I thoroughly enjoyed this! The different strands worked very well, with plenty of red herrings for readers. At times the MC's reactions and assumptions are frustrating - in the best possible way as means the reader is fully engrossed! Parts I guessed, parts I didn't and the characters are absolutely intriguing. Their interactions are what make it, really. A really good read.

Rating: 2.4/5

I was really taken with the premise of this book - perhaps even more so than I have been with the previous novels I have read by Claire Douglas - but ultimately I don't feel that "The Woman Who Lied" delivered on the great potential that it had.

I have been critical of this author's novels in the past for having a tendency to be unnecessarily drawn out, even though they have still been very engaging and enjoyable. On this occasion that is certainly not a criticism that could be justifiably made - but instead of that resulting in a more satisfying read, I actually found this one the most frustrating. It has so much going for it: an appealing premise, a story within a story, and a cast of characters with suitably questionable histories - but in spite of that, it simply didn't make the impact that it could and should have. There was ample opportunity for mounting tension to be delivered in spades, but instead it seemed to lack polish and was a little disjointed. I dare say I will return to read the next offering from Claire Douglas, but this one left me feeling a touch underwhelmed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

Am intriguing premise as the main character, a bestselling crime writer, sees some of her previous books plots coming into her life.

The good points of the book are the twists and turns which fans of Claire Douglas's books will love. Also, it has a plot that isn't too unbelievable (although the main character Emilia seems to know a lot of people with a police background!).

It lacks the real spark The Couple at Number 9 or Then She Vanishes. Still a good read and fans of her previous books won't be disappointed.

The Woman Who Lied is a twist filled mystery about an author who begins to doubt her relationships when storylines from her writing become reality. Slow at first, there were too many characters and few thrills. However, it is an enjoyable read.

A complex story that was enjoyable…. But…. I know this is an advanced copy and I trust the final copy will be different. I generally like stories told from the perspective of different characters the formatting made this a challenge. I constantly had to scroll back when I realised the ‘voice’ had changed. This spoilt my enjoyment. I read about 8- 19 books a month and I’m hoping that sometime in the future when I buy this book, it will have some clarity.

This was my kinda thriller! I really felt like I was getting two for the price of one here aswell with the Miranda Moody snippets running alongside, and two authors too!

The real author (Claire Douglas) done a fantastic job of weaving together the story lines, dangling a few carrots and leaving me guessing til the end. I did guess a couple of people may be 'involved' but not so much the ins and outs and like I say, there were a few carrots dangling away so not all clear cut.

I also loved how easy it was to read but with still loads going on. I really can't stand an over complicated twister for more or less the same outcome as I got here but I needn't have worried in the hands of this author, infact I devoured this in less than 24 hours which is quite unheard of for me!

THE WOMAN WHO LIED is described as' The Thriller of the Summer' and they're not wrong! Perfect for ALL thriller fans - Grab it!

Another Claire Douglas page-turner which draws you in and takes you on an intriguing rollercoaster ride, hurling you in every direction until you don't really know where is up or down. You think you've figured it out but then a race to an acute corner sends you off on another tangent.

If you're looking for a perfect summer read on a beach which will keep you enticed, this is the novel for you. The Douglas formula is again a success.

#TheWomanWhoLied #NetGalley
Awesome.
Emilia Ward lives quietly in suburban London with her husband and two children.
Just an ordinary wife and mother. But also a bestselling crime writer. When she starts writing her tenth Detective Miranda Moody novel, however, life takes a frightening turn: an incident straight out of one of her novels occurs in real life. Just an unsettling coincidence, she thinks. Until it happens again. Then someone she knows dies exactly like a victim in the book she's still writing .Why is someone doing this? How do they know what she is writing?
And how long before Emilia and her family are next?
Loved it.
Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Michael Joseph UK for giving me an advance copy.

Murder she wrote ★★★☆☆

As bestselling author Emilia Ward embarks on her final Detective Miranda Moody novel, life begins to imitate fiction and she becomes embroiled in a real life murder case. Somebody is stalking her and they know the truth about her latest work… Will the end of Miranda also mean the end of Emilia?

The parallel narration cleverly blurs real life with Emilia’s novel. As only a handful of people have read her latest draft, the author keeps us guessing and Emilia is forced to suspect those very closest to her as she becomes increasingly paranoid and the accusations mount up.

However, the identity of the real life murderer and their links to Emilia seem tenuous when their motives are revealed. The art imitating life murder novel is also an existing trope in recent novels – e.g. Rules for Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson and The Reader’s Room by Antoine Laurain – and needs something really striking to stand out.

I’m a big fan of Claire Douglas but I preferred The Couple at Number 9.

Thank you so much to Penguin UK - Michael Joseph for allowing me to review this ARC.

This thriller had me on the edge of my seat from the start. It was so twisty, full of suspense, Claire had me guessing right to the end.

A must read and I highly recommend you pick this one up.

Emilia is a well known author of crime fiction who suddenly finds alarming things happening to her, exactly as they have in her books. These occurrences become more terrifying as time goes on and Emilia fears for the lives of herself and her family. The premise of the story may be a little far fetched, but the writing, pacing, characterisation and settings here are exceptional, making for a gripping read from start to finish.

I read this in one sitting on a mid haul flight. Absolutely phenomenal. Claire never fails to amaze me. The characters are on point, the storyline is easy to follow but absolutely brilliant. Couldn’t fault it AT ALL. I can’t wait to read her next one already!

Such an interesting and gripping read, I couldn’t read it fast enough! A book within a book can sometimes be confusing but not at all with this, I loved the premise and found it fascinating. A large cast of characters and as the reader I had trust in some and not in others. I enjoyed being led down one path only for it to be wrong and my assumptions be completely so far removed from the truth.
Great writing, brilliant storyline and interesting characters. A read I would definitely recommend.

Claire Douglas' The Woman Who Lied revolves around a bestselling writer, wife and mum, Emilia Ward. Written in turn by Emila, a detective investigating a serial killer, and a young girl who's doesn't appear, until well into the story, to belong anywhere within the plot, there are plenty of red herrings and twists. It is gripping, and keeps the reader guessing, but that said, it's far fetched, the story is a little unbelievable, and too many twists end up making it a slightly messy read.

This ticked all the boxes for the perfect psychological thriller. There were so many twists and surprises it had me guessing until the reveal.

I loved the premise of the storyline that events from the main characters' books were being copied in real life. But when things happen that are in her final manuscript, she realises it's someone she knows but who is behind it all.

I was totally hooked from the start and totally loved it

Emilia Ward is a best selling author when an incident on a bus starts a series of events that replicates the detective series she has written. If that is the case, Emilia fears she will be the next to die.
The characters are well described and developed, you can picture each one and the relationship between Emilia’s family and friendship group.
A rollercoaster of a plot, having a book within a book with plenty of twists to keep you reading.
A first class read with a refreshing approach. I wouldn’t expect any less from Claire Douglas!

Emilia Ward is happily married to her second husband, Elliot, and is mother to Jasmine and Wilfie. She’s not just a wife and mum though, as she is also the bestselling author of the Miranda Moody detective stories, the 10th of which she has just written. However, after a few unsettling and weird incidents, Emilia realises these occurrences are mirroring events in her book, real life imitating art. Emilia is clearly concerned and is hyper alert, but things totally plummet when a friend dies in exactly the same way as in her new book. What is going on? How is it even possible that someone knows the contents as it’s not yet been published? Are Emilia and her family going to be the next targets?

The premise of this novel is really good and the author makes you want to understand the truth behind the escalation of the threat levels. The characterisation especially of Emilia and her family is good with all of them being well fleshed out. There are plenty of plot twists and turns and the author keeps on coming right to the very end with the final one being especially good. I like the extract from the book that are also included in the narrative.

However, it’s slow to get going which is due to it being over detailed and over explained which halts the flow and makes it feel choppy. In all honesty I don’t feel the tension I should have been able to feel either which I think may be due to the increasing over complications and convolutions of the plot.

However, I really like what Claire Douglas has tried to do here, the premise is clever, but it’s not quite as well executed as her other books in my opinion.

With thanks to NetGalley and especially to Michael Joseph for the much appreciated arc in return for an honest review.

Found it a little slow to begin with but then became hooked and couldn't put it down. Absolutely loved this book.

This is the first book that I’ve read by Claire Douglas and I’m now questioning why I didn’t find her sooner.
This is a really good thriller with a unique plot.
I was sure I had guessed it the ending but it took me by surprise.
I really enjoyed this book and I’ll definitely be reading more by this author.

The woman who lied revolves around a successful writer called Emilia. Who is writing her 9th book in her crime thriller series. She is also mother to two children one from her first marriage and the youngest from her currant second marriage. All appears to be going well in her life until that is her life starts to resemble the events in her books and then all starts going very wrong indeed. When her friend is killed the significance of the parallels becomes too difficult to ignore.

As with all of Claires books there are twist and turns a plenty to keep you guessing along the way.