interesting and taught me about events in the history of my country that I knew nothing about and found extremely interesting. It was an act of genius to include a highly trained character (their chief in command) that was actually there in truth but also in the story. I loved Anna and admired her courage and tenacity when events challenged her to the extreme and she had to sift through the truths and lies that were a trademark of this story. She was a true red-blooded heroine.
I received a complimentary copy of this outstanding novel from publisher Lake Union Publishing through my membership of NetGalley. I was very pleased to receive my copy and feel honoured to submit my considered review. These are my own honest opinions without any outside influences. It’s an all-round 5* review from me and it’s my pleasure to award this novel a very highly recommended status.

This is a really interesting read. Eliza Graham has mastered her subject but can also write elegant prose. Hopefully this novel will do well it deserves to.

This is an interesting book set in a little known department working secretly during WW2. The setting is interesting and the characters are a varied bunch from different backgrounds. In addition to the intrigues of the war there are the personal ones which impact on the group. The different types of damage caused by warfare to both civilians and military personnel are also included. An intriguing story with a nice twist at the end.

The Truth in Our Lies is good historical fiction novel with great characters and storyline. Well written and well developed characters.

The Truth in Our Lies by Eliza Graham is a gripping, suspenseful historical novel set in WWII.
Anna is the main character and has a complexity that is fascinating. The trauma that she has experienced has shaped her into who she is, and her motivations from here on forth.

Anna is flawed, yet has an innocence and a sliver of her being deep down that hopes for something better to come- hence becoming engulfed into covert groups/operations to help Britain overcome the enemy. I enjoyed reading her journey through this book.

This is more then just HF, it is about overcoming barriers, pushing on when all you want to do is succumb to your adversaries. It is a thriller and a puzzle slowly unraveling for the reader as a reward for reading onward. The ending was satisfying as well.

A good book.

Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

The author draws you into the lives and the interaction between the character of a gripping story. The struggles to escape persecution. It is a story of espionage and what people did to survive at a time of fear.

2.75 stars

I really liked the premise of "The Truth in Our Lies", but the novel didn't quite manage to meet my expectations.

The characters aren't all that well-developed and the main character's obsession with her face got rather annoying because it wasn't really portrayed in a relatable way. The interpersonal relationships are underdeveloped and the romantic couplings especially felt unearned and out of place.

The parts of the novel focusing on the protagonist's work are a little more interesting but are only dealt with in a superficial manner. Instead, the novel chooses to focus on the personal relationships of the characters but without really doing anything with them.

Overall, this novel was a disappointment and I definitely expected more.

Fascinating story of the clandestine radio broadcasts aimed at Germany during WWII. The story is told through the eyes of one of the writers of the scripts and we see just how much effort goes into making the broadcasts appear real while at the same time hiding sensitive information. There if romance but it's not overdone. This reads more like a psychological thriller the deeper into the novel you get. As the team gets to know each other doubts gradually arise about the actions of a few. I thought the characters were a bit stilted nut I really enjoyed the actual story and it's bonus of genuine intrigue.
4*

The Truth in Our Lies
By Eliza Graham
About a third of the way through this book I gave up. I felt it difficult to dig into the story as the characters were lacking. I couldn’t make any connection with the characters and lost interest. They might have gained more depth and personality as the book went on but I didn’t care to find out. It was hard to follow the language a bit at times too. It fell flat for me.
I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. For more book reviews visit my blog at, https://simplyannehere.wordpress.com

I wanted to love this book as it's my favorite genre. Unfortunately I felt the characters were somewhat flat and the plot could have been better developed overall.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy free of charge. This is my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

I really wanted to like this book, but I couldn't. There was not a definite plot and the characters were not interesting to me. I read most of this book but gave up at about 60% in.

I really didn’t like this book
I felt the pace was too fast. This could have been such an exciting book but it wasn’t
The story lacked depth and was very confusing
It was a hard read

An excellent book with a wonderful set of characters and an engaging storyline. Highly recommended to every reader that is interested in a book that really draws you in.

This is a fabulous historical fiction novel. Until reading this I knew nothing about the clandestine radio broadcasts of WWII. The author made the subject very interesting with her skillful writing style. The characters were an eclectic group and the more they learned of each other, questions started to arise.
Many thanks to Lake Union Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Well-researched but the characters fall flat. I ultimately found the story not that interesting.

Many thanks to Netgalley, the author, and the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Anna's suffered a terrible blow- she feels responsible for the death of her sister and for her own facial disfigurement but she finds new purpose in this interesting novel about the British propaganda effort during WWII. The cast of characters who created, produced, and performed the clandestine radio broadcasts into Germany is well done. This isn't a deep emotional novel (where well it could have been) but it's a good informative read about a lesser known aspect of the war effort. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. For historical fiction fans.

This is the first time that if have read a book by Eliza Graham and now cannot wait to read more. This was a very enjoyable read and one that will stay with me for a while to come. Whilst i rarely write what a story is about as i prefer one to read the book for themselves, i can recommend.

My thanks to Netgalley and the Publishers for my copy. This is my honest review, freely given.

Whilst I quite enjoyed this book, I found it muddled. The actually storyline was good and believable but I'm not sure about the characters. The main character obsessed about her looks, but as it's wartime would the general public be that shocked?
I think this is definitely a marmite book.

I truly don't know how to review THE TRUTH IN OUR LIES by Eliza Graham. It was slow and confusing and certainly wasn't what I expected.

When I requested it, I didn't know that it was more of a spy/espionage story as I hate those types of books and prefer just a heartwarming historical fiction read or even a psychological thriller. But not spies and espionage. Even that being the case, I still would have continued reading had it been the slightest bit enjoyable but I felt like I was reading a textbook on WW2 and MI6. I couldn't connect to any of the characters and had no idea what they were doing, and I basically felt it was just too convoluted for my liking.

However, I would loved to read a story about Anna and losing her sister in an air raid and the facial burns she received as a result. Something heartwarming despite the horrors of war. But this was no such book.

I gave up about a quarter of the way through. And I felt bad about it. Just as I feel terrible writing such a negative review. Because I know this is someone's hard work and they have spent many hours creating and producing it...but try as I might, I just couldn't enjoy it.

While the book may have gotten better had I stuck with it, as harsh as it may sound, I didn't care to find out. In all honesty, a book shouldn't take so long to captivate a reader. And this one sadly did not captivate me at all.

But I certainly haven't written off reading something else by Eliza Graham. I would be interested to see some other tales she's told. It may be that it was just THIS book that failed to hold my attention.

While I personally wouldn't recommend THE TRUTH IN OUR LIES, I'm sure there are plenty of readers out there who would devour this book. Everyone's tastes are different, and this one just couldn't whet my appetite.

I would like to thank #ElizaGraham, #NetGalley and #LakeUnionPublishing for an ARC of #TheTruthInOurLies in exchange for an honest review.

This was a well written piece of historical fiction! It focuses on Anna's struggle to come to terms with her sister's death and also the disfigurement she received from the same bombing. Her journey is one that was a joy to read.

I was a huge fan of Eliza Graham's "The Lines We Leave Behind", so I was excited to read this book. Unfortunately, it was a bit of a disappointment. I really wanted to like it, but it just wasn't the right fit for me. I wasn't a fan of the characters or the story. Beattie, Anna, Becker, and William were just there and I felt no connection to any of them. The only interesting person was Micki and I still felt like I didn't know much about her. Throughout the book, Beattie was clever and always on top of things, I doubt he would have let anything fall through the cracks like it did. William's issues were extremely noticeable, Micki was able to spot the signs, so I'm sure Beattie was also aware. For such a top secret organization, so many things got past them.

If you are a fan of historical fiction and the propaganda side of war, this may be the book for you. I look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Amazon Publishing UK through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Holy cow. This book sucks you in, and you don't want to put it down. You often forget about Anna's disfigurement until it gets mentioned, but it plays a key role in her survival, as does her ability to think on her feet and help the war effort in ways she could never imagine.

I really wanted to love the Truth in Our Lies but I couldn't get into it. I felt like character development was flat - as much as I love historical fiction, I didn't enjoy this one.

Based on fact, this story is set during WW2 and in the midst of a very secret propaganda department. Anna is recruited by an old university acquaintance and finds herself writing scripts for a radio programme. This programme however, is going out to Nazi Germany, made up of black news or propaganda. This was a real tactic used during the war, with every opportunity taken to spread disquiet amongst the German population. Information was taken from refugees and prisoners of war to ensure broadcasts were believable and contained elements of truth. Anna is soon working with a very disparate group of people, all of whom have different reasons for being there. And then disaster strikes..........
A well written and very well researched story, which kept me gripped throughout!

Oh I am sorry but I found this book to be hard work.
I found the characters just didn't click with me or together.
I wanted to like them all. I found Bertie particularly irritating and pompous.
The story which could have been really exciting given the premise of the background, I found to be quite flat.

I found this book to be confusing. I gave up on it at 40%. I wanted to like it and tried, just couldn't get it.

A phenomenal book!
Eliza Graham is one author I will be reading again.
I loved the character build of Anna. Growing from a heroine merely defined by her disfigurement and being put down by her guilt of her sister's death to the strong woman she became is inspiring, confident and hopeful.
I lo've this "un-put-down-able" book.

Anna suffered bad facial burns in an air raid that killed her sister and so when an old university acquaintance recruits her for a secret mission, broadcasting to the Germans, she jumps at the chance, being in a quiet country village away from everyone and out of sight is perfect for her. The little team are soon broadcasting news stories to Germany aimed to create worry and instill doubt amongst it's listeners but how many secrets do the team members have and who can really be trusted?

A good story that I found very interesting as a different take on a WW2 novel, strong characters and enough intrigue and twists to keep you interested. Another good book by this author

This was a very enjoyable read and one that will stay with me for a while to come. A thrilling, historical novel set in WWII.

Anna Hall was an air force operative guiding RAF pilot’s home during the battle of Britain, she had to make calculations and decisions quickly. During an air raid, her father’s church was hit, she was badly burnt and her sister Grace was killed. Anna had promised her father she would always look out for her older sister as she had several disabilities and she blamed herself for Grace’s death.

Anna’s face was badly burnt on the right side, she wears a veil to hide her disfigurement and feels extremely self-conscious. She’s approached by Alexander Beattie to work at a top secret political warfare project and they broadcast demoralizing propaganda over the German and Italian radio. It's purpose to cause concern, fear, and uncertainty, give England an upper hand and win the war.

The Truth in Our Lies plot had potential, but for some reason I didn’t feel any connection to the characters, I found the story moved slowly, it really dragged in places and it's a shame as I have really enjoyed reading two other books written by Eliza Graham.
Thanks to NetGalley for my copy in exchange for an honest review and two stars from me.

I am a big fan of books focused on WWII. But this one really fell short for me. It is a different take on the time period which is okay with me. But, to be honest, the characters were not that well developed. The main character, Anna, is overly obsessed with the scars on her face. The way the relationships are dealt with in such a shallow manner did not help my reading enjoyment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.