By far the best Colleen Coble book I have read yet! With engaging characters and a story line that will draw readers in from the very beginning, Pelican Harbor promises to be an amazing new series!

After her father’s sudden retirement as police chief of Pelican Harbor, Jane Hardy is appointed chief to follow in his footsteps. She has no time to adjust to the position before her father is arrested and accused of a recent murder. For the last fifteen years, it has just been Jane and her father after they escaped from a cult. Since that time, Jane has been searching for her mother and answers to her past, like what happened to the baby she had that her father said died the day they left? As she is appointed chief, Reid Bechtol arrives in town for a documentary he is doing about Jane becoming chief. Reid follows her around town as she tries to solve the crimes plaguing their town. His calm demeanor helps her in the most stressful situations she has faced in a long time. Coming for the documentary isn’t Reid’s only reason for arriving in Pelican Harbor; he has his own secrets and once everyone’s secrets collide none of them will ever be the same.

Colleen Coble is quickly climbing her way up the ladder as one of my favorite Romantic Suspense authors. One Little Lie is her best book yet! I loved Jane as the protagonist. She is a strong character from the very beginning when readers meet her as a young girl going through a trying time and continue to see her grow into a strong capable woman. She doesn’t try to ignore the hard things she went through, which still come back to haunt her, but she uses that to help deal with what she faces each day. I loved the mystery of what happened and how it was written. I do still have a lot of questions that weren’t answered and am hoping they will come in the next book. Reid was an interesting character to say the least. If readers pay close enough attention, they might be able to figure him out before it is revealed. I was not the biggest fan of Jane’s dad as he is gruff, tough, and not very paternal, but I really think that is how the author wants readers to feel towards him. If you have never read anything by Colleen Coble, this would be a perfect time to grab the first in this new series and get drawn in by a great author. I recommend this book to fans of Romantic Suspense that are looking for a story with little fluff and a whole lot of heart, drama and an overall great story.

I received a complimentary copy of this title form the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

This book has it all: murder, betrayal, justice, secrets, and the start of romance. But one little lie is the powder keg that ignites a small town and the inhabitants that live there. Newly appointed Chief of police, Jane strives for honesty, independence, and integrity. Her childhood has taught her hard learned lessons and how to value her freedom of choice and upholding the law to the best of her ability. Her past is one Jane holds close, not wanting anyone to see what happened. Reid has learned to tell stories through the lens of a camera, shining a light on issues many people wouldn't know about without his documentaries. But he has secrets of his own that he doesn't want coming out right now. Jane's small town is rocked by the repercussions of one lie that ripple out to encompass murder and her dad accused of breaking the law Jane holds dear. It's a race to see who will expose the lie first, Jane or the murdering mastermind behind the lie.
The characters in this book come to life with their flaws and forgiveness, support and struggles. They feel like the town down the road I want to take a trip to visit. Colleen Coble weaves a tail that pulls you in and has you experience every heart pounding moment along with the characters. I can't wait for the next book in this series, I need more answers. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

One Little Lie by Colleen Coble was the first book by this author I had read. The story was engaging and kept me curious to the end to solve the mystery. However I did find it dragged in a number of spots and I found some of it to be quite predictable, especially who her lost child and his father were. With that said, the mystery did keep me guessing!

Thank you to the author, Thomas Nelson Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

What an interesting read as all of Coble's books are. This one deals with people who have come out of cults but with a different twist than most books deal with on the subject. Some will say "it's just a little lie" but then one must lie again in order to prevent the truth from being revealed. There is a lot of suspense and action in this story and a lot of lies to cover up the truth.  The characters are very believable and appealing. The faith thread is prevalent along with lots of secrecy and suspense. You will not be disappoint in the first book of this series and I am looking forward to the second book in the Pelican Harbor series, Two Reasons to Run.  I highly recommend this book.......I received a copy of this book from the publisher via netgalley but was under no obligation to write a positive review.

Colleen Coble has always been a favorite author of mine because she is a master at writing in the romantic suspense genre. I have loved her books since I first read her Rock Harbor series and I can tell this series is off to a great start after reading One Little Lie.

There are so many things going on in this book that it is hard to narrow it down in a review. The backstory is that Jane Hardy escaped with her father from a cult when she was 15 years old. Now, several years later Jane's father has been the sheriff and now she is acting sheriff. She is a complex character dealing with her past while also having a lot going on in the present. She is thrown in to dealing with some murders that appear to be the work of a vigilante. Things become very personal when her own father is accused of these crimes. On top of all that, she is being followed by Reid who is making a documentary of small town law enforcement. But just what is his angle?

The author tackles many themes in this book including forgiveness, reconciliation, consequences of lies, etc. As I mentioned earlier, I view Jane as a very complex character and I am curious to see how she transforms and grows throughout the series.

Is her father guilty of the crimes he is accused of? Does Reid have more involvement with Jane's past than Jane is aware of? You'll have to read to find out. I can tell you that the ending definitely took me by surprise. I can't wait to see what happens in book two due to release later this year.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Net Galley. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

Another jewel from Colleen Coble! I loved this book, although it should have come with a warning: May cause sleep deprivation! There are multiple storylines, but they are skillfully meshed together. This action-packed story set in the small town of Pelican Harbor on the Alabama gulf coast moves along swiftly with unexpected turns as lies and revenge generate mayhem and mystery. The characters in this exciting narrative are credible and appealing. The faith element enhances the story, and the romantic element takes a back seat to the secrecy and suspense. I am looking forward to the second book in the Pelican Harbor series, Two Reasons to Run, releasing in September. I highly recommend this book.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher via netgalley but am under no obligation to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.

Coble has outdone herself this time. I lost track of the number of mysteries included in One Little Lie. Wondering how they would all converge compelled me to continue flipping pages, putting other things aside. Cults, vigilantes, murders, lies, and betrayal; a mystery lovers smorgasbord! I highly recommend this book to all mystery lovers, and am grateful to have received a complementary copy from Thomas Nelson via NetGalley. All opinions expressed here are completely my own.

Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the Author and Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an fair and honest review.

I've read Christian Fiction and, for the most part, not liked much of it. Not for the positive Christian message these books always have but because they are just not that good. The writing is not up to the standard I am accustomed to and the plots just aren't that interesting. I am pleasantly surprised to say that is not the case here. This is my first Colleen Coble book and, as a much published author, she knows how to craft a great plot. The first third of the book had the reader wondering just what was going on, but then it settled down to an past paced suspense and a heartrending romance.

The book opens 15 years ago with a young girl having just given birth when the compound where she lives is attacked. Her father grabs her and tells her the baby boy died and they have to escape. With that in the readers mind the books shifts to the present day.

Jane Hardy has always respected her father and wanted nothing more than to follow his footsteps and become a police officer. She worked hard and her father, the Sheriff of Pelican Harbor, Alabama hired her and she proved herself both to him and the community. When he suddenly retired, the job was offered to Jane. A little off balance and a little out of her comfort zone, Jane is thrown into the deep end when the mayor orders her to cooperate with the making of a documentary and decapitated corpse is found and the local librarian is tar and feathered and dead. When the FBI shows up with to arrest her father, Jane is overwhelmed.

Reid Bechtol has made several well received documentaries and now is making one that will definitely receive acclaim, but that isn't his primary motive for doing it. As he gets closer to Jane he sees a woman who is in a high stress job, but handles the people she deals with empathy while doing that job.

As Jane works to find a murderer and clear her father, Reid makes himself indispensable to her and Jane finds herself drawn to him and trusting him, maybe more that she should. One thing for sure, the frame her father finds himself in is a tight one and the murderer is determined to make the charges against him stick.
4 1/2-Stars

⭐️⭐️⭐️”Nothing mattered in this moment but the feel of her in his arms.”✨
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If you enjoy:
•Suspense
•Strong female lead
•Female police chief
•Second Chances
•Multiple POV
Then this might be the book for you!✨
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This is my first time reading this author. And unfortunately, it was not exactly what I was expecting. I was expecting a romance suspense novel. But this was heavy on the suspense and light on the romance.✨

I liked the strong female lead. The setting of a small town. The pace of the mystery. But I feel like the romance that was missing would have brought me into this story more. The quote used in this review is the only moment of romance I detected. The suspects identity was a surprise... But still, I felt unconnected.✨

If you looking for a suspense story without the romance, check it out for yourself! And perhaps the romance is yet to come in the next book!✨

Thank you to the author and Net Galley for this ARC for my honest review.✨

I was really disappointed by this novel for many reasons.
One, the way the prologue is written and then chapter one starts, is a little confusing. You don't know who's who. But then I quickly figured out the female in prologue was the newly appointed sheriff. But there was so much about the murders, the investigations, that drove me crazy. Not to mention the lies the journalist, Reid, was keeping. Because that little surprise was easily figured out. And then the ending was a cliffhanger. I was NOT expecting that and honestly that probably upset me about the whole book then anything else. Not sure I will bother to read book 2.

The title of this book is appropriate, but one little lie morphed into many more, and then they were no longer little.
As the story begins, Officer Jane Hardy has just made Chief of Police, succeeding her father in the job. We soon see not all are happy about her appointment, and when bodies begin to appear, some think she is not up to the task.
Now the City has given the go ahead for a noted journalist to follow here to make a new documentary, but there sure seems to be something else going on?
This book is full of secrets, and when they fall, yes, I was surprised by some, but others blew my mind, I never saw them coming.
I became so involved in this story, and in the end didn't want it to end, and yes, there is a teaser at the end, another book is coming in the Fall.

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Thomas Nelson, and was not required to give a positive review.

I'm going to start off by saying that this book has a cliff hanger ending!! That disappointed me ...alot!
That said I did like the book. I don't read alot of Christian fiction but Colleen Coble is an author that I enjoy reading. This book is about past lies. Jane is now the sheriff of Pelican Harbor, Alabama but she was raised in a cult until her father told the biggest lie in order to get her away from the compound. Reid is a documentary film maker and comes to town supposedly to do a documentary about Jane and small town policing, but this is not the truth either. His past is tied to the cult too, but Jane isn't aware of it initially. Jane is also trying to solve a couple of murders and a kidnapping, plus one of her deputies fights her over everything. While all this is going on Jane and Reid grow closer. In the end the killer surprised me and the case was lead to a satisfactory conclusion. But then Jane learns the biggest lie of all. Will she be able to forgive Reid for his part in it? Sadly we won't find out in this book....not until the next book comes out.
Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Thomas Nelson and Colleen Coble for a chance to review this book. All opinions expressed are unbiased.

One Little Lie is a story that happens in a small coastal town, Pelican Harbor, in Alabama. A new Chief of Police has been appointed by the council and Chief Jane Hardy should have had it easy, after all, she's taking over from her father who has recently retired but things are not too rosy. There is another detective who had coveted the role of chief, there's a vigilante in town who is creating havoc , a council member is not keen on having a female in the top post and to add to her woes, there's a documentary being made about small town policing and its chiefs so that Jane Hardy is in the limelight.

Reid Dixon is a successful documentary maker whose documentary on cults had hit the charts but he is in town with his son focusing on Jane with a hidden motive.

There are quite a few things happening in the story with Jane and her past in the cult, bodies being discovered one after another, Reid and his trouble with his ex-wife, drugs and revenge, Jane's father victimized as a crooked cop, kidnapping of a senator's daughter and the ransom play, Jane's best friend and her medical diagnosis, all of which makes you feel like reading a very complex and convoluted drama. But thankfully, Colleen Coble has worked wonderfully with the story unravelling thread by thread and bringing it all together in one fell swoop.

The romance element in the story is quite light but I loved how the author used our faith and beliefs in a subtle way and made it a part of the story. There's something quite charming about a small town in the coastal area with its own pelican mascot Pete and of course my favorite character Parker, a K-9 police dog.

This is book #1 in the Pelican Harbor series and my first book by the author Colleen Coble. An exciting start to the series and looking forward to continuing it.

Promoted to chief of the small Gulf Shore police department, Jane Hardy is quickly challenged by two gruesome murders, a kidnapping, and her father's being investigated. On top of that, Jane has to allow Reid Bechtol shooting a documentary to follow her as she investigates. I received a free copy of this eBook from the publisher through Netgallery. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. I didn't want to put this book down. There are interesting twists in the story. Even though Jane resolves the cases, there are some personal issues that won't be resolved into the next book. For me this made the book richer since it makes the book more realistic and is still has a satisfactory ending. I look forward to the next book in the series. I love this very suspenseful book.

Another intriguing mystery by Colleen Coble! Part thriller, suspense, and romance. I always appreciate the care and research that Colleen puts into each one of her storylines. In this one, the cult incident that preludes this story and influences it throughout made it all the more enjoyable. The antagonist in the story remained a mystery until the very end - and that is always a good thing! I recommend this novel for all who appreciate Christian mystery stories. My appreciation to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC for this, my honest review.

“Micah 6:8 says God wants us to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with Him.” But, what happens when one lie turns into a web of deception…

Oh, how I loved this book. Coble did an amazing job in creating a masterful web of deceit all started by one little lie. Then add in more than one person’s lies and you have a mystery so riveting, you won’t know what is a lie and what is reality! There is a very real feel of what it would be like for those coming out of a cult. The aftermath, the healing, and the ramifications when the sins of others impact us for years to come. Feeling like she has moved on as much as she could, Jane is excited to be appointed the new chief of police. However as lies and deceit are uncovered in the small town, she realizes she really hasn’t overcome the past. Her nightmares return in sleep and in reality. Then as she struggles with her job, family, and friends, she begins to question more and more about her relationship with God. I thought the faith element was very real for someone who’s gone through spiritual abuse. I’m excited to see how her relationship will grow with God as the series continues.

As Reid comes to do a documentary about her being police chief, he has his own issues to deal with that made me question who he is. This really kept me guessing. I loved his character, but I wasn’t sure what his story really was. Then as he became closer with Jane, his son and him were put in danger. I ended up loving Reid and could see how hard it would be for him to speak truth. However, my heart for him kept me rooting for a happy ending. It also speaks to how hard a lie of omission can be…that fear can steal our joy when we don’t tell the truth.

If you loved The Rock Harbor series, I think you would love One Little Lie. The mystery and deception that comes from one lie and how it can spin into a web of lies is written in a powerful way. It truly speaks to the importance of honesty. While I kept wanting the truth to come out,  I cringed every time I saw one lie build on another. The mystery kept me guessing on multiple levels. A truly inspiring story and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series. I love Jane Hardy and can’t wait for the rest of the story!

I was provided a copy of this book through NetGalley by the publisher. All opinions in this review are my own.

Before reading this book I was already a Colleen Coble fan, so I went into this book with some expectations and she lived up to them!

Jane Hardy is the interim sheriff for a small town in Alabama when her father retires. She is thrown into the life of a sheriff and almost immediately she has some crazy cases that hit her desk and one of her detectives believes her father to be at fault and wants to pursue him heavily and she must stay impartial while being a daughter and the sheriff.

I loved Jane Hardy as a character. I could tell that this was the first in the series as this book was setting the ground work with the characters for the following books to come. A lot of the book was character development with the cases taking a back seat to their development. I didn't hate this fact, just felt a little different from the typical mystery thriller books with such a focus on the main characters.

Just to warn anyone before they pick this one up, Colleen Coble is a Christian fiction author and some books there are minimal references to her faith, not so in this one, so if you try to avoid books with religious references, you may need to avoid this one. The plot and everything is so good, so I would still recommend this one, just with the one caveat.

One Little Lie plops readers down into the middle of more than a decade old mystery. Jane Harper escapes from a cult with her father and manages to turn her life around and bury her past. She becomes police chief of Pelican Harbor, AL, but everything derails as several murders happen her first day on the job. To make matters worse, her father is the chief suspect, and she’s stuck with reporter Reid Betchol shadowing her for a documentary.

I’d classify this novel as a mystery. The plot is complex, with lots of characters that intertwine throughout the story. I didn’t see the ending coming and enjoyed the process of trying to piece the evidence together along side Jane. The “secret” is pretty obvious early on, and it’s interesting to see Reid deal with lies of omission and coming clean about what he knows and who he is. Also, Colleen Coble always has the best settings, and I loved the New Orleans style vibe of Pelican Harbor.

There was plenty of action and suspense to keep the story fast-paced. My only issue was the believability at times. The contrast of Jane from beginning to end didn’t resonate with me. I couldn’t figure out how she went from the past she had in the cult to become the police chief. It seemed like a stretch. The conflict from her past and present didn’t come out as much as I would have wanted. But overall, this is a great mystery and an intriguing read. I definitely recommend to suspense fans.

I seriously loved this book so much that I could not put it down! I love the thrillers and this one did not disappoint. Doesn’t the title just grab your attention as well?! So great.

Pelican Harbor is full of people with secrets. In the first of a new series from Coble, Jane has just assumed her father's prior position of police chief of the harborside town. Jane has some secrets of her own that she'd prefer to keep to herself, but when her father is accused of murder, she finds her cautious existence turned upside down.

During the course of her investigation, Jane finds support and comfort in an unusual place--the documentary filmmaker assigned to follow her as a publicity stunt by the mayor. Reid and his kind teenage son Will begin to draw Jane out of her protective shell, much to her surprise. Who can Jane trust? Are her neighbors out to get her? Or is there a killer targeting the people of her town?

Murder, mystery, a connection to a Senator and a long disbanded cult, "One Little Lie" is another stellar read from Coble. If you like her previous books, you will enjoy this first installment of the Pelican Harbor series. Coble thoroughly researches her settings and backstories of her characters and it shows. Details, actual events and places woven in to fiction always brings a sense of reality into her work.

Get ready to be pulled in to these new characters and get ready for the ride! I was an early reader, thanks to #NetGalley and Thomas Nelson publishing. All opinions are my own.