Lies on Bristol Lake

by Jean Nicole Rivers, Lea Schizas (Editor)

Dahlia Dixon is finally getting a grip on her once crippling PTSD, the result of a college incident that nearly left her dead in a university pool. After marrying her wealthy boss, she’s whisked away to his isolated home on Bristol Lake. Her new husband’s first wife drowned in Bristol Lake only months before and is still hauntingly present in every corner of the modern retreat.

When Dahlia is run off the road, lies begin to surface. She learns that another woman recently died in Bristol Lake. Dahlia is sure she is in someone’s crosshair. No one can be trusted. The dangerous paranoia is returning. Dahlia must dive into the secrets that dwell in the lake before she herself is dragged beneath its glassy surface.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery, Mystery Thriller, Fiction

306 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2023

About the author

Jean Nicole (@jeannicole19) is a National Black Book Festival award-winner and author of two psychological horror novels, Black Water Tales: The Unwanted and Black Water Tales: The Secret Keepers. She has also garnered awards for her screenplay, If I Die, from multiple film festivals including the Shivers International Film Festival (Canada).

Currently, she is working through the 3rd installment of her Black Water Tales series on a novel currently titled, To the Moon and Back.

In 2016, she launched the only novel writing software founded and owned by a black woman, Simple Stylus (www.SimplyStylus.com) and she teaches an online beginner writing course titled, Simply Writing: An Aspiring Author’s Guide to Developing A Solid Writing Process and FINALLY Writing Their Novel.

She writes because she loves words, she writes because she loves stories, she writes because she has a story to tell.

Reviews

[Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black people in a whodunnit! Love it! This book is intriguing. Dahlia is suffering from trauma and marries her boss Malcolm for whatever reason but it jump starts the plot. Malcolm is a widower and a gigantic AF asshole. Dahlia has no friends or family in her corner and makes terrible decisions around this man and relationship. Her mom is useless but the story moves along wonderfully and concise. The cast of characters are fun. She meets a motley crew of other Black women when she’s moves to Bristol Lake which is what she needed. They’re catty rich and funny. They also drink a lot which loosens their tongues.
Dahlia and Malcom have zero chemistry. They’re obviously not in love. He treats her like shit and she barely knows who he is. It made me wanna scream but is a plot device. They don’t have a honeymoon phase or anything just straight into married people hell.
She has suspicions he killed his first wife, but suppresses the idea. This is the mystery that unfolds.
There’s a great twist that I didn’t see coming and it wraps up beautifully! I loved this and would like to see it as a TV series. Can’t wait to read other books by this author and other mystery novels featuring Black people.🤎🤎

[Cat B. · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 1/2 STARS
In the beginning this was a very difficult read for me. There was so much back story that the reader is not privy to that I found it hard to get into. I checked and could not find any books pertaining to the main character or anything in her past. By the end, we are filled in as to what happened before and how it pertains to her story. The only thing that kept me going in the beginning was that there was some suspense in places that I found very palatable and that I was enjoying ... and then back with references to the past that took me out of it again . I did persevere and once we were taken to Bristol Lake the story began to pick up and I was back into it. This was when I could sink into the story and found a decent one there. Some very unforeseen surprises at the end that I found completely unexpected. It was a good ending. All in all, I did enjoy the tale once it got going.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and this is my honest and unbiased opinion of the tale.

[bee · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who loves a good thriller, Lies on Bristol Lake upped the ante for all future reads in this genre. The way Rivers weaves together snark, thrills, and chills while maintaining the plot’s structure was so admirable. Even now, it stuns me that this is Rivers’ first foray into the thriller genre. The initial entrance into the novel was a little slow, but once I began to fully understand the purpose behind sharing Dahlia’s background, it made me feel so much more connected to Dahlia and the plot of the story. The actual mystery element felt almost like a slow-burn romance… I knew it was only a matter of time before the twists started coming, and even knowing that, I was still SHOCKED when the threads started connecting. I love trying to guess the twist in stories, and it makes me so happy to say that I really didn’t see this twist coming. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Kim G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an engaging thriller with many layers to the story and many details to the characters. Ms. Rivers enjoys writing; this is a good storyline. I like that quite a few characters in the story keep it interesting. The person I thought was a suspect was not. It keeps me interested. The characters have a book club at a point in the story. The main books are thrillers that they love to read, but here's the kicker: the group also plays a unique game using their cell phone to find a mystical killer. They make this unique for me to read—just one of many things I love about the book. The author did a fantastic job of writing the story. Well Done, Jean Nicole Rivers.

[Samara Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book starts off a bit slow, but once the MC reaches Bristol Lake, things start to pick up from there! I really liked the author's writing style in this book, and I thought the characters were well written.

The suspense kept me guessing all the way to the end. I thought I had the mystery all figured out, but then BAM! I'm completely thrown for a loop.

This was a good read, in my opinion. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a decent thriller.

I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

[Kris10 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first time I read this author and I am hooked!! Rivers knows her stuff when it comes to writing!! This book was original, suspenseful, twisted, mysterious and engaging!! I was sucked in and could not put it down until I knew what was happening!! This is an author to watch out for on a best-sellers list!!

I received a copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

[Shakira Eakins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book kept me on the edge of my seat! It felt like a good old fashioned whodunit in the best way. The twists were surprising and well paced. There was no filler of overthinking just to build suspense.

I loved reading a book where 99% of the characters were Black and it was normal.

I recommend this book for thriller lovers.

[Dina Garrett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely Loved this book Jean Nicole Rivers! It also made me want to drink copious amounts of red wine! LOL! I wanted to know so bad who was lingering, and lurking in the darkness and what bodies would be found in the lake. It’s a definite page turner and I was there for it. Ok I’ll be looking for a spin off of the characters that were left alive.
Keep Writing!

[Sharon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to keep slogging through this book in hopes that it would get better. Too many misdirections, writing that was supposed to be mysterious (I'm guessing), and too many times times there weren't delineations between actions going on in the mind or dreams of main character and what was happening in reality. Confusing all the way around

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this thriller. The characters are relatable and kept me engaged. The plot has twists that kept me second guessing myself until the surprising truth was revealed. I would highly recommend it. I received an advance copy of this book and this is my honest review.

[Audrey Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received an ARC of this book from the author who just happens to be in a Facebook group I’m in. The story drew me in with the first couple of chapters. This is a fast paced read and an overall good book.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a Bad Little Book . . .

This is a quick, easy read that holds your interest. Its more of a chic lit mystery. If your looking for something lighter than a psychological thriller, this may work for you.

[JB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this book in one day so obviously I was hooked! The resolution felt a bit disappointing but there were still a handful of great plot twists. My only complaint is that I noticed SEVERAL grammatical errors.

[A.G. Hailstalk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lies on Bristol Lake was an amazing read! It kept me on my toes the entire time with a twist I never saw coming! I highly recommend this book! Jean Nicole Rivers, I am totally reading your other books!

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable thriller! I love thrillers with well defined characters and lots of twists, and this fulfilled my desires. It sucked me in and kept me turning pages. I recommend it for any thriller fan!

[BookishNette504 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this novel. The suspense and thrills kept me engaged the entire novel. There were just enough twists and turns. All of the characters were well established and thought out. I would definitely recommend this books to my mystery, thriller reading buddies. I will definitely check out her Black Water series!

[Tukaloy · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75stars

[Dayna]

DNF…moved too slow for me

[Mary Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 slow but not bad

[Marsha Foster · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Sommer Gomez · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5- beginning was slow/boring, middle was good, end was confusing

[Katey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I literally CANNOT believe this is the author’s first thriller. I have read some of the black water series and found them very good and spooky. So I had to check out this author’s newest novel.
Main character is so relatable. Her numb life, her thoughts, her submissive behavior, it is so well written and realistic to someone living with PTSD. The story progressed beautifully and kept me engaged. I enjoyed the back story slowly being revealed throughout the book about her PTSD.
The only down side was by chapter 19, I knew what was happening with the wine she was drinking. BUT, I was not prepared for the entire ending and everything that unraveled. It moved fast, some could argue a bit too fast; however, I found it fitting and perfect for “Dark Dahlia”.
Highly recommend!
Only TW I would say are discussions of PTSD and depression/anxiety.
I received a complimentary copy of this book and this is my honest unbiased review.

[Sherry Fundin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the ominous old time feel of the cover for Lies On Bristol Lake by Jean Nicole Rivers. I had an idea of what the book would be about, the mystery and the danger. Any book that takes place on or near the water always catches my attention, making me curious to know if it will be a fit for me. Jean Nicole Rivers put her own twist on a familiar tale and that is why I love her writing so much.

It wasn’t hard to figure out early on that Dahlia Dixon would marry the wealthy boss, the synopsis told us so, but what is happening after they are married really pissed me off. A lot of it was obvious, but there are more plots going on than just the one between Dahlia and her husband, Malcom.

I love when an author adds some humor to her darkness and cracks me up:

‘I could rip my top off right now and whip glittering pink tassels attached to my nipples in wild circles and few would even notice…’

Keep in mind that I am reading an ARC. Some things may be corrected and changed for the finished product.

Dahlia’s past haunts her. She feels she is split in two and Dark Dahlia is now warning her…something is not right. Are the dead talking to her? Trying to tell her their secrets? Is Thomas really dead, her lover who tried to drown her in high school?

There was a surprise or two…and one really blew my mind. I didn’t see that coming at all! I love when an author can surprise me, shock me, giving me pause…before I read on.

Lies On Bristol Lake gave me a sense of complacency in the beginning. I knew there was a mystery and there would be some danger. It creeps up on me slowly, pouncing when I least expect it. As everything comes together I am left with a feeling of satisfaction. Well done, Jean, you got me…and that is not any easy thing to do. I usually figure things out before the author has a chance to tell me what’s happening. I did with some things, but that ending…awesome!

I voluntarily reviewed a free copy of Lies On Bristol Lake by Jean Nicole Rivers.

[Gabs · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this novel. It was nice to read what I love from a black woman’s point of view. A black woman named Dahlia is suffering from PTSD and it’s making her paranoid.
She’s dating a widow Malcom, who everyone thinks killed his wife. Dahlia has to figure out if everything is actually happening or if it is just her.

While I did enjoy the story it does contain a closeted BI woman in danger from her ex trope.