Book Review: “The Lying Game” by Ruth Ware

The day after a dog charges into the water after a stick but discovers something more sinister, three women in and around London—Fatima, Thea, and Isabel—receive a text they had always hoped would NEVER come from the fourth in their formerly inseparable clique, Kate, that says only, “I need you.”

Even though I had some reservations after reading Ruth Ware’s book, “The Woman in Cabin 10,” decided to give “The Lying Game,” another of her mystery/thrillers, a try.

If you look at the reviews on Amazon, I’m apparently an exception, but I actually enjoyed this book more than the “The Woman in Cabin 10.”

First off, I have a major love affair with an unreliable narrator. And you can’t get more unreliable than the narrator who tells you on page three that she’s lying. Perfect!

Plus, it’s called “The Lying Game,” so we have all sorts of lying going on already. Everyone is unreliable, not just the narrator! Even better!

So, all kidding aside, I do think Ruth Ware is really good at creating a creepy mood and scenes. Like her other book, this one also captures that sense of something being really wrong right below the surface, but you can’t quite make out what it is. Unlike her other book, this one doesn’t slip into any other genres.

That’s not to say this book isn’t without its flaws. I don’t want to share too much and give away spoilers, but there were a few things I thought were a little perplexing. Mainly, once you actually unravel what all the lying is covering up, it didn’t seem as big of a deal as the characters were making it out to be.

In other words, it’s a somewhat anti-climactic.

But, overall, I’d give it four stars. It kept my interest and kept me reading each night. Definitely recommend it.

Here’s the Amazon.com if you want to grab your copy.