A year ago, a man and his fiancee were brutally murdered in their home. It sparks a high profile murder investigation. Doctor Claudia O'Shiel is a blood splatter expert whose evidence puts the killer in jail. But Claudia soon learns a horrible truth her evidence and testimony were wrong. Someone Claudia knows made sure of this.

Claudia is to give the speech of her career before the elite of London. She needs to make a choice tell the truth and blow everything apart or keep quiet, protect her children and save her career. Claudia revisits the terrible night, what did actually happen and what will she do about it.

This is an interesting book, it didn't always hit the spot for me and I had worked out who done it but it didn't spoil anything for me. I would recommend this book to any Denise Mina fan. I do love Denise Mina, her Garnethill series and Anna Fin books are amazing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House, Vintage for the opportunity.

Good thriller from a good writer tho for me nothing has ever lived up to Paddy Meehan and Garnethill books. This does stand out as one of the better mass produced thrillers out there

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.
I was looking forward to it as I like Denise Mina’s writing, but I was disappointed. It may be because I read an ARC, but there were no chapter headings to indicate the backwards/forwards in time of the story telling, and this was really confusing. The passage of time was not clear; at one point there was mention of 4 months passing, and this surprised me. People get sent to prison on the basis of one piece of evidence, ignoring the evidence that said they couldn’t have done it, or that was obviously planted. Claudia does nothing. She knows crimes have been committed that the police are not taking seriously, and she does nothing. She sees huge amounts of evidence pointing to the actual killer…..and does nothing.
It’s pretty obvious from early on who the baddies are.
I didn’t really get any ramping up of tension, the scenarios which should have been menacing or dangerous didn’t work for me. The story jumped about a lot, which gave it a lack of flow.

Claudia is a forensic scientist best known for her blood spatter analysis tool that is widely used in murder investigation. There is a lot of detail about this in the book and perhaps a bit too much. But despite the heavy science input the book is more about the influence and manipulation of people by those authoritarian people in powerful positions. One timeline of the book deals with the murder of a rich London couple in which Cludia’s blood spatter scale is used and the other timeline is a year later when Claudia is giving a speech at an important conference.
Claudia is superficially a pleasant character but she does tend to rub shoulders with powerfull people and drift along with others’ wishes. When she gives her important speech at the conference will she inform her audience of the doubts she has about her blood spatter scale or will she succumb to pressure and toe the line.
This was the first book I have read by the author and it has certainly made me want to read more.
Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK for the ARC

I have very mixed feelings about this book. I found it hard to get into, and quite slow in places. The storyline was quite sound, and on reflection quite unique and believable. It was centred round the world of the privileged, and their ability to make sure everyone danced to their tune. The main thing that I objected to was the overuse ‘F’ and ‘C’ words that I found quite unnecessary.

This was a twisting and turning plot, which starts with a foreshadowing prologue which the rest of the novel works towards.
Sadly, I couldn't get into the characters or the setting, and I'd worked out the whodunnit quite early on.
Sorry, but this was not for me. I struggled to get to the end without skimming. Probably more down to me and my tastes than the writer.
Thank you NetGalley and to the publishers for an advance review copy of this novel.

Well it wasn't an easy book to get into and I did at some points have to reread bits but a great idea for a book and well excuted by Denise Mina. I've read most, if not all her books now and they rarely disappoint. I liked Claudia as a character. I liked the way the book made you think. I can see this being made into a TV drama- best as one off rather than several parts I feel

“A good idea for a plot”
This book weaves through a series of situations that I felt were quite perplexing, and I struggled to get into the plot.
Claudia is a scientist whose groundbreaking work has enabled her to become an expert on blood splatter analysis in murder cases and trials. However, there is a dark side to all of this, compounded by her private life. Family and friends bring their issues to the story, and I found it difficult to follow and grasp the story threads. It was well written, but not the best for me.

I have read a couple of Denise Mina’s books and always enjoy them . This book weaves in and out of situations which feel confusing but as you carry on reading you realise how clever the plot is. Claudia is a scientist who has studied and perfected blood splatter analysis in murder cases and trials. This has made her a household name and things are working well for her until it doesn’t. Claudia’s “invention” is used in a murder case of an aristocrat, a family member is arrested, pleads guilty and that is that. However, Claudia does not accept this and wonders if her analysis is correct for every situation. Her home life suffers. She has two teenage boys, is a widow and has a sister, Gina, a drug addict. Claudia finds that she cannot let this issue rest and sets out to find out exactly who or what happened to the murdered couple even if she ruins her own life in the process. Time moves on, the story twists backwards and forwards until she feels she has the answer and she is not comfortable with the outcome and the person who she feels is causing drama for her and her family. The characters are all interesting and worked with the story so well you could almost picture some of them. She faces a crossroads, truth or lie. Read the book to find out what she does – it is a great story

The Good Liar didn’t quite work for me. I’ve read a few books by Denise Mina and enjoyed some more than others, but this one felt a bit off. I struggled to connect with the characters, and the dialogue didn’t always feel natural. The writing didn’t have the sharpness or depth I was hoping for, and the plot, while promising, didn’t come together in a satisfying way for me. That said, every reader’s taste is different, and others might appreciate aspects of the story that didn’t work for me.

Rather out of Denise Mina's usual social and geographical areas. Maybe that's why it didn't quite flow for me. Narrative felt a bit stop-start, Time lines are confused and confusing. An interesting proposition but the plot requires more than a few coincidences to get to the end, where it simply stops dead in its tracks. Denise is one of my favourite authors, but didn't seem to be at the top of her game here. Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for a pre-publication review copy.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read an ARC of this book. The Good Liar is a thriller which explores truth, morality, family loyalty and power dynamics creating a suspenseful narrative around deception and justice.

The story follows Dr. Claudia O’Sheil, a blood spatter expert who unknowingly gave false testimony in a high-profile murder case. As she prepares to speak at an elite event, she realises the real murderer is in the audience, forcing her to decide between protecting her livelihood and exposing the truth. Dr O'Sheil is then faced with a devastating choice, protect her career and family or expose the truth.

This book is a good read if you like psychological suspense and books that challenge you to think deeply about truth and consequence. A good book to add to any collection.

Professor Claudia Atkins O'Sheil MBE, Forensic Scientist and her boss Sir Philip Ardmore are at the One Year Anniversary celebration of the opening of the new building of the Royal College of forensic Scientists in Regent's Park. Last year, the real opening ceremony was interrupted by the famous horrific and bloody double murder of a father and his fiancee. This year Claudia has been asked to give a speech, outlining the facts of the murders and to explain how her trusted blood spatter analysis scale secured the conviction of a vicious murderer.

However, things are not straightforward and Claudia does not plan on making that speech, but one which will put her in danger, humiliate her boss and work colleagues., put her children at risk and ruin her life. Comfortable lies are very hard to undo - but she would die of shame if she did nothing.

The story then shifts to the past, explaining relationships, the murders, suspects, threats and evidence. We find out how we arrive at the opening scene. It's very tense and you do not know if Claudia will achieve what she aims to do. I couldn't stop reading this - but on finishing, I definitely wanted the sequel!

Interesting premise. I admit I got lost in the past and forgot that Claudia was debating the content of a speech: The tightly controlled script that we expect from this author, biting social commentary, and great dialogue didn’t really make up from the length of time spent in the past.

‘The Good Liar’ by Denise Mina focuses on forensic expert Doctor Claudia O’Sheil as she prepares to make a speech that’s sure to turn her life upside down, with copious flashbacks to the events of the past year which led irrevocably to her precarious situation. I was drawn in immediately by the premise since her area of concentration - blood splatter analysis - has been mentioned (and derided) in a number of crime books I’ve loved, and her patented probabilistic method was intriguing.

However, the novel felt very slow-moving to me, and spent much longer lodged in the past, with no room to explore the fallout of Claudia’s choice. While it perhaps added to the sharp social commentary about class and prestige, the fact that most characters were entirely unlikable meant I didn’t care enough to get fully immersed in the book.

Ultimately, I didn’t feel like the execution lived up to the exciting concept, making this a three star read for me. I’ve enjoyed other books by Denise Mina, so I look forward to picking up whatever she releases next!

I received an advance Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher Random House UK via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Professor Claudia O’Sheil, recently widowed with two children, is an accomplished forensic scientist who is due to give a career-defining speech. Her evidence of blood spatter analysis has put numerous killers behind bars.
So when she realises her calculations were wrong in the case of a father and his fiancée who were brutally murdered and that someone will kill to keep it hidden she is faced with an impossible choice.
It’s an intriguing book particularly because right from the opening chapter it’s clear Claudia intends to blow the lid on corruption even though she will be risking everything to do so and gradually throughout the novel we find out why it’s so personal for her and why she’s not sure if she can go through with it.
The science behind the forensic calculations of blood spatter analysis was fascinating.
The Good Liar is a tightly plotted enthralling read about family, corruption, privilege and taking on the establishment.

Many thanks to NetGalley & Random House UK for an ARC

This sounded an intriguing read, with the promise of whether Claudia will give a speech that will explode things around her. So I admit, it felt something of a let down that after teasing this, the book then goes back in time to what happened, which is where we spend the bulk of the book (barring the occasional return to present time). The whole book builds slowly towards the very end, but you don’t see the fall out of her actions. I can’t even say I really took to any of the characters very much either, especially sister Gina who just seems to be there to take drugs and swear.

From the early reviews clearly many people have enjoyed this, which I’m happy about - it just wasn’t for me on this occasion.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

This is the first book by Denise Mina that I've read and in this well crafted and suspenseful novel, Claudia, a blood splatter analyst, who uses her skills to analyse the murder of a high profile couple. The reader is also given an insight into her family life and the strains of juggling this with her work,. adding a layer of believability and vulnerability. thus raising the narrative above what could have been a well worn storyline. In the end however it felt there were just too many characters and plot lines eg her husband's death, but overall a good read and page turner, and I would definitely read more by this author
Thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book
3.5 rounded up to 4 stars

This is the first Denise Mina book I have read and I will give her other books a try based on reviews, but as a first book my opinions are mixed. The premise was good but the execution was slow. I didn't find the transition from past to present that clear and so I thought that made the story confusing and interrupted the flow (for me). As others have commented, the characters were stunted and not fully developed. This made me feel like a casual observer rather than being invested in the story. Yes, I wanted to reach the conclusion but felt in no hurry to do so.
Enjoyable to pass the time but not one that I would recommend to others.
That you NetGalley for the ARC,

A twisty, turny thriller - a forensic scientist finds herself widowed with two sons. A series of events leads her to re-exam her husband's death and much of her own work. It is a complicated plot - at one point I wondered if I needed to draw a chart of the characters and how they related to each other. With all of the national scandals and cover ups going on it is a believable, enjoyable read.