I received this book "The Lies We Told" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own.
I enjoyed reading this book and I'm sorry to say that because of the ending I have to drop a star. This could have been 5 but I need to make it only a 4. Anyway, this book is one you don't want to put down. The suspense is there throughout this very fast paced book. Secrets secrets everywhere! And don't forget all the lying!

This book had so many things that I love in a psychological thriller. First off, a true sociopath, one that is so incredibly anti-social and inherently evil that she can’t be ignored. Secondly a host of other characters, well described, that I felt I cared about and wanted to see how this would all play out.

The author had me in her hands from the first pages. The story is told in two POV’s. One in the past and one in the present. The stories flow seamlessly, seemingly in their own individual plots, until everything finally comes together with a BANG!

We are first introduced to Beth and Doug who have finally gotten their wish of a child after many, many years of waiting and trying. But within a few years Beth is aware that something is not right with their beautiful, charming Hannah. I felt genuine unrest and worry for the young family of Beth and Doug. Hannah starts exhibiting strange, dangerous, cruel and worrisome behavior since the age of 3 when she intentionally seriously injures her mother. They do take her to a psychiatrist but Hannah is able to even manipulate the doctor into believing that she is alright. The parents are assured that this is just a “phase”. She is mean to other children as she is growing up and the school has had to talk to the parents multiple times about her behavior.

They now have a young son, Toby, and Beth lives in fear that Hannah will do something terrible to her brother, she has already been caught pinching and teasing him. Hannah has also convinced her father that it is her mother who is too hard on her, that she isn’t doing the things that Beth has described. This family is in trouble, but what will happen to them?

The second story is told from the perspective of Clara, a young woman who has recently moved in with her boyfriend Luke, they seem to be truly in love and have been living together happily for a few months. Then there is a night when Luke doesn’t come home, he doesn’t call. Clara reaches out to his parents and friends but no one has seen him or heard from him. She finally calls Mac, her and Luke’s best friend, and together they start to investigate further and further into Luke’s life and uncovering things that they had no idea they would find. Luke’s family, his mother and father and older brother Tom have secrets they are hiding, but what are they? Clara knows that Luke had a sister, Emily, who supposedly left the family when she was 18 and hasn’t been heard from for twenty years, or at least that is the story that she has been told, but what really happened to Emily?

There are so many secrets and lies it will make your head spin. This book kept me guessing until almost the end, when I figured out one of the main “connections” and because of that the end felt a little flat to me. It also seemed to almost be setting the reader up for a follow up? Don’t know if this is the case or not. This would have been a 5 if not for the rushed ending which left so many threads hanging, but perhaps this was the intention.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a great, page turning psychological thriller.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

This story goes from Cambridgeshire 1986 to London 2017. In Cambridgeshire, Doug and Beth adopt baby Hannah and then have a son, Toby. Beth has an uneasy feeling that something is wrong with Hannah as her eyes have a vacant look. Also, Hannah killed Beth's bird, set a fire at the babysitter's house and tried to harm her baby brother. In London, Clara and her boyfriend Luke have recently moved in together. Luke disappears on his way home from work one evening. Luke's best friend, Mac, helps Clara try to figure out what happened to him. As you read along, you wonder what one of these has to do with the other but as the story unfolds everything fits into place very nicely. This book is full of twist, turns and surprises which makes for a "I don't want to put this book down" read. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good psychological thriller.

4.5 stars!

I am such a sucker for dual timeline books and seeing how they come together. In this case, I absolutely did not figure out the exact connection until it was revealed, which always adds to the fun for me. The timelines are set twenty years apart and there are loose threads in each and it’s really fun to watch those threads unravel and the story to unfold. What starts out as a missing boyfriend, delves into family drama and beyond! Definitely pick this one up!

There are so many lies. Could the events have been prevented if just one truth had been told?

One thread is the story of Beth and Hannah. Anyone who is a mom, has a mom, or who has watched a mom struggle with a rambunctious child in the grocery store will empathize with Beth as she struggles to bring some normality to her family while raising her son and deeply disturbed daughter Hannah. Spookily distributed daughter. This story is could be Hanna (no “h”) from Baby Teeth (Zoje Stage) all grown up!

The parallel thread is the story of Beth and Luke. Luke has not returned from work, which is odd because he’s been prepping for an important interview the next day. Beth begins to discover mysterious emails and wonders if he is possibly being stalked by an ex-girlfriend. Or maybe that weird upstairs neighbor. Beth confides in Luke’s friend Mac, who is the only one she feels she can trust. She turns to Luke’s family to try to help her make connections from his past, but Luke’s parents are acting strange, and his brother Tom is beginning to frighten her, showing up out of the blue at odd times.

The intersection of these two stories is where the plot really takes off. Just when you think all the lies have been revealed, watch out. In true suspense form, the twists just keep coming.

A simple missing person story that is so much more. There are many twists and turns that seem like they could never come together to bring the story together. The story is told from the past and present and I loved that there wasn’t a clear connection through most of the book but once it the connection was made it was perfect. The characters are complex and it is fun to see how their stories develop. I would highly recommend to any mystery thriller lover.

Fast paced thriller that I couldn't put down until I finished it. It starts with four year, Hannah leaving a bird head on her mother, Beth's pillow. Beth and her husband, Doug take Hannah to a psychologist when she deliberately hit her mother in the eye with a spoon. Then there's Clara who has Luke, a missing boyfriend who just didn't come home one day. The story is told from different perspective 's and the timeline goes from when Hannah is small until she is an adult. Does Hannah get better or is she a psychopath as an adult? So many secrets and to come out. Nothing is exactly as it seems. It's a thriller you won't soon forget. I received this book from Net Galley and Berkley Publishing Group for a honest review and no compensation otherwise.

The Lies We Told by Camilla Way is a fast-paced thriller told from two perspectives, Beth from the past and Clara in the present. I liked Beth's story about her disturbed daughter, Hannah; she was creepy. This was a great thriller, and I enjoyed the two perspectives and how they collided toward the end of the book. I thought I had figured out one of the twists, but I was wrong and then there was another twist I wasn't even anticipating.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced e-copy of the book.

The Lies We Told is a dark, disturbing and entertaining read full of twists & turns. Secret upon secret piled on top of lies and deceit. Alternating between the past and present, this thriller will leave you guessing and second guessing right til the end.

I love books with creepy children! And this one delivered. Hannah is the daughter of a couple who seem haunted by some tragic event in their past. One that has caused them to move away and start anew. As Hannah grows up, they realize that she isn't like other children; she is mean, destructive, and without emotion. The reader is left wondering what the past event was for more than 1/2 the book, which added mystery and kept me trying to guess what it was. When it is revealed, I'm not sure it had enough WOW for me, but there were plenty of other twists in the plot to keep me interested. Overall, I stayed up late way too many nights while reading this book, which makes it a winner for me!

If I've ever read a better depiction of a psychopathic personality in a novel than Hannah, the daughter in Camilla Way's The Lies We Told, I can't recall it. Fortunately, Hannah wasn't the only well-drawn character in the book. She was offset by the handful of well-meaning, conforming parents who did very wrong things for understandable reasons, and by Clara, whose point-of-view alternates with that of Beth, one of the mothers.

These people are keeping each other's hellish secrets, to their own detriment, and it seems that good-hearted, clear-minded Clara and the reader are the only ones innocent of the knowledge. As well as two points of view, there are two timelines, but the author kept them clearly delineated. Ir was easy to follow, but torturous to try to puzzle out.

If you tackle this book (which I recommend), you'll get layers of mystery and degrees of dread. Who can Clara trust? It's a question we keep asking to the end, and still may not have an answer.

I received an ARC through NetGalley.

4.5 stars

Secrets and Lies.....Lies and Secrets.....

The Lies we Told are told in two timelines. In the past time line, we are shown a Mother, Beth who slowly begins to pick up on the fact that her daughter, Hannah isn't quite like other children. As Beth struggles with Hannah and her increasing behaviors, it begins to strain her marriage and leaves her in constant fear for her new baby.

In the present timeline we have Clara who is worried when her boyfriend Luke, fails to come home from work one night. She discovers that Luke may have had a stalker and finds a bunch of threatening emails to him, that coupled with a recent break-in, causes her to fear the worst.

As the story-lines go back and forth between the past and the present. The reader is shown both women's POV and I couldn't help but feel for both women. Beth is struggling with the increasing anti-social behavior of her daughter. A child who appears to not care about anything or anyone. A child who acts out physically and who the Mother loves yet fears. Clara is struggling with learning that her missing boyfriend was not the perfect man she thought he was. She learns some truths about him and his past relationships.

It is obvious that these story-lines will collide but how? Why? Where is the connection?

This is a book which captivated me from the start. Both story-lines were captivating, but I was riveted to the past story-line with Hannah being so ark and disturbing that she made for a great character. The timelines/story-lines had a nice progression to them and they transitioned smoothly between both women's stories. This book is the prefect escape. It is fast paced, riveting and entertaining. Is all of it plausible? Not really, but it sure was fun to read!

The book does come together nicely and there is never a dull moment. I really did not want to put this one down and must give it 4.5 stars for being entertaining and interesting. For me it was a page turner which did not disappoint. The ending felt a little rushed, but overall a very enjoyable read.

Thank you to Berkeley Publishing Group and NetGalley who provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All the thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This story reminded me a bit of Baby Teeth, but maybe because of how the daughters acted around mom or dad.

It’s very intricate and narrated from different POVs. I little difficult to keep up with the timeframe jumps, but it works itself out.

I wasn’t able to puzzle out the secrets, well one I did, until nearly the reveal point in the story.

It kept me entertained while I was unpacking my moving boxes. Give it a shot!

A lie told long ago has far reaching consequences when someone goes missing. The truth was overheard by a sadistic and damaged woman who set out to even the score against all who wronged her. When a man goes missing, his friends team up to find him and the old lie is uncovered. Clever plot. Well put together. A great read!

2.5 but am rounding up because it did keep me going [for most of the book--then I just got tired of it]. Nonetheless, it was well written--but I felt as if I'd read it before. Not among the overwhelming majority who raved. Sorry.

Absolutely a fast-read novel of dark psychological suspense. Twisted. BUT.

Two stories. Present [2017]: Clara's boyfriend Luke disappears. The search/investigation. What's happened? Backstory of his family. His sister, Emily, disappeared twenty years ago. Her story. Beginning of novel: 1986, Doug and Beth [who narrates a great part of the novel] and their daughter, Hannah--EVIL child. Her younger brother, Toby.

Other characters: Mac and Zoe--Clara's friends. Rose and Oliver--Luke's parents, and his brother, Tom.

The end--I had to double check the download as for me it came to a screeching halt!

So absolutely fast paced suspense but just not for me.

The Lies We Told by Camilla Way is one of those thrillers that just keeps on piling on the layers of secrets and lies until your head spins working it all out. Told from two main points of view with one in the present and one in the past the story is one that definitely kept the pages turning.

In the past timeline Beth is a young mother that is at her wit’s end when it comes to dealing with her young daughter Hannah. Hannah is definitely nothing like other children and Beth lives in fear of just what her daughter will do next.

In the present Clara is worried when her live in boyfriend Luke doesn’t come home one night. Looking everywhere and contacting all of their friends Clara just knows something is wrong but longer Luke is gone the more Clara wonders just how well she ever knew him.

In the beginning of this I really found myself drawn to the past more than the present because young Hannah is yet again another one of those children that is so dark and disturbing it’s hard to look away from what she will do next. Not that the present side of the book wasn’t intriguing, it definitely was too and both sections flowed back and forth rather easily. With great writing and a compelling plot I do think this will be one that most readers will enjoy.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

That they did. Lying liars, the lot of them. Except for one of the protagonists, everyone in this book has a complicated relationship with veracity. Which is, of course, what makes them all interesting. So here you have a classic by the numbers domestic suspense thriller, female authored and female driven…split narrative, psychopathy, twists and turns and a variety of crimes. First plotline is a small family with a genuinely evil child. Second is of a young woman whose live in boyfriend vanishes. Until about 60 percent in you won’t even find out how these two storylines intertwine, but once they do, it’s a high speed collision and from there on it’s essentially all one messed up, violent, prolonged denouement. Straight down to the unrepentant crazy stare down into the camera as it were. How did things get so screwed up? Well, it started with an infidelity and then a cover up and snowballed from there into a misbegotten child who is determined to burn (literally and otherwise) down those responsible or even merely connected. Sounds exciting? It is pretty exciting, it has a distinct beach read ambiance to it and probably would be only made more exciting had I been actually reading it on the beach. It was ok on the couch too, though, very entertaining, an easy read. I seem to crave those now and again, especially when I don’t read them for a while. The whambam thank you m’am of it all, quick fun and all that. Plus it was British, which is always a bonus. Yes, some of it was laid on somewhat too thickly, but there was enough gray territory to contemplate moralities. This one doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but spins it nicely all the same. Enjoyable diversion. Thanks Netgalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkeley Books for this ARC.

Is there something wrong with me? Because I could not stick with this book. I got 40% of the way through and I just couldn’t do it. Everyone had raving reviews, a rounded 4.3 stars on Goodreads and many of them were 5 stars. What am I missing? I tried, I really did. But my eyes kept slipping off the screen, my interest kept wandering, and I found myself dreading page after page. But why? It wasn’t poorly written. Maybe thriller fatigue? The same watery narrators, who use alcohol as a crutch and sit by idilly while their lives spiral out of control. It’s predictable and tiring. But still, this was a book I wanted to love so hard. It’s been a good few weeks since anything has moved me and I’m hungry for something to devour. I thought this would be it! Maybe this is for you - if you aren’t worn down by the same type of thrillers yet. Maybe this is for you if you like your clues spread so thin and buried so deep that you have no idea what’s going on or what’s coming. Maybe this is for you if you haven’t fallen asleep on the couch reading the last two books. I won’t give this a bad rating, an agreeable three star. Because it must be me, it’s got to be me.

The Lies We Told by Camilla Way will keep you on the edge of your seat. The book is begins in the 1980's, when Beth and Doug begin having some problems with their daughter Hannah. The next chapter is present day, with the disappearance of Luke Lawson, gone without a trace, but opening up a mixed bag a secrets his girlfriend Clara tries to sort through.

There are so many secrets, so many surprises, yet are they all connected somehow? There are many characters in this book, from the past and present, but they each have their own part to play. They are well defined, you will grow to love some and hate others, and that will flip flop thoughout the story.

The ending comes together, and will make everything make sense...at least some sort of sense of those with a twisted mind. The last few pages will shock you, I can't help but wonder if there is more to the story, and possibly another book in the works...hmmm....

I would recommend this to anyone who appreciates a twisted thriller. Main character, Hannah, will freak you out, from an early age on. She is one crazy B*tch!

I would like to thank Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was a gripping, fast-faced thriller and a compelling read. Interesting examination of the nature of lies (as well as nature vs nurture) and how it can cause fallout generations down the line. (Probably like a 4.5 for me.) I didn't think the book quite stuck the ending, but other than that, I really liked it overall.

The alternating perspectives--Beth and her sociopath daughter Hannah, Clara and her missing boyfriend Luke--are thankfully equally interesting and the mystery of how these two stories are connected is soundly constructed.

The parts about Hannah particularly struck me as strong since I just read a book about a similar topic--Baby Teeth--that I think didn't handle it with as much grace. Exploring her character from the perspective of her mother, Beth gives us enough distance so she's a bit of a mystery, but enough first hand drama to understand what a challenging, unhealthy person she is.

I thought the supporting characters were similarly well-constructed. There are some people who whose behavior mainly serve as red herrings in the mystery, but it's well done. For most, there's enough complexity that they serve as larger purpose than being a possible suspect.

The greatest test of a good mystery/thriller for me is if I can remember it months after reading it. So, in that respect, my jury's still out on this book. Though I suspect it'll likely rank well in my year end book reviews.

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.