When Stephen King calls a book, “A world-class whodunnit”,I jumped on the chance to read an early copy.
It’s been five years since Savvy was brutally murdered. Her best friend Lucy has moved away from town, but cannot escape the past. Why? Well, mostly because Lucy was there when it happened and has no memory of who killed Savvy. What do most people think? Why that Lucy is the killer and so lucky to get away with murder.
Lucy hasn’t felt lucky since the day it happened though. With no memories and so many people believing that she is guilty, Lucy questions her innocence too. When a true crime podcast hosted by Ben Owens decides this will be his next case, the truth will be revealed, even if it means exposing Lucy’s crime. As Lucy struggles to remember, details about her past, come to light and things start to look less black and white. Who is lying and can Lucy remember the truth with Ben’s assistance?
Chapters alternate between Lucy in the now, and Lucy five years ago, with episodes of Listen for the Lie narrated by Ben providing additional information.
Darn I really liked Lucy and her grandmother Beverly provided much needed comic relief in this dark tale. Did I think Lucy was guilty? Most of the time no, but I had trouble settling on who was the killer. Overall, I was glued to the pages and hoped Savvy would get justice, and perhaps Lucy would get her life back. 4.5 stars.

Thank you so much to Macmillan Audio and Celadon Books for the ALC and ARC!

This is the story of Lucy. She's just like you and me except for the minor detail that everyone thinks she murdered her best friend. The crazier part is that she doesn't even know if she did or not because she has no memory of the night she was found covered in her friends blood! UM TALK ABOUT CRAZY!

Now enter a famous podcast writer who is trying to find out what even Lucy doesn't know: who killed Savvy? And why? The podcast "Listen for the Lie" is interspersed throughout the story as well as present tense and past tense stories of Lucy's life unfold. I loved all the literary and audio variation, it really helped keep things interesting.

Personally, I don't looove when my thrillers have a side of romance, so I could have done without that as well as excessive (imo) strong language. Both of those things to me became a distraction that actually took away from the enjoyment of the story for me.

Overall, I thought the ending was wrapped up well and I didn't see it coming!

3.5 stars rounded to 4 for GR

This will be available for purchase on March 5, 2024.

I absolutely devoured this book. Amy Tintera's first foray into the "adult genre" was expertly done. I love the concept of the true-crime podcast - especially from the various points-of-view. Amy kept me guessing, right up until the end. The characters were well-developed and nuanced - just the way I like them. I will be recommending this book to everyone!

I love true crime podcasts and was so excited to read this. It did not disappoint. I loved the short chapters and the writing style and could not put this down. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I am so sorry to say that this book did not work for me the majority of the time, and the ending did not work for me either.
I had high hopes for this book because the synopsis sounded great. This was a silly mystery about a woman that returns to her hometown of Plumpton, TX for her grandmother's birthday party, but in reality, she is there to find out the truth of what happened to her friend 5 years prior. Many people think she murdered her best friend, Savvy, and even she is perplexed about it because she claims to have no recollection of that night. Bits and pieces come together, along with a murder podcast trope within the story, and after multiple interviews with people in the town, silly occurrences with family, unnecessary mentioned sex scenes, and a conclusion (yet slightly fun) that did not shock me at all, this just was a wrap for me. It disappointed me because I thought the first several chapters were fun! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, as well as the author for allowing me to read an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion, and I am sorry that the book did not work for me. I am sure many people will love this story, but I was not the right audience for it. I expected a darker thriller, based on the title.
On the other hand, if you like a silly mystery with quirky family characters and interactions with a pretty predictable ending, albeit a slightly fun one, this one might be for you!
2.75 stars from me

Even though she might be a murderer, I loved Lucy Chase right off the bat. Why? She's dry, has almost no filter, fights back and her favorite person is understandably her grandmother, who is an absolute hoot. Lucy has mostly moved on with her life five years after everybody came to the conclusion that she'd murdered her best friend Savvy. Since there wasn't any evidence and Lucy can't remember events from that evening it seems like an advisable choice. But then a podcaster picks the cold case as the second season of her show, drawing unwanted attention to Lucy and drawing her back home. Through some well-intended manipulation by her grandmother, Lucy decides to cooperate with Ben, the podcaster, in the hopes that information will be uncovered that will help provide light on the events of that evening. Without a doubt, a can of worms is opened. The reader will feel much like Ben, watching (or reading) in delight as people confess to dirty little secrets that they've been hiding for the past five years. The reader will also realize that the very dry and blunt Lucy and the sweet and harmless Savvy are not quite as straightforward as initially implied. Lucy was in an abusive marriage at the time Savvy was murdered, and this increasingly becomes a bigger factor in the story. It's also a thorny reminder of how abuse stays in the shadows because someone is afraid people won't believe them or it will be used as against them. This book doesn't have twists and turns in that reader is lead one direction and then something unexpected gets thrown in. I never expected that Lucy actually killed Savvy because that's way too easy, but the unraveling of what really happened is fascinating and makes this a book you won't want to put down. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgallery for an early copy of Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera. This book will come out on March Fifth of 2024.

Listen for the Lie’s premises sounds really interesting, I was excited to see the podcast aspect and flashbacks scenes in the book. I don’t commonly listen to podcast but in my opinion it felt authentic, like I was reading the transcript of an actual podcast. The podcast bits had to have been my favorite parts of the books.

The flashbacks scenes are decent, I expected one during the beginning to really get myself hooked on the story instead it feels more like the start of a Redit post. Our main character Lucy I didn’t like at all, the little sadistic voice in her head was annoying as well as her imagination of certain… things. She just wasn’t a likable character at all, none of the characters here were likable, the only one I found decent was Grandma Beverly. The characters also sleep around a lot, none of the romances feel genuine it’s more of a “I’m trying to get in your pants” sort of thing. (Side note the writing style was giving me young adult vibes. It just felt a bit immature at times)

I'm a sucker for books involving podcasts! The information from the pod cast was laid out very well. The book had just the right amount of characters. I really liked the main character. What I did not like was most of the characters were sleeping with each other BUT no details were given. Some may prefer less details but not me! Also, I guessed who the culprit was very early.

Wow wow wow WOW what an amazing novel! I couldn’t get enough from start to finished was totally captured! If you are looking for a solid read look no further! Highly recommended!

This was a fantastic thriller. I absolutely loved the POVs jumping from Lucy to Ben's podcast. That was a creative way to jump around and add exposition. I was thoroughly engrossed and managed to read most of this in a couple of sittings.

Good morning readers. I finished this book last night at around 1am. I did not wanna put this down. I had to keep reading. Nothing is better than losing sleep to finish a good book.

Wow I loved this book! So well written. Loved the main character, the podcast aspect, humour and the mystery. Couldn’t put it down.

I loved this book! I read the bulk of this book in one sitting. I couldn’t put it down. I love the way the story alternates between Lucy’s point of view and Ben’s podcast. I love the plot twists which kept me guessing to the very end. And I love that it was written with humor, making it more of a dark comedy than a purely creepy murder mystery. I will definitely be recommending this one! The owner of my favorite indie bookstore recommended this one, so I know she will be selling it to as many people as she can. Great book! Thank you so much for the e-arc.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

I've been in a reading slump lately and have been running into a lot of books that end up being a DNF because they just aren't compelling. This one I read in one day! The book is set up with Lucy's POV and different episodes of the podcast about the murder. Lucy is a really interesting character and her family dynamics are a little odd. This is definitely an interesting read in trying to help solve a murder case.

WOW what a book! I listen to this book and it was the first from this author.

Twists and turns for sure. This is about Lucy who has blocked her past due to her best friend Savvy being murdered and everything thinks she did it. Lucy isnt sure if she did it or not but everyone in her town thinks she did it. She teams up with Ben who has a true crime podcast and they try to put together what happened and try to figure out who did it. Every time i thought i had this figured out nope i didn't.

The writing was great and the author def makes this to where you want to keep listening. This is an excellent book and will read more from this author.

Great Job on this book will recommend.

Thanks NetGalley for letting me listen and review

4.5⭐️

Exceptionally well done. This is how you do this sort of story.

Taught, twisty, suspenseful, with a likable but flawed, delightfully snarky protagonist, I ended up finishing this story in one sitting, unable to put it down. I highly recommend listening to the audiobook if you have the chance, as the narration and the realistic podcast vignettes really add to the experience - but whatever format you prefer, definitely do read this one.

January LaVoy and Will Damron did a fantastic job narrating the audiobook.

Thank you Amy Tintera, Celadon Books, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

I am a huge fan of the well done, snarky style of a mystery. The one that effortlessly blends humor with a good whodunit. The kind that at the same time you’re chuckling, you’re thinking OMG. Listen for the Lie fits the bill perfectly. Lucy is five years out from the murder of her best friend. A murder that most people believe she was guilty of. But Lucy has no memory of the night and the police didn’t have enough evidence to charge anyone. By moving away from the small Texas town, she had managed to move on. But now, a true crime podcast is taking up the investigation of the unsolved case. And Lucy is back in town, drawn back by her grandmother’s 80th birthday party.
I was a big fan of Lucy. She’s a grammar nerd - as a fifteen year old, she corrected all the typos in the church bulletin to turn it in at the end of every service. She has a Mikado style brain (remember the song “I’ve Got A Little List?) which envisions killing everyone that crosses her. Some of the funniest bits are of her thoughts on how to do someone in. Initially, I found the voice in Lucy’s head a bit overdone (part of this was January LaVoy’s depiction of it). But midway through the book, it came together and made perfect sense to me.
And even more than Lucy, I loved her grandmother who has a way of always getting what she wants. I want to be Beverly when I’m 80!
So often, mysteries fall apart at the end. Not this one. I found the ending perfect and I loved that it caught me off balance. (All of it, right down to the final minutes.)
Overall, I was pleased with January LaVoy and Will Damron, other than that one annoying voice. The audio goes above and beyond just reading, adding music to differentiate the podcast recordings.
My thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for an advance copy of this audiobook.

Stop it. I loved this.

I was able to look at the Kindle version and also listen to the audiobook. I enjoyed both formats, but if you have a choice listen to the audiobook! I love, love the way they did it. Lots of different voice actors and the podcast part of the book sounds just like you’re listening to the actual podcast. The narrators did such a great job. I’m VERY picky about audiobooks and usually really dislike the way they’re read. Not this one.

Now, the story itself. I loved it, too! This was my first book from Amy Tintera and I’ll be looking into reading more of her work after this.

I liked the way the book was formatted between the story and the podcast. You could very easily tell the difference between what perspective you were reading. I also enjoyed the thoughts in parenthesis and italics. It was interesting being inside Lucy's head.

Admittedly, I do love a good “podcast trope” book (is that what we’re calling that? I dunno, but I guess it is now) Good Girls Guide to Murder was very similar and I loved that, too.

Seriously. So great.

I really enjoyed Lucy’s dark, sarcastic, dry humor. The author combined humor and thriller very well.

It was set at a good pace and I never got bored. I really wanted to know who did it. I was always thinking about when I could start listening again, and to me, that’s a sign of an engaging book.

I loved the way she wrote it going between the podcast and ‘real life’. We would meet characters in the podcast and then meet them in real life as well. I just think it was all put together really well. I was never confused and it was never hard to keep up with.

If I had any small complaint, it would be that I wish there had been a few more clues throughout the book as to who had actually done it.

And Lucy’s grandma was a hoot. Loved her, too.

If you’re looking for a new book to either read or listen to, I recommend this one. It was great.

And I’d listen to Ben’s podcast.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing this ARC in exchange for my review.

This book hooked me on the first page. This is a book I will tell everyone to read as it is 5 star amazing!

Lucy swore she would never return to her home town in Texas. Now her grandmother has guilted her into coming home for her birthday. Half the town believes she has gotten away with the murder of her best friend Savvy. She can't remember what happened that night but even her mother and her husband think she is guilty.

Now Ben Owen the podcaster of "Listen to the Lie" has come to town to try and uncover the truth. Her grandmother believes she is innocent and thinks Ben can help figure out what happened that night.

I loved the fast pace, short chapters and mystery. Lucy was just a sarcastic ,hot mess and you had to keep reading to figure out what happened that night. I enjoyed the podcast segments and how this was a very cleverly done who done it mystery. The grandmother was just a riot and so funny. I never thought there could be so many laugh out loud moments during a thriller but this book had it all.

Thank you Celadon!

Pre-order this book by Amy Tintera! Lucy was found wandering, with a head injury, on the night her best friend Savannah was murdered. The whole town, including her parents, are convinced she did it. Lucy still can’t remember that night and she continues to doubt herself. Now, five years later, a true crime podcaster picks up the case. Lucy returns home and agrees to work with him at the request of her grandmother. She finds herself confronted by everyone, except her loyal grandmother. This is a phenomenal book! It’s a dark comedy wrapped around a mystery. The characters are plentiful and very well defined and the dialogue is witty and often sarcastic. There are podcast interviews interspersed throughout. I highly recommend Listen for the Lie and I will watch for more books by this author! With thanks to Netgalley and Henry Holt and Company for this ARC. My opinions are my own. susanh_bookreviews