I can't say too much here without giving the plot away, but this book was one of the best deliciously twisted, mind blowing plots I have ever read! Burke and Heather are married with three children and are having financial problems. Burke has lost his job and is having difficulties finding a new job because of his past. Heather, since she was a teenager, has always longed to become wealthy and live the good life. She longed to be just like Libby, a wealthy women she babysat for when she was in her teens. Since her current life was not a at all what she had envisioned for herself, she came up with a plan that will change everything and coerced Burke to carry it out. Will this plan give Heather everything she ever wanted.? Does she care who will get hurt if her plan succeeds? The answers to these questions are not what you will be expecting!

This was a great read. It had a little bit of everything. I am open to reading more from this author g or

A very good thriller

My very first book from Carola Lovering and loved it. A psychological thriller just the way I like them. Kept me guessing and entering into Burke's mind was very intriguing. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

Beautiful woman with OCD (has to knock on wood or kiss clocks and I mean HAS to) meets a man who seems too good to be true. Best friend says slow down, but of course she doesn't listen. Are there red flags? Sure, as always, but not enough to pay attention to... until a year later when she receives an email with a message for someone else that shatters her world.
I liked the way the chapters alternated with the voices of the different characters as it helped put it all into perspective. I didn't like the constant repeating of her counting out her door knocks. It was repetitive and annoying, which maybe helped to see what it was like for her going through it, but I got the point early and didn't appreciate having to reread it every time it happened.
It taught me somewhat about OCD. It taught me spoiler alert! that evil can be rewarded and goodness can be punished. Ok, goodness isn't right, for the acts were wrong and the intent was to protect, but that is enabling at it's finest.
It kept me going, but could have been shorter. Don't read it just before bed because anger at a certain character will invade your dreams and you won't have restful sleep. Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest opinion.

Just finished this book and loved it! I liked the way that the story was told from different characters perspectives although at first I had trouble following the story . There were many twists & turns along the way which kept me turning those pages! Too Good To Be True was my first book by Carola Lovering and will be looking for more titles by her. Thank you Net Galley for allowing me to read this advanced copy!!

Completely excellent!

This book had me guessing all along the way, trying to reconcile three different people, stories and timelines with more twists that I thought possible.

A binge read, finished in less than 24 hours.

Thank you NetGalley for this glimpse in to Skye's life.

Do your best not to read any reviews or the blurb for this book! You will enjoy it so much more that way!

The book features Skye, a young woman who lives with her OCD compulsions, but has yet to find lasting romance – until she meets the older, dashing Burke Michaels. I wondered about the title, is it Burke who is too good to be true? I did have sympathy for Skye and never have read much about compulsions like hers.

We also get point- of-view chapters from Burke so we read about him falling in love with Skye and his background as an investment banker.

The other point-of-view storyline features Heather and her life growing up in the mountains of New York. She babysits for a wealthy family and falls in love with their lifestyle. She’s determined to get out of her situation and be more like the woman who heads up this family.

This book took me on a fast-paced adventure, and I did not predict the big reveal at all. This tale had me questioning the truth as it is filled with unreliable narrators and themes of lies and betrayal.

The first half of this book is an amazing 5 star read and I wish it would have been edited down to be much shorter. My best explanation without spoilers (because who likes a review with spoilers?) is that the first half is the great build-up and then the big reveal happens in the middle. The last half of the book is TELLING us what has happened in slow somewhat agonizing detail. This is my first read from this author and I would read more titles from her. I just hope the next one from her is a 5-star read for the whole book!

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. This book sounded interesting. Unfortunately it did not live up to my expectations. I could not get into the relationship between Skye and Burke.

Once I started reading this book, I didn't want to put it down. The changes in time frames and voices required some concentration to keep straight at first. But once I got rolling, I had to keep going to see if the theories I was forming were correct. I really became fascinated with the characters' lives. The ending wrapped up a little too neatly, but I was satisfied with it. Overall, I enjoyed reading Too Good to Be True.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of Too Good To Be True.

Unfortunately I had to put this one down at about 17%. I found the plot a little intriguing at first but not enough to keep my attention. Maybe it was the unrealistic relationship between Skye and Burke that had me rolling my eyes a little, not wanting to read more...

I had high hopes for Too Good to Be True by Carola Lovering. Especially due to all the 5-star reviews and the synopsis that sounded very intriguing and exciting. However, I could not get into this story. I was not too fond of any of the characters. I also did not like the alternating perspectives and jumping from 2019 to 1989. That part was confusing to me. The ending was not satisfying and did not seem realistic.

This book does not really fit into the thriller genre, either. It was a slow burn, and I found it tedious to get through.

Too Good to Be True may appeal to others, but I could not get into the book or care what would happen to the characters as I read.

Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am so glad I got approved for this book, it was one of my most anticipated book of 2021, so Yay for me.

I became a fan of Carola Lovering after reading her debut novel "Tell me Lies". She's able to tell such complete beautiful stories using simple words and short sentences. I would recommend her books to people that reads English as a second language- very easy to pick up and understand. She is able to describe vulnerability in people so well. That's what stood out the most from the book, Skye's helplessness, self- doubt, self blame was all so real. That part about Skye in the room with Max is so chilling and made me so angry, I was taking deep breath and my heart was pounding and hurting for her.

The plot in this story isn't particularly complicated, even the twist wasn't hard to figure out. (I usually can never guess the twists despite reading hundreds of thrillers. I guessed what happened to Gus the minute they went on vacation. ) But I still devoured the book in about 36 hours. I wasn't particularly invested in Skye's love story, but I wanted her to find happiness and peace badly. The last pages in the book wrapped up the story neatly (perhaps too neatly).

Overall: I loved this book.

I really enjoyed this! I didn't expect the ending at all, but was happy with how it all wrapped up. It kept me interested and intrigued throughout the story and took some twists and turns that were surprising and well-done. I can certainly see this being turned into a movie. Recommend.

Too Good to Be True had me hooked hard for the first half of the book. Three narrators, with at least two of them seeming questionable to me, led me along, with chapters alternating between the three. And then a huge twist at the halfway mark...it was a gotcha moment for me and I love that, when I am outfoxed, not suspecting something very big. 

But then the second half of the book, with the same three alternating points of view, seemed to be like a very long epilogue. We knew almost everything at this point and it then just seemed like a long telling of the details. I do think it would have helped if two of the characters had been more likable, if two of the characters had been stronger. I call the first half of the book 5 stars and the second half of the book 3 stars so will be rating the book 4 stars. I'm not saying any more about the story because it requires going in with as little knowledge of the book for the first half to hit you like it hit me. 

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC.

Too Good To Be True by Carola Lovering is the story of a young woman with crippling OCD who meets a wonderful man...who defintely is too good to be true!

When Skye Starling meets and falls in love with Burke Michaels she is thrilled that he seems to find all of her OCD tendencies endearing, especially her need to knock on doors in a certain pattern/rhythm whenever she needs to leave a room. However, as we read the letters that Burke writes to his therapist, we find that Burke is not really who he says he is, and the plot that he's hatching would devastate Skye, but it seems that to him she'll just be "collateral damage". But all is not as it appears...

Thank you to the author, St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an ARC of this unique novel in exchange for my honest opinion. You won't be disappointed!

This is not a great work of literature, but a solid thriller, which constantly keeps you guessing - did he or didn't he?
Wonderfully entertaining novel, that lets you forget about all the trouble, you read in the news.

Another book synopsis that says MUCH more than it needs to.

I just read it, and I am so glad that I hadn’t before starting the book.
As others have said, it is best to go in blind.

Is BURKE “too good to be true”?

Well, you can hear what HEATHER thinks.

And, you can compare that to how SKYE feels about him.

Or, maybe you will decide based on what BURKE has to say for himself?

The three alternating POV’s were EQUALLY COMPELLING !

I couldn’t read quickly enough, as the FAST paced first half, set everything up-and athough I did correctly guess a lot of what was to come...

I didn’t guess everything!

The second half was not as strong for me as the pace slowed down quite a bit, as everything was revealed.

Final thoughts? A FUN🍿 type psychological suspense book worth reading…
But, the anticlimactic ending kept this from earning the 5th star from me.

Thanks to the St. Martin’s Press for my gifted copy, through NetGalley!
Available March, 2, 2021

Great book. Lots of twists and turns, although I did start to see what was going on pretty early. I kept reading to get confirmation of what I suspected was going on. Character development was pretty good, although I would have loved to see more of some of the other characters and the impact of the events on them.

Overall, it was a great book that I really enjoyed.

I received this book as an ARC from NetGalley.

This psychological thriller is told from three points of view using real-time narrative, diary entries, and notes to a marriage counselor. The reader cannot begin to imagine the twists and turns the story will take. I really enjoyed the roller coaster ride!

I absolutely loved this book! I have not read any of Carola Lovering books before, so I am going to have to read her previous book now. It was a great thriller, read it basically in one sitting!