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Why She Lied

Julie Coons (Goodreads Author)

3.63 · Rating details · 226 ratings · 56 reviews

Will she have to lose her child to save her child?

The day she tells her boyfriend she’s pregnant, is the same day he tells her he’s been accused of molestation. His trial is set to begin the following day.

She needs answers…

To get them, she tricks her boyfriend into signing a release form, giving her full access to all of his legal documents. She uncovers the truth, h ...more

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Kindle Edition, 170 pages

Published March 3rd 2019

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Apr 06, 2019 Vishnu Chevli rated it really liked it

My teammate read the first book of Julie Coons, which was a memoir/autobiography and he really liked it. He recommended me to read the same. At that time I was busy so didn't get time to read it. But last month when I saw her upcoming book, and I took time and decided to read the book. It was indeed a correct decision.

The protagonist of our story is Julie (I am not sure whether she is the author herself or not). Julie, the character, had an abusive past. When the story started, she was living wi My teammate read the first book of Julie Coons, which was a memoir/autobiography and he really liked it. He recommended me to read the same. At that time I was busy so didn't get time to read it. But last month when I saw her upcoming book, and I took time and decided to read the book. It was indeed a correct decision.

The protagonist of our story is Julie (I am not sure whether she is the author herself or not). Julie, the character, had an abusive past. When the story started, she was living with her daughter. She was working in a hospital's emergency ward. Due to her troubled past, she was more of an introvert and reserved. She worked on her gut feeling most of the times. Recently a guy name James was visiting the hospital frequently due to his mother's health. He liked Julie and wanted to date her. But Julie was ignoring her. James made many people convince Julie to date him. She went against her gut feelings. though she was getting negative vibes from James, she started dating him. Things were going okay (though vibes she was getting never dissipated), one day when James self-invited himself for a night out at Julie's place, things started horribly wrong. Read the book to know more.

My observation about the book. Starting with positive points
1) A pure work of a psychological genius
2) Dark and mysterious till the end
3) Limited characters.
4) Properly focused on the development of Julie's character and her mental state
5) Good suspense building over James' character and surrounded incidents
6) Shocking revelation
7) If it is a true story then I would salute that lady

Now we will start with points of improvement
8) In the first half every alternate page Julie would talk about her gut feeling which became redundant after the first few pages.
9) Though revelation Julie found was at a very big level, people behind the scene didn't hide anything to get away before actions were taken. Seems unrealistic to me
10) Julie's single-handed surveillance. How could she go unnoticed?
11) Frequent narrations of Julie's past, some of them could have been avoided.

Overall a nice psychological dark tale.

Detailed Review Will Follow Shortly - https://chevusread.blogspot.com/2019/... ...more

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Aug 14, 2019 Shalini added it

The story concept was gut wrenching. It might have been based on a true story. But the style of writing was not good and I found the scenes unbelievable.
I tried hard to like the book, but I couldn't. ...more

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Jul 15, 2019 Dianne rated it liked it

Shelves: own, abuse, author-review, psychological-thriller, rape, z07-read

He had a lot of people recommending that Julie date him, but there was something that left Julie uneasy. Perhaps if she had followed her gut, her life would not have become even more of a nightmare than it had been. Then again, maybe she never would have found the strength to fight evil at its roots.

Julie Coons’s WHY SHE LIED is a jagged and heartbreaking tale of abuse, lies, deceit and the determination of one woman to protect her child at any cost. Told in the main character’s voice, this read ...more

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Jul 27, 2019 Samama Reza rated it it was ok

⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀

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Jun 25, 2019 Jody Joy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: hard-copy-from-publisher

Gut wrenching and honest- A BOOK YOU NEED TO READ

I have not cried this much reading a book like I did when I read Julie's story. When I first agreed to read this book I was told how it actually read, and when I mean by that is Julie tells her story of bringing down one of the biggest human trafficking rings ever. I can't believe everything this woman went through to bring these people to justice. To me she is a hero and I would love to meet her personally and just give her a hug for saving all t ...more

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Aug 19, 2019 Stephanie (the nerdy princess) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: thriller, arc, mystery, author-requested, i-own, true-crime

I was graciously sent a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

I was so very excited to read this book and finally sat down during my vacation and devoured it in one sitting.
This book sucks you in right at the beginning. Not many books can do that to me, but this…this I knew was going to be wonderful especially since it was based on a true story.

Being a victim of domestic violence myself this book really hit home. I truly feel so sorry for all the pain and horrend I was graciously sent a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.

I was so very excited to read this book and finally sat down during my vacation and devoured it in one sitting.
This book sucks you in right at the beginning. Not many books can do that to me, but this…this I knew was going to be wonderful especially since it was based on a true story.

Being a victim of domestic violence myself this book really hit home. I truly feel so sorry for all the pain and horrendous gut wrenching issues the author has faced. Julie tells her story of bringing down one of the biggest human trafficking rings ever. I can't believe everything this woman went through to bring these people to justice. She is truly a hero!

Human trafficking is becoming a big issue here in the United States and sadly it’s a topic nobody wants to talk about or deal with. Its truly sad. We need to stand together and rise up to protect our children.

This book starts by introducing us to Julie who works at a hospital and we learn about her horrible abuse in the past. Her co-workers are insistent she go on a date with James. However, Julie’s gut tells her otherwise. After saying no, numerous times she finally agrees and goes out with James.

She finds out that James has cheated on her several times and now she finds herself pregnant. That night when she tells James she is pregnant she finds out that he is being charged with molestation of a girl at a daycare he worked at. She now has to make the biggest choice in her life by deciding if she will end this pregnancy and save her unborn baby from this monster or keep the baby and deal with the fact that James will still be able to be around the baby.

5 years later Julie is approached to law enforcement to help bring justice to the monster she once knew as James. This is when Julie finds out about James involvement with human trafficking and the nightmare starts all over again when Julie starts digging and finding out she was almost a victim herself.

If only Julie would have trusted her gut….

One of THE BEST Thrillers you will read this year! Hand down.

*Thank you Ms. Coons for giving me the opportunity to read your book!* ...more

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Dec 04, 2019 Alona Perlin rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Sorry but this was pretty awful

First of all the subject matter is disgusting. Secondly, the book reads like a high school essay. You cannot really call it a novel. There was no suspense, nothing psychologically thrilling or compelling. I couldn’t wait to finish this book

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Feb 12, 2020 Deborah rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Repetitive

Amazed at how “simple minded” this book is written. Repetitive. Kept waiting for it to get better and not be formula written. Glad it was free; and I was a sucker who finished it. Was hoping for an exciting ending.

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Sep 05, 2019 Jessica Belmont rated it really liked it

The concept of Why She Lied is difficult to stomach and there are some really hard-hitting things that happen in the story. A heartbreaking tale of abuse, lies, and deceit, and a mother’s determination to save her child at whatever the cost.

The way this novel was written was very difficult for me to connect to. It’s a bit jumbled and it is repetitive. I understand the concept of it as it’s told through the eyes of a frantic mother. I just had trouble with it.

Overall, I am glad I read this novel. ...more

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Dec 02, 2020 Chandni rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: psychological-thriller, reviewed, own-physical-copy, dnf, author-requests, 2019

This book really didn't do it for me. I've tried to pick up this book twice now and both times I've had to give up around the fifty page mark. The biggest problem for me is the writing style. There's something really jarring about how the main character, Julie describes all of her psychological and mental health issues right off the mark (and there are a LOT of them) and also how the writing is strangely conversational, but without any real flow to it. It's just difficult to read..

I want to lear ...more

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Aug 05, 2019 N.N. Light rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviews-by-mrs-n, true-crime, thriller, crime-thriller, psychological-thriller

Trigger Alert: If you are sensitive to violence, abuse, rape, molestation, abortion, forced prostitution and sex trafficking, this may not be the book for you.

If only Julie had trusted her gut instincts about James, she might never have lived such a nightmarish existence. After discovering her boyfriend, James, cheated on her several times, she finds herself pregnant and shocked to discover her boyfriend is accused of molestation. She decides to get an abortion to save both herself and her baby ...more

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Oct 28, 2019 Michelle Adams rated it did not like it · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jul 03, 2019 Frank Frisson rated it really liked it

People who find it difficult to deal with bad things in life tend to mentally conjure up other or imaginary worlds to escape into. Living in something akin to a war zone can be tough for anybody. It can make you see things that you're mind might find difficult to grasp as it can only take so much. This is where a wild imagination and daydreaming skill comes in for the main character in Why She Lied, a psychological thriller by Julie Coons which is based on a true story. This is the second book t
People who find it difficult to deal with bad things in life tend to mentally conjure up other or imaginary worlds to escape into. Living in something akin to a war zone can be tough for anybody. It can make you see things that you're mind might find difficult to grasp as it can only take so much. This is where a wild imagination and daydreaming skill comes in for the main character in Why She Lied, a psychological thriller by Julie Coons which is based on a true story. This is the second book that I get to review by this amazing author. The first, a great read by itself, was a novel titled This Does Not Leave This House.

Julie lives in Oregon. Since her breakup with a man named TJ, someone who cheated on her for eight months during their relationship, she had a drop in self-confidence and self-esteem. An admitting clerk in the busiest trauma centre on the West Coast, Julie started dating a man named James, but if this man was right for her was a question that nagged at her from the very beginning. One night, he raped her and got her pregnant. After luring a little girl under the age of twelve out of a daycare center and sexually abusing her, he gets convicted. Can she move forward knowing that the man she fell for is a convicted child molester?

Julie is introduced as a single mother and an empath who has a daughter that nearly lost her life due to an illness called spinal meningitis. She is also portrayed as a hardworking woman that is glued to her job because of her daughter's deadbeat father's unwillingness to support her financially. Her portrayal is that of someone who can become quickly sad and depressed. Her history with guys isn't great. Her rape experience with James is only the second. She was also raped in college. Her childhood experience wasn't a favorable one: she learned rather to doubt than trust herself. But her strong motherly qualities allows her to tackle her life's obstacles head on.

Coons writes in the first person narrative. The first scene vivifies a pretty hectic day in Julie's life as it gives us a glimpse of what it's like to work in a trauma centre. On this day a teenage boy looses his life due to a motorcycle accident; this boy's brother is distraught to the point where he ends up running through her work station and jumping over her counter with one major leap. A short moment later a baby gets abused and flighted to a different hospital for a better chance to survive. She also describes the hospital environment in great detail. She explains, for example, what phone in the ER is meant for multiple trauma. This shift she works ends with her encountering a serial killer.

There are a lot of scary things that happened in Julie's small town. Back in the 60's, a serial killer named Jerome Brudos - he lived on a street not far from where Julie worked - was responsible for the deaths of several woman. He was known as "The Lust Killer". Oregon sounds like a really creepy place to live in. One night, while driving home, she would spot a man in a hooded jacket that would show up on the evening news as being captured for questioning in relation to a recent murder.

While the author strives for an informative beginning, readers might feel that the details are a bit too much. The author focuses a lot on what life is like working in an ER department. The benefit of it is that getting this illustration out of the way is making it easier for readers to familiarize themselves with Julie Coons as an admitting clerk and showing readers all of the different things that she has to deal with for the day.

Ordered by the court to stay away from all children, James is a pretty misguiding character. I didn't like the author's initial lack of effort when it came to describing James physically. The author describes him only as not being a bad looking guy that is tall, dark and a little bit handsome. His friends view him as this really stand up guy whereas Julie knows what a monster he is. James has this friend that Julie ends up conversing with named Mike who is a father of four. Julie thus has a substantial reason for worrying about the safety of Mike's children. James has this innate talent for getting people to both trust and speak highly of him.

Making matters worse is that James eventually makes it to Oregon's top ten most wanted list by the FBI. I couldn't help but notice that Julie's empathetic personality makes it unable for her to see that James even made it to the list. The guy that Julie ends up crossing paths with is a detective named Joe, a man who turns out having an extremely gigantic heart inside him. Someone had been watching Julie and her daughter when she drove up to a secluded trailer in the woods one day. Quite a hair-raising moment during the story. Another is a sure threat that was made on her life through a phone call. "I'm wondering if this could be a lot bigger than just James being a wanted fugitive."

The author writes that she used to think that the worst monsters were religious monsters and that priests and nuns are like wolves hiding behind habits. Though religious sexual predators are not unheard of, I thought this view of hers to be harshly worded and I saw it more as an attack on religion.

This is one of those stalker novels that gets your heart beating pretty darn fast every time you hear the phone ring. Julie Coons offers something indispensable, pummeling through this flyblown business that is child abuse and human trafficking. She inspires readers to stand up against these horrifying monsters that live among us. ...more

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Jun 30, 2019 Lauren Jones rated it it was amazing

Do you follow your gut instincts? What do they tell you when you meet people? Do they guide you in relationships or at work? These questions are ones that Coons brings up throughout this story. It is so important to follow those signs that really warn you about those you run into contact with. This story will pull readers in from the shear psychological aspect and the gripping terror that accompanies the main character in her journey to find peace AND justice from those who wish her harm.

Julie Do you follow your gut instincts? What do they tell you when you meet people? Do they guide you in relationships or at work? These questions are ones that Coons brings up throughout this story. It is so important to follow those signs that really warn you about those you run into contact with. This story will pull readers in from the shear psychological aspect and the gripping terror that accompanies the main character in her journey to find peace AND justice from those who wish her harm.

Julie works in the hospital and has a job that pays the bills, but it isn’t ideal. The things that she sees can really get to a person…but she trudges on through it all because she has a daughter that needs her more than anything else. She has made it this far, after finally escaping an abusive family situation with her mother, and she is determined that she can definitely be a better mother. Upon pressure from coworkers and friends, Julie starts to see a man who has asked her several times on a date, but something just hasn’t felt right. Instead of going with that feeling and denying him yet again, she goes and ignores all of the signs that something is dreadfully wrong with this man. After things progress with the relationship, she becomes pregnant and decides to tell him, but then the ball drops. James informs Julie that he has been accused of molesting a child and has to go to court, the very next day. Struggling through her emotions and trying to find the truth, Julie knows that this may be the beginning of something much bigger, especially after she begins digging through James’ past and the charges that he faces. Little does she know that her past may be intermingled with his and a much greater evil.

Coons has a hair-raising novel that is very quick in pace, which makes it a little easier to read (even though some of it was difficult to read through due to content). Julie reaches her readers with raw emotional turmoil, grabbing the reader with fear, anxiety, and determination. The story is very well written, with little to no spelling or grammatical errors. Everything was vivid, even though some things were more painful to envision than others—our final thought on this story is that is credible and very enlightening to the darker aspects of society. The criminals that still hold ranks in this country go to lengths that will terrify almost anyone and awareness holds a lot of power. Unfortunately, it is difficult to understand something so traumatic if one hasn’t found themselves in the same situation; however, this story feels real and will give the reader goosebumps from the author’s intense descriptiveness of every scene. If you are a reader of organized crime, true crime, and psychological thrillers, this one should be in your hands next.

A copy of this book was provided to Turning Another Page by the author and in no way affects the honesty of this review. We provide a five-star rating to Why She Lied by Julie Coons. ...more

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Jul 18, 2019 Heidi Lynn’s BookReviews rated it it was amazing

First, I want to thank Julie Coons for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.

Julie Coons is an incredibly strong and brave woman to share her very intense and powerful story with the world in Why She Lied. This book is not only on my must read of the year-but-my all time favorite read of the year. It is one of those psychological thrillers that will totally shock you, blow you away, make you cringe, make you cry (at least I did), but then you have to remember-this is someon First, I want to thank Julie Coons for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.

Julie Coons is an incredibly strong and brave woman to share her very intense and powerful story with the world in Why She Lied. This book is not only on my must read of the year-but-my all time favorite read of the year. It is one of those psychological thrillers that will totally shock you, blow you away, make you cringe, make you cry (at least I did), but then you have to remember-this is someone’s true story! This actually happened to someone!! Then all I wanted to do was hug Julie and never let her go.

I will be blunt this is a dark and twisted book. This is not a feel-good book at all! It is a book with a lot of issues that I feel need to be discussed in the review in case it is a trigger for the readers. This book deals with pedophile, sex and human trafficking, rape by nuns and priests at a Catholic School, Abortion and the aftermath of it, narcissistic parents, murder, lots of secrets, molestation, etc. This is not a book for just anyone. This went beyond any #MeToo book I have ever read before.

Julie blew me away with this book. Right away she captured my attention with the book. She mentioned she is in an Em-path and has a caring heart. This is why she went into the medical field. I too have that trait and I too was in the medical field. In the beginning of the book she discussed many medical cases she worked on. This part of the book very much intrigued me to no end. I love medical themed books as well. So I was loving this book.

She continued to capture my interest throughout the book. Why She Lied was one of the books with the most secrets, shockers, twists and turns. This was the first book I was ever truly scared to death for the character and cried my eyes out at the end for her. I wanted to hold her and be there for her at the end of all this.

Single ladies be careful who you choose to date!!! Not everyone is who you seem!!

Julie Coons Why She Lied needs to make it to the big screen or even NetFlix Original! This movie has to be made. I am so incredibly passionate about this book and this author!! This has blockbuster written all over it!! You just have to read the book to see what I am talking about.

I honestly hope by writing this that she was able to heal from all of this. I also hope by writing this that it could help someone in this situation.
...more

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Sep 07, 2019 Uday Singh rated it really liked it

I love to listen to stories about real-life, some are inspiring, motivational and other are a harsh look at the world around us. This one was almost all of it. Not only because it came with a really kind greeting card from the author but because it is also one of the well-written books I came across this year.

One of books’ prime focus was psychological elements of human traffickers, covering the depth of human minds. With each page, you turn you’ll be hooked with the thought of what is going to I love to listen to stories about real-life, some are inspiring, motivational and other are a harsh look at the world around us. This one was almost all of it. Not only because it came with a really kind greeting card from the author but because it is also one of the well-written books I came across this year.

One of books’ prime focus was psychological elements of human traffickers, covering the depth of human minds. With each page, you turn you’ll be hooked with the thought of what is going to happen next. Yes, the book is a short read and not a fictional story, but with every new paragraph, it makes you think about the world we live in and how you would have dealt with something like this if you were at author’s position.

About the writing style, I liked how the incidents were written in a well-paced manner and didn’t include too many details that could have gone off-topic. Julie Coons enables the readers to imagine the incidents in the book taking place in their heads very easily, thanks to the way everything is portrayed. In the beginning, the book would feel straightforward and simple but you won’t even realize how soon the twists kick in and you find yourself into a book which won’t let your attention go away.

Reading how Julie dealt with it all will surely make you feel proud of her and also, even while reading the retelling of the incidents, you’ll find yourself rooting for her. Now, for the actual thing that happened, we get to follow Julie’s perspective who’s pregnant and dating a guy, James who is charged for molesting a girl at daycare. She chose to date him only under peer pressure from her co-workers. And as it turns out, it wasn’t the best choice. Though, it leads to something really big. We also find out that Julie worked at a hospital and this wasn’t the first time she has witnessed such a person. Then, the book becomes the history of a mother trying to make the toughest choices and attempting to protect her unborn child from such a monster.

From that moment to her finding out about his involvement in human trafficking, there’s a lot to take in. The rest of the book involves a lot of hidden secrets coming in the scene and making her see how close she was to her world turning upside down. I won’t break down everything in the book because it really deserves your time. So, to find how it all turns out is something you must read. ...more

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Mar 16, 2019 Lisa rated it really liked it

Very compelling subject matter

Like Julie herself admits, she's not a writer, she's a story teller. Her writing isn't very polished and she jumps from the first to the third person very throughout the book, so it doesn't read professionally at all. She could polish her writing up just by paying attention to that single detail. As it is, it's kind of sloppy to read her talking in the first person in one paragraph, then skipping right to the third in the next, and back to the first in another. Even Very compelling subject matter

Like Julie herself admits, she's not a writer, she's a story teller. Her writing isn't very polished and she jumps from the first to the third person very throughout the book, so it doesn't read professionally at all. She could polish her writing up just by paying attention to that single detail. As it is, it's kind of sloppy to read her talking in the first person in one paragraph, then skipping right to the third in the next, and back to the first in another. Even sentence to sentence.

But, I noticed no typos and no editing errors so there were no bothersome mistakes there. And her character development was good (she's the main character) although I'd have liked to have seen Det. Joe built up a bit more.

This book was "based" on a true story, so I'm not sure how much of it was actually true, but did recognize some of the scenes from her other book about the abuse in her childhood. Some of that is touched on in this book, but it's not necessary you read the other book first

Julie does take the matter of human trafficking and being it to the forefront, showing that even in a smaller town in America, not coming in through the borders, but just state to state, humans are being used as commodities. The women are used as "breeders" to continue to produce children to be sold to the highest bidder to be either used for their own sick fantasies, for domestic slavery, for the "owner" to abuse, or to use as human sacrifice in satanic rituals. Even if sold for a less nefarious purpose, the selling of a child is just wrong.

I'm not sure if Ms Julie did any research for this book. There is one statistic listed that she obtained from one other book, but it would have been nice to see a list of maybe some help lines in the back, since she also seems to be interested in advocating to stop this from happening, and states such at the end near, or on, the "About the Author" page.

This book reads more like a memoir than a fictional psychological thriller, so it would probably attract readers who are interested in those, or in her first book.

It's an interesting and well thought out book, but her writing style needs some polish... then again... she does say she's not a writer, so I'll cut her some slack on that ...more

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Aug 05, 2019 Books R&B rated it it was amazing

The story "Why she lied" has been a really riveting and the quickest book I have ever read. It seemed like I had absorbed a lot of details and that you may have gone through just a few pages, but in reality you would have finished half of the book! Julie has a truly skill to explain the pain and agony that the protagonist is going through (possibly due to her own personal experience?!) and edges her readers to feel those same emotions through the pages of her book. And let me tell you right at t The story "Why she lied" has been a really riveting and the quickest book I have ever read. It seemed like I had absorbed a lot of details and that you may have gone through just a few pages, but in reality you would have finished half of the book! Julie has a truly skill to explain the pain and agony that the protagonist is going through (possibly due to her own personal experience?!) and edges her readers to feel those same emotions through the pages of her book. And let me tell you right at the beginning that the book is so depressing that I had a few sleepless nights and to think that it was based on a true story! This book is definitely not for the weak-hearted. But if you're someone like me, who cherishes emotional roller-coasters, this one's definitely for you. Apart from having the ability to translate experiences in words, Julie does a tremendous job in covering the story without going hay-way and make the readers transcend through the pages quickly. If you're planning on taking a long train ride, you can pick this book for your company.

In my usual review style, I start by providing my version of the book's summary and then talk about my experience, but I really needed to get that off my chest!

The story is filled with an all-embracing part which closes loop with several parts of the story that you discover as you go through the book. The lead of the story- Julie is a kind and naive women who has been abused all thorough her life from her mother, her husband and her boyfriends and you see how this kind of treatment has made her feel so little about her self which translates to her letting people treat her like a doormat or worse. There is a part in the narration where the lead says that we teach people how to treat us and I only agree with it a little bit. True, we set a certain impression about ourselves with some people, but that is no reason for anyone to treat the other cruelly. I agree that it is very important for us to stand our ground and be strong, but it is also the societies responsibility to refrain from behaving that way and stop anyone who is victimizing someone.

I was pleasingly astonished that the author’s solution for something actually unexpected. I highly recommend this book to anyone. ...more

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Jul 19, 2019 Tavleen Kaur (Travelling Through Words) rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-in-2019

3.5 stars

“Always, listen to your gut."

The protagonist Julie is a single mother working in the emergency room of a hospital. Her life has been incredibly difficult so far. She was abused by her mother and raped in college. She is raising her daughter all on her own with no child support from her ex. She meets a guy named James and suddenly everyone is encouraging her to go out with him. Ignoring her intuition, she gets into a relationship with him. She finds out she is pregnant on the same day th ...more

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Jul 04, 2019 Pallavi Sareen rated it it was amazing

Why she Lied is a book that intrigued me because of the human trafficking part. I have read plenty of such books and keep an eye on others that revolve around the same theme. The problem with such books is that they often end up being completely gruesome while not giving much details about the chain of events, how it happens, how can you recognize a trafficker because let’s be honest, one can’t assume such a horrific thing about anyone. Yet, knowing that your boyfriend (even if it is ex) is invo ...more

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Nov 10, 2019 Sue rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: psychological-suspense

Julie is very reluctant to date James. She is a single mother with no help from her ex, she was abused as a child and raped in college - no wonder she is reluctant to start a relationship with a new man. She began dating him and even though she had fun, she never really got over the feeling that there was something not quite right with him. On the day she was going to tell him that she was pregnant with his baby he confessed to her that he was going on trial the next day for child molestation. S ...more

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May 31, 2019 ElizrdbthSpeaks rated it really liked it

I was contacted by the author to please check out this read, I really appreciate when authors do that ...that they will connected me directly .. or have one of their peeps do that. SO COOL. I did reply with I have KU ... I would be happy to see if it was a fit for me. I love a good mystery ... u know that. Whatever makes you happy, I am sorry I had to laugh at another reviewer ... pure fiction .. i think the point was it was based on a true story .. not a word for word truth??! u have to be look ...more

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Jul 13, 2019 Heena Rathore P. rated it really liked it

Shelves: crime, review-requests, adult, thriller, mystery, psychological-thriller, dark-fiction

Why She Lied by Julie Coons is a refreshing new dark psychological thriller with a great concept, a nicely executed plot and decent characterization. This book had just the right amount of complexity to make it an engaging read without being too overly complex.

Overall, this book was a gripping thriller. The characterization wasn't exactly spot on, but I cared for the main character, Julie, enough to read through the entire book with interest. The layers of background made her a likeable lead an ...more

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Jun 10, 2019 Energy rated it really liked it

What drew me to Why She Lied was the fact it was based off a true story, the author's life. The writing is simple, but the subject material is not. We follow Julie as she navigates a relationship she should have never been in and all the horrors that follow. When you think things can't get worse, they do, and so much more so.

I think it would be easy for a reader to judge Julie for her mistakes, but a person that has been raised in such an abusive atmosphere tends to repeat their mistakes because ...more

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Aug 12, 2019 Ramona Mead rated it really liked it

Holy cow, this is a compelling read, I couldn't put it down. In the book, Julie states that she's not a writer, she's a storyteller. While that sounded weird at first, it made sense by the end, and somehow it totally works. The writing is simple, and sometimes repetitive, yet it adds to the readability and frantic pace. It feels like a friend is telling me her story in every day language. Every few pages I would stop and think, holy s- did this really happen? It's a compulsive page-turner, thril ...more

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Aug 25, 2019 L.S. rated it liked it

3.5/5 stars

As a fictional story, this made for one hell of a thriller, but being based on real life events made it super creepy. If only Julie had trusted her instincts and never dated James, she would have totally dodged a bullet. However, the trafficking would have continued, her abusive past would still have happened, and the nightmare scenario would continue to play out for the other victims involved.

There are an awful lot of triggers attached to this story since it does indeed deal with so ...more

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Mar 13, 2019 Robin rated it it was amazing

This was an Excellent Book and Julie Coons is a Extremely Good Writer. The fact that the Story was True Floored me. She truly is a Brave Person. The twist was nothing I expected. I knew it was a Sex Traffickting Ring, although not to the point of being a Worldwide Ring. Was not even expecting her own Family being Involved. These Sinister Elements against Childern and Adults must be Eliminated. Should not be here in the 20th Century. Thank You for bringing this Heinous Story to Light. Bless You.

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Mar 27, 2019 Amy Shannon rated it really liked it

Interesting premise

Coons tells a good story, and Why She Lied is definitely a thriller. I like Coons's writing style, and have been drawn to her words and style before. I liked the backstory, and how not only the author weaves an interesting story, the story's character, Julie, is trying to make a new life, while a past life haunts her. A seemingly simple story premise grows and develops with those twists that not many see coming. It's a well-deserved read, and it definitely is a thrilling, and ...more

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Dec 17, 2020 Linda Rogers rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This book certainly keeps you wanting to know more. It was interesting to find our that the one who lied, either forgot that she had once been a part of the human traffic cult or never knew she had. She became involved with the police when they asked for her help in trying to find her ex-husband. However, she became so obsessed with what was being discovered that she did some investigating on her own and eventually found and had proof of what was really going on, This made the police able to fin ...more

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Feb 05, 2021 Angela rated it did not like it · review of another edition

“I don’t consider myself a writer, but I do consider myself a storyteller.” Sums up how I felt about this book. The story is gut wrenching, and it is important for all of us to know and stop the terror of human trafficking. The writing is not good. The author repeats themselves over and over again. It’s insulting and unimaginative for the reader. We can remember plot points, themes, and character development. It was like a project that had to be 176 pages, but really could be told in 30 and be m ...more

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About Julie Coons

Julie Coons

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Award-winning author Julie Coons lives in a small town in Oregon. This Does Not Leave This House was her debut memoir. Amy’s bookshelf
reviews awarded it the #1 position for top 10 books of 2018. Her second book, Why She Lied, is based on a true story and winner of the 2019 Readers’ Favorite International Book Award bronze medal. Her third book, Haunted: A Paranormal Awakening, is also a true story ...more