Paula Treick DeBoard | HERE WE LIE

Plot (via Goodreads):

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.

Review:

A few years ago, I had the pleasure of reading THE MOURNING HOURS by Paula Treick DeBoard and I absolutely fell in love with her writing style. When her release, THE DROWNING GIRLS came out, I had to buy it immediately and have been kicking myself for not reading it sooner...and then came HERE WE LIE. When I first came across HERE WE LIE, I knew I had to reach out for a copy and I am so glad I did. Reading a Paula Treick DeBoard novel is like visiting with an old friend. There's familiarity in her writing no matter how different the plots are, the characters are people you meet and immediately want to befriend, and her writing style is the comfort of home. 

The plot to this one is not necessarily as suspenseful or thrilling as her previous work, but it does start off with quite an interesting and ominous chapter and then quickly barrels backwards fifteen years to meet our two main characters, Megan and Lauren. I really enjoyed how well written and creative the author was in writing these characters. This novel for me gave off a feel of just going through fifteen years of laughter, pain, and a horrific night that ultimately changed these two women forever. I loved how this one had mild suspense but was high with psychological intensity. This is not a novel that focuses on the what, where, or the why, but focuses on the who. I quickly found myself eating up pages and comparing the chapters from Megan's perspective to how Lauren viewed certain situations and vice versa. This read is not only one you completely get lost in, but something that I found myself craving when I wasn't ferociously eating up each and every word. I loved how efficient and honest this ending was and the epilogue was something that was well deserved for not only the reader, but these two amazing women that I got a chance to know. 

A character-driven psychological suspense with heart and an intriguing and addictive writing style, HERE WE LIE is the perfect literary read for fans of Paula Treick DeBoard and is also the kind of novel that will turn you into a huge fan of her writing if this is your first novel. Circling back to the beginning of this review, I don't think it will take me long to devour THE DROWNING GIRLS and eagerly await more work from Paula in the future. 

*Special thanks to Park Row for sending me this copy in exchange for my honest review. 

Rating: 4.5/5