THE FRIEND WHO LIED by Rachel Amphlett | Blog Tour Review | #TheFriendWhoLied @RachelAmphlett @BOTBSPublicity

Published by Saxon Publishing
Ebook (9 June 2019)
362 pages
Source: Copy provided for review

ABOUT THE BOOK

What she doesn’t know might kill her…

Lisa Ashton receives a last-minute reprieve from death two weeks before her birthday. Regaining consciousness, she is horrified to learn one of her friends has been killed – and saved her life.

As she recovers, she uncovers a trail of carefully guarded reputations, disturbing rumours, and lies. Soon, Lisa begins to wonder if one of her friends is hiding a terrible secret.

Because five of them entered the escape room that day, and only four got out alive. And someone is determined to cover their tracks before she can find out the truth.

Can Lisa find the killer before someone else dies?

MY THOUGHTS

When Lisa Ashton awakes in hospital after a lifesaving operation she has no recollection of events immediately before.  All she remembers is being with her four friends at an escape room event celebrating what may have been her last birthday and then …. nothing.  One person didn’t make it out of that room. That person has saved Lisa’s life.

This is the first standalone thriller from Rachel Amphlett and is a suspenseful and intriguing read filled with unreliable narrators.  Told from multiple points of view in the first person, it becomes clear that Lisa’s friends are not being entirely honest with her.  The more evasive her friends are, the more determined Lisa is find out the truth. There are huge gaps in Lisa’s memory as to what really happened and not only is she suffering from physical pain following the operation but she has to deal with the devastation of knowing that she is only alive because one of her friends is dead.

None of the characters are particularly likeable and in part this is what makes the story work so well. Most have their own self interests at heart and there were times when I got the impression that actually they didn’t like each other very much.  As the story progresses and you find out a little more of their backstory from when they first met at university, you begin to realise why they are so secretive and evasive. It’s not just the police and their questions that they need to worry about, journalists are sniffing around too wanting the gossip, and what they don’t know, they will make up.

With the story twisting around and leading to one surprise after another, this was an extremely addictive read and kept my interest all the way through.   The character driven plot gives it a slightly slower pace but the different perspectives come together to give a full picture leading to the reveal. I had my suspicions but I didn’t guess the full extent of the story.  Cleverly plotted and very enjoyable. 


My thanks to Sarah Hardy of BOTBS Publicity for the tour invitation and for providing the copy for review.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Before turning to writing, USA Today bestselling author Rachel Amphlett played guitar in bands, worked as a TV and film extra, dabbled in radio as a presenter and freelance producer for the BBC, and worked in publishing as a sub-editor and editorial assistant.

She now wields a pen instead of a plectrum and writes crime fiction and spy novels, including the Dan Taylor and English Spy Mysteries espionage novels and theDetective Kay Hunter British police procedural series.

She’s a member of International Thriller Writers and the Crime Writers Association, with the Italian foreign rights for her debut novel, White Gold sold to Fanucci Editore’s TIMECrime imprint, and the first four books in the Dan Taylor espionage series contracted to Germany’s Luzifer Verlag.

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