Lie to Me

by J. T. Ellison

Overview

Domestic noir at its best. Readers will devour this stunning page-turner about the disintegration of a marriage as grief, jealousy, betrayal and murder destroy the facade of the perfect literary couple. New York Times bestselling author J.T. Ellison takes her exceptional writing to a new level with this breakout novel.

They built a life on lies

Sutton and Ethan Montclair's idyllic life is not as it appears. They seem made for each other, but the truth is ugly. Consumed by professional and personal betrayals and financial woes, the two both love and hate each other. As tensions mount, Sutton disappears, leaving behind a note saying not to look for her.

Ethan finds himself the target of vicious gossip as friends, family and the media speculate on what really happened to Sutton Montclair. As the police investigate, the lies the couple have been spinning for years quickly unravel. Is Ethan a killer? Is he being set up? Did Sutton hate him enough to kill the child she never wanted and then herself? The path to the answers is full of twists that will leave the reader breathless.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780778330950
Publisher:	MIRA Books
Publication date:	09/05/2017
Edition description:	Original
Pages:	416
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.80(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J.T. Ellison writes standalone domestic noir and psychological thriller series, the latter starring Nashville Homicide Lt. Taylor Jackson and medical examiner Dr. Samantha Owens, and pens the international thriller series "A Brit in the FBI" with #1 New York Times bestselling author Catherine Coulter. Cohost of the Emmy Award-winning show, A Word on Words, Ellison lives in Nashville with her husband.

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/17/2017
Successful authors Ethan and Sutton Montclair, the married couple at the heart of this exceptional domestic thriller from bestseller Ellison (No One Knows), lead a relatively quiet life in Franklin, Tenn., where they each work on their respective books. Then Ethan wakes up one morning to discover a note from Sutton telling him that she needs some time away and doesn’t want him looking for her. Distraught, Ethan contacts Sutton’s mother and her friends, yet all of them claim not to know where she is. When Ethan finally decides to get the police involved in searching for Sutton, he falls under suspicion. Witnesses claim that Ethan physically abused Sutton and was even responsible for the death of their infant son. Might Ethan, emotionally devastated as he appears, be a psychopathic killer? Ellison keeps the suspense high with chapters from the point of view of someone very evil. The person responsible for Sutton’s disappearance remains a mystery right up to the surprising finale. This standalone may be Ellison’s best work to date. Agent: Scott Miller, Trident Media Group. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

"Exceptional...Ellison's best work to date." –Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Comparisons to 'Gone Girl' due to the initial story structure are expected, but Ellison has crafted a much better story that will still echo long after the final page is turned." –Associated Press

"Immensely readable...lush." -Booklist

"Fans of Paula Hawkins, A.S.A. Harrison, Mary Kubica, and Karin Slaughter will want to add this to their reading list." -Library Journal

"The domestic noir subgenre focuses on the truly horrible things people sometimes do to those they love, and J.T. Ellison's latest, Lie to Me, is one of the best... an absolute must-read." -Mystery Scene Magazine

"Wonderful... A one-more-chapter, don't-eat-dinner, stay-up-late sensation." – Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Fans of GONE GIRL will gobble up this thriller about a marriage from hell, which moves at a blazing-fast pace and smoothly negotiates more twists and turns than the backroads of Tennessee. J.T. Ellison will keep you guessing every step of the way to the surprise ending!"
-Lisa Scottoline, New York Times bestselling author of ONE PERFECT LIE

"A wickedly good thriller about a picture-perfect marriage that is anything but, LIE TO ME has it all: murder, lies and betrayal. J.T. Ellison will have readers hanging onto the edge of their seats with her latest cunning tale." –Mary Kubica, New York Times Bestselling Author of THE GOOD GIRL

"LIE TO ME twists you up, throws you into nail-biting action and unexpected revelations. Belt yourself in for this roller coaster ride."--Catherine Coulter, #1 New York Times bestselling author of ENIGMA

"LIE TO ME brilliantly combines a domestic noir thriller with a searing portrait of two writers trapped in a web of lies, betrayals, and murder. Sharply written and masterfully plotted, full of hard truths about the creative life and modern marriage, Ellison has written her finest novel- a breakout page-turner certain to win her a wide audience." -Jeff Abbott, New York Times bestselling author of BLAME

From the Publisher

05/15/2017
Ellison knows how to deliver gripping psychological suspense, and this tale of a marriage disintegrating appears to echo Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl. Sutton Montclair vanishes, and her husband, Ethan, deals with the aftermath. Is he a killer, or is something else going on entirely? Appearances can be deceiving, but Ellison's writing is not. [See Prepub Alert, 3/13/17.]

Library Journal

2017-06-20
The life of a picture-perfect literary couple sours when the wife goes missing and suspicion immediately falls on the husband, exposing a home life that was anything but picturesque.From the outside, Ethan and Sutton Montclair live the writerly dream in Franklin, Tennessee: he's a renowned literary novelist with a sexy English accent (it should be noted that accents do not make a character) while she's a more commercial writer. He's also got a wandering eye that's gotten him into trouble before. When Sutton vanishes one morning, leaving everything behind, along with a note telling Ethan not to look for her, Ethan can't decide if she took off on her own accord or if something more sinister happened. Since the husband is always guilty, the police seem convinced early on that Ethan is responsible given the number of domestic disturbance calls to the house and the stress caused by the recent loss of the couple's baby. Ellison (No One Knows, 2016, etc.) divides the novel roughly in two, giving the first half of the narrative to Ethan, so by the time the reader gets to Sutton's version of events—many of which are so predictable as to read almost as parody—it's difficult to form an unbiased opinion of the characters or to know, or truly care, about their fates. The theme of "nothing is what it seems" is taken to expected extremes, with both the Montclairs carrying secrets which are meant to be sordid and harrowing but are instead somewhat banal in a thriller universe. Instead of a suspenseful peek into a crumbling marriage with a missing wife at the center, Ellison's latest devolves into a mishmash of well-worn tropes carried out by even more threadbare characters.

Kirkus Reviews