After writing six young adult novels, Ashley Elston’s adult debut is a huge success from start to finish. FIRST LIE WINS is extremely clever and throws one twist after another at you in a narrative that will consume you straight through to the dynamic finale.

Evie Porter and Ryan Summer have moved in together after a brief courtship. They are living in the fully furnished house that was left to Ryan by his grandparents. Our first opportunity to meet the happy couple is at a dinner party where Evie is being introduced to Ryan’s longtime friends as they put her through the expected battery of questions.

"FIRST LIE WINS is unpredictable in every sense of the word and wraps everything up with a completely satisfying ending that will reward all readers who follow along with Evie on her journey."

We find out pretty much from the start that Evie does not really exist. You see, Evie Porter is an assumed identity. From her perspective, “the first lie wins” --- meaning that the first lie must be the game changer and the one that sets up all the little lies to follow. You might think this is some sort of a Talented Mister Ripley scenario where Evie is looking to get something from the well-off Ryan. You would be very wrong.

Elston treats us to various chapters, all set in the past and featuring a different persona that Evie utilizes. We also learn at this point that she is not a sociopath; she takes on deep-cover jobs from an employer known only to her as Mr. Smith. These assignments use her ability to quickly become other people by changing her total look to sell the character for that particular situation. It is also leaked that Evie’s last job did not go well, and she fell alarmingly in Mr. Smith’s eyes. Getting involved with Ryan is her chance to get back in his good graces --- unless, of course, he has something else in mind.

Evie is first alerted that something might be amiss when she meets James, an old friend of Ryan’s with whom he recently had a big falling-out. It isn’t James being back in the picture that alarms Evie; it’s that he introduces his new girlfriend, who claims to be Lucca Marino. The only problem is that Lucca Marino is Evie’s actual identity. The fact that this imposter has been thrown into the mix lets her know that Mr. Smith is playing games with her. When James and the bogus Lucca are killed in a car accident, Evie begins to fear the unfortunate message that might be behind this incident.

Evie reports what happened to Mr. Smith, but he plays it cool and expresses his annoyance at her that she waited three days to tell him. We now get to see the real Evie in action as she works with those she believes she can trust in Mr. Smith’s organization not only to find out what may be in store for her, but to grasp for any stronghold she can leverage to turn the tables on her mystery employer.

It is difficult to discuss more without revealing some of the brilliant plot twists that Ashley Elston has cooked up. All I will say is that FIRST LIE WINS is unpredictable in every sense of the word and wraps everything up with a completely satisfying ending that will reward all readers who follow along with Evie on her journey. I hope this is not the last we see of this character and am looking forward to what Elston does for an encore.