Review: Here We Lie by Paula Treick DeBoard

Title: Here We Lie

Author: Paula Treick DeBoard

Published: January 2018, Park Row Books

Format: ARC Paperback, 368 pages

Source: Author

Summary:

A riveting novel about how the past never stays in the past, from the critically acclaimed author of
The Drowning Girls
and
The Mourning Hours.

Megan Mazeros and Lauren Mabrey are complete
opposites on paper. Megan is a girl from a modest Midwest background,
and Lauren is the daughter of a senator from an esteemed New England
family. But in 1999, Megan and Lauren become college roommates and, as
two young women struggling to find their place on campus, they forge a
strong, albeit unlikely, friendship. The two quickly become inseparable,
sharing clothes, advice and their most intimate secrets.

The
summer before their senior year, Megan joins Lauren and her family on
their private island off the coast of Maine. The weeks go by, filled
with fun and relaxation, until late one night at the end of the
vacation, something unspeakable happens, searing through the framework
of the girls’ friendship and tearing them apart. Many years later, in
the midst of a political scandal, Megan finally comes forward about what
happened that fateful night, revealing a horrible truth about Lauren’s
family and threatening to expose their long-buried secrets.

In
this captivating and moving novel of domestic suspense, Paula Treick
DeBoard explores the power of friendship and secrets and shows how
betrayal can lead to disastrous, and deadly, consequences.

My thoughts: Paula Treick DeBoard is still a relatively new author to me, having only read her previous book, The Drowning Girls, which I really enjoyed. So of course, I was thrilled and honored when Paula herself reached out to me to read and review her latest book. 

This is another book that is so timely and relevant in today’s society – which is such a sad commentary to make, yet a true one nonetheless. Right from the beginning, you find out that something has happened 14 years ago to cause Megan and Lauren’s friendship to fracture – something big enough that a press conference was warranted. We aren’t given the full details – of course! – but we are given just enough that we can certainly guess where the book might be headed.

From there, the story takes off, moving back and forth in time, really developing these two characters – a huge strength that this writer has. She is able to give us a story, with a compelling, engaging plot, and yet have the characters take center stage. We see the girls’ unlikely friendship grow from their first meeting in college, we get their backgrounds and what makes them them. We see the first hints of the lies and secrets that start to build between the girls – as their friendship continues, we see that all really isn’t as well as they make it out to be.

This book is an addicting read. It will get under your skin as you try to put the pieces together. You know some big “thing” has happened to cause the ultimate fracture of the girls’ friendship, and you will make guesses – you might even guess correctly what has happened before it is revealed – but it’s really the way the story is told, the building up to it and the way things are handled afterwards that make this book. It also shows just how damaging a lie or two can be – they always have a way of coming back to haunt you.

I devoured this book…once I started reading it, I could think of nothing else. This is an emotionally charged read and one that has such strong characters, they will certainly stay with you long after you have finished reading that last page. I cannot wait to go back and pick up the two books I have not read of Paula’s – her writing is just so good I cannot get enough. And at least those will tide me over until any future releases come out!