‘Her Lies Could Kill You’ - cover tag line.

My thanks to Random House U.K. Cornerstone Century for an eARC via NetGalley of ‘None of This is True’ by Lisa Jewell.

Without doubt Lisa Jewell knows how to craft an unsettling psychological thriller. Here she utilises the premise of framing the story within a Netflix documentary series titled: ‘Hi! I’m Your Birthday Twin!’

Josie Fair is an unassuming woman, married to Walter, a much older man. For her 45th birthday she suggests to Walter that they go out for dinner at a local gastropub. While there they notice a large party entering, clearly celebrating the birthday of another woman.

When Josie sees the woman, Alix Summer, in the ladies they chat. It turns out that they are both celebrating their 45th birthdays and to add to the coincidence, were born on the same day at a local hospital.

Alix is a journalist and podcaster and when they cross paths a few days later outside Alix's children's school, Josie suggests that she could be an interesting subject for Alix's podcast. Alix agrees to an initial interview and discovers that Josie's life does appear to be strange and complicated.

Aix also finds something about Josie unsettling yet can't quite resist the temptation to keep digging. Meanwhile, Josie seems to be inserting herself ever further into Alix’s life. No further details to avoid spoilers.

Well, as regular readers of psychological thrillers know this kind of behaviour is never a good sign. Plus, given that whatever happened between them resulted in the creation of a documentary series, it must be pretty dramatic.

I ended up reading ‘None of This is True’ in a single sitting, which is often the case with Lisa Jewell’s novels. On occasion there’s a mention of cameras and stage directions, reminding the reader of the tv series.

Overall, a dark gripping psychological thriller with plenty of satisfying twists.

4.5 stars rounded up to 5.

As a big fan of Lisa Jewell I was looking forward to reading this latest one and I wasn’t disappointed.

Alix, a popular podcaster is celebrating her birthday at her local pub when she bumps into Josie, who is also celebrating her birthday. A few days later the two bump into each other again and Alix finds herself committing to meeting with Josie again to talk about a podcast.

Alix finds Josie fascinating and they are soon meeting regularly to record the podcast but soon Josie starts to hint at a disturbing past. Alix is determined to try and uncover the truth about Josie’s past but she spins find herself in an uncomfortable situation when Josie turns up on her doorstep looking for somewhere to stay.

Alix starts to uncover more and more about Josie and the more she discovers the more concerned she becomes. Can Alix discover the truth before she becomes too involved ? And what cost will their relationship have on their lives ?

This is a fantastic psychological thriller with plenty of twists and turns. The characters are well developed and you will find yourself invested in the plot as it develops. Not one to be missed !!

Thank you to Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for a digital copy of this book.

Lisa Jewell has done it again! I swear she just keeps getting better and better.

None of This is True is an absolute smasher of a thriller. It's addictive, it's creepy, it twists and it turns and it had me gripped from the get go.

It starts off very innocently with the sweet but slightly strange Josie Fair bumping into a local podcaster, Alix Summers, in the pub. They realise they are birthday twins and Josie offers herself to Alix as a podcast subject.

From then on we hear about Josie's life through their podcast interviews and that's when the book takes a drastic turn and we head straight into psychological thriller territory.

Once you have started reading you will not be able to leave this book alone.
As per usual Jewell has created characters that fascinate and repulse you in equal measures and has the reader on the edge of their seat not knowing which way the story is going to go.

Another absolute triumph from one of the Queens of the thriller world!

An easy 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 from me.

I have to little say on this one, literally no notes. One of the best thrillers I have read in a long time and I believe Lisa Jewell's best book to date. Gripping, impossible to put down, dark, twisty with one of the most terrifying characters I have ever read, I am never forgetting Josie.
Read this book.

4.5 stars.

Very few authors can drag me away from my beloved fantasy and have me hooked, but Jewell is one I can depend on to keep me turning the pages until late into the night. Her new book is no exception and I struggled to put it down.

I was hooked from the short prologue, the hairs on the back of my neck already up and ready, Jewel has such a gift for delving into the dark and disturbing, with breath taking revelations that just keep coming and slapping you across the face. I gave up on thrillers as I always saw the twist, but this book left me SHAKING.

Shy and retiring Josie, 45 with an elderly husband, grown children just happens to be going out for a birthday meal to the same place as Alix, who it turns out is Josie's birthday twin. Alix with her huge, loud group of friends, couldn't be further from Josie, but she reaches out to the famous podcaster Alix. Now Alix finds herself interviewing Josie for a new project, where the revelations and secrets leave her reeling.

The characters are brilliant. The polar opposites of each other and how they start to interact with each other. I love how your constantly questioning what's going on and what's real right up to the final page.

As usual, Jewel leaves you gasping for breath by the end. Just like the family upstairs, this book will stay with me for a long time and it's one I'll buy for friends and family to enjoy. Highly recommend this novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing an ARC in return for an honest review of this truly fantastic novel.

It starts as a strange co-incidence. Josie Fair is celebrating her forty fifth birthday with her much older husband Walter at a smart gastropub when a group also celebrating a birthday. Alix Summers is the birthday girl. A broadcaster & a podcaster she has gained some fame after a popular series dealing with successful women. It turns out that the two women are 'Birthday Twins' born on the same day in the same hospital. The are both married with two children- their children even attend the same primary school (although Josie's daughters left a long while ago) Apart from that they are very different. Alix wants a new direction for her podcasts- could this be it? Josie seems to like the idea & agrees to be interviewed. All quite harmless you think? Be prepared for a trip down the rabbit hole! Told from various viewpoints this story grabs you & will not let go. It is one of my favourite reads so far this year! Thanks to Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book- I loved it!

On the simplest level, the new Lisa Jewell thriller None of this is true invites us to cover much well-trodden ground. Creepy Person invades the life of Someone Nice who almost has it all. No one is a reliable narrator. And we’re made complicit because it’s our voracious appetite for looking through strangers’ windows that drives Someone Nice to go along with Creepy Person even when all her instincts are telling her to run for her and others’ lives. Yes, we do get all that. But None of this is true works so well as a thriller because the ending is only the beginning. We’re fascinated with what has brought everyone to this point.
The thing with Jewell’s writing is this. She reveals quite a lot of the what early on. She keeps enough for a big twist, but we know early on who the bad person is and who’s going to get it. (The prose-podcast transcript mix really helps with this.) We stay, mainly because the story-telling is so good - fresh, pacy, compelling even when the characters are deliberately none of those things, but also because we want to know how. But it’s the why that has us pausing once we’ve got to the end. What do we learn about ourselves and our society and our humanity?
That may sound a little over the top. Not for Jewell the big set piece political number, in which conspiracies are uncovered and power structures dismantled. But there’s plenty on trust, and how we open ourselves up to people in ‘authority’, to victims (nuance isn’t a reason to close ourselves off), to our own instincts, to people who say they are our birthday twin. As ever, Jewell examines relationships that are superficially healthy and questions whether they are quite as healthy as they seem, or as unhealthy as we suddenly assume. But she also examines our relationships with the past and the future and how they affect the present. There’s a smidgeon of mid-life crisis here too, with Josie in particular wanting to reinvent, and Alix noticing that foibles she’d have laughed off in the past are becoming unacceptable.
All of the main adult characters have gone to find answers in their lives. Pat abandoned motherhood but became indispensable elsewhere. Walter’s relationship with his daughter is observed by hundreds of thousands of gamers - but it’s hidden from his wife. Nathan keeps his downs away from Alix. Alix has ridden the success of snap decisions, but her place of escape - her recording studio - wasn’t built by her and perhaps that prevents her from her strategy with Nathan. What is it about Alix that makes Josie think that she holds the answer that will set Josie free? The answer comes, of course, from what Josie thinks is Alix’s weightless, Instagrammable lifestyle, even though it is the untidiness of Alix’s kitchen that makes Josie relate to her more. But when Alix beats herself up for being a ‘flibbertigibbet’ we know the punishment was disproportionate.
Jewell’s books quite often encourage the reader to hold a mirror up to themselves, but with None of this is true she takes it to the max. We’re not just readers this time, we’re not just peering through Walter Fair’s window: we’re listening in via the podcast, and we’re watching on Netflix. Jewell has something to say about that in the fictional marketing blurb: ‘Absolutely spine-chilling stuff, with some shocking glimpses into the darkest corners of humanity: we guarantee you’ll be bingeing the whole thing in a day.’ We’re bad people and just like Alix and Josie we hide the truth from ourselves. Some of this is true.

A chance meeting in a restaurant between two very different women both celebrating their birthdays on the same day, born in the same hospital leads to a thoroughly disturbing power play.

Josie Fair seemingly becomes obsessed with successful podcaster, Alix summers, her birthday twin as she refers to her. After a successful podcast series telling empowering stories of women that have overcome great hardship to become successful Josie persuades Alix to record her transformation from her unhappy life and to document the changes along the way. As the podcast gets underway the story Josie is telling is deeply disturbing and harrowing and a million miles away from being a transformation success. Alix is drawn into Jodie’s narrative with devastating results.

I sped through this book in double time. The story grips you and just when you think you know the ending another twist is thrown in. Most definitely a book worth reading.

**Listened to audiobook and read along with the electronic version too**

I adore Lisa Jewell and have read all of her books, including the 'chick-lit'/romance books at the start of her writing career. I adore her books, and genuinely look forward to a new release from her!
However, the last couple of thriller novels have been a bit 'meh' for me. Sorry to say, including this one.
I still enjoyed it, but just wasn't as engrossed in it, as I have been in her previous books. I found the plot to be very similar to other books I have read. I found the central characters dislikable, and gullible - something that immediately put me off. However, I really loved the 'podcast' element and I love how the audio book really utilised this. The narrators and the sound effects really worked at bringing the podcast to life.

Overall I did enjoy this book, but I wasn't as gripped or 'left guessing' as much as I wanted to be

Thanks to @netgalley and Randomhouse UK, Cornerstone for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2 women who were born the same day and in the same hospital ‘birthday twins’ get to know each other through a podcast. For one of them everything seems to have turned out perfectly. Perfect looking family, good job and is doing well. Whereas the other woman aspires to achieve more, feels unfulfilled and thinks she’s better than her present life and those in it.

The podcast aims to follow her as she has a life makeover and makes the drastic changes she’s been dreaming of for years.

I absolutely adored this book! It intrigued me right from the start with amazing characters and the how intense it all was. An amazing psychological thriller that brings you along holding your breath for the duration.

I loved how unreliable the characters were which kept me guessing what was going to happen. The first half reels you in slowly getting to know the characters but oh my god, the second half is like a rollercoaster!

The release date was yesterday 20th July and I would definitely recommend this to any thriller lovers!

Omg what a book! Absolutely brilliant, highly recommend. Is so well written and will keep you wanting more. If you love thrillers, add this to your next book to be read.

What a whirlwind of a story this is. Based on a chance meeting in a restaurant, 2 women born on the same day in the same hospital choose the same restaurant to celebrate their 45th birthdays. Josie engineers them actually speaking to each other and from there she inveigles herself into Alix's life.
Much of the story is told in podcast form which is a clever, original format.
The twists and turns almost make you dizzy.
Best book I have read by this author so far.
Four and a half stars!
Many thanks to Netgalley/Lisa Jewell/Random House UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.

I have read several books by this author & this is by far my favourite. I’m not really sure how to categorise it - psychological thriller? domestic noir? and more…

Two women meet in a restaurant where both (but separately) are celebrating their 45th birthday. It transpires that they were born on the same day & in the same hospital. Alix Summer is a successful podcaster with a seemingly perfect life. Josie Fair works part time as a seamstress, has a much older, disinterested husband & is not happy with her lot. Through a contrived second meeting, Josie persuades Alix that she would make a good subject for her podcast & so it begins.

The title gives it away but the narrator is unreliable in the truest sense of the word. The chapters are written in such a way that, as a reader, you are unaware of her contrivance & the reality of the situation is revealed drip by drip.
A fabulous read & I'm not sure how the author will top this one.

Going through a bit of a reading rut recently and this was exactly what I needed. Another gripping psychological thriller by Lisa Jewell, I don’t think she can ever write a bad book! Loved that this centred around two female characters and how their lives interlapped, at first seemingly innocently, but with far too many creepy coincidences as the plot unfolds. Plenty of twists and turns in this one too, especially in the second half - I’ve not devoured a book like this one in ages.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Whilst out celebrating her 45th birthday podcaster Alix Summer meets Josie Fair who was not only born on the same day but also in the hospital! As unexpected as the chance meeting was Alix doesnt think of it again until she bumps into Josie again. Soon after Josie convinces Alix that she would make the perfect subject for her new podcast. Reluctanrly Alix agrees but she gets a whole lot more than she bargained for.

The story begins from Josie's point of view, out with her husband for a birthday dinner somewhere new which made me make a snap judgement about our potential protagonist but I was wrong. I fell into Lisa Jewell's trap about who was the innocent party in what would unfold but early on you can clearly see who is bad and who is good. The use of mixed media, such as podcast and true crime Netflix show slowly but surely widen the chasm between right and wrong until you are fully immersed in the murky depths of this domestic thriller. This addicting book hooks you with juicy tidbits and then reels you in until you are face to face with the awful truth. I read in the author's notes at the end that this was the quickest she had written a book which is some feat as the result is a perfectly paced read which will satisfy any thriller lover from beginning to end. Let's hope that Jewell's next release is not far off then!

This was a twisty, thrilling book full of unreliable characters. Another excellent book from Lisa Jewell!

None Of This Is True is the easiest five stars I’ve given a book this year.
Two women leading completely different lives bump into each other at a restaurant on their forty fifth birthdays. Both have the same birthday and both were born in the same hospital. There the similarities end.
Alix Summer appears to have it all, has a successful podcast, lovely home and supportive family whereas Josie Fair is a housewife, part time seamstress, difficult relationship with her husband and her two grown up daughters. A chance meeting again and Josie convinces Alix that she would be a great subject for her next podcast so Alix starts it but once she does there’s no going back.
This book has everything you could possibly want from a psychological thriller. I couldn’t put it down, every chapter left me wanting to find out more, what was really good was that one character is an unreliable teller of past events so trying to dig through what is real and not was quite nail biting.
Cannot wait for your next book!!
I would like to thank Netgalley and Random House, Cornerstone for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent Lisa Jewell installation!!! Toxic friendships, damaged relationships, mystery and intrigue, what's not to love? Even to the end I was not sure of the exact truth, constantly changing my mind throughout the book. Who's lying? Who's the victim? Some jaw dropping moments. Although there have been one or two of this author's books I just didn't warm to, this one was not one of those. Really recommend this book if you want a gripping quick paced ride!

I really am starting to love Lisa Jewells writing style. I think her books tend to be more mystery than what I am used to from thrillers. But I am also glad that she writes stories that make sense and don't have all these lavish twists just to have them. This book was amazing and really had me on the edge of my seat most of it.

I was so excited to receive a proof of this as Lisa Jewell is one of my favourite authors. I think this might be my favourite book so far. It was absolutely gripping!

The story starts when two women coincidentally meet in a restaurant and realise they are both out celebrating their 45th birthday and were born in the same hospital on the same day.
When they have a 'chance' meeting again Josie suggests that Alix makes a podcast about the two of them with the theme of 'birthday twins' It isn't long before Alix realises Josie has led a troubled life with a disturbing past but which parts are true? Alix is desperate to make an addictive podcast so against her better judgement she continues. Can she discover the truth before it is too late?

I loved delving into the lives of these two women. As always it is pacy, dark and full of twists.
The story is told by both women and is also partly recorded as a podcast and a Netflix documentary which added another layer of intrigue to the story.
I flew through it trying to work out who and what to believe! This is an absolute page turning and one of the best psychological thrillers I've read this year!