2026 Book Review #23:The Lying Game

 

I've read quite a few of this author's novels.  Some I loved, others were just ok.

This one was very good!  My reading this past month has slowed down but I'm slowly getting back into reading more each day.  My goal for retirement was to read 2 books a week...but that's before I started volunteering with the hiking group I founded and also volunteer for another 2 ministries at church. But now that it's summer, I'm really only doing the hiking group so I hope to get more reading done each day. 

STORY SUMMARY

 It's a June morning and a cool one. There's a woman walking her dog in the pretty coastal village of Salten. She's walking along a tidal estuary known as The Reach. All of a sudden, the dog charges into the water to retrieve what at first looks like a stick. But the woman is horrified when she sees that it is a human bone!  

The very next morning, three women in their early 30s who live in and around London, are notified by a fourth woman. Their names are Fatima (married with 3 children), Thea (single career woman, anorexic and alcoholic), and Isa (living with her boyfriend and father of her baby girl Freya).  The 4th  woman's name is Kate.  She sends them all a text saying "I need you". No explanation.  And they haven't seen each other in 17 years. 

These 4 women were best friends when they were teenagers at Salten House, a 2nd rate boarding school. It was set near the cliffs of the English Channel.  Kate lived in an old mill on The Reach with her father Ambrose who was the art teacher at Salten House. Her "brother" Luc (they were like brother and sister but Luc was from France and his mother, now a heroin addict in France, used to live with Ambrose.  Luc's biological father is unkown. 

The 4 girls were inseparable in high school and were notorious for playing what they called The Lying Game. They told lies constantly to fellow boarders and to the faculty and staff. 

But their game had terrible consequences finally. 

As they gather aga; in in Salten....now all grown up.....they realize that their game of lying and their shared past with its secrets, was not buried as deeply...or as safely.... as they thought and hoped. 

What was the final big secret between them? and why is it surfacing now after all these years? 

MY THOUGHTS

This is a twisty plot kind of book.  I loved the character  development although at times every single character except Fatima, drove me crazy. 

The setting is well described and I could just smell the briny salt water of the Reach. 

The main themes in this book are: complex female friendships; parent-child relationship and being raised by single parents; addictions; the ripple effects of lying/dishonesty; the burden of teenage guilt; isolation by choice; deep loyalty; betrayals. 

I loved the way the book ended......it was a bit of  a surprise the way it ended although I did guess correctly who was involved in the crime. 

I don't want to reveal too much about what the crime was or who  was involved as that would ruin the story for you. 

I did find a few editing errors.

In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 17 and older (due to mature content). 

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this a 8.  

Vacation Day 4: Pilgrim Hall

 I'm taking time on this hot, humid Sunday afternoon, to write about the fourth day of our anniversary vacation. (I'm posting our days going backwards).  We were in Plymouth and when we woke up on Thursday, we saw the forecast was going to have an air temp feel of 102.  That's hot and combined with the 90% humidity, we decided we weren't going to do the hike we had planned.  We chose instead, to have a late breakfast in the dining room of the hotel and then we talked about all the monuments we've seen/visited in years past in Plymouth.  

Dave's family used to have a beach house on Buzzards Bay as some of you know. This is where we would spend a part of June, July, and August when our girls were little. We also had the big T---- family Thanksgiving there every year from 2002-2013.  Those were great times.  Because Dave's side of the family had pilgrims as ancestors, Plymouth was a big draw for us to take our children.  We've been on the Mayflower II replica for the tours twice. We've seen Plymouth Rock ad nauseum and a few years ago, Dave and I stayed in a different part of Plymouth and did the Pilgrim Trail and stopped at all the national historic monuments and there are many! One place we never had visited or toured, though, was Pilgrim Hall Museum.

Dave in front of Pilgrim Hall Museum
 the oldest museum in the USA

Here is a quote from their website:

"Built in 1824 by the Pilgrim Society, Pilgrim Hall is one of America’s earliest public museums. The Society was incorporated in 1820 during the 200th anniversary of Plymouth Colony’s founding, to commemorate the history of the Mayflower Pilgrims. "

Now, Dave's dad had a great times 9 uncle come over on the Mayflower with his 2 sons.  However, they died before the harvest that next November. The wife did not come nor is there any information as to if she ever did or if she died in England before they left for the New Land. 

Dave's dad also told us that his great times 9 grandfather came over on the Speedwell.  The names on the Speedwell, though, match the names on the Mayflower.  So that's a bit confusing.  However, the Speedwell never made it to Plymouth! It had to turn around and go back to England as it wasn't seaworthy.  So it was really the great times 9 uncle that arrived in Plymouth on the Mayflower. 

So that left us wondering about the great times 9 grandfather?  We checked the passenger lists for the Fortune, Anne, and Little James ships which came over in 1623.  And guess what??  There was no T------family member on any of those!!  

So....we are puzzled. My guess is he did come over as a separatist but it was later than 1623 or on a ship that isn't listed. 

But....we enjoyed all of the pilgrim displays and it was fascinating to see the  actual items that the 1620 pilgrims owned.  We couldn't take photos in the first part of the museum but we were allowed to in the main gallery.  Here are some photos for you to enjoy.  

I really liked the look of this in front of the museum
The museum is on the main street through the historic section
away from the waterfront street but parallel to it.

The very first baby born when the Pilgrims
landed in America was Peregrine White.
Zoom in on the pic to read about this. 
The first baby born on the Mayflower
during the crossing of the Atlantic was Oceanus Hopkins

This cradle came from Holland
and was used by the White family 
for the first Pilgrim baby to be born in America
His mother gave birth on the ship which of course
was docked in Provincetown Harbor. 

The replica of the Mayflower, called The Mayflower II, is of course docked in Plymouth Harbor and is a major tourist attraction. Every American should visit the Mayflower, the Rock, (although it's disappointing as is so small as some of it is buried underground)  which is in a portico right on the sidewalk on the Harbor and next to Pilgrim Memorial State Park. The harbor and attractions are all a part of  the park. Dave's great grandfather was involved in the moving of the Rock. 

In the museum you can actually see and touch a piece of Plymouth Rock.  

I'm touching Plymouth Rock

a replica of the Mayflower ship 

I wasn't allowed to take a photo of some of the other Pilgrim items and my photo of William Bradford's Geneva Bible didn't come out. (If you don't know who he was, click on the blue link). 

The entire museum only takes about 1.5 hours to walk through and there is a little gift shop. We were fortunate that we got to talk with the historian who was on site.  She used to be one of the "pilgrims" over at Plimoth-Patuxet Plantation/Museum back when our  daughters were young. She was fascinating to talk to and she is the one who directed us to the passenger lists for the other ships. 

After our 2  hour parking was up, we drove over to a small town outside of Plymouth to get some refresher drinks at Dunkin' and then ordered some sandwiches and took them back to the hotel dining room to have a late lunch.  After lunch, we rested on the ocean side of the hotel with our books and then it was time to leave for Dave's brother's camp on Long Pond.  Long Pond is only about 15 minutes from our hotel which is on Long Beach.  The pond is really a lake. We had a lovely visit with them and Peter made chicken and beef kabobs for dinner. We hung out on the deck which is literally right on the water until about 10:45 pm and then ended the day by packing up almost all of our things as we were leaving for NY and our home the next day. 

Here is proof that the great times 9 uncle
of my father-in-law came over on the Mayflower
with his two young sons. 

Patriotic decor on the camp deck 
compliments of my sister-in-law Katharine

relaxing on Peter and Kathy's camp deck before dinner
Their bernese Kyss is a sweet dog! 
 I like her. and I don't like most dogs 

Come on back sometime Monday to see more photos and read about Sandwich, the oldest town on Cape Cod! 

ANNIVERSARY VACATION FAVES

 

Well, it's HOT. It's HUMID.  But I'm typing this from a beautifully air conditioned dining room at our hotel here in Plymouth, MA where the town is going all out for the Independence 250th celebration. Our hotel is right on Long Beach!

I'm looking out at the ocean, and thanking God for this beautiful week we have had. I'm so thankful for central air, an outdoor pool, the beach, an outdoor terrace that is overlooking the Atlantic/Cape Cod Bay and is actually mostly shaded all day. Our room has the ocean view so we get the morning sun. Today was our day to just do something in town and relax most of the day. I'm typing this on Thursday before we leave for another part of Plymouth (Long Pond) to swim in the lake (lakes are called ponds in Plymouth Co and on the cape according to my brother in law) and go out to dinner with my brother in law (Dave's older bro Peter) and his wife Kathy. They have a camp right on the lake.  It's about 3 pm and many people are either in the pool or in their rooms resting as it's high tide and there's no beach right now.  

I'm sharing FIVE FAVE things from my week and linking up at Susanne's site.  Join in!! Also, this won't be linked to her blog until I'm back in NYS but once I'm home (sometime Friday afternoon), I will read your own FFF's as soon as I start the laundry. 😁

FIVE FAVES

Mady, the last niece to graduate from HS
on both sides of our families! 
Her mom, Jill, is my youngest sister 
Mady is the one I take hiking once a summer

From l-r starting in back:  Joy, Hope (my  sisters)
 and Hope's husband Donny
Tyler and Courtney, Claire, me 
Dave is next to me but didn't make the pic)

• GRAD PARTY!  Our vacation officially started with heading to my niece's high school graduation party on Sunday after church.  My youngest sister Jill and her husband Mike had delicious lunch food set up along with all kinds of drinks and the big tent to sit under as it was already getting hot and humid. Both of my daughters also came. In fact, Dave and I were treated by Courtney who drove us to the party along with her bf Tyler.  After the party, we spent the late afternoon/early evening at Moreau Lake State Park to swim and relax on the beach. I'm thankful for family times and making memories. 

our hotel room was beautifully decorated
Monday 29 June

our view!!
and yes, the windows opened!!
But we only did that for 2 evenings
as we really needed AC

the private beach at low tide

outdoor dining area

the terrace overlooking the ocean 
where we spent a few evenings reading and talking

• SAFE TRAVELS: Monday morning was our travel day to Plymouth MA with a lunch stop at my mother in law's. We had picked up subs/wraps and brought them over. It was good to see her and she was happy for the company.  We arrived in Plymouth in mid-afternoon and although there was quite a bit of traffic (many tourists are in the Boston area for the World Cup, plus Independence Day) and we knew Plymouth, where it all began, would be crowded and crazy! After checking in and relaxing, we walked the beach, and then in the early evening, we headed to downtown Plymouth to eat at this amazing place! I had the half size fish and chips platter which was plenty along with a delicious mocktail. Dave had a lobster roll and onion rings with a red sangria. We walked around the waterfront and ended up spending way too much money for ice cream cones and of course had to walk past the Mayflower II and the Rock for old times sake. I'm thankful for the hotel accomodations and the safe travels.  Since we did some very historic things on this anniversary trip, I am only sharing the highlights here and will do a seperate post about the places we visited while down here. 

a delicious cranberry/orange mocktail

Dave's red sangria....
very refreshing as well!

on the beach in Plymouth!
Monday 29 June

• ANNIVERSARY!  On Tuesday the 30th, we celebrated 36 years of marriage. I'm so thankful for my wonderful husband who is also one of my very best friends and adventure loving partner. He chose Plymouth (although we vacationed here a few years ago as well and have been to all the Pilgrim things ad nauseum) because there was actually a vacancy for a room on the ocean side of the hotel. We've tried to get into this place before so we were thrilled we could get a room from Mon-Friday. On Tuesday, though, we drove an hour northeast to Fall River to Battleship Cove a national historic site. There are 5 national historic landmarks in Battleship Cove.  (Battleship Cove is a part of Fall River Heritage State Park). They are: the USS Massachusetts, the USS Joseph P. Kennady Jr, the USS Lionfish (submarine), PT Boat 617 (a torpedo boat), and the PT Boat 796.  These last 2 boats are the only restored pair of WWII torpedo boats on public display in the nation. We saw all 5!  Below are some highlights of Battleship Cove. All of the ships are self guided tours. We also went to the Maritime Museum which was just a 2 block walk along the waterfront and is a part of the Battleship Cove.  Also, we had brought nice clothes to change into and had our anniversary dinner (an early one as we wanted to get back and sit on the ocean beach) at this absolutely fantastic italian waterfront restaurant. Because the heat index was close to 98 degrees F we chose the indoor section with the AC. I'm so thankful we had a wonderful Anniversary doing something my husband loves. (more about Battleship Cove will be in a separate post). here are four of our fave photos from Tuesday: (sadly, none of the photos I took at the Maritime Museum came out!) 

Three of the national historic landmarks/monuments

In the background: USS MASS
in center: Lionfish
on left side: USS Kennedy

Dave on the lionfish submarine
he toured the bottom by himself

Dave and I on the top of the USS MASS 

Anniversary Drinks before dinner 
White Sangria for me
Red Sangria for Dave
Chicken Piccata for me; Lasagna for Dave

• CAPE COD: On Wednesday, we left for Cape Cod via the Sagamore Bridge.  Our destination was Sandwich, the oldest town on the cape.  In Sandwich, we wanted to tour the Botanical Gardens and Museums which we tried to do with our daughters back in 2004 but it rained so we ended up just at the auto museum and carousel.  Back then it was Memorial Day Weekend so hardly any flowers were bloomed anyways.  This year, it was  awesome.  It's a self guided tour and there are 100 acres to explore. We did all the trails except for the children's section.  And yes, we rode the carousel for old times' sake. We did some shopping in the village too and at the end of the day we headed back to Plymouth to eat at an Irish pub where we had the best food and the best prices!  I'm so thankful we had a great day! Here are a few pics from the day (more will be in a separate post). 

one of many fountains in the botanical gardens

Botanical Gardens has a whole section of beautiful hydrangeas

it also had a labyrinth that we walked.....
the whole thing was a half mile!

Dave enjoying the sundial 

The Windmill at botanical gardens

Riding the dragon chariot on the carousel

Trail to Shawnee Pond at Botanical Gardens

Shawnee Pond in the Botanical Gardens

After the gardens, a quick visit over to the Sandwich Canal area, and shopping, we went swimming at the hotel outdoor pool and swam and relaxed with our books. It was much needed as the air felt like 102 degrees F.  We were thanking God for the wonderful AC and pool and ocean breeze and sunscreen!

Sun and swimming

After swimming, we showered and headed out to dinner at Dillon's Local the Irish pub. 

Fish tacos and house salad

Dave had a Guiness and I chose the MaiTai
and these were so very refreshing after a long, hot day!

• LAKE TIME:  Thursday morning was spent just reading and relaxing on the hotel ocean mezzanine.  Around 11 AM we decided we would head over to the oldest museum in the nation, known as Pilgrim Hall Museum in downtown Plymouth. For some reason, this is a museum we have never visited although we have gone to all the other historic sites in Plymouth including the Mayflower II more than once, and Plymouth Rock many times. The Museum will get its own post. We also discovered some family history we did not know and that was super cool.  Come back Sunday or Monday for a glimpse of this very historic museum. After the museum, we headed to DD for ice cold refresher drinks and then back to the hotel to rest out of the sun/heat.  In the evening, we headed over to Dave's brother's camp on Long Pond.  Ponds in MA are actually lakes. We are not sure why residents of MA call them ponds. Long Pond is a beautiful lake and although there is a public beach which is quite small, most of the homes are  private camps.  Peter and Kathy made grilled food for our dinner (I had chicken kabobs) and had some yummy drinks and iced water. We hung out on their deck where if you sit on the edge, your feet are in the lake. I did a bit of swimming as did Dave and Peter. It was great and there was a nice breeze. We hung out there until 10:45 PM.  The hotel is only about 15 min away. I'm so thankful we spent time with Pete and Kathy.  It was a great way to end our last night in Plymouth. 

relaxing at the camp on Long Pond
Plymouth
the bernese is Kathy's dog Kyss.
she is a therapy dog!

Dave and Peter deal with a floating dock

A touch of patriotic decor 

delicious black cherry lemonade

Patriotic dinner decor with sparkling, flashing lights

It is now Friday.  It's about 1 pm.  We made it out of Plymouth at 7 AM and stopped for breakfast in the town where my mother in law lives. After breakfast, we arrived at her place about 9 AM to discover that she wasn't doing well. The AC unit in her family room had died and the nurse said she was near heatstroke. Dave had to go out and buy a new unit, fan, and I found a very small fan and set her up in front of it. The nurse had to leave so I stayed with her while Dave did the shopping for the items. He also bought her a bag of ice as she had no ice in the freezer. Because this is a national holiday, we wanted to be back in NY by noon. That is not happening.  Dave and his brother are currently working on getting the unit attached better to the window. So I am now finally uploading vacation pics and writing the FFF.  

We are now hoping to make it back to NY and home by 7 PM.  

I'm thankful we could be here for my mother in law and that Peter came up from camp when Dave called him to tell him what was going on. Please pray for us to get home safely! This heat wave is taking a toll on so many people. More importantly, please pray for my mother in law. She still lives alone at age 91. 

                HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Sunday Funday Stealin'

 

I'm packed and all set for our anniversary vacation. I'm ready for the 11 AM church service.    I'm ready for celebrating our youngest niece later at her HS Grad party. And my beach bag is packed for the lake later today after Mady's party. 

 So I'm playing along with the Sunday Stealin' Meme since I have some time on my hands!  

Head here to learn how to join in! 

I LOVE TO: hike mountains

I SOMETIMES: have road rage

I FEAR:  timber rattlers

I MISS: national leaders who have class, wisdom, and integrity 

I CRAVE: *$ guatemalan  blend coffee with one pump of raspberry syrup and a drizzle of almond milk 

I CHERISH: my two daughters

I AM IMPATIENT WHEN: tourists don't know how/where to park or navigate the roads in Saratoga Springs or how to merge onto the Northway 

Have a safe and healthy Independence Day week.