Dedicated: An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher (Review by Missi Gwartney)
Rating 4.3/5 Coladas
“A half-truth is a whole lie.” ~ Yiddish Proverb
Have you ever been able to identify with this proverb? It seems so easy and maybe even engrained in our human nature to justify telling an “honest” or “half-truth” lie when we wholehearted believe it is the best thing to keep people, or even ourselves, from experiencing hurt, pain, or disappointment.
In Tarryn Fisher’s new book, An Honest Lie, we quickly learn that maybe even the tiniest, well-intended lie (or even a lie by omission) can quickly turn into a tailspin collision course of past and present. This once seemingly innocent lie may just mean forcing one to come clean even if it requires reliving a past that’s full of memories that are better left buried. Told between a past and present timeline, this story is full of the brilliant and witty plot twists that make Tarryn Fisher a wonderful thriller author that so many readers come back to time and time again.
Then: Summer is a young teenager dealing with the loss of her father and now moving away from the place she has called home. To escape the “demons” of her father’s past, Summer and her mother decide to flee to an old friend for help. What finally feels like safety and stability takes a spiraling turn when the help comes in the form of a cult community and ends up being far more horrific and dangerous than expected. With no way out in site, does Summer make the best of the situation or risk everything for a chance at escape?
Now: Rainy has spent most of her adult life out of the spotlight and burying the past in a place never to be dealt with again. After moving across the country to start over again, is this her chance to keep the past in the past and finally move on? Stepping out of her comfort zone to make friends leads Rainy unknowingly down a path she has tried to avoid for years. And when what seems like an innocent girl’s trip to Las Vegas forces her back to the most unpleasant time in her life, Rainy must decide if she will choose to face it head on or continue “lying” to avoid it altogether. Will she be able to finally risk telling the truth and exposing the very circumstances she’s been running from for most of her adult life? After all, what happens in Vegas (or in the outskirts of Vegas) stays in Vegas… Right?
I had so much fun reading this book and couldn’t decide which timeline I enjoyed more. My fascination and intrigue with people being drawn into the cult type atmosphere kept me wanting more and when that plot is interwoven with a girl’s trip to Vegas (yes, please!), there’s bound to be drama, excitement, and even a little bit of recklessness and fear as well as non-stop reading. Fisher’s ability to draw the reader in from what seems to be very different story lines are what makes her writing and storytelling so great. It is also why I had a hard time putting this book down! There is probably at least a little part of Rainy in all of us to identify with. I know I’m guilty of telling “an honest lie”, and this book will make it clear that sometimes even the best intended lies can come back and make us face things we’ve kept buried on purpose.
Buy the book!
GBC Reader Reviews