Lie, Lie Again

 Book 42 of my 2021 Reading Challenge

Lie, Lie Again by Stacy Wise

Summary (via Goodreads)

published 2021

All three women who live at 1054 Mockingbird Lane have secrets…and with a body at the bottom of their apartment building’s staircase, those secrets need to stay buried.

Sylvia Webb has a plan. And a potential Mr. Right. He’s sweet, simple, and dependably clueless about what she’s up to. The only thing unpredictable about him is his needy ex-girlfriend, who is this close to shattering Sylvia’s dreams. But Sylvia’s not going to let that happen.

Riki McFarlan has a good career and an amazing boyfriend who wants to settle down. If only she didn’t have feelings for her neighbor—who happens to be her close friend’s husband. With everything going so right, why is Riki flirting with something so wrong, so…dangerous?

Embry Taylor is as devoted to her children as she is to her husband, who’s a bartender by night, an aspiring actor by day. She is his biggest fan. But with his career not taking off and tensions high, even sweet Embry has something she’s desperate to keep hidden.

Lies, secrets, and revenge. For three neighbors with stakes so high, someone is headed for a downfall.

First Impressions/Judging a Book by Its Cover

I chose this book from the Free Reads monthly options on Amazon Prime.  I don't remember being super drawn to it but of the options that month, it looked the most interesting to me.

The cover art is interesting and I've discovered reading mysteries electronically adds a layer of surprise for me since I don't have my page count listed at the bottom, meaning most of the time I'm reading with no idea how much is left.

My Opinion

4 stars

The pages passed very quickly and it could've easily been a book I tore through in one or two sittings if I'd had the time.  The pacing was really good in the beginning.  I started to feel a little restless about two days before the incident (it started with the reveal of the body and then went back in time to have everything leading up to it unfold in real time) but luckily, some of the smaller storylines started wrapping up and things kept moving forward.

The first few chapters did a good job setting up the distinct characters and giving multiple options for the victim and perpetrator.  The characters all felt human with likable and unlikable characteristics.

Since there were lots of things going on I could not predict which storyline would be the "big one" leading to the dead body.  Some of the secrets felt unnecessary for the characters to keep but all the details worked together to move the story along.  

It definitely didn't end the way I expected.  Everything was plausible looking back but just barely. It required a little stretch in the way most mysteries do (such as discovering things at just the right moment or people opening up in a way they typically wouldn't) but all in all, this book was a fun read.