Ruth Ware has delighted me again. Her language is beautifully descriptive and right from the beginning interest is peaked. Somehow this book in some ways felt like her previous novels, but it really stands apart. She has grown immensely as a writer and with this novel, it really shows. Ware does a remarkable job writing characters that feel real. They have flaws and their goodness is always in shades of grey. There is a good balance of mysteries being revealed and secrets being kept. Just remember rule five: Know when to stop lying.

Four girls meet at boarding school and begin to play the "lying game" earning points for how well they lie and how much people believe them. Over twenty years later they gather when one of them reaches out to them. The crisis over one of the biggest lies and secrets they told is at the heart of the story. I found this to be a good story but by the end of it I didn't really care what happened to the women as a result of their lies. The lies they told and the secrets they kept affected their whole lives and the lives of those around them and yet it wasn't until the threat of losing everything did they finally realize the error of their ways. It was rather sad because in the end I began to wonder if they even knew what the truth was after all the lies they told.

I got involved with this British thriller, and found it hard to put down once I'd started it. Four old friends are summoned back to the town of their boarding school days with a simple text "I need you". Two of the former friends have children, all have moved on with their lives, but carry a secret together. When a bone is found in the small town, the elaborate tower of lies they have constructed comes tumbling down.
You have an idea what happened, but the why it happened, and the psychology of the various participants keeps your attention. A wonderful, British countryside setting, that you can see with your eyes closed. A view into another world

I received a digital copy to review from Netgalley.com.

This book just didn't quite work for me. Isa, Kate, Thea, and Fatima are friends since boarding school, bound together by a secret that is VERY slowly relayed to the reader. The girls play a game- the lying game- that doesn't have many rule, but the most important is that they will never lie to each other. That doesn't stop them from lying to just about everyone else- teachers, classmates, local town residents. Their biggest lie comes back to haunt them years later, though.
While I found The Woman in Cabin 10 to be a fast paced page turner, The Lying Game almost felt tedious to read to me.

THE LYING GAME is a non violent psychological thriller with a grabbing plot written at a steady pace that picks up towards the end. The story digs into a crime committed in the past, and brings us into the heart and mind of a group of four women haunted by its shadow.
The Game follows a set of rules: Tell a lie, Stick to your story, Don't get caught, Never lie to each other, Know when to stop lying. It was fun for the 15 years old girls bonded by a deep friendship and an unwavering loyalty that can only be forged at a boarding school. However, 15 years later, they discover that the lies, told in the past, dictate the future and some consequences come at a high price.

This was my first Ruth Ware read, and I definitely loved her writing style—so much so that I will definitely recommend this book to others and check out her past works!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC!

This book is a great read for fans of Pretty Little Liars and many others. I loved the adult aspect of the lies and how nearly twenty years later they can catch up to you. I expected and yet didn't expect the ending. It was as though I knew it was coming but I needed it written out in a trilling psychological way to really enjoy it. Good read all around.

This was my least favorite of her books. I really liked In the dark... and loved The woman in..., but this one just wasn't as compelling nor as suspenseful. It also felt like there were big holes in the story. It's well-written, but not her best thriller.

Not overly please with this title like I was with the authors other titles. I found this one boring and lacking a real thrilling element.

I have to say that I think Ruth Ware improves with each book she writes. Her first two books were memorable, and this one is even better. Just when you're sure you have it all figured out, she throws in one more twist that changes everything. Can't wait to share this with patrons!

*Thanks to NetGalley for a digital copy of this book!*

I read the Woman in Cabin 10. This was very different, not really better or worse. It sucked me in right at the beginning, but I felt like parts of the story dragged, and then were rushed at the end. It could have accomplished the same story in less pages.

I liked the shift of perspective from past to present. But I was surprised at the fact that they knew each other for such a short time in school. It was certainly a formative, and crazy time. But not quite believable that they would drop everything and go, especially since they had only seen each other rarely during the 17 years. And the secret didn't really seem so crazy to me when it was finally revealed. I don't have expertise in the law, but it seemed that their reaction to being found out was over the top. Isa was willing to give up her partner to keep this secret.

I wish there had been more even character development, especially for Fatima and Thea. They came across as very stereotypical : the mother, the artist, the hard luck, and the Muslim. So much about Isa focused on her being a mother. Constant references to breastfeeding, her obsession with being a mother, and then her completely irresponsible behavior with her child. And the fact that she was willing to give up her partner for this secret was too much.

I didn't think the characters were great, but the writing was good. There were many twists and turns. The atmosphere she created really located the story. The portrayal of small town life, and suspicion, and judgement felt real. It was a fairly quick read and it held my interest, so I would probably recommend it to people who enjoy this type of character-driven suspense story.

"Draw the person I see."

The Lying Game didn't woo me.

I have not read the Woman in Cabin 10 or in a Dark, Dark Wood. However, my friends who have read them, have enjoyed them. So I thought I would give her a try.

The Lying Game was painfully slow for me. I understand that the author had to build up the suspense in her narrative. I'm good with suspense, in fact, I love it, but in this case, I felt like nothing was really happening. I didn't feel like I learned a lot about their lying game or the other three girls for that matter. The twist was not difficult to guess and the end felt too convenient for my taste.

The Plot:

It tells the story of four women who as teenagers became best friends during their time together in a boarding school in Salten. Two decades later and they have all moved on but then one of them, Kate Atagon, sends a message with just three words saying: I need you. Isa, Fatima, and Thea leave everything behind and take the trip back to Salten and Kate.

Through Isa's perspective, which goes from the past to present, we learn about their game at lying and the secret all four shared. Isa's friends have changed but in some ways, they have remained the same. Isa's an attorney. She's on maternity leave when Kate calls her. She takes her six-month-old baby to Salten with her, leaving her boyfriend Owen behind. Fatima has become a doctor and now she's following her Muslim roots. Thea seems lost. She's drinking too much and she's too thin. Lastly, Kate is the same. Beautiful but hiding secrets from everyone.

Positive point:

I actually liked all four women. I liked the diversity of their characters. They were there for each other. Just three words were enough to bring them together. I had no problems connecting with them and liking them despite their past mistakes.

Cliffhanger: No

3/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I found this book to be very intriguing. There was enough twists to keep my interest. There were a few let downs with where I thought the story line was moving towards but overall a good read

Four girls in a boarding school play a game- they lie for the fun of it. 15 years later they have shed their habit except for keeping the one secret that could ruin their lives. They get together once they get a text from Kate, the only one to stay in the town of Salten because bones were found. Isa is the narrator, and of course her 6 month old daughter Freya who seems to be the motivation for everything. I mean everything. Even I started rolling my eyes every time she wailed because she needed to be fed (I get it, I do, but I felt like the redundancy of her proof of love for her daughter was annoying.)

While their young lives were run by the lying game, the bulk of the book was centered on the big lie, the exposure, and The test of friendship. Anyway, the mystery of Ambrose's death had me guessing a few times at the beginning, and I was still kind of surprised at the end, so kudos on that. Apparently others figured it out before me, so don't go by my inability to Agatha it. And I did like the ending. I also liked that there wasn't the typical monologue given at the end by the nefarious murderer. We still find out what happened, but it seemed at bit more realistic.

From the author of In a Dark Dark Wood (fabulous) and The Woman In Cabin 10 (very good), Ruth Ware's new thriller hits the bookstores on July 25th. This latest endeavor hurls between two time periods, today's world where four women hide their past and the boarding school life of seventeen years ago where the Lying Game directed their every move. Isa (new mother, lawyer vs. new student to Salten school), Fatima (GP doc, faithful Muslim mother of two vs. Isa's roommate at Salten), Thea (alcoholic, anorexic casino worker vs. transfer student to Salten after being expelled from every other school), and Kate (current resident of the Mill, just down the road from Salten school vs. daughter of the art teacher at Salten, instigator of the Lying Game). Bones are found by a beach-combing dog near Kate's house, and the four women are inexorably drawn together once again, hiding their secrets from spouses, running into people whose lives were hurt due to the lies the girls told long ago, and coming face to face with the younger step-brother of Kate whose tragic life left behind deep trauma. Is this a page turner? Absolutely. Is it as good as her previous two books? Nope. I found the characters to be less appealing; it was hard to root for any of these self-absorbed women who seemed to have little depth, and the 'bad' guys just were not that complex either. The book is good, but not great.

I got half-way through & had to stop. The first 25% was only ok. I forced myself to keep going, but can't go any further. Too overly dramatic. Too juvenile. She uses the word "snatch," or a derivative thereof, 21 times. Egad. Get thee to a thesaurus.

Ms. Ware is keeping her game up with this new novel. Her setting details and character development are once again superb. Characters are realistic with flaws and conflicting emotions. The burning mill will forever be stamped in my memory.

Thank you Net Galley for this ARC of Ruth Ware's newest book The Lying Game. I have only read one of her books The Woman in Cabin 10, which I loved. I expected the same from The Lying Game, but was disappointed. No spoilers here. The book is about four best friends who attended the same boarding school and played a "lying game", but vowed never to lie to each other. They are scandalously thrown out of school. Years later they come together once more to cover up something they did as 15 yr olds. This book only got good in the last few chapters. Only 2 ✨.

I had a difficult time getting into this novel. It was really slow until around the last 40%. I had a difficult time believing that these women who had only really been friends for less than a year, who hadn't talked or kept up with each other for 20 years, were so close that they dropped everything and ran to be with one simply because of a text. I didn't find this at all suspenseful.

**5 Stars**

" ...I am thinking about how, however much we struggled to be free, this is how it always ends, the four us, skewered together by the past. "

" Why didn't I realize that a lie can outlast any truth, and that in this place people remember? "

I was so excited to receive an ARC of The Lying Game after finishing Ware's The Woman in Cabin 10 last week. The Woman in Cabin 10 was such a fantastic read that I knew I needed to read Ware's other two books as soon as possible.

The Lying Game is not the page turning, heart pounding read of The Woman in Cabin 10. Yes, as many reviewers pointed out, this book isn't The Woman in Cabin 10, but it certainly outshines most of the mysteries I've read by a long shot. It's gorgeously written, and involves a luscious and mysterious setting with a backdrop of a boarding school. While The Woman in Cabin 10 kept me on the edge of my seat, The Lying Game is a long slow burn, one that keeps you guessing with every page. The book is a different kind of thriller, one that spends a much more time sketching out the motivations and backgrounds of its characters. I believe Ware did this to build up the suspense, to make the reader question every word the characters utter. After all, this book is entitled The Lying Game for a reason.

The plot revolves around four women who were close friends at a remote boarding school for girls. The boarding school is regarded as a "last stop" for most of its boarders, as many of them have been booted out of other schools. Isa, the main character, finds her way to it when her father feels incapable of taking care of her due to her mother's cancer diagnosis and treatment. Fatima, who quickly becomes Isa's friend, is sent to the school because her parents are spending time abroad in Pakistan as doctors. The other two girls, Kate and Thea, are a year older than Isa and Fatima and are troublemakers. They run into Isa and Fatima while riding a train to the school, and immediately take them under their wings (for better or worse).

Thea and Kate are notoriously known for lying to everyone but each other. Feeling displaced and lonely, Isa and Fatima cling to Thea and Kate, copying their malicious behavior and agreeing to carry out their requests to lie and tease classmates. Soon Thea, Kate, Isa, and Fatima form a clique, one that other girls in the school regard with hatred and envy. On the weekends, the girls escape to Kate's house known as "The Mill," which is situated on a beautiful river known by the girls as "The Reach." They spend countless hours frolicking in The Reach's warm water, to the point that they begin sneaking out of their boarding school to spend an inordinate amount of time there.

Kate's father, Ambrose, lives at The Mill, and also teaches at the boarding school. Thea, Isa, and Fatima see Ambrose as a father-figure and friend, a relationship that soon attracts the attention of a number of teachers and students at the boarding school. What is going on between the girls and Ambrose? Why are they spending so much time there?

A catastrophic event takes place at The Mill that results in Thea, Isa, Kate, and Fatima's expulsion from the school, one that will also have a ripple effect in the girls' adult lives. The book follows Isa as she attempts to understand what happened at The Mill on that fateful day, to make things right and be able to live her life free from the guilt and anxiety that has plagued her since her teens.

I love Ware's gift for storytelling and her ability to weave a mystery without relying on cliches. I also loved the side story of Isa trying to grapple with being a new mother, and learning how to walk the fine line between preserving your pre-parenthood identity and autonomy and being a good mother and parent. Here is one of the many gems of quotes about this struggle: "Freya's cry is like a hook in my flesh, pulling me inexorably across the darkened marsh."

I can't wait to read Ware's In a Dark, Dark Wood, and hope she keeps churning out these fabulous mysteries!

Thank you to the author, Ruth Ware, Gallery/Scout Press, and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy of The Lying Game.