All the Lies We Tell

Quarry, Book 1

By: Megan Hart

Narrated by: Kate Rudd

Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

Everyone knew Alicia Harrison's marriage to Ilya Stern wouldn't last. They'd grown up on a remote stretch of Quarry Street, where there were two houses, two sets of siblings, and eventually, a tangled mess of betrayal, longing, and loss. Tragedy catapulted Allie and Ilya together, but divorce - even as neighbors - has been relatively uncomplicated.

Then Ilya's brother, Nikolai, comes home for their grandmother's last days. He's the guy who teased and fought with Allie, infuriated her, then fled town without a good-bye. Now Niko makes her feel something else entirely - a rush of connection and pure desire that she's been trying to quench since one secret kiss years ago. Niko's not sticking around. She's not going to leave. And after all that's happened between their families, this can't be anything more than brief pleasure and a bad idea.

But the lies we tell ourselves can't compete with the truths our hearts refuse to let go...

©2017 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved; 2017 Megan Hart

Doesn't know what kind of book it wants to be

I started & stopped this book originally when it didn't catch my attention but restarted it later when I needed a break from my recent horror addiction. This book is badly written & all over the place. The characters aren't consistent, sometimes they would say or do something and it was completely out of left field like she forgot which person she was writing about. The book would randomly have these erotic sex scenes out of nowhere, all I could think was "what a whore" and NOT in a good way! I love some erotic fiction but this was BLEGH. Also was waiting for something to come with the whole random floating story line with the sister but nothing ever happened, assuming that will be in the next book but I could hardly make myself get through this one so I'll just read a spoiler & be done with this I'll written story.

What the hell is This

I always said I was a diehard fan of Megan Hart, but what the hell? Do not waste your money on this garbage; it was boring, difficult to make out, etc. The whole book was skimmed over, sort of an abridged version. There were so many questions not answered (in every single chapter)......the confusion, ...... it was just down right weird. And to top it off the narration was boring as hell. The books starts out with Alisha who is unhappy but allows her ex to get away with being irresponsible but remains in his life and and chooses to stay connected as business partners., Then his long lost brother comes home. Apparently, she always liked his brother but nothing came of it; flash back to the past, tragedy struck, he couldn't get along with his mom, so, he left without saying good bye to her. Due to the connections her and the ex husband had with her sister, they got together, so they could somehow keep her sister's memory alive(apparently, her sister and the ex-husband used to be a thing (we were left to make assumptions because no one ever came out and said it). Now that the brother is back, they begin to get close - what's even more weird, as adults, the issues they faced (basic communication) in their so called "relationship" was more of something you would expect from kids. By the time they admitted their feelings for each other they are separated again but this time by choice but apparently this separation won't be for long. Seems all over the place? Well it was. This was just horrible.

Automated narration?

The narrator sounded like an automated recording. It was difficult to remain engaged as a result.

Really good writing but not likeable characters

I have mixed feelings with this book. It never really felt like a romance novel, more just a family drama story. That's typically not my kind of read but it was very well written. I never once thought of stopping and I was never bored with it, but I didn't like the characters.

This book is Alicia and Nikolai's story but there are 5 other characters that were in it so much that they all felt like main characters. It's based around the two families who were neighbors and grew up together

Jennilynn - popular girl in school who partied too much and was in love with Ilya even though they were never really a couple. She drowns when she is 18 but plays a huge role throughout the book.

Alicia - the less noticeable sister who had a thing for Nikolai. Nikolai left right after graduation to get away from his family drama. Alicia then leans on Ilya after her sisters death and Nikolai's absence. They get married and built a business together. My biggest thoughts on her is she was pretty much treated like crap. Constantly being compared to her dead sister and left by the guy who was suppose to love her, only then to be pursued by the brother who couldn't let her sister go.

Babulya - Mother to Galena, Grandmother to Ilya and Nikolai. Was well loved and passes in the beginning of this story that brings everyone back together.

Galena - Mom to Ilya and Nikolai. Galena is the very definition of family drama. She is flaky and had major mood swings that made her sons tip toe around her. She was not a likable character. she seemed very selfish.

Ilya - In love with Jennilyn, but marries Alicia and starts a business with her not long after Jennilyn's death. I really didn't like his character. He seemed very selfish and needed to grow up. It seemed like he used Alicia to keep a tie to Jennilyn.

Nikolai - Leaves right after graduation. He loved Alicia but not enough to stay for her. I didn't dislike him but felt he needed to man up...even when he came back.

Good story

Good narration and good story line. Impressive voices for the characters. Loved it immensely. Good read too

I didn't hate it. It just wandered

This was slow in parts. I know every page can't be terrifying. I think it has 3.9 stars because good was really good and then there was wandering.

Great!

There were several times I forgot this was one person reading. She does an excellent job at changing her voice.

Good book!

Partly read this book on Kindle and listened to the rest. Reading it was better as the voice wasn’t the best. But still a decent read.

A little slow moving

Slow moving story that was trying to be a romance, then it wrapped up quickly in the end.

Megan Hart can do better

This story felt a bit flat for me. The sex scenes where Hart usually excels In we’re basic and uneventful. But I’ll still be a fan forever. I know she’s a great writer

🎧 Alysia, Ilya, Theresa and Nikolai 🎧

An intriguing first part of a story of two brothers, their stepsister and the two sisters who lived across the street. It's told over dual timelines: then being their teen years and now, decades later.

The staccato narration was very off-putting. I listened at x1.30 but it was still quite stilted. I don't think I could bear it for book 2.

3.5- 4 stars

I've heard a lot about Megan Hart, but never read her books and I believe this is a departure from her normal style. I would class this as a family saga/women's fiction with a medium pace. The story rotates around Alicia from late adolescence to present day in her 30s and her relationship with two brothers. I wouldn't technically say this is love triangle territory but there is an element of forbidden love.

Whilst this isn't first and foremost a romance novel, that theme remains strong alongside a backdrop of intrigue, family feuds and love, death and complex connections. I found myself invested and mostly captured by the story and one of it's strongest points was that there was little ability to predict events. I'm definitely looking forward to catching the next instalment of these characters in book two.

The narration was great and I knew it would be because I've listened to Kate Rudd before. She excels at small nuances between character voices and she is able to convey male dialogue well.