What a birthday! Stella is stunned when her husband Rob throws the keys to a house at her and tells her he wants a divorce. And he's holding. secret over her head to make sure she agrees. Stella wants nothing more than to keep things good for her daughter Georgie. Then something happens that makes Rob's threat moot. Read this as a story of family and growth. Stella wanted everyone to think her life was perfect; she knew it wasn't and now she's making the right sort of changes to make it real. Thanks to netgalley for the ARC. No spoilers from me for this well done domestic drama.

A remarkable and heart wrenching story of a woman being blackmailed by her husband into a divorce. The protagonist must protect her child’s well-being and her own sanity at all costs, and her love and desperation show clearly as the story unfolds.

I loved this book! It drew me in from the first page and I read it all today! It was truly an emotional drama, the characters were so well written that I really felt for them. There was also a twist or two and those were also great! I will be looking for more from this author!

I was intrigued from the first few paragraphs and wanted to just read it straight through. The characters were believable. I feel Stella was very hard on herself for somethings her husband held over her head. He was an ass. I felt there was a good story and you wanted to figure it out. There was quite a shock in the story and then everything makes sense! It was a fulfilling ending. I received an advanced copy from NetGalley. This is a 5 star book.

This book was great! I felt so badly for the main character and the mess that she was in with her husband, but frankly, she was better off without him! There were several twists and turns in this book, and a couple of shocking revelations--ones in which I would never have predicted. It was well written and very entertaining. Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for this ARC in trade for my honest review.

What a brilliant family drama from this author, revolving around marriage, extremely well written and I connected immediately with all the characters, I just love Ali Mercer's books.

There were plenty of twists and turns and I loved Stella and Molly and how the stories went from the past then into the future and I never guessed the ending, I cannot speak highly enough about this book and I can thoroughly recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley and Bookouture for giving me the opportunity to read this brilliant book.

Stella gets one heck of a birthday present from her husband, two nasty surprises in fact. She keeps,her wits about her and fights back. She’s dealt another blow the next day. There is a lot to unravel in this book. I couldn’t wait to dive into the deep dark secret that is alluded to many times. I had an inkling about what it entailed, but even I was surprised at the extent of the secret, eventually revealed. I thought Stella handled herself well, but it did irritate me that she felt the need to apologize for certain actions and words to her sleazebag husband. I was very satisfied with the ending. All turned out the way it should and everyone received their just desserts. Georgie was my favorite character. She had a lot thrown at her and she handled it all with aplomb.

Heartwarming and heartbreaking all in one swoop. I really enjoyed this book, it me angry, made me cry and made me heart pause in places. Beautifully written.

This was a gripping story! This book.started out amazing good paced read!
Ali really out did herself with the story of The Marriage Lie!. I'm was sucked in and I didn't want it to stop!
Love these types of books!
My absolute favorite publisher Bookouture Thanks so much much thanks to NetGalley and author!

As Stella sits in a swanky restaurant with her husband Rob to celebrate her 40th birthday she cannot begin to imagine what's going to happen to change her life around. He takes her to a newly renovated house, hands her the keys and tells her it now belongs to her. She's puzzled until he then tells her he wants a divorce and if she doesn't agree with his terms he will tell their teenage daughter a secret that's been kept from her.
A family drama, where everyone seems to have secrets from each other.
I received this ARC from Netgalley and publishers in exchange for an honest review, my opinions are my own

I mean really...how could you not get hooked in the first chapter. “The only way to stay sane - as I often reminded myself - was to be grateful for what you had. I had been lucky. I had got what I wanted. It was just that, one way or another, there was a price to be paid. But then, you couldn’t expect to gain your heart’s desire for free…”

Ali Mercer takes the concept of marriage and throws in every possible monkey wrench you could think of. Secrets and lies are at the forefront of this book. The beginning chapters are a bit long but as the book continues they get a little shorter and this book becomes a quick read. Ali Mercer keeps you intrigued throughout the entire book and has you thinking that not one character is innocent. What did Stella do to make her husband Rob hate her so much and fall into the arms of another woman? What is the deal with her baby sister Molly and why is she the outcast of the family? I highly recommend you read this book to find out this and so much more!!!

This is the ultimate edge-of-your-seat thriller! I love a book that keeps you guessing until the end. Ali Mercer did a fantastic job keeping the reader engaged in the story and invested in this cast of characters without revealing the major plot twist until the last possible minute! Fantastically twisted! LOVED it!

Little did Stella realize at her fortieth birthday lunch that her life was about to change and change drastically. After some shocking news from her husband Rob, Stella finds the strength to honestly deal with a secret she has been keeping. Mercer describes this secret in beautifully blended chapters explaining the past events in the characters' lives. The beginning of The Marriage Lie will pull you in, and you will not want to put it down. This book about the importance of relationships within a family will keep you guessing until the end.

The Marriage Lie by Ali Mercer is a very good novel that revolves around a marriage that is suddenly ended by the husband in a shocking and cruel manner. How could a person be so mean to someone he once loved? ‘What does it mean to be so controlled by your partner? As I read this novel I wondered what it would be like to suddenly learn that you are no longer wanted by your husband after many years of marriage. How could this happen so suddenly and what is the secret that he is threatening to reveal? Although this novel was not a mystery it did have many parts that left the reader wondering what was really happening and why was it happening? As the story progresses we learn about the wife’s dysfunctional family and the harm that this causes her as her life journey progresses. This novel is one that I thought about long after it was completed. I would wholeheartedly recommend this novel to all. It was heartbreaking but also uplifting as the same time. How is that possible? I guess you will just have to read it to find out! Thank you to Ali Mercer, Bookouture, and netgalley for allowing me to read this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Thank you Bookouture and NetGalley for this early copy of The Marriage Lie. I will say this started out with a BANG!!! What a way to celebrate your fortieth birthday. I was anxious the first few chapters but then it wasn’t as interesting. Mind you, it was well written but I figured out the main plot pretty fast. The ending was a good one, where you would want everyone to end up they way they did. I was hoping that the rest of the book would be as anxiety ridden as the first few chapters but I’m glad I stayed with it.

I received this book "The Marriage Lie" from NetGalley and all opinions expressed are my own. I thought this book was okay. I didn't connect with the characters and at some point just wanted to be done with the book. I sort of guess the big secret so maybe that was it. The book was better towards the end.

How well do we really know the people to whom we profess our love? To what extremes will we go to protect those we love - and ourselves? Ali Mercer answers these questions with wisdom and insight.

The Marriage Lie is a textured and satisfying family drama. The main characters, some sympathetic some not, are highly believable and very finely observed. Although realistic, I found the overall story uplifting and deeply humane. An excellent read.

I received an advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Ali Mercer is one of my favourite authors, she writes with such tenderness yet is also able to shock in an instant. This is another excellent sorry of those who aren’t what they seem and the lengths we might go to protect those we love. A real thrill ride that I thoroughly enjoyed.

This was a book where the first impressions of characters were changed by the end of the book. When I turned the last page, I was angered and had sympathies for the heart-breaking situations they were forced into and left alone in the world to face the repercussions and irreversible fate impacted everyone in the family. This was the story of a family, whose destinies altered by one cruel divine act.

On her fortieth birthday, Stella’s husband Rob dropped a bombshell on her, threatening to reveal a secret to their teenage daughter Georgie if she doesn’t yield to his wishes. Stella has worked hard to protect the secret in her whole life.

I was confounded by the main characters as their behavior changes faster than the speed of light. One minute, Stella acts as defiant, confident but the next minute like a damsel in distress. Rob is also fickle as he is charming, protective and ruthless, cruel, selfish to the core in the next breath. I was amazed by the way he can compartmentalize. I know humans change over the time but haven't prepared for this degree of volatility.

I had a hunch about what Stella has been hiding and proved right. The reveal at the end made me go through multitude of emotions: flabbergasted, creeped me out, and I was appalled.

Overall, it was a great tale of family drama that has sacrifices, trauma, secrets, and devastation.