Reviews with content warning for Schizophrenia/Psychosis - Sometimes I Lie

As a thriller, this book created some tension in the beginning, but as it went along, it became boring. There are too many ideas going on to intentionally mislead and confuse the reader. It is not smart. The entire storyline that includes sexual assault is completely unnecessary and ads nothing of substance to the book. I hate books that use sexual assault for the horror/shock of it just to be horrific and shocking. It did nothing with it other than be vulgar.

The main character/s are very unlikeable and I hope that this author had a consultant for mental illness, or else she is just using mental illness tropes/notions to write the story she wants. I would have given it a 1 if there wasn't two final "gotcha" moments, one of which doesn't even make sense based on the characterization of the main character/s. I feel I can see the author smirk and say, "Aren't I so clever?" No. You are not.

Her writing is fine, 0.5 stars.

Content Warnings

magellen's review

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dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

While the plot is twisty and really takes flight at about 75%, you spend most of the book bludgeoned by the phrase 'let herself go' or some adjacent negative assessment regarding every single woman in the book. Seriously it is exhausting, it rises in most chapters, whether it's a pov talking about herself, or her mother, or a coworker, just an endless loop of hate that doesn't add anything and makes the book feel particularly dated.

The book is a great example of unreliable narration but is likewise tedious in stretches where the mc walks forward and backwards through her thoughts with zero self trust and yes, toxic relationships do instill distrust in one's self, but it just feels like bloat in the narrative when it doesn't stop. Likewise it breaks your trust in all the narratives, breaks the momentum the book has built and becomes a muddle halfway thru. Intentionally done and layered as it is it mostly works but I feel like I only began enjoying the book in the last quarter and prior to that it was simply 'welcome to untreated paranoia'.

Matters did hit a hat on a hat level as the book progressed. An antagonist born of the antagonist born of the protagonist. Yes Edward is a successful red herring but god what a loose thread that could have not been in the book at all except for sexual violence. While I'm pleased for the mc cleaning up her psycho sister in the end (gotta think with your head and not your fists, well done taylor) the bracelet reemerging had me rolling my eyes. Just close it out, jesus christ.

Every character is unlikable, no one ever has an honest conversation and yes sure Sometimes I lie, but the inconsistency and internalized body judgement gets in the way of it being a truly satisfying read.

Content Warnings

geraldinerowe's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

A cleverly-woven thriller where you're told from the beginning that you're dealing with an unreliable narrator. As with most stories of this type there's an element of having to suspend your disbelief over convenient coincidences and relying on characters to behave in a particular way, but nevertheless you'll be trying to guess what's really going on from the very first page. I'm not sure it entirely holds together if you analyse it closely, but you'll have to decide yourself if that really matters.

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