** Blog Tour ** Confessions on the 7:45 by Lisa Unger #BookReview @HarlequinBooks

Welcome to my stop on the Harlequin Trade Publishing 2020 Fall Reads Blog Tour for Confessions on the 7:45!

Thank you to Harlequin Books for inviting me on the blog tour!

Special thanks to Lisa Unger, Harlequin Books, and NetGalley for the privilege of previewing this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publish Date: September 29, 2020

“Sometimes a stranger was the safest place in your life.” – Confessions On The 7:45

Selena Murphy is commuting home from her job in the city when the train stalls out on the tracks. She strikes up a conversation with a beautiful stranger in the next seat, and their connection is fast and easy. The woman introduces herself as Martha and confesses that she’s been stuck in an affair with her boss. Selena, in turn, confesses that she suspects her husband is sleeping with the nanny. When the train arrives at Selena’s station, the two women part ways, presumably never to meet again.

But days later, Selena’s nanny disappears.

Soon Selena finds her once-perfect life upended. As she is pulled into the mystery of the missing nanny, and as the fractures in her marriage grow deeper, Selena begins to wonder, who was Martha really? But she is hardly prepared for what she’ll discover.

The cover reminds me of the book The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins, so it definitely pulled me in. Will the narrator(s) of this book be as unreliable as Rachel, the main character of Girl in the Train? I had to find out.

One night on a late train, two commuters – Selena and Martha – sip vodka from mini bottles and trade true confessions because… why not. They will probably never see each other again. And that is where Selena gets it completely wrong.

Selena and Martha’s confessions are completely compelling. Both link to betrayal, failed marriages, lies, and secrets. Selena’s confession relates to something that she finds out that day, and she is devastated, in shock, and angry. Her life will never be the same, and the events that happen afterwards get crazier and crazier.

The story is told from Selena, Anne, and Pearl’s perspectives, and a few others. The reader is privvy to their thoughts, feelings, motivations, personalities, flaws, vulnerabilities… everything. It makes them likeable, even through their darkest moments. There were many characters in this story with different timelines. At first it was hard to keep them straight, but it becomes easier as the story progresses and you get to know the characters.

The story also highlights the art of grifting. There are many characters trying to swindle money out of others by capitalizing on their weaknesses. Extortion plays a big part of the plot, and it was fascinating. Multiple identities are woven in, and it was fun trying to guess who turned into who.

There is a lot of infidelity in the book and how it affected all of the women in this story as daughters, wives, mistresses, sisters, mothers. Everyone had trust issues, and rightfully so. The plot did not portray men in a positive light.

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

“Don’t you ever just wish your problems would take care of themselves?”

“People communicated in the little things. Most people didn’t even realize how the smallest details spoke volumes.”

“Lies are a virus. They spread, replicate. One lie breeds more.”

“Three may keep a secret, if two of them are dead.”

“The observer only sees, never interferes.”

This book is about betrayal, lies, extortion, marriage, parenting, trust, and murder. It’s twisty and gripping, and kept me engaged from the start to the very end. It has so many great themes and quotes that I had a hard time choosing my favorite ones. The ending was satisfying and brought closure to a lot of open storylines in the book.

This is my first read of Lisa Unger’s and definitely won’t be my last. I enjoyed this book even more than Girl on the Train and I think you will, too.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars