Nothing has felt right since she told the lie… Claire Carmichael leads a charmed life. She has two beautiful sons, Jamie and Joshua, and a handsome and successful husband who loves her. She has been taught well by her mother – the most important thing Claire has is her good reputation. He said, she said… Even when she was in school, Claire had it all. She was clever, likable, and after … all. She was clever, likable, and after passing the initiation tests, she was welcomed into the society of popular girls – The Queen Bees. So when a scandal threatened to ruin Claire’s reputation, the Queen Bees closed rank to protect her, no matter who else got hurt.
Never forgotten, never forgiven…
Claire may have moved on from her school days, but for one person who she hurt irreparably, those memories are as fresh as blood. And all it takes to reap their revenge, is ONE PERFECT LIE.
The latest heart-racing psychological thriller from the author of the bestselling The Good Mother. Perfect for fans of Lucy Clarke, Paula Hawkins and Lisa Jewell.
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Favorite Quote:
After John Griffith, Claire had kissed other boys at various parties. There was Cameron with his braces and saliva, Rich who had licked her teeth, and Tony – probably the best of a bad bunch, with his eager tongue.
My Review:
This tautly written book hit all the right notes for me. Penned in my favorite dual POV with dual timelines, the original storylines were compelling, intriguing, maddeningly paced, and unpredictable. I quickly fell into the tale and was soon hooked by this clever and sneaky wordsmith’s agile misdirections and deftly handled twists and turns. It was deviously crafted and cast with a bevy of difficult and unusual characters who were actually rather awful human beings.
Lessons I learned from this story include: mothers don’t want you to do the right thing if it would potentially cause them embarrassment; selfishly keeping your mouth shut to avoid personal shame will surely backfire; never screw over a highly intelligent person; Queen Bees is an excellent name for an elite pack of vapid mean girls; and what goes around may eventually come around but it pays to manipulate the timeline and help karma along with your own vengeful plotting. I was on edge and nibbling on my cuticles the whole way through and huffed in disbelief at the ending. It was outstanding!
No joke, The Perfect Lie is the perfect thriller read. From the go, I was sucked into the life and family of Claire Carmichael. The prologue gives a slight hint at what’s to come, but the plot unfolds at a pace that builds towards an aha moment I never saw coming. The last 10 % of this book had me reeling and I literally finished the story with an audible gasp.
As the blurb suggests, Claire’s leads a charmed life. We get bits and pieces of a life-changing moment in her teens where things go sideways, but she comes back from “it”. She goes on to fall in love, build a flourishing career, and create a family. But when she goes back to work after a few years off to spend time at home with her youngest child, she finds the stress at home increase as long hours pull at the threads of her well-constructed life. Nothing pulls harder than the impact of her role “consulting” on a new case her law firm has taken on. With this, her entire world unravels.
We get most of the story from Claire’s perspective, but at one point we are introduced to the inner workings of a truly devious mind, a person from her past. This voice made me incredibly uncomfortable. There’s an “ick” factor but that soon grows into something much more, something sinister and way beyond creepy. As we learn more and more about the event from the past it becomes that not is what it seems. This twist is sublime and brilliant and ultimately gut-wrenching. We are left to wonder where it might go, what could ever right this new wrong.
Upon finishing this book I had enough to time begin a new one, but my mind stayed with this story. It left me a bit unnerved. I’ve snatched up Karen Osmans’ other books and look forward to a weekend binge on her brand of treachery. 5 Stars and recommendation!
As a ripple in the ocean can eventually become a tsunami on the other side of the world, a lie will have repercussions. The author did a good job with character development and advancing the story. More of a family drama/suspense than a thriller. My first by this author and I will surely look forward to her next!