This book is every mother’s worst nightmare. I connected so much with the story and my stomach was in knots throughout. I lost sleep over this book!

What attracted me to this book was that it was from Sweden. I absolutely love books from Scandinavia, and already just knowing that my hopes were extremely high. However, this book turned out not to be my cup of tea. There were some interesting twists and many surprises that kept me going but the story sort of fell flat and dry to me.

I did end up liking Kouplan’s character and wouldn’t mind reading other Kouplan books, in case this one was an anomaly, but overall, I didn’t quite enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. Maybe it was all in the translation, but this book isn’t getting rave reviews on Goodreads so maybe I’m in the norm on this one.

Edge of your seat, The Truth Behind the Lie takes us into the investigation of the disappearance of a six-year-old by Pernilla and her unlikely source she found online.

Kept me guessing until the very end.

an incredible book. I was confused, but intrigued! I discovered the author was intentionally dropping little things in which were "huh?", then eventually provided a twist or explanation which made it make sense. This continues thru the whole book and is such a delight! Her structuring of the story is superb. Her characters fully realized.

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read and review this title. I will review this title at a different date.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2020 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2020/01/2020-reading-list-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

A book that kept me turning the pages an author to follow.Tense chilling characters that come alive an involving story, looking forward to more by the author.# netgalley #st.martinspress

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy this book and didn’t finish it.

Definitely not what I expected (in a good way)!

I wasn't overwhelmingly drawn to the cover of this book (which sadly can sometimes be a deterrent for me). But once I started reading, I was pleasantly surprised with what I found.

Man is trying to make money while he's living off the grid. Advertises himself as a private investigator. Woman with missing child who doesn't want to involve the police. Perfect combination. As they investigate the whereabouts of the missing child, we found out that things are not really as they seem.

I very much enjoyed the main twist at the end of the book and thought it was cleverly executed. I will say there were some pieces of the story that I felt lacked relevance. I'm going to be honest, I didn't really understand the very last line of the book and how it tied in to the rest of the story. As this is the first in a series, I'm thinking it may be further explained in future books, but it felt somewhat randomly placed in the context of this book.

As the book is set in Sweden, there were a few cultural elements that didn't really translate for me. And I had a hard time envisioning the geography given my lack of Swedish knowledge. But it didn't take away from the book for me.

Overall, this was a quick read and was enjoyable. I would recommend it to thriller/mystery readers.

-I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, Sara Lovestam, and Minotaur Books for the opportunity to review.-

Pernilla contacts private detective Kouplan, a political refugee from Iran hiding in the shadows until he can seek legal asylum, to find her daughter. Kouplan gathers information from various underground sources in his investigation, eventually concluding that Pernilla’s mental instability may actually be the mystery. His compassion for another human living in the shadows encourages Pernilla to seek the truth along with him. I received this wonderful story of humanity and those living delicately on the fringes of society from the publisher Minotaur Books through NetGalley.

Something went wrong with the downloading to my kindle, and I never got the chance to read this book. I read a library copy and did not get the chance to finish reading this. I was not as interested in this book as I originally thought I would be. I found myself bored and not really caring for the characters.

In Sara Lövestam's The Truth Behind the Lie, this gripping thriller will have you at the edge of your seat. It all started when Kouplan, an Iranian refuge living and hiding in Sweden, answered a strange ad who needed assistance from a PI. That's when he met Pernilla, a mother who said her six-year-old daughter Julia is missing, who doesn't want the Swedish police's help. From there, Kouplan asked her questions about the date of Julia's abduction and some background history in her life and Julia's. From there, Kouplan looks for clues all over Sweden to see if he could find her before it's too late. Since he's been living off the grid, he uses all his resources to help find Julia and if she was abducted by a child smuggling ring or not. Inside-out, he covers all his bases and tracks down anybody who might know about Pernilla and Julia's life including a priest named Thor. As he digs deeper into Pernilla's world and Julia's birth, something doesn't make sense to her. Was it a figment of her imagination or was she telling the truth? Kouplan has to find the answer before it might be too late to save either one of them in the end.

This was an intriguing thriller that's set in Sweden. The locations were so visual and mesmerizing with the scenic settings in every place and town. I did care about Kouplan on how he would solve this mystery and by staying under the radar. He would do anything to survive and to make ends meet. I loved it how his character is diverse and how he's a refuge in another country. I also cared about Pernilla and how her story spiraled out of control when Kouplan needed to divide fact from fiction, truth from the lies. This would have you hooked on every page with non-stop drama, plenty of fiction, lots of suspense, and bits of mystery interwoven into the story line.

Will you be there to help Kouplan solve this case in The Truth Behind the Lie today?

Kouplan is trying to live off the radar. Out of sight of the local police. Yet he wants to be a PI. Is he qualified? Probably not. But perhaps he’ll learn as he goes. I mean how hard could it really be?

Pernilla wants to hire Kouplan to find her missing daughter. Only six years old. Here one minute gone the next. Only Pernilla has reasons of her for hiding from the police.

With all the hidden truths can Kouplan solve this crime and bring the young girl home?

This was a well written Swedish thriller that kept me engaged and guessing to the end, with some shocking twists along the way!

Thank you to Danielle Prielipp, NetGalley, St. Martin's Press - Minotaur Books and Sara Lovestam for an ARC to read and review.

The Truth Behind the Lie is a translation of a Swedish novel. The main character is Kouplan, an Iranian refugee hiding from deportation after his asylum was rejected. Kouplan writes a post that if you have a problem you can't go to the police about he will help. This post gets a response from Pernilla, whose six year old, Julia, has been taken.

This is a very different kind of mystery novel. Everything in the book is revealed slowly over the course of the book including basic knowledge about Kouplan. While the story was different and to some people weird, I actually really enjoyed the uniqueness of this book. The character, the mystery, even the ending are not like anything I have read.

The Truth Behind the Lie
A Novel
by Sara Lövestam
Mystery & Thrillers
Pub Date 27 Aug 2019
2⭐⭐
The suspenseful Swedish thriller, The Truth Behind the Lie, tells the story of shady former journalist Kouplan’s search for Permilla's missing child Julia. Told in alternate voices of both Pernilla and Kouplan the book follows the path over several weeks of both Pernilla and Kouplan through each of their points of view. I found this very confusing and did not like. I figured the book out really early on which was a huge disappointment to me. I loved Kouplan and was very interested in why he was leading a secret life and how he became a detective. Pernilla i did not like her. The first 80% of the book was extremely slow and repetitive. It took me over 3 weeks to read it. I kelpt putting it down. I almost didn't pick it back up. After you reach 80% it picks up and gives you I did not see that coming ending. Is this a story i would re-read ? No , Would i reccomend ? NO Why ? This book had three different story lines going on at the same time. I was often so very confused and lost . I hate giving a bad review, but this is one book I wouldn’t recommend , sorry .
Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the advance reader copy of The Truth Behind The Lie in exchange for my honest review.

The Truth Behind the Lie
by Sara Lovestam (Swedish Book)
St Martin's Press\Minotaur Books

The characters in this book are very well developed and complex.
Yet there are parts of this book that drag a bit.

Pernilla A mother looking for her 6 yrs. lost daughter Julie. For her mother's own reasons she does not want to involve the police. She put a add online for a PI enters Kouplan a Iranian who is a Private Investigator wanting to stay under the radar for his own reasons. He is not so sure Pernilla is telling him the truth. Why does she not want to involve the police in the hunt for her missing child? Kouplan will go on quit a journey of body and mind on his hunt for 6yrs old Julie.

Thank You to NetGalley and St Martin's Press\Minotaur Books for a ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.
Beverly E\ladyedan

There are many helpful reviews for this already, so I'll just say that is written by a very talented author. This is very unpredictable (and not necessarily realistic) and a good read overall.

I really appreciate the advanced copy for review!!

This book, unfortunately was not for me. I really could never get invested in the story or the characters. Many seem to be enjoying it so give it a try you might like it. Thank you For the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

This book was interesting, and in some aspects predictable, but in others it definitely was not. The book is part of a series that has not all been translated yet, and I might be interested in reading the other parts for curiosity sake.
The book follows Pernilla, a woman who has had her 6 year old daughter kidnapped. She is unable to call the police for fear of her and her daughter's life being "discovered" by Social Services; so she decides to hire a private investigator. The investigator is a former journalist and illegal immigrant named Kouplan.
Throughout the story there are times where you see the bond they form, since they are both afraid and hiding their lives from someone. There are also times where you see their differences. The story has many twists and turns, especially the very last one.

Pernilla’s six-year old daughter, Julia, has disappeared. Confident that she is in the hands of a criminal and stricken with fear, Pernilla refuses to go to the police. In her desperate search for answers she finds an ad for a private investigator and sends a cryptic plea for help. Enter Kouplan, an Iranian refugee hiding from Swedish immigration authorities. Unable to work a regular job, he has turned to freelancing as a detective.

Pernilla and Kouplan seem like a strange pairing, but together they seem to find comfort in each other. Kouplan may not be the perfect P.I., but he is the friend that Pernilla so desperately needs right now. As the investigation into Julia carries on in soon becomes clear that Pernilla may be keeping secrets about the disappearance close. The clues don’t fit and the only explanation Kouplan can see is one that leaves more questions than answers.

I absolutely love Nordic noir and the gritty, darker level the genre typically takes a crime fiction novel. I wasn’t immediately hit by that vibe with THE TRUTH BEHIND THE LIE, which at first left me cautious as to where my feelings would take me. Ultimately what I found was a quirky pairing between Pernilla and Kouplan that centered around a topic that had much more depth than first glance revealed. It took me a bit to find my footing in the novel, but thankfully Lovestam kept the chapters short and the story fast paced. Once things started to make sense and Kouplan dug deeper into Julia’s disappearance I was able to find my way.

It quickly becomes clear within the first few chapters of THE TRUTH BEHIND THE LIE that no one is who they seem and everyone is hiding secrets from those around them. Our two main characters of Pernilla and Kouplan are perhaps the biggest offenders of secret keeping. Pernilla knows more about how and why her daughter would be kidnapped than she is letting on. Kouplan is hiding not only his identity, but his origins, and what brought him to Sweden. There is a complexity to these characters that draws the reader in and makes you want to know more about them.

I appreciated that Lovestam had alternating narratives throughout the story to give the reader a look into both narrators, as well as a look into the kidnapping. I did find them a little confusing at times when the switch wasn’t entirely clear, but once you realized that stylistic quality to Lovestam’s writing, it became easy to follow the flow. The looks into the kidnapping added a great level of tension that brought the grit more commonly found in this genre.

THE TRUTH BEHIND THE LIE isn’t your typical piece of Nordic noir. It’s a unique book with equally unique characters who create a story that truly captivates the reader. I loved the ending and knowing that this is just the beginning of a series centered around Kouplan makes me excited to check out more.

Disclosure: Thank you to Minotaur Books for sending me a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!