I must be the outlier here. With all the fuss and raving reviews, I just couldn’t wait to read this! FOMO. Ever struggle with the Fear Of Missing Out? I gotta tell ya, that this is a real problem for me. 😭

Lucy is found wandering the woods injured and covered in her best friend’s blood five years ago. Her friend, Savvy was murdered at a wedding they attended. The only thing is, Lucy can’t remember anything that happened. Nothing. With little to no evidence, no one was ever charged.

Now, famous podcaster, Ben Owens comes to town to investigate what actually happened that brutal night. Everyone who was close to Savvy and Lucy is interviewed. Everyone thinks Lucy is guilty, even her own family believes she is guilty.

Did Lucy actually commit this heinous crime? If not, then who? Ben’s goal….. Listen For The Lie.

I keep seeing books with the whole podcast trope. In my opinion, it HAS to be done extremely well to really catch my attention. I kept trudging along, expecting something crazy to happen here. I needed some more tension, the story to be more gripping and captivate me throughout. However, I just didn’t get all that. Nothing really happened until about the 45% mark. The whole book is just interview after interview with Ben and Lucy’s interaction with a list of suspects.

Honestly, I was a little bored. Do you know there are a huge amount of books written just like this.

What I liked—-
-Lucy’s character was witty at times. Funny lines throughout. Example ‘It feels like Satan’s asshole out here’. Yep 😂
-Ben is not such a bad guy and says what he wants versus what everyone wants to hear.
-Lucy’s grandmother is a hoot who tells it like it is.
-This takes place in Texas. Austin is mentioned and the author is actually from Austin. I live an hour and a half away. Austin is rad! 😁
-The writing is intriguing.
-I enjoyed how this was wrapped up. No horrible confession either.

The whole thing played out like a huge drama fest between friends. Everyone was sleeping with everyone. Not kidding either. However, I think there is huge potential for Amy Tintera and would be willing to read her again.

Big thanks to Celadon books, NetGalley, and Amy Tintera for an ARC. All opinions are my own. Expected publication date March 5, 2024
3.5 ⭐️ rounded down to 3

Lucy and Savannah went to high school together but didn’t become friends until the women became adults. Then Savannah was murdered after a wedding and Lucy was found with blood on her and with Savannah’s skin under her nails, clearly the prime suspect, but no case was ever made and Lucy left town.

Now Lucy is back in Plumpton for her Grandmother’s 80th birthday and so is podcaster Ben Owen’s, covering Savvy’s murder.. Ben dives into Lucy’s prior relationships as he attempts to uncover the truth about what happened.

Pretty good thriller. Text alternates with transcripts of podcast episodes, which I enjoy a lot. Recommended.

Lucy Chase was accused, but not convicted, of her best friend’s murder after she was found covered in her blood near the murder scene and no memory of what happened that night.

Ben Owens hosts a true-crime podcast called “Listen For the Lie,” and is covering the Lucy Chase case, and the novel uses his podcast interviews as chapters to give more light to the case.

Lucy and Ben will ultimately work together to unveil what truths are out there waiting to be revealed about the night that Savannah died... but also to reveal the lies that have been told.

LISTEN FOR THE LIE started out strong for me with a cold case murder and a podcasting element. The story follows Lucy who returns to her small Texas hometown years later after being accused but never convicted of murdering her friend. Working with a podcaster to uncover the truth, Lucy begins to remember things about that fateful night.

I had a hard time with this story for a few reasons. I just could not get on board with this protagonist. Lucy was a morally gray character which I typically don’t mind, but she had an utter lack of self-respect and common sense. She also had a sadistic voice in her head that felt over the top and grated on me. Finally, I found some of the relationship dynamics to be completely implausible and repulsive and the “ah-ha” ending where Lucy suddenly recalled exactly what happened after years of no memories to be cliché.

While the plot fell short for me, I did enjoy the full cast audio production and the added sound effects for the podcast. I think this will be a book getting a lot of buzz this winter so it may help to have your expectations laid out before picking this one up.

Many thanks to Celadon books for an electronic ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Engaging and immersive. A recommended first purchase for collections where crime and thrillers are popular.

What a great book! This was a fantastic mystery that really took advantage of the “podcast-within-a-book” trend. What surprised me most was just how funny it was without ever detracting from the seriousness of the crime.
If I had any complaint it was that I guessed the killer pretty early on, but to be fair, it was just a guess and not confirmed in my mind until near the end.
Good stuff and I am looking forward to whatever comes next from Tintera.