The Liar

By Nora Roberts

ISBN# 9780399170867

Author’s Website:  http://www.noraroberts.com/

Brought to you by OBS reviewer Heidi

Shelby Foxworth’s world has been turned upside down.  Her husband was just killed in a boating accident while on a trip, a trip that she and her daughter were supposed to have gone on, but Callie got sick so she stayed home with her. And, now she is discovering the amount of debt Richard had gotten them into, debt she is now forced to pay back.

But the more Shelby finds out the worse it gets.  A private investigator shows up at her door informing her that Richard had another identity and that he was in fact a swindler!  And, when she discovers a secret bank deposit box he had, filled with money, a gun, and fake ids with his picture, she realizes she doesn’t know Richard (if that’s his real name) at all.

After taking care of what she can, Shelby takes her daughter and moves back to Rendezvous Ridge, where she grew up and moves back in with her parents.  Shelby finds work and even finds a love interest in Griffin Lott, who has such a special way with Callie, and her too if she’s being honest with herself.

But the punches from Shelby’s past just keep on coming.  Will she ever be able to move past it all and regain her life? Or will Richard’s ghosts have the last laugh?

I love Nora Roberts, but I have to say I was pretty underwhelmed with this novel, despite the synopsis sounding pretty good!  I felt the story got off to an excruciatingly slow start.  I found it too full of boring details that weren’t important to the story, and that a lot of it could have been trimmed down to what was truly needed, for what was to come later.

The book got much better once Shelby and Griff started their romance.  Of course, she did try to push him away at one point for something completely out of control, but they quickly got back on track.

“Her brother’s right here, and he’s already threatened to punch me.”

“She’d be your type,” Matt put in.

“My type?”

“Because you don’t have a type, as long as she’s female.”

“Her brother’s sitting right here,” Griff repeated and applied himself to his beer.”

 

Griff is a too good to be true kind of loyal hardworking guy.  I loved his humor and the way he was with Callie.  He was just a very sweet guy!  One any mother would want their daughter to bring home!

But the plot itself was pretty predictable all in all.  I expected the big shocker to happen from the very beginning of the book.  I also found Shelby texting from within her pocket to be unrealistic.

That’s not to say that this was a bad book, just a mediocre one, especially considering some of Roberts’ other titles, her In the Garden Trilogy was one of my all-time favorites, and I was hoping for something as enjoyable as that. Maybe next time.

*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*