When Camilla and her young son move out of the Abbot’s family home, Mel Abbot advertises for a lodger.

New lodger Luke arrives at the same time as Mel decides she needs some time away from her two daughters and stressful job.

Oldest daughter Jen starts to worry about her mums welfare after she becomes suspicious of Luke and she has the feeling she is being followed.

There are several different stories that converge to bring the plot to an explosive ending. Everyone in this book is hiding something.

I really enjoyed how all the subplots came together and found this an easy and enjoyable read.

I’d like to thank H.Q and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read ‘The Liar’ written by Louise Jensen in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Jen and Amy’s mother Mel says she’s taking time off from her job as a social worker to visit her brother Donald but she hasn’t returned home and they’ve had no connection with her by phone. Their new lodger, Luke, arrives and moves in with his belongings but as well as being concerned about the whereabouts of their mother, Jen and Amy sense there’s something not quite right about Luke after catching him going through their belongings.

‘The Liar’ is the involving story of a family and the secrets they’re keeping. From page one I’ve been gripped by the characters and their backgrounds and with an abundance of secrets, twists and turns the complex plot unravels to reveal the truth of what happened five years ago leading to the present time. As the story has progressed I’ve had to keep changing my opinion of the characters and it wasn’t until I reached the conclusion that I was in for a shock. I read this excellent thriller within twenty-four hours as it had me glued to my Kindle and unable to stop reading until I’d reached the final page.

This was such an addictive read, this book had fantastic twists and turns and it had me gripped all the way through.

A family of mother and two daughters, Amy and Jen, have decided to take in a lodger, called Luke to make ends meet. Their friend Camilla, and her young son Mason, used to stay with them, but now they have their own place, although Mason sometimes stays over. Amy and Jen's dad has left the family home some time ago and is now remarried.
Jen is a teacher at the local school where Amy is still a pupil and their mum is a social worker.

It's not long before they start to realise that something is not right with their lodger. Who exactly is he? Not only that but someone knows about what happened when Jen was at university, she and her friends were short of money and someone decided to do something to make money quickly, something to do with publishing photos. Are those photos still around now, all these years later on. Would it be something to do with Luke?
This book gets more and more sinister and creepy the more you read it, you don't know who to believe. It certainly is a good thriller and an unputdownable storyline which covers subjects that are more familiar these days than years ago. You will certainly ask yourself "who is the liar?" Or could it be more than one person?
As always a great read from Louise Jensen that I would certainly recommend. A five-star read from me.

#netgalley
#HQ
#HarperCollinsPublishersLtd
#LouiseJensen
#TheLiar

A dark and mystery domestic thriller about family secrets. Lots of twists and turns, although the story did not hook me in completely. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc.

Another totally gripping psychological thriller from the excellent Louise Jensen. Everybody in this story has secrets, from the mum and two daughters to their new lodger. The plot is full of delicious revelations, stunning twists and satisfactory conclusions. A tremendous tale from start to finish.

“But life is full of broken promises, isn't it? Broken people.”

The Liar follows the Abbotts - a loving family, but a family full of secrets. When Mum Mel uncharacteristically texts the family to say she needs a break, but nobody hears from her, things begin to spiral. Is someone watching them? Is their new lodger who he says he is? What’s happened to Mel? They say people never tell the whole truth. They’re right.

I feel like I need some sort of compensation for the whiplash this book has given me! The Liar is a masterclass in pace and tension. I felt uneasy from the first page and that feeling did not let up until I had unraveled the web that Louise Jensen had so expertly crafted.

I really enjoyed the character dynamics, particularly between Jen and Amy. Being an older sister myself I really related to Jen, and their relationship development was written with such depth and emotion that they’re hard characters to not root for, or forget.

I have heard so many good things about Louise Jensen’s writing, and I can confirm that The Liar lives up to the hype and then some. I wholeheartedly recommend this to anyone who loves a twisty, compelling read.

Thank you so much to Louise Jensen, HQ and Netgalley for sending me this advanced copy of The Liar to read and review. My opinions are my own.

The Abbotts' new lodger Luke hasn't told them much about himself, but they can't expect to know everything about a stranger who's just moved in. But Luke keeps asking about their family photos and looking through their things. Why does he want to know everything about them? And why does the daughter, Jen, think there's someone watching her.? Then, suddenly, mum Mel texts the family to say she needs a break. But Mel has never gone away alone before. And now it's been days, and no one has heard from her. The Abbotts' house is full of secrets They say people never tell the whole truth.... They're right.

It did take me a little while to get into this book, but once I was in, I was hooked. The characters were well-developed and interesting. The story is told from different perspectives. There were some really good twists. This is one of those books that are hard to review without giving away spoilers. I like the author's writing style, it made for easy reading. Everyone has secrets. This is a tense domestic thriller.

Published 24th April 2025

I would like to thank #NetGalley #HQStories and the authro #LouiseJensen for my ARC of #TheLiar in exchange for an honest review.

Jen Abbott lives at home with her mum Mel, a social worker and teenage sister Amy and, when Jen's friend Camilla decides to move out with her young son Mason and make a life for themselves, Mel decides to rent out the spare room to a lodger. While Mel is away visiting her brother, Luke the lodger arrives and moves in but when he starts asking questions about the family and looking through their belongings Jen starts to wonder who he really is. When Mel suddenly messages to say she's taking some time away alarm bells go off for Jen because her mum has never done anything like this before and now she can't get hold of her at all.

The Liar is the latest domestic thriller by this author, told from multiple perspectives and varying timelines, where we meet the Abbotts and their extended family and, it would seem, each of them is harbouring a secret that they are desperate to keep hidden. This is a fast paced read with a great premise and some very intriguing characters. Jensen is one of my go to authors who knows how to spin a tale with many twists which immediately reels me in every time and this one was no exception. Switching between Jen and Camilla's uni days and the present day the author presents us with a backstory which explains how they arrived at where they are today and slowly the secrets are revealed. There was one such secret that had me thinking I'd tuned into an episode of Eastenders which did tickle me and then the final twist left me gobsmacked, I did not expect that one. Another gripping story from Jensen which I highly recommend.

I'd like to thank HQ and NetGalley for the auto approval. I will post my review on Goodreads now and Amazon on publication day.

Louise has just given us a great big whopper of a thriller. jaw dropping and reading gasps galore this book has me hooked in all the best ways. there are certain things that take a thriller up a notch, im not sure how the greats do it, but im so glad they do because these are the books worth waiting for and worth every thriller lovers time.
i cant really say more for this book that wouldnt be praise after praise.
everything is both believable and not believable. its relatable and its not. its too far and sometimes not far enough. it pulls you in in all the best ways. not least because you can see how wrong decisions or one decision can cause a ripple in the dynamics of your whole life, and the effcts of what we do can change everything. in this book everyone is holding things too close to their chests. be it secrets or decisions made. they dont communicate when they should like in all family s. they dont just turn to someone when they need it like with all families. but the dynamics of a family are often far more complex than many of us can imagine. and what we go through within our own could seem way odd or unfathomable to many.
but behind closed doors you just have no idea whats going on. and behind this houses door there is more and more and more going on. keeping you reading and learning and gripped throughout.
in this book we have Mel. who needs to take in a lodger to supplement her income. but then her children get a text saying she is going away. her oldest Jen finds this a bit off but wants to give her mum the break she deserves so decides to go with it. but then the lodger turns up when he mum isnt there. so of course the family steps up and lets him in. but things dont feel right. there just something off about him. him wanting to know too much being one. him going through their things being a red flag other! but are the family just on high alert. are they being cynical? what is this low level of fear they all have?
the reader is given multiple characters point of view in this book so you really get a depth of whats going on in the house. its brilliant how they are all keeping something from the others and its changing both how they act and think about situations that come up. it also means you left guessing about which direction it will go and what will happen when or if it all comes out in the open.
their is mystery and tension around every corner and so much to unpick both with the plot and said characters that revolve around said plot.

Wow, just wow!
The Liar is an absolutely fantastic story packed full of twists and turns, none of which I saw coming. I loved all the characters and was really invested in their stories. I loved it so much I flew through the chapters, not wanting to put it down.
I highly recommend The Liar - read it, you will not be disappointed!

Thank you to NetGalley and HQ for my ARC.

Jen and her family take in a new lodger, Luke, however become concerned when he keeps looking through their things. Meanwhile Jen’s mum Mel suddenly goes away, which she has never done before. Soon it is days later and no one has heard from her. Who is hiding secrets?

I read The Intruders last year and really enjoyed it so was keen to read this one. This took me a while to get into but once I did I was glued to the pages wanting to find out what would happen next. I enjoyed the family dynamics and the characters were interesting, with the story being told in different points of views. Occasionally these turned into past thoughts which stopped the flow and made it slightly confusing, however I soon picked up on the overall storyline again.

I enjoyed all the twists and turns, some were surprising. I did find that some of the subplots didn’t seem to really go anywhere major and I would have been interested to see these expanded, while they also seemed slightly disordered. However, this was a complex, solid mystery overall and I look forward to see what the author comes up with next. 3.5 stars rounded up. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this copy in return for an honest review.

This is the 10th book by this very clever author and I think that it the best yet.The tory is full of suspense, family complexities and and many twists and turns throughout. It seems to be slow at the start as it setting the characters in place but it becomes addictive very quickly, A very tragic and emotional story.

Full of twists and turns, this thriller is full of suspense and will keep you turning pages. The complex relationships between Camilla, Jen and Amy will break your heart. Not to mention Mason. I found the start jumped around a bit but keep going and it's a great book that you'll not want to put down. The formatting on my kindle was a bit off which I think was why the beginning felt disjointed rather than the writing. I'll be looking for more books by Louise Jensen.

Thank you to netgalley for letting me to review this book. So many secrets and lies and twists and revelations that I was not expecting and was completely blown away. This book was impossible to put down with the nice short chapters that made me keep saying just one more until I finished it.

No family is perfect and the Abbotts have many secrets that are exposed in this book in a delightfully written suspenseful novel, starting with Mel going missing, a new lodger showing up shortly after, and ending with murder, mistakes, accidents, and dark deeds galore! It is thrilling, dark, tragic, and I loved it all! This is one great twisty suspense filled ride that I highly recommend.

I will definitely be looking into more books from this author.

I really enjoyed this novel. There are more secrets than you can shake a stick at and the plot grabs you immediately. There’s twists and turns galore and you will be unable to put this novel down as it catapults its way to the dramatic conclusion. Thank you to NetGalley, HQ and the author for the chance to review.

So many twists and turns in The Liar, and so much deceit to unravel. Once again Ms Jensen manages to keep the reader gripped with what appears to be a story about an ordinary family, but one that harbour secrets. Single mum Mel needs to take in a lodger to supplement the family income when her 'adopted' daughter Camilla and 4 year old son, Mason, leave home. But she isn't around when lodger Luke turns up, to be welcomed by younger daughter Amy, but distrusted by elder daughter, Jen. When Mel messages Jen that she is going away for a few days, something she has never done before, her daughters are thrown. Where is Mel? Does Luke have anything to do with her disappearance? The twist towards the end does not disappoint. There is a large cast of characters but the book is easy to follow despite all the suspense. I read it in one sitting!
Many thanks to NetGalley and HQ for the opportunity to read and review The Liar.

Another trademark twisty novel from Ms Jensen, full of family secrets and revelations. Her books are always fun to read and manage to wrongfoot this reader which is always a good thing and keeps me up late to discover the ending
Thank you to netgalley and HQ for an advance copy of this book

What a delicious twisty turny thriller read.
It's a slow burn to start us off, but then it really cranks up and makes you wonder just who is telling the truth.
The chapters are told from each character, which is a nice touch letting us really get to know them more.
The ending was a big shock, but just what I'd expect from a Louise Jensen book.
A RECOMMENDED read.
Thanks to Netgalley and HQ for the Arc.

Louise Jensen weaves a wicked tale of deceit in her newest thriller! If you are in the market for a scary novel with a twisty plot, this is my recommendation!