Rae Knowles

When going into Lies That Bind I knew some of what to expect and was thrilled to see two very talented authors collaborating. From Rae Knowles I had already read Merciless Waters and deeply enjoyed it Queer Female Rage meets Pirates story, and from April Yates I had picked up City of Snares a Sapphic horror meets old Hollywood that dug into what fame is. Knowing I had enjoyed both of those I knew I would most likely enjoy Lies that Bind, what I was not expecting though was to read a novel that was both an amazing exploration of complex love between women, and the horror of being trapped by your own nature in such a graphically disturbing, and yet deeply pleasurable manner.

Lies that Bind is the story of Adele Hughes and Lorelei Keyes, a couple running a sham seance business, both with deep secrets of their own. Their quiet life of four years is completely upended by the arrival of Viola. who seems to know exactly how to tempt and hurt both women in deeply personal ways. To say really anything more about the plot would be to spoil it.

What I will state is that both Adele and Lorelei are deeply relatable and interesting leads, often with dual POV one POV is clearly more intriguing and draws you in more, that was not the case here with me both dreading the POV jump as it meant moving away from one section of the story and being desperate for it to get back to the other half of it. On the flip side Viola very quickly establishes herself as someone you hate while she drivings the plot forward with her endless machinations.

With this novel I would pick it up if you enjoy any of the below:
- Sapphic Stories
- Horror
- Body Horror
- Fantasy Horror
- Slow Burn
- Deeply moving Prose
- Dark Romance
- Gothic settings
- Horror and Romance mix

My final note is to read the trigger warnings, this is not a novel to jump into without checking them as it is quite dark and many scenes go to places you may not wish to read. Check the warnings and know that it really means them.

I received an advance review copy of this book and I am leaving this review voluntarily and all thoughts and opinions are wholly my own and unbiased.… (mehr)