BOOK: A MARRIAGE OF LIES
AUTHOR: AMANDA MCKINNEY
PUB DATE: MARCH 2024
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REVIEW
Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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This book was a very good one and it's the kind of book you literally can't put down until you reach the last page. I was able to finish it in a couple of hours. I loved the storyline. I did not see the ending coming and the author did a very good job in writing this book.
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I loved the storyline, but I hated all main characters. I didn't lIke any of them. I would like to say why, but i'd be spoiling the book. If you read the book you'd definitely understand why. Rowan, our FMC was the one I disliked most(apart from the killer)
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When I started this book, I was confused as to what brought some characters together, but everything was explained I'm the ending.
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I might not like the characters, but this book was an amazing one and I'd definitely read it again
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Detective Rowan Velky is faced with the most devastating cases of her career, just as her marriage is crumbling around her. Her husband has been out of work for months and his drinking and time spent away from home is slowly destroying any feelings that she once had for him. And yet, she feels as if she owes him, for the past they had shared. How much is she willing to pay? When she and her partner, Detective Kellan Palmer attend the scene of the first homicide, a particularly vicious one, they have no idea that the killer is just beginning. A twisted case that will pit Rowan against her personal life and her duty to the law and her career. When she realizes that she has been deceived in a most grievous manner, has she waited too late to reclaim her life? A completely absorbing mystery that I couldn’t put down until the very satisfying end! I received an advance review copy at no cost and without obligation for an honest review. (paytonpuppy)

A great psychological thriller, filled with action and unexpected twists. Good characters and storyline. A must read. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A Marriage of Lies by Amanda McKinney was a suspenseful and intriguing story.
What a brilliant book! I couldn't stop reading it. It's so well-written. I loved the plot and execution. I wanted more!
The protagonist was compelling and so entertaining. The characters were everything that I hope for and had a great tense atmosphere. The tension throughout was very high and the conclusion was amazing.
An unputdownable psychological thriller with a breathtaking twist!

Thank You NetGalley and Storm Publishing for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

“Then again, it’s easy to justify things that make us feel good, isn’t it?”

Rating: 4.5 stars

A Marriage of Lies is a quick and smooth reading thriller that keeps you engaged from beginning to end by gradually stacking up clues and building up tension while simultaneously succeeding at throwing you off the scent.

Apart from making my head spin with possible theories about how everything tied together (and having to revise every so often thanks to new clues that threw me off the scent), what I loved most about this one is how real everything feels. True crime girlies would love this book, because every character is so well rounded that this could very well have been a real story. As always with McKinney's books, you can feel the research that goes into the psychology of the characters and their jobs. I’ve come to really appreciate this in books, as it makes it easier to fully immerse yourself into each characters’ thoughts and motivations.

The different types of media - notebook passages, text messages, letters, transcripts - that were used brought a richness to the storytelling, and encourage the reader to try to figure out how these snippets tie into the overall story.

I love when books succeed in throwing completely unsuspected plot twists at me, which was definitely the case with this one. Some I strongly suspected, others I had different theories for. At the end of the day, I was surprised by how it all wrapped up, which makes it a win for me.

The only reason this didn’t get a 5 star rating was the diagnosis that didn’t feel correct to me, as well as aunt Jenny’s POV chapter that felt too lucid for a too prolonged time that far into her Alzeihmer’s journey (based off of behavioral cues up until then).

Definitely recommend this one if you’re looking for a quick, easy thriller to read. And it’s on KU for those of you who have it!

Important trigger warning: suicide attempt on page

Thank you to Storm Books for my free copy through NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

AMAZING!! Such a wild ride! What a different take on a domestic thriller! I loved the premise of this book. I felt it brought a fresh idea to the genre of domestic thrillers.

This book was so intense and twisted. It was full of drama, suspense, lies, betrayal, murder, mystery, and great twists. Emotions ran high while reading this one. This was my first book by this author, and I LOVED it. The author writes the main character, Detective rowan Velky, in a way that we get to really know her. She's relatable and likeable. There was so much depth given to her character. There are multiple POVs in this story, but they are all easy to follow and provide depth that helps pull the story all together. I found myself invested in all of the characters and how this story would play out.

This story was fast paced. It grabbed you from the beginning and kept you engrossed until the end. It started with a bang and just kept on banging until the last word! The ending was NOT what I was thinking or expecting at all! many reviews say they wanted more in the ending, but I thought it wrapped up perfectly for everything that happened up to the ending. I truly enjoyed this book, and will be exploring her other books.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A riveting story with twists and turns I never saw coming! I will definitely be looking forward to the next release by Amanda McKinney.

I received an advanced reader copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

4⭐
Genre ~ domestic thriller, crime thriller
Setting ~ Texas
Publication date ~ March 29, 2024
Page Count ~ 273 (p+ 64 chapters)
Audio length ~ 6 hours 41 minutes
Narrator ~ Elise Roth
POV ~ multiple 1st, present tense
Featuring ~ murder, police procedural, secrets (obviously), lies (duh), infidelity, references to child abuse and suicide attempt, short chapters, flashbacks

Rowan is our detective and married to Shepherd. They met when they were in foster care together and have been married for 15 years.
Amber is our therapist who is not happy in her marriage to Mark. They share a special needs son, Connor.

Towards the end we get chapters from Rowan's Aunt Jenny, who is in her care and has Alzheimers, and her partner, Kellan, which I liked.

I can't say I was surprised with how the story played out, but I was fully captivated in this thriller. It's super fast paced and well written with a good mix of likable and unlikable characters.

OMG! In true Amanda McKinney fashion, she puts together yet another thriller full of twists and turns that has you guessing from the first page on who the true killer is. You seriously think you know soon after the first couple of pages, then the author throws you for a loop and comes out from left field with the true identity. Loved the characters in this book, and damn if the hairs on the back of my neck didn't continually stand up on edge while reading through the pages. Very well written, definitely a page turner, loved every page!

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC copy of this book.

This book exceeded all my expectations - it was truly awesome! My first encounter with McKinney was a total winner!!

The wealthy neighbourhood of Mirror Lakes becomes the setting for a brutal crime that homicide detective Rowan Velky is called to investigate. An unsettling scene unfolds as a young woman is found strangled; her eyes marked with jagged X’s. Without even a moment to gather herself, two additional murders that follow the same pattern are discovered.

I enjoyed how the story utilized multiple narrators and flashbacks. With a troubled past and a messy romantic involvement, Rowan was a multi-faceted character. Juggling her investigation, strained marriage, and sick aunt, she proved to be an exceptional detective. Amber’s therapy sessions were a mix of amusement and discomfort, but each page added something new and significant to the story.

Prepare for a collision of betrayal, secrets, suffering, and jealousy in this tense thriller.

Many thanks to Amanda, NetGalley & Storm Publishing for the chance to review this thrilling read!!

Psychological thrillers are perhaps my favourite genre and this book was a stunning example that keeps you gripped from first page to last and the final twist is a brilliant piece of scripting. Our lives are clearly shaped by our upbringing and the way we manage or deal with it and the plot to this book examines how our lives are affected by our upbringing. Thanks to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for the chance to ARC this book.

Amazing read! Twists and turns that I didn't see coming. Rowan is a police detective and her husband Shepard is well let's just say in between jobs. They have been married for quite a few years. I don't think either have been happy for a long time. He wants children she is afraid to have them as she doesn't think she would be a very good mother.

Rowan came from very bad back ground. Her mother was a waitress and her father was a drug dealer. They would leave her at school from the very young age of 5 and then not come back for her. Needless to say she grew up in foster care from the age of 11 on up. Although she did have an aunt Jenny that did try to raise her for a bit but that just didn't work out.

Shepard grew up in foster care as well and this is where and how Rowan and he met. Although it would be much later that, that would happen.
Shepherd's childhood was much worse than Rowans was. he had been sexually molested from an early age and he had a mental illness.

Rowan had a partner named Kellan and she was in charge of training him. In one particular evening she received a phone call and and without hesitation she got up and went. There had been a murder of a young well to do women. After her and her team investigate her and her partner Kellan go to a special place that they go to for just them. They go there to talk things through and sometimes to just be.

Later, there are two more murders all of which are of young women and that had something to do with children. Either abuse or neglect or not doing quite enough for them.

In all the books I have read this one had some turns that I didn't see coming. Amazing and exciting! thank you for the awesome read!

I finished almost all of this book in one airplane ride. It was that good! I was immersed in the lives of Detective Rowan Velky and her husband, Shepherd. She knows he is hiding something from her and she thinks he is having an affair. Who does she go to talk to but her therapist, Amber. Amber has her own problems in her marriage to deal with, too.

Now, Rowan has to deal with a new murder investigation that hits a little too close for comfort.

I love the short chapters. It makes the story move so fast. I love all the different points of view, too. It showed the anxiety of all involved. I did gather an idea at the ending which proved correct, but I still highly enjoyed this book, my first by this author.

Thank you to Storm Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced readers copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Whoa! I will say… this author had me going because I was getting so bothered with how the story was ending just when… BAM!

PHEW I thought I was a little over analytical; thankfully the ending was very validating to me as a reader.

3.75 rounding up to 4!

A Marriage of Lies
by Amanda McKinney
Pub Date: 29 Mar 2024

A Marriage of Lies is an incredible dark journey of mystery, drama, jealousy, lies, secrets and murder! A very fast pace psychological thriller. The character's were so realistic, I felt like they were my neighbors. This is my first book by author Amanda McKinney and I am hooked on her writing style. I can't wait to read more of her books.

Synopsis: My husband is lying. The minute he came home with alcohol on his breath and unable to look me in the eyes I knew it. We used to be in love – the intense ‘I can’t be without you for a second’ kind. Where it hurts deep to be apart. But now, we’re the couple that keep secrets from each other. We hide the truth. He thought I wouldn’t find out. I’m a detective – it’s literally my job to uncover clues and solve mysteries. I know what he did. And now I’m sitting here, in a police interview, being asked the question ‘did you kill her?’ to which I utter one life-shattering ‘yes.’

Many thanks to #AMarriageofLies #NetGalley and #StormPublishing for providing me with an E-ARC of this 5 Star book.

4+ Stars ⭐⭐⭐🌟 A MARRIAGE OF LIES is a fast-paced mystery with what initially appears to be a complex plot of characters. As the story unfolds you are drawn deeper into what seems to be the separate lives of these characters. While you try to unravel their relationships and how the case Rowen is involved in relates, you may be surprised when you begin to learn all their truths. Even with all the twists and turns the storyline is easy to follow and will keep you turning pages while trying to figure out all the connections. Filled with interesting characters, it’s a fascinating and at times mind-boggling tale that will keep you engaged from beginning to end.

A Marriage of Lies hooked me right from the start. I am a sucker for a thriller with multiple points of view and A Marriage of Lies had that and more! With two narrators who you can't quite make the connection with at first and a testimony of sorts from a third party, I was kept guessing up until the end! The resolution of the story was well carried out and I was throughly shocked by the big reveal! Amanda McKinney's writing was excellent and her story was extremely well thought out.

I am not a fan of detective reads so I chose to DNF this one, I think it had a good premise and could have been a wonderful book but this just wasn’t for me!

Wholey twists! So many in this book. I really flew through this read, but the last 10% wasn't my favorite. It was a 4 stars but the ending lowers it to a 3.75

Thank you for this ARC!

Such an engrossing book! I could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!