A very interesting read . Twists and turns to keep you engrossed. Wondering which way the author is going to take it. Nice and easy to read. Flows well. Enjoyable to read

I will review on Amazon on May 21, 2019

Title: Lying Next to Me
Author: Gregg Olsen
Genre: adult thriller/mystery
Pages: 396
Thomas & Mercer
Pub : May 21, 2019

I received this ARC from Netgalley in exchange for my fair and honest review. This was my first Gregg Olsen read, and wow it was quite a read. The book was full of twists and turns, who do you believe what actually happened that is the question. I did figure the storyline out finally before the end of the book but it was way toward the end. For those that enjoy suspense/thrillers you will definitely want to read this book.

Gregg Olsen is a personal favourite of mine and this book didn't disappoint. Child abductions are always good for a chill and fright kind of book. This is a stand-alone and will definitely do well with the public. Great book

Which of the multiple narrators of this twisty little thriller is the unreliable one? And what really happened to Sophie? Adam claims he saw her abducted and there was a witness but, well, others aren't so certain. What's the deal with the Moss family? Everyone has an angle here, even Lee, the detective. There are lots of secrets and lies (all the best thrillers have them!) so no spoilers. Thanks to Netgalley for the arc. A page turner!

I got into this book very quickly and I was excited about it. Unfortunately half the way through I found the story became less exciting. The characters were vain and self obsessed which for me ruined the book. I was looking forward to reading this book but I was disappointed in how it progressed!

What a ride! I love this author’s work and he did not disappoint with this book. I was kept on my toes from page one. Nothing is as it appears......There are many twists and turns with a staggering conclusion that I did not foretell. I highly recommend it.
Many thanks to Thomas and Mercer and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

During a holiday weekend, Adam and Sophie Warner venture to a quaint waterfront cabin in an effort to relax and recharge their strained marriage. While Adam and his three year-old daughter are boating offshore, they witness Sophie being attacked then abducted in broad daylight. Despite other vacationers in nearby cabins, the only two eyewitnesses point to one direction. As the investigation into Sophie’s disappearance commences, Adam is comforted by the fact his childhood friend, Detective Lee Husemann, is leading the case. However, Lee soon discovers all the clues beget more questions.

“It is always easier to sleep at night if the monsters outside your house only knock when you give them cause.”

Told from multiple POVs, each character has a unique role as the plot develops and it becomes clear that many of these characters act differently with others and when alone. As the investigation continues, probing into these characters humanizes them, as we see their darker sides, but also points to possible motivations.

“Everyone makes a choice on what they want to do with what was done to them.”

Between the first and last page, there were multiple times when I believed I solved the case, yet there were always a couple details outstanding. By the end, the plot points are fully reconciled - and with a slant that I quite enjoyed. Gregg Olsen is a new author to me and I definitely plan to read more of his books in the future.

Lying Next to Me is a thriller that will cause the reader to continually question every character’s motives. This book will appeal to those who enjoy investigative thrillers that also delve into the dark psyche of its complicated characters.

Gregg Olsen has done it again! A fantastic suspense-filled thriller - at the center- a murder.

Gregg daringly weaves the characters together in a powerful way. As Sophie and Adam's truths unravel, so does the truth about the other characters. Their strengths and flaws are depicted well.

Had me spellbound throughout the entire book!

Many Thanks to Thomas & Mercer and NetGalley for a twisty, un-put-downable read

The novel is a murder mystery. Certainly not an ordinary one. It follows Mr Olsen's trend in writing novels. There are a great many twists and turns to the story. The first, second , third and so on opinions of the reader about what is going to happen are most probably not correct. What does occur is a logical evolution from the rest of the story and supplies a good ending after a good story.
Adam and Sophie Warner are vacationing during the memorial day weekend at Hood Canal in Washington State and enjoying the peace and quiet at their location. They have rented a cabin and on the first day that they are there Adam takes their three year old daughter and paddles out onto the lake that is near their location. Suddenly a scream is heard, and Adam sees his wife Sophie being grabbed by a man and in process of being carried off. He rows to the shore as quickly as possible, but too late. Sophie and the man grabbing her have disappeared.
When the police are called and arrive Lee Husemann, who is coincidentally a childhood friend of Adam assumes the attempt at solution about what is happening. Unfortunately, Sophie's body is discovered the next day and we now have a murder mystery to ponder. The reader is pulled into the story and via narratives of each of the principal characters events unfold. In the two other cabins rented for the weekend are an older lady and in the other Kristen and Connor Moss a young couple intending to enjoy a weekend away from work. Lee examines the facts surrounding the kidnap and murder and begins to realize that all is not as it seems.
The novel is Gregg Olsen at his best. It cannot be put down once started (certainly not a bad thing) and the facts as stated directly by the characters involved are there for the reader to consider and begin thinking about the ending. A good read, a fascinating study in human relations, with the reader, of course, poised for Mr Olsen's next book.

4.5 stars

Adam and Sophie Warner planned to spend a relaxing time with their toddler at a cozy lake cabin on Memorial Day weekend. What supposed to be a break from the daily grind and hopefully reawaken their marriage quickly turned into horror when Sophie was abducted in plain sight. His only hope was his childhood friend and now detective Lee Husemann to help find his wife and the perpetrator, but things got complicated when nothing appeared as it seemed.

As a reader, I love books that made me question and doubt everything, and this book is one of them. The story hooked me from the beginning with the desperation of a family that turned more devious as the story progressed.

I loved the multiple POVs and the short chapters because it “forced” me to pay attention. I enjoyed forming my own theories which were a challenge in this book due to unreliable narrators. I had a favorite character right from the beginning and satisfied with the ending.

Lying Next to Me is a story of ambition and deception that reminds us we never truly know the person beside us. The story would appeal to readers who enjoy an engrossing thriller with unlikable characters.

One of my favorite quotes is "believe nothing that you hear or see, even salt looks like sugar." I thought of that quote often while reading Gregg Olsen's latest thriller, Lying Next to Me. Absolutely nothing was what it appeared to be - nothing.

Adam and his wife Sophie, along with their 3 year old daughter, have rented a cabin on a lake. Next to them is another couple, Kristin and Connor Moss and on the other side, a grandmother with her grandkids. On the second day of the trip, Adam takes his daughter out in a row boat to go crabbing. While on the water, he sees someone abduct Sophie who is sitting on the shore. An elderly walker also sees Sophie being abducted. The grandmother and her grandkids arrive home to see Adam and his daughter frantically rowing toward shore and calls 9-1-1. The Moss' couple. sees and hears nothing. But what really happened that morning. What did anyone truly see or hear? They all experienced the same thing, right? Right!?

Admittedly, I adore Gregg Olsen. I've read everything he has written, including his true crime novels. When it comes to crime - real or fiction - I think no one does it better. Lying in Wait is a tense, stay-awake-to-finish thriller that had me hooked from the very first line. While I suspected who might have done it - but wait - there's no way they could have done it - it was a locked room mystery and too many variables and too many unsolved questions as to why. Until the answers were there before us in the end and then … just WOW. This is a suspense novel that makes you really hate everyone while at the same time hoping that at least one of the bad guys isn't as awful as you think they might be. There is a child involved, surely someone is good. They have to be! In the end, I sat staring at my Kindle and wondering about what I had just read while knowing that is exactly how I like my thrillers! Leave me in awe. Leave me in wonder. Leave me speechless and Lying in Wait absolutely did just that!

Obviously I highly recommend #LyinginWait to anyone who enjoys a great crime novel. I also encourage you read Olsen's other work. It's all fantastic. Lying in Wait will be available May 21 at Amazon

Thank you to #Netgalley, #Thomas&MercerPublishing and #GreggOlsen for my copy of Lying in Wait.

Lying Next to Me is a solid, page-turning thriller. The multiple points of view and time jumps make it hard to piece together who is guilty immediately while simultaneously creating more suspense. It would have been interesting to have a chapter or two or even the epilogue told from the victim’s perspective. That might have also helped balance out some of the negativity of the book's many deplorable characters. But overall, it was a fun read and I'll check out more books by this author. Thank you, NetGalley for the opportunity to read this.

Gregg Olsen does it again! Grabbed from page one, I didn't want to put th he book down. The betrayal and plot twist were simply delicious.

Review of advance reader eBook

The Warner family’s Memorial Day weekend vacation in a cabin at Hood Canal ends in tragedy when a stranger abducts Sophie Warner. Her husband, Adam, and their young daughter, Aubrey, are out on the water and, although Adam makes a supreme effort, he cannot row their canoe fast enough to reach the shore before Sophie is gone.

The occupants of the two other cabins, a grandmother and her grandchildren on one side, a husband and wife on the other, saw nothing, but an elderly dog-walker on the beach saw the abduction. Why would someone grab the young mother? And will detectives Lee Husemann and Zach Montrose find Sophie before it’s too late?

Most of the characters in this taut tale are self-absorbed and unlikable; readers will find little reason to sympathize with their situations. The story, told in flashback scenes by multiple narrators, employs unexpected twists and turns to move the story in unpredictable directions. Astute readers are likely to identify the final twist before its reveal late in the telling of the tale, but the ever-present tension in the unfolding story keeps the pages turning despite an annoying [and unnecessary] oft-repeated expletive that detracts from the otherwise skillfully-woven narrative.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this eBook from Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley
#LyingNextToMe #NetGalley

I've read several books by this author and have enjoyed them all. This one was no exception. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Fast paced and easy to read. I highly recommend this book.

I received this from Netgalley.com for a review.

Adam and Sophie Warner and their three-year-old daughter are vacationing in Washington State’s Hood Canal for Memorial Day weekend. Adam sees Sophie abducted by a stranger, Adam can’t save her. And Sophie disappears.

A fairly good mystery that kept me reading to the end. Everybody lies and the truth is loosely wrapped.

3☆

I loved this book! This is my first book byGreg Olsen, and I will definitely be looking into his other books.

On Memorial Weekend holiday, Adam and Sophie Warner, along with their 3 year old daughter have decided a quiet weekend at the lake will do them all some good.

As the book opens, we learn that Sophie has been abducted. I mean, first page of the book. Talk about getting right to the point! Poor Adam watched the entire abduction with his daughter from the boat as he tries feverishly to get to shore.

As the police arrive, Adam is frantic, wanting nothing more than to find his wife. As luck might have it, a friend from the past shows up as the lead detective on the case. She knows Adam and knows what a good guy he is even though the other detective seems to think Adam may know a little more than he is letting on.

As time passes more of the story unravels, adding mystery to who the killer could be. The story is told from different points of view including Adam, Sophie, the detective, and neighbors witnessing the event.

This was definitely a page turner. Each chapter I needed to read “just one more.”

Intense, suspenseful, and an engrossing read. Highly recommended to mystery buffs/psychological thrillers fans. Full review on website...

This is a story about a murder of a beautiful woman, that leaves behind a young daughter and her husband. The story unfolds trying to determine who killed Sophie.
This is a book that has more twists and turns that you can get dizzy. It is a struggle to keep the story straight. It is unexpected which keeps you reading.

In true Gregg Olsen style, this story is filled with suspense and plot twists. The reader finds him or herself questioning the sanity of the main characters and knowing that things aren’t always as they seem. Very strong plot and characters!