Sometimes I Lie is a fantastic book. Tense, thrilling and enthralling.

From the first page I was hooked on this book. There are so many twists and turns it feels like it's hard to keep up but everything becomes clear at the end. I loved the characters in this book and thought it was so well written. This is the first book I've read by Alice Feeney and I'm looking forward to reading more of her work. I would give this book 4.5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, HQ and the author for the chance to review.

** 4.5 STARS**

All psychological thrillers mess with your head, that's what we expect, but Alice Feeney has taken it a step further with this clever, compelling story. A story related to us by Amber Reynolds as she lies in a hospital bed whilst in a coma.

I really don't want to give anything away here - it would be way too easy to give away a crucial segment of the plot and spoil the whole thing for anyone else, let's just say that this is possibly one of the most twisty turny books that I've had the pleasure to read.

The characters are brilliant ( some of them are chilling ) but they're very much at home in their own skins. As I've already indicated, the plot is superb, and has everything that a great psychological thriller should have. I don't know whether I'm on my head or my heels right now. What an almighty twist awaits those of you who have yet to read this book - phew!

Alice Feeney is one talented writer, the narrative was spiced with some wonderful phrases, almost poetic. Here are just a couple of examples -

'I tread carefully over a carpet of lies, trying not to disturb them'

'We all have to have something or someone to love, otherwise the love inside us has nowhere to go '

Well, I think I've rattled on enough right now - if I were you, I'd just grab myself a copy just as soon as I could. I'm sure it'll keep you as enthralled as I've been.

*Thank you to Netgalley, Harlequin and Alice Feeney for my ARC in exchange for an honest unbiased review*

This book was just not for me. I found it totally confusing from beginning until the end.

Sometimes I Lie

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant! Alice Feeney certainly knows how to deliver a tale full of twists and turns, sometimes dark and threatening and filled with really interesting characters. I was hooked immediately by the opening pages where the reader meets comatose Amber. She has awareness of her surroundings and the reader quickly learns that she's been involved in an accident. She has a husband, a sister and works for a morning TV programme where there are some clashes of personality. These people feature throughout and the plotting is complex and compelling.

The narrative moves back and forth in time and place. We see the world and interpret events through Amber's eyes. But we already know that sometimes she lies; so where's the truth and how did she end up in hospital? Who's to be trusted and who's betrayed?

Psychological thrillers seems to be the genre of the moment and there are many strong books. But this really stands out; the pace is fast, the trickery superb and it's a real edge of the seat read. I've whipped through it in a couple of sittings and just when you think it's all over, it turns again. This is definitely an author to watch out for and I'm eagerly awaiting her next book!

My thanks to the publisher for an early review copy via Netgalley.

This book is brilliant! What I enjoyed most was the tension and suspense, once I got into it I was well and truly gripped. I loved that I guessed the ending wrong. I really thought that I knew how this would unfold. Great twists and turns!
A well written debut novel from Alice Feeney with believable characters, a flawless story line and tension in bucket loads. I read this within a matter of days, really enjoyed doing so and I was left thinking about the story ages after finishing. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.

Thank you!

Nothing is as straightforward as it seems in this book. The title should give you a clue – especially as it is repeated in the first paragraph. You get so wound up in the story, trying to work out who has caused the accident that put Amber in the coma, why and how, that the last thing that occurs to you is that you may be reading lies.
Amber, the narrator, is lying in a hospital bed, unable to move, see or speak. She can only try to piece things together from the snippets that she is able to hear – and you, as the reader, have no other voice to direct you. So, of course you believe what you read. After all, why would she lie to the reader? Or is it her who is lying? What about her “visitors”?
There are flashbacks to her childhood – also in first person narration. She was an unhappy child, with alcoholic parents who neither loved her, nor cared for her. They moved from town to town, and she had to continually start anew. She eventually gave up making friends as she would lose them with the next move. Things deteriorated with the arrival of her sister, Claire, upon whom her parents doted. In contrast to the unlovely Amber, Claire was beautiful, intelligent, sociable and loveable. (“I think my parents used to love me, but I disappointed them so often that the love got rubbed out”). Amber was left with no self-confidence, and in adult life developed OCD, clearly as a result of her damaged childhood. Her only childhood friend was Taylor. Taylor had perfect parents and a perfect house. They share a birthday, a love of books and soon are inseparable best friends. As an adult, her only friend is Jo. She still has a love-hate relationship with Claire. Her marriage and work-life are collapsing around her – and now she is in a coma.
Past and present become intermingled as Amber tries to work out what is happening to her, and tries to wake up: “The truth has got a little tangled and twisted while I’ve been lying here, but the strands are starting to unravel and straighten out”. Actually, for the reader, the strands become increasingly entangled and reality ever more warped. It is impossible to know who you (or Amber) should trust. Even, right at the end, the truth is evasive: “I unzip the body of who I used to be and step outside of myself; a newborn Russian doll, a little smaller than I was before, wondering how many other versions of me are still hidden inside”.
This is a beautifully crafted thriller – fast paced even as the main character is comatose. The writing is superb with fabulous imagery: “She inhales the admiration and breathes out arrogance, her own bespoke photosynthesis”; “I open the back door and wait a second or two before stepping outside, cautious not to disturb the disturbing”; “you steal stolen seconds and gobble up misused minutes, sticking them all together to make a delicate chain of borrowed time, hoping it will stretch”. You may forget the individual actions of this book, as it twists and turns, but the whole will leave an indelible print on your consciousness.

About the Book

My name is Amber Reynolds. There are three things you should know about me:

1. I’m in a coma.
2. My husband doesn’t love me anymore.
3. Sometimes I lie.



My Thoughts

This book was impossible to put down! I started reading it late in the evening and I got so engrossed that I was unaware of anything until four hours later when I finished the final chapter!

I love an unreliable narrator and you certainly get one of those in this novel! Amber Reynolds is in a coma so straight away you can’t be sure if she’s remembering things correctly, or if she’s remembering but not being honest and this is what hooked me in. The way we’re told three things about her and one of them is that she sometimes lies is genius!

This is a hard book to review because I really don’t want to give anything away. I will say that I was never sure who to trust in this novel at any point. Amber’s husband Paul behaves oddly, Amber’s relationship with her sister is strange but I could never quite put my finger on what was going on. The title Sometimes I Lie seems apt for quite a few characters, not just Amber – they’re all quite unreliable.

The way this novel is written hooks you in very quickly and it will keep you hooked all the way through. It’s very fast-paced and gripping, and easy to read. There are twists and turns as the book goes on and they will make your head spin! I can usually guess what’s going on in thrillers these days as I read so many of them but this book got me, I had no idea. The final third of this book left me feeling like I didn’t know which way was up and I loved it!

Sometimes I Lie is an original take on the thriller genre and won’t want to miss out on reading this brilliant, twisty, intense novel! It’s due to be published on 23 March and I highly recommend that you pre-order your copy now! Sometimes I lie is available from here.

About the Author

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Alice Feeney is a writer and journalist. She spent 16 years at the BBC, where she worked as a Reporter, News Editor, Arts and Entertainment Producer and One O’clock News Producer.

Alice is a Faber Academy graduate from the class of 2016. She has lived in London and Sydney and has now settled in the Surrey countryside, where she lives with her husband and dog.

Sometimes I Lie is her debut thriller and is being published around the world in 2017.

(Author information taken from: CurtisBrown.co.uk)

This review is written with thanks to HQ and Netgalley for my copy of Sometimes I Lie.
The cover shown in the image on the left holds the first few sentences of the book - "My name is Amber. Three things you should know. I'm in a coma. My husband doesn't love me anymore. Sometimes I lie." WI felof these statements are truthful and what do we really know about the characters in this book?
It is difficult to give a clearer synopsis whilst keeping this review spoiler free, as at the outset of Sometimes I Lie, it is clear that what we are reading might not be the truth, and it is our task as readers to separate the truth from the lies. This made Amber's character compelling and I wanted to find out more about her. Is she really in a coma? Is her marriage really an unhappy one? What other lies has she told and what impact would these have upon her story?However, the unreliability of the narration prevented me from sympathising with Amber in a way I might have done were I convinced she were telling the truth.
Sometimes I Lie is told over different time frames: Now, which covers late December and early January; Then, which covers the run up to Christmas in the same year, and a series of diary entries from 1992. This helps Feeney to build tension, as it describes how Amber came to be in her current position, as the two time frames meet each other and the reader begins to build a picture of what has happened. The diaries allow the reader to gain insight into the characters in the novel, and I found this strand of the novel particularly interesting, as they provide Feeney with the opportunity to incorporate her plot twist. If you've read my reviews before you'll know that I love a twist, and I had high hopes for this one. However, whilst the twist was innovative, and not one I guessed, I felt that there were too many elements to it, which left me feeling confused. I had to back track on occasion to check that I had interpreted the novel correctly.
Overall, I was drawn in by Feeney's writing style and I felt that the plot had the potential to be translated to an unputdownable book. However, at times, this potential was not realised and I finished Sometimes I Lie feeling slightly disappointed and wanting more.

If you are looking for a comfy, cosy, fireside read, turn away now, this book is not for you! If, however, you are looking for a twisty, turny, captivating read then close the doors and absorb yourself in 'Sometimes I Lie'.
The book is written from Amber's perspective, the three things you should know about Amber (according to Amber) are, 1. She's in a coma, 2. Her husband doesn't love her and 3. Sometimes she lies. And so it begins. I'm going into no further detail than that, because the less you know about Amber Reynolds world upon entry the better the book works. Suffice it to say prepare to be wrong footed and kept guessing until the end, this is a great page turner of a novel, even now I'm not 100% sure I've got everything straight.
Thanks to Netgalley for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow. I tend to find psychological thrillers a bit hit or miss but this is most definitely a hit. Incredible writing, a gripping storyline and more twists than a twisty thing. Once I started reading I literally couldn't put it down and finished the whole thing in a day.

The story begins with main character Amber Reynolds realizing she's in hospital, trapped in a coma with no memory of how or why but afraid that it may not have been an accident. As doctors, nurses and her friends and family come and go from her room we (and Amber) begin to figure out what really happened. While keeping us up to date in the present the story flashes backs to the week leading up to the "accident" and we get diary entries from Amber's childhood which help to piece together who Amber really is and exactly how she ended up in that comma.

It's brilliantly done and the way the author moves back and forward in time releasing little bits of information and hints of what may have happened is genius. I read a lot of thrillers and can usually make a fair guess at what happened but honestly I had no clue. Every time I thought I had it figured out there was a new twist which just flipped everything around. You literally can't trust anything or anyone.

There is a trend at the moment for unreliable narrators in psychological thrillers, something that often puts me off. However, despite knowing that Amber was prone to lying (the clue's in the title) and therefore not reliable, I found myself liking her and consequently the novel a lot. I found myself believing her, rooting for her and willing her to figure it out and just generally wake up. The fact that she's trapped in the coma brings quite a claustrophobic atmosphere to the story. It's frustrating, exciting and completely addictive.

I won't say anything else for fear of spoilers but in case you haven't guessed by now this is definitely a book I'd recommend everyone read as soon as possible.

Thanks to NetGalley and publishers HQ for providing me with an ARC. As always all views are my own.

Amber is in a coma after an accident. She can't move, but she can hear absolutely everything. Full of brilliant twists and turns with the story alternating between Amber's life in the present day and the past. Well written. Totally recommend. My thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for the advance reader copy.

Fiendish. That's the best word I can think of to describe this book. Think you know what's going on? Oh no you don't. Other authors can do twists but Ms Feeney actually messes with your understanding of who the characters actually are. Couple that with the narrator being in a coma and drugged up to the eyeballs and what you get is an almost dream like novel where your perceptions change with every chapter and nothing can be relied on. Loved it.

We are told from the start that the character in this book lies. You expect plot twists but some of the ones here were totally unexpected. A very entertaining book where you cannot believe what you read!

Sometimes I Lie just might be THE thriller of 2017. We saw it with Gone Girl, then The Girl on the Train, and now it's clearly going to happen again with Sometimes I Lie. Alice Feeney writes the story with this level of suspense rarely created. And the premise is outstanding! A novel told from the perspective of a woman in a coma and right from the start, she warns us she lies. Immediately set up with an unreliable narrator in a clever plotting choice. I constantly found myself surprised by twists and turns. I could not get enough! The story is addicting. It is surprising that this is only Feeney's debut novel. If you enjoy psychological thrillers, do not miss out on Sometimes I Lie. I am telling you..it will be THE book of the year.

I'm unable to send a review at this time as I can't get into the story.

OMG! What a fabulous and twisted read Sometime I Lie is, there is nothing more satisfying than reading a psychological thriller that well and truly messes with your head, and a word of warning here this is one that will leave your head spinning. The market is saturated with psychological thrillers at the moment and on the whole most of the ones I have read have been a decent read, but tend to lack the "thrilling" element I've come to expect from such books, but I'm happy to report that Sometime I Lie has the "thrilling" element I crave, it's also dark and very, very sinister so from the opening chapter I was well and truly hooked.


From the book description it's evident that Amber is not going to be a reliable narrator, and she certainly doesn't disappoint. I'm particularly fond of such narrators as you are never quite sure what is real or where the truth lies. As Amber lies in coma there is a deep sense of malevolence that radiates from every page. The characters surrounding Amber as she lies vulnerable all come under close scrutiny and you can't help but become suspicious of everyone of them at some point in this very deceitful tale. I really thought I had worked out where this story was heading, but fortunately the author wrong footed me at every turn. You know something terrible as happened to Amber but the why's and how's are intricately revealed layer by devious layer.

I could go on and on about this book, it really was that good! but in doing so I could give away spoilers which is never my intention, so what I would say this is definitely one of those books you need to read for yourself. It's difficult to believe this is Alice Feeney's debut novel it's an highly addictive and compelling read, deliciously plotted with twist and turns galore I devoured this book in just over a day and it's definitely going to be one of my top reads of 2017.
5⭐ This review maybe altered slightly and edited prior to publication on my blog

"People think that good and bad are opposites but they're wrong, they're just a mirror image of one another in broken glass."

I wanted to read Sometimes I Lie both because of the blurb, which has drawn everyone in, and because it has had rave reviews. Sometimes these majorly hyped thrillers fall flat, but I did enjoy this one and it felt fresh and a bit different to the usual Gone Girl wannabes.

So, right from the start I knew I couldn't trust Amber and as I continued to read it was obvious that none of the characters were entirely trustworthy. Throw in a whole bunch of plot twists and Sometimes I Lie makes for a gripping read.
I did, however, guess one of the biggest plot twists, but it didn't ruin it for me. This is a book that keeps delivering shocks, even in the last few pages.

Although there are a lot of twists, they're not just thrown in randomly; Sometimes I Lie reveals secrets at just the right times. It's a well plotted book and I also love the story telling technique of switching from Amber in a coma to diary older entries.
There is also substance to this story, it looks at lots of different relationships, between work colleagues, lovers, sisters and friends. It's not just a shock value read.

There's some lovely writing too, particularly Feeney's descriptions of time experienced by Amber in the coma.

"People talk about time passing but here, in this room, time doesn't pass at all. It crawls and lingers and smears the walls of your mind with muck-stained memories, so you can't see what's in front or behind you."

I did have a couple of issues with Sometimes I Lie; some aspects I found a little unbelievable or a bit too convenient. And sometimes I didn't find Amber's actions particularly realistic either.

I didn't really like Amber, or any of the characters for that matter, but I don't think you're really supposed to. I didn't really feel an emotional link to any of the characters.

However, Sometimes I Lie is a fascinating debut novel from Alice Feeney and I'm looking forward to what she rights next.

My Rating: 3.5/5 (rounded up to 4 stars for Goodreads and Netgalley)

I received a digital copy of Sometimes I Lie via NetGalley in return for an honest review. My thanks to the author and publisher.

This was gripping story, made believable by the ordinariness of the main character. You are introduced gradually to the main characters and enough is said to make the story engaging while making it difficult to decide who is telling the truth. I did find the last 2 twists stretched things for me and left me disappointed with the ending. However, it captures the current trend for psychological thrillers which is why I would still recommend it.

This is one of these books that will mess with your head and have you thinking about it long after you finish it. Amber narrates the story as she lies in her hospital bed in a coma. We don't really know why she is in a coma but the one thing we are sure off is that sometimes Amber tells lies.

This is a twist turning, intriguing, well thought out page turner with characters who are dysfunctional. I loved this book.

I would like to thank NetGalley, Harlequin (UK) Limited and the author Alice Feeney for my ARC In exchange for an honest review.

The book opens with Amber Reynolds in a coma after some kind of serious accident - she can't speak, move or even open her eyes but her mind is still able to function. The plot is unfolded in three strands: Amber in her comatose state, her recollection of the week leading up to the accident and a series of diary entries from twenty five years ago - This Book is very fast paced to the point I could not wait to get back to it and race through this book. There are twists and turns and more twists when you least expect it so you feel literally exhausted after reading it ( In a GOOD way ) I cannt praise this book enough, it was simply fantastic and one of my faves so far this year!