Book Review: All the Best Lies by Joanna Schaffhausen (The Ellery Hathaway Series)

I don’t know how, but this series just keeps getting better! In the eagerly-awaited third-in-series, Schaffhausen ups the ante yet again, this time bringing Ellery and Reed together to explore their most significant case together: the murder of Reed’s mother forty years ago… The story line hooked me from the description; Schaffhausen’s writing sealed the deal once I started reading and throughout much of it I literally couldn’t put it down.

The character development in this series is incredible. Schaffhausen has done a magnificent job creating wholly damaged, wholly three-dimensional characters that you cannot help but find yourself rooting for – even (especially?) when their decisions are obviously self-destructive.

These characters are all damaged – life has thrown the worst it can at many of them, but their ability to ride out the damage and emerge on the other side (albeit battered and dented) with a sense of the importance of survival, even when it seems impossibly difficult, is both impressive and inspiring. Add to that well-paced and perfectly balanced action, mysteries long-thought unsolvable, and clues hidden in the most unlikely of places and the result is a near-perfect mystery/thriller that grabs you by the throat, throws you against the wall, and forces your eyes open even when you think you’d do anything to look away…

I really enjoyed the opportunity to explore Reed’s family in this one, as well as to get a peek behind the curtain at Ellery’s own family history. There’s so much potential for future storylines expanding on both of these sets of relationships – as well as the continuing intertwining of Reed and Ellery’s lives – and I, for one, cannot WAIT to see where things go from here. It’s tough to imagine how Schaffhausen could keep besting herself, but given the successful way she’s navigated those waters so far, I don’t doubt that she will!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my obligation-free review copy of this amazing book! All the Best Lies releases in the U.S. on February 11, 2020.