Add this book on Goodreads
Buy this book on Amazon
Genre: Thriller, True Crime
Source: Review Copy
Format: Ebook
Pages: 170
Publication Date: March 3, 2019
My Rating: 3.5 stars
“Always, listen to your gut.“
The protagonist Julie is a single mother working in the emergency room of a hospital. Her life has been incredibly difficult so far. She was abused by her mother and raped in college. She is raising her daughter all on her own with no child support from her ex. She meets a guy named James and suddenly everyone is encouraging her to go out with him. Ignoring her intuition, she gets into a relationship with him. She finds out she is pregnant on the same day that he tells us he has been accused of child molestation.
As the book starts, Julie narrates some things she has witnessed while working in the ER and describes the crimes in her town. From then on, I knew this was going to be a terrifying read.
The book has a very dark and ominous vibe. I had a feeling of foreboding throughout. Knowing that it is based on true events made it even scary.
The book is fast-paced and very griping. The author highlights some messed up laws and judicial system. Julie keeps on getting premonitions and bad feelings. She learns to trust her instincts and ends up discovering a human trafficking ring. The plot keeps on getting more and more complex. The mystery element was very well cultivated to keep the reader on their toes.
The narration can be edited in a better way, especially at the beginning of the book. There were a lot of long inner monologues that didn’t fit. I also think there should be trigger warnings for rape, abuse, and graphic scenes so that readers will know beforehand that the book consists of these.
I highly admire the author’s courage in telling this story. There are so many atrocities going on in this world that go undiscovered.
Why She Lied by Julie Coons is a page turner and an excellent thriller.
