Liar, Liar

In death, Didi Storm is finally getting the kind of publicity that eluded her in life. Twenty years ago, the ex-beauty queen worked the Vegas strip as a celebrity impersonator, too busy trying to make it big to spare much time for her daughter, Remmi. Shortly before she leaped from a San Francisco building, Didi’s profile was rising again, thanks to a tell-all book. To Detective Dani Settler, it looks like a straightforward suicide, or perhaps a promotional stunt gone wrong. But Remmi knows the truth isn’t so simple. Because though the broken body on the sidewalk is dressed in Didi’s clothes and wig, it isn’t Didi.

Remmi was fifteen when she last saw her mother. Their parting came in the aftermath of a terrible night in the show more Mojave desert when Remmi—who’d secretly stowed away in Didi’s car en route to meet her crush, Noah Scott—instead became witness to a mysterious rendezvous. Didi handed over one of her newborn twins to a man Remmi didn’t recognize. Subsequently, Didi disappeared, as did Remmi’s other
half-sibling. Remmi has pleaded with the authorities to find them, but there have been no clues. Yet she’s always had the sense that someone is watching her . . .

If the victim isn’t Didi, who is it—and what’s the connection? Remmi is shocked when Noah resurfaces. He was also in the desert that night, and now runs his own PI firm. He too believes it’s time to find out what really happened. As they and Detective Settler dig deeper, the truth about Remmi’s missing family begins to emerge . . . a story of ruthless ambition and twisted lies that someone will kill again and again to keep hidden . . . show less

Lisa Jackson is a skilled storyteller that provides characters I enjoy reading about who often find themselves in situations I would never wish to find myself in. This story is one that begins in the present, jumps to the past and then returns to the present day with a lead character 15 in the beginning who reappears twenty years later when her mother, Didi Storm, is front and center in the public eye…even though Didi has been missing for those twenty years already mentioned.

This is a story of greed, dysfunction families, jealousy, murder and more. There is a second chance at romance for Didi’s daughter, Remmi as she meets up with Noah Scott once again. The two had experiences they will never forget in the desert outside Las Vegas show more long ago and the mystery of what happened and why has stayed with them for decades. Their chemistry is still there and ready to be explored as they try to figure out what happened so many years before.

I really liked Remmi and her ability to overcome. I loved Noah and his ability to handle situations. I hated the bad guys…all of them. I was eager to find out what would happen and did enjoy the book though there were a few times I seemed to lose interest for a bit. I am not sure if that is because of the way the book was arranged with the leaps in time or if I had trouble relating to some of the characters. I still enjoyed the story and do look forward to reading more by this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and Kensington Books for the ARC – This is my honest review. show less

Liar, Liar by Lisa Jackson published by Kensington Books is a great summer read for anyone who likes thrillers. Over the years I have been sadden by some of my go to authors. Their stories and characters having turned stale and leaving me yearning for the days of yore. Lisa Jackson is definitely not one of those authors. I have been reading Lisa Jackson books since I was about 15 my mom use to pick up 4-5 books for me and I would be done in less than a month. Over the years I have been sadden by some of my go to authors. Their stories and characters having turned stale and leaving me yearning for the days of yore. Lisa Jackson is definitely not one of those authors. This is an excellent crime thriller with an intriguing and unique show more premise. Didi Storm is a washed-up beauty queen and Marilyn Monroe impersonator. Remmi, Didi's daughter, witnesses a woman jumping to her death from a building in San Francisco. She had been dressed as Marilyn Monroe. Remmi is adamant that it was not her mother. To solve this mystery of who it was that jumped and why, cop Dani Settler and Remmi Storm must go back over two decades and discover the deal made in the Nevada desert. This is a fast-paced novel that reveals details like a great meal course by course. There are lots of details that are well placed and this will keep you up past your bedtime. show less

This was the third Lisa Jackson book that I have read, but the others were read years ago, so I wasn't sure what to expect. However, this book was just as mediocre as the other two books that I read.
Part 1 of the book was to set up the story line that Didi Scott, presumably committed suicide. After witnessing what seemed to be her mother's suicide, Remmi Scott was transported back to 20 years earlier, when she was 15 years old, and witnessed her mother selling, Ariel, one of the twin babies her mother had. During that sale, a car blows up, someone is shot, and Didi Scott is terrified. Remmi tries to get her mother to admit to the baby selling scam, but Didi won't, claiming she will take care of everything. Didi's friend and midwife, show more Seneca, disappears with the other twin, Adam.
Fast forward 20 years, and Remmi needs to find out if that was really her mother who committed suicide. She meets with the cops, and it all seems to revolve around a book that was recently published about Didi Scott and her career as a Marilyn Monroe impersonator.
The novel is rambling at times, and the story is too neatly wrapped up. There are way too many coincidences, too many close calls, and too many unbelievable situations. The story was quite predictable. Quite a disappointment.
The only saving grace of the book in my opinion was that I liked Remmi and her friend, Noah Scott.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
#NetGalley #LisaJackson #LiarLiar #KensingtonBooks show less

Some twenty years after Didi Storm walked out of her home, leaving her fifteen-year-old daughter, Remmi, behind, the mystery of what happened to Didi remains. And now, the just-published tell-all book about Didi has tossed the celebrity impersonator into the public spotlight once again.

Then a woman dressed in Marilyn Monroe-fashion takes a dive off a nineteenth-floor hotel balcony. Since the Marilyn impression was one of Didi’s best efforts, everyone believes that the woman who jumped is, in fact, Didi. However, Remmi questions that preliminary identification. But if she’s not Didi, who is she? And why did she dress in Marilyn regalia before jumping?

Even after twenty years, Remmi still wonders what happened to her mother . . . and show more the infant twins, her half-sister and half-brother. Did Didi sell the babies? Are they still alive? Remmi’s quest for the truth sets her against an unknown killer who will do whatever is necessary to keep the darkest of secrets.

This tale of deception, lies, and betrayal spins out its dark story in the present day and in flashback chapters recalling the events of twenty years ago. Interesting characters and intriguing occurrences keep the suspense high as unexpected reveals ramp up the tension. Astute readers may unravel some of the twists before their reveals, but there’s still a riveting twist or two they simply won’t see coming.

Recommended. show less

A man burned to death in his car in the middle of the desert. A teen boy is shot. Disappearing babies. The fact that Remmi Storm witnesses the apparent suicide of her mother, a woman she hadn't seen in twenty years. Remmi's mother was Didi Storm, a Marilyn Monroe impersonator, someone whose career never quite reached its stride. This is all tied together, but how?

What's more is that Remmi's life is at stake. What really happened twenty years ago and why is it trailing closely behind her now? With the help of Noah Scott, someone from Remmi's past, things begin to reveal themselves. However, Remmi is not even sure that she can trust him.

Liar Liar is a story of deceit, murder and duplicity. This was an easy read, easily devoured in one show more sitting, and one that I read with a sense of urgency. I am relatively new to Lisa Jackson's work, but am definitely a new fan.

Many thanks to Kensington Books and to NetGalley for this ARC to review.



Date of publication: June 26, 2018 show less

Liar, Liar
Lisa Jackson

An entertaining and fast-paced story of lies, deception, murder and betrayal.

⭐️⭐️⭐️

SUMMARY
Didi Storm worked the Las Vegas strip as a celebrity impersonator. She was ambitious and always way to busy to spare much time for her daughter, Remmi. Remmi was 15 when she last saw her mother. DiDi disappeared after a horrendous night in the Mojave Desert. Remmi had hidden away in DiDi’s car that night, and had witnessed DiDi handing over one of her newborn twins to a man in exchange for a briefcase. The next day DiDi disappeared as did Remmi’s other half sibling. The authorities have found no clue as to what happened to DiDi, or either of her twins.

Now at 35, Remmi is living in San Francisco, and a show more tell-all book has just been published about DiDI’s life. But no one talked to Remmi about it. Coincidentally, Remmi is on her way to talk to the publisher, when a woman leaps from the ledge of a balcony. Remmi’s first glimpse of the jumper shakes her to her core. The broken woman bore a strong resemblance to DiDi. She was dressed in DiDi costume and wig. But it wasn’t DiDi. So where was DiDi and where has she been for the past twenty years?

REVIEW
It’s Las Vegas, baby! Anything can happen in Las Vegas and it does in this book: a Marilyn Monroe impersonator, a fireball in the desert, a disappearing act, counterfeit money, and murder and mayhem. It’s a zany start to this entertaining plot-driven story!

You’ll want to hold on tight for this fast moving crime thriller as layer upon layer of the mystery is deftly peeled away. You’ll keep reading to figure out who wrote the book about DiDi; who was this woman who jumped to her death; Where are DiDi and the twins; What happened that night in the desert; and who is following Remmi. There’s a lot going on in LIAR, LIAR, and all the lies, deceptions, and murders don’t always make sense. There are a few to many coincidences in the story for me, but a well-developed cast of characters makes the story interesting.

Lisa Jackson is the best selling author of more than 85 novels including You Will Pay and Tell Me. Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Publisher Kensington.
Publication June 26, 2016 show less