Title: Too Good To Be True
Author: Carola Lovering
Published: March 2021, St. Martin’s Press
Format: ARC E-copy, 352 pages
Source: Netgalley via Publisher
Summary:
ONE LOVE STORY. TWO MARRIAGES. THREE VERSIONS OF THE TRUTH.
Skye
Starling is overjoyed when her boyfriend, Burke Michaels, proposes
after a whirlwind courtship. Though Skye seems to have the world at her
fingertips―she’s smart, beautiful, and from a well-off family―she’s also
battled crippling OCD ever since her mother’s death when she was
eleven, and her romantic relationships have suffered as a result.
But
now Burke―handsome, older, and more emotionally mature than any man
she’s met before―says he wants her. Forever. Except, Burke isn’t who he
claims to be. And interspersed letters to his therapist reveal the
truth: he’s happily married, and using Skye for his own, deceptive ends.
In
a third perspective, set thirty years earlier, a scrappy
seventeen-year-old named Heather is determined to end things with Burke,
a local bad boy, and make a better life for herself in New York City.
But can her adolescent love stay firmly in her past―or will he find his
way into her future?
On a collision course she doesn’t see
coming, Skye throws herself into wedding planning, as Burke’s scheme
grows ever more twisted. But of course, even the best laid plans can go
astray. And just when you think you know where this story is going,
you’ll discover that there’s more than one way to spin the truth.
My thoughts: This is the first book I’ve read by Carola Lovering but after reading this one it definitely will not be the last. If all her books are as addicting as this one, I will be first in line to read them!
I love nothing more than a book that explores toxic relationships and boy oh boy does this one do that in spades. I was immediately drawn into this one, thinking that I thought I knew where it was heading, only to be blindsided halfway through. I love a book that had twists but this one kept me glued to the pages because everything I thought I had pieced together what was going on, something new would be revealed that would shift things around again.
Having the book told by three points of view really keeps you on your toes and I loved that. You will end up with all sorts of feelings about each of the three characters…and that to me is such a great sign of the writing. But it also begs the question…how well do we really know the one we love? Can we really trust everything we see or do we only see what we want to see?
Things move fast in this book and it’s probably best to pick this one up when you have lots of time because you are not going to want to put this one down. It’s addicting and one that gets under your skin because you just need to have all the pieces to see here things are heading.
I know I’m being a bit vague here, but I really don’t want to give anything away. This is one you just have to experience for yourself. It is so cleverly plotted and I loved how it all came together in the end. It’s one heck of a ride and I definitely recommend picking this one up, especially if you like a good domestic thriller.
