OMG what a sensational mind-blowing book. There are so many twists and turns I did not know who the perpetrator was as I kept changing my mind. A great psychological thriller. Recommended.

I enjoyed reading this but did struggle to get into this at the beginning. Its worth persevering and does keep you guessing. There are some interesting characters and some clever twists. I like the play on word in the Book Title with the "Lie" being in a different colour, This books is definitely based on lies and will keep you guessing right until the very end.

Thank you to netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book. Having previously read the girl before I was very much looking forward to this one, however I have to say it didn't met expectations. I did want to read it until the end but all the way through it was like you couldn't guess whether it was the real story or that of an act, which is perhaps the point. It started with promise but the more the book went on the more confused it became. The ending was pathetic and overall it was a real let down, especially in comparison to the girl before.

'Acting isn't pretending...Acting is doing. Being. Becoming.' So says the narrator of J.P Delaney's latest novel. Continually blurring the lines of reality and fantasy the book deliberately sets out to wrong-foot the reader from the beginning with more twists than a corkscrew so that we never know who to believe.
Claire Wright is an English actress with an unstable personality and a sketchy professional reputation. She's desperately trying to make her name in New York and taking any job that she can find, including working for a legal firm to try and entrap cheating husbands. When she fails to snare Patrick Fogler, a lecturer and expert of Baudelaire, and his wife ends up dead, Claire starts working for the government to help catch the sadistic killer whose mimicking Baudelair's Les Fleurs du mal and Patrick is their prime suspect. The story is told from Claire's point of view the fact that we learn early on that she's a gifted actor, prone to neurosis and hyperbole only confuses the reader further. Who can we trust?
Believe Me is stylishly written, clearly tapping into the zeitgeist of the post Sex and the City/Fifty Shades world. There's darkness, depravity, abuse, doubt, more than enough to push our heroine over the edge and plenty of re-routes to keep us as nebulous as the main protagonists' motives. As we're never sure who and what to believe, it does make us disengage with the characters on occasion. Patrick, in particular, is either a villain or a saint with not much in between to endear us to him. That said, the explorations of human nature and manipulation make for a fascinating read if you are into psychology. The neo-noir overtones, rabbit hole twists and highly visual imagery would make it a great option for a movie. It's possible (and dare I say it) that the screenplay would actually translate better on film than on the page.
At times it's also little too garrulous, which halts the plot in places making a frustrating read, especially in the final act where Delaney draws out the rehearsal of a play at the very moment you want the narrative to switch up a gear. Having said that, it's certainly a satisfying book if you stick with it through it's more irksome moments. Overall Believe Me is so tightly written that you'd struggle to squeeze a thinly veiled fib into its pages let alone a massive whopper. Be prepared to have the wool pulled over your eyes more than once in this modern, super tight, thriller.

What can you believe? This book, or rather, Claire Wright is likely the most untrustworthy you will encounter. A struggling British actress living illegally in New York City, Claire baits men into proving they are unfaithful to their wives. She's very believable, but is she good enough to bait a killer into confessing he murdered his wife? Or, is she deluded into thinking that's the mission at hand?

Believe Me does make the reader question everything. Do we believe Claire? I cannot really say. It is difficult to know what is authentic and what isn't. But, isn't that the goal?!? This is a thought provoking ride of illusion and whether it's real or not is what the reader must decide. You may just be surprised by the answer!

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really thrilled to see that this author had a new book out. I really enjoy his previous book - The girl before.

This book was simply amazing. Nowadays, too many books advertise twists but one sees the twists coming way ahead of time. This book was really exciting and it was truly a rollercoaster ride and one did not know where it would go next.

I highly recommend this one for anyone who is looking for a great psychological thriller!

I was a big fan of The Girl Before so couldn’t wait to read this. The premise sounded intriguing and knowing the twists of the previous book I expected plenty and it didn’t disappoint.

Claire is an interesting character in a very unique situation, working as a ‘honey trap’ for a law firm off the books as she doesn’t have a green card. None of the characters seem trustworthy, and I was second guessing everyone throughout. Even when I knew there would be plenty of twists, I still couldn’t predict them!

Psychological thrillers are extremely popular right now, but J.P. Delaney still somehow manages to come up with storylines which are completely unique, utterly compelling and impossible to predict. I cannot wait for the next one.

Believe Me is a psychological thriller that has so many plot twists it was difficult to keep up!

Claire is a British actress in America who desperately needs a green card. When offered the opportunity to work with the police to catch a killer in exchange for the green card, she jumps at it. However not everything is as it seems and Claire just might get more than she bargained for...

With an interesting and intriguing plot I was definitely looking forward to reading this one however for me the writing style wasn’t great and I found that off putting. I didn’t like to script style dialogue and found it difficult to follow at times.
Claire, the main protagonist, isn’t very likeable and I found it hard to connect with her in any meaningful way. Therefore I wasn’t particularly invested in what happened to her.

Parts of the story were intriguing and kept me turning the pages but there was too much back and forth for my liking. I felt like I had whiplash!

Overall not the best thriller I’ve read but certainly not the worst. If you’re a fan of thrillers that leave you feeling unsure and are comfortable with some tough subject matters (self-harm, BDSM) then you may enjoy this one, it just wasn’t really for me in the end. 2 stars ⭐️⭐️

Thank you to the NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy. All opinions are my own and provided willingly.

I have been hesitant in rating this book, on the one hand I had no problem finishing it – it was an easy read – but on the other, I didn’t enjoy it much. The main reasons being: the unreliable narrator, I’m really not a fan and the lack of likeable characters. This seems to be fairly common at the minute (after Gone Girl) and as a reader who loves character driven books more than plot I find it hard to enjoy a book when the characters have few redeeming features. If these things don’t put you off then I think you’ll enjoy it.
Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review.

This is one of those books that gets into your head and messes everything about. You think you know exactly what is going to happen... but you don't! I love it when a story can make you doubt your ability to predict what will happen and that is certainly the case here.

Clare Wright is a British drama student in New York without a green card. She is forced to take the only job she can find in order to earn some cash - working for a firm of divorce lawyers she is tasked with entrapping straying husbands. But when one of her targets in under suspicion for murder, the police want her to help them secure a conviction by luring the suspect into making a confession. Clare then begins to worry that what she is doing is wrong - I mean, for all she knows Patrick Fogler could be innocent. This also forces her to confront the ethical and moral implications around entrapment in general, including her trapping of cheating men. Is it possible that there is more to this this than she is being told? Could the police possibly have an alterior motive for wanting Fogler out of the way?

Delaney is adept at making you question not only yourself but what you are being told throughout the book too. There were some real insights into the acting world and the tricks and techniques they use including how an actor gets into playing a particular role. There is a tonne of misdirection and the narrative is a twisty and fickle beast that can do a 360 in a matter of moments. Delaney's writing was readable and flowed exceptionally well leading you to read and on and on, a few different elements come together and make this an unforgettable read. If you like unreliable narrator's and not having a clue what is going to go down then you will lap this up double quick!

Many thanks to Quercus for an ARC. I was not required to post a review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

I raced through this compelling read and highly recommend it if you enjoy thrillers that play with your head. From being a part-time bit player for a law firm, amateur actress Claire Wright is suddenly thrown into the most serious role of her life – hunting a serial killer. Or is she? Who on earth to believe! JP Delaney’s story teased me all the way through – and I loved it. I enjoyed the insights into acting classes and Baudelaire’s poetry. And the book was cleverly structured as, Hamlet-like, it turned almost into a play within a play. There were layers upon intriguing layers and I was totally caught up – so much so that I finished it in an afternoon. I was never quite sure what was true, who was simply acting or who to trust as the characters were believable and engaging. Simply wonderful.

If you’re looking for a book that’ll take you on an absolute trip and mess with your head, then this is it.

It’s Claire’s story to tell but several things combine to make her an unreliable narrator. Claire’s desperate to be an actor and is in New York taking classes, sometimes being asked to go out onto the streets for some acting exercises. Which made me question how much of everything else she does is real and how much is role-playing.

She’s had to leave the UK behind her, for reasons which rankle but also influenced how much I trust her version of events, while also making me wonder how mentally robust she is for the biggest role of her life. I have to confess that the lawyer in me worried her way through the honey trap scenes but they’re crucial. They show us the lengths to which Claire will go to stay in New York, how good an actress she is but also how draining these performances are for her.

Besides the conundrum of whether Patrick Fogler is a killer, being set up or simply the obvious suspect, there’s so much I relished about this book. From the exercises Claire does as part of her acting classes, creating a fascinating insight into acting tricks and techniques, and how actors go about getting themselves into character to the psychological profiling she endures, to what people do for kicks and the games lovers play, and the way in which art and literature can inform and inspire both beauty and something altogether darker and uglier.

Believe Me is a real novel for our times, continually making me question how much is acting, what’s misdirection and lies, who to trust and just what is real here. It’s an immersive read, vicariously dangerous and thrilling in its twists and turns. Set aside a chunk of time and let the mind games commence.

This is the first book I've read from this author.
I found it to be interesting and intriguing if not just a little unbelievable ( would the police really use a civilian in this way) however it is a fiction story so therefore why shouldn't it happen.
I will certainly be looking in to reading more from this author.

I’m giving this book 5 stars. Once you start reading it’s hard to stop. Did I guess the ending yes and no. Absolutely thrilling. I did read the ending again to make sure my brain accepted it. Would thoroughly recommend.

Believe Me by JP Delaney is a rewrite of a previous work by the author. It would be interesting to read the original version and compare it to the current book. The main character, Claire Wright (which is also my maiden name!) is struggling actor from Britain who has aarrived in NYC looking for fame & fortune. She finds it isn't as easy as that and so the story unravels.

The storyline kept me interested as there were so many twists and turns, you never knew who was actually telling the truth. At one point, I thought it was heading down the Shutter Island route then **boom** another twist, nothing could be predicted because of the mind games being played between the characters.

It is a beautifully written book which is unique yet twisted. JP Delaney certainly knows how to keep the readers guessing and I'm sure any future works will be just as successful.

I really loved this book :) 10/10
I was really interested to read this book as I’d read the authors last book, ‘The Girl Before’ and really enjoyed it. All I can say is I wasn’t disappointed. I just couldn’t put it down ! It had me up until the early hours ! Loads of twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat !
Yes I loved it and can’t wait to read the next book from This author.

A brilliant book. A real good page turner and one to read when you really want to immerse yourself in a book. Well written with great pace and intrigue, great characters and pace.

JP Delaney is back with a twisty, dark, and fast-paced thriller that I wasn’t able to put down. After reading The Girl Before last year, I have been waiting for something new from this author so I’d like to thank Hannah Robinson and Quercus Books for providing me with a copy of his new novel and for inviting me to take part in the blog tour.

The protagonist of BELIEVE ME is Claire Wright. She is a very complex and multi-layered character. You never know what to expect from her, she is an unreliable narrator and, as an actor, she easily switches character. She moved from England to New York where she studies to become an actor. She needs a job to pay the bills, but because she doesn’t have a green card, she can’t be a waitress or walk dogs like all the other struggling actors, so she finds a job off the books for a law firm: filming cheating husbands while they pick her up in hotel bars. I can’t say I liked Claire very much, but I also found her well-developed and intriguing and she kept me glued to the page.

I loved that the author mixed the narration style by narrating some scenes in the form of a script play, complete of dialogues and directions. It makes the story more entertaining and I was always looking forward to them.

The story is completely unpredictable. There are many twists and turns, there is always an air of doubt and tension and I never knew what to expect next, what was real and what was not, which character to trust and to believe. The dark atmosphere and the presence of Baudelaire’s sinister poems give the novel a creepy feeling and the deceptions and the trust game made me completely engrossed in the novel and I flew through it in just a few hours.

If you loved The Girl Before, if you are looking for unreliable characters, claustrophobic atmosphere, and jaw-dropping twists, then BELIEVE ME is a must-read. It is addictive, shocking, and takes you by surprise, page after page.

A very dark tale, engrossing and twisting. I very much enjoyed this tale, told by an extremely unreliable narrator. Where does the truth lie?

I really enjoyed the premise and the central character and I actually liked this book far more than its predecessor. A good holiday read to get lost in with some genuinely surprising moments