"The truth doesn't matter." (p. 325)

In this age of true crime podcasts and TV show dramas centered around real, gruesome events, Tintera has crafted an interesting new angle within this genre. The book takes place 5 years after Savvy (Savannah) had been murdered in Plumpton Texas. The main character, Lucy, has been living with everyone assuming she had been responsible for her friend's death; however, she has no memories from that night. Throughout the book, we see Lucy wrestle with her fragmented memory and poor reputation as a podcaster, Ben Owens, begins prying open the cold case to see if Lucy really did it or if someone else was to blame. 

I enjoyed the novel's format and how it switched back and forth between Lucy's internal monologue and transcripts from the Listen for the Lie podcast. The book had a rough start for me, but I was hooked once we got the ball rolling with the true crime element, and I was immersed in our screwed-up little cast of characters. (I do mean that. Most everyone here has some element of unlikability whether it's from their sarcastic demeanor or from the hurtful, damaging things they've done.) The amnesia element is not going to work for everyone, but I did enjoy how Tintera decided to "trigger" the memories. Regarding this element, I was pleasantly surprised with the outcome and mostly content with how things turned out.  

(The real MVP was Grandma Beverly. She might be my favorite side character out of the bunch.)

(Rating probably around the 3.5-3.75 range)

(Advanced Reading Copy)

I think this book would be perfect for people who like TV drama-thrillers and are looking for a book with that sort of quippy verve. I had the thought a few times that it would definitely be a solid option for a limited run series adaptation. In my opinion, the strongest aspect at play here is the social commentary on things like true crime

and domestic violence

. The weakest element is in the character work. The novel itself could be made a lot stronger with a few more rounds of editing and attention to character development. Whether I’d read another book by this author is up in the air. I wouldn’t rule it out, depending on the subject matter, but I don’t think I’d prioritize it, personally. 

I think the narrative here was well-crafted, but it suffers on account of the aspects of the book that didn’t hit quite as well. Thematically, it’s pretty clear and has an understanding of the subjects it’s trying to discuss, but the communication of it (save for

the discussion of domestic violence

and a bit of the true crime discussion) isn’t always handled effectively. The cast, beyond Savvy and Grandma Beverly, feels kind of par the course for this sort of mystery thriller. Development isn’t really a big aspect of the characters here. Lucy’s arc is iffy to me on how present it really is

—nothing seems to make much of a difference to her character

. Ben’s arc

towards unreliability

was interesting, but he didn’t have a lot of depth.

When it comes to character, the relationship dynamics between the cast are by far the most interesting part. The complicated, weary family dynamics between Lucy and her family members, and her bond with her grandmother, feel very real, and the relationship between Ben and Lucy is definitely the most interesting part of Ben’s character. The friendship between Lucy and Savvy in the flashback scenes is incredibly strong (though it doesn’t echo through to the modern narrative in Lucy’s perspective to me, sadly).

The portrayal of abuse dynamics is relatively well-done; you can tell the author is incredibly informed on them and how complicated being an abuse survivor can be psychologically.

The writing style here was consistent, though at times narratively inappropriate or out of place. Syntax was coherent and pithy, and word choice was clear, but not always effective. Dialogue occasionally came off as a bit over the top, even dramatized. Visual and sensory description was mild, but generally well-employed when present. Exposition was decently concise with minimum info-dumping. The primary propellor of the narrative was conflict, making the pacing fast and natural.

The point of view and depth of perspective was consistent throughout, but it was sometimes hard to immerse myself in personally because the primary point of view character, Lucy, didn’t feel totally natural to me. This is less of a problem in her flashbacks

and the scenes reflecting on domestic violence

, where her internal dialogue is portrayed in a way that feels much more realistic. The flashback chapters, however, were implemented a bit too late into the novel to not feel jarring, and unglued the narrative a little bit (which is unfortunate, because they’re some of the strongest scenes). The usage of the podcast transcripts in the narrative structure actually felt quite solid and largely avoided issues with perspective and point of view inconsistency, as they reproduce the “feel” of a produced true crime podcast incredibly well.

Five years ago, Lucy was found wandering the streets, dazed and covered in the blood of her best friend. No one knows what happened, but everyone believes that it was Lucy who killed Savvy – until a podcaster comes to town to dig up the whole case again.

I generally avoid the recent spate of mystery books that use podcasts as plot devices. For one, I’m not even a fan of investigative podcasts, and it’s always seemed more like a framing gimmick than anything else. But I decided to try out this book because of all the rave reviews from my friends on Goodreads, as well as the fact that the narrator is not the podcaster but the subject of the story, Lucy Chase.

This is a fast-paced, intriguing mystery with an amusingly dark and sarcastic narrator. The characters are colorful and lovable despite their flaws, of which there are many, and the author leans into their ambiguities, presenting us with no clear cut villains or heroes. I also loved how the story unravelled, with us learning more about the case alongside the ‘listeners’ of Ben’s podcast.

However, the final section sags oddly before we get to the big climax, maybe because I felt like things were getting stretched out. It was a bad place to lose tension. I also got bored of Lucy’s romantic travails – though they do have bearing on the plot, I felt that they sometimes took on a boringly soapy tone, and would have liked to see less of them on the page.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book, and the narration was excellent. The narrators are January LaVoy and Will Damron – the latter narrating the podcast sections as Ben. The podcast chapters are produced so that you feel like you’re really listening to a podcast. Both narrators did a great job with the voices, bringing plenty of emotion and personality to minor characters. They really elevated the story for me.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley. This is my honest and voluntary review.

If you like messy small-town drama and true crime podcasts, you will love this book. A fast-paced and entertaining read, though the big-name blurbs on the cover are a little too effusive.