Rating: 4/5 Stars
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Don't Lie To Me is the first in the Eva Rae Thomas series by Willow Rose. Little did I know is that this is the start of a 16 book series. It's a great popcorn police procedural thriller. A bunch of kids are going missing and being murdered, which is super dark, but I really got into this story. I wanted to know why these kids were being taken and what was the reasoning behind the murders.
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I really liked Eva, even if she really was a pretty terrible parent. She put her job first which - good for you lady, I personally have no desire to do that in my life, but her all the power to you. I liked Matt as well. I felt that the two had great chemistry and really enjoyed watching the two work together in order to solve this crime. I felt like the pacing was spot on - I flew through this one in a night and really couldn't put it down. The twists were placed perfectly and kept me wanting more. I didn't see the ending coming at all and honestly, I really like where Rose went with this.
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I was able to listen to this one and read on my kindle. The audio was narrated by Kendrea Lee Oberhauser and she did a phenomenal job at bringing this one to life. She really packed the suspense into this one and managed to kept me on the edge of my seat with her performance. I really enjoyed being able to listen to this one while reading.
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This book was first published in 2019 and I was granted an eARC and ALC in exchange for my honest review! Definitely recommending this one to any of my popcorn mystery/thriller/police procedural friends. This is available on Kindle Unlimited which is a huge plus! Definitely looking forward to picking up the rest of the series and seeing where Eva Rae Thomas ends up next. Huge thank you to NetGalley, Willow Rose, Buoy Media, Libro.fm and Dreamscape Media for the eARC and ALC in exchange for my honest review!

A very interesting read. I found the flashbacks both helpful and a slight hindrance as you were unsure chronologically where the story of the boy and his sister fitted into the storyline. It did explain things that happened and the killer's actions later in the book.
I will more than likely carry on reading this series as I found it well written with likeable characters.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for allowing me to read this book.

I’m not sure why or how I read this book so quickly. Maybe because it was like a car crash - so ugly you just want to see what happened.

The original premise is fine enough: serial killer preying on kids and killing them in terrible ways. Former FBI agent leaves the force, moves back to her hometown and gets roped into helping solve the case.

That is why I bumped it up to 3 stars instead of 2.

Because the characters, the writing and the details of the story are all a 1 or 2 star rating as far as I’m concerned.

Most of the characters are unbelievable and the end result of the book is eye roll worthy. Oh, and apparently there is a love story on the side but I didn’t realize that until the last 5 pages. So it’s safe to say that the author didn’t do a good job with that development.

Nope.

#netgalley #dontlietome

I have mixed emotions about this book. The story plot was great but some of the conversations between characters lacked something. Depth maybe…. it just didn't feel genuine. The love connection lacked warmth and felt rushed.

I was so hooked on this story from the start, I couldn't put it down. And when life made me put it down(ugh), I couldn't stop thinking about it. The whole time my heart was racing. I didn't realize this book is a series, so I definitely wasn't expecting a cliffhanger. That was my mistake and didn't take away from how much I love this story. I will definitely be reading the next one!

Eva Rae has recently moved back to her hometown in Florida with her 3 kid's after freshly getting divorced. Her husband had decided he was done with his marriage and kid's, and moved into a fresh new relationship right away. Eva is a former FBI agent, but soon circumstances quickly make it clear she's not finished.

Children have gone missing, more and more in a very disturbing and gruesome way each time.the victims are found. The kidnapper is sending out video's through YouTube and Facebook, to send a message. It seems they are very persistent about sending a message about the effects of divorce.

There are multiple POVs from children and from Eva Rae. There are many disturbing and uncomfortable scene's and topics, so definitely check trigger warnings.

I highly recommend this book if you love psychological crime thrillers with some big twists thrown in.

Wow - what a page turner! This is about a serial killer dad and was truly a thrilling read. It was very well done and had me continuously captivated with solving the mystery. Overall it was a great fast paced thriller.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

This was a beautifully written book, with a feel good factor. The book would make a great holiday read, be prepared to binge read and become absorbed into the storyline. I am biased as love Willow Rose books and was so excited to receive this copy.. thank you netgally and publishers

I was hooked on this one from the beginning. What an amazing book! The chapters were short and kept me wanting more. I didn’t like the font at the beginning of each chapter though. It overlapped with the other words too much

Willow Rose's "Don't Lie to Me" stirred a whirlwind of emotions in me, evoking both anticipation and disappointment as I navigated through its pages. As an ardent reader who cherishes depth and authenticity in character development and dialogue, I found the narrative's execution lacking. The dialogue often struck me as unnatural and dissonant, detracting from the believability of the characters and their relationships. Eva Rae Thomas, the protagonist, despite her intriguing background as a former FBI agent, failed to resonate with me due to her unconvincing actions and lack of adherence to protocols expected of her profession.

Moreover, the portrayal of Eva Rae's personal life, particularly her role as a mother, was fraught with inconsistencies that made her character challenging to empathize with. The narrative's exploration of familial and romantic relationships felt superficial, and several plot threads seemed to meander without reaching a satisfying conclusion.

Despite these critiques, my fondness for Willow Rose's ability to weave dark, compelling tales in the mystery genre remains intact. "Don't Lie to Me" presents a blend of suspense and true-life horror elements that showcases Rose's versatility as an author. While the book may not have met my expectations in certain aspects, it lays the groundwork for a series that holds the potential for growth and evolution. My hope for deeper character development and more gripping storytelling in subsequent installments remains undiminished, driven by my passion for literature that captivates and challenges its readers.

This was a fast read, but was just too unbelievable.

Eva Rae is supposed to be an experienced FBI agent but acts like she has no experience and doesn’t know police protocols. She goes busting into one of the suspect’s homes without a warrant and just apologizes afterward, but is allowed to keep doing whatever she wants. She goes around asking questions and inserting herself into the investigation even before she’s asked to consult. She doesn't behave like a seasoned law enforcement agent.

She’s also a terrible parent. She’s going through a divorce and has moved her kids across the country to start over. Her ex-husband was the primary caretaker so there’s some leeway there because she wasn’t as involved with the day to day running of her children’s lives, but she knows absolutely nothing about them. Even when they tell her things she can’t be bothered to remember because she’s so focused on the crimes instead. There’s a killer out there targeting children of divorce and half the time she doesn’t know where her own children are. She gets mad at her daughter for getting in a stranger's car but doesn't take any responsibility herself for forgetting about her daughter's event and not answering the multiple calls and texts from her child. There were a lot of times I wanted to reach through the book and shake her.

The killer was a surprise, but that was more because there was nothing in the story that would have led us to them. There were clues that led us to some of the other suspects, but nothing that pointed to the actual killer. We were given a description of a suspect as well as the car they drove, but those were kind of clues in a void because we weren't given a description of the killer when they were introduced to us in the story, nor were we given any hint about what kind of car they drove. It just seemed like an easy way out for the author.

There were also some twists that played a big role in the story that weren’t directly related to the crimes and a budding relationship between Eva Rae and an old flame. There were just a lot of things thrown into the story. Too much.

This is an OK book.

Woth a coffee in hand and a light music to drown our the noise, this is a cozy thriller. Wouldn't say that this deserves a 5 star-rating but it definitely got me out of my reading slump.

I saw this title and decided to give it a try! I’ve enjoyed Willow Rose’s writing in her other series. Once again I was not disappointed.
This is a quick and easy read. Eva Ray is going through a divorce and a move back to her hometown. No longer working with the FBI, she still manages to get drawn into several murders in Coco Beach.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I really tried to but I did not finish it. I was getting lost in the chapters and could not keep up with the characters. It failed to draw me in and I couldn't get attached to any of the characters.

Thank you to the publisher for an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review of this book.

Willow Rose did it again with this suspenseful page turner based in Coco Beach Florida. The sleepy surf town hadn’t seen anything like what rocked their world in this book. Eva Rae got more than she bargained for when she moved back home after her divorce to be closer to her parents. She never would have guessed who was the killer and I bet you won’t either!

You Just Never Know About Some People

Former FBI Agent Eva Rae Thomas has a hard time adjusting to being just a regular mom in Willow Rose’s psychological thriller, “Don’t Lie to Me,” after her husband leaves her and their three children for another woman.

Returning to her small Florida hometown of Cocoa Beach—where at least she has parents nearby to support her emotionally—Eva Rae finds that not only aren’t her children safe there, all children are at risk because a child serial killer is on the prowl.

Before long, Eva Rae is consulting as a profiler with local authorities trying to identify and track down the perpetrator(s) of these heinous attacks on area youths. What ties the crimes together? What messages are being sent? The explosive and unexpected surprise twisted ending is a real shocker.

JoyReaderGirl1 graciously thanks NetGalley, Author Willow Rose, and Publisher Buoy Media for this advanced reader’s copy (ARC) for review.

This was a good one that left me completely surprised. Eva Rae quit her high profile job as an FBI profiler and moved with her children back to her home town after her husband left her. She has a book to write but she is struggling as a single mother who had not previously been responsible for keeping schedules straight. When a second child disappears from her small town she can't help wanting to be involved in solving the crime and eventually her old flame in the local law enforcement requests her help. This has the possibility of a good series and I will look forward to sequels. Thanks to NetGalley for and arc and for not influencing my review.

When Eva Rae Thomas' husband abruptly leaves the family for another woman, she quits her job at the FBI and moves south to Cocoa Beach to be near her parents. Her ex was the stay at home parent, while Eva brought home the bacon and the move is showing her just how inadequate she is to take care of her three children.
Not long after the move, children start turning up dead in her hometown and Eva gets pulled into the investigation into a serial killer. Add an old boyfriend on the local police force into the mix and a cold mother who is hiding major secrets, this book is complicated from the get go. Too complicated. There is too much going on IMO. This is not a bad mystery. It is just an average one and the red herrings thrown to distract don't seem to really add to the narrative. There is also a very big reveal that should have evoked more emotion in the aftermath and it was just treated as a kind of..."oh well." I would round down and give this a 2.5/5.

I had never heard of WIllow Rose, but I like a good detective/murder/suspense book. I'm glad I gave this book a chance! It was fast paced and was a quick read. I was excited to find out this is the first in a series - I'm sure I will check out more in this series! I liked Eva Rae - she was smart and seemed to know what to do under pressure. I will say that I thought there was a lot happening in this book. Would it have been possible to have removed some of the details without compromising the story? I don't know, but I felt like there was a lot going on. But in the end, it didn't matter because I enjoyed this book. Can't wait to read more Eva Rae adventures! Thank you NetGalley and Buoy Media for a digital arc of this title.

Synopsis (From Netgalley, the provider of the book to review)
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When twelve-year-old Sophie Williams went on a Girl Scout summer camp, she never returned home.
Three months later, her body is found inside her sleeping bag in the most frequented area of Cocoa Beach, and the town is outraged. The girl isn't just any child. She's the town's most beloved surf idol, and it was believed that she could be the next Kelly Slater.

As another child, the son of a well-known senator is kidnapped, and the parents receive a disturbing video, FBI profiler Eva Rae Thomas — who has just returned to her hometown, divorced and out of a job — plunges into the investigation, breaking her promise to her children not to do police work again.

Local law enforcement, with her old flame Matt Miller in charge, are the ones who ask for her help in a case so unsettling that only she can solve it. But the deeper they dig, the deadlier it becomes for Matt and Eva Rae. Soon, everyone she holds dear is in grave danger as this case hits a little too close to home.

I am 99.99% sure that I read this when it first came out in 2019 but it was wonderful to return to it and read it once again. The first in a series, I recommend picking upas it is a great stand-alone book and thrilling mystery. Highly recommended.
#shortbutsweetreviews