The Lies We Tell by Jane Corry | Book Review

“I always used to think that a mother’s job was to protect her child. But here’s the real truth. At least, the way I see it. When it comes to a mother’s love – that boundless, almost undefinable, primal, umbilical-cord-wrenching bond that cannot be broken – there are no rules.”

Sarah always thought of herself and her husband, Tom, as good people. But that was before their son Freddie came home saying he’d done something terrible, begging them not to tell the police.

Soon Sarah and Tom must find out just how far they are willing to push themselves, and their marriage, to protect their only child.

As the lies build up and Sarah is presented with the perfect opportunity to get Freddie off the hook, she is faced with a terrifying decision: Save her son… or save herself?

The book opens on a stressful night when fifteen-year-old Freddie is out past his curfew leaving Sarah worried and Tom indifferent. Within a few pages the level of intrigue shoots up with Freddie’s vague confession and you find yourself completely hooked.

Sarah and Tom have a turbulent relationship with their angsty teenage son but before more can be revealed on the reasons behind it, the reader is taken back to the beginning – of how Sarah and Tom met.

They couldn’t be more different in their personalities, tastes, or their outlook to life. Yet somehow they fit well, adapting to each other. With time, though, the tension hiding beneath the surface bursts out in pockets, the biggest of which is Sarah’s desire for a child.

The course of their early life together defines the conflicting decisions Sarah and Tom make on behalf of Freddie but maybe they aren’t entirely grounded in truth. And that’s how one lie grows into another and so on.

Back in the here and now, when Sarah makes a run for it with Freddie, it becomes evident her decision to protect her son is not fueled entirely by her love for him but also by her history. There is a bigger truth to the game at play which Sarah and Tom are viewing with different glasses.

In my opinion, it is the characters drawn by Corry that truly make this story come alive. Their quirks, flaws and their perception of life derived from the skeletons in their past give an edge to the events that unfold. The family dynamics are continuously evolving and the author keeps you engaged with evolving plot twists.

The plot itself is actively paced and presents a moral dilemma at every step – What would you do in Sarah’s place… as a woman hiding a secret… and as a mother?

An addictive thriller, this throws you into the deep end and shows what it’s like to live on the dark edge of life.

The Lies We Tell by Jane Corry. Published in June 2021 by Penguin Random House UK. This ARC courtesy of NetGalley and Penguin Random House UK.

Book 32 of 2021.

Aquamarine Flavours Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟.

Available on Amazon*.

About Photo: Until the night that changed everything, Sarah was content with her life. She had everything she could possibly desire – a husband, a child and a happy home.

This version of a happy home, with a tree in the front yard and a picket fence, is made in Kirigami using a single sheet of 220gm Ivory paper. I’ve added a subtle shade of colour using pastel pencils to add dimension.

 

 

About the Author: Jane Corry is a former magazine journalist who spent three years working as the writer-in-residence of a high security prison for men. This often hair-raising experience helped inspire her Sunday Times-bestselling psychological thrillers, My Husband’s Wife, Blood Sisters, The Dead Ex, I Looked Away and I Made A Mistake which have been published in more than 35 countries and sold over a million copies. Jane was a tutor in creative writing at Oxford University; an RLF Fellow at Exeter University; and is a regular contributor to the Daily Telegraph and My Weekly magazine.

Find her on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

*Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link which means, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.

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