Love The Way They Lie By Linda Smolkin

‘Love The Way They Lie’ is the latest book by Linda Smolkin.

Thirty-eight-year-old Maggie Simmons has another reason to hate the Department of Motor Vehicles other than the long lines. A visit to the DMV reveals a photo from a speeding ticket with her husband in the arms of a mystery woman. Maggie’s happy marriage to Nate shatters, but he refuses to leave her alone. In her attempts to move forward, remnants of her old life tear apart. After separating, she fills the void with her dog, Chili, and a string of unexpected relationships. She finds herself with multiple people vying for her attention and she enjoys the distraction. However, Maggie soon realizes they may have ulterior motives. One by one, more betrayal weaves its way into Maggie’s life, leaving her devastated by the idea of being heartbroken and alone. In order to escape her reality, she flirts with the unthinkable the one thing that triggered her suffering in the first place. A lie.

I read this book in one sitting, a heartfelt and hopeful story about heartbreak and new beginnings.

The story is seen through Maggie’s perspective, who’s heart is broken after discovering her husband is cheating. After catching him once before and he promised to change, Maggie calls it a day on her marriage and starts afresh.

I really liked this story, it’s honest and it’s fresh. Maggie is relatable, her heart is broken with the loss of her marriage plus her step-children and feels a massive absence in her life. She throws herself into her work and visits to Betty and Al, an elderly couple in a nursing home with her service dog, Chili. These scenes make for lovely reading, as the elderly couple have been together for decades and offer advice to Maggie, they’re warm and charming. As Maggie moves on, she grows in confidence, her distrust in people begins to lessen and she begins to open her heart to the idea of love and meets Ryan, who’s fun, energetic and gives her a new lust for life.

A story about recovery and love, ‘Love The Way They Lie’ is a beautifully written story that made for uplifting reading with a wonderfully charming dog that added a bit more heart to the story.

You can buy ‘Love The Way They Lie’ from Amazon and is available to buy from good bookshops.