Reviews tagging 'Infidelity'

Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney

25 reviews

amberinbookland's review against another edition

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2.5

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heather_harrison's review against another edition

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dark tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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cc_shelflove's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Wow. I’ll be honest; I definitely thought I had this one all figured out. This doesn’t happen often, but I didn’t see most of this book coming. Told in three separate timelines, Feeney gives us a look at Amber’s mind while she is in a coma, the events leading up to her accident, and her childhood. I went back and forth with my rating because there was a lot of ambiguity in the ending, but the more I thought about it, the more I recognized that that’s what made this book so clever. The reader is given the freedom to form his or her own hypothesis as to what is “real.” After all, Feeney gives you a warning with the title, Sometimes I Lie… I would recommend this to the sophisticated thriller reader who loves to wear a Sherlock cap. 
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pageafter_paige's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was a super quick read that kept me on my toes! I loved how the chapters jumped between diary entries from childhood, present time, and the week leading up to her coma. Even though the title is called Sometimes I Lie I was still fooled a few times hahaha but overall I felt the ending was predictable once a certain big secret was revealed. I do love Alice’s writing and I find it super engaging. I’m not a huge fan of how it all ended in the last chapter but overall I enjoyed the story! 
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vibingandy's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

surprised at how intense some scenes were, definitely look at the content warnings! otherwise was a bit predictable in parts, and the big twist made the plot more confusing (though it was interesting for sure)
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velvetreads_'s review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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reburkah's review against another edition

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mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

I felt this book to be incredibly slow. It dragged on forever and the book is less than 300 pages. The narrator is unlikable and I was uninterested in what happened to her.
The rape scene was entirely unnecessary and added nothing to the plot. There was no need for that character at all.
I wish there had been more definition between diary and real life as I found it to be confusing to what had actually happened. The scenes where she was in the coma were redundant and boring which ruins the excitement of the book considering it's about a character in a coma. 
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magellen's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

While the plot is twisty and really takes flight at about 75%, you spend most of the book bludgeoned by the phrase 'let herself go' or some adjacent negative assessment regarding every single woman in the book. Seriously it is exhausting, it rises in most chapters, whether it's a pov talking about herself, or her mother, or a coworker, just an endless loop of hate that doesn't add anything and makes the book feel particularly dated. 

The book is a great example of unreliable narration but is likewise tedious in stretches where the mc walks forward and backwards through her thoughts with zero self trust and yes, toxic relationships do instill distrust in one's self, but it just feels like bloat in the narrative when it doesn't stop. Likewise it breaks your trust in all the narratives, breaks the momentum the book has built and becomes a muddle halfway thru. Intentionally done and layered as it is it mostly works but I feel like I only began enjoying the book in the last quarter and prior to that it was simply 'welcome to untreated paranoia'.

Matters did hit a hat on a hat level as the book progressed. An antagonist born of the antagonist born of the protagonist. Yes Edward is a successful red herring but god what a loose thread that could have not been in the book at all except for sexual violence. While I'm pleased for the mc cleaning up her psycho sister in the end (gotta think with your head and not your fists, well done taylor) the bracelet reemerging had me rolling my eyes. Just close it out, jesus christ.

Every character is unlikable, no one ever has an honest conversation and yes sure Sometimes I lie, but the inconsistency and internalized body judgement gets in the way of it being a truly satisfying read.
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cherrypiejay's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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maeslibrary's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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