A Perfect Lie Author SM Thomas
Book Review
5 out of 5 stars!
Releasing September 8, 2026!
"You brought this to our house because you had an entire other life that came crashing through our front door and bled out on our rug!"
Abigail was living out her beautiful, peaceful life. A nice home with ways she can improve it, two healthy, loving children, and a man who is a great father. Never mind the fact that the ideal man in her picturesque scene is about to be cut out. Owen was everything until he wasn't and she was about to place divorce papers on the table until a fateful night. . .
Some people's pasts are very hard to ignore and cover up or pretend they never happened. Abigail's real past is about to invade her current present. She will have to battle the old her to keep everything she has built. To keep her family and her children. But would it be so bad if Owen just vanished? Liability gone and all. Or in some warped way will this save a failing marriage and unite the couple? The test is about to begin, and a very old and dear friend is going to up the ante. . .
"When did I know my marriage was over? It wasn't anything cinematic. Nothing exciting. It all boiled down to the bathroom walls."
I so enjoy reading new books from authors I love and being reminded why I'm so invested in them! The prologue had me and that twist. . .I was hooked! Thomas' thrillers just reach out and yank me into the story and before I know it, I am halfway through. Trying to theorize what's going to happen, who can I trust, will there be crazy flips of the script with characters, seeds of suspicion and doubts, and will I finally get a throuple trope from this author! (Little bit of a mutual bi inside joke from my friend Thomas!)
Abigail was an interesting character and the things she went through to ensure she could live safely in the world was gnarly! But when you are running from The Family as a former Fixer. . .things get complicated fast. And if you are not careful, well, we've all read and seen enough Mafia dramas to know the rest. I loved watching her mental struggle and instincts trying to take over. Her past self-judges her present. What is considered "weak" in her Fixer eyes is actually compassion and a housewife going into protective momma bear mode.
Tensions building throughout the read and an already strained relationship being pushed to possibly snapping. There was this unintended comedy going on of "does Owen live another day or is tonight the night" that had me chuckling. We get dual timelines of Abigail's real past playing out and her current present that is no longer peaceful. I ate up every minute of Abigail's story and what it was like coming from a broken home to being within The Family to a quiet, mundane life.
Now this read has darkness and intense scenes. Language is spread throughout the book. We get a first person POV of being a Fixer and doing some jobs. There are some gory details, bloodshed, violence, and ways to get rid of things. A LOT of scenarios for various things within this read that I enjoyed. Abusive parents both physically and emotionally, a past understanding of someone who went through torture, mention of potential SA, intense, scary moments with extremely high stakes, some of the ending sequences have you even more on the edge of your seat, mind games and manipulation, and genuine fear.
There was romance in this read but not the kind you're used to. This is a gritty, raw one of deciding whether to be a team or not and the consequences of what not being one would mean. Trying to understand if your partner is worth it especially after finding out their true self. The bonds of family and having children.
For me there were some repetitions of information or feelings. But the pace of the plot and story didn't slow and there was action and drama starting from page one till the very final line of the book! I got some of the twists but not all of them! I was expecting some things that the author had done in previous reads, but she proved me a fool! Keeping it fresh and not having patterns! We do get some nice conclusions to this story, and I really cannot wait for the next novel from this author!
Enjoy the read and don't forget to give the author some stars! Also, remember that Hydrogen Peroxide is always a cleaning option for difficult stains. . .
Author friend reached out with ARC copy!
A Perfect Lie: A Domestic Thriller | Barnes & Noble®
smthomasauthor Official: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook | Linktree
Comments