Every Last Lie

Author: Mary Kubica
Genre: Suspense
Type: e-book
Source: NetGalley
Publisher: Harlequin
First Published: June 27, 2017
First Line: "They say that death comes in threes."

Book Description from GoodReads: "The bad man, Daddy. The bad man is after us." 

Clara Solberg's world shatters when her husband and their four-year-old daughter are in a car crash, killing Nick while Maisie is remarkably unharmed. The crash is ruled an accident…until the coming days, when Maisie starts having night terrors that make Clara question what really happened on that fateful afternoon. 

Tormented by grief and her obsession that Nick's death was far more than just an accident, Clara is plunged into a desperate hunt for the truth. Who would have wanted Nick dead? And, more important, why? Clara will stop at nothing to find out—and the truth is only the beginning of this twisted tale of secrets and deceit. 

Told in the alternating perspectives of Clara's investigation and Nick's last months leading up to the crash, master of suspense Mary Kubica weaves her most chilling thriller to date—one that explores the dark recesses of a mind plagued by grief and shows that some secrets might be better left buried.

My Rating: 3 stars

My Review: Every Last Lie is accurately named because there's a whole lotta lyin' going on in Kubica's latest book. I have read two of her previous books, Pretty Baby and Don't You Cry -- with Pretty Baby being my favourite. Kubica is a good writer with some cool ideas but I will admit that with her latest book, Every Last Lie, I wasn't quite as enamoured.

This time around I found the pacing to be sluggish and repetitive and while some may call it a slow burn I'd say it was more of a low smolder. There was a slight jump in energy towards the end but I had expected more action and twists. 

Kubica uses dual narratives of Nick and Clara to tell the story which gives readers an inside look into their lives and how the lies began and continued to build. Kubica provides some possible culprits and red herrings that had me guessing but I wasn't a fan of the big twist at the end which wasn't a twist?! Huh?

Unfortunately, I had a hard time connecting to the main characters. I just didn't like them. I understand that life throws people hard balls but when smart characters repeatedly make silly decisions I have a hard time getting behind them. Both Nick and Clara keep making decisions which ultimately throw their lives, and the lives of their family, into turmoil. I had more sympathy for their young children and Harriet, the dog.

What Kubica does well is show the dark and all-consuming side of grief. Clara is drowning in her despair and I felt for her. She's overwhelmed, frenzied and out of sorts much of the time which makes sense when you think of what she's gone through. But she also lacks common sense -- like leaving her kids in a hot car while she frantically tries to piece together what happened to Nick and holding off telling her daughter what happened to Nick for an excruciatingly long time. While Clara makes for a good unreliable narrator she was just too flawed for me.

Overall, I think Kubica's die-hard fans will enjoy this book. It's got a good premise and touches on some big issues but was lighter on the suspense and character development than I had expected. I still consider myself a Kubica fan and look forward to her next literary offering. 

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Harlequin for providing me with a complimentary e-book copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.