Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - Listen For The Lie

Publication Date: March 5, 2024
#ListenfortheLie #NetGalley

The debut adult novel (she typically writes YA) from Amy Tintera is simply in a word engaging! I'm not typically a lover of the thriller genre but this book kept me up to the wee hours of the morning.

I was reeled in from the first line "A podcaster has decided to ruin my life, so I'm buying a chicken".
With a start like that you'd be expecting a funny book but this book deals with domestic violence, toxic relationships and dysfunctional families. Lucy, the main female character is the unreliable narrator, who hears voices telling her to kill people. It becomes clearer whose voice she's hearing as you get deeper into the story. Lucy can't remember what happened 5 years ago when she was found wandering around covered in her best friend's blood. She was never charged with Savvy's murder, but most of the people in the small town of Plumpton, including her parents and ex-husband were and still are convinced she's guilty.
Ben, who has a very successful true crime podcast, comes to town to try to figure out what happened. Unbeknownst to Lucy, her kick-ass grandmother Beverly has orchestrated the whole thing because she's never believed Lucy was the murderer. Lucy agrees to help Ben but only because her grandmother has asked her to.
There are many twists and turns and a lot of suspects, but the journey to get to the truth was never boring. I really enjoyed this book despite the subject matter.
This is a true "me too" movement book and a lot of good points are made about how a woman's version of the truth is completely dismissed in favour of the man's version.
A quote from the book "Men always believe each other".
5* + read and I'll be looking for more adult novels from this author.

Thank you to Celadon Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Content Warnings

cj_mo_2222's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark funny mysterious relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

I really enjoyed this book! Ben Owens is a podcaster looking into a case from five years ago in which a young woman is accused of killing her best friend, Savvy. Lucy Chase was never arrested, but everyone in her small town thinks she's guilty, so she moved away to get away from the gossip and accusations. Lucy returns to her hometown for her grandmother's 80th birthday party and is surprised to learn Ben is also in town conducting interviews for his broadcast. Lucy eventually agrees to assist Ben, but there is a major obstacle - Lucy doesn't remember what happened the night Savvy was killed.

Lucy is a very unique character and her frequent intrusive thoughts about killing are shocking. I read a lot of thrillers, but Lucy makes this one stand out. In spite of Lucy's strange inner dialogue, I liked her even though I wasn't sure I could trust her version of things. In fact, the town of Plumpton, Texas is full of unlikable characters ranging from a little shady to downright horrible, and I gave up trying to keep track of which of them had hooked up with each other. I only fully trusted Lucy's grandmother, who is a delightful character that I liked from the very beginning.

Mixed in with Lucy's narration of the story are transcripts from the podcast. Many bombshells about the case and about the people are Plumpton are dropped throughout the book in the podcast episodes. The book is intense but is not without humor. One of my favorite scenes of the book is when Ben joins Lucy at a family event after he had made a shocking revelation about someone in her family. I kept changing my mind about who had actually killed Savvy and was surprised when a dramatic showdown exposes the true killer but leads to a great ending.

I received an advance copy of this ebook at no cost from NetGalley and Celadon Books, but my review is voluntary and unbiased.

Content Warnings

shesflippinpages's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I absolutely flew through this book and really enjoyed it. I loved the idea of a true crime podcast interviewer digging up the details from people in the small town in order to help solve this cold case.

It kept me guessing throughout as there were so many suspicious characters with intertwined storylines. It was one of those books that kept you on your toes and just when you thought you had it figured out, another curveball was thrown your way. Definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to Celadon Books & NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Content Warnings

xandriaisreading's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark funny mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Your best friend has been murdered. You were the last to see her. You're found wandering the streets with her blood on your clothes. And you have no memory of that night. What do you do? Let your grandmother convince you to return home 5 years later and speak to a true crime podcast host with the hope of clearing your name. Obviously!

This book was amazing; I read it in one day it was that good! The plot instantly grabbed my attention and the fact that it's based in Texas only further convinced me to read it.

You get a lively cast of characters, no one is as they seem at first. Each unraveling as secrets get exposed in service of uncovering the truth. While the book is from Lucy's perspective, you get to hear from other people via the transcript of the podcast. It balances out and adds to the mystery while offering up many different conclusions as the story unfolds.

I'll be honest, I couldn't predict who'd done it. That's all I ask of a mystery book and this one delivered.

Thank you NetGalley & Celadon Books for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Content Warnings

the_cat_on_a_bookcase's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark funny mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Before I started reading, I was a little worried that this book may be more suspenseful that I typically like, but that could not have been further from the truth. It was surprisingly funny! I loved the author's voice for the main character, who seemed unapologetically herself & unreliable throughout the book. I loved how she wrote the podcast episodes too since they flowed like many of the true crime podcasts I've heard. Loved the relational themes throughout the book to include the cute & sassy grandmother. This book was a win for me & I highly recommend for a quick, funny mystery with a unique narrator!

Content Warnings

aftereliza's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

aimeea70's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

More...