I’d never read a Lisa Jewell novel before, but her reputation definitely precedes her. In my thriller groups online, people are constantly posting her books with high praise, so I knew I had to give her work a shot. I decided to start with one of her most recommended titles, None of This Is True, and it did not disappoint.

Alix is a housewife with a successful podcast focused on stories of feminism and perseverance, always on the lookout for her next big project. While out celebrating her 45th birthday, she meets Josie, another housewife born on the exact same day as her. Josie is eager to grow closer to Alix and insists on telling her life story, even going so far as to suggest that Alix make a podcast about it. Alix agrees, with no idea just how dark and twisted this story is about to become. What begins as a feminist narrative slowly morphs into a true crime podcast unfolding in real time.

Jewell creatively weaves mixed media throughout the novel (podcast recordings, standard third-person narration, and transcribed interviews from a future documentary about the case) and I absolutely loved how engaging that made the reading experience. The structure added a strong sense of realism and allowed for the perfect amount of foreshadowing. And yet, despite all of that groundwork, I still didn’t see the ending coming. This is one of those books where you think you have everything figured out from the get-go, only to realize within the final 10% that you were completely wrong. I especially appreciated the bonus chapter included in my newer edition, which tied the ending together beautifully.

Some aspects of this book may be disturbing for certain readers. Content warning: there are instances of grooming and domestic violence depicted. If you typically rely on content warnings, I’d recommend looking up a full list for this book before diving in.

This is a true slow burn – which can feel painful when you’re desperate to know every detail of the fictional world you’ve immersed yourself in – but in the best way. The tension keeps pulling you back in, making it dangerously easy to binge-read. I was definitely up late at night, flashlight in hand, because there was no way I was waiting until morning to find out how it ended. I had to know.

Another thing I really appreciated was that not everything was wrapped up with a neat little bow. Some of the ending is ambiguous, and some of it is genuinely tragic. While happy endings have their place, the more unsettling conclusion here works perfectly for this story.

If you’re looking for something mind-boggling that feels like binge-watching a Netflix true crime docuseries, this book definitely belongs on your TBR. I’m officially interested in reading more from Lisa Jewell, and I can’t wait to dive into another one of her novels.