Review: Let Me Lie

Title:  Let Me Lie

Author: Clare Mackintosh

Publisher: 13th March 2018 by Hachette/Sphere

Pages: 400 pages
How I Read It: ARC book
Genre: mystery, thriller

My Rating: 4 cups

Synopsis:

The police say it was suicide.

Anna says it was murder.

They're both wrong.

One year ago, Caroline Johnson chose to end her life brutally: a shocking suicide planned to match that of her husband just months before. Their daughter, Anna, has struggled to come to terms with their loss ever since.

Now with a young baby of her own, Anna misses her mother more than ever and starts to question her parents’ deaths. But by digging up their past, she’ll put her future in danger. Sometimes it’s safer to let things lie…

My Thoughts

“Some secrets shouldn’t be shared outside the family. Others shouldn’t be shared at all”.

‘Let Me Lie’ by Clare Mackintosh is a psychological thriller that I thoroughly enjoyed. Slowly built up, the story is told between alternating points of view from main characters and then an unknown person, but somehow involved. Who is this mystery narrator? Your guesses will continue to change throughout the story! Clare Mackintosh's crime writing is sublime as she weaves the complex plot with it's many twists and turns.

Firstly, can Clare Mackintosh write! It flows so well with good, strong character descriptions. You cannot help but feel for poor Anna - new partner, new baby and both parents gone through suicide - or have they? On the anniversary of the deaths, a mystery note sends her slow healing world into a spin. Who would do this and why? Keep reading! Then there are the secondary characters and I state straight away how much I loved the retired detective Murray. He, along with his wife Sarah, provide a super side story to the main plot as the author deftly handles the issues of mental illness and suicide. Obviously dealing with his own personal issues, it is his tenacity in pursuing this cold case in an effort to assist Anna, that endears him to the reader.

Apart from those two main leads, add into the mixture Anna’s new partner and father to her child, Mark and what role he might play in handling Anna who was once his patient. Anna’s Uncle Billy, her mother’s godchild Laura, even the neighbour and you really are provided with a good strong ensemble of players in the tale.

I had previous read Clare’s ‘I Let You Go’ (review HERE) and was impressed. If you haven’t read her books before then you simply must. Unable to really cannot discuss the plot, I would still highly recommend this book as once again the complexity, depth of characters, vivid descriptions and killer twists all lends itself to a very entertaining read.

This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher and provided through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release