I'm afraid I didn't enjoy this book at all. It had a lot of promise at the beginning, apart from the Agatha Christie stereotype of letting us know that Charles would soon be dead, but after that it was a slow downhill struggle. I've enjoyed this style of writing by some established experts, namely Anthony Horowitz and with another Net Galley novel from last year, but this was sadly a poor copy. We learn a lot about Jane's life, including her marriage to Jonathan which was cruelly cut short by his death, this was excellently described, but we didn't need to know every thought and intimate detail of Jane's past and present. I feel bad about writing a negative review as i know that Elizabeth Kay has spent many years working for a top publisher and was eager to become an author herself, but I have to give an honest review. You could almost replace the Jane in the book, with a few tweaks in the story line, with Jane Marple and turn it into a fifties who done it.. Sorry, this just wasn't for me.

The idea behind the book is a good one, but I found it difficult to read because of the writing style, and the storyline seemed very far-fetched, with characters who never really rang true.

OH MY GOD, THIS BOOK!!!!

This was one of those rare novels that left me breathless. I was racing through it because I couldn't put it down, but was also reluctant to finish as I didn't want the story to end.

Jane, our flawed narrator, is telling the story of her friendship with Marnie, her best friend since they were both eleven year old schoolgirls. Along the way, we learn how Jane became a widow when her young husband was killed by a drunk driver. as well as her intense dislike of Marnie's husband Charles., which leads to the first shocking twist in the book.

This is a hard one to talk about as so much hangs on the seven lies that Jane reveals throughout the course of the book: lies she has told to Marnie, and also to herself. The twists and turns are brilliantly executed, and there was one moment in particular at the end of the book when I literally stopped breathing as I realised what was about to happen!

The characters are beautifully realised, and the writing style is amazing - I knew from the first couple of paragraphs that this one was going to hook me in. This is a book that I will be thinking about for a long time, and will absolutely be recommending to everyone I know. I'm already looking forward to re-reading this knowing what I now know! I can't wait to see what this author does next. A definite five stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley, who provided me with a free ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There is a menacing tone to this, but I got tired of the style of writing in which the narrator directly speaks to the reader. The story is all about the strong friendship between Marnie and Jane which started at school and continued through university until Jane gets married. This does not come across as a toxic friendship but after a crisis in her life, Jane demands more than her friend is prepared to give and things start to unravel. There is too much detail from Jane about the minutiae of her daily life and thought processes, and I found myself skipping many pages. The actions of Valerie, an investigative journalist, are a little far-fetched and the whole story falls a little short of being a thriller, being not very believable.

Seven Lies started with a bang and the protagonist voice was genuinely compelling- beautiful writing and an excellent, quirkily dark undertone.

I enjoyed it all the way but can't help but feel it didn't pull off the premise- if I was writing a three word review it would be "Almost, not quite"

This is almost a story about toxic friendship but not quite.

This is almost a story about grief but not quite. 

This is almost a tense psychological thriller but not quite. 

I honestly felt that it fizzled out into nothing after promising so much. That didn't mean it was a bad book - indeed there are elements here that are brilliant and clever. Overall though for this reader it just fell short of the mark.

Almost. Not quite.

On the hugely positive side this is likely an author to Watch. I will definitely read future books.