Review: "Never Lie" by Freida McFadden

Quick Summary

Type: Novel

Genre: Thriller

Back Cover: "Newlyweds Tricia and Ethan are searching for the house of their dreams.

But when they visit the remote manor that once belonged to Dr. Adrienne Hale, a renowned psychiatrist who vanished without a trace four years earlier, a violent winter storm traps them at the estate… with no chance of escape until the blizzard comes to an end.

In search of a book to keep her entertained until the snow abates, Tricia happens upon a secret room. One that contains audio transcripts from every single patient Dr. Hale has ever interviewed. As Tricia listens to the cassette tapes, she learns about the terrifying chain of events leading up to Dr. Hale’s mysterious disappearance.

Tricia plays the tapes one by one, late into the night. With each one, another shocking piece of the puzzle falls into place, and Dr. Adrienne Hale’s web of lies slowly unravels.

And then Tricia reaches the final cassette.

The one that reveals the entire horrifying truth."

Read Time: 2 days

Rating: 2.75 stars

Review

Because I've read a Freida McFadden book before, I went into the book expecting a big twist. However, I got the twist wrong. I really thought that Ethan was EJ and had killed Dr. Hale. I did not expect Tricia to be the one who killed Dr. Hale. Obviously, that's what the author intended.

However, I was a little put off by Tricia's internal thoughts. Throughout most of the book, she insists - not to her husband, but to the reader - that she does not want to spend the weekend in the house. But the truth is, she's the one who planned the whole thing.

The fact that there was someone else in the house and that that someone was Luke was extremely predictable, although I would have guessed that Luke might have recognized either Tricia or Ethan since he spent so much time at Adrienne's. I was also surprised that Luke agreed to continue going out with Adrienne after she asked him to kill someone and he refused. Wouldn't he have figured out that Adrienne had killed EJ after his disappearance was reported? And he still agrees to go out on a date with her?

Also, why the hell did Tricia and Ethan bury EJ and Luke in their own backyard? Never keep the body close to you, it could be discovered. They should have chopped the bodies up into little pieces, gone out somewhere in the woods (maybe where Tricia buried Dr. Hale) and buried them far away from where they live. Also, how the hell did they bury a body in the middle of winter? The ground - especially in New England - freezes during the winter.

But still, I enjoy myself a good, trashy thriller, and this snapped me out of my reading slump, so I'm thankful for that.