Lies

This book had a real secret agent, action flick vibe to it and I really enjoyed it. One kick butt agent, a woman who toughens up throughout the story and a plot that keeps you hooked from start to finish. KS did an awesome job at keeping me guessing about what was going to happen. The story was very fast paced and I found that I was never board while reading. The romance was sweet, the action amazing and this is an overall great read.

I’m giving it 4 stars because at times it felt like the story was moving too fast. I’m not saying that it made it a bad thing, because I still enjoyed it, but I would have liked somethings to have slowed down a little. I also wish the story had a starting point a little sooner then it did. I wanted to see how Thom was before all this happened. Even some flash backs or something of their relationship prior to the aspects in this story. Again, that didn’t make me enjoy the book any less, it just had me wondering the whole way through. 4 stars #2OCCJD

Sure, there was a wee bit of betrayal, but…

I’ve decided that I’d be happy if hubby came home and told me that he’s an undercover agent. Yes, there would be a bit of hurt and crankiness because he’d kept a secret from me. Yes, I might also be very interested to know what kind of undercover was involved. Yes, I might have to hurt him with a blunt instrument if he’d been intimate with someone else while undercover. BUT…if he turned around to me after 22 years of marriage and said…

“My darling wife, I’m sorry for lying to you but undercover work pays well and I have millions of dollars squirrelled away.”

Well, that may put a different light on things. Sure, I’d still be a bit peeved and make him pay with a lot of grovelling, but…PARTY!! I’d retire, move to the coast, get the kids set up with little nest eggs, buy lots of clothes and create the most beautiful study/library with one of those sliding ladder thingamajiggies… I could go on about how I’d spend his imagined hard-earned millions.

I enjoyed reading Lies but admit to finding it a “slow burn” enjoyment as it took a while for me to get sucked in. First, we must weed through all the betrayal and lies, then we must work out if the relationship between Thom and Betty was all just part of Thom’s job. I honestly couldn’t tell if Thom had actual feelings for Betty or if it was all part of his being undercover. As the story progresses, we learn that the Thom Betty first met and committed to, is not the real Thom. The real Thom was much more appealing.

Lies was action-packed, at times humorous and had enough steamy times to see the connection between Thom and betty to leave me satisfied. We get to meet a few of Thom’s work colleagues whom I liked and would read their stories if Kylie Scott writes them.

If you’re looking for an entertaining read, can get past a numbskull hero making numbskull decisions, I suggest giving Lies a try. My favourite part of the story was seeing Betty crack through Thom’s stoic façade. With each wrinkled forehead, eye-twitch and verbal exclamation, a grin stole over my face. My least favourite part of the story was towards the end when the additional drama was added that I didn’t think was needed. Sure, I liked that Betty cracked the mystery, but it made me doubt Thom’s commitment a wee bit. Luckily, the Epilogue helped me work through my doubts.

I told hubby about my review and how I wouldn’t mind if he announced he was a very rich secret agent.

His response… “Why do I have to be the secret agent, why can’t you? Maybe you have millions stashed away somewhere?”

My response… “As is I could keep the money a secret? I would be going on unlimited shopping trips and I would NOT have a book budget. I think you would notice…”

My hubby is very funny.

I’m a huge fan of this author and I love to see my favorites step out of the box and write something a little different. That’s what Kylie Scott has done with Lies. The entire time is was reading all I could think about was the movie This Means War. Have you seen it? It’s cute and definitely worth a watch. Oh, and it also stars Chris pine and his deliciously blue eyes. Anyway, I digress.

Lies is a sort of mix between a rom com and a spy caper. There are a lot of laughs but the underlying theme of the book seems to be a sort of secret service, spy type of thing. There are a lot of secrets and even more twists and turns. You really need to get to the end if you want the whole story. But, I was surprised, give the context, how much I laughed.

I’m sure this is a book that a lot of people will like, but it just didn’t do it for me. I found Betty to be a little bit of a push over and never really did understand Thom. Outside of his job I never got a feel for who he really is. The story felt kind of all over the place to me and I, honestly, struggled to finish it. I put it down more than once before finally turning the last page.

If you’re a fan of this author it’s probably worth a read. Like I said, I like to see my favorites write different stories, and this one will not knock Kylie Scott off of my list of favorites. I just wish I could say I enjoyed it more.

~ Kimberly Anne

Betty Dawsey is at her wits end with her placid boyfriend she comes to the decision to break things off. That is, before things really go off with a bang. The humdrum of her daily life ratchets up several levels when firstly her apartment blows up and secondly when she finds herself in the hands of kidnappers. If her mind wasn’t blown enough, her rescuer is none other than about-to-be-dumped boyfriend, Thom.

It quickly becomes apparent that Thom has a secret he needs to share with the class when she witnesses him expertly wielding firearms and explosives. It seems her quiet and simple boyfriend is an experienced Operative, and Betty is about to sign up for a “bring your girlfriend to work day” experience.

Thom hates that Betty has been dragged into the fray by the double agent he has been tracking, but keeping her safe is his top priority. It’s obvious the disinterest Betty felt he had in the relationship was just a ruse to keep his work and professional live separate. Not only is he exhausting all his resources to keep them alive, but he’s also rolling out his heavy artillery *wink*to prove how much she means to him.

I had a lot of fun reading this caper, and very much enjoyed this new direction from the author. Think the action of Mission Impossible meets the comedy of True Lies. There were one or two standout secondary characters so I hope this means there will be further missions I’d have no hesitation in choosing to accept.

I like so many others already, really had a “movie” vibe when reading this book. The fact that the cover model seems to be Keanu Reeve’s twin, only amplified that feeling. Of course, I couldn’t get the handsome man out of my head once I laid eyes on this cover…which is not a bad thing.., at all !!!

This book also reminded me a bit of the movie “True” Lies”, which again…was not a bad thing, since I loved it.

Betty wants to end her relationship with Thom. He is a good guy but they don’t seem to be having any chemistry and he is quite boring in her eyes. Boy, is she in for a surprise !!

I absolutely love some suspense and mystery in my romance and this book delivered on both accounts. I also really enjoyed Betty finding out everything there was to Thom.

It is not every day that you find out your boring fiancee is, in fact, a secret operative. Of course, this means that he is also a big fat liar !!!

Question is…will she forgive him for lying and embrace this ” not so boring” new version of him. Maybe she will…but they will need to make it out alive first 😛

I had lots of fun reading this one. The action, the mystery and of course the romance were delicious.

Highly recommended for those who love some suspense in their romance novels 😉

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review

Quote:
“Is there anything you didn’t lie to me about?”
“I wasn’t lying when I said I love you.”
“That seems ironic. Seeing as it’s the one thing you told me that I’d definitely worked out was a lie.”
“Let me convince you.”
“Prioritize, please,” I snap. “People are trying to kill us. There are bigger things to focus on here.”
“Yeah. But what if we died without having makeup sex? That’d be a tragedy.”

In true Kylie Scott fashion, Lies was a thoroughly entertaining romance that was absolutely gripping! I literally LOVED every single moment of this single POV contemporary romantic suspense and I desperately hope she has more ideals brewing with some of the secondary characters in this story.

Q: “You do remember this is a fake relationship you’re talking about … A lie that you manipulated and tricked me into believing.”

Q: …there’re still all the lies and bad sex to be considered. His willingness to waste my life on a fake relationship to keep his cover intact. So yeah, not very deep down, I kind of still hate his guts and want to shoot him.

Although this is the first time Kylie Scott has ventured into romantic suspense, she did so with a liveliness that I have come to expect with her writing. Lies was suspenseful, yet strictly in a fun way. Nothing that should lead readers to believe its advancing towards a dark romance. Her storyline is packed with adrenaline spikes, sizzling chemistry, witty banter and so much more. It flowed beautifully and was unputdownable! Although I truly love a dual POV romance, there is just something about the way Kylie delivers the single perspective romance that captured my attention years ago and still manages to draw me into the story and the characters. Lies is undeniably steamy. Thom was definitely a smoke show. Instead of a closet geek who acts suave, Thom is just the opposite. He portrays himself as an average lover with a geeky demeanor to hide his true nature—the suave, debonaire and giving lover who’s also a deadly secret agent that sweeps Betty off her feet and lends the story a second chance romance vibe. I found Betty to be hilarious with her boldness, the feistiness and spunk she throws at every situation she finds herself in. Without a doubt, readers will find her as endearing as I did. Combined these characters utterly captured my heart and I can’t wait to reread the book at a later date. As a blogger, my schedule is always packed, and yet every year I somehow manage to reread those books that I love the most and my favorite books. Kylie’s stories have always made it to my reread stack and it’s a true pleasure to recommend them to other readers.

Q: …he’s become the balm to all my fears. I’ve never met anyone less like a teddy bear, and yet I want to hold him tight until the monsters under the bed go away.

Q: The man stares at me with the heat of a thousand suns and I am dead. My emotional walls, sense of self-preservation, and various other fortifications erected over the past twenty-six years are nothing but rubble.

I was lucky to receive an early blogger’s copy of Lies, but regardless, I would one-click this one without a second thought. If you are looking for a book that will be undeniably entertaining with red-hot chemistry between the protagonists, that’s chalked full of suspense and adrenaline, Lies is sure to be your next five-star read!

Q: If we do stay together, I’m just going to have to pull up my big girl panties and deal with Thom being away often, saving the world. I’m half proud and half terrified. It’s a precarious balance. But possibly he should have gone for someone less neurotic and with a shitty imagination.

When Betty Realized that she had settled for her somewhat uncommunicative but reliable fiancé, Thom, Betty finally took the plunge and ended their relationship but the series of events that followed was nothing she could have prepared herself for.

Betty was a great character she owned herself and the pages of this work. This portrayal was well defined from the start with no secrets as to who she was. Thom on the other hand was anything but the dull and undistinguishable man he was originally perceived as. What followed was an interesting dynamic of Thom knowing and loving the real Betty and Betty trying to get to know and move past the lies of the real Thom. Thom’s genuine love of Betty did conquer at least Betty in this story for some awkward and funny interactions. Thom was a character who personified being a hero by literally doing heroic feats on a regular basis but fell short on being the hero to the woman he loved. When he exposed who he really was to Betty and started to show that he could also be Betty’s hero it was easy to fall for him right along with Betty. The broken connection between this pair slowed this story at first but once they really started opening up to each other coupled with the extensive action foundation of this story this work moved swiftly.

There is no doubt that Kylie Scott is a skilled writer but what makes her work stand out even more is she takes chances with her work making it ever evolving and always interesting. Her inclusion of characters that are real and relatable, whether it be their feelings or how they look, and her ability to make them just as appealing as the glamorized and rose tinted portrayals that often populate the pages of romance is refreshing and brings her work to a whole new level of wonderful. Her perceptive writing and inner dialog is at times poignant and just as often hilarious. This writer did a fine job of taking two characters that on the surface would appear to be completely exposed and throw all their relationship intimacy out the window for some serious revelations. Lies was a nice change of pace and a fun adventure that will bridge Kylie Scott’s established fan base and new readers alike.

*I was given an advanced copy. All opinions expressed are my own.*

Rating this book is kind of hard because I really enjoyed the story, but there were a few things that I would have liked to seen more of. I can say that I thought that the author did a great job in conveying the meaning and I freaking loved the premise, I am just greedy and needy and would have liked more haha! To me, this book is a 4-4.5/5!

This premise is so freaking good! Betty has been with Thom for over a year but she is bored, he is not what she wanted even if she thought it was. All of this changes when boom goes the dynamite and Betty finds out that Thom is not what he seems.

In terms of the characters, I liked Betty, I thought she was strong and dealt with the situations that were thrown at her extremely well, let’s just say that I would not have probably been able to do the same! She is strong, hilarious, and extremely caring. Thom is more of an enigma, the man that she thought she loved is so VERY different from who he actually is. You can tell how much he cares about her but is not used to conveying it. These two had some very sweet moments, some super hot moments, and some freaking hilarious bickering moments. There were a couple of times where it seemed a little forced, but it was not often. I loved the ending and how everything played out!

All in all, I did really enjoy this book and liked the story, the characters, and the situations and I would recommend it to someone else who likes a side of action with their romance!

Thanks Kylie Scott and Social Butterfly PR for providing me an advanced copy so that I could read and review it early!

4.5 stars-

I’ve been a fan of this author for many years now so I can say with confidence that Lies is a significant departure from her norm. Yet, amidst the romantic suspense and action-filled scenes that make up Lies, there’s still plenty of Miss Scott’s hallmarks her fans will appreciate. Lies had humor, a balanced dialogue, and a wonderfully sassy heroine to keep me completely satisfied, plus an original story with lots of adrenaline-laced action making this a fun read I’d definitely recommend.

Miss Scott’s writing always draw me in and I was impressed how well her simple, playful style worked in a book that relied so much on surges of action, but Lies was an easy read that proved difficult to set down. I really liked the characters, especially Betty’s vibrant attitude that refuses to quit. She and Thom were a sweet couple and I enjoyed seeing them reconnect once all his truths came out. Above all else though, it was the ending that caught me of guard in the best of ways. I definitely hadn’t seen some of the conflicts throughout Lies coming but the sudden twist toward the end was a complete surprise…and I LOVED it. If you like some action and sass in your books, Lies will not disappoint.

*eARC received via author’s ARC group. The author and PA had no influence over this review*

This one is a little different from Kylie’s other romances. With the Dive Bar series and Stage Dive series the focus is truly on the characters more than anything else. Lies focuses on the main character, but there is a ton of action. Think Grosse Pointe Blank. That’s what this book reminded me of. As with all of Kylie’s books, I absolutely loved it. I buy all of her titles as soon as they’re available because I know I won’t be disappointed.