I loved Julie Corbin’s early novels and had high hopes for this one. Although I enjoyed it, it didn’t grip me as much as her earlier offerings of Do Me No Harm and Tell Me No Secrets.

School nurse Anna is accused of hitting a pupil, a fiery and somewhat troubled girl named Tori. The accusation shocks Anna’s family and the school community at large, seeming totally out of character, and is deemed by some to be a malicious lie. But is Tori lying, and if so why?

The novel explores the background relationship between Anna and Tori, as well as ongoing issues in both families, and there’s reference to a murky secret surrounding Anna’s mother’s death when she was a child.

I felt the characters were well drawn, particularly Anna and her daughter Isobel, but I did feel that the plot was slightly on the flimsy side. I assumed that it was building up to something more complex; there was certainly a twist, but it felt somewhat implausible and, if I’m honest, a little anti-climatic. The ‘villain’ hadn’t been developed sufficiently for me throughout the book to make the motivation and abrupt change of character convincing.

I also didn’t get a real handle on Matt’s character; I felt descriptions of him were skimmed over somewhat, such that I didn’t get a real impression of him until he became more pivotal to the plot towards the very end.

That said, the book was effective at laying bare the fact that most people are multi-layered and complex and that everyone is capable of mistakes. I wondered if Anna’s character would have better narrated in the first person, as I think this may have given greater insight into her history and her insecurities.

Overall I enjoyed the book and was compelled to keep reading, which is always a good sign!

Thanks to netgalley, the publisher and the author for the chance to review an advanced copy.

As a school nurse, Anna Pierce is a well-respected and trusted member of the community. So, when she is accused of hitting Tori Carmichael, her mentee, the reaction is one of shock and disbelief.

Tori Carmichael is a troubled child and is known for bending the truth. Anna is determined to clear her name and save her career and reputation. But before she can, Tori is found dead.

This was a good plot which involves quite a lot a of twists, that makes it difficult to guess who is lying and who isn’t. It is narrated from the point of view of Anna with a few references from the pages of Tori’s diary.

Initially it took me time to get into the book. Especially since I did not find any character enjoyable. I particularly found Anna’s daughter, Isobel, very annoying. But as the story progressed it slowly became more interesting with all the hidden lies, deceit and family secrets getting revealed. The conclusion was totally unexpected and shocking.

Overall, a good psychological thriller.

Thank You to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for this ARC!

A potentially career ruining accusation is made against Anna Pierce by fifteen year old Tori Carmichael. Sister Pierce is in charge of the medical care of students at Bishopglen Day and Boarding School and is on leave until the allegations are thoroughly investigated. The story is told principally from the point of view of Anna, interspersed with journal entries from Tori and numerous social media posts.

The story starts quite slowly but gradually builds and there are some shocking revelations along the way which becomes intriguing as you try to separate truth from half truth from lie. The novel clearly portrays how suspicions and growing mistrust can impact a family, friends and work and is very destructive. Anna’s home life is well depicted with numerous bumps along the way. The trial and conviction by social media and by the school gate mafia adds an additional element by adding fuel to a smouldering fire and it certainly made my blood boil. The characters are good, the teenagers having particular clarity but I did have trouble with Anna as I couldn’t figure her out which I guess is a positive thing in a psychological thriller! The storyline does get twisty although maybe a tad too convoluted and I certainly didn’t see the conclusion coming as it sure is unexpected.

My only reservations lie with some of the posts between the storyline which interrupts the flow and clouds clarity, however it’s not true of them all. It also seems to end quite abruptly too.

Overall, this is an enjoyable read, I especially like the premise and certainly want to read more by Julie Corbin.

3-4 rounded up.

With thanks to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC for an honest review.

A tricky and complex story with many threads to be untangled .Families,lies and secrets,lots of twists. How well do we know our family and friends?

I struggled to get into this book at first but overall it was a well written book with a good plot and excellent characters which I ended up enjoying.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton Publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

Can we start with the synopsis? Wow! That caught my eye immediately and what a refreshing plot idea! Loved it.

So I loved Lie for a Lie but I didn’t like the characters! The plot moves fast with plenty going on and the odd twist! Anna was annoying. She didn’t feel like a real character and I really didn’t like her. I didn’t like her back story (weak), no one is that perfect..

Overall this is an interesting intelligent thriller with lots of promise. 4/5

As you would expect from the title,there are so many lies in this book,it's hard to trust anyone.
A seemingly perfect family,blown apart when Mrs Perfect is accused of hitting a child.
The story twists all over the place after that,especially at the end,which felt a bit rushed compared to the rest of the book.
Enjoyable ride.

I struggled a little to get into the book but once I did I really enjoyed it. The premise of the story is interesting and it all ties up nicely towards the end.

I have read all of Julie Corbin’s previous novels and find her to be an amazingly exciting writer and this was yet another great read.

School Nurse Anna Pierce is head of the nursing station in a private school in Glasgow. She loves her job and has an amazingly brilliant reputation. One day she is accused of hitting a pupil, Victoria Carmichael, who is well known for lying. Anna cannot believe what has happened and after she has been interviewed by the police, she receives a text message from Victoria, known as Tori asking to speak to her. She doesn’t go to meet her but Tori is found dead at the bottom of the stairs in her home the next morning.

Cleverly plotted with likeable and not-so-likeable characters throughout the author weaves a tale of lies, deceit and secret trysts. Nobody seems to have escaped the ability to lie and, as the story progresses, the shocks keep on coming: right to the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hodder & Stoughton, and Julie Corbin for my ARC in return for my honest review.

Excellent, highly recommended.

I really struggled to finish this book.

The premise of it was interesting, the main character who works as a nurse at a school gets accused of hitting a pupil.
However, the first few chapters just seemed extremely boring, even when that was where the 'assault' supposedly happened.

I didn't connect with any of the characters, nor did I feel like I wanted to.

Absolutely amazing book! Really enjoyed it, i was completely hooked the whole way through and I struggled to put it down.

It was cleverly written and the characters were fab! I really liked them and you really did have no idea what was going to happen.

It was the perfect thriller! I can see this book being a hit Tv drama.

Thank you NetGalley and hodder books for the opportunity to read and review this novel!

This was an excellent novel depicting the plight of a school nurse accused of a crime. The reader will stay glued to the pages of this mystery novel, same as I did!

Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive

School nurse Anna Pierce lives for her job, some would say that she cares more about our children than she does her own daughter Isobel and son Noah. So she is devastated when Victoria Carmichael (Tori) accuses her of slapping her across the face. Anna suddenly finds herself suspended, facing a charge of assault and the victim of a online hate champagne orchestrated by horrible Julia Raeburn who has hated Anna since the notorious headline incident. Julia doesn't believe in innocent until proven guilty and like all online trolls who abuse people from behind their computer screens,she didn't stop to consider that her actions might have consequences. The story is told almost entirely from Anna's perspective,a complex, flawed character who like most of the unreliable cast of this gripping story had hidden secrets but would she really assault a child. As the story unfolded Anna received hardly any support from.her husband John or their daughter Isobel who spent most of the book acting like a spoilt brat. But were their actions and behaviour being manipulated by outside influence, was someone who was not who they appeared to be causing trouble and trying to drive Anna's family apart for their own unknown reasons. My favourite member of Anna's family was her very supportive son Noah who was a very likeable character but even he had a hidden secret that was playing on his conscience and causing him to act out of character. Interspersed into many chapters was extracts from Tori's diary where she shared her thoughts on the characters that she interacted with and the reasons behind her actions. Tori was a flawed character and her actions and behaviour were questionable but she was still a child. We all make mistakes and do things that we regret even as adults so was she the spiteful liar that Isobel insisted she was or was she a lonely, neglected young women who used any method she could to get the attention that she craved.

This is a extremely well written, utterly riveting thriller that had me totally captivated from the very first page. It is a gripping tale of deception, manipulation and judgements that keeps the reader guessing and frantically turning the pages, It had numerous twists and turns, secrets and lies, unreliable characters and a plot that was topical and scarily realistic in this modern age of the internet and judgement on social media. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more of this author's books in the future.

i so love this authors books never disappoint s .what would you do if you was a nurse and was accused of harming a child . that s what happens to Anna .Torri says Anna hit her but did she or is Torri jealous of Anna and her close family home wont say no more so recommend

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book wasn’t my favorite psychological thriller of late, but it was perfectly serviceable and did the job. The epitome of a three star thriller

This read hasn’t been for me unfortunately. It started well but I quickly lost interest and found myself unable to finish.
I will not be providing a negative review as I feel it is unfair on the author.

If a student accuses a school employee of abuse of any kind, people will automatically assume the student is telling the truth. But what about the other side of the story? A school nurse is accused of striking a student in her care, she says it’s not true. One of them is obviously lying, but which one? A nightmare scenario for an innocent school nurse or a genuine complaint about a dangerous bully? A nail biting thriller

I was fortunate enough to receive an advanced copy of this book from Netgalley, and oh my goodness it was amazing!

A lie for a lie was full of secrets, twists, and unexpected answers. I was hooked on Annas life from the offset- the accusation that she hit a child in her care set off a domino affect that changed the lives of everyone, and suddenly Victoria has an accident. Anna got suspended from her job and the stress of the accusation caused rifts between Anna and her husband John, as well as with her daughter Victoria which led to lies being told and despicable behavior from every party. Luckily Anna has a steady friendship with Lynne, who is constantly her shoulder to cry on and her most trusted confidante, and although everything seems fine on the surface Lynnes life is slowly unraveling as well- it's a very very interesting dynamic to immerse yourself in.
Victoria and Isobels relationship was really interesting to me and held the secret that i wanted the answer to the most, and when we found out towards the end of the book i was absolutely gobsmacked and needed to give myself a moment to process it! I feel like i can't write many comments on the plot because everything that happens is something that each reader needs to uncover and discover for themselves, otherwise i'd be giving major spoilers!!
I read this book in a day, and it was a brilliant experience to allow myself to fully involve myself in the story and really allow myself to feel all of the emotions.

#ALieForALie #NetGalley
An excellent psychological thriller.
Two people, a nurse and a pupil at school are throwing allegations at each other but the story is not that simple. One of them is lying but why? What's the reason behind? Read it to know more.
Highly recommended this book to everyone.