Jo Piazza

⇞⇞Book Review⇞⇞ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ 4.5 Stars
"Everyone Is Lying to You" by Jo Piazza
If you’re ready for something that mixes sweet and sinister vibes with a healthy dose of dark humor, this one’s for you!

I’ve been seeing a wave of books lately about #tradwives, and I was skeptical. Who wants to read about a bunch of Stepford wives, right? But then I received a copy of the audiobook "Everyone Is Lying to You" from Libro.Fm (thank you!). This story tempted me with its show more cutesy floral aprons and influencer glam, but then it delivered a gut-punch of gruesome murder, dark secrets, and satire so sharp it should come with a warning label!

Let me introduce you to our MCs, Lizzie and Bex. They were thick as thieves in college until some harsh words sent them down separate paths. Lizzie is a stressed-out journalist juggling an unemployed husband and a few kids. Meanwhile, Bex has transformed into the flawless Rebecca Sommers, a "tradwife" influencer with a gazillion followers, running a picturesque farm filled with kids and a three-legged goat named Tripod. No longer the hot mess college party girl Lizzie remembers.

So, Lizzie is surprised when she receives an unexpected invite from Bex to a behind-the-scenes event at an influencer conference called MomBomb. Could this be her ticket to the big leagues? But just as she's dusting off her party shoes, Bex goes missing, her husband turns up dead, and Lizzie realizes that this little getaway might be a big mistake.

I devoured this audiobook in two sittings, staying up until 3:30 am because I couldn’t tear myself away! The multiple narrators are an absolute game-changer, making it feel like I was right in the middle of a true-crime podcast blended with a slow-burning psychological thriller. Each voice brought something unique to the table, cranking up the suspense. The casting is spot-on, and the plot is a wild ride that exceeded my expectations. I’ve already grabbed another book about "tradwives," and I’m pumped to dive back into this quirky, chaotic world! This might be my summer obsession.

Thanks to the author and #PenguinAudio for providing this #giftedaudiobook via #Libro.fm. All opinions are my own. show less

⇞⇞Book Review⇞⇞ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨ 4.5 Stars
"Everyone Is Lying to You" by Jo Piazza
If you’re ready for something that mixes sweet and sinister vibes with a healthy dose of dark humor, this one’s for you!

I’ve been seeing a wave of books lately about #tradwives, and I was skeptical. Who wants to read about a bunch of Stepford wives, right? But then I received a copy of the audiobook "Everyone Is Lying to You" from Libro.Fm (thank you!). This story tempted me with its show more cutesy floral aprons and influencer glam, but then it delivered a gut-punch of gruesome murder, dark secrets, and satire so sharp it should come with a warning label!

Let me introduce you to our MCs, Lizzie and Bex. They were thick as thieves in college until some harsh words sent them down separate paths. Lizzie is a stressed-out journalist juggling an unemployed husband and a few kids. Meanwhile, Bex has transformed into the flawless Rebecca Sommers, a "tradwife" influencer with a gazillion followers, running a picturesque farm filled with kids and a three-legged goat named Tripod. No longer the hot mess college party girl Lizzie remembers.

So, Lizzie is surprised when she receives an unexpected invite from Bex to a behind-the-scenes event at an influencer conference called MomBomb. Could this be her ticket to the big leagues? But just as she's dusting off her party shoes, Bex goes missing, her husband turns up dead, and Lizzie realizes that this little getaway might be a big mistake.

I devoured this audiobook in two sittings, staying up until 3:30 am because I couldn’t tear myself away! The multiple narrators are an absolute game-changer, making it feel like I was right in the middle of a true-crime podcast blended with a slow-burning psychological thriller. Each voice brought something unique to the table, cranking up the suspense. The casting is spot-on, and the plot is a wild ride that exceeded my expectations. I’ve already grabbed another book about "tradwives," and I’m pumped to dive back into this quirky, chaotic world! This might be my summer obsession.

Thanks to the author and #PenguinAudio for providing this #giftedaudiobook via #Libro.fm. All opinions are my own. show less

Riley and Jen were best friends from when Jen was first dropped off at the daycare run by Riley's grandmother and that friendship lasted all through high school. And now, in their thirties, although they drifted apart, now that Riley's back in Philadelphia, they are picking up where they left off, sharing the same inside jokes and long history. But things have also changed. Riley is coming off of a long relationship and a reporter with a local news team, and Jen is an expectant mother and show more married to a police officer. And when Jen's husband in involved in the shooting death of a Black boy and Riley is assigned to cover the story, that Jen is white and Riley is black becomes a thing that divides them in ways they'd never talked about before.

This is the kind of ripped-from-the-headlines novel I usually avoid, but this was for my book club and so I picked it up and found myself liking it quite a bit. It helps that this was written by two authors, Christine Pride and Jo Piazza, and together they managed to make both characters feel fully well-rounded and the novel dug into the story from different angles that embraced complexity and conflict, while also really celebrating female friendship. Piazza has written several books and Pride's background in journalism gave authenticity to Riley's experiences. Towards the end of the book, it felt like the authors were intent on just tying up all the loose threads and the ending felt a little to easy given the sheer intractability of the characters up to that point, but kudos to the authors for being willing to directly address the issue of race in America in a way that is approachable yet unwilling to let the reader get comfortable. show less

We Are Not Like Them is a novel with a unique presentation. The novel is told in alternating chapters, in the voices of two characters. Riley and Jen have been best friends since childhood, meeting when they were color-blind and innocent. Riley is African American, from a family of strong women who gave her a good foundation. Jen is white, the child of a unwed teenaged mother who was flighty and neglectful. When Jen walked into Riley’s mother’s day care, she discovered friendship, a show more family that embraced her, another home. They girls grew up and did all the typical teenage things, sharing all their teenage angst.

Riley was awarded a scholarship to university. Jen’s tax-evading mother wouldn’t fill out the FASA. Jen worked up to an office job, while Riley went into broadcast journalism. It was the beginning of a distance between them, although the cracks had already been there. For Jen was color-blind and never considered what Riley faced in a racist world, and Riley kept the hard part of her life from Jen. The girls were unable to talk about race.

Part of our friendship, of any relationship really, is the tacit agreement to allow a generous latitude for flaws and grievances.[…]It’s a paradox, loving someone precisely because you know them so well, inside and out, and at the same time nursing a small fantasy that they can be different in the specific ways you want then to be.

from We Are Not Like Them by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza
The authors are friends, black and white, and conceived of the novel as a way to talk about “the ways race can divide us despite our very best intentions.” Riley gives voice to how people of color experience white people’s ignorance rooted in white privilege. Jen thinks about the advantages Riley had that were denied to her, like a full scholarship, and is aware that Riley has closed off parts of her life. Riley not only has shut out Jen, but she walked away from her white boyfriend instead of talking to him about her concerns. “You can’t trust white people,” Riley’s grandmother taught. Riley can’t tell Jen or her boyfriend about her brother’s arrest, or about the racism she has endured.

I felt the honesty of these characters as they struggle to maintain their friendship under the most horrendous situation imaginable. Jen is finally pregnant after Riley loaned her the money for one more try at a successful pregnancy. Jen’s cop husband shoots and kills an innocent, unarmed, black teenager who dies. Jen knows her husband is a good man, but can Riley forgive him for murdering an innocent boy of color? Jen’s husband is filled with guilt but believes he followed protocol, trusting his new partner. Riley is reporting on the incident, interviewing the victim’s mother, trying unsuccessfully to keep her personal and professional life separate.

The authors state they “probed their blind spots and beliefs” in this novel. And in doing so, they have created a moving novel about friendship and race. I dare anyone to read it and not have their view changed.

Readers will enjoy this novel for its emotional story line and the female friendship. For book clubs, the novel will generation great discussions about race and about the nature of friendship.

I personally enjoyed the Philadelphia setting.

Thank you to Book Club Favorites at Simon & Schuster for a free copy for review. show less