Thank you so much to Hank Phillippi Ryan, NetGalley and the publisher, Macmillan, for an advanced copy for an honest review.

This book started off and I was already being invested and ready to finish this one as quick as possible, but truly didn't want it to end after all.

I incorrectly guessed multiple times, at exactly what was going on in this book, but I never was correct and at the end of the book, this blew me out of the water. I absolutely loved how Hank Phillippi Ryan started and finished this book, and was able to keep me guessing from start to finish. This read truly shows how life can be a vicious circle, and how everything can come back around again and again.

Love, love, love this one, and I can't wait for the next book by Hank Phillippi Ryan.

At first I was so confused they were so many characters to grasp but as the plot progressed I began to understand and I fell in love with the plot. It's a story about deception. There is Nora a redhead who is overconfident and who has an agenda when she gets a job as a sales representative of one of the biggest pharmaceutical companies ever and that fertility bomb(truth or fiction), Ellie the ambitious reporter and Lacey the mean girl in my head 😂😂 Overally the book was one rollercoaster ride that will blow you away(hold on to your hats)

I don’t read a lot of suspenseful type books. They’re just not my thing. But I didn’t know what to expect, and I’d heard good things about the author. This book did not disappoint.

It kept me on edge, especially once I got all the characters straight in my mind. Nora, Ellie, Meg, Lacey, Brooke ... there were a lot of girls/women to keep straight. The story is told from several different perspectives. It also has some flashbacks to an earlier time.

I did not expect any of the twists that happened in this book. The things that I thought I knew, well, I was wrong. The book has complex characters. The story is well written and keeps you going from page to page

Oh my gosh what a crazy ride!! This book grabbed me from the beginning and kept my brain guessing until the last page! So well crafted and a host of fun characters.
Always enjoy her writing style. Great read and I highly recommend!
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Superb! Wow, this novel has the twists and turns of a carnival ride! I loved it! The author has created fantastically deep and intriguing characters. Readers will be blown away!

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

WOW. I don't even know where to begin with this book... Definitely a thrilling read with twists and turns at every corner. There were so many WTF moments in this book that I couldn't believe what I was reading.

The story is about a journalist who tries to expose a pharmaceutical scandal by going undercover and reinventing herself as a completely different person. We follow a story about wealth and greed, learning that the people very close to her are not who she thinks they are...

I really enjoyed the character development in this book. I could definitely relate with the main character (Ellie) and found that every single emotion came through in the writing. I couldn't force myself to finish this book in one sitting as I found the storyline overwhelming and needed to take breaks. The reason I didn't give the book 5 stars is because I found the story line confusing and slightly exaggerated at times due to the number of characters as well as the flipping between the past and present. A slightly challenging read but definitely worth it in the end as all becomes clear.

As always, an excellent addition to the thriller genre from Hank Phillippi Ryan. A recommended purchase for collections where the genre is popular.

Ryan is a genius at twisty, suspenseful writing! I felt the same way about this book as I do when all of my necklaces get tangled up in my jewelry box...I'm never going to get this untangled!

A daughter of privilege and wealth betrayed by the people who should have loved and protected her wants revenge and to get it she will have to be someone else.

A young, heartbroken widow. Betrayed in the same way.

A reporter trying to take down a big pharma company touting a drug that has horrific side effects. And doing it any way she can.

All it takes is a lie. But who will be the first to lie? And are any of them who they claim to be? And when the truth does come out, will one of them be the first to die?

Another crazy, suspense-filled tangle of a thriller!

NetGalley/ August 4th, 2020 by Forge Books/MacMillan





Ryan is a genius at twisty, suspenseful writing! I felt the same way about this book as I do when all of my necklaces get tangled up in my jewelry box...I'm never going to get this untangled!

A daughter of privilege and wealth betrayed by the people who should have loved and protected her wants revenge and to get it she will have to be someone else.

A young, heartbroken widow. Betrayed in the same way.

A reporter trying to take down a big pharma company touting a drug that has horrific side effects. And doing it any way she can.

All it takes is a lie. But who will be the first to lie? And are any of them who they claim to be? And when the truth does come out, will one of them be the first to die?

Another crazy, suspense-filled tangle of a thriller!

NetGalley/ August 4th, 2020 by Forge Books/MacMillan

A flawlessly written mystery with twists around every corner, The First To Lie is a timely story about deceit, justice and revenge, all centered around the devastation wrought by a large pharmaceutical company and the family that owns it. Addictive and utterly compelling, Ryan has crafted a story that is ferociously smart and tightly plotted. You won’t want to put this one down until you’ve reached the final gasp-worthy conclusion!

Thank you to Net Galley and McMillan-Tor Forge for the e-ARC of this title in exchange for my honest review. Sometimes revenge is all anyone can see. In this case, the main character is willing to risk everything to get revenge. But, at what price?

In THE FIRST TO LIE, Hank Phillippi Ryan delivers a mystery plotting masterclass that had me guessing (incorrectly) right up until the end. Expert pacing, richly drawn characters, and seamless storytelling are just some of the ingredients that make this novel impossible to put down. Fabulous!

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We all have our reasons for being who we are―but what if being someone else could get you what you want?⁣
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After a devastating betrayal, a young woman sets off on an obsessive path to justice, no matter what dark family secrets are revealed. What she doesn’t know―she isn’t the only one plotting her revenge.⁣
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An affluent daughter of privilege. A glamorous manipulative wannabe. A determined reporter, in too deep. A grieving widow who must choose her new reality. Who will be the first to lie? And when the stakes are life and death, do a few lies really matter?⁣
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I did not enjoy this book as much as I would've liked. It was far too predictable and heavy-handed with the clues. The plot was interesting, but seemed to drag on in spots. The characters were not particularly identifiable or likable. I would not recommend to friends. Thank you to NetGalley and Forge Books for granting access to this book in exchange for an honest review. I will post this review today to my Bookstagram and companion Facebook page, @thatreadingrealtor.

Ripped from the headlines. keeps the reader guessing until the last page. Everytime I thought I knew the outcome I didn't know. Loved every page. hank deserves all the acolades

WHAT THE HELL I JUST READ? My head is spinning and I already start to suffer from dissociative identity disorder. I don’t know who I am right now. I think I’m redhead, writing and reading to live and breathe with big weakness for French and Californian wines, silly dance moves and Tom Hardy! Okay: it is still me! But I cannot say the same for the characters in this book.

I think writing a review without giving any spoiler is the toughest thing about the story because at the beginning I thought there are two POVS:

Nora: redhead, presentable, over confident, passionate sales representatives of one of the strongest drug firm Pharminex with secret agenda but what she aims to do! Why she stops by at the doctor appointments and interrogate the patients acting like friendly and sharing the same fate with them: suffering from infertility? Why does she try to dig up?

And we’re also introduced Ellie, ambitious reporter, working at TV channel. We’re also introduced Meg, Ellie’s assistant and her neighbor next door, who is acting like she wants sniffing around and prying Ellie’s investigation about the same firm for taking her job.

Then a few pages later we’re introduced a new POV! Wait! What? Okay, let’s say hello to Brooke: 15 years old daughter of Vanderwald family. She is so close to her brother Travis

Hodor I mean hold the door because there is another POV is coming up: we’re also introduced Travis’ soon to be wife Lacey who seems like a cold hearted bitch and sociopath (Satan and Lilith’s abandoned baby girl) Lacey is so ambitious to be accepted by Vanderwald family, already viciously making future plans as Brooke suffers from a big tragedy which is unacceptable and result with the end of her relationship with her own parents.

I thought why the hell there are so many characters in this book and I decided to draw a scheme to memorize their connection but a few pages later…BAMM! And yes another few pages later another BAMMM! I don’t want to give spoilers but the author threw so many bombs on my lap and some of them might have been exploded. That’s why my hair in the air and I sniff smoke during my reading.

I got numb in the end: because there are also two big revelations that I didn’t see it coming but I think there were so much surprises and twists make you paranoid and question your reality! Nothing as it seems and everybody lies in this book and the lies are three dimensional. I know you didn’t understand what I mean: Let me explain: This book is Inception movies’ another version: There are lies hid inside the lies (like matryoshka dolls : you open up a lie and find out there is another lie hiding so you keep digging and forgetting your own reality!)

I always adored brain cell fryer, mind number, batshit crazy stories like this! But two things made me cut the points: 1)There are so many twists and at some parts I wanted them stop because the revelations turned into extremely illogical and unreal! 2)Ellie is reporter and quite brilliant at scheming and manipulation but she cannot see things before her eyes and acted like moron at some parts! I wanted to scream at her face: because some of the twists are so predictable from the beginning and she acted like blind not to see the truth. And the part she couldn’t remember somebody till the end of the book: nope, I didn’t buy it! It was ridiculous!
I’m shutting up right now! I might have given too much clues!
I’m still giving 3.5 stars and rounding them up to 4! Because even though there are plot holes and over exaggeration about the conclusions and twisty parts, it was still gripping, mysterious and so much entertaining page-turner made me addictive and also exhausted because of overthinking! And it is not fair to give only three stars to this unique, extra ordinarily smart story

I’m looking forward to read more Hank Philippi Ryan books ASAP! I enjoyed the smart, brilliant, exciting and whirlwind writing style.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Tor/ Forge for sharing this head spinning ARC in exchange my honest review.

Hank Phillippi Ryan keeps getting better and better as she keeps upping her game and trying new things.; cozies, traditional mysteries, suspense, thrillers and psychological suspense. The woman does it all - beautifully!

How far would you do to get revenge? Would you be willing to sacrifice everything you hold dear? One woman will risk exposing her family’s darkest secrets in order to get the revenge she believes she desires above all else