Happy publication day to Lisa Jewell and None of This Is True!!

Josie and Alix are Birthday Twins, meaning they were born on the same day and in the same hospital. Their worlds collide when Alix, who has a successful podcast, decides to feature Josie on the show, and dark familial secrets start to surface.

Happy pub day to one of my favorite thriller authors!! I found this one to give off eerie vibes the entire time I was reading it, and the ending did not disappoint! I loved the podcast/Netflix feature and thought it was a unique approach to include in the story. I don't want to spoil anything, so I'll simply just say READ THIS BOOK!

Obviously, given the title I was questioning what was true and what wasn't, and I had my suspicions of what I thought would happen, but I was still caught off guard. The open ending has me still thinking about this book, and it's been DAYS since I've finished it!

Another successful novel from one of my autobuy authors!! Happy pub day to Lisa Jewell and another masterpiece page turner!

Read this if you like:
✨️Unreliable characters
✨️Podcasts or Netflix documentaries
✨️True crime
✨️Eerie vibes...THE ENTIRE TIME

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review!

PUB DAY REVIEW

𝑵𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝑻𝒓𝒖𝒆
Author: @lisajewelluk
★★★★☆

Read if you like:
▶︎True crime podcasts
▶︎Short chapters
▶︎Dual POV's

Josie meets Alix out at a restaurant, both celebrating their birthdays. Something entrances Josie about Alix, and she has to talk to her birthday twin. Josie follows Alix into the restroom, they talk, and Josie learns Alix is a popular podcast host.

Josie becomes a little too obsessed with Alix, researching and digging into her life. Soon, she tells Alix she has a great story for her podcast. Josie agrees to bring her on thinking her story would be a great topic of discussion, but Josie gets way too close to Alix's life and things take a weird turn (that's putting it mildly).

💭ＴＨＯＵＧＨＴＳ：
I needed to figure out where this story was headed and I was totally captured by it. Right from the beginning, you can tell something is off with Josie, but there were also times, I felt something off with Alix. I wanted to know more about each character and their families.

I felt the short chapters were highly effective with the podcast style format. I think this would be an awesome audiobook and even though I've read this, I'll probably listen later on to see how this plays out as a podcast.

Buckle up friends. This one is wild. I don't want to spoil anything!

Thank you so much @atriabooks and @netgalley for an advanced reader's e-book copy of Lisa Jewell's new novel, which releases today! I was so excited to receive this, as this is one of my favorite authors!

Published: August 8th, 2023

This book is an irresistibly creepy read. Characters who aren’t what they appear. Twists that surprise you and keep you guessing all the way to the end. Dark stories with an ick factor are revealed in a matter-of-fact way. It’s got all this plus!

A shared 45th birthday is the connection that first sparks an interchange between popular podcaster Alix Summer and the seemingly ordinary Josie Fair. Besides having been born at the same hospital, both women are married and have children, but that’s about the extent of what they have in common. Yet their lives become increasingly connected.

And as the relationship develops, readers are lured into peeling back the layers of these women’s lives. I found myself cringing and wanting to holler, “Stop! Don’t do that!” It was like watching someone dig themselves deeper and deeper into a hole that couldn’t be escaped.

Great writing by Lisa Jewell. Terrific character development and perfect pacing kept me reading past my usual lights out. I rarely read suspense or thrillers because it’s way too easy to scare me, and I’m a big chicken. But I’ll definitely check out more of Jewell’s work.

Thanks to NetGalley and Atria Books for allowing me to read an advanced copy.

All I can say is "Wow!" Lisa Jewell has created a taut mystery that keeps you on the edge of your seat. This is probably my favorite novel by Lisa Jewell. This is the story of two "birthday twins". Women who were born on the same day at the same hospital. Josie and Alix meet at a restaurant where they are both celebrating their birthdays. Alix is a podcaster who agrees to do a podcast about Josie and her journey to shake up her life a bit. What ensues is a creepy (in a good way) story where the reader is never certain what is actually true and is always trying to get inside the head of the characters. Truly a gem!

NONE OF THIS IS TRUE by Lisa Jewell

In this edgy, dark psychological thriller, two women coincidentally meet at a local pub having been born on the same day, same hospital (“birthday twins”) and out celebrating their 45th birthdays. Alix Summers’, a popular podcaster who focuses on successful women’s stories of ascendancy, has a strong circle of friends, two close sisters, a handsome husband, 2 kids and an ideal home. Josie lives with her 27-years older husband and has 2 troubled children- one a gaming shut-in at home and another a teen runaway.

Josie seeks Alix out, enticing her to make a podcast about them being birthday twins and Josie’s embarking on a profound shift in her life as well as a painful, secret past. And that past either involves a past of sexual assault and manipulation, or something even more sinister. A dark cloud follows Josie as she stalks out Alix and slowly, inexorably and perniciously embeds herself in Alix’s life.

The podcast that emerges becomes one of true crime, as murdered bodies start piling up and the parts that a not true start unraveling. The novel alternates between Alix’s and Josie’s points of view, with interviews with friends and neighbors interspersed throughout.

Overall, a bit dark and sinister for me without much hope in sight for redemption.

But LOVED the clever twist by Jewell of writing the book as a script for a special Netflix murder mystery. And so, of course, we’ll just have to wait for the real Netflix adaption to arrive!

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Oh. my. gosh. I've read and enjoyed all of Lisa Jewell's books. But her latest - None of This is True - is crazy good!!
Take a second look at that cover. The same image, but with one turned upside down. And that's what you'll find - everything you thought you read, will be turned topsy-turvy.

Alix and Josie are both out for dinner to celebrate their 45th birthday and discover they are 'birthday twins' both born on the same day and in the same hospital. Until tonight they've never met before. Another chance meeting brings an unusual request. Alix is a well known podcaster and Josie would like Alix to document her life as it changes. It's an odd request, but Alix is intrigued...

If you can, I recommend going into this book blind. There are many twists and turns and discovering them as I read was a treat. The plotting is fabulous - unpredictable over and over again. (And had me shouting out loud more than once!)

The two lead characters are very well drawn, but do we really know them? Their inner dialogue belies the faces they show the world. There's a number of supporting players that may or may not be unreliable as well. Who to believe?

I loved the epistolary element of the podcast episodes. A story within a story.

Kudos to Lisa Jewell for such an addicting, unpredictable read. I couldn't put it down. An easy five stars!

Gentle readers, there are some triggers

🎙️Book Review🎙️
*
Summary: Celebrating her forty-fifth birthday at her local pub, popular podcaster Alix Summer 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 realize 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.
*
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
*
My thoughts: thank you so much @netgalley @lisajewelluk and @simonandschuster for the advanced copy, this one releases today! This is possibly my favorite Jewell book yet she is an auto buy author for me and this one was out of this world! Josie was such a wild character I had absolutely no idea where this book was going. This is hands down my favorite thriller this year, I feel like I’ve been saying that a lot but I really mean it! 😂 I absolutely cannot get over this book I’m still thinking about it !

I became a fan of Lisa Jewell when I listened to The Family Upstairs. Then when the Family Remains came out I was a bigger fan. Now after reading None of This is True, I am obsessed! @lisajeweluk if your books weren’t so crazy, I would be reading them around the clock!

I started this book on the way home from camping and was immediately RIVETED. Sometimes I get a little worried when books are hyped because who needs a major let down on a Sunday afternoon but fear not, this book is everything. I love true crime podcasts and really loved the concept of this book. I loved Alix and her family and Josie Fair was the perfect amount of creepy. I loved the dual point of view and NEEDED to know what happened!

I don’t want to give too much away as this is the perfect book to go in blind, but just know you won’t be disappointed. I am still thinking about these characters and the crazy things that happened and would love to talk about it with you once you have read this also!

This one is out today and one you need to grab and binge immediately!

5 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @atriabooks for the early copy!

Do you like true crime podcasts? Are there any you would recommend?

Wow!!! Lisa Jewell knocked it out of the park with this one! It’s a dark twisty thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Each chapter is better than the last and I was addicted! It’s so good!

3.5⭐

In 2019, “Birthday Twins” Alix Summers and Josie Fair meet for the first time on their forty–fifth birthday in a pub where they have both come to celebrate- Alix with her husband and friends and Josie with her husband.

Josie is curious to know more about Alix and looks her up on the internet and finds out that Alix is a popular podcaster known for sharing the stories of strong women who have overcome the odds to exact positive change in their lives. Josie approaches Alix with the idea of being a subject of her next podcast feature citing the fact that she is in the process of making big changes in her life. Alix is both intrigued and a tad unsettled by Josie’s intensity but eventually agrees. Josie’s revelations about her past and her marriage are shocking and Alix finds herself becoming inextricably drawn into Josie’s narrative. Alix begins to doubt some parts of Josie’s revelations when she talks to people who know her and have interacted with her in the past. Just how much of Josie’s story is true? Josie seems to be fixated on Alix and is curious about Alix’s marriage which is also somewhat troubled. What follows is a complex web of lies, deceit, manipulation and murder. All is revealed when Alix becomes the subject of a true crime podcast to be featured in a Netflix documentary in 2020.

None of This is True by Lisa Jewell is a masterfully crafted work of psychological fiction- the kind of dark, edgy and suspenseful story that makes Lisa Jewell one of my favorite authors in this genre. Complex characters, shocking twists and several surprises (till the very end) and an ending that leaves you unsettled, made for a riveting read. I loved the structure of the novel which is presented from the perspectives of Josie and Alix with transcripts of the podcast interviews (featuring Josie, Alix and several other characters) interspersed throughout the narrative.

Having said that, there are a few issues that keep me from giving this novel a higher rating. None of the characters are particularly likable (some worse than the others) which is fine. I know this is fiction but I could not ignore certain aspects of the story no matter how much I tried. Alix‘s inability to read the situation, her apparent blindness to several red flags in Josie’s behavior and her insensitivity to some extremely disturbing aspects of Josie’s life was off-putting. I also had issues with certain choices that were made in the handling of Josie’s present storyline. The author ventures into some very dark and disturbing themes in this novel ( grooming, pedophilia, sexual abuse of a minor, trauma and mental health) and I’m not comfortable with the way those topics were presented.

Overall, this is an intense and suspenseful read that delivers on the thrills. For the rest, it boils down to the reader’s ability and/or willingness to ignore certain aspects of the story.

Many thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This book is top freaking tier 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

I finished this book back in June, and haven’t stopped thinking about it since. Lisa Jewell is the queen of a domestic thriller and this one is no different. The dual POV between Alix and Josie with podcast elements thrown in was so addictive!!! Everything that happens is so unbelievable that you have no choice but to believe it actually happened. It’s that crazy and I loved every single second of it.

You will sit with this book and want to devour it in one sitting because you just have to know what is going to happen next. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time and though some of the things that happen you will see coming, some are going to make your JAW DROP.

Wow where do I even begin? I read this right after reading Watching You (which I loved) so wanted some more Lisa Jewell. This was my favorite by her for sure!! I loved everything about this story. What was especially unique is the format of the Netflix series/podcasts throughout. In true Jewell fashion I felt uncomfortable reading at times because of the content and on the edge of my seat. The twists were wild and not easily predictable. This one was so good guys you have to go read it! It comes out august 8th. A very easy 5 star rating for me. Thanks again to @netgalley for this arc!

This was a FANTASTIC mystery/thriller!!

I have been hesitant to read mystery/thrillers lately because they all feel predictable and somewhat uninteresting. But not this one. After reading about 20%, I was hooked and had to know what happened. The author strikes the perfect balance between revealing some information, yet still leaving the reader guessing. There were twists and turns that made this anything but forgettable.

I will definitely be recommending this book and will look into other works by the author.

What a unique book with a great structure, well-written characters, smooth pacing, lots of twists and turns and a great ending (in my opinion). I really enjoyed this idea of having a Netflix special looking back being overlayed with the events as they happened in chronological order. I also think that with the juxtaposition of the Netflix special with the chronological timeline it was well done because it still did not give anything away regarding how things would end up, which I appreciated. You knew from the Netflix special that something happened, but not what exactly or how. I loved that this thriller took a deep look into the two main female characters. Also I felt that there was just enough suspense and action to keep you interested in the plot, while still following a solid structure that gave ample time for character arcs. I loved so much about this book. I think this book really leaves you questioning our own perceptions of truth. This is my first by this author and I WILL be reading more by her. I cannot give enough praise for how captivated I was by this book to finish it in a day.

What did I just read?! Totally unputdownable book, with so many suspicions throughout. Read it in record time, and the ending left me with a ton of questions. Sequel, perhaps?

This book is my new favorite by Lisa Jewell! It was so suspenseful and dark and I could not stop reading! I finished in 24 hours. Josie is horrid and Alix acted really dumb and naive at times. I just could not get enough of this awesome mystery! The way it ended made it feel open for a sequel? 🤞🏻

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for my ARC of this story which releases 8/8!

I’m a huge fan of Lisa Jewell’s addictive psychological thrillers so I was beyond excited to get my hands on an advanced copy of her latest novel, None of This is True. And wow, what a ride this book was. I think it may be her most twisty thriller yet!

The story follows Alix Summers, a popular podcaster who has shot to fame with her compelling interviews with women who have overcome tremendous odds to create new lives for themselves. One night while she is out celebrating her 45th birthday, she runs into a woman named Josie Fair, who happens to be there celebrating her 45th birthday as well. Birthday twins! The two women spend a couple of minutes chatting and go back to their respective celebrations. Alix thinks nothing else of it, but Josie becomes fixated on Alix and orchestrates a “chance” meeting with her at her kids’ school. Josie has decided that she would be a great candidate to be interviewed on Alix’s podcast and seeks to persuade Alix to her way of thinking. Once she convinces Alix that her story would really be great to take her podcast to the next level, Josie then begins to systematically insert herself into every aspect of Alix’s life. Who is Josie and what in the world is she up to?

Josie starts off as just this kind of sad, quirky character but the more we follow her and listen to the stories she tells Alix, the more disturbing and creepy I found her to be. I think I became as fixated on Josie as she was on Alix. She made me super uncomfortable but at the same time, I was completely fascinated by her and wanted to know what she was really up to.

I love Jewell’s brand of storytelling anyway, but I felt like she really kicked this one up a notch and tried some new things with this book that really worked well for me. I was an especially big fan of her use of excerpts from Alix’s podcast as well as the Netflix documentary that covered the whole experience. I thought those elements provided the perfect teasers to entice the reader to keep turning those pages. Jewell also brilliantly uses the unreliable narrator in this story. It was nearly impossible to distinguish fact from fiction, and the story kept me guessing until the very end. The novel is aptly named, that’s for sure!

If you’re in the mood for an addictive psychological thriller that is like nothing you’ve read before, definitely check out None of This is True. It was my favorite read in July and I’m sure it will be on my end of year favorites list as well.

This was a true psychological thriller, and I was here for it!!! It was dark, twisty, and kept me turning pages and staying up way too late.

Time after time, Lisa Jewell kills it with her last chapter. I love a book that leaves the ending up to you to interpret--however I won't be upset if there is a sequel in the future. ;)

Also can we just appreciate that our MC was 45 and still deemed as HOT rather than a middle aged overlooked woman. Love that

None of This is True is a gripping, dark, psychological thriller written by the incomparable Lisa Jewell. It begins with a promising possible friendship of “birthday twins” but quickly spirals down the rabbit hole of unreliable characters with questionable motives and manipulative intent!
Josie is a mousy seamstress married to a boring man 27 years her senior. Alix is a beautiful podcaster with a posh lifestyle and successful husband. The women run into each other at a restaurant where both are celebrating their 45th birthdays. The contrast between the two is dramatic, and it is one that will play out through the entire novel.
Claiming to want a newer, better life, Josie inveigles herself into Alix’s world by promising to give Alix stories drawn from her life experiences so Alix can create an edgy, compelling, female-centric podcast. Alix eagerly accepts Josie’s testimony as a way to spice up her own life and her career, but soon worries that all is not as it appears with Josie’s tales.
This story unfolds from the POVs of Alix and Josie, with excerpts of the future podcast and a Netflix series interspersed throughout the book, revealing an alarmingly dark side to Josie’s story. This is very effective at investing the reader in the escalating drama, as the author drops clues like breadcrumbs along the way. Author Jewell is masterful at constructing plausible characters with simple, seemingly ordinary lives, and then exposing the flaws and turpitude of the unreliable narrators, peeling away layer after layer of their subterfuge.
This is one of Jewell’s darkest, most unsettling novels, with spoken and unspoken references to serious subject matter, such as child abuse and grooming of underage girls. But at the conclusion there is much doubt as to what really transpired in Josie’s life, and the reader is left with the possibility that “None of This is True!”

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC. This is my honest review.

Wow! A fantastic psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very last chapter on what is actually the truth. I devoured this book within 24 hours of starting it because I just had to know what happened.

The book goes back and forth from a present time documentary back to the events that occurred - because of this you get to hear multiple POVs of the story that just keep you on the edge of your seat wondering what is this dooming event that this is all revolving around.

I was constantly questioning the characters and trying to decide if I liked them, if I didn’t like them, if what I “knew” about them was true or not, who is being the manipulator in this story.

Highly recommend this mind blowing, master manipulator, psychological thriller to every single person.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.