"Once I befriended the monster that was it."

The unsettling None Of This Is True by crafty psychological thriller author Lisa Jewell has a few human monsters scarier than most horror stories.

Alix's life seems perfect. Uh oh! She's celebrating her 45th birthday a married mom of two. Serendipitously she meets her birthday twin Josie who is also turning 45, married with two kids. Josie convinces Alice to put her on her podcast about women overcoming hardships to live fulfilling lives. Hearing Josie's story of meeting her husband when she is 15 and he is 40 (🚩RED FLAG🚩) and his dominance over her and her daughters leads Alix to befriend Josie. When Josie shows up bruised and battered Alix, despite her husband's protest, has her stay with them until she figures out her next move...yeah about that next move😬

Throughout this story the writer creates such a sense of foreboding. The audiobook gives a sense of reality with snippets from a Netflix true crime documentary about the shock of what happened between Alix and Josie.

Using a full cast led by renowned British actresses Nicola Walker and Louise Brealey the audiobook heightens the tension as the author creates a slow burn to the last few chapters that explode with the consequences of an unreliable narrator. Also reading the novel led to a few glimpses where it all might be heading but some events I didn't see coming and it left me a bit overcome with surprising emotions.

I'm hoping for a follow up book as there's a few unanswered questions. Kudos to the author for letting us know not to trust anyone in her story right in her title, None Of This Is True; she was telling the truth.

I received a free copy of this book/audiobook from the publishers via #NetGalley for a fair and honest review.

OMG! I dare any reader who picks up 'None of This is True' by Lisa Jewell to begin reading this novel and then put it down. It is rare to read a thriller that is so timely, taut, appealing, and entrancing. Run to your local bookstore or get on the waiting list at your local public library to get your hands on this book. You won't let go!!!

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in turn for an honest review.

None of This is True
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Author: Lisa Jewell

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Atria Books and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins. A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life. Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home. But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat. Who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

My Thoughts: Jewell is quickly becoming one of my favorite thriller writers. The way she weaves and twists the twisty moments is superb. Jewell is definitely at the top of the thriller genre. The novel opens with two women enjoying their birthday dinner at the restaurant and it was discovered that their birthdays were on the same exact day, birthday twins, if you will. A few more “chance” meetings and Josie wants to open up to Alix on her podcast. When the horrific details start to trickle out of Josie, Josie begins to trickle into Alix’s life. How this journey unfolds from here is classic Jewell writing, unpredictable and twisty. This compelling, gripping, bone chilling psychological thriller will keep you on your toes.

The story is narrated by Josie and Alix, with snips of a Netflix series. Alix has her life together, for the most part. She has a loving husband, even if he drinks a little much, two children, and a podcast that she is dedicated to. Josie is insecure, not who she seems, and also has two children and a husband. Alix and Josie are unreliable at best. You want to shine away from Josie, but she is an absolutely captivating character. You connect with Alix as she brings a force of stability to the story. The characters were well developed with depth, mystery, intriguing, and creatively woven throughout the story. The author’s writing style was complex, multifaceted, suspenseful, twisty, mind-bending, thought-provoking, and just brilliantly written. The characters were built up in a slow burn fashion, the plot is delivered in twisty layers, had excellent pacing, and spot on flow. The ending is WHOA, shocking, mind-bending, dark, and disturbing. The ending definitely makes a sequel a possibility, which I would pick up in a heartbeat.

This thriller marks all of the boxes, compelling, gripping, bone chilling, unpredictable, and twisty. Jewell does not disappoint in delivering an unpredictable novel. Since I am a little behind on reviews, I did do the audiobook on this one and the narrators were so fantastic and really lifted the characters out of the story into your mind. I would highly recommend picking this up, available in all formats. Go pick up now!

When popular podcaster Alix Summer is out celebrating her 45th birthday at a local pub, she meets Josie Fair, who is also celebrating her 45th birthday. A few days later, they run into each other again, and Josie tells Alix that her life story would make a great podcast. Alix agrees to do the podcast but soon finds that Josie has a dark past and can't be trusted.

I loved the podcast aspect and how, in-between chapters, there were interviews from a Netflix documentary. Josie was such an odd character, and I found it hard to put this book down because I wanted to know all of her dirty little secrets! I really liked Alix, although I thought she was way too nice. The ending was a little unfinished, but overall, I loved this one. I think it's my second favorite Lisa Jewell book (Then She Was Gone is my #1).

Thank you, @netgalley, @atriabooks, and the author for the gifted e-arc!

It’s been a hot minute since I had a 5 star read! But this was so good down to the very last chapter. I don’t think I have anything negative to say, it captured me.

This book was a great read. Fast and twisty. I will never wear denim again without thinking about this book ! If you like a quick read, twisty plot and a crazy ending then this is for you. Thanks NetGalley for an arc in return for an honest review.

The suspense of this book kept me on my toes! Well paced. I was sweating right along with my the main character. I felt sorrow, I felt justice, injustice, and didn’t see the twist coming. Must read!

I loved the format of this book! I am a HUGE fan of stories told through various forms of written mediums, and this one fit the bill with its infused documentary and podcast excerpts. The two female characters at the center of this book are fully formed, fascinating, and dark in their own ways, and because of that, I found myself riveted by the book. They are birthday twins, born on the exact same day, though with drastically different lives. Josie convinces Alex to choose her as a subject for her very popular podcast, and the twists and turns start there and don't stop. A fantastic book from one of my favorite thriller authors, and an excellent choice for anyone who loves a well written and exciting mystery,.

I must confess to being a little underwhelmed by this last eat book by a great author. I still enjoyed the story, it just fell apart in transition in some spots.

I hate to admit that I haven't read much by Lisa Jewell, but I'm quickly realizing I need to tackle her backlist immediately, especially after reading None of This Is True. This story was unique and twisted, right until the very end. In a way, This is a slow burn that will keep you on the edge of your seat and wanting to read on. When the first twist hits, you won't be able to put it down, and then they keep on coming.

None of This is True lives up to the hype and is not to be missed.

Thank you Atria Books and NetGalley for the eARC!
4.5/5 stars

4.5 (rounded up)

What an interesting journey of a book. Not a favorite but a really enjoyable and twisty ride. This was my first by this author and I really enjoyed it. I liked how it was like you were on the same journey of trying to determine what was true but I also was hoping for a bit more closure in the end, though I feel like that was part of the point. I appreciated that it didn’t get too detailed in hard topics even though it dealt with themes of torture, abuse, murder, and toxic relationships. I’m eager to read more by this author!

Note- audiobook readers, there are elements missing from that version. I did both versions while reading this and noticed that anything written in italics within the book around the Netflix series aspect was missing from the audiobook. Normally it was a description.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book!

I know I’m in the minuscule minority on this, but sorry to say this fell completely flat for me. I'd never read one of Lisa Jewell’s books before and this doesn't make me want to try any of her others. I’m not a huge reader of domestic or psychological thrillers, so maybe part of it is that it’s just not my favorite genre. However, I do believe it was the story itself that didn’t work for me. I nearly DNF’d it, but kept going because I’d seen so many glowing reviews here and on Instagram, especially talking about twists near the end of the book. Oddly enough, I found it fairly boring. None of the characters had much in the way of redeeming features, including the podcaster Alix, and they didn’t seem all that interesting either. I didn’t understand Alix’s motivation in agreeing to Josie’s idea for a podcast or her subsequent actions; she was completely bulldozed by Josie into doing things she didn’t particularly want to do.

Are we really into victim blaming in 2023? And the ending! Meh.

I gave it 2 stars only because the audio version was amazing, with a full cast production (thank you to my public library!). I’d gotten an advance readers copy right before publication, and hadn’t had a chance to dig in before publication date. Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book, although I am rather late to it.

CW: pedophilia, adult/minor relationship, gaslighting, among others.

I really liked ninety percent of the book and was riveted by the story. Lisa Jewell did a fabulous job with the device of the podcast and how she used to to reveal the intertwined stories of Josie and Alix and their families. These are very damaged, dysfunctional characters, and I appreciated the way she revealed their stories and the psychology behind them without judgement - much the way a podcaster would do.
Without giving it away, I will say that I deducted two stars for the ending alone. I found the final twist to be completely implausible and antithetical to the characters I thought she had created. It really ruined the story for me and I found myself dwelling on that, rather than the rest of the suspenseful, thrilling ride through the incidents that involved these characters. I've loved everything else that I've read of hers, so this was disappointing, but it won't keep me from reading more of her excellent writing. Novelists make choices for very good reasons, and this one just didn't resonate with me this time around.
My sincere thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

None of This Is True was a crazy ride that I expect out of Lisa Jewell's books. At this moment, I am completely sure that truly none of that was true at all, or maybe all of it was. I think that there is definitely a few different things that could be triggering to some people, and it is important to know them going in. Grooming is heavily discussed and I am not completely sure how I feel about how it was handled.

I'm not sure if I'm grading this harder, because it is a Lisa Jewell book and I love her so much. For me, there isn’t a cozy British writer out there who can reel me in the way she does. Her characters are sharp and complex, the plots are twisty and unexpected. I was really excited about this one in particular, because of the premise using podcasts and reality tv.

It was well written, as expected, but when I got to the end I was a little flummoxed that things weren’t as twisty as I was hoping. We get this weird pedophile redemption story and then I’m supposed to identify with the waspy woman with the podcast? Really? I was really hoping that all of this would be leading up to Alex having used her birthday twin to get rid of her husband and create a podcast of interest or reality show of interest, because our culture does have a weird obsession with murder as entertainment. Instead, it was who you expected all along. The psycho was a psycho.

I would have enjoyed a much more nuanced perspective about True Crime and the way our culture treats it like entertainment. Did I miss something?

I will say that the last line was pretty fabulous, but I just didn’t feel like the ending was totally earned. Someone clue me in, please.

This book! It had me hooked from the very beginning! I finished the book and I still don’t know if I believe Josie Fair or not!!!!

The story starts the night of Josie Fair’s and Alix Summer’s 45th birthday, two women who happened to be born on the same day at the same hospital, but don’t meet until that night. Josie, a seamstress, is immediately enamored with podcaster Alix’s seemingly glamorous life…so much so that Josie Googles her when Josie gets home and then tracks Alix down to convince her to do a podcast about Josie. As Josie & Alix meet, Josie tells Alix all about her bizarre home life growing up and her dysfunctional relationship with her husband and grown daughters. Meanwhile, Alix is battling her own marital struggles, something Josie sees as yet another thing the two women have in common. There are holes in Josie’s story, but whether she is lying or telling the truth, Alix has no idea.

I did not like Josie at all. Jewel did a fantastic job of creating an unlikeable character that I kept wanting to read about. Josie is spoiled, manipulative, and narcissistic. Alix was naive, vulnerable, and too trusting.

This is my first Lisa Jewell novel, but it won’t be my last.

Thank you to Net Galley and Simon & Schuster for the Arc.

Lisa Jewell has hit a homerun with her latest novel None of This Is True!! I was on the edge of my seat from page one. Jewell has a way of setting readers up to feel for the character's even though you know someone is shady. The back and forth tension between Josie and Alix was excellent. Just when you begin to feel sorry for one of them, a twist pulls you away.

Alix and Josie meet at a pub on the night of their 45th birthday. To Alix, it's just a coincident but Josie targeted her from the beginning. The way Josie infiltrate's herself into every aspect of Alix's life will give you goose bumps.

A creepy, twisty psychological story that will take your breath away! Highly recommend if you love a great thriller. This is my book club's September pick. Lot's of great discussion to be had around this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

YES YES YES. This is Lisa Jewell at her Finest. This is a fast paced what the Heck is going on Thriller and is just amazing.
You will be guessing all the way to the end about what is going to happen and just how crazy they really are.
I was in Awe of this book and is my new go to recommendation.

TW: Language, drinking, toxic family relationships, abusive relationships, grooming, rape, verbally abusive relationship, mention of Covid

*****SPOILERS*****
About the book:Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summers crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie, it turns out, is also celebrating her forty-fifth birthday. They are, in fact, birthday twins.A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for her series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep making the podcast. Slowly she starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it, Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life—and into her home.But, as quickly as she arrived, Josie disappears. Only then does Alix discover that Josie has left a terrible and terrifying legacy in her wake, and that Alix has become the subject of her own true crime podcast, with her life and her family’s lives under mortal threat.
Release Date: July 20th, 2023
Genre: Psychological thriller
Pages: 384
Rating: ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ (3.5)

What I Liked:
1. I absolutely loved the writing style
2. Was sucked into the book

What I Didn't Like:
1. Netflix sections
2. The last 50 pages just were wrecked for me

Overall Thoughts:
I think it's a weak start to how these two women end up working together. Like Alix isn't creeped out that Josie followed her and them ambushed her to talk. She doesn't even give it a second thought. I think its a lame idea for a podcast and I'm not even sure why Alix is putting all her trust into this less than exciting idea of seeing someone change their life because; what if that person doesn't follow through with it? You're out time & money.

Audio skips things that are written in book.

Walter isn't a pedo he's a ephebophile. Pedos are people that like kids before puberty.

Is the author obsessed with the word "drily?"

Definitely a very very slow burn... Seriously it takes a while to get to anything happening. I felt like I had to keep reading and reading.

Sunrise at 5am...

I absolutely hated the sections with Netflix/Docu series. I found it cringe reading about the background sets and all that. Sometimes things don't look as good as written word. Yeah, as an audiobook it'll sound good but as a book it took me out of that I was reading a book. I would be sucked into the story and interpreted 1-3 times per chapter while we would be bounced back to the Netflix thing. If you wanted this to be like a podcast/Netflix series just release it as an Audible only audiobook. It's terrible to sit here and read over and over all the weird 3rd wall stuff.

How did they not know Josie was at the cabins if they had accessed Erin's card? They said there were no more transactions on the card but she had used it there.

Ending was okay. Didn't feel like it was that special. Josie just being able to disappear.

I hate that Walter is described as this sweet kind man and Josie is this 13 year that was able to make Walter go against the strength to say no to her. Come on...hes still gross.

Final Thoughts:
So, when I started this book I was devouring it. Completely obsessed. I fell asleep reading it and when I woke up I read it in bed. Where things went wrong for me was a couple of things;

*You spend a lot of time waiting on something to happen and little of anything happens. When it does happen it feels very meh.

*So much time is devoted to the podcast that takes place in the book. I know the book is about a podcast but I feel like for this book the author choose to value the audiobook experience over the people reading this book. I would get going with the book and then we would have 5 different podcast updates from different pov's and by the end of the book that was pretty much all it was.

*Podcast ends up really being a Netflix doc series.

I honestly just think that the only thing that saved this book for people no like it is that the writing style was really good and people listening to the audiobook. I have this belief that a book is written first as a book and if it can't stand as a book alone then it's not really that good.

Recommend For:
• Complex friendship
• Unreliable narrator
• Podcast stories

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What a page turner! Who were we to believe? I wish the epilogue had just a little more information because it still felt a little bit unfinished. Lisa Jewell had me hooked, though, and now I want to see this as an actual documentary!