I don't like to write reviews of books that contains spoilers because, like people, I think each reader should draw their own judgments about a particular book. And while I found myself enjoying Lie to Me by J.T. Ellison as I read it, once I turned the final page, I realized that there was no way to articulate my problems with this book without including spoilers, which was only further supported by reading the Author's Note. In it she writes, "I stretched my wings in completely new ways," and speaking as someone who has never published a novel, it is my opinion that Lie to Me flew from the nest entirely too soon on wings made of Swiss cheese.
To start, in Ellison's Author's Note, she paints a stunning portrait of a writer sitting in Paris with "page after page of notes on the idea of a woman obsessed by a stranger's murder, and how her life derails when she can't leave it alone." I agree, this would make a tremendous novel, but it is decidedly *not* what Lie to Me is about. Calling it Domestic Noir - which is also not true - "at it's best" - also not true - Lie to Me is the story of a marriage from a hell of their own making.
Ethan and Sutton are what we illustrate as a "perfect couple" these days: large, renovated house; successful careers as mild celebrity authors; stunning good looks. But this wouldn't be a story if all of those things were true so, naturally, the marriage is crumbling, the house payments are tights, and the careers are struggling. What appears to be a wife who has simply had enough and flees a loveless marriage quickly turns suspicious and, as Officer Graham points out, is like trying to put a puzzle together using pieces from several different boxes. In that way, Ellison is on track. The book is deeply mysterious, troubling, and a certifiable page-turner. It has all of the appropriate players doing their appropriate things and all of them flawed in their appropriate ways. But the twists and turns seem to be for appearances sake, the one chapter detailing the past relationships of Sutton and Ethan by the mysterious narrator is completely useless and merely provides an arbitrary distraction. I'm not a fan of blatantly misleading the reader in place of subtle manipulation.
Ellison sets up the story like every other Domestic Noir anyone has ever read, but as soon as the major plot twist is revealed - which itself isn't that much of a surprise - the story is completely abandoned. The death of the baby was the final nail in the coffin, so to speak, for a woman who supposedly had good reason, and evidence, to be afraid of her husband. But as soon as it was revealed that he didn't, in fact, kill the baby, Sutton rushes back into his waiting arms and suddenly the story morphs into a Nora Roberts tale of a wife who simply wanted a break from her life. Seriously, there is actually a moment when Sutton claims she just wanted a break from her life then suddenly desperately wants it all back. Fine. So then what about all the past abuse? What about the blood stain on the marble? What about the bruises on her arm? What about all of the reasons she confided in her best friend? Sure, everything was orchestrated by an outside force, but no one manipulated Ethan into smacking around his wife. And, yes, Ethan was almost brutally murdered, which might make any wife reconsider her feelings for her estranged husband, but leaping into his previously abusive arms? I don't buy it. Again, it's as if the entire story prior to Sutton's arrest in Paris had never existed.
Finally, in an attempt at suspense and romance, the ending is contrived and boring and just plain cheesy. It is also completely without reason, like Ellison jammed all of the puzzle pieces together then - ta da! - declared a masterpiece. There are so many twists and turns and loose ends and forgotten characters and peetered-out plots, Lie to Me is a poor-man's Gone Girl. But in spite of my issues, it is very well-written, though the Chapter titles are a bit too obscure, and I enjoyed the addition of the book reviewer, book blogger, and the tortures that can be unearthed when writing. In that regard, it did inspire me and sparked an idea that I might have a devilish time exploring. But, in general, this book is not worth the effort. Just read Gone Girl instead.
