Book Review: First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston

 

Rating: 2.5⭐️

“The first lie has to be the strongest. The most important. The one that has to be told”

I found the premise of First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston to be truly intriguing. Evie Porter, a con artist who works for the mysterious “Mr. Smith” finds herself trapped in a complex web of manipulation as she works on her current mark, Ryan Sumner. Posing as Ryan’s girlfriend while passing on information about Ryan’s business to her boss should have been easy for her, given she has almost perfected her game over the years in Mr. Smith’s employ. However, her growing feelings for Ryan, her feelings of guilt for her deception and her desire for a different life than she has chosen (or the life that has chosen her?) and the added pressure that she is being closely monitored and failing her current task would result in dire consequences, complicate matters further and the situation begins to spiral out of Evie’s control.

The beginning of the book drew me in and had me hooked, but as the plot progressed, my enthusiasm dampened. The author’s writing shows promise and I thought most of the twists were well executed (the entry of “Lucca Marino” was a genius plot point). However, too much of the narrative was devoted to telling rather than showing, which detracted from my overall experience. Evie is an interesting protagonist but the oversharing (in excruciatingly minute detail) about both past events and how events unfold in the present timeline not only messed with the pacing and but also made me forget that I was reading what was supposed to be a suspenseful “thriller.” Though not entirely unpredictable, there were a few aspects of the mystery that were well-crafted. However, I wasn’t a fan of how the author chose to end the story and found a few developments/revelations toward the end utterly unconvincing and contrived.

After a very long wait for my library copies, I can’t help but feel more than a tad disappointed with this one. Had I not approached this novel expecting a fast-paced, complex, edge of your set thriller, I would have enjoyed it more.

I paired my reading with the audiobook narrated by Saskia Maarleveld, who has done a commendable job of breathing life into this story.