Even When You Lie
A Novel
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3.0 • 1 Rating
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Perfect for fans of Lisa Scottoline and Kimberly McCreight, Michelle Cruz's debut novel will have readers furiously turning the pages as they plunge headlong into the seedy underbelly of glitzy and glamorous Dallas in this gripping Texas noir.
Reagan Reyes hunts other people’s secrets. A former intelligence officer, she’s currently the in-house investigator for pricey criminal defense attorney, Cade McCarrick…and she’s his lover, despite the law firm’s rules forbidding romantic relationships between partners and staff. But their love—including their agreement never to lie to each other—is the only authenticity they have in a world of subterfuge and betrayal.
That agreement is pushed to its limits when a mysterious woman leaves an envelope for Cade and is soon discovered dead. While the envelope’s contents aren’t related to any of Cade’s current cases, Reagan uncovers a connection to a recent murder outside a Deep Ellum nightclub—and an even more ominous link to the dead woman.
The police don’t seem to care about either death, but they hit too close to home for Reagan to ignore. As she digs deeper into Dallas’s sordid underbelly, she’s completely on her own except for Cade—and there’s a killer bent on eliminating them both at any cost.
This pulse-pounding romantic thriller offers a fresh new take on big-city crime, from a dazzling and exciting new voice in the genre.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Early in Cruz's uneven debut, a romantic thriller, a young woman dies after leaving an envelope for defense attorney Cade McCarrick at Holcombe & Donaldson, a prestigious Dallas law firm. Though warned to leave the matter alone, Reagan Reyes, the firm's private investigator and a former intelligence officer, discovers the envelope's contents relate to a recent murder outside a nightclub. Despite the risk of exposing her romantic relationship with Cade—expressly forbidden by the firm's rules—Reagan investigates further, assisted by Rafi, a former Army Ranger who's now homeless. When Reagan uncovers a connection between the Holcombes, the firm's wealthy and well-connected owners, and the woman's death and the earlier murder, Reagan and Cade become targets of a killer who has woven a web of deceit to disguise the murders' true motives. Blood ties and money are at the heart of the matter, and the tension rises along with the body count. Though all the components of a romantic thriller are in place—an adventurous young woman, a dashing love interest, a fast car, and a city riddled with corruption—they generate neither passion nor action. Intriguingly flawed secondary characters suggest Cruz can do better next time.
