Her Dark Lies: A Novel

I have to say J. T. Ellison writes excellent suspense. This one reads like a gothic mystery of old. Towering cliffs on a island owned by a powerful family. So many secrets in both sides. Twists and turns so crazy you never see what’s coming and a shocking ending. Great job!!

This was the absolutely, hands-down, best Gothic suspense that I have read since Victoria Holt’s classic “Bride of Pendorric.” This book swept me away to Isola, an imaginary island off the coast of Italy and was so creepy that I almost felt like I needed to look over my shoulders as I was reading. The story centered around Claire, a young woman from Nashville who falls in love with a multi-millionaire named Jack Compton. Jack’s family owns the island and his family’s history and the villa in which they reside there were fascinating and made this book a totally compulsive read. Getting to know Jack’s family in the pages of this book was a pleasure, kind of. I found that some were nicer and more accepting of Claire than others. My particular favorite was Jack’s grandfather Will, the patriarch of the family who suffers from dementia but who has more wisdom than many others in the household. The characters and the setting made this novel a stellar read. Each time a new character was introduced, I wanted to get to know them well and quickly, and the author did a wonderful job of making sure that I knew what I needed to know to continue to progress into the labyrinth that was Claire’s love story. Most characters had a secret, some more than one, that ended up like a spider’s web of lies and deceit. There were so many hidden places in the family villa on Isola that I loved exploring this ancient home, with so many secrets within its walls and in its gardens. The horror of the events that occurred leading up to Claire’s wedding was well wrapped up in a plot that was extremely intricate and complicated. But the author made it all seem so simple to understand because she unwound truths slowly, like a cornucopia of bountiful mysteries. I can’t say enough about how much I loved this book! I wish my mom were still alive for me to discuss it with her because she introduced me to Victoria Holt and I’m sure that she would agree that J.T. has achieved the same summit of writing a truly entertaining gothic suspense. I highly recommend this book to those who enjoy mystery, suspense, thriller and a Gothic atmosphere that is its own character in the book. Disclaimer I purchased an autographed copy of this book and was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Claire drove me crazy with the way she constantly questioned small statements until she drove herself insecure. I get it's her wedding and stuff is falling apart but Lord, pull it together. She wasn't the strong heroine i was expecting that's for sure. She tended to let Jack take the lead and just accepted his word as gospel. That bugged me because I could see Jack was hiding some secrets... some secrets that were buried around 6 feet under. Jack wasn't the only one with secrets thought. His family, the Compton's, are just as pompous as they sound. There's so many secrets in this family that you have to sign an NDA to even join the family... rolls eyes. With all that said, I did like the story. In started out slow and very slowly picked up pace. When the first person dies, I literally thought, finally, let's get this story moving. Thankfully it does start to move after that death. The past is rip with secrets and it isn't as dead as the Compton's would like. Oh no, they have some unburied secrets hiding along passageways waiting to mess up Jack's idealistic future. I'll be real, any thriller lover will see this ending coming from a mile away. However, that doesn't ruin the storyline per say. The writing is good and well developed. The characters are easily dislikable for the most part with a few being likeable. So you don't mind everything going down as it is. Even with the ending pretty laid out for anyone to guess, I liked it. I was happy with it and found the ending to be satisfactory. I received an ARC of this book with the hope that I would leave an Unbiased Opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that... my opinions.