Vera Chandler is the wife of a pilot who flies a private plane for a millionaire and his family. Unfortunately, the millionaire's child is kidnapped (like in the Lindbergh case), and the frantic parents are trying to get their baby back. Shortly after the kidnapping, Vera's husband is called back into action flying for the military, and Vera takes over his job.

I usually love reading WWII fiction, and I thought this would be right up my alley, given the inclusion of a woman pilot as a central character. However, I couldn't get into the storyline as it was a bit all over the place at the start, which makes hard to explain the plot. In addition, I was often shaking my head about Vera's choices, and as a result, she came off as not being too brilliant.

Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy.

Thank you NetGalley and BooksGoSocial!

Only One Lie is a breath of fresh air. This was a solid read that kept you guessing from page one and the minute you think you have it figured out you are instantly shown you clearly do not. This was well thought out and a super easy read! I will be coming back to Audrey J. Cole for future reads.

This is the first book I’ve read by Audrey J. Cole and I loved it. It was set during WWII but it was not about WWII. It is about a rich and powerful family and the secrets they hold. I enjoyed every page of this book. The setting descriptions make you feel as if you are in the story. There are quite a few twists that I did not see coming. I will definitely read more of this authors books!

It’s the last Wednesday of the month (year!), so it’s book review time. I decided to go with a mystery. It’s not really a cozy, but it kind of is. There are a lot of the same tropes, but it has the feel of a regular old mystery. Only One Lie by Audrey J. Cole was released from Rainier Publishing (they have no website that I could find) on December 27th. As usual, I must thank them and NetGalley for access to an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review. Let’s get to it.

Only One Lie follows various points of view to tell the story of Vera, a newbie pilot whose husband is being shipped off to war, as she starts a job flying for the Ellis’, a super rich family whose youngest member has been kidnapped. Somehow, Vera gets tangled up in the family’s lies and deceit. Her life is in danger and the only way to save herself is to find the missing boy.

The plot is super standard. Kid gets taken. Kidnappers don’t show up to collect the ransom. No one can find the kid until the nosy woman shows up and gets talked into helping despite her better judgment. Various antics ensue to drag the story into a novel. Kid is found and everything is wrapped up in a neat little bow. But the ending was super far fetched. It’s explained vaguely away by the fact that Vera’s dad is a cop, but it made no sense that she didn’t even get investigated for what she did. It killed the plausibility of the whole thing. And I was kind of disappointed that something better wasn’t done with the baddie. It was set up where they had the potential to be something other than a stereotypical rich dick, but nah. It was sad. But it wasn’t a bad story, just kind of meh. I never considered not finishing the book, so it couldn’t have been horrible while I was reading it.

The characters were nothing special. The good guys (and gals) were pretty perfect people and the bad guys (and gals) were either rich, corrupt, or both. It really reminded me of that one Danielle Steel novel I reviewed. Granted, this book was so much better, but the character development was still lacking. The only one who seemed to grow at all was Priscilla and even she didn’t change much. I liked Vera, but she was still too perfect. It was annoying.

The writing itself was okay. It was really simplistic, like something I expect to find in middle grade books. I admit I was caught off guard by it, but it was an interesting choice. Bare bones and mostly easy vocabulary. It made for a smooth and quick read.

Ultimately, I wasn’t a fan of Only One Lie. After I put it down, I was just meh about it. The more I think about it though, the more I actively dislike it. I definitely won’t look for anything by Cole, but if something drops into my lap, I’d give it a shot since the writing was okay.

Overall, I gave it 2 out of 5 stars. When I finished it a week or so ago, I thought I would give it 3, but it just gets worse the more I think about it, so I feel like 2 is fair. If you enjoy Danielle Steel, you might like this book. If not, give it a miss.

“Seattle, 1942. News of the war is interrupted by the kidnapping of young Max Ellis, heir to the wealthiest banking family on the west coast. When the boy’s parents comply with the ransom demands, the kidnapper is found dead and their son remains missing. For newlywed Vera Chandler, the story hits close to home—her husband Hugh is just six months into his job as the Ellis’s private pilot.”

I was excited to read this book, as I love historical, girl-power fiction, and am always on the lookout for another amazing new-to-me author.

The premise held promise. I loved learning about female pilots during WWII and I’m here for any story where women support and uplift other women.

The novel itself, however, was just TOO MUCH. Too many huge leaps in logic. Too many sub-plots. Too many boneheaded decisions. Too many actors with zero nuance. Too much inner monologue about Mommy’s Precious Little Sailor.

Now, this author is BELOVED on GoodReads, so I’ll own that I’m in the minority.

I just wanted more of the WAFS and less “I know you managed to burn the meatloaf in the span of a 3 minute conversation, and can’t keep plants alive, but I caught you reading a mystery novel, so you must be the PERFECT PERSON to help me find my son’s kidnapper, and keep me out of the lobotomizing loony bin!”

5/10

Thanks to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and OrangeSky Audio for this ARC.

This book has two unique things going for it; an uncommon wartime setting and a female private pilot.

I enjoyed reading about familiar places in the Pacific Northwest not often chosen as settings for wartime fiction. The focus of this book is on the homefront where a kidnapping of a child from a wealthy banking magnate has taken place. The protagonist is pulled into this investigation because she’s hired as the Ellis family’s private pilot while her Navy husband is deployed to the Pacific. Her role in the family allows us to see a behind-the-scenes look at what’s hiding behind the facade this family presents to the public as well as the corruption and secrets. Vera Chandler is a force to be reckoned with and this family have no idea who they’ve let into their fold.

Audrey J. Cole always gives delivers more than we expect and readers will be hampered by the web of deceit and corruption as they allow their inner sleuth to solve the mystery.

I was gifted this advance copy and was under no obligation to provide a review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It is a compelling story with a good combination of character development and suspenseful plot. I found Vera an engaging character. Even in childhood, all Vera wanted to be was a pilot and a detective. Now, as an adult, she finally has the opportunity to fly.

How women were involved in flying during WW II is one informative aspect of the novel. Another was the disparity in pay between men and women. And then there is the power a wealthy family could exercise, even with the police. A more subtle issue deals with relationships, such as the loyalty of family or of women in love with flying.

Vera is a great amateur sleuth. I liked her character and the strength she showed. Cole did a good job of creating deceitful and dangerous characters too. As the novel nears its conclusion, the suspense intensifies and is truly a page turner.

I have read many of Cole's novels and I think this is the best one yet. It has great characters, an engaging plot and page turning suspense. I highly recommend it.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

Vera Chandler is a young pilot during WWII, hoping to join the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron. But then her husband Hugh has a second deployment to the Pacific and she takes over his job as private pilot to Seattle’s wealthy Ellis family. The Ellises define dysfunctional. Vera is hired days after Vincent and Priscilla’s three year old son Max is kidnapped. None of the family, including Vincent’s brother Rex and mother Ruth, want the police involved. The delay proves to be disastrous and Max remains missing with no leads. As Vera struggles to understand the family dynamics, Priscilla begs her to help find Max. This, and the many secrets hidden by the Ellis family, will place in her deep danger.

Audrey J. Cole has delivered another unputdownable thriller. Combining mystery, historical fiction, and take your breath away flight scenes, Only One Lie is full of well described characters (some likeable, others not) and gives a few into how the rich live. In the final chapters, Vera Chandler admits she’d like to become a private detective. Audrey Cole, this is a great idea. Ill look forward to a sequel! 5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley, Books Go Social and Audrey J. Cole for this ARC.

Only One Lie takes place during WWII with women pilots! I had no idea women were pilots back then! There’s a kidnapping involved and they all rally to find the little boy. The book started out strong but then I began to lose interest. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early release. To be published December 2022.

Audrey J. Cole is one of my favorite authors and she does not disappoint with her latest Only One Lie. She has out done herself with this one. This is a well written and researched novel. Her writing style makes this a pleasure to read. A fast paced historical thriller, Ms. Cole will grab you from the start and does not let go until very end. She uniquely combines historical fiction with a mysterious thriller. She adds so much to it…….secrets, twist and turns, suspense, drama, kidnapping and intrigue to name a few. A child of a wealthy family is kidnapped and a young woman pilot is asked to help this family. Murder and intrigue will keep you in the edge of your seat. I highly recommend this author and her books, she will not let you down.

Thank you NetGalley, Rainier Publishing and Audrey J. Cole for this advanced copy of this fascinating story. The opinions expressed are my own.
#netgalley #rainierpublishing. #audreyjcole #arc
#historicalfiction #historicalthriller

A 1942 WW2 mystery set mainly in Seattle which could be classed as 'cozy'. Plenty of females in the book due to wartime and the main character, Vera Chandler, is a former nurse with a pilot's licence.

The story starts with a kidnapped child but then the kidnapper's body was found dead a the ransom drop off point. Vera helps in the investigation as well as becoming involved in a rich, secretive family.

I am still not sure if Ms Cole was trying to serve up an Agatha Christie type mystery? Quite enjoyable though.

Thanks to Net Galley and BooksGoSocial for the chance to read and review.

A little bit of everything is all mixed up in this Vera Chandler is an aspiring pilot who is hoping to be selected to join other women pilots who help the war effort by delivering airplanes to various bases. In the meantime, she takes over her deployed husband’s civilian job by flying the private plane for the wealthy Ellis family.

One of the Ellis heirs recently had his son kidnapped, the kidnapper was found dead on the night the ransom exchange was supposed to have happened, but the boy is nowhere to be found. The mother – Priscilla pleads with Vera to help find her child, which Vera reluctantly agrees to.

Audrey Cole takes you on a breathtaking journey with Vera through twists and turns as she breaks into offices, tails suspects and dodges attempts on her life as she pulls together all the clues she finds to a fiery conclusion.


This is up in my top ten reads for 2022

A Historical Fiction mixed with a Thriller?!?! Audrey did just that! I never knew that mixing these two genres could be done so eloquently. I love both of these genres so I was so excited to see that NetGalley approved me for this ARC. You can tell that Audrey is so passionate about this time era and the research on settings, plot lines, and character development was thorough. The twists and turns were strategically placed so that it did not take away from the setting but were enough to keep me engaged throughout the book. As someone who deployed in combat arms myself, I was so happy to see a strong, driven female protagonist in this story who kicked butt. Looking forward to catching up on my backlist of books and reading The Pilot's Daughter next!!!

I really enjoy WW2 era stories so was very excited to read this. It was an excellent story, very thrilling and a good mystery. Would recommend!

4.5💫
The Final Hunt was my first ARC from Audrey Cole…it was set in stunning Alaska and it was a tale of deceit with a gruesome murder. I was mesmerized by both the writing and locale and intrigued by the mystery of a dead husband. I wrote to her saying that it HAD to be a movie due to the action-packed pacing. I knew she would become an auto-read author after just one book!

So imagine my surprise when I opened the first page of this ARC (I auto-requested seeing her latest without reading the concept) and found that it was historical fiction! Say whaaat?! I LOVE it! Being that this was her first in this genre, it read more like a cozy mystery but her attention to detail of war planes, female pilots and what was happening at that time was evident of her research.

It’s a story of wealth and privilege and how no matter what you think someone might have, that isn’t the whole picture. Chances are great that there are many skeletons in the closet. It’s a story of great love and passion—between friends, spouses and careers. But it’s also about the lengths one will go to expose corruption. The novel builds up to a crescendo and ends with a bang. I really don’t want to give too much away, but I told Audrey that once I started reading I couldn’t stop and I finished this on Kindle in just a couple of days (not an easy feat in my household…)
OUT ON DEC 27th… Kindle preorder is $5.99 right now! It’s a perfect January read!! Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher!! I adore this author!!

This was my first by this author and its my favorite book in this month. I was completely captivated by the female pilot in this novel.

Its starts out with a bang, when a child is kidnapped late at night from a wealthy banking family. The nanny went to check on Max, the window was open, and the child was missing. Immediately they find a ransom note. This family is very complicated. The mother clearly adores her child and is in a horrible marriage, but all appearances can be deceiving.

The other main plot is the private pilot, Vera Chandler who is flies for the family. Vera’s husband was their pilot, but he is sent of with the Navy, and Vera steps in. What a way to start a new job, when the family you have been hired for has a kidnapping.

Will they find out who kidnapped the child? Will the child be alive? This reminded me of the Lindbergh case of the time.

I will be reading more by this author. Get your favorite drink, because you won’t want to put this book down. Thank you Netgalley . BooksGoSocial and Audrey J Cole for this advanced copy. This novel is due out December 27, 2022.

The world is plunged into WWII and the horrific news and repercussions spread quickly, reaching Seattle. Vincent and Priscilla Ellis have an even more pressing matter, that of the kidnapping of their little son, Max. Though their vast wealth means they can afford to pay a ransom as well as anything else but as the characters know and discover, money doesn't buy happiness. Social standing and appearances are more important than anything and their staff alone sees what really goes on in the household.

Meanwhile, the Ellis family's private pilot Hugh leaves to participate in the war and his wife Vera who is desperate to become a member of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron is approached by Priscilla who pleads with her for help in the kidnapping case. Police resources just aren't enough. When Max's kidnapper is found dead the direction of the case shifts and more questions are asked than answered. Vera is placed into a difficult position and misses Hugh and her friends terribly. As the case drags on, layers of secrets are revealed.

Historical Fiction fans will enjoy this story which echoes that of the Lindbergh case (author Audrey J. Cole even mentions its relevance) but she takes completely different directions. Her characters are written with depth, some likeable, others not. I really like the originality and surprises. Her writing is lovely and her previous two books are incredibly good as well. She is an author I will happily read without even knowing the synopses!

My sincere thank you to BooksGoSocial and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this wonderful book.

3

I received an ARC for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.


Alright alright, let's talk about the book...

Only One Lie by Audrey J. Cole is a page turning mystery novel based during World War II and boy does she understand the assignment.


Within this gripping novel we follow our MC:

Vera Chandler:
Truly a woman that was left up to her own demise that is trying to do right by a family that only wants to do wrong. Throughout this book we watch her grow from someone who is so unsure of her place to someone who is finally willing to stand up for their own. Vera is a heroine that we all want to be in every crazy elitist snobs story and boy is it absolutely magnificent.

Think of a book you would love to snuggle up and read in the middle of the night about and you will land yourself at this books door step.

Tropes:
-WWII
-Mystery
-FMC
-Thrilling twists and turns
-Exposing the rich

This book is truly something to behold, if you like novels that will bring you back to the time period and make you feel the characters stories this is quite the book for you!

Thank you NetGalley and Audrey J. Cole for allowing me to read your book!

*Thank you to NetGalley and BooksGoSocial for providing me this arc for an honest review*

Although I love WWII books, I do not love mystery. Well, this book had both of it and it was really well written. It was a little more political for my taste but it was so amazingly done that you kept forgetting it. An amazing read.

Well this was a well researched book. I enjoyed the characters and the romance and the drama along the way. It couldnt our it down til it was over

THANKS Netgalley and the publisher.

All thoughts and opinions are my own and have not been influenced hy anyone else