This was a fairly twisty domestic thriller which was told over two timelines which converge with Vanessa's son vanishing. Both timelines give glimpses into the life behind the Lowe's Insta famous family life and slowly reveal all of the truths about her!
I personally found this to be quite a sad tale in that it's one that could be happening right now somewhere, the lure of gaining followers and likes or figuring out how to 'beat the algorithm' becomes an obsession in some people, it can do so much damage.
This was a very easy to read story from the way that it's written in mostly quite short bursts with the occasional much longer piece when there is something more in depth we needed to know. The characters, even the unlikeable ones, were easy to understand, the places beautifully described and the narrative just flowed so nicely.
I admit I finished this book in just over a day, it was so good I just didn't want to put it down as I really wanted to know what had happened to Matthew and why.

The Truth About Her is a twisty psychological thriller that had me guessing all the way.
Vanessa is a quite famous insta mummy to three. Whatever she’s doing she’s making sure her life looks the best ever on Instagram. Callie is taking a break in Whitstable before going home to her mums for Christmas, she needs some time alone to reflect on past events. She has no idea she is renting a beachside chalet belonging to Vanessa. Vanessa is immediately over friendly and this book is about three women, totally unrelated but two that stand firm for everything they believe.
This was a well written book, I enjoyed all the red herrings that were spotted around. The characters were well developed and I liked both Rachel and Callie, I also liked how Callie was present day and Rachel was the near past but the story told almost in reverse for her part which worked well.
I would like to thank Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

The Truth About Her explores the truth behind a glamorous Instagram life. The photos, the ideas, the self absorbment the run of the mill daily life and just how difficult it is to keep it looking interisting for all you obsessed followers.

This is that novel and as it includes a dead child and an innocent woman accused of murder it ticks all the boxes.

There are red herrings and clues all through the novel, one of which i picked up and guessed the ending because of it (no spoiler but see if you can spot it).

This didn't ruin the novel though. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance ARC which I definately recomend.

The Lowes are a picture perfect family in Whitstable with the mum, Vanessa having quite the following on Instagram, being an insta mummy and sharing all the good things about the Lowes life and using this to spring board their shop. But are they hiding a darker side? Callie, staying in Whitstable for a break after a tragedy before she heads back to London is about to find out.

Looking back I don't think I wanted to know The Truth About Her LOL.... This book had me gripped from the start, a twisty domestic thriller with themes of toxic friendship, parenting, bullying and influencers. I don't think I was expecting this book to get so dark. The themes were serious and the characters were really believable. It made me feel queasy at times because I thought 'feck I would not know what to do if this was me'.

I was surprised at the twists and it kept me reading. I'll be following Annie so I can read more of her books!

My only comment is as it was an ARC some of the chapters bled into each other without any gap so it moves from one perspective to another without notice. I'm sure it'll be fixed for the release version.

This book centred around the character of Vanessa and was mainly told from the perspective of two women she befriended, Callie and Rachel, sometimes it went straight from one to the other and I struggled to figure out whose story I was listening to. Then I figured out Callie's was in the first person and Rachel's was in the third. Lots of focus on social media and then everything came together in the last few chapters....just when I thought I had all the answers!

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book.

This was a really impressive novel and a definite 5 stars

In this novel, Callie rents an AirBnB to get away from the troubles in her life. We don't quite know why to start with but soon come to understand she has suffered significant trauma.

Shortly after arriving in her rented home, she realises that she is renting from Insta-famous influencer Vanessa and soon strikes up a friendship with her and her family.

However, Callie soon comes to learn that Vanessa's perfect life on Instagram isn't quite reality and when Vanessa's son Matthew goes missing, the façade of Vanessa's life comes crashing down.

As I say, this was a really impressive novel. Callie's heartbreak just leaps off the page and you feel every ounce of her sadness coming through. All throughout the book, each characters' twists and turns will keep you moving between considering them a hero and then villain and everything in between. There are a number of conflicting accounts that your desire to find the truth will keep you reading on until the final, heartbreaking conclusion.

Thanks to Netgalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for an ARC in exchange for an honest review

This book pulled me into the story from the start, however, like a few other readers I did find that it became a bit repetitive towards the end. I did spot the plot twist early on but was not sure how it would 'pan out' at the end. What this book really did was bring home to me just how toxic social media can be.
Thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for the advance copy of this book.

Although this book got off to a good start and I did enjoy it to around about the half way mark then I found it got a bit repetitive and the plot didn’t feel original. On the plus side there are lots of five star reviews for this book. So on this occasion I’m going to put it down to my mood rather than the author who has obviously put a lot of work into this book.

A brilliant psychological thriller about how friendships can turn into twisted behaviour and how social media can cause people to become obsessed.
This had me hooked from the start about Callie after suffering a loss her mum books her a beach cabin in Whitstable and there she meets Vanessa who is totally obsessed with social media and it dominates her life and that of her kids, so when Vanessa's young son goes missing everything explodes on social media.
I was on the edge of my seat as I felt torn between Vanessa and Callie with all the twists that kept coming.
The story keeps you guessing right up to end.
Would highly recommend can't wait for the next book.
Thanks to NetGalley & Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House for a ARC for a honest review.

How does enjoy a thriller set around social media and influencers? This one was full of twists and turns. It flicked between characters and timelines to help really flesh out the story. The writing style was brilliant and all the characters were brilliantly written.

“She told you everything. Except her darkest secret”
...

This psychological thriller pushed just about every button designed to raise my blood pressure and get my hackles up, as it brought into sharp focus, a well structured and crafted storyline which is so relevant to the times in which we live.

Let me try and explain a little better, but not in too much detail, for fear of giving away too many ‘spoilers’…

...

This is the coming together of three unrelated and disparate individuals, who, when it boils down to it, have very little in common except that they are strong, independent adult females and covet the inevitable lure of social media. A story of what’s lurking under the surface of apparently picture-perfect lives, in an idyllic setting, where it transpires, there is plenty to hide.

Vanessa Lowe is, in her own mind, a successful entrepreneur, who is living the dream. A large house overlooking the Kent coastline, a successful architect, Justin, as her husband and three well mannered children, JJ who is thirteen, his younger sister Emma, and baby of the family three-year-old Matthew. Oh! and of course, she holds the accolade as a renowned Instagram influencer, as she continually documents her life and family on her channel.

Through their youngest offspring, who both attend the same nursery, Vanessa meets Rachel Donovan, her husband Tom, a university lecturer, and their children Sadie and her slightly older brother Marcus. By coincidence, Rachel used to be an online marketeer, so Vanessa, never one to miss a trick, immediately begins to cultivate a relationship with the new arrivals to the area. The next few months are a heady whirlwind for Rachel and her family, as Vanessa elevates their status and draws them into her inner circle. However, slowly but surely, Rachel begins to have doubts about Vanessa’s sincerity, their relationship quickly deteriorates into one of mistrust and online vitriol, with such devastating ramifications, that within sixteen months the Donovan family have been forced to move on to pastures new, somewhere without the Lowes interfering in their lives – or so they thought!

It is at this juncture and only shortly before Christmas, that Callie arrives in Whitstable, on a completely different mission. She is seeking only peace and solitude to aide her recovery from a terrible personal tragedy, which has left her bereft and unable to function properly. Unbeknown to her though, Vanessa and Justin are the owners of the beachside chalet she is renting, so when she tracks Vanessa down to thank her for their kind touches around the place, she is next in line to be instantly taken under their wing, thus beginning a tentative friendship, with which Callie is far from comfortable, if truth be told. Callie quickly begins to witness the cracks in Vanessa’s perfect online persona and her family dynamics, which are in obvious freefall, but which she doesn’t seem to notice or be concerned about.

Within just a few short days of her arrival, Callie already has suspicions that all is not well in the Lowe household and has decided to give the family a wide berth, as Vanessa’s strange behaviour and her thoughts about what might be happening behind closed doors, are just to much for her to bear. Everything changes when Vanessa’s youngest child Matthew, goes missing and a huge police search gets underway. Callie has by now set in motion plans to visit her mother, as trying to deal with her grief and tragedy alone, isn’t working as well as she thought it might have. She is however, inevitably drawn into Matthew’s disappearance, although when Vanessa begins throwing accusations around, she almost wishes she hadn’t bothered. Callie finds herself helping the police with their enquiries, which means that she isn’t allowed to leave the area, and it is then that Vanessa reveals her true personality and just how venomous she can be. Rachel is once again viciously targeted online and Callie finds herself being manipulated against her better judgement.

Vanessa’s mental health begins to deteriorate exponentially, to the point where she loses touch with reality and any sense of reason. But can that all be blamed on grief? The police clearly think not and Christmas sees things manifest in a way no one could have dreamt of in their worst nightmares. However, the final sting in the tail is of gut-wrenching proportions, showing a father up for his weaknesses, failings and apathy in protecting his family and standing up for what he knows is right. Is it too late for him to amend for some of those many wrongs and is there a glimmer of hope left for the survival and new beginnings of a much smaller Lowe family unit?

...

OMG! Having read that mini resume over so many times, no matter how I tweak the words, it doesn’t even begin to touch the sides of this multi-layered storyline and its cast of multi-faceted characters.

Author Annie Taylor brought this storyline right up to date, shining the bright light of day onto some of the social and moral issues we all know exist, but which are seldom the subject for public self-examination. The perils and destructive nature of social media were examined under the microscope, specifically the way in which lives and reputations can be destroyed by malicious online trolling and abuse. The way in which adults can obtain instant self-gratification and kudos amongst their like-minded friends and followers, by holding their family, lifestyle and most intimate moments up for public view, often without their knowledge or consent. The physically coercive, emotionally controlling and gaslighting behaviour of one stronger person over more vulnerable individuals, often whilst others who have suspicions about such behaviours, weakly and rather cowardly in my opinion, choose to close their eyes and cover their ears to what is going on around them, then decide to step in too late to try and prevent the inevitable and often fatal consequences. The physical and emotional pain of sudden, unexpected loss, with the traumatic yet often unseen psychological impact such a life-changing event can inflict on those left behind. The sheer abject terror of a minor trying to protect and care for those more vulnerable than themselves, without really understanding the potential implications or consequences of their actions.

The narrative was presented in dual timeline, with a past which began sixteen months previously and unfolded in one month segments until it converged with the second storyline of the present day. The short chapters meant that the switch between the two stories was seamless and relatively easy to follow, until about half way through the book, when chapter headings alternated between muddled and non-existent, making the second half much more difficult to keep a track of, until things straightened themselves out again towards the end. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that my enjoyment was sightly tempered by this unexpected presentation, however, at that point, I did decide that for me, four stars was going to be more appropriate than five.

The multi-layered storyline was powerful, well-paced, highly textured and intense. The cut-it-with-a-knife atmosphere, for the most part was desperately cloying and claustrophobic, yet totally immersive. The tension mounted exponentially, and there was not a single facet of this storyline which was simple or uncomplicated, as more and more clues were drip-fed into the narrative little by little. Nothing was quite as it seemed and the twists and turns just kept on coming – and I mean right to the very end, complicating the tangled web of lies and secrets which overlaid everything, until I just didn’t know who to believe any more. In fact, there was more than one single crime, and whilst my original guess at the identity of one of the perpetrators turned out to be correct, that didn’t make a shred of difference, as the suspense was maintained right up to the turn of that last page, with the final couple of chapters delivering the gut-punch I never saw coming, turning everything on its head and bringing my heart into my throat, filling me with sadness and anger in equal measure.

Annie created a small group of addictive, well defined characters, who, whether I chose to love or hate them, were all genuinely believable and authentic to the roles in which they had been cast. Complex emotions and raw passion, made them vulnerable, unreliable and volatile. There were no laugh-out-loud moments in this rather lugubrious, yet compulsive storyline and I felt no sense of personal connection with any one individual, as they wore their facades of social media activity like cloaks of invisibility, behind which to hide. You never know what goes on behind closed doors!

Although location wasn’t the highest priority of this storyline, with place names which were real and easily tracked (I do remember Margate from childhood family holidays), the armchair traveller in me was perfectly satisfied with my journey to the Kent coast, with the sights, sounds and smells of the physical location teasing me into a real sense of time and place that I could almost step into and an atmosphere which lingered long after I had closed the final page. Just don’t assume anything is over, until it’s over!

An incredibly dark psychological thriller that will make you rethink all your friendships
I absolutely loved this book. The story is brilliantly written and the past/present jumping chapters felt like putting puzzle pieces together to form the big picture
I raced through it wondering who did what and also, how far can one go in the pursuit of fame

THE TRUTH ABOUT HER is a twisty thriller based mainly around the world of social media and influencers. Vanessa is a social media influencer and her whole life is based around her instagram. Her life seems perfect with her husband and her three kids but Callie, who is lodging in Vanessa’s holiday cottage, realises very quickly that Vanessa and her life is not as perfect as it seems…
I was hooked from the beginning and I sped through this so fast. I thought about half way through that I had it all figured out what was happening, but the last few chapters took my breath away and was not what I thought at all! I liked how this went back and forward from the past and the present to give a bit of backstory to the things that were happening. This was a really great mystery with twists and turns and with some heartbreaking parts too. I’d definitely recommend this to thriller and mystery fans!
Thank you so much to Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was recommended to me by a friend so I was delighted when I got approved for this copy. To begin with I was a little confused at what was happening, there wasn’t a clear timeline for then and now in some places so it took a couple of sentences to figure out. It was a great storyline, one that reminded me of another book I have previously read but had me guessing right up until the end. I love a book that makes me question things the whole way through and this one did exactly that. Even now I have finished I’m still surprised at the ending. I expected something totally different so I was very surprised.

A great story full of falseness and twisted behaviour. There are some really great things happening in this story keeping you on the edge of the seat and nervous for the outcome...

The Truth About Her - I devoured this book in a day!

Callie is struggling following a personal tragedy so her mum books her a couple of weeks in a beach cabin to reset before travelling back to mum and dad for Christmas. The beach house happens to be owned by social media influencer Vanessa Lowe. A friendship begins after the women cross paths and it’s from here we are introduced to Vanessa’s previous friendship with Rachel who became her stalker. Or did she? Vanessa’s son disappears - Callie is caught up in the middle of it and Vanessa enlists her help in proving Rachel is behind it!

Multiple POV’s and timelines, along with short chapters bring the story to life - I wasn’t sure what or who to believe, which made this book a compulsive read that I couldn’t stop thinking about.

The prologue had me hooked straight away and I’m so pleased the book didn’t disappoint! I loved the character development in this book, loved the insight into life as an instaglam influencer and how you really shouldn’t believe everything you see on social media! I did get confused with the timelines and characters occasionally but not enough to change my opinion of this being a great book!

4 ⭐️ read! Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was addicted to this book from the first chapter! The toxic friendships/social influencer plot was intriguing and made for page-turning reading. I found myself questioning everything and everyone. It did get a lot darker than I anticipated as the book progressed, so please check the trigger warnings. The ending was one I didn't see coming, but in hindsight, the thread and clues were there. It's a great read and also made me think about Instagram and how little we really know about our followers outside of those little picture boxes. Annie is a fantastic writer, and I will be looking for other books from her. Five stars!

The premise of this book is incredibly relevant and firmly puts the plot into a modern day scenario. Parents posting images of their children on social media is such an interesting topic and a very clever idea for a crime novel. However I just felt that the execution didn’t quite live up to the concept. Callie, Vanessa, and Rachel are all well written characters for the most part but I felt that the plot dragged a bit too much for something which was ultimately ‘predictable’- the predictability could have worked with the right pace. Overall a good read but I was left wanting a bit more! Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book.

Vanessa was a character I initially felt sorry for, trying to compensate for her shortcomings by creating an illusion of a stellar lifestyle. documenting every perfect detail of her family’s day to day life. In fact her world, her social media bubble is not what it seems. The family bears a dark and tragic secret. A stain on their present and future.

This book got off to a good start and I did enjoy the first half. However from about 60% on I felt it started to drag and didn't move on quick enough for me. I just felt like the plot was treading water, looking at the same situation from all angles and getting a little repetitive. I carried on because I wanted to know how it would all end. Sorry to say I didn't like the ending either. I am in the minority though, most reviewers seemed to enjoy it.