Revisiting Riley Sager: The Last Time I Lied

- September 20, 2026

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons,

As I continue to read my way through Riley Sager's novels, I love looking back at past reviews (and editing them). Here is the second in my series of revisiting my Riley Sager reviews:

The Last Time I Lied is written by Riley Sager, and it is published by Dutton Books. In it, we are introduced to thirteen-year-old Emma Davis, the product of a neglectful father and an alcoholic mother. All she wants to do is spend the summer with her friends. Thankfully, her mother surprises Emma with the news that she will be attending Camp Nightingale. But one evening Emma's friends leave their cabin. When morning arrives they have vanished without a trace.

Fifteen years later Emma finds herself headed back to Camp Nightingale to serve as an art instructor. Emma plans to play detective and solve this mystery of her friends' disappearance. But someone is on to her, and they have their own plan to stop the fifteen-year-old mystery from being solved.

The Last Time I Lied felt like Friday the13th and the Hills Have Eyes. It was cinematic and gravitated towards the macabre with an unexpected storyline that side-swiped me completely. No one was safe in this book, and everyone was suspect. And just when I believed that I had finally figured it out, I was told in a brutal fashion that I was wrong with an insane plot twist.

I read The Last Time I Lied in part with the narration of Nicol Zanzarella. Her steady reading style was knife-sharp, with her ability to transition between characters flawless. Her voice added a wonderful depth to Sager's narrative. I look forward to reading more books performed by Zanzarella.

The Last Time I Lied was a five-star read for me. This book should be on every reader's Spooky Season reading list. Mystery, dread, and 80s-style horror. I had a great time with this thriller.

Let me know what you are reading in the comments below.

Because there is always time to read,

Xepherus3

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