Kathryn Croft has written quite a lot of books in this genre, but I think I've only read one, a few years ago now, and I can't really remember it. Anyway, this looked like your standard psychological/domestic thriller. The cover centring a back view of a woman in a brightly coloured garment. The "The [Noun]" title ("The Lie" has to be one of the least imaginative titles ever).

Sixteen year old Rose has disappeared, apparently into thin air, after a barbecue at her boyfriend Jacob's house. We see subsequent events from the perspectives of Jacob's mother Lucy and Rose's mother Carrie, with a bit of flashback from Rose herself. (It's very obvious from early in Rose's narrative what has been going on with her prior to her disappearance - a big reveal late in the book is no surprise at all.)

This was an okay read - it never really gripped me. I struggled to engage with the characters and the plot dragged a bit.

I'm also - as the mother of a sixteen year old - not convinced that the behaviour of these teenagers rings true.

The book has had some great reviews so clearly many people really enjoyed it, but unfortunately it didn't hit the spot for me on this occasion.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review!

I found this book incredibly frustrating. The characters didn't behave logically, the things that the teens lied about were unimportant, and Ava took turns acting like a 5 year old and speaking like a 40 year old. The book was incredibly slow, chapter after chapter of weak confrontations that led to zero useful truths and rehashed of the exact same three pieces of "evidence." It would have been much more interesting if everyone in the book had a secret they were keeping, and if the secrets being kept were actually devastating. The story and characters just fell flat for me, instead of feeling any tension I was just bored.

The title of the book should have been “LIES…. so many lies”!Twists and turns galore which had me guessing all sorts of crazy things were coming up and this book did not disappoint. The last sentence made my jaw drop in utter surprise. These were dysfunctional families on steroids! But that was what made the book unforgettable and very hard to put down.

The lie - a real page turner - far too addictive to put down!!
Rose goes missing after the party. Where is she? Why is her boyfriend acting suspiciously? The lies begin to emerge…. Will Rose be found alive?
A compelling read, with so many twists and turns to keep the reader guessing right to the very end. Can’t wait to read more of Kathryn Crofts novels.

What a wild ride! This was unputdownable. I read it in one night, who needs sleep anyway? The Lie kept me guessing the entire time, I eventually caught on to one of the big lies, but was still left guessing until the end. I can’t believe this is the first Kathryn Croft book I’ve come across but it definitely won’t be the last.

Lucy and Tom have recently moved to Surrey with their children, Jacob and Ava. They are all slowly adjusting to their new life away from London. Ava is having a hard time fitting in, but thankfully, Jacob seems to be happy and even has a new girlfriend, Rose. Lucy and Tom decide to get to know all their neighbors better and have a barbecue one evening. Jacob walks Rose home that night, but the next morning, she is nowhere to be found. Jacob swears he watched her walk into her house, and he doesn't know what happened to her. Lucy refuses to believe her son has done something to Rose, but it's hard to be convinced when Jacob keeps lying. What is he hiding?
This is my second book by this author, and while I definitely enjoyed it, it wasn't my favorite. The main twist was pretty obvious, and I wasn't quite sure what to make of the ending... was it actually another twist? Parts of the story dragged, and I didn't really like any of the characters.

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

This book was very well written & seamlessly transitioned between different characters point of view. I did predict who the “killer” was before I made it to the halfway mark, but nonetheless this book was still highly addictive!

The Lie was really my kind of read. I devoured it in three days straight and was reading it at every opportunity. The writing style reminded me of Alice Seybolds Lovely Bones and I enjoyed the different voices of each character telling the story.
The clever twists and turns over who dunnit really picked up the pace toward the end. Really made me want to go on to read more from this author.

Much better than the last book I read by this author. Completely obvious who did it but still engaging.

I received an arc copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for my honest opinion of it. What would you do if your son's 16 year old girlfriend went missing after he walked her home?

Rose is the missing teen and her mom, Carrie, is frantic because she knows that her daughter would never just leave on her own. Rose's boyfriend, Jacob, is the last one to see Rose and his mom, Lucy, is trying to prove that he would never have anything to do with her disappearance.

The book is told in parts by Carrie, Lucy and Rose. I figured out the twist early in the book. I enjoyed the book and felt like it moved fast but I felt like the ending was rushed

A well written psychological thriller that hits perfectly. Good pace and ample suspense took this from a normal read to a very clever tense binge.

An exciting psychological thriller from author Kathryn Croft. As expected this is a fast paced thriller with lots of twists and turns that keeps you guessing. This is an enjoyable read.

Lucy and Tom have moved into a new family home and plan to start again after their troubles, making new friends and making a complete fresh start. Their children Jacob and Ava complete the family and are all present for a barbeque they have arranged for the neighbours. But something is not quite right, while Tom flips the burgers in the background Jacob and girlfriend Rose seem distant to each other. The following day Lucy receives a call from Rose’s mother that starts the nightmare, Rose failed to return home after the barbeque.

When Lucy wakes Jacob up to ask him about Rose, he tells her that he walked her to the front door. But when the police find Rose’s house keys hidden in our garden and a witness claims to have seen them arguing in the street, everyone insists Jacob is lying.

The search starts for Rose and questions are asked but there are family secrets that must remain hidden.

With this author you are always sure to get an exciting ride.

I would like to thank both Netgalley and Bookouture for supplying a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This was an enjoyable read with a good twist. The story is about a teenaged girl named Rose who goes missing and all signs point to her boyfriend Jacob as the culprit. The story is told in alternating POVs from the mothers of these 2 main characters. You also get signs that Jacob's younger sister Ava may be hiding something.

Some of the things the characters did didn’t exactly endear me to them but I think the author painted the picture of how each mother would react in their respective situations well. I suspected that the story wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed (where would be the fun in that??) but the twist I had guessed didn’t happen and the real twist was better. There were a couple backstories that I didn’t feel were fully fleshed out but at the end of the day most of the loose ends had been tied up.

Overall, this was a good psychological thriller with a killer twist. I’d recommend to those who like the genre and/or this author’s other books. Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A great psychology thriller that kept me hooked, I have read a few books by this author and her books do not disappoint, I really enjoyed The Lie.

The Lie by Kathryn Croft is a psych thriller that takes the reader in one direction before completely switching it up, leaving one wondering what the truth of the situation is.
I know that sounds convoluted, but I’ll try to explain.
In this case, Lucy and her family hold a bbq. Her son’s girlfriend (Rose) goes missing that same night. Blame falls on her son, Jacob, who isn’t exactly forthcoming about what was going on that night.
The story unfolds via alternating chapters with points of view from Lucy and Rose’s mom, Carrie. And every so often, there is a chapter from Rose. But it is difficult to tell when and where Rose is speaking from.
That, of course, comes clear, but not until later in the book. Most of the plot is centered around where Rose is and what actually happened that night.
As such, there are a lot of repetitive moments. Lucy had no idea what was going on with Jacob. Should she have known? Could she have paid more attention? Who knows. But she asks herself that several times. Carrie does the same. These are the parts that put the psych in psych thriller.
There’s a lot of introspection.
Ava, Jacob’s sister, goes between being a bookworm to screaming that she hates everyone. A mention late in the story of bullying and a potential diagnosis from Rose herself seems contrived and unsupported.
Carrie has a relationship with Joe, but it obviously isn’t working for them, as they both are interested in other people. I’m not saying who because that would give away part of the plot. And it’s an important part.
I was intrigued by the story, but in retrospect, there are a lot of characters and points that go nowhere. Carrie’s ex, issues in London, Lucy’s quest to protect Jacob by doing something rash…all feel somewhat contrived.
That being said, at the end of Part II (there are three parts), my jaw literally dropped. And that’s when everything comes together.
While The Lie isn’t perfect, Kathryn Croft has written a solid psych thriller that had me reading late into the night to find out what happened to Rose.
**For more reviews like this, please visit Fireflies and Free Kicks**

I'm in the minority, but unfortunately I didn't like this.

The dialogue, especially in the first few chapters, was dire and completely unnatural. Dialogue was used to tell the reader things about the characters which resulted in some completely unrealistic conversations.

The timeline was all over the place eg. The night before the barbecue Carrie and Joe were out at a pub together and argued about the barmaid, then a few chapters later it was claimed that the night before the barbecue Joe was at home arguing with Rose whilst Carrie was out with friends?! Also Ava is described as nearly 13 and Jacob is 16, meaning there would be less than 4 years between them, and yet Jacob was supposedly 4 when Lucy met Tom? Even if Lucy got pregnant the very day they met, that still doesn't add up.

Sloppy timelines aside, I guessed the twist in the very first 'Rose' chapter, so there was no mystery for me reading the rest of it.

Others seem to have enjoyed this so I wouldn't want to put anyone else off reading it, but for me it was a huge miss.

I was hooked on this storyline from the very beginning. It was told with alternating viewpoints and the chapters are short enough to keep the reader interested and engaged. I was turning to the next page as fast as I could. I did predict the twist somewhat early on but still enjoyed the book. The main character was flawed and interesting. Overall, I would recommend this book!

Firstly I would like to thank netgalley, and Bookoutune, and the fantastic author Kathryn croft for an early copy of her book.

My rating for this book is 3.5 rounded to four, Lucy and Tom a married couple with there older son Jacob and Daughter Ava,moved to a new lo a new location.Her son Jacob took his girlfriend home Rose after a barbecue at there house and she disappears.This book tells the story from Rose's mother,Rose,and Lucy trying to find her. It all points to one person Jacob,was he hiding vital information. A good read for me missing the twists as easy to guess the ending.. looking forward to reading more of her books.


This book will be reviewed on goodreads and Amazon UK.

Whoa boy - there is a lot going on in this little novel - all in a good way. I was graciously provided an ARC copy that I requested based on the description of the novel. This was my first Kathryn Croft novel but it won't be my last. If I had to choose a word to describe the book it would be "secrets" - everyone has one and over the course of the book you come to find out some are relatively benign while others - change lives. Not only is it told from different viewpoints, but also along a sliding timeline of before and after Rose goes missing so it keeps you guessing.

Another great psychological. thriller from by Kathryn Croft. Kept me engrossed from start to finish with many unexpected twists.