Faiza has strived to fit in all her adult life. It took a few years, but all those Wimbledon mothers who used to mistake her for the nanny finally treat her as one of their own. But then her husband Tom loses his job in finance, and Faiza starts to unravel – because she secretly spent all the money Tom had put aside for emergencies, and in less than two months, they’ll be bankrupt. What’s left but to lie, and try and get the money back?

WHAT I LOVED: 

The pacing! The story is told in „how many weeks before the money’s gone“ time. Basically, a countdown to ruin. We follow Faiza not only as she worries about her husband and her children, but also in all her attempts to pull money from *somewhere* so she doesn’t have to tell Tom the shameful truth. And I swear my pulse skyrocketed each time one of Faiza‘s safety nets disappeared. My heart ached for Faiza: it was awful to see how one lie can spiral out of control and shake a family to its core, and even sadder to see how Faiza is trapped in her own lies and incapable of seeing the truth. 

We also get to experience all the unconscious bias and very blatant racism that Faiza encounters during her attempts at saving her family, and also that her own children encounter, being biracial - and I loved to see south asian culture and relationship written in a believable and interesting way. It reminded my of „Such a fun age“.

IN A NUTSHELL:

This was a page-turner of a book: it had tension, it had DRAMA, it had compelling dialogues and characters (although I found myself frustrated with Faiza’s naivety towards the end) and some twists and turns that will keep you glued to the page.

It’s heartfelt, compelling, and funny and I definitely recommend adding „Would I lie to you“ to your summer reads.