I really liked this one! I found the characterizations and format to work really well together, and to support the plot in ways that kept me engaged and curious throughout. I did figure out who the murderer was rather earlier than I expected to, but that didn't lessen my enjoyment of the big reveal at all. I liked this one, and will definitely look for more from Tintera.

Our MC, Lucy was found wandering down a secluded road with a head injury and covered in blood after she and her best friend Savannah attended a wedding with their plus ones.

Lucy can’t remember anything that happened that night and was shocked to find out that her best friend died. Now Lucy is the prime suspect and she can’t even convince herself that she didn’t do it.

5 years later, podcaster Ben Owens swoops in and confuses Lucy even more with his relentless questions. He’s also stirring up the dust in a town where secrets are sacred.
Lucy decides it’s time that everyone- even Lucy herself- discover the truth.

Ahhhh! If you like suspenseful, fast paced thrillers, this is for you!
I was flyyyying through this one to get the answers! It’ll be sure to keep you on your toes and question EVERYONE!

Thank you to @celadon for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review 🧡

This one is out 3/5!

Lucy is returning to her hometown where she's a pariah. Years earlier, she was accused of killing her best friend Savvy. No evidence was conclusive and charges were dropped but that has not stopped the small town where Lucy grew up from condemning her and finding her guilty in the court of public opinion. Lucy has tried to make a fresh start in California but when an up and coming podcaster decides to explore the mysterious murder of Savvy and solve it once and for all, suddenly Lucy is thrust back into the spotlight and her world is in upheaval.

Lucy reluctantly returns to her hometown to meet with Ben, the all-too eager podcaster and to visit with the people from her past. These include her somewhat estranged parents, her beloved grandmother, her former high school friends, and her ex-husband.

As Ben unearths new evidence and uncovers clues to what happened to Savvy, Lucy needs to prepare herself for actual jail time or for the possibility that a murderer is still out there, waiting for the next opportunity.

Listen for the Lie was. a book that I devoured. It's a twisty, gasp-worthy whodunit that will leave you breathless with anticipation and genuinely shocked at the conclusion. I loved the "podcast" format inserted within the short chapters that heighten the suspense and drove the plot forward. Lucy's voice, laced with sarcasm and the dark humor throughout, lended credibility and fun to this insatiable thriller..

Run don't walk to get this one when it releases in March!

I really liked this and I thought I was over the whole podcast trope. Solid characters, twists, great plot.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

This was soooooo good! A very solid thriller. It's nothing groundbreaking in the genre, it's just really well done and gripping. I loved the characters, the way the story moved back and forth between Lucy's POV and the podcast episodes, and how things started to come together. It's intriguing, entertaining, and quite tense. I had a great time with it.

I have never a read a book by Amy Tintera before. The first thought I had about half way through this book was "why does she hate men so much." That vibe was so strong in this book. While I did really enjoy this book, it was not a hit for me. The constant "Let's kill..." over and over was very annoying. Lucy couldn't have any interactions with people without thinking that or "hearing" that in her head. Every single time she contemplates all the ways to kill the person. I don't understand why that was repeated so much. The constant "men don't listen to women, they only believe a man" statement was a turn off for me. I did like Lucy and her sarcasm. I could tell she was a fierce person who got dealt a bad hand. I couldn't understand why her own parents didn't at least talk to her. They just believed the abusive husband. No questions asked. It made me really sad that no one believed her. No one even tried to look for a different killer. They just blamed her. It was like her being an outspoken person who stood up for others and herself made her seem like a killer and that's just not ok. Ben was an odd duck. I'm not sure if his obsession with murder is healthy. I like that he didn't immediately think it was her. He just wanted to know what really happened. Now, Lucy's grandma was AWESOME! Beverly was such a great person. Her fierce faith in Lucy was great and I was happy to know at least one person was on her side. Out of all the people who could have killed Savvy, I didn't see the killer coming. That was a big curveball and I loved it! Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

First off, thank you to the publisher, Celadon Books, for an ARC of this novel coming out in March.

Second, this entire narration is dripping in sarcasm and dark humor and I was HERE. 👏 FOR 👏 IT 👏

This was fast and twisty. Honestly, I'd have read it in a day if i didn't have people to keep alive. Perfect popcorn thriller, with a little extra awesome.

This book was a romp!

So much fun. I haven't read a mystery like this ever! The perfect blend of the humor of a cozy mystery with the murder of a thriller (plus quite the romance).

Like most thrillers/mysteries I read, I had to suspend some belief, but in return I got a really fun reading experience.

Holy shit. If this is Tintera’s debut - I cannot wait to see what else she writes.

Imagine being the subject of a cold case murder podcast where everyone is convinced you killed your best friend. And you can’t say you didn’t because you have no memory of the night. Welcome to Listen for the Lie.

I read this one in two sits - last night and tonight. It was engrossing, it was fast paced, I couldn’t stop. Grandma Beverly is the best character ever and tbh - I loved Lucy and her dark humor, even when it was mistimed. I laughed at the things she said multiple times.

And the ending? Damn. Wasn’t expecting it but wasn’t surprised either.

Don’t skip this one.

Thank you to Celadon Books, Amy Tintera, and NetGalley for early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book was so entertaining and very well done. I could not put it down and essentially read it in 48 hours (which for working full time is fast)!! The story follows Lucy, who on one eventful night was found covered in her friends Savvy’s blood leading people to think she was the murderer. However Lucy has no memory of the night. A true crime podcast decides to cover the story and try to solve the crime once and for all and Lucy is pulled back to her hometown to help figure it all out. I will admit podcast elements to thrillers are not always my favorite but this one added to it in a very positive way and you learn more about the characters and what happened on that night. The characters especially Lucy and Beverly were fantastic and full of sarcasm and snarky comments which added a unique flare. You won’t want to miss this one!! Releases March 5th.

4.5/5 Stars

So this book was fun! It started out really strong for me - funny, witty and full of mystery with an interesting premise . Who doesn’t love a podcast? I enjoyed following Lucy back to her hometown to find out who killed her best friend. The characters themselves were a little flat - no one was likeable, but maybe that was the point. I wasn’t crazy about how sex-crazed the entire town seemed to be, and how that was an underlying plot for everything that happened in the story but that may be just me. I was kind of disappointed in the who and the why but it wasn’t a complete fail. I still enjoyed it! Solid 4⭐️!

I have a confession to make...

I am one of those types of readers who skips descriptions and paragraphs with zero character dialog. I'll get easily distracted with life and figure that I can miss a few words here and there. Infact, it's rare for me to even read every single word in the books I've read.
Listen for the Lie was one of those rare books for me. I can honestly say that I read...and wanted to read..every single word.

This book got my attention from the start, and I could not miss a word. The characters..complete jerks..infact...I think I hated them all, but do you have to like characters in order for you to like a book? Hell no. Thats what made this book amazing in my opinion.

Listen for the Lie was well written, great characters and oh how I could definitely see this become a movie!

Special Thanks to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Listen For the Lie is available for pre-order here

https://brisbookrreviews.blogspot.com/2024/02/listen-for-lie-amy-tintera.html

What a book!!!! This is pure perfection and I loved the twists which I didn’t see coming and was shocked by the ending also never guessed it. The main character Lucy, love her. I like that she’s not your typical main character. She’s a bit sarcastic and has attitude which is so refreshing. I also loved the relationship between Lucy and her grandma. I mean the grandma wow what a great character.. there are actually a lot of characters in this book which at time times can be confusing in most books, but it really works in this book because the way that it’s written the writer has a section that is written out like an interview for the podcast and it really makes you understand who’s who in the relationship so I like that even if you felt a bit confused at times, when you read that section, it puts everything into perspective. This was a five star read, and I cannot wait to see what else this authorize.

I don’t usually like books about true crime podcasts but this one caught my attention so I thought I’d give it a shot and I slipped into it quickly and easily. Usually I’m pretty good at figuring out who the killer is from the very beginning but this one actually kept me guessing until the very end. The problem is that the ending just didn’t feel very satisfying to me. There were a LOT of moving parts to this story and I don’t feel like we get all the answers we needed. A lot of the character’s actions and reactions didn’t feel genuine to me either. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t my favorite and any suspense that was built up in the first 90% of it just kinda fizzled out.

I've shied away from most thrillers for a few years now, but I've been itching to pick some back up this year. After seeing quite a few early 5 star reviews, I figured "Listen for the Lie" was a good place to start and I was not disappointed. I enjoyed the true crime podcast element and thought the way the snippets from the show were included was well done. Lucy was a fun narrator in my opinion - super sarcastic, honest (in some ways) and just really interesting to follow. There were definitely some predictable and eye roll-worthy elements but overall this was a quick and fun read and I'm really glad I picked it up.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed reading this mystery thriller that has its share of dark comedy! It works well in this novel! Lucy is found wandering the streets, disheveled and with her friends blood on her hands but no idea how it got there. The townspeople think Lucy killed Savvy, but a jury couldn’t find enough evidence to convict her. Lucy has made a new life for herself in California and has no plans to return home until she hears that a popular podcast is digging up the cold case on Listen for the Lie. She returns home to uncertainties especially about her future and what is uncovered.
This was a unique original read with enough dark humor and sarcasm to make you laugh- which doesn’t happen to often in suspenseful mysteries!

Talk about an amazing debut novel!!! I absolutely DEVOURED this book! I was lucky enough to get sent a physical arc copy of this as well and posted it everywhere on my insta so my friends would know just how good this book was! I loved how it switched back and forth between the normal narration and the podcast. I think this would be such a fun book to listen to as an audiobook! I loved Ben and Lucy’s chemistry! Both of their sarcasm and humor was top notch! I knew Lucy couldn’t have done it, but at the same time I had no idea who could have! This book pulled you in so many different directions and constantly had me guessing! And then boom! Holy crap that ending had my jaw drop! Definitely a five star read! Can’t wait till this book gets released!

I honestly don't know how to feel about this book because I really enjoyed it for about 95% of it, and then I really did not like the ending.
Pros: I really liked the characters. I think overall they were really well fleshed out. Even though she was a little annoying at times, the FMC was really interesting. Even though the amnesia trope has been done before, I really enjoy it and think Tintera did a good job with it. The voices/unhinged part of her personality was also well done. At first I was confused about this part and didn't necessarily like it, but once it explained what they voices she was hearing was, it fit very well and I think it really added an interesting touch to the story. There were also a lot of different types of relationships that added a lot of layers to the story. There was a range of good, bad, toxic, healthy, romantic, platonic, and familial relationships which I think made the story much more realistic and relatable. (Although the fact that almost everyone was hooking up with everyone else got a little excessive). The chapters were quick and snappy which made it a very quick and easy read, along with the mixed media/podcast sections.
--the voices especially once it was explained, the sex scene (a little out of place, but hot), the different relationships (good, bad, toxic, normal), quick and snappy chapters, mixed media.
Cons: The ending almost entirely ruined the book for me. I think the ultimate perpetrator kind of came out of nowhere. Yes, we met the character a few times, but their motivations really were not substantiated by their actions in the rest of the book. Explaining why exactly I don't like their motivations might spoil it, so I might edit this review once the book comes out. There were also too many red-herrings. Yes, those are pretty necessary in mysteries, but there were just way too many and there were a few that were almost too good. At one point I thought I was following a thread and thought it would have been a really good ending. The author was just going to add a few details that pulled it all together and make it more surprising. But unfortunately she went with this ending out of left field that made no sense in my opinion. I think in mysteries there should be little details that readers can pick out to kind of guess the ending and it doesn't necessarily need to be this crazy plot twist that we could never guess.
Also: warning for the sex scenes (more fade to black but a little explicit). While I did enjoy them, I think they really came without warning a could be a little jarring for some readers.
I'm still giving it 4 stars (although I tempted to give it 3 stars) because I enjoyed the vast majority of the story and just really wish the ending/perpetrator was different.

📜Listen For The Lie
✍️Amy Tintera
📠Celadon Books
📚Mystery/Thriller, Fiction
🗓️Pub date: March 5, 2024

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

✨Thank you @NetGalley and @celadonbooks for providing me with an Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Also, thank you to @amytintera for writing an amazing book!

✨When Savannah is found bludgeoned to death in the woods, still in wedding guest attire, and her best friend, Lucy, is found wandering the street covered in blood, eyebrows start to raise.

✨Lucy, having no recollection of how she ends up covered in her friend’s blood, is rumored to have killed Savvy.

✨Lucy long ago left her hometown after that dreadful night, and news of a recent murder podcast—starring her as the main role—forces her to face her demons. Fired from her job and a relationship on the fritz, she decides to go back home to where it all began.

✨ With disturbing intrusive thoughts and a quest to uncover who really killed Savvy, Lucy risks everything to find answers, even if it means outing herself in the process.

✨Darkly funny, sadistic, and a narrative where no one can be trusted, Listen For The Lie is a podcaster’s dream and a thrilling ride. Not one to miss!

✨QOTD: What’s your favorite True Crime podcast?

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My new favorite thriller!

The writing is so accessible; it felt like sitting down and listening to your friend tell a story... you know, the ones that start with, "so get this!" The dialogue was impeccable. Lucy's grandma, Beverly, cracked me up. I loved the snark and realness of Lucy. Lucy was not painted as some sweet and innocent girl who could never kill. (And Lucy's inner voice was a nice add.)

This book kept me guessing. I vacillated between three different suspects at various points in the book, and I was wrong on all accounts! There were so many secrets and "lies" that the ultimate unveiling was a major "ohhhhh" moment.

HIGHLY RECOMMEND. 10 out 10; no notes. Especially from a person who rarely reads thrillers... this one is a must read.