Nova Bell always thought the car crash that caused her parent’s death sixteen years ago was an accident. But now she’s not so sure. She’s been getting cryptic threatening messages ever since her teenage daughter, Ballad, did a school report about her journalist grandfather.
It turns out someone has a dark secret and doesn’t like Ballad digging into the past.
But Nova has a dark secret of her own. One that she can’t let anyone - especially not Ballad - find out about.
Too bad she’s not the only one who wants the past forgotten. And the other person will stop at nothing to silence the most precious thing in Nova’s world - her daughter Ballad.
Nova did what she had to do to protect her daughter once, will she be able do it again?
Welcome to Liar’s Island… a stand-alone series of interconnected domestic thrillers set in the picture-perfect community of Liars Island. Here, nothing is quite as it seems. On this island, families and friendships are more than meets the eye … secrets, deceptions, and jealousies threaten to ruin everything these influential people have built. But it isn’t only the rich that live here … and power comes in all shapes and sizes. Everyone here is a liar … just how far would you go to get what you want?
L.A. Dobbs is the not-so-cozy pen name of USA Today bestselling cozy mystery author Leighann Dobbs. Under the name L.A. Dobbs, she writes engaging mysteries that have twisty plots filled with secrets and lies.
Liars Lane is another installment of the Liar's Island ensemble. Each novel or novella is a stand alone story interconnected by the Island itself but not the people, no cross-overs. I've enjoyed some, certainly not all, but those that I am reviewing on GR have been pretty indicative of the genre: suspense, crime, domestic noir. Most are short reads and have been fun to read to fill in before the next big read, I'm sure you know what I mean.
Decent suspense build up and a worthy ending. I found myself annoyed at both Nova and Ballad constantly shushing their suspicions when it was OBVIOUS something nefarious was afoot. But I suppose for certain people that can be a believable defense mechanism.
I had a few theories through out that were wrong so that’s always job well done by any author for me!
This was a disappointing story for this series. Nova is an irritating lead character. Her "intuition" is mentioned on almost every page throughout the short book whether she should trust it or not or if it was even working. "sigh" & mentions of her daughters dad & why no one knows who he is is barely fleshed out. Her parents accident years before is the main focus because her daughter Ballad is writing a school assignment on her grandpa. Suspicions that the accident wasn't really an accident is the main plot. Nova comes home and her flower boxes are ripped apart and a rock with a message on it is left at the scene. Oh no, her intuition isn't working and she suspects an animal has done it. I didn't know an animal could write a message on a rock. "gasp" and her business is broken into with a message on a brick, but oh no it must be random. "Spare me" I'm glad this series is written by different authors for each book. The only reason I finished it was a few of the characters have been mentioned in the other books.
Liars Lane is a new novella by L.A. Dobbs in the collabrative series, Liars Island Suspense. Nothing is as it seems on the island. Sixteen years ago Nova Bell's parents Doug and Maggie Bell were ran off of the road on a cliff on Paradox Cove. At the time Nova was unmarried and pregnant. She refused to tell anyone, including her parents, who the father was. Doug was a journalist for The Liars Island Chronicle. At a dinner party at 'Senator Shelton's home, Doug uncovered a dark secret. Everyone claimed that Doug and Maggie's deaths were an accident. When Nova's 15-year-old daughter, Ballad, decided to write a school report about her grandfather, she wanted to know who her grandfather really was. Ballad was apparently getting to close to secrets hidden in the past. Nova began receiving threatening messages. Detective Krillion O'Neil asks Nova if he can further investigate her parents deaths. He has Nova wondering if it really was an accident. Nova must protect Ballad at all costs. Will the killer harm Ballad? Is Nova's secret still safe? This is a quick read with many twists and turns. Great characters and an awesome standalone story. I received an advanced copy of this book. This is my honest review.
Liars Lane is a new novella in the collaboration series, Liars Island Suspense. Each is a stand alone written by a different author, about different residents of the Island. In this one, Nova Bell is unmarried & pregnant, and refused to reveal the father's identity to her parents- Maggie and Doug Bell. Doug is a reporter for the local newspaper, and has uncovered a heinous secret happening on Island. At a dinner party thrown by local Senator Shelton, Doug accuses the Senator of hiding information, or being involved himself. After leaving the party, they were forced off a cliff, into Paradox Cove. 16 years later; Nova's daughter Ballard is doing a report on her grandfather for a school project. And suddenly Nova starts receiving threats to leave the past alone. Could this all be from her parents accident?? Was it really an accident??
I liked this book and it stands alone in this collaborative series. Nova Bell is a single mother who lost her parents sixteen years ago. Her 15 year old daughter wants to write a school report on her grandfather. In doing the research, Nova’s daughter, Ballard is trying to get a sense of who her grandfather was.
As in most small communities, rumors begin to stir and someone believes Nova is trying to learn if the accident that killed her parents was an accident after all. Nova is threatened a few times during the story.
This is a well-written novella. There are a few suspects and unfortunately another death. I was surprised at who killed their family friend.
I received an early copy of this story and am not required to leave a positive review.
I enjoyed this book and was enjoyed the final twist even though I had already figured out who the villain was. I absolutely loved the extremely odd character names chosen by the author. The rare eccentric names gave more life to the characters in this story. It was easy to visualize everything as I was reading. I recommend this book, and on to the next to see what else is happening on Liars Island!
A 16-year-old girl was doing a biography report on her dead grandfather, sending her mother to look more into the car accident that killed both her parents. Right away there were secrets to be uncovered like who Ballad’s father really was and what really happened with the car crash. Suddenly, we see more and more warning messages like, “Don’t Dig Too Deep.” It only made you more curious. Such a riveting read!
This is a quick read that starts with a horrific accident that kills 2 people. But was it really an accident? 16 years later the couple's granddaughter does a report on her grandfather that brings things back to light. This is the first I have read in the Liars Island series, but it won't be the last.
Dit was te overduidelijk. Het duurde over de helft van het boek om interessant te worden en het was een standaard "dump teveel karakters in het begin van het boek zodat je heel erg verward bent en het nooit raad" boek. Nou dat werkte dus niet want ik had al geraden wie het had gedaan in de eerste 10% Jammer...
Nova lost her parents on an accident. Her father was a journalist writing on a senator who might have wanted him dead. Her now daughter Ballad is writing a journal/biography on her father and now looks up the possible other cause of death of her grandparents. It was known to be an accident but they now doubt if it was the truth.
Liars lane is the best in this thriller novella series so far 🙌 I felt the tension from early on and I was invested in the story and the characters.
I do think it would have been better a little longer to explain the motive more and delve more into the incident with Nova’s parents, but I still enjoyed it!
I really enjoyed this novella by L.A. Dobbs. It felt like a full-length novel - in a good way. Lots of nail-biting suspense and great characters! Great start to a new series that I'm excited to get into.
This book is another great story by LA Dodds. I was reading and got to the end before I was ready to finish the story. I hope there will be more stories about Nova and Ballad. Loved the characters in this story.
Well written story about secrets on an island that had caused the deaths of Nova’s parents. Now she’s getting threats, is the school project her daughter is doing about her grandfather raking up old issues?
Nope. It was too obvious. It took half the book to get interesting and it was a standard, dump-many-characters-in-the-first-half-of-the-book-so-you-get-very-confused-book. Turns out it was obvious and guessed who did it literally in the first 10%. A bit sad tho.
This was another good book by Leighann. Unlike her other books I've read, this is a standalone series. If you like suspense, crime, murder & the hint of romance, you should enjoy this book as much as I did!
great but explanation of intuitions would have been nice
Enjoyed this read but I can’t seem to find any background or explanation about the intuitions. I went back and reread it even. But found nothing. Did I just miss that completely ?
I love that these stories move right along and just me wondering what will happen next? This one was no different than the others I've read. Very good story line.
A great story starts with loving the actors and the author brought that to life. L. A. Dobbs is my favorite actor and I have read almost all his books. Will recommend to family and friends. Rita
Loved this Mother daughter relationship with Ballad inquisitive in her project of the past auto accident and journalism intentions same as her Grandfather.