Oh my goodness, Lisa Jewell''s done it again. She's written a knockout book where every page brings a revelation that blows apart whatever you think has happened and reorders it into another reality, again and again.

'None of this is True' has a different feel to her other books and I loved it just as much. It is written as a series of interviews leading up to a podcast, interspersed with moments from the protagonists' lives. The podcast starts off looking at birthday twins, two unrelated people who happen to be born on the same day in the same hospital but whose lives couldn't be more different.

Alix, the glamorous and affluent podcast host, is befriended by Josie, a down-trodden housewife who has been married to Walter, a much older man since she was a teenager, and who feels that life has passed her by. Walter has retired, their children are grown up and estranged, she doesn't have any friends or any ambition - her whole life has been wrapped up in Walter.

Josie and Alix have both just had their 45th birthday. Josie feels that its now or never - if she is going to make any changes in her life, it has to be now and it has to be significant. She suggests that Alix interviews her in the process of her personal transformation, selling this as a different take on the podcasts that Alix normally makes about women who have already successfully changed their lives.

Alix agrees to do so, interviewing Josie and other people who are involved in Josie's life as her history is revealed. . Each interview adds more complexity to the situation, with Josie seeming to be less passive than she originally presented. There are so many twists and turns, with our understanding of what is happening being challenged at every instance. From the outset, there is the understanding that Josie's story has gone to some dark places, with hints being dropped along the way.

Josie becomes more and more enmeshed in Alix's life through the interview process, taking every snippet of information and hoarding it carefully, along with the photos she's stolen from Alix's house, or the handsoap from her bathroom. There's a really interesting power dynamic between the two women, as Alix's privileged position butts up against Josie's need to be heard. She is crying out to be listened to for once in her life; after years of being a daughter, wife and mother, now its her time to be noticed.

'None of this is True' is a fantastic story, a great new fictional direction for Lisa Jewell to take with lots to get stuck into for every crime fiction fan.

Thanks to netgalley and Century Books for the chance to read the ARC

Wow!!! What an amazing and brilliant book. I couldn't put it down. Josie befriends Alix who is a well known podcast,but all isn't what it seems. Just who is Josie and why is she so obsessed with Alix. This is sure to be a massive hit and is not to be mi

After a chance meeting whilst independently celebrating their 45th birthdays, Josie arranges another “chance” meeting with her birthday twin Alix to propose an idea for a podcast. Alix is unsure, but when Josie’s bizarre life story starts to unfold she is soon hooked.

Every time I read a LJ book I think it can’t get better than this but invariably it does! There are good writers, excellent writers, and then there are the special ones, and LJ is one of the leaders of that special pack. Never disappoints, goes from strength to strength and produces masterpieces each time.

A 100% recommendation.

Thank you NetGalley.

As usual Lisa Jewell held me enthralled from the first page to the last page. I am loving the new podcast plot line in books so this was high on my list this year. The layout and formatting of this moved at a quick pace. Be careful who you believe and who you trust because even what you think you know, you don’t when it comes to this thriller of a read. I do believe this is one of my favorites yet! It still has me thinking of how much we put out about ourselves online and who we let into our lives, for whatever the reason.

Wowza!!! What a fantastic book. I did not see the twists coming and there were a lot. All of the characters and plot was tightly woven and so seamless.
Alix was a great character, and her sisters. Josie was creepy AF - like properly. Even when she lied to Alix about Walter ‘beating her up’ I had my suspicions that Josie had surely beaten her self up, like she was that unhinged enough to countenance it herself.
I can’t believe that something so magnificent and powerful was written in such a short amount of time. I would recommend this to anyone and everyone. Lisa Jewell continues to astound. You can never go wrong with a Lisa Jewell book.
#NoneOfThisIsTrue #Netgalley

Lisa has done it again! None of this is True is breathtaking, compelling, topical and unsettling. Set in the world of podcasting, your views of Lisa's well crafted characters change frequently as you inhabit the merging worlds of "Birthday Twins" Alix and Josie and their families.

Fans of the increasingly popular True Crime documentaries that seem to hog our TV schedules currently will love this book. The reader almost becomes an armchair detective, trying to get to the bottom as to who is really telling the truth. Just when you think you've got it all worked out, Lisa provides the reader with one last mighty twist!

A sure fire hit and a book that deserves room in your holiday suitcase in July when it is published. I read it in two days, staying up until the small hours to finish it. Just superb!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Random House U.K., Cornerstone for the arc in return for an honest review.

Wow……she’s done it again!

How has Lisa Jewel transitioned to writing fairly light hearted books with that slight bit of drama or mystery to a complete whizz at releasing thrilling books on murder?!

How has she done it? It’s fantastic.

My favourite book of hers is “The Family Upstairs” and I have a few others that have come close and stayed with me. This is near the top for me. Fantastic! The progression over the years into full on murder mystery and psychological writing has been amazing. It’s been a joy to read. She really does cater for everybody!

I spent the first half of the book not really knowing what the hell was going on but super intrigued. Then we start getting to the bottom of it! And the ending?? What the hell? I’m actually doubting myself to what I believe. I really am.

This will be popular on its official release date! Superb.

Another perfectly plotted thriller, fraught with human emotion and a devastating darkness!

I don’t know how Lisa Jewell does it, but every book I read of hers immediately draws me in and has me hooked on the characters, the plot and the deep dive into the human psyche. None of This is True did exactly this and I could not put it down! In fact I read until 4am to finish it, because I needed to know what happened that desperately. This is a book that takes its time to build (don’t misinterpret that to mean it’s slow, as it’s not - the pace is excellent!), really winding up the tension and unsettling atmosphere, culminating in a cracking crescendo of an ending. Going into this story we know that not all we are reading will be true, but I genuinely couldn’t see where this novel was going. It’s twisted, surprising, clever and engrossing. The style really helps create razor sharp suspense, as the narrative flows through time-stamped moments and snippets of a Netflix true crime documentary on these events, after the fact. I loved how this captured glimpses of what was to come, whetting my appetite to continue turning goes and discover the truth. What is revealed is a story far more shocking than the lies told prior…and that’s saying something!

As with all of Lisa Jewell’s novels, None of This is True is so thematic and timely. I loved how this story really explored our cultural obsession with sharing our story and how dark and dangerous that can actually be. It’s a distinctly 21st century desire to over-share every aspect of our lives and Jewell perfectly taps into the manipulative narcissism of this through Josie. As with any novel Jewell writes, the characters are drawn with such reality. Protagonists Alix and Josie are both wonderfully complex. Both of them are flawed in gravely human ways, both of them are plausible blend of light and shade. However, as the story progresses, the shift in Josie’s behaviours and forever changing stories add a genuine sense of unease to the narrative. I was conflicted for much of the read, as Alix can be frustrating in her situation but is ultimately sympathetic, and I flitted between feeling sorry for Josie and loathing her. As the story progressed, my feelings became more visceral as the power of Jewell’s writing delivered an increasingly tense and emotional conclusion perfectly. One thing you can guarantee with one of Jewell’s novels is that you will be taken on a journey: you’ll be moved, probably enraged, gobsmacked, on the edge of your seat, and - most significantly - be impacted. This story is a brilliant exploration of relationships, abuse, family, mental health and our overarching desire to construct our own truths. It also really got me thinking about the voyeurism that true crime media provides audiences and the potential glorification or sensationalism of such horrific occurrences. If you are a true crime fan, you will absolutely love this novel! If you’re a fan of a psychological thriller that keeps you guessing and deals with social issues in a thrilling way, you’ll also love this. If you’re a long-standing Lisa Jewell fan, you won’t be disappointed (you’ll love this too!)…and ALL of this is true!

I loved, loved, LOVED this book! Definitely the best Lisa Jewell I have read. It starts innocently enough, and just gets darker and darker - you get the sense that there is so much sliding around under the surface that you don't know. As small pieces of truth are revealed, it becomes increasingly unnerving and horrifying.
Anyone who has ever enjoyed a psychological thriller will absolutely enjoy this book - highly recommended!!

I was hooked on this one from the start - Josie and Alix meet by chance on their birthday, discovering that they share a birthday and were born in the same hospital. They are, however, two very different women.

I cringed on behalf of Josie a lot through the book, but also wondered if she was as innocent as she seems. She was cunning and it was fascinating to read.
I loved the inclusion of the Netflix extracts, alerting the reader that there is something more sinister to come, and these definitely made me want to read on.
Another absolute cracker from the thriller queen, full of twists that kept me guessing right until the end.

Fantastic read - Lisa Jewell is an amazing author and never seems to disappoint. This is juicy and gripping from the start, disturbing and bold in a way many thrillers won't dare to do. I couldn't put it down!

I don't even know where to begin with this. This book left me speechless. In true Lisa Jewell fashion, she delivers a book that is packed with suspense, lies, and treachery of all sorts.

When Alix meets Josie her life takes turns that she never could have expected. Throughout the entire book you are left guessing what happens next, who to believe, what to believe and you are left wanting more. Josie slowly inserts herself into Alix and her families life. As she does so, Alix is left wondering if Josie is who she claims to be? After a strange chat with Walter (Josies husband), she starts to get a sense that all isn't as it seems and starts to question her motives. The ending will have you white knuckling the arm of the couch.

A special thank you to netgalley for the ARC copy.

I am a big fan of Lisa Jewell and was super excited to get this NetGalley arc!


I LOVED this one. It’s so clever and twisted. I loved that the format is a mix of story, podcast transcripts and descriptions of the documentary. Because of the way the story is told, it could easily become a film/show which I would absolutely watch.

It’s an absolute page-turner and I cannot recommend this enough.

Not my usual reading fare, but my daughter is a massive fan, so getting an ARC for her, and seeing what she liked for me, made sense.

None of This is True begins (framing device apart) with two women, previously unknown to each other, celebrating their 45th birthday on the same day in a Queen's Park gastropub:

- Alix, a semi-successful podcaster, well-off and married to a city businessman, there with a large group of friends

- Josie, unassuming and there with her much older (he's over 70) husband, both rather fishes-out-of-water in the environment (in a nice detail, Josie looks up the menu beforehand and googles many of the ingredients)

The two meet in the toilets and realise they are "birthday twins", even born on the same hospital ward, and Josie suggests that Alix tells her story on her podcast.

That this will all end very badly indeed (and end in multiple deaths) is foreshadowed early on in one of the novel's key framing devices - that the whole thing has been made into a Netflix true-crime series, with scenes from the story re-enacted over audio from Alix's podcast and interviews with others involved.

Jewell can certainly write, and the first 2/3rds of this kept me racing through the pages as, as the novel's title suggests, Alix, and the reader, wrestle with how much of Josie's surprisingly dramatic life story is true, as well as her gradual intrusion into Alix's own life.

On the -ve side, the revelations / wrapping up in the last third was a little anti-climatic, particularly given the book's opening already sets up the drama. And it also felt the resolution backed away from one of the challenges posed by Josie to Alix, whether her marriage was really any more functional than Josie's and whether Josie was actually doing her a favour.

Jewell makes an interesting narrative choice that, framing device apart, the story is narrated from alternating close third-person perspectives between Alix and Josie. For Alix this makes sense, but given Josie appears to be hiding a lot, it raises the question of what exactly we are reading as the close third-person narrator seems equally fooled at times - although in a neat coda to the novel Jewell does suggest an answer, while leaving the reader with more questions.

Overall - although not my usual style of book, I was relatively impressed.

Thanks to the publisher via Netgalley for the ARC.

Lisa Jewell always with amazing surprises.
I love this book so much, Can't wait Netflix series 🙃
WOW!!!!! Hooked from the first page and read this book in one sitting… Full of tension and suspense. A real page turner, a domestic noir but OMG so much more!!!!!

How does Lisa Jewell do it? Each one of her psych thrillers is more compelling than the last. Once I started reading this I just couldn’t stop - and now I’ve finished it in a day and am bereft. None of This is True is gripping, twisty, heartbreaking and truly terrifying. The podcast format is brilliantly executed and if it hasn’t happened already, I’m sure Netflix will snap up the rights. Bravo!

Oh. My. Word.

Only Lisa Jewell can bring you a book which absolutely terrifies you but you also can’t stop reading.

I read this in two evenings flat, it was unputdownable. But please do not read this with the lights off or when you are alone, it is heart thumpingly good, very disturbing indeed.

When Josie is out celebrating her 45th birthday with her husband, she sees a table next to hers also celebrating the 45th birthday of Alix, a successful podcaster. When Alix starts to work with Josie to document her life through a podcast, it starts a chain of events with far-reaching consequences.

If you loved ‘The Family Upstairs’, you are in for a treat with this, it is very dark and totally unexpected.

Probably my book of the year! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

Wow what a psychological thriller this book is. A family with so many problems and how they play out.
A famous pod caster who is drawn in without knowing it and how it affects her family.
The last famous twist to the story to finish it.
A great book from start to finish.

This is bloody brilliant!

It’s so intensely creepy, I love it.

We start to get hints that all may not be as it seems early on but it is so well paced. I especially like the almost dual narrative with the Netflix interjections!

I was approved for this book on Thursday evening and I’ve just finished it this morning (Saturday) - talk about a page turner! Every time I read one of Lisa Jewell’s books I think they can’t possibly get any more gripping … but then they do! The things I found that make this one particularly gripping and unique are the format (if you like true crime documentaries and podcasts like me🙋‍♀️, this is 100% the one for you) - her writing style makes it so easy to visualise exactly what this book would look like were it on screen, I actually want to watch it now! (And I’m sure at one point I actually started believing the characters were real 😂.) Also, the level of doubt that is constantly fed to the reader (as is often the case with the consumer of TC docs) so that you never know what really happened. I’d love to know if Lisa herself really does know the true story here! This was an incredible read, one of my faves of her thrillers (so far!).