I had high expectations for this book and there was lots of potential within the plot but sadly this never came to pass.

Whilst well-written, the novel is a thriller with no tension, half baked plotlines that add nothing to the story (inheritance/Andrew/legal case) and a main character with no personality who exists solely to progress the narrative. Add in an ending that is cliched, forced and predictable and unfortunately you end up with The Lies You Told .

Not recommended.

Thanks to Headline/Wildfire and NetGalley for the ARC.

I never repeat the blurb, Despite a slightly disjointed start, this absolutely drew me in and I was absolutely hooked. Haven't we all been there, fellow mums? Loved the whole thing from start to end. Can't wait to go back and read Blood Orange now,,,

A very readable book. Different sort of story but characters are very interesting and you do want to find out their back stories and connections. The pre teenage daughter / mother is not normally written about and it made a nice change. Unexpected twist at the end changed this slow burner for me.
Thanks to Netgalley and Headline for the ARC copy of this book.

I really wanted to like the book but couldn't. It's well written but in the genre of book about a cult it doesn't bring anything new. There is no tension, and I didn't care about the cult or believe in it. Similarly the main character felt like just a conduit for the story and didn't bring anything to the book.

Absolutely loved this book, I couldn't put it down. Everything slotted into place so well that the story carried itself and made me feel as though I was watching a gripping film. The ending was well thought out and fitted perfectly.

The Lies You Told, Harriet Tyce. 3/5

Life is hard for Sadie Roper, split from her ex husband, she flees the US back to her hometown of London in the UK with daughter Robin in tow, enrolling Robin in her former prestigious school. Sadie soon finds out that the rules of the playground can be deadly. This book drops on July 23rd, add it to your pre-orders!

Harriets debut novel Blood Orange was a shot in the dark for a genre that can feel bloated at times. I tore through it in a couple of hours and awaited her next release and here it is.

The Lies You Told is a dark, unsettling follow up. Like catching a shadow in the corner of your eye. A well paced thriller you can lose a few hours inside.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #Wildfire for my
ARC of this book.

A great second novel by Harriet Tyce, following on from Blood Orange..

Sadie is trying to get her life back in track after leaving her husband, having placed her career on hold for years to raise a family, now she has to provide for her and her daughter. The insular, exclusive school that Sadie and her daughter have to become part of, and parental politics at play, makes for a great setting in which to let things play out. Then add in Sadie's attempts to resurrect her career, diving straight into a contentious case, with plenty dark corners for twists to lurk in. Loved it - highly recommend.

A legal drama about bullying and fitting in. I have heard of this author’s first book: Blood Orange and it’s one I’m about to download as my next book. Love a new author! Absolutely 5/5.

I loved this book. It was a real page turner especially the last couple of pages!
Would recommend this book

Absolutely loved this book!!! Would wholeheartedly recommend to all of my friends, and I cannot wait to read more from this author.

I would recommend this story to all thriller lovers. This book took me by surprise. It kept me interested throughout the story and I needed to see what was going to happen. I truly enjoyed the pacing of the story and the well-written characters.

This book had a lot of potential, but unfortunately there was just to many sub plots, and non of them added to the story

A mother and her daughter return to London from America, as the daughter takes up a place at her mother's old school - a place that the mother remembers with fear and loathing, compounded by her treatment by the other mothers at the school gates. The mother gets involved in a court case when she returns to work as a barrister, and tries to combine work with looking after her daughter and protecting her from bullying at school as the hothoused girls prepare to sit their Eleven Plus. I loved 'Blood Orange' by this author which was a brilliant depiction of alcoholism and gaslighting, and this is an enjoyable and well-executed follow-up that kept me turning the pages.

Sadie Roper returns home from America with her daughter, Robin.  Her domineering mother has passed away and left the family home to Sadie on the condition that Robin goes to the same school Sadie attended and hated.

Robin finds it difficult to settle at school and Sadie finds herself the talk of the schoolgate mothers until the leader of the gang accepts her into the group.  Sadie finds herself drawn into the crazy, competitive lives of the other mothers.  There is also the substory of Sadie trying to restart her life as a barrister.

I enjoyed reading the background stories and particularly the details of Sadie’ childhood living with her heartless mother.  The story was easy to follow even though it skipped between different years.  I loved the ending – I definitely was not expecting it!!
 
I would wholeheartedly recommend this book.  Thank you @netgalley for my #gifted eARC.

Year six student Robin Spence isn't happy about having to start a new school. She's left the school she loved in New York and now she's going to Ashams in North London. It's very upmarket; places are rare as hens' teeth and as the pupils have all been there forever, they have their established groups. Robin's going to be an outsider. And why is this happening? Well, over a matter of a few days her parents' marriage fell apart. Andrew Spence is staying in New York - he works for a securities firm - and her mother, Sadie Roper, has come back to London to pick up her practice as a criminal barrister. That's easier said than done when you've been out of the market place - and the country - for more than ten years.

Sadie's come back to London because she might be able to get work here and because there's a house she can use. Her mother, Lydia, was difficult ('extremely difficult' wouldn't be pushing it too far) and she and Sadie hadn't spoken since Sadie was given the choice of having the baby or retaining a relationship with Lydia - and chose to have Robin. Lydia retaliated - it was in her nature - by leaving her property in a trust. The home and the money would go elsewhere unless Robin attended and completed her secondary education at Ashams School. Even the solicitor who was the trustee was appalled.

Ashams isn't an unknown quantity to Sadie - or her best friend, Zora. They met at the school and both hated it. The signs are not good this time around, either. Sadie's effectively ostracised at the school gate and Robin's coming in for some bullying too. Does she really have to stay at Ashams?

By the bottom of the first page, I knew that I was going to love this book. There are elements of mystery: exactly what has gone wrong with Andrew and Sadie's marriage? Why did Sadie and Robin have to make such a hurried departure from New York? Then there are the characters. I adored Robin: she's ten going on twenty-five and sometimes she seems more in control than her mother. You've got to admire her courage for even being willing to give Ashams a try: the school itself might be fine, but the parents and the girls leave a lot to be desired.

In fairness, it's the mothers who are the problem: there's a leitmotif running through this book of the effect on children from mothers who have been abandoned. Lydia, Sadie's mother, was widowed when Sadie was young. Sadie's working on a case where a young man has a domineering mother - and she and his father can't even be in the same room. The Parent-Teacher Association at Ashams is dominated by divorced women - and, of course, Sadie is in the course of divorcing Andrew. Sadie's the exception though in that she's not trying to force her daughter to achieve anything - but then Robin seems to achieve without even trying very hard.

The ending is particularly chilling. You will feel as though ice is running down your spine.

I'd like to thank the publishers for making a review copy available to the Bookbag.

When Sadie moves back to London with her daughter, the welcoming committee are not out for them when Robin starts school. But when things change, Is it for the better? A gripping read that hooked me in and was impossible to put down.

This had a slow start and I nearly gave up,on it - but I’m so pleased I didn’t. The ending was brilliant and I really enjoyed the storyline - a good read and I would recommend this book.

Thanks to Netgalley for a preview of this book, I loved Blood Orange and had high hopes for this book. It never reached its potential for me & I felt many of the plots in the book were ridiculous. Especially the one surrounding her husband it made zero sense as did the final few chapters of this book. It started off well but than just got more and more ridiculous.

Sadie and her daughter Robin have returned to her childhood home after the death of her mother. She has enrolled Robin in her old school to comply with her mothers wishes.
Robin doesn’t feel that she fits in there and is unhappy.
A slow burning thriller with a twist.
Thank you to NetGalley and Headline for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

The lies you told
Harriet Tyce

It took me a little while to really get into this book. There was quite a few plots going on, I liked the court storyline. I feel the story regarding them coming to the UK and the husband was a bit rushed and not really explained very well. Sort of just added in at the end and not mentioned again.
Not a bad read, but not one of my favourites, wasn’t overly keen on the ending. I like a book to be finished with clarity and this sort of gives you thought which I know some people like but it’s not really for me.

Overall a 3 star.