"Truth, Lies, and Second Dates" was thoroughly amusing; another gem by MaryJanice Davidson. Captain Ava Capp is at least as funny as Betsy Taylor, Queen of the Vampires, from the Undead series, and is definitely irreverent. The book (and the series) sets out to honor and mock tropes, especially those beloved of romance novels, and in this book, also horror novels. Ms. Davidson includes a list of tropes in an appendix at the back of the book and indicates which tropes she has subverted. The cast of characters is great, from airline pilot Ava to head flight attendant G.B. to medical examiner Tom Baker and his precocious genius niece Hannah. The plot of the book, while interesting and well-crafted, is really just a vehicle for utilizing tropes and creating amusing interactions and conversations. Ms. Davidson utilizes the occasional endnote to poke fun at herself, reveal that events that seem surely to have been invented were in fact real, and to explain airline crew slang -- my favorite is "gate lice."

I don't know that another full-length novel featuring these characters would work without feeling derivative, but I think a series of short stories about Captain Capp and her flight crew or a short story featuring Hannah would definitely be enjoyable possibilities.

I received a copy of the e-book via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Kooky. Ava is a total nut job and not as funny and as cool as she seems. I didn’t like her except I liked her. She seemed more like a chip on her shoulder teenager than someone almost 30. Tom was an odd duck as well, but I wish the ambiguity about him and his niece on the “spectrum” had been clear not hidden. Having the trope list at the end was entertaining but sad to see it clearly written out about how many were in the novel.

I was provided with an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Truth, Lies, and Second Dates is more of a contemporary rom-com than a romantic suspense story.

Ava Capp pilot for Northwest Southeast Airlines (they fly everywhere) she enjoys flying in somewhat friendly skies, no roots, no commitments, just hook-ups, and no second dates.

Thomas Baker, MD, Medical Examiner in Minnesota, assists Ava with getting Dennis Monahan, her dead best friend's brother back to his hotel, after the ten-year memorial of his twin sisters' unsolved murder.

There is a lot going on in this story, while some are over-explained by the author, other notes are simply pointing out tropes and footnotes along the way. While this might be helpful for some books this was just overkilled in my honest opinion. I found it a struggle to move past certain parts of the book, they were just boring while some lines were funny, others were just so-so. I really wanted to like this book more than I did.

This was the first book that I have read by this author and the well rounded characters kept me totally engaged with the good storyline and I look forward to reading more from this author!

This was a new author for me, but the blurb sucked me and the story was simply amazing! I couldn't put it down!

This book was a glorious hot mess of a book and I loved it! Truth, Lies, and Second Dates is a romance/mystery mash-up with a generous dose of comedy thrown in. It follows the story of Pilot Ava Capp as she returns to her hometown on the tenth anniversary of her best friend's murder. When the memorial is vandalized and she's pulled back into the murdery mystery, she meets medical examiner Tom Baker who is convinced that she was the original murder target. As the two of them start to unravel the mystery, sparks fly and the two of them hit it off with some fantastic witty repartee.

The dialogue in this book was some of the best I've ever read. Witty, fast, realistic, and absolutely hilarious. I loved reading the conversations between Ava and pretty much anyone because I was guaranteed a laugh. All of the characters are funny and well-rounded and Ava and Tom were so three dimensional that I could imagine meeting them tomorrow. Davidson knocked it out of the park with her characters and dialogue. Unfortunately, the writing style and punctuation were a little too manic for me. With parentheses and footnotes and random exclamations strewn through the pages, it was a little distracting and hectic for me. Additionally, the murder definitely took a back seat to the romance to the point that I felt like she should have spent a little more time on it. Still, this book was a fun read and the dialogue was SO good!

Truth, Lies, and Second Dates by MaryJanice Davidson is a Romantic comedy and romantic suspense :)
This is the first book that i have read of this author and was very surprised to find the the incredible writing
The dislodges are witty making you smile as you read.

Captain Ava Capp avoids commitment and is a pilot without roots. Tom Baker is a sexy brainy doctor who offers to be Ava's bodyguard as Ava tries to understand the events related to death of her friend.

Its refreshing to have clumsy, cute hero (Why should heroines always have to be clumsy?).

"I have several things to keep track of" he said with faux haughtiness. "Where parts of my body are in relation to random large objects is not high on my list"

The personalities of the protagonists, wouldn't be for everyone as they are both not great with social niceties but that's how the characters were written realistically making this really a fun read
I enjoyed reads the metal lists that Ava prepares at the start of every chapter! The book was written in third person point of view but the view point shifts in some places abruptly

I will be going back to read more of this author soon.

Thanks to NetGalley & St. Martin's Griffin/Press for providing an ARC

Fast paced, intriguing, suspenseful and not predictable. I really enjoyed this story. It keeps you on your toes and guessing what the next twist will be.

This story tells the story of Female pilot Ava Capp who happy flying planes, and this book tells her story of what happens in her life.

Unfortunately I really struggled to finish this book and wasn't able to finish it, the characters in the book just came to fast eg too many characters introduced , and I also struggled with the storyline

With thanks to Netgalley & St Martin Press for the arc of this in exchange for this honest review

Good. Interesting characters and concept. A real page turner as the words just flowed and kept me hooked till the very end.

I loved this book. Ava and Tom are great characters and their story is excellent. I really enjoyed reading this. It was funny and romantic. The list of tropes in the story at the end was great. I highly recommend this book to anybody who likes their romance mixed with humor.

I liked this book, it started off slowly and improved as the book went on. It's a rom-com mystery, an interesting combination that worked. The main character, Ava, was very realistic and had actual problems and worries like we all do. This will appeal to both romance and mystery readers. I recommend this book, 4 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC, in return, I am writing a voluntary review.

This was fun, Davidson takes forty plus tropes and twists some and then tosses in a female airline pilot as the leading lady and a studly offbeat medical examiner as the leading man to build this murder mystery romance.

Truth,Lies and Second Dates s supposed to be part of a triology, but it is really a standalone with the only connection being a brief drop in by one of the leads from another book.
ARC courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley Expected Publication Date Dec 15, 2020 - this is an unpaid review.

I received an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I’m saddened to confess that I abandoned it after fifteen chapters. When I checked the index and saw there were 48 chapters, plus an epilogue, I said “Oh, hell no.”

Touted as a romantic comedy, “Truth, Lies and Second Dates” not only failed to tickle my funny bone, I simply couldn’t get into it. It’s not just that it wasn’t funny, it was a huge yawn. The characters were mere cutouts and what was supposed to be comedic banter fell flat. I’m not aware if it has a plot. If so, it was lost on me. The protagonist is an airline pilot named Captain Ava Capp so the “Captain Capp” moniker becomes a trope by itself, but after a while that too was overdone.

Consigning a book to the DNF (Did Not Finish) shelf saddens me but being unable to make even a single positive comment is infinitely worse. Perhaps if I’d been able to stay awake through more chapters I could dig deeper for commentary but I couldn’t so there is no more I can say. It seems unfair to rate a book I didn’t finish but if I’m forced to rate it, I have to go with two stars. This book is scheduled for release on December 15, 2020

#TruthLiesAndSecondDates #MaryJaniceDavidson #StMartinsPublishingGroup

Ava isn’t your typical heroine in rom-com mystery...lets just say she would never be featured on the Hallmark Channel. But her inner monologue, conversations with coworkers, and her relationship with Tom, all made me laugh out loud. Once you get used to the author’s style of writing, you want more Ava, more Tom, and more of Ava and Tom together with a sprinkle of their friends and family.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

4* Witty Stars

MaryJanice Davidson is a new author to me and I was excited to read her latest contemporary romance. I struggled in the beginning to get used to the writing style, as you got to read all the thoughts of the main characters and I found it was not necessary to the storyline. Once I got used to this, the story was a fun and hilarious read. The main character Captain Ava Capp was witty beyond words and very likable. The rest of the characters, besides one, are realistic and enjoyable.

This was a cosy mystery read with a touch of romance and filled with unforgettable characters who will keep you entertained throughout the book.

This was a great read. The romance was sweet but not over the top, and the mystery was more of a matter of fact than a 'find the clues and guess' type of thing. But the dialogue was great and the characters were interesting. It was also fun to have the list of tropes at the end and recognize which the author had chosen to include or purposely avoid.

Truth Lies and Second Dates is a good story. The writing was good as well as the story line. If you like humor and a bit of a mystery you will like this book. I did have trouble with the airline pilot part – I know a lot of about it. So, I started over and suspended belief on the aviation world. Once I did that my rating for this book went up. The main character and the love interest, Tom, the medical examiner were cute.

Thank you, Net Galley, for an advanced copy for an honest review.

I didn’t dislike this book but I felt the humor was just a bit over the top and it felt “forced” at times. There was enough funny humor to keep me engaged in the story but it was still hard to get into. I think the best way to explain the writing style was it just felt flippant and forced. I’m sure others may enjoy this type of story...
The premise is about a pumped up female pilot with some serious personal issues and a handsome medical examiner with a very unusual personality. Insert murder, mystery, quirky humor and slow burn romance.
I did finish the book though it was not easy. I did like parts of the book which did make the story bearable. It just felt disjointed.
All in all, this a unusual and weird murder mystery with some elements of romance going on.
Many thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and author for the opportunity to read and review this book for my honest opinion.

I loved the idea: a gutsy female pilot, a sexy medical examiner, a cold case, and lots of tropes and laughs.

But humor evokes such diverse responses. In this case, TRUTH, LIES, AND SECOND DATES didn’t fly for me. Which means you may well adore it.

3 of 5 Stars

Pub Date 15 Dec 2020

Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for the review copy. Opinions are mine.

#TruthLiesAndSecondDates #NetGalley