After being fired from her reporter job and being cheated on by her boyfriend, Megan moves back home to Chicago and back into a home with her mom. Soon after, she learns her mom, who lands very differently on the political spectrum than her, is running for US Congress. After an altercation on a college campus, Megan gets the chance to join revered journalist Jocelyn Jones as a strategist on her PR team for her upcoming memoir. But soon, an anonymous tweet reveals that Jocelyn may be hiding something and Megan must use her journalistic skills to find out the truth.

This was a really great story that was so much about integrity, and as the title implies, the truth - sometimes in its many forms. I love that this book focused around a mentor and a mentee and how that relationship can sometimes let you down. And I also really loved the subplot of the mother's bid for election and what it feels like when someone you love thinks very differently than you. This book, about how social media can sometimes lead to truth that you weren't expecting, feels very timely and is a really great debut. I'm excited to see what this author writes next.

This book will be featured on Episode 25 of the Reading Through Life podcast, available on 2/9/22.

A 25-year-old investigative reporter, her former stay-at-home mother who is now running for Congress, and a Pulitzer prize winning journalist. What do they have in common and how do their lives intertwine? Enjoy this read, and find out!

A very good debut novel with an interesting storyline that touches on self-worth and honesty, as well as deceit and ambition, and at the same time tackles several contemporary issues (e.g., abortion and journalistic ethics). The deep-faceted plot is an interesting one, the characters are realistic, and the writing is crisp and clean. All in all, this was a very good read, and I look forward to more from this author!

An engaging and thought provoking debut novel that examines truth, lies and secrets in the age of the internet and social media. Megan is a young investigative journalist who moves back to her mother's home in Chicago after losing her job and breaking up with her boyfriend in New York City. Megan learns that her mother is running for a congressional seat as a pro-life candidate and she vows not to have anything to do with the campaign. A chance encounter at a campus rally leads to Megan taking a PR job relating to the publication of a memoir by a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, Jocelyn Jones, who she idolizes as a role model. When anonymous tweets imply that Jocelyn has plagiarized her award-winning work, Megan embarks on a search for the truth that uncovers secrets that will impact her mother's campaign as well. The story could lead to some interesting book club discussions!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC.

I really enjoyed the insightful story about journalism, reporters, what some people do to reach the pinnacle, be famous, regardless of who they hurt along the way.
The female characters in this story are relatable, interesting, strong, and believable. There are many lessons to be learned in the story. Be careful who you trust, believe and idolize. Icons are human and can disappoint. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

2.5 Stars

This was okay for a new author whodunnit. I especially liked the fact that I didn't figure out the who or why. BUT...I found myself with one hundred pages left and I was still waiting for something exciting to happen. I did like that book took on heavy topics like a woman's right to choose and "fake news" etc. I also liked the mother daughter relationship angle, they were complete polar opposites. But the bottom line is the book was lackluster in its storytelling. It's really too bad because I liked premise, unfortunately the execution fell flat.

Is telling the truth always the right choice, especially if exposing it comes at a personal or professional cost? This is the question at the heart of Truth and Other Lies, a story about ambition and secrets.

Megan Barnes is a 24-year-old journalist with big dreams of writing stories that matter. When she gets the opportunity to work closely with Pullitzer-Prize-winning journalist Jocelyn Jones, she gets swept up in Jones’ charisma and celebrity. But when damaging information arises about her hero, Megan will have to decide whether the truth is worth risking her dreams.

The relationship between Jocelyn and Megan is very reminiscent of The Devil Wears Prada and explores the generational divide between boomers and millennials, especially as it refers to the #MeToo movement and our current social media culture. The novel also explores the liberal vs. conservative ideologies embodied by Megan and her mother. All of these issues are handled in nuanced and complex ways, which I appreciated.

My favorite part of the story was Megan’s journey to see her mother as a fully-formed person, with all her flaws, and their deepening relationship on equal footing as adults. I also loved Becca’s storyline, and her and Megan’s friendship.

If you enjoy stories dealing with topical issues and uncovering secrets then I definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC.

I've been meaning to finish this book and write a review for quite some time. The book blurb is very exciting and claims a lot of things, however, I do agree that the characters are well developed and there was a lot of twists that kept the book going but the plot line was not thick to keep me engaged.
However, that you for an electronic arc to the publisher.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, found it engrossing, well plotted and written. The characters are believable and relatable. And the underlying debate about truth and ethics was well thought out.

Compelling and smart. Some books take you on such a memorable journey that they stick with you. The Truth and Other Lies is in this special category of most memorable reads.

Megan Barnes returns to Chicago after losing her job and her boyfriend in one day. Despite having limited choices, she regrets becoming a stereotypical boomerang twenty-something. Feeling stifled by the move back in with her mother, Megan is still determined to restart her life.

Through a stroke of luck, she ends up on the staff of Jocelyn Jones, a renowned Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist. Megan is thrilled at the chance to work for her long-time heroine and the new job also provides an opportunity to restart her own failed career.

However, all is not as easy as she hoped. Her mom, who has the opposite politics to her — a staunch anti-abortion republican—is running for Congress, which makes it hard for Megan to find alternate journalistic work. Plus, add in a bunch of intrigue and secrets that each character is keeping. When Jocelyn is accused of plagiarism, Megan will question how well she really knows her mentor?

I loved how the story examined the millennial-boomer divide on idealism versus doing whatever it takes, through the lens of the Megan-Jocelyn conflict.

Complex, subtle and thoughtful, Maggie Smith does a wonderful job with the characters, all of whom are credible and fascinating. Each of them is working through the real issues of division that stoke today’s politics and the generational divide.

The challenges between Megan and her mother, in particular, showcase how those closest to us are often the most difficult to see clearly. And the book tackles an important point on how the lack of empathetic discourse can divide family members.

The Truth and Other Lies is a subtle and thoughtful novel, hitting on powerful themes that make it an ideal book club choice.

How far would you go to get ahead? Would you disregard all morals in the effort to employ that the end justifies the mean? How well could you keep a secret?

Megan is an investigative reporter who after being fired from her job and finding her boyfriend in bed with another woman, returns home to her hometown of Evanston, Ill. to the home of her helicopter mother. Because her mother is running as a candidate for Congress, Megan is unable to find a reporter’s job for fear of bias. On a twist of luck, she meets a journalist at a woman’s rights rally and lands as her assistant or PR consultant. Jocelyn is Megan’s idol, a world-renown journalist, Pulitzer Prize winner, and liberal like her and so not like her conservative mother. Jocelyn takes Megan under her wing and offers that after 6 months working for her, she will help her land a job at a huge newspaper. But something is not right when someone begins tweeting about Jocelyn begin guilty of plagiarism in her work. While Megan steadfastly stands up for her Jocelyn, she must also investigate the facts along with Nick, a cybersecurity expert. Megan is caught in the crosshairs of who to believe and also strives to protect those she loves.

The twists and turns of the cat and mouse game between Jocelyn and Megan are quite intriguing. The characters are developed well and show the complex relationships Megan has with her mother, best friend, and Nick. Megan must wrestle with what she thinks she knows as she doubts herself along the way. No way does she want to repeat the same mistake of not getting all the facts like she did that got her fired from her New York job. Megan, Jocelyn, Becca, and Megan’s mom Helen have secrets, however only one is telling a lie. This was an interesting read and as the layers of the onion began to be peeled away, the story was not as simple as one thinks. I thoroughly enjoyed it and could not put it down. However, I really wanted it to wrap up in a neat tidy bow but then again, the author does allow the reader thoughts as to where the story goes from here. Enjoy this one!

Many thanks to #netgalley #maggiesmith #truthandotherlies for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Fast paced page turning coming of age story. This was a really interesting read and I was hooked instantly!

This book was kind of all over the place and hard to really connect well with the story line. Some of the characters were well developed while others lacked depth. I would’ve also liked to have seen the pov from Megan’s mom and from Jocelyn. I do think she wed fairly mature for 25 and did appreciate the few moments of humor I enjoyed. It reminder me a bit of three women meets scandal and parts of it seemed like it was trying a tad to hard to be like a screen play. I did love the cover and think others would enjoy the book and I would read something else by the author down the line.

Megan is a young reporter looking for a new start after she loses her job and boyfriend in NYC, so she moves back home to the Chicago area. She lands a job as a PR manager with a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Jocelyn Jones, and is immediately immersed in her world when an online troll tweets something that could be detrimental to Jones's career and life. Throw in a mother who is running for a political seat with beliefs that are the exact opposite of Megan's and a possible new romance, and life becomes complicated in every way very quickly.

While I liked the general story of this book, I didn't love the writing style.

This is my last NetGalley review book for 2021. It's the story of a young journalist who moves back to her home town, has an adventure and makes peace with her past. It's well paced, well written and a hopeful novel to end the year on.
It lost one star for being a tiny bit too neat and tidy - but it's a quick, enjoyable read. It reminded me of what it was like to be young and to care deeply about everything.

After a brave action at a women's rally, protagonist Megan Barnes lands a dream position with famous journalist Jocelyn Jones. Megan tries to use this new contact to vault her career to the next level, but personal issues, political clashes with her overbearing mother, and Jocelyn's dirty secrets may unravel the young woman's dreams.

I devoured this novel in about two days. With an engaging plot and intricate interpersonal relationships between characters, there is a lot to hold readers' attention. The reasons I rated 4 stars instead of 5 include an immersion-breaking grasp on the internet and too much focus on Megan's new romance, when the relationships with her mother and boss are much more interesting. There is a prodigy h4ck3r gurl and some hand wavy 'deep web' explanation used to gloss over an unlikely technological feat, but these complaints are minor. As for the relationships, Megan's dating life is relatively generic, and I wish some of that time could have been spent exploring the good, bad, or ugly facets of the relationships with the women in her life.

Note: I received a free eBook copy of Truth and Other Lies from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was an engaging story about a young woman coming to terms with her family and a powerful journalist that she admires. It is a story about finding the truth among all the secrets and lies and coming to terms with oneself

My initial impression was-meh-but became engrossed in the story and it drew me in.
The main characters are three women-a mother/ daughter( Helen/ megan) and an internationally recognized and idolized reporter, Jocelyn Jones.
Their histories become interwoven and in the process many of the “ hot button” issues of the day are examined-abortion, rape , the world of politics,press reporter ethics, unbridled naked cruel ambition, and what true friendship entails.
Also offers quite a picture of the relationship between a mother and daughter,and how things are not always as simple as they appear.The title was perfect for the book. Quite good, and she has a new fan👍.

Well written with good character development but very predictable to me. I just couldn’t get into it. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC of Truth and Other Lies. Interesting story of Megan who has moved back to her home town in Chicago after losing her job as a journalist in NY. She meets a famous journalist Jocelyn and becomes employed by her to help promote her biography. Meanwhile, Megan's mother is running for Congress and has seemingly very different political views then Megan. The book shows nothing is always what it seems and you should always make sure to check the facts! The book took a little while to pull me in but when it did I couldn't wait to find out what and who were behind some of the challenges facing the characters. I would recommend and give it 4 stars. Good first book by this author.

Love, love, love Truth and Other Lies. Maggie Smith’s writing is lyrical perfection. The characters are well-developed, and you understand their motivations even if you don't agree with them. It is a really good mix of realistic fiction and a mystery with some romance and politics sprinkled in. I may not purhase it for my high school students, but I will be shoving it in the hands of all of my reader friends.