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Little Black Lies

(Zoe Goldman #1)

Sandra Block (Goodreads Author)

3.84 · Rating details · 2,062 ratings · 309 reviews

She helps people conquer their demons. But she has a few of her own...

In the halls of the psychiatric ward, Dr. Zoe Goldman is a resident in training, dedicated to helping troubled patients. However, she has plenty of baggage of her own. When her newest patient arrives - a beautiful sociopath who murdered her mother - Zoe becomes obsessed with questions about her own mothe ...more

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Paperback, 329 pages

Published February 17th 2015 by Grand Central Publishing (first published December 2nd 2014)

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Lists with This Book

Novels Featuring Psychiatrists, Psychoanalysts, Psychotherapists

49 books — 24 voters

Lies & the Lying Liars Who Tell Them by Al Franken

Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen

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229 books — 18 voters

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Average rating 3.84 ·

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· 2,062 ratings · 309 reviews

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Start your review of Little Black Lies (Zoe Goldman, #1)

Jun 27, 2017 Mary Beth rated it liked it

3.5 Stars

I won book 3 in a book giveaway of this series. Since this was a series, I decided to start with book 1. I really did enjoy this book. I found it very interesting. I almost gave this four stars but found the beginning to be a little slow but the second half is extremely excellent. I ended up loving this book. This is a great read for anyone who loves
a fast paced and completely engrossing psychological thriller, once you have gotten through half the book. There are many dark twists and 3.5 Stars

I won book 3 in a book giveaway of this series. Since this was a series, I decided to start with book 1. I really did enjoy this book. I found it very interesting. I almost gave this four stars but found the beginning to be a little slow but the second half is extremely excellent. I ended up loving this book. This is a great read for anyone who loves
a fast paced and completely engrossing psychological thriller, once you have gotten through half the book. There are many dark twists and some unexpected turns, I honestly did not see the twist coming so I was blown away! It’s hard to believe that this is a debut novel; it’s beautifully crafted and expertly written. Sandra Block does have a medical background and it’s clearly evident. The inner workings of the hospital and its psychiatric ward along with its cast of doctors and patients ring absolutely true and make this story that much more believable.

Zoe, is a resident in training at a psych ward, who needs quite a bit of psychological help herself. She's imperfect, impractical, and, well, human. It's not so much her story that is interesting in this book as much as it is the hospital and their patients. Zoe's patient Sofia, a ruthless killer, may be set free if Zoe cannot determine a convincing reason against it! As we delve more into Zoe's subconscious to find the truth about her childhood, we also take steps to uncover the motives behind Sofia's murders. As promised, the story ends with a twist that will (hopefully) catch you as surprised as I was.

Zoe is a wonderful, fully fleshed out character. She is one you will fall for. Her hope and frustrations. Her deep loss and her belief in going forward. With her you will unravel the truth that is hidden in all the little black lies. Her fellow residents feel utterly like real people and the best part was that, although Zoe puts the pieces of the puzzle of her life together, it's not a perfect life or a happily ever after ending. The ending just blew me away. It was a burst of surprise.

I have already read book two and loved that one a lot more.
I will be reviewing that one very soon. ...more

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May 10, 2015 Barbara rated it liked it

Shelves: wom-2015-challenge

Dr. Zoe Goldman, a psychiatric resident in a Buffalo hospital, has some problems. She has ADHD, controlled with medication; her adoptive mom is in a nursing home, suffering from dementia; her boyfriend, Jean Luc - a chemist in Washington, D.C. - seems to be distancing himself from her; and she has recurring nightmares about the night her birth mother died in a fire. In the disturbing dream Zoe is a little girl hiding from someone in a burning house.

Zoe, who was four years old when she lost her b ...more

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Sep 18, 2015 Margitte rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015-read, american-novel, drama, thriller, suspense, family-sagas, american-author, relationships, reviewed

This was a great psychological thriller. Spooky and believable.

The nutty, flawed, insecure and little crazy psychiatrist, Dr. Zoe Goldman, is looking for her mother(s) - supposedly Sarah Meyers, Beth Summers... But wait a minute! There's a Beth Winters too!

One dies in a fire, and one is slowly giving up life through dementia (early onset Alzheimers). She needs to figure out the confusing, recurring dream. Unbeknownst to her, she might get killed for not knowing the truth about her background.

The ...more

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Oct 18, 2017 Jean rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Lies. When do white lies become black lies? When do the protective little lies that (m)others tell us become the lies we tell ourselves? I did a double-take when I saw the title of Sandra Block’s book featuring psychiatric resident Zoe Goldman, Little Black Lies, as one of my favorite authors, also named Sandra, has a thriller by the same name. This one is quite different.

Dr. Goldman is assigned a small caseload of patients in a Buffalo, New York, psychiatric ward. Along with several other resid Lies. When do white lies become black lies? When do the protective little lies that (m)others tell us become the lies we tell ourselves? I did a double-take when I saw the title of Sandra Block’s book featuring psychiatric resident Zoe Goldman, Little Black Lies, as one of my favorite authors, also named Sandra, has a thriller by the same name. This one is quite different.

Dr. Goldman is assigned a small caseload of patients in a Buffalo, New York, psychiatric ward. Along with several other residents, she strives to learn the art of psychiatric medicine under the guidance of Dr. Grant, who, she is certain, dislikes her. The opening chapters are informative and entertaining, even amusing. Dr. A, a foreign-born resident who is working hard to learn American English idioms and Jason, a stereotyped fashion-conscious gay man, provided some smiles along the way. The references to Zoe’s tall stature became tiresome, however (a point she herself makes).

I’ve heard it said that many psychiatrists have their own unresolved “issues,” and Zoe Goldman is a prime example. She has weekly sessions with a therapist, Sam. One of her chief complaints is a recurring nightmare involving a fire, of which she has no memory. Her adoptive parents told her that her mother died in the fire when Zoe was young. She has scars on her arms that she believes resulted from the fire. Her mother – her adoptive mother – is now in a senior living facility due to “problems with memory.” As the nightmares become a nightly occurrence, Zoe becomes more and more obsessed with finding out more about her birth mother. Her mom, not always able to recall names and events, is vague about the details, recalling that Zoe’s birth mother was her school friend but remembering little else that is helpful to Zoe. Scott, Zoe’s brother, wishes his sister weren’t so consumed by her need to know.

When Zoe is assigned a new patient, the sociopathic Sophia, Zoe’s nightmares escalate, as does her desire for answers. At this phase of the story, I really wondered if she were capable of doing her job. Initially, she struck me as immature and ill prepared to deal with difficult patients. As I noted her interactions with Sophia, she seemed woefully inadequate, unable to formulate proper questions and responses. However, Sophia was someone who had been hospitalized in multiple facilities and was a proficient manipulator, so I doubt that anything Zoe could have said or done would have made an impact. That did not change my impressions of Dr. Goldman. She is young, inexperienced, and in need of coming to terms with her own demons.

What about those demons? Does Sam, the therapist, help Zoe find the right path? Or does she find the truth in her own way? Zoe’s own explorations had some quirks and mistakes that were too convenient, but that all led up to one heckuva twist. I’ve read half a dozen or so reviews and every single one said the same thing: I didn’t see that coming. I can honestly say that I did not see it either. Holy smokes, Dr. Freud!

Jean Luc, Zoe’s one-time boyfriend, said, “We are all looking for our mothers, no?” The guy Zoe’s mom called ‘The Frenchman’ got it right, both literally and figuratively. This book is listed as “Zoe Goldman #1”. I hope that in the followup novel, Dr. Goldman shows that she has indeed learned from this experience and has grown enough to share some of that wisdom with patients. She is a likable character surrounded by good people. There is a lot of potential here, and I found Little Black Lies to be quite a page-turner.

3.5 stars
...more

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Sep 22, 2015 Sue rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction, kindle, psychological-thriller, mystery, adoption, mental-health, death, psychology

When I got approved for reading and reviewing, “The Girl Without a Name” by Sandra Block, though Netgalley, I felt in order to do it justice, I should start with her debut novel, called “Little Black Lies”. This is the review of “Little Black Lies”, her debut novel, a totally involving psychological suspense novel, based on dark secrets, and lies.

Dr. Zoe Goldman, a psychiatry resident at a Buffalo, N.Y., hospital, suffers from ADHD, and a troubled past. Her biological mother, died in a fire…for When I got approved for reading and reviewing, “The Girl Without a Name” by Sandra Block, though Netgalley, I felt in order to do it justice, I should start with her debut novel, called “Little Black Lies”. This is the review of “Little Black Lies”, her debut novel, a totally involving psychological suspense novel, based on dark secrets, and lies.

Dr. Zoe Goldman, a psychiatry resident at a Buffalo, N.Y., hospital, suffers from ADHD, and a troubled past. Her biological mother, died in a fire…for which Zoe now suffers from recurring nightmares. She needs to know more about the past, her mother and the events surrounding her death.

“I am hiding, but I don’t know why. I don’t know where I am, or who I’m hiding from.”

Zoe was adopted by a former social worker, and her adopted mother told Zoe, that her biological mother died in a fire twenty years ago. And now time is running out as her adopted mother suffers from dementia and lives in a home…and time is running out to uncover the mysteries and truth of her past.

“My mom would tell me this and that, little things. But I’ve always felt like a piece was missing. But I guess I also felt guilty that, if I told my mom, she would feel bad, like she wasn’t a good enough mother for me. But now I have my chance. I can’t hurt my mother by finding out-she won’t even know.”

The novel takes place over three months, November through January, and the first half of the book centers around her practice, her patients and their treatment. One of her patients is Sophia, a sociopath, who has been institutionalized for having murdered her mother, and the attempted homicide of her brother. Zoe must unlock the secrets that Sophia has hidden for so long.

I loved how the author was able to lace the story with humor. “Patient in Flight!” Put a smile on my face.

I have to say that I found the first half of the book, while well-written was a little slow for my liking, but then at the half way mark-WHAM- it took off by leaps and bounds, and I was racing to keep up. It is for this reason, that I rated this debut novel as a 3, but recognize that this author shows much potential and I am looking forward to reading her next novel.

Being a fan of psycho-thrillers, I enjoy the suspense level, the humor, and deception and lies, and the characters that gave it meaning.

“The Truth will set you free.”

Now looking forward to reading Block’s second novel, “THE GIRL WITHOUT A NAME”, thanks to the generosity of Netgalley, the author and her publisher.
...more

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Dec 29, 2016 Erin rated it liked it

Shelves: series

I actually went and revised my review of Book 2 based on my increased reading pleasure with Little Black Lies. I now believe book 2 to be interesting, but a disappointing follow up. Perhaps because the story in this book was more personal. Dr .Zoe Goldman, a psychiatric medical resident, is interested in learning more about her past. Who was her birth mother? Why is Zoe having nightmares? Who is the woman named Tanya that her adoptive mother keeps talking about?

The plot was a bit more fast paced ...more

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Jan 08, 2015 Sue rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: net-galley, thrillers

This is the first book I have read by this author and wouldn't have known about this but for Net Galley. I love a good thriller sometimes and this one was based around a psychiatric hospital, along with the differing patients and their mental health along with the varied psychiatric staff.

Dr. Zoe Goldman is one of the main trainee residence, if not 'the' main one on the staff there that we come to meet and get to know, she has many things in her past that she wants to discover and uncover. It wa ...more

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Jan 10, 2015 Kaitlin rated it really liked it

This book caught me off guard a little. It started off much lighter than most mysteries I read. Meaning not with a murder or traumatic event. It jumped right into life in the psychiatry ward of a Buffalo hospital and its colorful cast of doctors. Dr. Zoe Goldman, one of those psychiatrists, is our main character. Extremely tall, as referenced throughout the book, adopted at the young age of four by her mother’s best friend, and in a relationship with the “Frenchman”, Zoe has some issues of her o This book caught me off guard a little. It started off much lighter than most mysteries I read. Meaning not with a murder or traumatic event. It jumped right into life in the psychiatry ward of a Buffalo hospital and its colorful cast of doctors. Dr. Zoe Goldman, one of those psychiatrists, is our main character. Extremely tall, as referenced throughout the book, adopted at the young age of four by her mother’s best friend, and in a relationship with the “Frenchman”, Zoe has some issues of her own.

Recurring dreams and inconsistent information she has been receiving (or not receiving) from her mother, have Zoe questioning some things she has been told about her past. Going only off a picture and a newspaper article, she begins diving into her past. Her mother, in a home, suffering from Alzheimer’s, isn’t much help, and anyone else that would know anything is long gone. With Sam, her psychiatrist (is it odd that a psychiatrist sees a psychiatrist?), she explores dream manipulation and hypnosis. When those don’t work out, she starts her investigation.

The story moves along well, but I don’t feel like we hit the story line till at least halfway through. And even then, I didn’t feel like I was in mystery mode. The book goes between Zoe’s personal life, some romance, some encounters with her mom and brother, and then her work life. She has a few patients who we come to know, but the two worlds just seem so separate. Without spoiling anything, my brain just wasn’t scrambling to come up with guesses like I usually do in mystery books. And this one, as I stated, from the beginning, just didn’t fit the stereotype. Not saying this is a bad thing at all, and actually I liked it because I was really caught off guard when I got to the “big reveal”. Really caught off guard. Emphasis added. Maybe you will have figured it out, I honestly had no idea. And I love that when a book can do that!

I was hanging on to every word until the very end and finished this book pretty quick! And shout out to Ms. Block for her letter and notes at the end. That is seriously my favorite part of a book to know a little back story on where this story came from! Definitely a great book and another shout out to NetGalley for allowing me to preview, look for it on February 17th!

http://mydogearedpurpose.com/2015/01/... ...more

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Sep 21, 2014 Laura Rash rated it it was amazing

Loved this book & can't wait for the next one! ...more

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Jan 06, 2017 Tiffy rated it it was amazing

Holy freaking crap. Just when I thought I had everything figured out Block throws in a HUGE plot twist that almost had me jumping out of my seat. I totally did not see it coming. Well written and a suspenseful page turner. Definitely will be reading more of her books.

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Jan 11, 2015 Karyn Niedert rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2015-challenge, netgalley

RELEASE DATE: February 17, 2015

RATING: 2 Stars Maybe, if you can check it out at the library for free

GENRE: Women’s Fiction / Mystery and Suspense

AUDIENCE: Fans of Jonathan Kellerman may enjoy this book.

SERIES: Standalone

SUMMARY: Blurb from Netgalley: “From first-time novelist Sandra Block, a gripping pageturner about a psychiatrist determined to discover the truth about her past.”

REVIEW: Immediate problems I had with this book are plentiful. Zoe is supposed to be plain, average, and a little t ...more

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Aug 30, 2015 Judy D Collins rated it liked it

Shelves: audiobook, psychological-suspense, books-read-in-2015, 2015-new-releases, sandra-block

Sandra Block introduces an intriguing new complex character, Dr. Zoe Goldman, with her debut, LITTLE BLACK LIES -- A gripping psychological suspense of a tragic past, suppressed memories, family, dark secrets, and lies.

Black lies involve an underlying secret that is hidden with lies, deception and secrecy.

Dr. Zoe Goldman, a psychiatry resident at a Buffalo, N.Y., hospital, suffers from ADHD, with a number of personal issues. She is haunted by her past. Her biological mother, died in a fire, a t ...more

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Sep 01, 2015 Krystin Rachel rated it really liked it

Shelves: 4-stars, mystery, family-issues, challenge-2015, psychological-themes, series-book-one, female-lead, just-one-more-chapter, desert-island-essentials, mental-health

"Gorillas in the dining room. Dinosaurs in the backyard. That's the least of it. The truth is, we are all a little crazy."

I really liked this book. Really. I liked the secondary characters and all their unique personalities that came to life with small, but well thought out details. I liked the pacing of each chapter and each milestone. I like the narrator's voice, and the easy-breezy quality of the storytelling, despite the serious subject matter. I was utterly engaged in everything that wa ...more

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Oct 27, 2015 Lisa rated it really liked it

Shelves: mysteries-and-thrillers, taming-the-tbr-2015

This book was a happy accident. Kandice has been telling me about a book she loved called "Little Black Lies". So I went on Audible, typed in the title, and this is the only thing that came up. I bought it. I started listening to it. And though it had my attention, I knew it wasn't a Kandice-type-book, at least not a Kandice-five-star book. So I checked and low an behold, this is a totally different book. HA! (Turns out that the one Kandice loved isn't even available to us readers in the states) ...more

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Feb 17, 2020 Annie rated it really liked it

Zoe, a resident in training in a psych ward, has her own set of issues to deal with -- a recurring nightmare from her childhood, questions about her birth mother and how she died, a not-so-great boyfriend, etc. Her main patient has a LOT of problems since she is in the psych ward for murdering her mom when she was 14. I couldn't put this one down, although there were parts that weren't as interesting for me, and left me anxious to get back to the good stuff. The twist at the end is a doozy. I do ...more

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Feb 15, 2015 Jessica Woodbury rated it it was ok

Shelves: arc-provided-by-publisher, crime-mystery, kindle

This is a 3-star read that ended up getting bumped down to 2 in the final chapters. It starts out with a lot of promise: menacing suspense about Zoe's memories that she's somehow suppressed but are now popping up in her dreams. A psych resident, Zoe is also fascinated by a young woman who's spent most of her life in the psych ward after killing her mother.

Unfortunately Block's writing occasionally felt a little flat, but then I kept getting pulled out of the story by little screw-ups. She nails ...more

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Jul 25, 2015 Icewineanne rated it liked it

Shelves: mystery-crime

This is an enjoyable story about a resident trainee psychiatrist. Although it is a mystery, that seems to be almost secondary to the story of the main character's (Zoe) life as a resident in a Buffalo area hospital.
A large focus is on the relationships that she has with her co-workers, patients, and her adoptive mother, who is now in a nursing home with dementia.

The mystery involves a mysterious dream that keeps haunting Zoe and the questions about her natural mother's death. Although the myst ...more

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Oct 27, 2015 Albert rated it really liked it

Little Black Lies by Sandra Block is a psychological thriller that sets a tempo and pace that will draw you in slowly until like a literary anaconda, it takes you in its coils and squeezes you until it makes you its own. Tense and powerful. Little Black Lies heralds a new series by a talented new voice in this genre. One that takes her place, with authority in the genre.

"...She rubs her arms. 'I'm getting cold, honey. Ready to go back in?'
'Sure,' I say, fighting a yawn. I have to get home to s Little Black Lies by Sandra Block is a psychological thriller that sets a tempo and pace that will draw you in slowly until like a literary anaconda, it takes you in its coils and squeezes you until it makes you its own. Tense and powerful. Little Black Lies heralds a new series by a talented new voice in this genre. One that takes her place, with authority in the genre.

"...She rubs her arms. 'I'm getting cold, honey. Ready to go back in?'
'Sure,' I say, fighting a yawn. I have to get home to study anyway. So we wind our way back into the Victorian palace, past the disinfectant smells, the nurses laughing at their station, back to Mom's small, rose-pink-carpeted room, with her roommate mercifully gone.
'Home,' I say, depositing her in her favorite corner rocker. I smooth the blanket around her and gather up my things.
'See you later, Mom, I love you.'
'I love you, too, Tanya,' she answers, her eyes closing.
I stare at her a moment as she descends right into sleep, her breath evening into a soft snore. Tanya? I jiggle my car keys, debating, but don't have the heart to wake her. And the whole drive home the name burrows itself in my head: Tanya. Who the hell is Tanya..."

Dr. Zoe Goldman is a resident in training, working with her patients in the psychiatric ward of the hospital. But Zoe has plenty of her own mental and emotional issues. An adoptive mother who is slowly fading away in a retirement home. The keys to her past and her birth family fading with her. A boyfriend whose sense of fidelity and love are as fleeting as the time he gives Zoe. An incredibly demanding career that take of the most of her life, and her own therapy sessions that deal with dreams and memories of a prior existence. Of a little girl hiding from a horrible creature, of blood and death.

Becoming obsessed with her birth mother, she digs into her past and finds that the carefully woven tale of her life has been a web of deceit and lies. The little girl she was led to believe she was never existed and with her adoptive mother's increasing dementia, she finds the opportunity to learn the truth drifting away.

Into this time comes a new patient, a sociopath, institutionalized for years. The new patient Sofia Vallano, is not what a murderess should look like. Quiet and demure, she spends her time with her art and with Zoe. She looks little like the fourteen year old girl who killed her own mother.

"...It turns out that matricide is less common than you might think, if you thought about it much to begin with. Only a handful of cases per year. Infanticide has a much higher rate, though it's an undeniably easier affair. A couple of pounds of screaming newborn versus a hundred-plus-pounder who has raised you form birth..."

The more Zoe learns of her past and the past of her patient she begins to feel the two worlds begin to collide. Who really is Sofia and what can she possibly know of Zoe's missing past. As Zoe begins to recall what had happened when she was a child, along with the memory, comes the danger of the past.

Little Black Lies is a tense atmospheric thriller that builds and moves with a steady ebb, dropping clues and questions as it weaves a tight little mystery of loss and deceit. Who is Zoe really? That is center to this tale. Her past locked away in the fading memory of her adoptive mother. Her dementia closing and locking the doors to the truth of what once was. Her dreams and memories of a bloody and terrifying night. Block does an amazing job of weaving this tale, you will find it hard to believe this is her debut. The character of Zoe is one you will fall for. Her hope and frustrations. Her deep loss and her belief in going forward. With her you will unravel the truth that is hidden in all the little black lies.

A terrific novel and a writer to be followed!
...more

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Jan 10, 2015 Gina rated it liked it

Shelves: mothers, 2015, book-club, death, contemporary-fiction, death-parent, drama, family, print-books, family-dysfunction

This is just an ok book about a psychiatrist, Zoe Goldman, who was raised by adoptive parents after, what she was told, her real mother died in a fire. Now Zoe's adoptive mother is fading away into dementia and for some reason Zoe begins doubting the story about her birth mother. As her adoptive mother's memories fade, and as Zoe finds clues that show her that the story just doesn't add up, she is in a race to find out who her real mother is before it's too late.

While trying to figure out her o ...more

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Jan 12, 2015 Heather rated it it was amazing

I loved, loved this book and highly recommend it. It doesn't come out until February, so you have a chance to buy it ahead of time now. I was lucky enough to receive and Advanced Reading Copy. The story takes place mostly in a psychiatric ward with Dr. Zoe Goldman, a resident in training, as the heroine. Not only is she faced with problem patients daily, but she has her own skeletons in the closet. She wants to know what exactly happened to her birth mother. Her adoptive mother knows or knew, bu ...more

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Mar 01, 2016 Kate Moretti rated it it was amazing

I love any type of psychological thriller, but this one actually took place in a psych hospital so it gave it that extra little oomph for me. Dr. Zoe Goldman is an exceptional character: whip smart with a little bit of sass, but flawed. Clearly Block knows her psychiatric disorders (she IS a neurologist, after all). The mystery was compelling and the writing was top notch! Loved this book!

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May 28, 2020 Maureen DeLuca rated it liked it

This book was just OK for me. Nothing special xx

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Mar 07, 2015 Tamara rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-review, books-i-read-in-2015

Review Originally Posted:Traveling With T

This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration.

Little Black Lies

Dr. Zoe Goldman is a resident in training at the local psychiatric ward. Helping people is something that gives her joy- and she feels that she is good at her job. Even though she definitely picks up on the fact that one her supervisors is not always her biggest fan.

When Zoe meets Sophia Vallano- her newest patient- she has a dislike to the girl. But she puts on a professiona ...more

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Jan 05, 2019 Kathryn in FL rated it really liked it

Shelves: controversial, mystery, drama, fiction, family-relationships, suspense, overcoming-trauma, medical

Sandra Block has created an interesting character in Zoe, who is doing her residency in psychiatry at a Buffalo hospital. Zoe has returned to the area to be closer to her brother, Scotty and her adoptive mother, who has dementia and lives in a memory care facility. In this first book (in a series), Zoe is trying to unlock the secrets of her patient, Sofia, who murdered her family without ever stating her motive. Zoe is also trying to use therapy with Sam to unlock her blocked memory of a fire th ...more

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Mar 27, 2015 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2015

I thoroughly enjoyed this debut novel and am looking forward to reading the next in the series. Zoe Goldman is working in Buffalo as a psychiatric resident. She is haunted by dreams of a fire where she lost her mother. Zoe was raised by an adoptive mother, but can remember very little about her biological family. She is struggling with this, the loss of a boyfriends, and her ADHD. I think there was a little too much emphasis on the ADHD. I found it annoying at times. Otherwise, this book moved a ...more

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Apr 12, 2017 Eileen Goudge rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Intriguing & Absorbing

I love when I discover a new series and I know midway through the first book I'll want to read all the rest. Such was the case with my introduction to the Zoe Goldman series. I was intrigued by the setting, written by an author who obviously knows psychiatric residency well, and was quickly caught up in the story. I didn't see the surprise twist coming at the end, and I'm usually good at guessing endings. Highly recommended for anyone who loves a good story. ...more

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Dec 11, 2015 Ali Mark rated it it was amazing

Read more reviews at http://alisbooklife.wix.com/freeyourread

Zoe finds herself at the start of her career working on the psych-ward. But when she moves home, she is reminded of the fire that took the life of her mother, and so she begins on a journey with her psychiatrist, her brother and mom, and the on-again-off-again boyfriend. But what she discovers on the search to find out about her biological family could put her life in extreme danger.

Goodreads readers ranked this book a 3.77 and I'd rec ...more

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Jan 20, 2015 Serenity rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2015, first-reads, reviewed, favorites, thriller

*Received through Goodreads First Reads*

Did anyone else figure out the big twist way before it was actually revealed? All of those clues.

Despite the fact that I figured out the twist before I was meant to I still really loved this book. A new favorite for sure. It was well written and I loved all of the characters. It was amazing how everything tied together— the author definitely thought it through and explained everything very well.

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May 03, 2015 Sheila rated it really liked it · review of another edition

It is hard to review this one without giving up the plot. Dr. Goldman who has issues of her own stemming from a childhood trauma is treating psych patien.ts and one in particular, Sophia. I in all honesty thought the first 3/4 of the book went kind of slow but the last 1/4 was super!

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Nov 02, 2016 Lisa-Books Smiles rated it it was amazing

Amazing!!! I just ordered her 2nd book and pre-order the 3rd book that is coming our April 2017.

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