Today we are celebrating the release of the first book in The Truth Duet by Aly Martinez. The Truth About Lies is now live and on sale for just $2.99 for today only! Read below my review!!!
PURCHASE THE TRUTH ABOUT LIES NOW:
Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon AU
The Truth About Lies (The Truth Duet, #1)
$2.99 for Release Day Only!
AVAILABLE NOW:
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Want to pre-order the next book in the duet?
THE TRUTH ABOUT US (The Truth Duet, #2)
Coming September 13
Pre-order from Amazon
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AUTHOR INFORMATION:
Originally from Savannah, Georgia, USA Today bestselling author Aly Martinez now lives in South Carolina with her four young children.
Never one to take herself too seriously, she enjoys cheap wine, mystery leggings, and baked feta. It should be known, however, that she hates pizza and ice cream, almost as much as writing her bio in the third person.
She passes what little free time she has reading anything and everything she can get her hands on, preferably with a super-sized tumbler of wine by her side.
AUTHOR LINKS:
Truth: 5 “If I could give it more I would” Stars
Lie: I haven't read it more than once already
Truth: From over a
thousand miles away, I watched on the screen of my phone as two men murdered my
wife. And I was helpless to save her.
Consumed by hate and
rage, I spent four years running from my memories.
Until a shattered
woman gave me a reason to stop.
Cora lived in a
nightmare, but through sheer force of will, she’d turned it into something
beautiful. She had a smile that could pierce the darkest soul. And with one
glance, she shredded mine.
Lie: I was only there
for a fresh start.
Lie: I had no idea what
I was getting myself into.
Lie: There was nothing I
could do to save her, either.
But that’s the thing
about lies—you never know who to believe.
***Review***
“This is
the truth, Cora. This. Right here. You and me. This moment. This feeling. This is
the truth.”
I am at a loss for words. This book went above and
beyond my expectations and it wasn’t because I kept them low. I’m not really a
fan of either of the main characters being widows. I hate the push and pull of guilt
for the deceases significant other. It’s a real emotion and something that
happens all the time, but I just don’t like reading about it. So that was one
reason for me not to expect much. The next was I have never read a book by Aly
Martinez before. I didn’t know her writing style or how well she could tell a story,
but the blurb brought me in and I had to give her a try. Let me tell you, that
book was something else. It was intense and unapologetic in its intensity. Aly
Martinez created a story that grabbed you from the very first line. Not the
first chapter. The. Very. First. Line.
“This smile
was different. It was the kind of smile that could have shredded the darkest
soul. And I knew-because it was the exact moment I felt the first slice through
mine.”
Our two main characters are Penn and Cora. Both
characters have lived through their own version of hell. Penn had to watch,
over FaceTime call, as his wife was brutally murdered. Cora on the other hand
got married young and into a family that hates her. After her husband passed
away his family decided to treat her as their own personal punching bag. But
she was stuck in that life until she could find a way to claw her way out. When
the handyman of her building gets caught doing things he shouldn’t Penn and his
brother’s life collides with Cora. Both Cora and Penn are hiding behind their
own veil of lies. Lies that keep them safe and lies that keep them alive. Those
lies, and personal demons are about to come front and center and they are going
to have to claw their way to freedom.
“That third
night, I couldn’t handle anymore rejection, so I casually drank a beer while
standing at my peephole and stared at him staring at me. He was beautiful. I
was a weirdo. I went to bed.”
Cora. Oh my god how I love her. She has gone through
some miserable shit and is still standing. Cora is still able to be there for
everyone that needs her. Aly Martinez created a strong, stubborn, and beautiful
character that put everyone before herself. Cora would rather take a chance to
save everyone instead of taking a life raft to save herself. No matter what
happened to her she still had that little bit of hope that she would get out. I
love strong-willed characters. I really hate female characters that are
doormats. Cora is most definitely not a doormat and even when Penn does
everything he can to push her away she doesn’t give up. She knows what she
feels and doesn’t give up.
“The world
is an ugly place, Cora. It’s filled with more sinners than saints. More hate
than love. More chaos than kindness. And that’s not because the world is filled
with bad people. It’s because the good ones stay silent.”
Penn. What a confusing, amazing, heartbreaking
character. His chapters are very few (which I didn’t like) but they gave us a
very small snapshot into the person that he is. Someone who is completely
broken, who doesn’t want to put the pieces back together, until Cora. Even when
he meets her he doesn’t want to put those pieces back together but with every
minute spent together she picks up a little piece. There is not much we know
about Penn and what we do know we don’t know is true. The man has so many secrets
and so many lies. Every time we think we know something Aly throws us for a loop.
Even with that Penn is magnetic. He is a character that you love even through all
the confusion.
“And,
goddamn it, fuck me seven ways to Sunday-she wasn’t even in the room, but as my
heart slowed and my anger evaporated, I felt the warm curl of that woman
sinking deeper under my skin.”
Have you ever read one of those books that you just find
yourself highlighting repeatedly? That was me with this book. I couldn’t get
enough. Aly Martinez created two beautiful heartbroken lies and when they collided
it created an unbelievably real love and connection that could either bring
that back from hell or burn them with the flame of betrayal. Aly’s writing was
something else. It was fluid and flawless. It created a picture and story that I
couldn’t put down. I devoured it in a day and then read it again. While the
book was intense you almost forgot about it for a minute because there was also
humor. I was actually surprised by how funny this book was at times too. It was
funny, but it didn’t ruin the rawness of the book. Which is hard to do, and I
was awed that Aly did it so flawlessly. This book was a smoke screen. It was
full of half truths and lies that captivated you. This gritty, raw, emotional
rollercoaster owned you from the very beginning.
One in. One Out.
Truth: I put this book down with my mouth hanging
open. I didn’t know whether to cry or smile. I think I did both.
Lie: I’m patiently waiting for the next one.
