The Liar's Wife by Samantha Hayes

"Work, home, sleep."

That's been Ella Sinclair's daily routine for the past 10 years. She steers clear of all social entanglements, keeps to herself, and does her job the best she can. Then, the accident. A van comes from out of nowhere and she lands in critical care with multiple trauma injuries leaving her encased in a leg cast with a pin in her knee and a broken arm. She's thrown when the nurse tells her that her husband has been to see her every day. Ella has never been married. Under threat of exposure of a past that incriminates her (a DVD), she agrees to go home with Jacob -- and that's when the nightmare begins. NO SPOILERS.

Yes, there's a twist and I still can't get my head around it. I found so much of this domestic drama to be hard to believe and implausible on so many levels. I tried to relate to the main character, but found it impossible as I just wanted to shake Ella until she got some sense. The narrative shifts back and forth in time from Ella's days as a student at university when the calamitous event occurred and her present predicament. In addition, there's a guy from her present work, Liam, who has his own voice and tracks her down when Ella doesn't return to her job. Oh and there's a twin brother, Harry. Yes, it all comes together in a dramatic conclusion and I had to go back a few chapters to see how the author had dangled enough red herrings to lead me astray in my predictions. There were actually still a few loose ends and unanswered questions once the big reveal occurred.

Did I enjoy it? Well, I found it hard to put down as I wanted to see what was on that videotape that would make Ella stay with her "husband" and to understand what might prevent her from telling some of the people she met that she was being kept prisoner. Let me say that I still don't buy it but I had a couple of hours of entertainment while reading. Just make sure that if you read this that you can have a serious amount of skill in suspension of disbelief. Maybe I'm just jaded from having read so many similar books and I'm sure I'm in the minority finding myself incapable of it.

This isn't the first book by this author that I've read, and I'm sure it won't be the last. Thank you to NetGalley and Bookouture for the e-book ARC to read and review.

This is a standalone and is not part of any series.