I enjoyed this gender swapped/#metoo on the movie Liar Liar. I found this story to be fresh, fun and tackle some serious topics. I loved the lesson learned about finding your voice and speaking the truth when necessary! I really connected to the book in that way because I don't always speak up when needed.

This took me a little bit of time to get into, but once I did I finished it in less than 24 hours. I was very drawn into Lucy’s story and how she couldn’t lie (which could be extremely problematic in her work as a celebrity publicist! This was a very female power story! I loved how not be able to lie really made her examine her life and how she was living it! It would be interesting if we all had a “perfect day” like this to really examine our own lives. I loved how strong and brave she was in going after what she wanted and saying what she didn’t. I also loved the random run-ins with the cute bartender, Adam. As a woman, the parts dealing with the sexual assault was tough to read, but an important part of the storyline. I look forward to what Holly James writes next!

BOOK REVIEW: Nothing But the Truth by Holly James
2022 Publication Date: July 12

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T.I.M.E. Favorite Books To Read
T.I.M.E. Best Book Club Books
T.I.M.E. Best Books By Genre | Contemporary Fiction

CONNECT WITH A BOOK | T.I.M.E. SIMPLE LIVING TIP
As you make each choice in your day, pause and ask... Why am I doing this?...

T.I.M.E. BOOK REVIEW: I love finding T.I.M.E. Best Book Club Books from genres that can often be thrown in a bucket of stereotypes. July seems to be rewarding me with this wonderful gift of finding multiple matches in one of my favorite book treasure hunts!

Nothing But The Truth by Holly James is a refreshing and insightful read that will both entertain you and strike a chord with any woman who reads it. Coming off the age of the "Me Too" movement, Holly James masterfully writes a story filled with humor, magic, romance and tons of insightful moments originating from the strong female lead at the center of this story.

This is no easy feat... And even more impressively, this is Holly James first novel!

Nothing But The Truth has snagged all my top book awards: T.I.M.E. Favorite Books To Read, Best Book Club Books and Best Books By Genre for Contemporary Fiction... Yes... This book is "that" unicorn!

And I can assure you... Holly James' next book will be an auto-buy on my Most Anticipated Books of the Year list as well.

Holly is exactly the type of author I love to read... and applaud. I (along with many women) love to find stories where we can both celebrate strong female empowerment while still totally embracing being a girl.

Folks... It is not a contradiction. Get used to it... ✨😎✨

Pages: 303
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Sub-Genre: Women's Fiction
Time Period: Present Day
Location: Los Angeles (California)

IF YOU LIKE THIS BOOK THEN TRY…
Book: Smile and Look Pretty by Amanda Pellegrino
TV: Good Girls Revolt (Amazon Prime)

BOOK SYNOPSIS:
It's the eve of Hollywood publicist Lucy Green's thirtieth birthday, and she's hoping for a promotion and a proposal from her boyfriend. But when he stands her up for a date and her rival colleague is determined to snag her promotion, she makes a wish for a perfect birthday filled with everything she wants.

Little does she know that her wish will be granted in the most unexpected way possible.

Suddenly, Lucy finds herself compelled to tell the truth all the time, no matter what the consequences. And when the truth starts coming out, the wish starts to feel more like a curse as it threatens to destroy her relationships, her career, and her life as she knows it.

With her new "let the chips fall where they may" truth-telling, Lucy scrambles to find a way to break the "curse" before it destroys everything she's worked so hard for.

Can Lucy find a way to break the curse before it destroys everything she's worked so hard for? Or will the truth finally set her free?

Filled with heart, humor, and a whole lot of truth-telling, Nothing But the Truth is a funny, heartwarming novel about finding out that sometimes, the best thing you can do is just be yourself.

BOOK CLUB DISCUSSION:
• The power of truth-telling: Lucy's compulsion to tell the truth, no matter what the consequences, ultimately leads to some difficult conversations and situations. But it also opens up a whole new world of honesty and authenticity for her.
• The importance of being honest and true to yourself
• Explore the expectations placed on women's appearances

RELATED QUOTE:
"The truth will set you free, but first it will make you miserable." - James A. Garfield

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All my book reviews can be seen at This Is My Everybody | Simple Living | Denise Wilbanks at thisismyeverybody.com/blog/what-book-should-i-read

♡ Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

I loved the idea behind this book. It was very well executed. I found myself rooting for Lucy, and the other female characters were awesome. This is a fun take on Liar, Liar, which is one of my favorite movies!

I was lucky to read Nothing But the Truth by Holly James from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for my honest review and opinion. I absolutely loved this book and was gripped from the first page and couldn't put it down until way late into the night. I can't wait to read more by Holly James.

This is a great female empowerment story with a comparable plot to the movie Liar Liar with Jim Carey. Lucy Green is a celebrity publicist who makes a wish for a perfect day on her birthday. When she awakes the next day she finds she cannot tell a lie and she has to be true to herself about everything. While it is frustrating to only tell the truth she finds it to be a relief and life-changing. Her life had gone stale before and this one day of change has catapulted her into a life truly worth living.

This book is a breath of fresh air. While there is romance, the focus is not solely about that. It is more about personal growth and finding yourself. It really is such a beautiful uplifting story. I found it to be a quick and enjoyable read that will definitely stick with you long after the last page.

A special thank you to @NetGalley and @duttonbooks for the advance read copy of this wonderful book, which is available now!

I was kind of surprised how much I enjoyed reading this book, even with its shocking twists.

I don’t know why I was surprised about its truth-telling element in the story. But I think it’s because I caught it unexpectedly. I just thought it was a normal women's fiction read. But it does add a flair to Lucy Green's day as she lets everyone know her truth.

I never hold anything back, so I am proud that Lucy is embracing it. It may lead her to some trouble. But it is always better to face it front on than simmer on it.

Just an FYI, there are heavy topics discussed in this book. Just look it up.

Uplifting, empowering and funny. A celebrity publicist is cursed (or blessed) with a single day -- her 30th birthday -- of not being able to tell a lie. An entertaining read.

Story seems cute but I just couldn’t get into it. Very much could be a case of just wrong book for my mood these days. DNF. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the advance reading copy.

This was an absolute delight! I was expecting a cute romcom, but got something even better! I loved the message of this story, and we still got a romance out of it. This cover is gorgeous, and I cannot wait to read more womens fiction from this author!

Thank you Dutton for my gifted e-arc!

Quote: “Most people will find a way to disappoint you, no matter how much you want them not to suck.” - Oliver

This is more feminist / chick lit than romcom. I mean there were a couple funny moments but it was more serious than funny. There is a romantic interest that was intriguing and kept me interested. The main theme of this book was women being mistreated in the workplace and coming together to speak out against it. It’s about a woman finding her courage…finding her voice and taking charge of her own destiny.

Overall I enjoyed this one. I did have a hard time getting into it at first though. I didn’t start to really enjoy it until I was about 20% in. I thought about not finishing it, but I’m glad I stuck it out because I ended up really enjoying it.

The main character goes through a lot of growth on her “Nothing But The Truth”
30th birthday. I’m fact a lot of the characters do. I really enjoyed Hot Bartender, Joanna and Leo. This book definitely had a great cast of characters.

If you liked Liar Liar (Jim Carey) and want to see what that’s like with a feminist spin…then this book is for you.

Thank you Dutton & NetGalley for this arc in exchange for a fair and honest review.

On the eve of her 30th birthday, publicist Lucy Green wishes for her birthday to be a "perfect day"! She anticipates her long-term boyfriend proposing at a romantic dinner. The next day, Lucy wakes up to find that she is physically unable to lie - to herself or anyone else. She cannot force herself through her usual fitness and beauty routine, has no desire to eat her yogurt for breakfast or put on her uncomfortable shapewear for a day in the office. This inability to lie forces her to address inauthenticities in different areas of her life and start anew on her 30th birthday.

To be completely honest, this book had a lot of potential. Sadly, it was not utilized. This book is meant to be very feminist-oriented, in that the MC breaks through a lot of stereotypes while she is not able to lie for that one day. Through Lucy, the author tries to be blunt about the things women do to appease society and how we aren't being honest about how we are feeling. Here, the female empowerment cliches went too far to the point where the book was just .... unrealistic. At times the constant cliches had me physically rolling my eyes while I read.

The author tried to make her point way too strongly. For me, the beauty of an author making a certain point through their writing is the subtlety of it. The author needs to let the reader do the mental work to piece together the point they are trying to make in order for the story to feel authentic. The author missed the mark on this by just stating every single feminist cliche she could think of and finding a way to incorporate (I use this term loosely) them into the story. The reason I am so hung up on the use of the cliches is because it completely distracted from the rest of the story.

Anyways, this book was a miss for me. But other people seem to really like it.

I received an e-ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars! This book! Oh my gosh! Such an inspirational and entertaining story. I loved the cute take on the movie Liar Liar, I love adding a little romance and feminist spin to anything.



I absolutely loved reading a story where the women all supported each other, and even had a character redeem themselves. This book just made me feel seen, heard, supported and love. I feel ready to take on the world…okay maybe not actually but I could!!

My only critique is the plot felt a little slow at parts and I wished it had picked up a little faster. But the story was still amazing and empowering. Hence the 4 stars.

Fabulous debut! I love every word!

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My thoughts—I loved this book! The idea that a Lucy can’t tell a lie after wishing for the perfect day was so charming, refreshing and so honest! It gave me the movie Liar Liar vibes in the best way! I truly enjoyed her journey through her icky boss & the #metoo themes it brought up. Simply amazing for a debut! Highly recommend 🎉
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Huge shoutout to @netgalley for my advanced readers copy!
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Synopsis—It’s the eve of Hollywood publicist Lucy Green’s thirtieth birthday, a day she hopes will bring the promotion she deserves and a proposal from her boyfriend. But he stands her up for a date, not for the first time, leaving Lucy alone at the bar—or at least, alone with the handsome bartender on the other side of the counter—so she makes a rueful wish over her cocktail for a perfect birthday. But when Lucy’s wish is granted in the most unexpected way, things go terribly awry, as things often do when wishes come true….
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When Lucy wakes up on her big day, she can’t seem to force herself to go through her rigorous fitness and beauty routines—things she usually tells herself she likes. She has no desire to eat only a spoonful of yogurt for breakfast and she simply can’t bear to put on the uncomfortable shapewear needed for the power outfit she had planned for work.

Lucy Green is about to turn 30 and she’s not happy about it. By her thirties, Lucy hoped to be engaged to her long time boyfriend and promoted at work. But on her big day, a meeting with a potential big name client and a rooftop party are being thrown in her honor, so she might just get her wish in the nick of time.

On the night before the big 3-0 though, Lucy’s boyfriend stands her up…again. The bartender (handsome, of course) notices the sullen Lucy and offers to make her a drink to wash away her worries.

But Lucy’s innocuous birthday wish morphs into more than she ever bargained for. The next morning when she wakes up she finds herself not feeling like…herself. Despite it being her birthday, she has no desire to get gussied up, has no qualms about being short with her overbearing mother, and honestly isn’t looking forward to all she’s been supposedly wishing for, and for so long.

Unfortunately, this feeling carries over to her workday. Before long Lucy realizes she simply cannot lie anymore. Not to others, or, more importantly, to herself. This is not an epiphany like crisis, she literally cannot do it. Being in the business of sometimes sugar coating the truth, Lucy panics. With so much to lose, can Lucy come out of it unscathed, even if it means telling the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

In the vein of the movie Liar, Liar, Nothing But the Truth is a classic tale of being careful what you wish for. Light in its delivery, it still deals with A LOT of things, some of which are decidedly heavy handed, all in the course of one day. In fact, that would be my biggest gripe about this book. I admired what it set out to accomplish, but the rushed pacing of it all ironically made a book about being honest, feel less authentic.

A cute read to breeze through, if I’M being honest, I wanted a bit more out of this one.

Nothing But the Truth is a rom-com with good female relationships, no miscommunication, femimist postive and is closed door.

Lucy Green is turning 30 and for her birthday she wished for the “Perfect Day”. Instead she wakes up with the capability to only tell the truth. How in the world can this lead to the perfect day when you job alone relys on you lying to clients and the media?

A lot of things happen in the next 24 hours, some items being beyond believable. But I still enjoyed the story and the light shed on some serious topics. I love that the women build each other up. This book was fun and quick and still enjoyable.

If you are looking for a positive,feminist, rom-com with good friendship relations? This book is yours to read!

At the eve of Lucy Green’s 30th birthday, she was sitting in a bar alone, waiting for her boyfriend- and hopefully fiancè to come share drinks with her. The hot bartender noticed that she barely touched her dirty martini which she only ordered because her sophisticated boss likes it and thought it will be her drink of choice too. Hot bartender said, that the way she stared at her phone screen and watches the door like a hawk tells that she is unhappy and could use a life changing cocktail! And just like candles on a birthday cake, Lucy made a wish that the next day will be perfect before taking a sip of the life-changing cocktail!

Big day came and everything seems to be wrong! As a publicist, Lucy is used to smiling her way with clients, giving them what they need and telling them things they want to hear. But being 30 is making Lucy way too honest about everything, put entitled people in their rightful place, tell everybody the ugly truth and somehow she feels its about time for her to do even if it meant that she might be losing her job.

There is a lot of things happening in the 24hr duration of the entire timeline of this book and that was my issue with it. I love how feminist this was. I love how bad guys were held accountable, I love how the story has its happy ever after. The romance was very wholesome and I was okay with that. It was fast, refreshing and fun story overall!

Thank you to Penguin Random House-Dutton via Netgalley and PRHAudio for the complimentary copies for review.

I really enjoyed this book--from the concept to the characters. Lucy Green, publicist, turns 30 and has a drink for there birthday that doesn't let her lie for the next 24 hours. It makes her challenge her misconceptions about the world. It was a fun, powerful book, and I would recommend it!

This was a fun, easy read. I loved the feminist angle but at times I felt like it was a little heavy-handed, like we were being force fed. I thought Lucy’s character was amazing, very charismatic. The plot line of the story was very entertaining, and reminded me of the movie Liar Liar (which I loved). Overall a good book, just not quite a favorite. I am excited to see more from this author as she develops her writing!!

What a breathtaking book and concept! A story that from the first page has you saying, “This is what happens in my mind! This is what I think all the time!” A tale that has you cheering for Lucy Green, a publicist, encouraging her to embrace her true self because why not? The worst part of hiding or running away from the truth is the way it alters one’s mind status.
Everything changes for Lucy Green on her 30th birthday when a drink gives her the power of not lying for the next 24 hours. All the small things that a female usually thinks in a day for her social appearance turns the tables on their heads and the truth is out. For instance, working out in the morning and then not having a breakfast you want because it’s not your cheat day; if it’s something that you truly want to do go ahead, but if it’s something that you’re doing because that’s the way world wants you to be - big no no.
To see Lucy in her element was definitively refreshing. Throughout the book I was constantly connected to Lucy’s thought and it never felt like the story was dragging on. Along with these smaller moments, the book focuses on the MeToo movement and encourages the readers to stand up and never succumb to any injustice. The way this sensitive topic is portrayed is beautiful and if anyone was unaware of it, they’re finally getting a chance to understand what it is. I’ve heard so many misconceptions spun from the moment this movement started getting pace and to have a story which finally sheds light on the reality of it deserves an applause.
A beautiful tale of a woman being true to herself and striving forward in her life, Nothing But The Truth was a story that every reader needs to read through!