This is my first book by Heidi Perks and it was fantastic. I really enjoyed the differing points of view that told the story. I also thought that the podcast that revealed more and more the further I read on, was a great addition to the story.

This book had me hooked from the beginning and was packed full of twists I didn't see coming. I'd highly recommend reading it.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. I found myself still asking questions and finding unexpected twists and turns right to the end. The characters were very interesting and created really well. The route that the story follows is intriguing and unexpected. I also really like the ending of the story. It was drawn to a close super well and answered so many questions. It also left the story feeling complete and at a peaceful end. Overall I thought this was great.

How far would you go to protect your child? This was a great read that had me hooked until the last page as I couldn't wait to find out the outcome would definitely recommend

Two teenagers go missing in Lisbon and when both go off grid their mothers, Kay and Jess, are unable to contact either of them. The chapters are split between each of these two single mums, both from very different backgrounds. One is affluent and the other is less well off and struggling but each one has her own child's interests at heart so when it emerges that a person has been killed and either of the teens, Dylan or his girlfriend, Issie, may be to blame the story becomes really riveting. I was totally hooked throughout as the twists and red herrings ensured that I was totally at a loss as to who was lying and why. There was a huge moral dilemma regarding the two mothers. How far would you go to protect your child even if you doubted their innocence? I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am grateful to the publisher and Netgalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC in return for my honest review.

I really liked the premise of this story especially the dynamics of the mother/daughter relationship and as a single mum, what it can be fraught with. I totally agreed with the idea that most parents will defend their children to the Nth degree if they do something wrong , and liked that the author challenges that. The story swaps between the two mums involved and how life is like a pendulum swinging to and fro. It also highlights that you can have friends where you least expect but also that having money or the lack of it, distorts views. Good strong story.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC to review

I enjoyed this but I'm not really a thriller girlie so I did try, thank you again for allowing me to read this

Two teenagers go missing in Portugal, whose side of the story do you believe? This is mostly told by their mothers with excerpts from a podcast about the case. Plenty of red herrings along the way to keep you guessing.

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

Gripping from beginning to end, lots of twists and turns, I couldn’t put it down. Good characterisation and well paced which is what you expect from Heidi Parks books. If you’re a parent it does make you wonder what you would do. I highly recommend this book. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

A clever and twisty mystery which morphs in several directions as you complete the journey and pretty much reads as an A-Z of possible nightmares if you have a teenage girl. Topics covered in the storyline include a teenager, seemingly, missing whilst overseas on holiday with again a, seemingly, controlling and coercive older boyfriend. The truth is sketchy and hard to ascertain the whole way through which makes you question your own viewpoint and reality. There are plenty of very chilling and tense sections and all the more so for me as I have two teenage daughters myself. Some real money is power moments are also part of the mood but the truth and the right thing to do overarches ultimately. I’m not a hundred percent sold on the podcast being used as part of the narrative or the lack of forensics involved which could easily have proved the truth quickly and decisively. Overall a good tense read which made me question the truth right to the very end. Recommend.

When I first picked up Someone Is Lying, I couldn’t believe I was reading another book about a missing person in Lisbon! Just two books ago, I read Two Nights in Lisbon by Chris Pavone, and before that, I had never read a book set there. What are the chances? Luckily, that’s where the similarities ended because this one was completely different—and, in my opinion, so much better.
The story follows Issie, a teenager who has gone travelling with her boyfriend, Dylan. But when her mother, Jess, can’t get hold of her on her eighteenth birthday, panic sets in. At first, Jess reassures herself with the usual explanations—maybe Issie is busy, maybe her phone is lost—but as the hours pass with no word, a mother’s worst fears begin to creep in. Then comes the bombshell: Issie has vanished without a trace.
What I loved about this book was the dual perspective, switching between Jess and Dylan’s mother, Kay. These two women, who barely know each other, suddenly find their lives intertwined in the most terrifying way possible. Both are fiercely protective of their children, but they see things from very different angles. Jess is desperate to uncover the truth, no matter what it takes, while Kay is convinced her son is incapable of wrongdoing. Their contrasting emotions and instincts made for a fascinating dynamic, and I found myself questioning whose judgement I could trust.
The prologue stuck with me throughout, always sitting in the back of my mind as I tried to figure out how it would all fit together. And then, when the twist hit in the middle, I was completely floored. This one took me by surprise in the best way. The tension was masterfully built, with just enough clues to keep me guessing but not so many that the reveal felt predictable.
Heidi Perks has a knack for pacing. The chapters were short and addictive, and I found myself racing through the book much faster than I expected. Every time I thought I’d put it down, I found myself reading just one more chapter—and then another, and another. It’s the kind of story that demands to be read in as few sittings as possible because the need to know what happens next is overwhelming.
Beyond the mystery itself, the book also explores the complex nature of mother-child relationships. Jess and Kay are both flawed yet deeply human, and their love for their children is palpable. Perks does an excellent job of portraying the lengths to which parents will go to protect their kids, even when that protection might come at a cost.
Overall, Someone Is Lying is a gripping, cleverly structured thriller that kept me guessing right up until the final pages. It was filled with unexpected turns, emotional depth, and just the right amount of psychological tension. If you enjoy books with multiple perspectives, strong character development, and a mystery that keeps you hooked, I highly recommend picking this one up.

Not quite as nailbititing as usual from Heidi Perks but a good story nonetheless.
When teenagers Issy and Dylan go travelling in Europe, Issy's mum, Jess, gets worried when she can't contact her on her birthday. This is not like Issy at all. She's convinced that something has happened as the non contact time lengthened. Issy wouldn't turn off her phone. She'd know that her mum would worry. Contacting Dylan's mum, Kim, she finds that Dylan has been no contact either.
Told via the 2 mums and a podcast about .the young couple's disappearance, someone is lying about what happened.

Your seventeen year old daughter has gone on holiday with her nineteen year old boyfriend. She will be away on her eighteenth birthday. You don't like him, your daughter has lost lifelong friends, stopped doing what she enjoys, and has changed her future plans since she met him. You are sure that he is controlling her. You hear from her every day, and then on her eighteenth nothing, no text, no voice note, no call. As her mother You can sense,, and Portuguese police...and so unfolds a mystery full of lies and deceit...Read it!

Firstly, thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK Cornerstone for the opportunity to preview this riveting read.

It’s a rollercoaster of emotions and twists as we learn about a missing young woman and her boyfriend from the perspectives of the mothers of both the young woman and the boyfriend with whom she has gone travelling, and also excerpts from a true crime podcast.

A body is discovered and the storyline takes us through what may have happened as well as what did.

It’s so well told, with characters that are real and three dimensional and I was hooked throughout.

Congratulations to the author,

Single mothers Jess and Kay lives don’t overlap; the former affluent, the latter not. Then Jess’s daughter, Issie, falls in love with Kay’s son, Dylan. Issie is seventeen, with a tight group of friends, a gym regular, a studious and well-mannered pupil predicted to sail through her A levels and has a place waiting for her at Art School. Dylan is nineteen, not very ambitious and an apprentice in the building trade. Suddenly Issie has lost or abandoned all of the features mentioned above, spending all of her time with him, doing the things he wants to do. Jess is concerned that he is coercing Issie, but is afraid to rock the boat, so when Issie announces she and Dylan are going to Portugal for the period which covers her eighteenth birthday, Jess was conflicted: stop her – and lose her trust, or trust her – and hope she will retain their bond. On Isse’s eighteenth birthday, the stream of Instagrams chronicling her trip through Portugal terminates, and Jess is immediately anxious; and next day more anxious, and next day reporting her missing to the police, contacting Kay (who is blithely unconcerned about not hearing from Dylan) and flying off to Portugal. Missing girl, vanished (possibly coercive) boyfriend, police reluctant to take action; seems an obvious story.
But this is not that story, nothing is obvious here. The plot, pivots, then swings, then reverses. Who did what, and with which, and to whom; and why? The story is told from three points of view, Jess’s, Kay’s and a true-crime-podcaster; the first two clearly unreliable narrators, because of who they are, the third, on the face of it, neutral. The mystery story is, therefore, played out against a background of familial histories (why are both mothers single?), interpretations of relationships (who understands their child best?), and the underlying question: what is Truth? The writing is solid, the characters are well drawn, the unrolling of the story mostly quite pacy – although some sections are a shade over long, partly due to repetition and partly to over observation. So not perfect but lots of good reading.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Jess thinks her life is perfect until her husband declares he wants a divorce and he’s going back to his first wife , little does she know that life takes some really dark and heartbreaking turns . When her daughter decides to go travelling with her boyfriend and not got to university. Soon her daughter goes missing and life unravels in unimaginable ways murder ?
We learn through podcast interviews that nothing is what it seems and Jess may have to decide what the moral thing to do about the mess they’re in and who is to blame!
I read is book in 24 hours and was so invested in who was who we thought they were and who isn’t. I felt so sorry for the families involved and hearing references to real murder and missing cases made the story much more compelling and heartbreaking . I’d highly recommend

Absolutely fabulous! This book rattles along at speed and once I started I could not put it down.
Full of twists and turns and very thought provoking.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

An interesting and compelling psychological mystery with a cast of unreliable narrators and plenty of twists. Difficult to say much without revealing some of the twists but the theme of teenagers in potentially unsuitable relationships and going travelling will resonate with parents grappling with the issue of when to let go and give young adults their independence.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Wow I loved someone is lying,this book kept me guessing and on my toes all the way through! Twists and turns that I really didn’t see coming, fast paced and an innovative script with the podcast entries which I really enjoyed!
Such a thought provoking read too especially as a parent, none of us know how we would react in such a situation in order to protect our child and what happens, as in this case if both parents have very different view points it’s almost impossible to comprehend the complexities of such a situation.
Family dynamics across the social divide, misjudged pre conceptions, divided loyalties and an overarching love for your child no matter where you sit socially, makes you reconsider what you would do throughout the book!
Thank you NetGalley for this early read

Someone is Lying by Heidi Perks, is the story of two mothers Jess and Kay whose children Issie and Dylan are on holiday in Portugal.

However on the morning of Issie’s 18th birthday Jess fails to hear from her, at first she is only a little worried but as the length of time gets longer Jess starts to blame Dylan for her disappearance.

So after speaking to Kay who Jess thinks is protecting her son she goes off to Portugal to find her daughter.

Someone is Lying is told through three perspectives The Main ones are the two mothers of the children, Jess and Kay, who while both being single mothers, are from different socioeconomic groups.

Although Jess’s husband left her a number of years ago he is well off and able to give her and Issie a good amount of money to pay off their mortgage among other things.

While Kay is working in a cafe struggling to pay the bills with Dylan who is working and her second disabled son from a different father.

These are the two main parts of the novel, however in addition there is the odd chapter from a podcast about this case, at the start of each part which gives a balanced view of the story, before telling the same events through Jess and Kay’s eyes

The Problem when reviewing a novel such as Someone is Lying is trying not to give to much information, so the review is more about the themes of the story and how Heidi Perks does with the basic premise.
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In some ways Someone is Lying by Heidi Perks is a simple mystery novel about a young woman who goes missing, however the way that the writer takes this basic premise and adds on different factors to make it an above the average novel of its type.

Firstly apart from both children being from single mothers the novel makes them slightly different with one still being involved although he lives on the other side of the Atlantic in America.

The other has no contact with the two different fathers of her children, and with this being the mother of Dylan we have a male child with no influence from a father figure.

This gives sympathy to Jess as she looks for Issie, and builds up the picture that Dylan is at fault because of him being both male and his mother Kay not being in contact with his dad.

With this as the basis for the story and Heidie Perks ability to weave a domestic mystery novel which has believable twists and turns and have you reading into the night Someone is Lying is a must read.

Thank you thank you thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for letting me have an ARC of Someone is Lying.

I literally could not put this down. Thank goodness the sun was out over the weekend, I sat in the garden and raced through it. Last summer, I did something similar with another of Heidi Perks’ books, I think she is an author that suits me!

As well as it being entertaining, it also made me think about what I would do as a mother in the same situation. I am still pondering on that! You would like to think you would tell the truth, but when your child’s life is on the line… who knows?!

A great book. Would give it more than 5 stars if I could.