The Lies I tell – ARC Book Review

Meg Varnum. Maggie Littleton. Meg Upton. Different names for the same person, depending on the town, depending on the job. I’m not a con artist as much as an avenger. A righter of wrongs. But nothing about me is real, other than my desire to hold men like you accountable for the things you’ve done.

I don’t break any laws, and what I take is given willingly. I can’t be blamed for how easy it is to manipulate you. It’s a discipline involving confidence, cleverness, and deception. And now, I’m about to work my final trick . . . this time under my real name. Because when it’s done, I want you to know who I am and remember what you did to me.

Meg Varnum. Maggie Littleton. Meg Upton. Different names for the same person, depending on the town, depending on the job. I’m not a con artist as much as an avenger. A righter of wrongs. But nothing about me is real, other than my desire to hold men like you accountable for the things you’ve done.

I don’t break any laws, and what I take is given willingly. I can’t be blamed for how easy it is to manipulate you. It’s a discipline involving confidence, cleverness, and deception. And now, I’m about to work my final trick . . . this time under my real name. Because when it’s done, I want you to know who I am and remember what you did to me.

I was so excited when the ARC of this book got approved!! I have always wanted to read Julie Clark’s books as I have heard many raving reviews about her previous book Last Flight, which I haven’t read yet. But this book, was disappointing at all and I actually enjoyed devouring this book in one go!

Meg Varnum, Maggie Littleton, Meg Upton…all these different name belong to the same person–a woman who is actually a con artist by getting herself into a relationship with men with money and eventually and slowly withdrawing their money from their accounts with excuses of payments or some sort. Kat is a journalist who goes as an undercover to expose this Meg. She has a fiance, named Scott who is addicted to gambling. While Kat is trying to expose her, Meg knows what Kat is really up to.

The story is told from the perspectives of both Meg and Kat. The author has done a good job of drawing the reader into the story and I was literally hooked into the story from start to finish and couldn’t simply put the book down. The story itself is fast paced, which is one of the main things I like about a thriller with some twists and turns along the way that will keep you guessing what the ending is going to turn out like. I felt like I was watching a movie rather than reading a book and overall, I actually enjoyed reading this book! The ending was gripping and shocking and not to give too much spoilers…let’s just say, Meg is the female version of Robin Hood. I really did like the ending actually. I do like the feminist vibe in the book as well that portray the women as strong, courageous and ambitious and would do anything to get what they want.

I would most certainly read more books from this author and I couldn’t wait to read more from Julie Clark !

If you like a gripping fast paced thriller that will make you feel like you are watching a thriller movie on the screen with ambitious women as main characters, and if you like women as con artists as a main topic in the story, then this book is one for you–worth five stars!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Hodder and Stoughton for the ARC. The review is based on my honest opinion only.