![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/07\/Lies-Blog-Tour-Banner.jpg?resize=640%2C236&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Betty Dawsey knows that breaking things off with Thom Lange is for the best. He\u2019s nice, but boring, and their relationship has lost its spark. But steady and predictable Thom, suddenly doesn\u2019t seem so steady and predictable when their condo explodes and she\u2019s kidnapped by a couple of crazies claiming that Thom isn\u2019t who he says he is.<\/p>\n
Thom is having a hellish week. Not only is he hunting a double agent, but his fianc\u00e9 dumped him, and thanks to his undercover life, she\u2019s been kidnapped.<\/p>\n
Turns out Thom is Operative Thom and he\u2019s got more than a few secrets to share with Betty if he\u2019s going to keep her alive. With both their lives on the line, their lackluster connection is suddenly replaced by an intense one. But in his line of work, feelings aren\u2019t wanted or desired. Because feelings can be a lethal distraction.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Add to GoodReads<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n 3.5 stars<\/b><\/p>\n I fell in mad instalove with the cover of this book, and the blurb sounded like so much fun. Kylie Scott has delivered a fast-paced action suspense romance that is exciting and unexpected, laugh out-loud funny, and one hell of an entertaining ride!<\/p>\n Betty is breaking up with her fianc\u00e9. They\u2019ve been together for a year, but their relationship is mundane, as is her fianc\u00e9, Thom, who frequently travels away for work, and there is no spark left\u2026 if there ever was any. She\u2019s literally packing her bags and walking out the door when her condo explodes and she is thrust into a world of violence, intrigue and undercover operatives\u2026 and Thom is right in the middle of it.<\/p>\n She learns that her relationship was a lie, set up to provide the perfect cover for Thom, and that a mole in his organisation has put her directly in the firing line. Thom admits he lied, he also admits that his feelings for her were real, but Betty is understandably furious and hurt. But she\u2019ll need to trust in Thom as he takes her on the run in an effort to save both of their lives and figure out who is targeting them\u2026 all while getting to the bottom of the mess of their relationship once and for all.<\/p>\n This is a really fun set-up, and I was so excited to watch the story unfold. There is a whole lot of action, violence, mystery and suspense, and some really funny moments as we are immersed into Thom\u2019s world.<\/p>\n Betty is absolutely fabulous! Funny, feisty and absolutely hilarious, I loved her narration, her inner-monologue, and the way she dealt with the mad situation she was thrown into.<\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re handling this well.\u201d And as Betty is introduced to the real<\/i> Thom, there\u2019s snark and bickering, and a nice amount of sexy time and emotion as them being together in such a highly intense situation forces them to deal with everything between them.<\/p>\n \u201cHoly shit. Is there anything you didn\u2019t lie to me about?\u201d It took me a while to warm to Thom. I guess you have to be suspicious of somebody who lied to their girlfriend\/fianc\u00e9 for 12 months, hiding so much from her \u2013 including the depth of his feelings \u2013 and pretending to be somebody he obviously isn\u2019t. I\u2019m not a fan of what he did and the way that he treated Betty, and we never really get to know him to fully understand why he did it, but watching him bring her into his world and let her get to know the real him was lovely.<\/p>\n My heart beats double time. The look in his eyes as he gazes down at me is everything I could have asked for. Everything I\u2019d given up hoping I\u2019d ever get from this man. And now here he is, giving it to me in spades.<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n There are twists and turns, and a few surprises along the way. I wasn\u2019t a huge fan of the ending, but it does end in a good place, and it was certainly a wild and entertaining ride.<\/p>\n 3.5 stars.<\/p>\n An Advanced Reader Copy was generously provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.<\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re going to break his heart.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo, I\u2019m not,\u201d I say. \u201cThat\u2019s sort of the whole point. If I really thought leaving him would break his heart, then I probably wouldn\u2019t be leaving him in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n My best friend, Jen, does not look convinced.<\/p>\n Boxes fill a good half of the room. What a mess. Who knew you could accumulate so much junk in only twelve months? At least we weren\u2019t together so long that I can\u2019t remember who owns what. One year is about the sweet spot for this issue in relationships, apparently.<\/p>\n \u201cThe fact of the matter is, we\u2019re not in love. We have no business being engaged, let alone getting married.\u201d I sigh. \u201cHave you seen the packing tape?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNo. He\u2019s just such a nice guy.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not debating that.\u201d I climb to my feet, then head up the stairs to the second bedroom. Thom\u2019s unofficial workout room\/home office. Not a room I normally go into. But it only takes a bit of rummaging to find what I\u2019m looking for. Whatever else might be said about them, insurance assessors are organized. The bottom drawer of Thom\u2019s desk has a neat stash of stationery. I grab a couple rolls of thick tape.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd leaving him this way\u2026\u201d Jen continues as I head back down.<\/p>\n \u201cHow many times have I told him we need to talk? He\u2019s always putting it off, saying it\u2019s not a good time. And now he\u2019s away again. I\u2019ve been messaging him for the last week and he barely replies.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou know he has to drop everything once a job comes up. I realize he\u2019s not the most exciting guy, Betty, but\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know.\u201d I smack down a line of tape with extra zest, sealing the lid of the last box. In this Operation Abandon Ship Posthaste, I know I\u2019m definitely slightly the bad guy. But not totally. Say sixty\/forty. Or maybe seventy\/thirty. It\u2019s hard to tell to what degree. \u201cI do know all of that. But he\u2019s always busy with work or away on some business trip. What am I supposed to do?\u201d<\/p>\n A sigh from Jen.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you realize you\u2019ve made such a monumental mistake, it\u2019s hard to sit and wait to fix things. Nor is it fair on either of us to keep up the pretense.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cGuess so.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd the fact that he\u2019s yet again made no effort to prioritize our relationship and make a little time for me in his busy schedule is just further proof that I\u2019ve made the right choice in ending this now before it gets any more complicated. End of rant.\u201d<\/p>\n Nothing from her.<\/p>\n \u201cAnyway, you\u2019re supposed to be on my side. Stop questioning me.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYou wanted to get married and have children so badly.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cYeah.\u201d I sit back on my heels. \u201cI blame it all on playing with Ken and Barbie\u2019s dreamhouse when I was little. But it turns out that being in a relationship with the wrong person can be even lonelier than being alone.\u201d<\/p>\n Jen and I have been friends since sharing a room in college. We\u2019ve witnessed the bulk of each other\u2019s dating ups and downs. For some reason, I\u2019m the type of girl who guys will go out with, but don\u2019t tend to stick with. Apparently, I\u2019m fuckable\u2014just not girlfriend material. Maybe it\u2019s my smart mouth. Maybe it\u2019s the whole not fitting current societal expectations of beauty i.e. I\u2019m fat. Maybe I was born under an unlucky star. I don\u2019t know; it\u2019s their loss. Like anyone, I have my faults, but all in all, I\u2019m awesome. And I have a lot to give. Too often in the past few months, I\u2019ve had to keep reminding myself of this fact.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are just so many jerks out there,\u201d Jen says. \u201cI was happy that you\u2019d found a good one.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI think I\u2019d prefer a jerk who was genuinely into me than a nice guy phoning it in. Honestly, I\u2019d rather go adopt a dozen cats and settle into old age and isolation than be with someone who treats me as if I\u2019m an afterthought.\u201d<\/p>\n She looks at me for a long moment, then nods slowly. \u201cI\u2019m sorry it didn\u2019t work out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMe too.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTime to start filling up the cars. Boy, do you owe me.\u201d<\/p>\n I smile. \u201cThat I do.\u201d<\/p>\n Jen stands and stretches before picking up one of the boxes labeled kitchen. \u201cI just didn\u2019t want you to do something you\u2019d regret, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI know. Thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n Alone in the two-bedroom condo, everything is silent. My parting letter sits waiting on the coffee table with his name written on the front. A slight bulge in the envelope betrays the shape of my engagement ring. It\u2019s a sweet, simple ring. One small diamond perched on a band of yellow gold. My hand feels wrong without it. Naked.\u00a0They say there are different love languages and you have to take the time to learn your partner\u2019s needs. It\u2019s like he and I never quite got there. Or maybe I\u2019m just crappy at relationships.<\/p>\n The bridal magazines I\u2019d collected are in the trash. Perhaps I should have taken them into the florist shop where I work so someone could get some use out of them. But this feels more symbolic, more definite. My family are a couple of states away, and I have only a few of what I\u2019d classify as good friends. Being an introvert makes it hard to meet people. A boyfriend, a husband, would mean I\u2019m no longer alone. Someone cares about me and puts me first. At least part of the time. Only Thom doesn\u2019t any of the time, so here we are.<\/p>\n I tighten my ponytail of long dark hair. Then, in a rare display of dexterity that my yoga instructor would be proud of, I stack three boxes in my arms and head outside into the hot afternoon sun. Jen\u2019s Honda Civic is parked at the curb, the trunk standing open as she moves things about inside. My old Subaru sits in the driveway waiting to be filled. Birds are singing and insects chirping. It\u2019s your typical mild autumn day in California.<\/p>\n That\u2019s when the condo blows up behind me.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kylie is a New York Times and USA Today best-selling author. She was voted Australian Romance Writer of the year, 2013 & 2014, by the Australian Romance Writer\u2019s Association and her books have been translated into eleven different languages. She is a long time fan of romance, rock music, and B-grade horror films. Based in Queensland, Australia with her two children and husband, she reads, writes and never dithers around on the internet.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Amazon<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Bookbub<\/a>\u00a0 | \u00a0Facebook\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0 Twitter\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0\u00a0Instagram\u00a0\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0\u00a0Goodreads<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Pinterest<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Book+Main Bites<\/a>\u00a0 |\u00a0 Website<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lies, a steamy, fast paced standalone filled with the perfect blend of heat and humor from New York Times bestselling author Kylie Scott, is available\u00a0now! Amazon\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Apple Books\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Amazon Worldwide\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Nook\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Kobo\u00a0 |\u00a0\u00a0Paperback […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44213,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","yasr_overall_rating":3.5,"yasr_post_is_review":"","yasr_auto_insert_disabled":"","yasr_review_type":"Product","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[79,88,65,95,9,29],"tags":[59,212,48,76],"class_list":["post-44431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-action","category-badasses","category-lol-funny","category-mystery","category-romance","category-steamy","tag-arc","tag-kylie-scott","tag-review","tag-standalone"],"yasr_visitor_votes":{"stars_attributes":{"read_only":false,"span_bottom":false},"number_of_votes":0,"sum_votes":0},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/Lies.jpg?fit=200%2C300&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7gaNL-byD","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=44431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/44213"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=44431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=44431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=44431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nReview<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\nI laugh. \u201cOh, really?\u201d Because inside my head, I\u2019m basically alternating between this freaked-out, endless, high-pitched screaming noise and an all-consuming need to kill you for all the fucking lies.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nThe mirth disappears from his face. \u201cI wasn\u2019t lying when I said I love you.\u201d<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nExcerpt<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\nAbout the Author<\/strong><\/h4>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Kylie-Scott.jpg?resize=146%2C219\")
<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.escapistbookblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/unnamed-1-e1489715251467.png?resize=300%2C116&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"