LIES is everything you want in a thriller. It introduces memorable characters, moves quickly and is straightforward. It also combines real-world situations and passions with a touch of escapist literature, keeping the reader just a bit off-kilter throughout. You can recommend it not only to your friends who love thrillers but also to those whose tastes run elsewhere.

I am a huge fan (and student) of random events that suddenly change lives, and it is one such incident that propels LIES. Debut author T. M. Logan drops first-person narrator Joe Lynch into a steaming and boiling kettle of trouble practically from the first page.

"There are plenty of twists, turns and misdirections throughout the novel, but the best ones involve Logan taking the reader’s own inherent perceptions and using them to turn things up a notch."

Joe, a husband, father and teacher, is transporting home his son William --- the most adorable little kid who ever walked the face of the earth --- when he (with an assist from William) sees his wife pulling into the parking garage of a chain hotel in the middle of the afternoon. Joe impulsively pulls in as well, wondering why Mel, an attorney, would be visiting a hotel at this time of day (or any time, really). He parks the car and subsequently spots her in the lounge, engaged in what appears to be a heated discussion with Ben Delaney, the husband of Beth, her best friend. Joe encounters Ben after Mel leaves; following a bit of back and forth, Ben attacks Joe. However, it is Ben who is seriously injured in the resulting struggle. Joe leaves him laying in the parking lot but returns shortly thereafter, only to find him gone.

When Joe confronts Mel later that night, she tells him that she and Ben were having a business meeting. The truth, however, comes out gradually over the next seven days, and so do the lies. Meanwhile, Ben is missing, and the police suspect foul play, even as Joe begins receiving cryptic messages that indicate Ben is very much alive and determined to have Mel at any cost. Joe is beside himself, particularly when he learns that he is the prime suspect in Ben’s murder. He is obviously way out of his element, as he tries to prove his innocence on the one hand and shield himself from the threats he is receiving on the other. He also must protect his beloved son, even as his marriage seems to be falling apart. It’s a tall order for anyone, but especially for a teacher who, up until turning into that hotel parking lot, was happy and content with what he thought was his life. But by the end of LIES, it is clear that nothing will ever be the same for Joe again.

You will remember the name T. M. Logan, even if he never writes another book (though I certainly hope he does, and soon). LIES doesn’t have a ton of characters, which is a plus. Another is that you’ll remember everyone you meet during the course of Joe’s ordeal, including DCI Naylor, who is in charge of investigating Ben’s apparent homicide and thus becomes Joe’s personal Lieutenant Gerard. There are plenty of twists, turns and misdirections throughout the novel, but the best ones involve Logan taking the reader’s own inherent perceptions and using them to turn things up a notch.