Book Review: Simply Lies by David Baldacci

Published in 2023. Thriller. Utilizing her skills as a former police officer and detective, Mickey Gibson, a single mother of two, works for an online firm called ProEye, an investigative firm that hunts down the wealthiest of tax abusers and credit frauds. She’s just uncovered the latest fraud scheme when she gets a phone call from another employee of the company. Arlene Richardson asks her to check out an estate called Stormfront, not far away, for her investigation. Although the request to visit the site is unusual, Mickey does it to help a fellow employee.

The estate is in dire need of repair, and inside, Mickey finds the body of a man, sitting in a secret room. The scene was set up so she would find the body, but why? Who was this Arlene Richardson? Mickey calls the police who begin their investigation. Mickey can’t help but investigate this on her own, especially when she finds out the deceased used to be an accountant for the mob.

A gripping tale that kept me wondering where the story was going. Arlene Richardson was a fake name, one of many aliases used by the woman along with countless disguises. When a name was given to her, I wasn’t sure it was the real one, until the end. But this woman was also meticulous, keeping copious notes on everything going on.

I enjoyed reading this story and unraveling the puzzle, created by all the lies.