The Beauty of Lies
(Stand by Me #1)
by Brinda Berry
Publisher: Sweet Biscuit Publishing
Publication date: Oct. 6, 2015
Genre: Romance
Rating:
Secrets are exposed, trust is betrayed and two people face the beauty of lies.
Leo Jensen has a secret–he is Mr. Expose, a blogger that reveals the truth about liars and frauds. It’s a way to make a living, and he’s had a motherlode of experience with liars. Cheaters. Women who live for drama and carry more hidden baggage than a Boeing 747. Even his twin sister can’t seem to admit the truth about her relationships, so finding an honest woman is about as likely as finding a unicorn in the middle of Nashville.
Harper Wade wishes life had a do-over button. She’d press that sucker and reset the last four years. Now, she has the chance to start fresh and make things right, but first she has to retrieve the damning evidence of her past from an annoying blogger. She’s doing all the things she knows she shouldn’t–breaking and entering, lying by omission, falling for the hot guy next door. Too bad he holds the key to her clean slate.
The Beauty of Lies is a great story about two people who have both been hurt by lies their loved ones tell. Leo had a really horrible relationship that left him unable to trust others. Meanwhile, Harper is dealing with the fact that her four-year marriage was a farce. Not to mention the fact that Leo is the anonymous columnist, Mr. Expose. A segment where he writes about some of the things people anonymously write to him about.
In a fit of anger and hurt, Harper wrote to Mr. Expose about her sham of a marriage and now wants her confession back. So what does any sane person do? She stalks Leo, breaks into his apartment, and implements herself into his life. What?! Harper definitely had a few screws loose. Not to mention, I’m still not overly sure how Harper not only knew who Leo was, but also knew where he lived. He writes under the pseudonym “Mr. Expose”, so how does she know so much about him in the beginning? That was something that really bugged me. It was also something that never seemed to be hashed out. Not even when Harper comes forward with the fact that she stalked him and broke into his place.
Aside from Harper’s stint in Crazytown, this was a great story. I loved that Leo’s an aspiring author who writes a column about real-life issues. I also loved Josie, Leo’s twin and Harper’s new best friend. She was a riot and definitely knew how to not only get under her brother’s skin, but push Harper to live her life. She was the kind of friend that we all need. I hope her story is next because she was awesome.
This is the first time I’ve read anything by this author, but it won’t be the last. Even though I thought Harper was a little nuts and maybe Leo was a little wishy-washy on his feelings, I still couldn’t seem to put the book down.
Favorite quote…
“Ah, Josie. She has a heart for strays. Sheβs like the proverbial cat lady, but with people.”
I didn’t know about the author but I’ll keep an eye on her if so
She’s got quite a bit of stuff out already. I want to catch up on her Stand By Me series first though.
Sometimes when I read a book, I want to meet those people because of their jobs. This is one of those novels,and it sounds really interesting. Hugs…RO
It was a fun read. I had a few problems with it but I enjoyed it overall.
Weird start – I’m glad it ended up working though.
Karen @ For What It’s Worth
The beginning was a bit off for me, but once the ball was rolling it was enjoyable. I plan to continue with the series. π
It’s always nice to find a book we have a hard time putting down.
I agree. All too often I find books that I have a hard time picking back up. So, it’s always nice when it’s the reverse. π
erm… maybe no. Not sure how I feel about crazy female leads
HahaHa Yeah, she was a bit crazy. Once I got past that part it was a good read but she was not an easy character to like at first.
Harper sounds a little crazy with all that stalking. Sounds like an interesting book to me. Will keep a look out for this book. Thanks for sharing your review!
She kind of was a little crazy. π However, the story was still enjoyable. I wish her stalker ways were hashed out a bit more since I’m not sure how she got all the private information that she did, but it was still a fun read.
Well, colour me intrigued! I think it has good potential and I don’t recall reading anything similar, so you can see why my curiosity has been piqued so much! Also, I’m glad to hear you are going to try more of this author, I love when we find a new one that works that way π
I hope you give this a chance, it was a fun story to read. I actually met her at the RT Booklovers convention a couple of years ago and she gave me a copy for review consideration. I feel horrible that it took me this long to read it. I wish I’d read it sooner. Now I need to catch up on the series.
You know what they say, better late than never π
I noted it down and I hope you can catch up with the rest of the series soon!
I hope you get a chance to read it. It was a fun book. π
I’d definitely have issues with the crazy behavior and that it wasn’t explained in any way but this does sound like a good read overall. I’ve not read anything from Berry. I’ll have to check her out. π
The beginning was a bit hard to swallow, but I really enjoyed the story once I got past it. I’m looking forward to reading the other books in the series.