Can you hide a secret with the whole world watching?When an explosion rips apart a Chicago building, the lives of three women are forever altered.A year later, Cecily is in mourning. She was supposed to be in the building that day. Instead, she stood on the street and witnessed it going down, with her husband and best friend inside. Kate, now living thousands of miles away, fled the disaster and … away, fled the disaster and is hoping that her past won’t catch up with her. And Franny, a young woman in search of her birth mother, watched the horror unfold on the morning news, knowing that the woman she was so desperate to reconnect with was in the building.
Now, despite the marks left by the tragedy, they all seem safe. But as its anniversary dominates the media, the memories of that terrifying morning become dangerous triggers. All these women are guarding important secrets. Just how far will they go to keep them?
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How does tragedy shape our lives? Catherine McKenzie tackles this question–with no shortage of twists and turns–through the perspectives of three captivating women in THE GOOD LIAR. This is THE thriller of 2018.
A phenomenal psychological thriller that will keep readers guessing all the way to the end. Catherine McKenzie never disappoints!
This action-packed psychological thriller keeps your head spinning with surprising twists and turns! The story revolves around three women whose lives were impacted when an explosion destroyed an office building in Chicago. A year later as a documentary memorializing the event is being produced, secrets, lies, loss, grief, betrayal and dysfunction swirl through the stories of all of these women. Talk about a page-turner! Right up to the very last. Trust me, Catherine McKenzie has mastered the art.
The Good Liar was my first Catherine McKenzie book, though I can assure you it will NOT be my last. This deliciously crafted tale of betrayal and self-discovery had me sucked in on page one, weaving a spell of mystery and misdirection that kept me hungry for more. (and cost me more than a few hours of sleep!) Just when I thought I knew where we were going, I’d find myself jerked in a whole new direction, and loving every minute of it. Gripping and gritty, The Good Liar is one of those books you simply can’t put down, because you just KNOW sooner or later you’ll get it figured out. Hint: You won’t! And it is SO worth the ride!
Catherine McKenzie never disappoints. THE GOOD LIAR is another great thriller!
I’ve always been fascinated by liars, why people lie and what causes people to lie. Do we all lie? This fascinating, sophisticated domestic/psychological thriller story of three women intertwined but also living their own lives had me wondering until the end and wondering how far people will go to keep secrets. I love when I can’t or don’t want to figure out the end because it’s such a great story and I don’t want ruin it with my own head spinning with wonderment because the story is SO GOOD.
“A year later, Cecily is in mourning. She was supposed to be in the building that day. Instead, she stood on the street and witnessed it going down, with her husband and best friend inside. Kate, now living thousands of miles away, fled the disaster and is hoping that her past won’t catch up with her. And Franny, a young woman in search of her birth mother, watched the horror unfold on the morning news, knowing that the woman she was so desperate to reconnect with was in the building.”
I loved these characters, even when things are revealed where I probably shouldn’t. The author is brilliant in this way. The story lines is in the voice of the three women intertwined. Suspense, drama, tragedy, love and lots of emotion had me saying things like,”No way!” “OMG” and “WHHAAAAT?” and loving every minute of it. Catherine McKenzie tells a fabulous story. It’s a page-turner, a late night under the blankets until the last page with a huge cherry on top of it all and a whoosh of air I blew out. I sat a few minutes after finishing just in awe of what a great book it was. 5 stars. Go get it, you won’t regret it and you’ll be telling all your book loving friends! I am.
Jaw-dropping bombshells. Scintillating secrets. Love, pain, betrayal, revenge. The Good Liar follows the lives of three women whose lives are forever-changed by an epic tragedy. I was spellbound as their stories intertwined, with twists and turns that were stunning and unexpected! So many lies, so much deception, making this book unputdownable! There are also tender moments in this story, heartbreak and poignancy hidden beneath the surface of of this captivating book!
My Review of “The Good Liar” by Catherine McKenzie
Linda Zagon’s review Feb 19, 2018 · edit
it was amazing
OMG! WOW! I am totally blown away by this incredible, riveting, psychological thriller , “The Good Liar” by Catherine McKenzie. I finished this in almost one sitting, only stopping to use the lady’s room. I highly recommend this intense captivating novel for anyone that appreciates an amazing chilling thriller. I can even see this being made into a screenplay for a major film. I, for one will be sitting in a front row seat.
Kudos and Bravo to Author Catherine McKenzie for writing such a descriptive and vivid novel that weaves and interconnects the lives of several characters and the explosive devastating tragedy.
The author describes her characters as complex and complicated. Some live in a dysfunctional life, and some are more pathological liars than others. Is there any one that doesn’t lie? There is the small white lie, as when your best friend who has worked hard dieting and exercising, who puts a very tight dress on, and asks you how it looks? There is the lie of omission, by not presenting it, or ignoring it, therefore, it really isn’t a lie? In Catherine Mckenzie’s novel, the lies and deep secrets get more intense and suspenseful. I would compare some of these lies in relationship to Pinocchio, the wooden puppet who wants to be a little boy, but his nose grows, every time he lies. In this case, Pinocchio’s nose would be wrapped around the world several times.
In “The Good Liar”, I appreciate the way that Catherine McKenzie takes a terrible national tragedy, and then comes up with three characters, who have such dramatic secrets and lives. There are twists and turns, and ups and downs, that I did not see coming. There are betrayals and danger. Do you really think you know someone? Think again, and enjoy “The Good Liar” by Catherine McKenzie. Happy Reading! I received an Advanced Reading Copy for my honest review and opinion.
I, too, thought about that quote, “Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” I thought about how lying takes people down paths they never wanted to go and never ends the way they think it will. That is part of the draw to this book…I didn’t know where the path was going.. So, when I took that first step into the first page of the book, I was caught in the web a bit. Then the more I read, the more tangled up into the web I became until I couldn’t stop reading and had to find out what was going to happen, who was lying and how they were going to be found out. The story was a tangle of characters whose lives were caught in each other’s lies and deceptions. I couldn’t get out until the very end and I was so surprised. This is my first novel by this author and look forward to reading more of hers.
/ 5
Fractured was my very first Catherine McKenzie book and it was SO good. So I was extremely excited to read The Good Liar, and I have to say this one did not disappoint me.
The Good Liar is a highly character-driven, slow burn of a novel. I was thoroughly addicted to this book even though I wouldn’t say it is necessarily fast-paced. The story and the characters were just so interesting to me though, and this book did a great job of keeping me engaged considering I basically read this in two sittings.
I love that the blurb for this book is very concise, and honestly I don’t think you need to know more than what it says. Plus it didn’t give me any false expectations for the book which I always appreciate. Without repeating the blurb, the basis of the plot is this: there is an explosion in a downtown Chicago building that kills 513 people and injures thousands. This is the story of what happens to 3 women (Franny, Kate and Cecily) afterwards.
The viewpoints switch between Kate and Cecily, but the book is also interspersed with interview transcripts. This, combined with the short chapters, made it a very fast read.
The ending of The Good Liar gave me chills, and actually, a couple of the big reveals did. This probably won’t happen to everyone, but I’m glad it happened to me!
Final Thought: I’m sure there will be people that will probably figure out some of the big reveals, but I didn’t see too much coming. I try to just enjoy the story and not harness the detective in me so I don’t spoil anything for myself. This will be a great book for someone who loves psychological thrillers that have a slow-burn, character driven feel to them.
The Good Liar in 3-ish words: Captivating, Complex & Memorable
Sidebar: I just have to give a shout out to Catherine McKenzie for mentioning The Wire in her interview at the back of the book. One of my old roommates agrees with you that the show has great writers! I actually sent him a screenshot because he’s obsessed with that show and has seen it many times. So thank you for that. 😉
In Catherine McKenzie’s The Good Liar, it was on October 10 at 10:00am that a building exploded killing over five-hundred people. Now, one year later, “Triple Ten” is being remembered. Told in three alternating perspectives, The Good Liar follows three different women as they reflect on where life has led them post-explosion. Only it’s not quite that simple. One ran away, one ran towards, and one found herself stuck smack in the middle of this high-profile tragedy, and boy are there a ton of secrets and lies of every sort floating all around.
This may be one of Catherine McKenzie’s greatest feats of fictional storytelling. She allows three fairly unlikable women to be palpably understood. As truths are very slowly confessed by each of these women, they become oh so easy to judge. But still, they were written in such a way that I understood what motivates them. I understood their flaws, their challenges, their emotional reactions, and their behavior in general. Ms. McKenzie has always excelled at this level of character development in my opinion while successfully incorporating issues of significance, and her skill in this regard is brilliantly showcased here. If you’ve never experienced Catherine McKenzie, The Good Liar is an excellent place to start. Check it out!
Thank you to the following for permitting me access to an advance reader’s copy (ARC) of The Good Liar. This generosity did not impact my honesty when rating/reviewing.
Source: NetGalley
Author: Catherine McKenzie
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Genres: General Fiction (Adult), Women’s Fiction
Pub Date: 03 Apr 2018
With twists and turns, the lives of three women intersect in the most unexpected ways during the aftermath of a tragedy. Thought-provoking, suspenseful, and mysterious, The Good Liar is a true page-turner that explores the ways stories are connected and created, and what can be hidden underneath. This is a book you won’t be able to put down!
Catherine McKenzie’s acknowledgments say this book wasn’t an easy one to write, but it definitely didn’t show! Engaging characters, an intriguing premise, and a whole host of unexpected plot turns made this a highly enjoyable read, from start to finish. I was fortunate to receive an advance copy, and am so glad I did. Her best work to date.
This is my first time reading this author and I must say, I really enjoyed this book.
The book follows the lives of the 3 women a year after a horrible tragedy took place. The characters were really well written (I could have smacked them a couple of times though). Each having to deal with their own guilt and lies since that day.
The book was well written and hard to put down. I would recommend this to all of my book friends!
I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book.
A riveting story that revolves around the aftermath of a national tragedy: three women, three separate yet deftly intertwined lives. I adored the look at the story behind the story, the background lives of the women we so often see in the news. The twists are shocking, the characters are well drawn but unpredictable, and the conclusion is as poignant as it is surprising. The Good Liar is thrilling, captivating, and not to be missed!
A suspenseful read with twists at every turn. Highly recommended.
I couldn’t put this book down. The twists kept coming and I just wanted to sit and read. Great characters.
An explosion in a Chicago building, stories of three women. Each lies about something. Each has secrets. Alternating narrators and time. Catherine McKenzie keeps the reader up at night. The reader needs to pay attention to details. I did find myself asking “What?” Clues or are they lies keeps the reader guessing until the end. Could there be a sequel set a few years later to find out what is happening in the lives of these women and their families and friends.
Thank you NetGalley and Lake Union Publishing.
In her latest, THE GOOD LIAR, Catherine McKenzie demonstrates the same strong handle of suspense narratives that readers enjoyed in FRACTURED and SMOKE. The story is told from intertwining perspectives, though the bulk of the pages follow the strong and relatable Cecily, mother of two, during an impossible time: a year after her husband died alongside over five hundred others in a building explosion caused by a gas leak. “I feel as if I’m standing on a cliff and there’s a hand on my shoulder waiting for an opportune moment to shove me off. And sometimes, even, as if I might jump.” Cecily received a hefty financial compensation for her loss, and sits on a committee designed to determine other survivors deserving of the remaining funding.
In shorter chapters we hear from Kate, who was impacted by the same tragedy, though it’s unclear how. She left Chicago for Canada and is no longer with her family. She often thinks back on her old life, recalling things like her husband’s lack of support when they first became parents: They’d both come home from the hospital with the same amount of information. How had she become the expert and he the hopeless? But where is her husband now? Her children?
We meet Franny though transcripts with a documentarian. Like Cecily, she sits on the compensation committee, but unlike Cecily, her “right” to funds is yet to be determined.
The title relates to all three of them, to varying degrees and consequences. Readers will stay up too late working to understand what really happened and how a future can be built atop such an unsteady foundations. I read this in one sitting—it was addicting. Perfect for a summer read or book club discussion.
A great psychological thriller told from the points of view of a trio of women, each with complicated lives and secrets that threaten to be exposed in the aftermath of an explosion of a building in Chicago. Engaging and intriguing, filled with twists and surprises, the author did a great job of keeping you guessing who the good liar actually was. The characters were well-developed, the storyline kept me guessing, and I did not expect the final reveal at the end, which is always a huge plus for me!
Other reviewers have complained about the character of Franny being revealed through interview transcripts, but I found that to be a very original and refreshing way to learn about her character. Very well done, Catherine McKenzie! I highly recommend!
My thanks to Lake Union Publishing and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this novel.