This marriage was full of secrets on both sides which kept it suspenseful for me and and me gripped throughout.

4 out of 5 stars (4 / 5) “A Marriage of Lies” delves into the complexities of marriage, trust, and the consequences of keeping secrets. Rowan, a detective, finds herself in a web of deception when her own husband begins to hide things from her, just as she is hiding secrets from him.

Secrets and mystery are exactly what makes a great thriller. This book did a great job at grabbing my interest and holding it until the end. The multiple relationships added to the intrigue and kept me guessing.

I did find the shifting perspectives confusing, particularly when it came to differentiating between the female characters. Clarifying these perspectives would enhance the clarity and flow of the story.

I also would have preferred more development of Kellan, Rowan’s police partner. While Kellan plays a significant role in the story, I craved more backstory and depth to fully understand his character and his relationship with Rowan.

Overall, it is a suspenseful read that will keep readers engaged from beginning to end.

Thank you to Thriller Book Lovers Promotions for the copy!

The book releases March 29, 2024.

Whoa! My head is spinning. So many dang twists that I couldn’t keep up.

We are introduced to Rowan. A married detective in her 40’s. Meet Amber, Rowan’s married therapist. Both of these women are unhappily married. Their lives are a hot mess! Shoot, their husbands are a mess of their own.

Women are being murdered in their small community. Someone is placing X’s over the victim’s eyes and mouths. Someone is sending a message. A clear and direct message.

As Rowan and her new handsome partner gather leads into these grisly murders, there are other crazy things going on. Emotions start going wack! Who is committing these crimes? All the while, Rowan’s marriage is crumbling as she is trying to piece together what in the heck is going on.

Well, I COULD NOT PUT THIS DOWN! I blew through this in 24 hours. I’d get to the end of a chapter and 💥 BAM! What just happened? Wait what? I found myself going back and rereading real quick just in case I got it wrong. Nope, I read it right.

When it came to the last 15% of the book, it became all tell and no show. Ya dig? Everything is told in black and white. Anyone can do that. I love to be shown, not a lengthy telling of ‘ This is really what happened’. IDK, those just bother me. Another thing I noticed was Amber’s erratic behavior. What in tarnation? She’s a therapist for heaven’s sake. All that went right out the window. I’m not giving any spoilers, just her behavior in her character.

Over all, this was a fun read that I BLEW through! Full of heavy twists and turns! This might be for you. Read the other reviews because everyone is raving about it! Unfortunately, I’m the outlier as always, my dear friends.

Thank you to Storm Publishing, NetGalley, and the author for the opportunity. All opinions are my own.
3.5 ⭐️ lowered to 3 for the finish

Let me just start by saying I finished this book in just a little over 24 hours. The characters and their storylines were well thought out and described. I felt like I was living in the same town. A lot of times when books go back and forth, I find it not so easy to stay on track, but this was very well done. I am still in shock how this ended, I didn’t see that coming at all. This was my first book by Amanda McKinney and I will absolutely be reading them all! Thank you for allowing me to read this ARC!

I want to start off this review by thanking NetGalley for providing me with the ARC of this book.
There are a ‘few main’ characters in this book, but personally I think the most important one is Rowan Velkey. She is a detective, who is currently working on a case, where three women have been found killed - and what intertwines these three women together, is the letter X that has been carved on their bodies. While she is working on this case with her partner Kellan, she is having problems in her marriage, suspecting that her husband Shepherd Velky, is having an affair with someone.
The other main character is Amber, who works as a therapist, and I will end it at that.
I definitely recommend this book, have to admit and say I was so confused at the beginning and it didn’t make sense- as to why there were two main characters and why we got two povs when they lived such different lives, until a bit later when it all clicked and made sense. The writing was good too, it wasn’t too fast phased nor too slow.
The plot twists though? I did not expect one of them, but some of them I definitely did, and I was still surprised when my suspicions were confirmed. I really enjoyed reading this book, and it feels kind of boring now that I finished it. This is also the first book I’ve read from this author, and I’m very tempted to read more of her work!
The book gets published 29 March 2024, definitely worth a read! Want to note one thing too, I was not asked or under any obligation to share a review, all opinion is my own.

I enjoyed all the twists in this book. I loved how the background on the characters was written and woven into the story. This is a quick read with lots of drama and secrets. Lots of trigger warnings to be had. Those would include suicide, mental health, child abuse, Alzheimer’s, dementia, infertility, foster care, special needs. As an autism mom myself I am very picky when books talks about neurological development and autism. I didn’t like the genetic testing talk and the “freak of nature” references. I feel those chapters are irrelevant and unnecessary to the story or could have been written differently. I’m not letting the autism mom in me use these things for the basis of my rating as I feel it was a really good thriller and I enjoyed the book. Amanda McKinney is a wonderful story teller and writer. If you haven’t checked out her Mad Women series, you definitely should. They are my fave.

I received an ARC from the publisher for an honest review via NetGalley.

Detective Rowan Velky is an excellent detective, so when a total of 3 women are killed and a killer has left a message, she is on the case, working tirelessly day and night. Her marriage has problems and she is also attending therapy.
The plot is very interesting, as are the characters. The reader starts to think that the story is pretty straightforward but a couple twists and turns that definitely were not expected happen.

All in all, an excellent, relatively quick read. I gave it 4 stars because there were spots in the beginning that were a little disjointed and sometimes slow, but in the end, it was worth reading and I loved it. I would check out more by this author.

A solid 4 star read. I was a tad jumbled for a min with the different storylines, but I caught on eventually. This one was twisty and kept my interest. I’d definitely recommend it.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review-
What a thriller! A marriage of love turns to secrets. — As the wife follows him to find answers.
He saved her life when she was young now she will save him! …. But to what end …guilty of murder??!

A Marriage of Lies by A. McKinney, published by Storm Publishing is a thriller of its finest.
Rowan is a 41 year old woman, a Detective who's latest case leads her to trouble and more trouble. Ad an husband who's a no good waste of space, an adverse environment, treacherous allies and a story where nothing is a sit seems, literally nothing. She's about to give up but karma has other plans.
A thrilling read that had me on the edge of my seat from start til the last page. An incredible read, 5 stars.

This book was fabulous. The plot twists had my head spinning in the best way. I truthfully had no idea how the book would end until it was over!

Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this Advanced Reader’s Copy of A Marriage of Lies by Amanda McKinney due to be published March 29, 2024.
Detective Rowan Velky and her husband, Shepherd, have been together since their days in foster care. They are bound to each other through shared experiences – both good and bad.
Amber, a counselor, and Mark, her husband, are having problems, also. Not to mention that their son, Connor, is being tested for autism. Her best friend, Emma, is trying to help her with her problems and keep her new boyfriend a secret.
As I began reading, I couldn’t wait to see how all these people were connected to each other. This book did not disappoint. It had so many twists and turns it was hard to keep up. There was a new emotion in every chapter, and I read it in one day.
The ending was a total shock that I didn’t guess. This was my first book by Amanda McKinney – I will definitely be looking for more of her books!

.#NetGalley #AmandaMcKinney #StormPublishing #AMarriageofLies

I don’t know how Amanda McKinney does it, but she shocks me every single time! This book is a twisty thriller and domestic suspense AND a serial killer police procedural with not one but TWO marriages filled with secrets and lies. Two compelling female protagonists, one a detective and the other a therapist, who are both a little shifty and morally grey. It doesn’t get better than that for this thriller lover! The plotting is tight and the pacing is great, with short chapters and alternating perspectives that had me racing through the pages! I really thought I had it all figured out, but this is Amanda McKinney and I should have known that she had another twist up her sleeve!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Storm Publishing, and Thriller Book Lovers Promotions for providing me an advance copy of this book.

A Marriage Of Lies surprised me in a great way. I started reading, thinking it would be a typical mystery/thriller.
Instead it had me trying to figure out the twists and turns and what was happening.
I loved the characters, and they were so well done.
Once I got to the end, I was so surprised in a good way!
I loved this book.
Thank you to @netgalley & @amandamckinney for my free ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I enjoyed this and had a hard time putting it down. It was so good!! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to enjoy this ARC!

A Marriage Of Lies was a fantastically addictive popcorn thriller. I loved every single second and was hooked from the start. From the snappy short chapters with multiple POV’s, to the non stop guessing game, it made for a truly fun ride.

The cast of characters in this one is amazing, they were just so flawed in their own way, mischievous and deranged, I loved them. They were very entertained and will keep you on the edge of your seat.

This book was just the perfect blend of domestic drama, psychological thriller and police procedural. It was all done perfectly to bring you a dark and twisty read. I thought I had some stuff figured out but wow was I wrong. She steered my one way and then jerked me on the complete opposite.

McKinney always shocks and surprises me, from book to book she just gets better. I am a forever fan ! I loved how the plot was intricately woven, with everything just connecting in a shocking way.

✨️Thank you to @thrillerbookloverspromotions, @netgalley & @amandamckinney for my free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In 2023 I cam across a book by Amanda McKinney, The Widow of Weeping Pines, that a few of my friends were giving their thumbs up to. I gave it a try and I found it delightfully disturbing. When I saw that Ms. McKinney had a new standalone available on NetGalley I couldn't resist grabbing a copy.

I'm please to report that she has delivered another read in one sitting twisty little book.

In this story we have Rowan Velkey, a police detective, looking into the mysterious murders of some wealthy women in their small Texas town. What sets these murders apart are that the letter "X" is carved into their bodies. One in their eyes, one in the palm of their hand, and another in their mouth. What is the message the murderer is trying to send to them?

With the help of her partner, Kellan, they are about to find out.

I don't want to say much more plot-wise in fear of spilling any secrets. There are definitely some unexpected twists in this one. The pacing was on point with short and sweet chapters which I always appreciate. Rowan was a likeable protagonist that I was rooting for. Where this book faltered a bit, for me anyways, is with the ending. I expected a little more. The final denouement seemed so obvious from the beginning that I was sure I had to be wrong. Especially since she had already taken me by surprise a few times with her cleverly played misdirection that I thought this can't be it. Not possible. However it was and it is and that was a bit of a let down. Still, I had a heck of a time reading this book and gobbled it up in nearly one sitting. 4 stars!

TW: Please be aware that child abuse and neglect are a prevalent theme throughout the story for those that are sensitive to those subject matters.

Thankyou to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for my complimentary copy.

This was a great read, I loved the multi points of view which added another dimension as unreliable narrators! A solid thriller, full of the usual traits and turns, but still engaging enough that I enjoyed it.

This story grabbed me right from the beginning and didn’t let go! I do love with as many thrillers as I read, a talented author can still manage to get me with a plot twist. I enjoyed how well written the characters were and how so many times when I got new information about them or read it from a different perspective, I kept changing my mind how I felt about them. This was a fun and dark twisty read!

Thank you to @NetGalley @ThrillersBookLoversPromotions @amandamckinneyauthor for a digital copy to read/review before publication date.

Thank you Netgalley, Storm Publishing and Amanda McKinney for the advance ebook of this novel.

This was a good read.! The characters were well written. I liked the pace of the book. I'm not a big fan of books told from multiple viewpoints , so this was one negative . Satisfying ending. 3 out of 5 ⭐️