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Reviewed by Ruffina Oserio for Readers' Favorite
Maybe You Lied by Jennifer Sadera is a psychological thriller that follows twenty-one-year-old Will Lockhart, who is drowning in grief and guilt after his mother’s death in a car accident. He cannot socialize nor bring himself to move past the paralysis, but when he cannot pay his rent any longer, he knows he must do something. He discovers a deed left by his long-dead father to a remote cottage in New York, while packing up his mother’s things. He moves to the woods in the hope of leaving his crumbling life behind and making a new start. He quickly becomes entangled with Penelope, the beguilingly beautiful daughter of the town’s most powerful man, Robert Chesel. But the cottage has dark secrets, and Will quickly discovers that everything he has known about his father was a lie. What connection might his father have with the Candyman Killer and a hardened prisoner?
Jennifer Sadera’s novel is a blend of suspense and mystery, and the characters are not only compelling but unforgettable, especially Will. His social awkwardness and trauma make him a likeable hero: flawed and complex, with emotional depths. Penelope may radiate energy, but she is emotionally damaged and desperate for a connection, and she is also afraid of her legacy. The first-person narrative is perfectly executed to reflect Will’s psyche, and this style is enhanced with Will’s letters to his dead mother. Maybe You Lied skillfully explores inherited violence, family secrets, and how they affect us, and whether love can survive in a world of uncertainty and darkness. The pacing is calculated, slow with meditations on grief, and accelerating quickly into a suspenseful thriller with the unveiling of each element of the mystery surrounding the cottage. The twists in the third part of the book are nerve-jerking.
