Two Truths and a Lie

Two Truths and a Lie is about secrets. Big secrets, small secrets, innocent secrets, and secrets with the ability to destroy lives. Meg Mitchell Moore’s fun, entertaining new novel takes place over one summer in Newburyport and revolves around what she has named “The Mom Squad”. I think most of us are familiar with the mom squad concept, but it’s a small group of moms, usually with children of similar ages, who provide overall support for each other. In other words, they’re kind of like Bookstagramers, but with kids instead of books. In Two Truths and a Lie, Meg takes the reader inside the dynamics of her fictionalized Newburyport squad,and the result is my favorite part of the book. I loved Meg’s descriptions of the funny, realistic relationships between the mom squad members. They’re witty and engaging, and I admittedly was able to recognize the similarities in many of my own female friendships. I also absolutely adore Meg’s writing style. This is the prologue of Two Truths: “That was the summer we all drank tequila by the gallon. Not really, of course—if that had been true we all would have ended up dead, instead of only one person. Although there was no alcohol involved. It was your garden-variety car accident, the Acura crushed against the pole on that deserted stretch of Hale Street, the driver dead on impact. Garden variety. It happened all the time. Except that it wasn’t, and it didn’t, not in our town.” How could that not draw you in?? It certainly did me, and I was hooked from there. A summer read with a bit of a thriller edge, Two Truths and a Lie is a book that should definitely find its way into all of your beach bags to be devoured with a crisp, cold glass of your favorite summer beverage.

This book is touted as a great read for fans of Liane Moriarty. The genre (which would be what? “Neighborhood drama?”) is similar, although it takes place in the U.S. rather than Australia. Until I got about 3/4 of the way through the book I thought the author had done a disservice to the literary device known as the plot twist by revealing everything too soon, but the story of rich beach moms (known collectively as the Mom Squad, which seems odd) and their daughters does end with some surprises. It’s a hybrid, as there are coming-of-age elements present as well, involving high school and middle school daughters. Was the ending worth the time spent reading? Maybe, but I probably wouldn’t have picked it up if it hadn’t been on sale (e-book) and if I didn’t want to beef up this genre on the site. There are some potential triggers: murder and death of teens and potentially stalking. Yes, it’s similar to Liane Morarty’s titles, but it’s not comparable. It has some features in common with Elin Hilderbrand as well – all that sand and conflict. Take note; there are many books with this title. If this story appeals, make sure you get the right author.

Immature writing- unlikable characters. Sorry- a no go for me. Couldn’t even finish.

This was a really good story that had me guessing up until the very end. I was satisfied with characters\’ end stories and it was nice to have the little flash-forward. I can\’t wait until Meg\’s next book!

There were numerous characters, and the action was easy to follow with some twists and mystery. It was also a coming of age story for the 17 year old protagonist. I agree it was a good summer read, and fun to get a slice of New England summertime.

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