Can You Unravel the Past?

Have you ever read a book and just thought “wow that was weird,” but in a good way? Well, None of This is True by Lisa Jewell will definitely have you thinking just that. As someone who loves thriller and mystery, I can usually say I am pretty good at guessing endings to books like just this. This story unfolds in such a way it feels like you don’t know what way is up and what way is down. You will guess and maybe part of it will be right, but I am still wondering what the truth is. Josie Fair believes she lives a very mundane life. She wears the same things every day, follows the same patterns, and even says the same things. When she is out to celebrate her 45th birthday with her husband, she sees another woman, Alix, celebrating her own 45th birthday as well. Josie compares her party of two to Alix’s big party of friends and family with lots of gifts and champagne. This is when Josie decides it’s time to make a change, so she follows Alix to the bathroom and introduces herself as her birthday twin. This is when they find out not only are they the same age and born on the same day, but they were also born in the same hospital. Josie finds a strange kinship with Alix and decides to learn more about her via the internet, where she finds out Alix is a semi-famous podcaster. Alix usually does podcast episodes with women who are self-made and the life they lived before their success. Josie comes up with a new spin on Alix’s podcast, to follow the journey of a woman while she changes her life, more specifically Josie. After some apprehension from Alix, they jump in, and Alix finds out there is a lot more to the story than a woman living a boring life. First, Josie’s husband met her when she was 16 and he was 42. Second, Josie has twin daughters, one who does not leave her room and one that ran away from home. Third, Josie seems to be hiding something. Alix must work through the story that Josie is telling her while dealing with her own marital issues. Alix is also starting to get suspicious of Josie and the story she’s telling. Things are going missing in her house and Alix always seems to run into Josie. Alix is determined to finish this podcast and finds herself invested in knowing the secrets that lie inside Josie, but will finding these answers turn out more dangerous than she thought?

Favorite Quotes – “When she doesn’t like the reality of things, she finds a reality she prefers.”

“But I suppose the problem is that people often don’t realize that their lives are changing for the better until after the event, when they stop to look back.”

“And there it is, the point which it all boils down to eventually. The point where there are no words, no theories, no explanations for behaviors that baffle and infuriate and hurt. Just that. Men.”