Creepy, surreal kind of novel. Kept me guessing right up until the last few pages. A wicked lover's triangle with a murder and a wicked clever villain who I thought might actually get away with it. First book by this author but it won't be my last.

So may lies, twists and turns I couldn't put this one down!

Joe Lynch loves his life, his wife Melissa (Mel) & their son William. Beth Delaney is Mels' oldest friend and her husband Ben is part of the package. When Joe suddenly finds himself spinning out of control over the disappearance of Ben, it is a series of unraveling lies that prove the case against Joe.

This book kept me in such suspense that I cheated and skipped ahead a dozen chapters to the end so I could catch some sleep before finishing the book! I never do that!!

Thank you to Netgalley & St. Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. Lies is a psychological thriller, a genre which I love to read. While the book held my attention and I wanted to get through it, I found myself really disliking the main character Joe for his naiveté and actually all of the other characters in the book too. Unfortunately I found the ending to be disappointing too. The information regarding the use of technology through the book however was both interesting and scary!

Copy furnished by Net Galley for the price of a review.

Joe and Mel, happily married for 12 years.  They don't lie to each other.  Period.  Oh, wait. . . . yes, they do.  Lots o' lies, untruths by the score.  Social media and tech savviness play a big part in this tale of misdirection. 
   
This was a real page-swiper for me.  Good tight writing, nicely paced.

The author asks, "What if you whole life is based on Lies?" A chance sighting of his wife's car sets off a willy-willy adventure of proof of life. The inability to figure out what it is that's going on may end up with him in jail if he can't figure it out. This author does an amazing job of twisting and turning things to make them work to prove his guilt. The fun part is figuring out who and why. The characters are all lined up and so is the drama. Promises are made. Threats are kept. Questions are raised. Proof of life is sought. Who do you trust? What do you believe? The lies keep piling up. Guilt is placed. Blame is heavy.

I love this author's style and after this first taste I have to say I am firmly hooked. Can't wait to read more. The way this author blended the story with intrigue, lies, misdirection and more just makes all my spidey senses soar and sing with happiness. Loved the story. Loved and hated the characters, even changed my opinion on a few. That's when you know it's good.

It’s not often that I get surprised by huge plot twists but I am happy to admit that this one blindsided me. I know that a book has sucked me in when throughout the day I’m guessing different possible outcomes for the ending. I was doing that with this book, and he best part was that I never guessed correctly. Not even a little bit close. My only complaint was that Joe was just so naive and clueless about everything that I was annoyed with him the entire book. Everyone was right about him he really was just a good guy, Good Old Joe.

This was my first read from this author, T.M. Logan, and the book description definitely had me interested from the start. The story was interesting in the fact that I kind of knew how it was going to end... by was very surprised by the ending. "Lies" had a great deal of mystery and I think that's what captivated me the most.
The plot of being set up for a crime you didn't commit is always a great read because I enjoy going through the ride of a detective trying to figure it out. This was a quick read in the fact that I really needed to know after each chapter how we were going to get to the conclusion. The demise of the main character Joe was a bit painful to read and sad how fast someone's life and go downhill in such a short time span...but it's also what kept it really interesting. I would read another book by the author in the future.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC.

SUPER INTENSE START leads to LIES on top of LIES and major betrayals....for eight terrible days.

"I often wonder what would have happened if I hadn't seen her car that day."

So.........Meet Joseph Lynch. He's super tall, has a beautiful wife, an inquisitive young son he adores, a comfortable profession as a part time schoolteacher AND is happy and content with life. He's also meek, mild mannered, considerate of others and unbelievably too forgiving, but a likable guy nonetheless who always, always plays by the rules.....until he doesn't....as you will see.

The world of technology and social media can be a dangerous place and is a great setting for the biggest LIES of all in T. M. Logan's work of mysterious domestic unrest. REALLY thought I had it all figured out early on, but NOPE....there's more here than meets the eye!

Good mystery-thriller debut, and oh....love this quote!

"Cats don't need anyone . They live in the moment and trust their eyes and ears, what they can see in front of them---I think we can all learn something from that."

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press via NetGalley for the complimentary ebook in exchange for review.

This is a debut psychological thriller written from the protagonist’s point of view. From the outset Joe is manipulated by an external force, in this case his four year old son, William who he is driving home after school. Spying ‘Mummy’s car’, William persuades Joe to follow Mummy and give her a surprise. From such happenstance follows a rollercoaster of lies and deceit because Joe sees his wife Melissa meet (and argue) with Ben, their friend in a hotel. Joe challenges Ben and an altercation breaks out leaving Ben prostrate and bleeding on the car park floor. Meanwhile, William has a severe asthma attack and Joe drives home quickly to get his inhaler. On returning to the car park, Ben has disappeared.

The background is set. On the one hand there is Joe, a nice enough man in love with his wife and devoted to his son. He is the dependable one, not particularly ambitious, doing the bulk of the childcare while Melissa is a bit of a high flyer. Their friend Ben has a different social standing because Ben is the millionaire, hard-headed, bullish businessman; all in all, a bit flash. Whilst Beth, his wife is the happy, contented, stay at home wife, controlled somewhat by her husband.

Step by step, the unravelling of Joe’s life evolves but there is another culprit associated with this and it is technology. Obviously someone is out to ruin Joe’s life and they do so through manipulation of his phones, google and Facebook.

So, what did I make of all this? I was totally immersed in the plot and the characters. In all honesty, sometimes I was exasperated by Joe (particularly in the first half of the book) and all due to his devotion to his wife – wake up and smell the coffee! Didn’t see how it would all turn out, not a clue! Absolutely loved it. If only there were another phrase to say ‘couldn’t put it down, a real page turner’. Read this, you will not be disappointed.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing an ARC via my Kindle in return for an honest review.

4.5 out of 5 stars!

I don't think that I have read a more appropriately titled book in a long time.....if ever. The title [book:Lies|33652433] (St. Martin's Press, January 2017)certainly says it all. The book begins with a snap decision made by the main character, which leads to a little lie, which leads to bigger lies....and so it goes. I was mesmerized by this book from beginning to end, and yet the story was highly believable. I could see myself, or others falling into the trap that Joseph and his wife Mel found themselves. In addition, the reactions of those around them were true to life. The characters were definitely interesting and well thought out. The author's portrayal of the villain was exceptional.

In addition to fascinating characters, the flow of the story really intrigued me. The plot was full of interesting plot turns and twists, some of which I could see coming, but most of which I did not. That is what drew me to the story the most. I confess, I am a sucker for plot twists, especially when they surprise me and as each one was revealed, I found myself more and more intrigued. By the time that I got into the meat of the story, I had a hard time putting the book down. This book definitely will go onto my highly recommended list and is one of the best books that I have read so far in 2018.

The only downfall, if any, was my desire to skip ahead a few time, hence the 4.5 and not 5 star rating. In all truth, though, that rating might be more due to my desire to know if I was on the right track figuring out the next twist rather than any problem with the way the author laid out the story.

T. M. Logan is a "first time" author for me, and I would definitely give him a high five. I am putting his first book [book:29 Seconds|36217426] on my list of books to find and look forward to reading more by this author.

When Joe Lynch's young son spots his mother's vehicle entering into a parking lot of a hotel he begs his father to turn around and go back to see her, they decided to surprise her...but they wind up being the ones who get surprised. Once they arrive they spot her speaking with a family friend Ben Delaney, and from the looks of things it's not a pleasant conversation, when they get a little closer to them they begin to hear them having a heated argument, so Joe tries to intervene. Which causes a little scuffle, punches are thrown, and Ben winds up hitting his head and is knocked unconscious, in the mean time Joe's son starts to have an asthma attack, which causes him to panic and flee the scene to get his son help. When he returns to the scene later to check on Ben and ensure that he is alright, he discovers that Ben and his car are both missing. Shortly there after he starts to receive threatening messages from Ben, Ben wants revenge and he will stop at nothing to get it... the peculiar thing is, Ben's wife reported him missing a few days before. And now Joe is the number one suspect...

Between the pages of this book you will discover a well written psychological thriller that is riddled with crafty little twists and turns that will toy with your mind, and make you question everything and everyone you meet. I have to say this was quite an impressive debut, once I cracked the cover of it I couldn't bring myself to put it down, and just when I thought I had things figured out, I'd turn the page and be hit with another blow, and stumped all over again! If you are looking for your next thrilling literary escape, look no further, Lies is certain to give you everything your after, and much more!

I requested an advanced copy of this title from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving my honest opinion.

Wow - this one was weird and surprising! I sort of saw The Big Reveal coming, but not entirely - and that's largely only because in the post-Gone Girl era, it's becoming de rigueur to suspect the least suspecting suspect... This was a fast-paced, quick read. It always amazes me how quickly things fall apart in stories like this - how someone's life is undone in a span of a week or so. Joe has everything (or so he thinks) and then bit by painful bit, he loses everything (or so he thinks) in a trickle-down that is engaging even as it's painful to witness. The characters and plot were what I've come to expect from this type of thriller - entertaining even if not exactly novel. It was a fun binge-read with just enough suspense and tension to keep you going until the end.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for sending me a copy of Lies by T.M. Logan. Pub date September 11th! This was a fast paced read for me. The story is told through Joe Lynch’s POV.

Joe Lynch lives a simple life. He’s married to the love of his life, Mel and adores William, his son. He loves his part time teaching job. Teaching part time allows him more time with Wills. Joe is not the richest guy but he is okay with that.

One day, Joe picks up Wills from school and they notice a car that looks exactly like Mel’s. The closer they get, Joe realizes it is Mel’s car and decides to follow her into a car garage to surprise her. Little does he know, what happens in that car garage will forever change Joe’s life.

Joe is shocked to find Mel and a family friend, Ben in a very animated conversation. Ben looks angry and Mel looks upset. He decides to get out of the car to check on Mel but she leaves too fast. Joe confronts Ben and things turn violent. Ben is knocked out on the ground and is bleeding from his head. Joe turns to find William having an asthma attack. He decides his son is more important at the moment and speeds home for an inhaler. Once Wills is settled, Joe feels the need to go check on Ben to make sure he’s okay. When he returns to the car garage, Ben is gone and so is Ben’s car. Oooo!

I did enjoy this story but there were a few times I wanted to slap Joe to wake him up. I thought I knew where the end was headed but I was wrong! The ending twist got me good. 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Well, this was one crazy ride of a book. This is one that once you pick up you want to race through it to find out what happened/ whodunnit. This book seems to rely on the hope that all of the thrillers the reader has read recently have unreliable narrators- thus leaving you to wonder how much you should believe your narrator, especially since the book is called Lies. In the end, a really fun read. I did manage to guess the who, but not the why, so still a surprising end.

I was instantly drawn to poor Joe. I felt connected to this character right away.
I wanted to help him.I felty sorry for him.... he seemed like such a great dad and
husband. I didn't love his wife, Mel. She seemed selfish and sneaking.
The book took twists and turns and I wanted to know what happened. I gave
it four stars instead of five because I didn't like the ending as much
as I thought I would. I figure out part of the book, but one part I didn't. I would
definitely read another book by Logan!

“Lies” is my kind of book. It’s a bit fast-paced, there’s a mystery to solve, and there’s a setup going down. As soon as I began reading, I knew I was going to finish the book in the same day. I was caught up in Ben’s struggle to find out what was happening to him. Not only are troubling secrets about his wife being revealed, but he also becomes the prime suspect in a potential murder. Yikes! I really felt for his character, ESPECIALLY because of how the events that unfolded affected his son.

I won’t divulge much about this book because I think its strength lies in its mystery, but I will tell you that there’s a big twist at the end that I think will surprise you. That being said, I wasn’t particularly happy with the author’s choice to take the story in that direction. Something about it just didn’t feel realistic or authentic. Yes, it surprised me; but, it didn’t satisfy me. For that reason I limited my rating to 4 stars.

Aside from the unlikely ending, I thought the rest of the book was great. I felt extremely frustrated at times—I mean, the guy is being set up for a crime he didn’t commit—but that frustration only made me want to read the book faster so I could figure out how the situation would be resolved. It was an exciting ride, and I enjoyed playing investigator alongside the main character.

This is the first book I have read from the author and I did enjoy the writing and the story. The plot is fairly fast paced and definitely a suspenseful thrillers filled with secrets. Our main character Joe is the narrator in this story and quickly finds himself wrapped up in the action filled story. I did find the plot to be a bit predictable, but overall it was still interesting. I look forward to reading more from the author in the future.

Thank you to the publishers for sending me an ARC of this book.

I could not, for the life of me, puzzle this one out. Usually I have some kind of theory along the way, sometimes I’m right, sometimes I’m wrong. But I couldn’t come up with anything, which doesn’t happen often.

I think I want to bump my rating from a 3 to a 3.5. I enjoyed it for the surprise. But I found the characters kind of dull. I guess Joe was supposed to be but it’s hard to muster up sympathy and outrage on the main character’s behalf when you kind of think he needs to just grow a spine. The other characters weren’t much better, kind of one-dimensional. You don’t get a real feel for any of them so it’s hard to be surprised by their lies as they begin to unravel.

Also don’t really like when thrillers try to give you a moral of the story at the end: technology bad.

Lies by T.M. Logan, I read this book in just a couple days. It certainly held my interest and is written very well. We follow the life of Joe Lynch as his marriage, his career, and his life twirl completely out of control, it’s like he gets on a fast moving train and he has no way to get off. His past 10 years with his wife and child hang in the balance of truth or lies. The author has a wonderful way of dropping just a few hints that increase your desire to read a little bit more.
I found the complexity of the story, some of the high technology software and the consequences of social media to be very entertaining. The only downside I found were some of the police procedures, I felt they were really going out on a limb and devoting a lot of manpower to unsubstantial clues and information.
The story had a good flow and I would recommend to anyone who enjoys a murder mystery. I did not see the ending coming, I wouldn’t say it was one of my favorite endings, but it was a surprise.
I thank Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me the opportunity to receive an advanced copy for my honest review. It’s a 4 star read!!

The first chapter or so of this story started off with intense story-telling and an engaging story. And then.... it all fell apart. And rather quickly at that. To begin with, there is very little even likable about these characters. Ben comes across as a pompous jerk, Mel is just fake and unbelievable, and maybe, just maybe, if Joe actually put his brains to good use he would have figured things out a lot sooner. For Pete's sake the answer to one question was literally glaring him in the face and it took him until the end of the story to put two and two together. For someone who was supposedly a teacher, it was easy to see why (as Mel pointed out), he hadn't been promoted.

There were certain parts of this story that showed potential, but they were often quickly overshadowed by other elements that just seemed completely unfeasible. I am all for suspending reality to an extent - after all isn't that what fiction is all about? But even the police force in this story seemed more bumbling than actually efficient.

The ending I'm sure will not come as a surprise to anyone that reads this story and actually follows the clues. However, I'm sure their eyes will get a good work out from all the rolling they will likely do - if they even make it this far. Also, let me point out that for two people who were so intelligent and tech savvy as these two were purported to be, the fact that they didn't notice things going on with their own electronics (and that of those around them) was just too far-fetched.

I do believe there are people who will enjoy this novel (as evidenced by the 4 and 5 star reviews it has already accumulated), however this one was just not for me.

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.