The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager was the group book for the Buzzwordathon read-a-thon. I listened to the audiobook on Scribd.

“Fifteen years ago, summer camper Emma Davis watched sleepily as her three cabin mates snuck out of their cabin in the dead of night. The last she–and anyone–saw of them was Vivian closing the cabin door behind her, hushing Emma with a finger pressed to her lips.

Now a rising star in the NYC art scene, Emma turns her past into paintings, massive canvases filled with dark leaves and gnarled branches that cover ghostly shapes in white dresses. They catch the attention of Francesca Harris-White, the socialite and wealthy owner of the very same Camp Nightingale–and when Francesca implores Emma to return to the camp as a painting counselor, Emma sees an opportunity to find closure and move on.

Yet, it is immediately clear that all is not right at Camp Nightingale. Already haunted by surfacing memories, Emma is suddenly plagued by a security camera pointed directly at her cabin, mounting mistrust from Francesca, and, most disturbing of all, cryptic clues Vivian apparently left behind about the camp’s twisted origins. And as history begins to repeat itself and three girls go missing again, Emma must face threats from both man and nature in order to uncover all the buried secrets–including what really happened all those years ago.”

“Everything is a game, Em. Whether you know it or not. Which means that sometimes a lie is more than just a lie. Sometimes it’s the only way to win.”

The Last Time I Lied is truly thrilling tale about the lies we tell ourselves, and each other. When Emma was thirteen years old her three bunk mates went missing while staying at Camp Nightingale. It’s been fifteen years since that traumatic event, and Emma’s still suffering from tremendous guilt. The owner of Camp Nightingale, Franny, has decided to re-open the camp after it’s been closed since the girls went missing, and she’s asked Emma to teach art. Emma accepts the position, in hopes that she’ll be able to figure out what happened to Vivian, Allison, and Natalie.

“You see the fine grains of the pine plank wall, smell the traces of campfire smoke in your hair, and know exactly where you are. Camp Nightingale.”

Emma is a fantastic main character. I liked her, I disliked her, I questioned her motives, then had moments where I completely understood who she was as a teen and is today. Vivian is the girl you love to hate.

The story started in second person, which I’m not a big fan of, but it quickly switched to first person. I love the writing style and would love to read Sager’s other books. Emma plays “two truths and a lie” with the girls, a fun teaser for us to try to figure out who’s lying, and which lie are they revealing. There is also some commentary about women’s rights, and mental illness.

There’s one part near the end where Emma finds herself in a place, and I felt like it was an unnecessary part of the story, however – the ending was GREAT. I did not see the twist at the end coming at all. I never once guessed it during the entire book. Isn’t it the best when a Mystery/Thriller novel keeps you guessing the entire time, making you hold your breath, worried for the main character, then blows your mind away with the ending?

Nicol Zanzerella, the narrator, has voiced 51 audiobooks on Scribd. She’s perfect and I must listen to more books read by her.

Overall, The Last Time I Lied is an exciting, atmospheric, fast-paced mystery thriller with lots of small twists that I highly recommend!

“Riley Sager is the award-winning pseudonym of a former journalist, editor and graphic designer who previously published mysteries under his real name.

Now a full-time author, Riley’s first thriller, FINAL GIRLS, became a national and international bestseller and was called “the first great thriller of 2017” by Stephen King. Translation rights have been sold in more than two dozen countries and a film version is being developed by Universal Pictures.

Riley’s second book, THE LAST TIME I LIED, was published in 2018 and became an instant New York Times bestseller. It was inspired by the classic novel and film “Picnic at Hanging Rock” and one horrible week Riley spent at summer camp when he was ten. A television adaptation is being developed by Amazon Studios.

His next book, LOCK EVERY DOOR, inspired by a lifelong fascination with the grand apartment buildings on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, will be published in July.

A native of Pennsylvania, Riley now lives in Princeton, New Jersey. When he’s not writing, he enjoys reading, cooking and going to the movies as much as possible. His favorite film is “Rear Window.” Or maybe “Jaws.” But probably, if he’s being honest, “Mary Poppins.”

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https://www.rileysagerbooks.com/