Lie to Me by JT Ellison is a mystery/thriller, about a couple whose relationship seems to be built on lies.

First, let me thank NetGalley, the publisher HQ Digital, and of course the author, for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Sutton and Ethan Montclair are both authors, both passionate and impulsive people. Both liars. It makes them good storytellers, but is perhaps not the greatest basis for a marriage.

The two seem to have a love/hate relationship. They almost seem jealous of each other’s successes. Their marriage has been rocky. Career set-backs and lousy reviews upset their lifestyle. Then they lose their baby to SIDS. What was rocky, has now become a minefield, with neither one of them stepping too carefully.

One morning Ethan finds a note on the kitchen counter. Sutton has left him, and instructs him not to come looking. At first, he is bewildered, then relieved, then angry, and then true disbelief sets in. When he looks around, he finds her laptop, her cellphone, her wallet and ID are all still in their home. Would she leave without taking them? Could she have caused herself harm? Could someone else have taken her? Always thinking about the reaction of his fans, his self-centeredness holds him back from immediately contacting the police. He calls her friends first who know nothing, and talks to her mother who is thankful Sutton finally left him, and then his lawyer, who suggests the police. Ivy, their best friend, flies back from a business trip to help him deal with everything.

It doesn’t take long before all the gossip starts, and the police are concentrating on Ethan as their number one suspect.

The story is told from different perspectives. Reminiscent of Gone Girl, the narrations are unreliable. Both Ethan and Sutton tell their story from “then” and “now” time frames, but both narrations are heavily slanted in their own favor. To add a new twist, the author has a third narrator, a third personality, thrown into the mix, which definitely adds a punch to this book. You don’t know who this person is, but you quickly know that nothing is as it seems.

I loved how Ellison named each chapter instead of numbering them (and there are a lot of them). All are relatively short, which helps with the fast flow of the book (which is quite long).

To be honest, when I started it, I thought, okay, another “he said this, she said that” kind of book, but it surprised me. By half way through, I was barely putting it down. I didn’t particularly like either of the main characters. They were both very selfish, egotistical, and they lied right to the end. However, this book had enough twists and turns to make it a little different. You were still wondering if you were hearing the whole story at the end. And the end, well, it was different too.

Definitely worth the read!

I don't think I've hated anyone more than Ethan, recently. Or Sutton. When the characters of a book are so unappealing and problematic, the book will most likely make me want to DNF but this one was written in such a way that I couldn't help but keep reading because I wanted to get to the bottom of it. When I start reading a thriller or a crime book, I need to get my answers.

I got them but I didn't enjoy them to be honest.

When Sutton, a successful author leaves a note behind for her husband telling him not to look for her, he worries, after a lot of moments being an asshole and eventually calls the police but first a lawyer because he's probably read Gone Girl. The rest play out as you'd think with secrets uncovered and lots of lies, along with a group of people who blame him because why not. The ending was Gone Girlish of course because this is a happy couple #not, and the ending...

Every book of the genre has a twist of some sort in the end that can make or break the story and in this case I'm afraid it broke the story for me. Despite the fact that this was painfully similar to Gone Girl, so much so that I kept wondering how did this get published with so many similarities, it wasn't nearly as shocking. If the book was even going for the shock value.

In order for me to be shocked, the story's twist or big reveal has tone as close to reality as possible, if it plays out like a damn cheap soap opera then I'll hate it even more.

Lie To Me had all the ingredients of becoming a really good book, including the asshole husband that seems to be vital for some reason, but if failed when a bunch of unbelievable BS was added at the end.

This book had so many twists and turns that I couldn't put it down. Did Sutton really run away or is something else sinister going on ? Every time I thought I had this figured out the author would throw me off. Loved this book! If you love a great thriller then read this book!! You won't be disappointed.

I wanted to love this story but I found it very difficult to find likable characters. Right off the bat it reminded me very much of Gone Girl. There were many times the author used funny terms or sentences to describe body parts Example "girl had coltish legs?" Understanding that both characters are author allows some creative descriptions when the author is using the characters inner monologue.

While the story gave readers twist and unexpected surprises it wasn't enough to rise above so many other fiction novels that are out today
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher Mira Books for a copy of Lie To Me

Wow I am speechless after reading this novel, in very positive way ! I love the plot twist as the end was near, I was surprised and isn’t everyday i got that surprised that much in this mystery/psychological suspense! I vividly recommend read this book and congrats to J.T. Ellison, it really grabbed my attention and was very addictive!!! Also I want to thanked HQ Digital to choose me to read an ARC on NetGalley. 5 🌟

4,5 Stars

So this is indeed the closest thing to „Gone Girl“ I’ve read so far. Two twisted people fell in love and got married. They both tell us their side of the story. Ethan is first. Then, later Sutton tells us her side. But immediately you can sense that there is something else going on. Ethan sometimes hints at us that he is not telling everything. I must admit I somehow liked him. Then later, there is Sutton’s story. This reminded me very much of Gone Girl. But this book is different. It may have a similar kind of telling the story. But the story itself is different.

Ethan’s POV has the advantage that we learn through him what is going on. Sutton is missing. But why? What happened? Did she just leave, fleeing their marriage? Or did something happen to her? Sutton’s story is a bit flat. Her part lacked the tension and it was almost a bit boring. I will not give away too much of the story because I think it is better not to know too much about it. It is a very twisted story. At the end there are twists galore.

I had very soon an idea what was going on. It turns out I was right. But there is a lot more going on. As I said, there are many twists and developments. The story is very clever and complex. It lacks just a bit of tension. It is more of a slow burner. It would have been a great read if it would have been more gripping. But so it is “just” a twisted and clever plotted book which is highly entertaining.

Twist after twist after twist, J.T Ellison sends us on a doozy of a ride in this story of a wife that suddenly leaves her husband after a year of deceit and loss. Sutton leaves a note for her husband stating that she has left and wishes for him to not look for her. Ethan at first believes the note and is crushed by the departure of his wife, but quickly finds himself questioning the situation. Sutton left behind all of her belongings. Her phone, her clothes, her laptop that as a writer is her closest companion, everything is still in its place. No money has been withdrawn from their bank account. No activity on the credit cards. Ethen feels something is very wrong.

As the story unfolds we find that not everything is as it seems. The sudden death of their baby the year before might not have been an accident. The issues Sutton faced from an online blogger might be a bigger issue. The affair that Ethan had prove he isn't the perfect husband. The cracks in the relationship mixed with the tumultuous year they encountered leave Ethan in hot water and we are left questioning what is real. A true psychological thriller that takes us through the mind of a mentally disturbed person who gets satisfaction from the tangled weave of their lies, Lie to Me is a solid and gripping story that is anything but predictable

4 and 1 / 2 stars

Ethan Montclair wakens to find his wife Sutton missing. At first he believes she has gone for a run and is pleased to learn that she is back to her exercise program. Then he finds a note. She’s gone. She didn’t take her cell phone, her purse – nothing. He calls her friends, but they claim not to know where she is.

Ethan is not a likeable man. He is controlling and manipulative. The reader is voting for him to be guilty before even hearing Sutton’s point of view. He dithers too long and the longer he takes to call the police, the worse it looks. Her friends show up at his house and are convinced that Ethan has “done something” to Sutton. Ethan is tormented by memories and re-examines their relationship endlessly. The deceit he played at Sutton getting pregnant and the death of their child plays on a loop in his mind and all the other deceits in their marriage as well. He contacts an attorney. Even the attorney thinks he’s guilty.

When the police begin to interview Sutton’s friends and acquaintances, the witnesses can’t seem to get their stories straight. Lies and more lies are being told and who does the reader believe.

A body is found in the woods. It could be Sutton, but since the body was burned identification is difficult. Her dentist is out of town which only delays identification. The police are absolutely convinced that Ethan murdered her.

But one detective, Holly Graham, isn’t so sure Ethan is guilty. In fact, she’s convinced that the body is not Sutton’s.

In the second half of the book we flash back to Sutton and her world: her dreams and her plans; plans that she made a reality. And we have a third voice in the mix as well. Who is this person?

This novel is very well written and plotted. The suspense starts on page one and continues throughout the book. The speed of the story picks up as it moves along to the denouement. I truly enjoyed it. I have read some of J.T. Ellison’s novels before, and have enjoyed them, but she has really outdone herself with this one. It is simply brilliant.

I want to thank NetGalley and HQ Digital for forwarding to me a copy of this great book to read and enjoy.

Excellent book. I adored the storyline and the characters. A real page turner. I would this recommend this book.

Ethan Montclair finds a note left from his wife, Sutton, that tells him that she needs to leave and not to look for her. Normally this would seem to be pretty cut and dry that Sutton had decided to leave their marriage but Ethan does not believe that to be the case this time. Ethan and Sutton had lost their son exactly a year before and he’s worried that there is more to Sutton’s disappearance than wanting out of the marriage and that she might actually hurt herself.

Ethan decides to call the police with his concerns over Sutton and with all of her things left behind and no contact with anyone an investigation is opened into the matter. Once it’s out there that Sutton has gone missing the media are all over the story since Ethan and Sutton are both known authors. The police do begin to investigate but it’s quickly found that no one involved gives them the truth. Stories begin to change the longer that Sutton is gone and quickly the case turns into looking at Ethan for Sutton’s murder even without a body being found.

Lie To Me by J.T. Ellison is a psychological thriller that was certainly a quite compelling read that had the pages flying by as each secret is uncovered and the twists and turns begin to pile up. The story is told from varying points of view including some rather creepy passages coming from whomever it is behind what has happened to the missing wife. The couple in question in the story are ones that seem to have that perfect life until it’s put under a microscope and the secrets and lies come to light.

Reading this story I didn’t find Ethan to be too terribly likable which he even admits that he comes across that way in the story but this put a few suspicions into my mind early on and made me think that this book would be easy to figure out. Boy oh boy was I wrong on that count thankfully. Honestly when finished I don’t see how any reader could possibly guess where this journey will take them and that made for one completely riveting read. This one would be for those that enjoy a complex thriller that has plenty of twists that will have your brain resembling a pretzel when finally coming to the shocking conclusion, definitely a great read.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

Ah, so I finally have the time to sit down, drink a beer and review Lie To Me by J.T. Ellison!

I REALLY liked the set up of this one. Lie To Me is told in multiple POVs, which of course I effin love. Can I say page turner? Like, omg it was addicting. I couldn’t stop reading. EVERY page left me with something, ya know? It was never boring.

So what’s it about? Ethan wakes up one morning expecting his breakfast on the table awaiting him. (LOL, that’s just me though) Instead, he finds no breakfast, no wife but a note from Sutton, his wife. The note simply tells Ethan that Sutton is gone and not to look for her.

Ethan knows Sutton. He knows she loves drama but he is left feeling unsettled. He is worried for Sutton but also for himself. After Ethan talks to all of Sutton’s friends and mother, he decides to hire a lawyer before calling police.

Lies, betrayal, secrets, money issues, jealousy, etc. sign me up!

Annnd, I’m going to stop there lol. Lie To Me was really addicting and I highly recommend. 4.5


I received an advanced copy from the publisher via Netgalley. Many thanks.

At first i thought this was going to be an attempt at a Gone Girl style story but i was quickly proved wrong. It is superbly written with so many clever and unexpected twists i felt like i was on a roller coaster. The complex characters had so many layers and while they weren't always likable you were compelled to keep reading to discover the truth.

The peripheral similarities aside, Lie to Me is the first novel since Gone Girl to really get my blood up when it comes to domestic noir or whatever tag you like to give these twisted family dynamic novels.

Lie to Me is brilliantly plotted and played out to perfection - for a book lover it has the best "toxic" couple imaginable in Sutton and Ethan - both famous authors, Ethan for his literary one hit (so far) wonder and Sutton for her "genre" historical fiction - I loved the way the author played with literary snobbery within these two occasionally, it was wry grin inducing amid all the trauma.

Sutton goes missing so of course Ethan is top of the suspect list, J T Ellison twists and turns this story until you are on your head - of course nothing is straightforward, the author has given us the very definition of unreliable narrator (s) and then proceeded to make the most of them - whilst it is true that the genuine "bad guy" is not that difficult to spot, it doesn't matter in the slightest. For me this one was not so much about who was muddying the waters but more "how the hell is it all going to end" - and for that reason I devoured this story in short order, the imaginatively titled short snappy chapters, each one revealing a new gem of character trait or informational clue made for some fervent reading and plenty of late night angst.

The people you meet within the pages are dissected with razor sharp precision, all their fault lines eventually exposed, add to that a cut with a knife ending and you have an absolutely brilliantly readable, highly engaging, totally addictive piece of storytelling. Oh and beautiful writing. Beautiful.

I want to read the book Sutton is writing during some of this narrative and the one Ethan is also. Sadly I doubt they exist except in flashes in J T Ellison's head but perhaps she'll have a go at them one day.

Until whatever comes next though (on my must read list forever) just relish in the genuinely absorbing reading experience that is "Lie to Me"

Highly Recommended.

Fast paced, draw dropping! This was a book that kept me engaged from page one all the way until the end. I was a bit nervous about it since I've seen it compared to "Gone Girl" but this one definitely lives up to the hype! Definite would recommend reading!