4.5 stars rounded up

If you love somewhat quirky and unreliable narrators, then "To Tell You The Truth" is for you!

Lucy is a crime novelist. She works very hard at her craft, to the detriment of her personal life. She has a best-selling crime series with fans worldwide who love her character, DS Eliza Grey. Little do her fans realize, Eliza has been with Lucy for many years. She was Lucy's imaginary friend while growing up, and she 'talks' to Eliza to this day... Then, in her latest novel, she does the unthinkable and kills off her main character! Her publishers are aghast and unwilling to publish her manuscript.

Meanwhile... Lucy's husband, who takes care of the 'business' side of things, including all of Lucy's hard earned wealth, has purchased a large house. Without consulting Lucy! To rub salt into the wound, this new house is situated in the same area as Lucy's childhood home. For Lucy, this is the very worst thing that could happen, for her childhood memories are not good ones.

When Lucy was a child, she took her three-year-old brother Teddy out to the forest one summer solstice night to watch some 'pagans' play music, dance, and shoot off fireworks. Teddy got tired so Lucy laid him down in an abandoned bunker. When she returned for him, he wasn't there! Lucy goes home and constructs a narrative that her parents and the police view with skepticism... She has never really recovered from that traumatic event - and the reader is never entirely sure that Lucy is completely innocent in his disappearance. Teddy was never found.

Now, just days after moving into her new house, Lucy's husband Dan goes missing. Because of Lucy's fame and celebrity as a crime writer, she is under suspicion and the paparazzi are out in full force. Without any emotional support in the way of friends or family, Lucy faces this trauma alone.

Told via dual timeliness, Lucy's story alternated between the present day and back when she was nine - when Teddy disappeared.

The reader wonders.... is Lucy damaged by her childhood trauma, is she lying, or is she more than a little mad? Can we trust her? Her extensive research for her crime novels ensures that she has the knowledge to commit a crime. Has she?

Her husband Dan was such an unlikable character that I'll admit I rejoiced that he went missing. The tension was palpable as Lucy's life spirals into chaos and uncertainty.

I'm a huge fan of Gilly Macmillan's work and this novel reminded me once again of her brilliant writing. She certainly knows how to create fictional worlds and people that engage the reader with her intelligent prose.

There are two mysterious events in Lucy's life and the ending of the book soundly explains one of them, but not the other. This was a tad unsatisfying, yet the open-ended and untidy denouement meant that I am still thinking of the book, so perhaps that was the author's intention.

I found "To Tell You The Truth" to be a gripping psychological thriller which I can whole-heartedly recommend to fans who enjoy unreliable narrators, red herrings, and a twisty plot. A potent and multi-layered thriller.

To Tell You the Truth by Gilly Macmillan is a gripping psychological thriller that explores the dark side of creativity and imagination.

The main character, Lucy Harper, is a bestselling crime writer who has a secret: she lied about the disappearance of her brother when she was a child. Now, as her marriage crumbles and her past catches up with her, she must face the truth and the consequences of her lies.

Fans of domestic noir and unreliable narrators will enjoy this book.

I was disappointed with this book
I was bored for the first third of the book
The story wasn’t very captivating. It felt far fetched in places
The ending was very rushed and unbelievable

Wow.....just wow. Kept me on the edge of my seat, stayed up way to late to read this. A must for fans##Totellyouthetruth##

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

To Tell You the Truth by Gilly Macmillan is an absolutely thrilling and gripping story. From the moment you open the pages you are plunged into the life of Lucy Harper, a talented thriller writer with a mysterious past. The story jumps back and forth between her childhood and present day, unveiling secrets of her past as her life unravels in front of her.

The characters of To Tell You the Truth are engaging and thought-provoking, as the reader watches them confront the truth of Lucy’s brother’s disappearance, as well as her husband’s recent disappearance. Macmillan’s writing draws you in and holds you captive until the very last page. As the story draws to its climax, readers are left hanging on until the very end as the questions of who did what, and why, all come to light.

To Tell You the Truth is a perfect balance of thriller and suspense, weaving a gripping story that will leave readers spellbound and wanting more. Gilly Macmillan has certainly outdone herself with this powerful and addictive tale that should not be missed.

I found this one was slow to start with but I was still intrigued enough to keep on reading. I really didnt know what was going to happen and I couldnt guess either. The ending was a little rushed I thought but I still enjoyed it.

To tell you the truth... everybody lies.

Lucy was only a child when her brother disappeared without a trace. Now more than 30 years later, her husband has now disappeared as well.

But Lucy is a crime author now - how do you get people to believe your version when you tell stories for a living?

A suspenseful read that kept me captivated, but the ending, although unexpected felt a little rushed and anti-climatic.

3 stars ⭐⭐⭐

Special thanks to Netgalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

The book is interesting read. The story is intricate and keeps you hooked until the last page. Every chapter brought in a sense of dread that what will the reader find next. It creates tense atmosphere from the beginning.

The main character is a best selling author. Well renowned, wealthy and popular. Her husband however isn't that successful. The book plays off in two different time eras, the now, where Lucy's husband disappear, and 30 years ago when her brother, Teddy disappears. Do the two disappearances have anything to do with each other? This sets the base for a very entertaining read, and I couldn't wait to see how it all ended up.

I have to admit, this one sounded good and had great promise but ended up being a borderline three-star read for me as I pushed through the book hoping it would get better it had a lot of potential but just fell flat for me as it felt disjointed the storyline and a tad on the odd side. The book starts with introducing us to Lucy who we learned had a younger brother called Teddy who when they were children - vanished without a trace. His body was never found and he has remained a missing person. It was Lucy's fault he went missing, but she never revealed the real truth of his disappearance and one of the reasons she never told the truth was Eliza. Eliza was her imaginary friend as a child and now Lucy has captured Eliza as the main detective in her popular thriller series. The thing though is that Lucy has had enough and wants Eliza gone, so she takes a giant risk. Meanwhile, Lucy's husband has a surprise for her, he has brought them a new house and it happens to be in the same area as Lucy's childhood house the woods where her brother disappeared are her back property. I have to admit, I really hated Dan - Lucy's husband with a passion, he was a real jerk. The thriller part comes to a past/present state when Dan goes missing and Lucy finds out that he has been researching bunkers and her brother's disappearance. Does Dan know more about Teddy's disappearance than she does? Can Lucy tell the truth this time and will they believe her?
Find out in Gilly MacMillan's 2020 release "To Tell You The Truth".

To tell you the truth by Gilly MacMillan.
She was nine years old when her brother vanished in the woods near home. As the only witness, Lucy’s story of that night became crucial to the police investigation. Thirty years on, her brother’s whereabouts are still unknown.
A brilliant read. Great story. 5*.

this book was full of surprises with a sad ending. i felt it was missing something, maybe more suspense, but it was good and i would like to read more from gilly macmillan.

This was a solid read and just as you think you know what's going to happen there is a twist and the plot goes a totally different way. 4 stars from me

This was my first Gilly MacMillan book, and I was certainly not disappointed. This book seemed to receive mixed reviews, but I can’t fault it in terms of what was delivered - an entertaining, gripping psychological thriller.

Lucy Harper has spent her life hiding from her past and has just begun to try and re-write her future when she is unexpectedly forced to re-evaluate reality when past and present collide in a twisting unravelling of lies, history, and characters.

All in all, this was an enjoyable book and I will certainly look out for other Gilly MacMillan books out there.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book and sorry I took so long.
A great psychological thriller, although a little slow paced for me but a good storyline and believable characters. I would recommend and would like to read other books by Gilly.

A very slow psychological thriller. Though well plotted the story and the pace did not grip me and so I could not finish it.

riend loves her. So I thought I’d give it a go.
I think I chose the wrong novel to start with.

I love psychological thrillers/ whodunnit type books, I barely move away from those genres because that’s what keeps me locked in, it’s what I enjoy.

I believe this is book has this premise, but in all honesty I got a quarter of the way in and I couldn’t finish it.
My new thing is to not waste my time on books I don’t enjoy.
The main character in this book is a successful author, who’s main character Eliza is also her imaginary friend/ alter ego. Some people will love this. Me, not really- it made me cringe inside every time I read a part where Eliza has a conversation with her.
I didn’t get to the mystery part, I struggled with the concept and couldn’t get passed it.
Now my friend gave this 5*’s. She loved it, so if you’re more open minded than me - give this a go!
I got a quarter way in and nothing exciting had happened so it wasn’t for me.

Thank you Netgalley for my free ARCcopy of this book in return for an honest review!

Another startling and compelling Gilly Macmillan. Her books are so hooky and I adore her characters. Excellent!

I really do enjoy a good mystery or thriller and this was no exception. I would highly recommend this to anyone who also enjoys mysteries and thrillers.