The Lies We Told

By Camilla Way

ISBN:1101989521 (ISBN13: 9781101989524)

Brought to you by OBS Reviewer jerjen

Synopsis:

The highly acclaimed author of Watching Edie returns with a new novel of dark psychological suspense that explores how those closest to us have the most to hide…

When Clara’s boyfriend, Luke, disappears, everyone believes that he’s left her, but Clara thinks she knows the truth. Recent evidence suggests that Luke had a stalker, and Clara worries that he’s been kidnapped. Then Luke’s older sister, Emily, who vanished twenty years ago, suddenly reappears.

Emily wants to help Clara with her search for Luke, but she refuses to talk about what happened–even though it nearly destroyed her family when she vanished. And the deeper Clara digs into Luke’s mysterious disappearance, the more convinced she is that the two incidents are connected.  (Goodreads)

Review:

When I read a psychological thriller, I hope that I am completely engaged, feeling the tension and fear that the characters are feeling.  That was exactly how I felt when I was reading this book.  

There were really two different storylines in this book, one in the past and one in the present.  I am normally not a big fan of this, but in this book it worked really well. We were able to get insight into all of the characters psyches, getting a better understanding of their actions, worries and fears.  As you would expect, these two storylines eventually connect and does so with a real bang.

The past story line deals with Beth and her husband and their daughter Hannah and Toby, their son.  After trying for a while to have a baby, their finally have a daughter. But as Hannah gets older, it becomes quite clear that there is something wrong with Hannah.  She is not loving and kind, she is mean and at times cruel. The older she gets, the worse this becomes. When they have their second child, Beth is worried for that child’s safety.

The present story line involves Clara, who awakens one morning to realize her boyfriend, Luke never came home from work and is missing.  The more that Clara investigates the disappearance of Luke, the more secrets she uncovers and realizes that she did not really know Luke at all.

The characters are well developed and well rounded.  There are several layers to some of these characters, and some are not what they seem on the surface.  The author is very talented in her suspense writing, and tension was radiating off the pages of the book.  I was trying to swipe as fast as I could, but I was afraid to do that because I was nervous about what was going to happen next.  

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a well crafted fast paced psychological thriller.  Filled with a lot of twists and turns, it will keep you on your toes.