Listen for the Lie
by Amy Tintera
One of the things I love most about this book is how there
are little revelations in nearly every chapter.
The story begins in Los Angeles where Lucy’s past has just
been uncovered and she is fired from her job. She’s also concered her boyfriend
is going to be annoyed that she didn’t reveal the past to him either.
“A podcaster has decided to ruin my life, so I’m buying a
chicken.”
You see, Lucy is unable to remember the night she supposedly
murdered another girl five years ago. She truly doesn’t know whether she did it
or not. She is afraid she did but deeply resentful of the people in her
hometown, including her own parents, who assume she did.
“…everyone in my hometown decided I was the one who
killed her.”
I think because of
this, and difficulty relating to people, she comes across as a bit of a
misanthrope but in a humorous way.
“I stab the knife into the chicken between the breast and
thigh. I may have used a bit more force then necessary.”
All of the characters
in this book are delightfully flawed and have their own vices. Ben Owens runs
the podcast Listen for the Lie and has solved a few cold cases. He’s a
little full of himself. But Lucy’s Grandma is just certain he’s Lucy’s best
chance to figure out what happened back then so she pressures Lucy into
returning to her hometown in Texas for her 80th birthday, and to
maybe talk to Ben Owens, who is there investigating.
Lucy’s own parents are incredibly flawed in their own right,
and though they seem to have meant well, they really screwed up when it came to
helping her when she was discovered walking down a dirt road with blood on her
dress and a brain injury.
This book is superbly plotted; the characterization vivid
and humorous. I loved the short chapters, some of them actually transcripts
from the fictitious podcast. The hot and humid summer setting of a Texas town is woven in
simply, but vividly.
I did not want to put this book down. When I was finished
with it, I really wanted more from this author. Unfortunately, this is the only
book she has written for adults to date, but she does have several YA series. I
might just have to check them out while I pray she writes another murder
mystery for adults.
