When Sasha disappears, Ellen fears the worst. Then long-buried secrets resurface, Ellen realizes she may not know Sasha — or what she’s capable of — at all. 2005: 17 year old Ellen falls under the spell of glamorous newcomer, Sasha. As Ellen is welcomed into Sasha’s family, she doesn’t see the darkness that lies beneath their musical, bohemian lifestyle. At a New Year’s Eve party, events come … Year’s Eve party, events come to a dramatic head, resulting in a court case (in which Ellen is a key witness) that means family life at the Corner House will never be the same again.
2018: Now 30, Ellen and Sasha are still entwined in each other’s lives and sharing a flat in London. When Sasha disappears, Ellen fears the worst. She has gone missing like this before and the police won’t take it seriously, but long-buried events in their shared past mean that Ellen has good reason to be frightened – not only for Sasha, but also for herself. Finding out the truth about what really happened on New Year’s Eve twelve years ago puts Ellen in terrible danger, and forces her to confront not only the past, but how well she really knows her best friend.
ars ago puts Ellen in terrible danger, and forces her to confront not only the past, but how well she really knows her best friend.
ars ago puts Ellen in terrible danger, and forces her to confront not only the past, but how well she really knows her best friend.
ars ago puts Ellen in terrible danger, and forces her to confront not only the past, but how well she really knows her best friend.
more
As is the story of my life, I have been meaning to read a book by Laura Marshall for a while now, and what a better way to start than with her sophomore novel Three Little Lies. I really enjoyed the format of this novel and the way it switches between multiple characters and multiple timelines. I listened to the audiobook, which is narrated by Elizabeth Jasicki, and didn’t feel lost at all even with all the character and timeline changes. The girls as teenagers made for the most interesting viewpoints for me, but I was a fan of present-day as well since Ellen is trying to figure out what happened to her friend and roommate Sasha. It was nice seeing how they were as their younger selves in juxtaposition of how they are as adults, although we are mostly just in Ellen’s head during the present timeframe. Sasha came off as quite breezy, and it was interesting to see how much more there was to these characters than what you first see in the start.
As mentioned, I did listen to the audiobook and I really enjoyed the book that way. Jasicki was a wonderful narrator and one that I haven’t listened to before. I thought she handled the different character viewpoints quite well, and there wasn’t a single weird or funky thing with the audiobook that I noticed. It’s amazing how often that happens, and I really appreciate it when it doesn’t! Three Little Lies is a bit on the slower side, but with the different characters and timelines, it never felt slow to me. There are SO many lies and secrets happening in here, and the end was not what I was expecting. I am going to guess that some readers will probably figure out at least one twist, but I was so happy I didn’t see any of it coming at all. I am unsure whether this is a young adult or adult fiction novel, but it did feel mostly YA to me due to the majority being the 2005 timeline. It went darker than I expected it to though, and I was thoroughly engaged the entire time. I will have to read more of Marshall’s novels soon, and I am already looking forward to seeing what else she has written.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Three Little Lies is more domestic suspense than edge of your seat thriller. It’s also got a decent amount of courtroom drama and loads of secrets. Seems everybody has a secret, some big, some small, but all of them lead to the missing Sasha in one way or another.
In all honesty, I tend to prefer the edge of your seat stories, but there was something about this one. Whether it’s the writing style, the characters, the storyline, or a mix of all three, there’s just something compelling about the story with its ever present tension and suspense just under the surface of it all. So, while it didn’t keep me on the edge of my seat, and some things were rather predictable, the story still kept me turning pages to see how it would all play out. It’s a tale of love, friendship, obsession, betrayal, broken trust, redemption, and a bit of justice. The story is very well written and this may be my first read by Marshall, but it won’t be my last.