Review: Keep Them Close by David Ellis

 

Keep Them Close by David Ellis

Publication Date: June 30th 2026 by G.P. Putnam's Sons

Pages: 368

Source: Publisher 

Rating: ★★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Audible | Libro.fm | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

Keep Them Close started off with a bang and had me hooked from the first page!

 

Allison, a smart defense attorney, is successful, but her marriage is another story. I wanted to strangle her husband!

 

Luke, Allison’s brother, has a run in with the law and Allison’s ready to step in and help, but things are not as they seem.

 

Complicated relationships with betrayals sprinkled in, but at the heart of this was family.

 

Events from the past are woven into the present and I was riveted! Just when I thought I knew what was going on, a new angle came to light. I loved Allison’s quick, smart thinking!

 

Keep Them Close was a twisty and oh-so-good! Five stars from me, and easily one of my favorite reads of 2026!

5 Stars

Book Description:

From the bestselling author of Look Closer comes a new domestic thriller about betrayal and murder inside one twisted family

Siblings Allison and Luke have been through a lot together. They’ve always stood by each other. They’d do anything for each other.

When Allison’s husband, Finley, is murdered, Luke is right there by her side.

Until the murder investigation exposes secrets that could tear their family apart.

An illicit affair. A decades-old accident. A shocking betrayal. How do they explain Finley’s death? And why are the siblings suddenly avoiding each other?

As past tensions resurface, the truth might lie a little too close to home…

Review: The Best Lies by David Ellis

 

The Best Lies by David Ellis

Publication Date: July 23rd 2024 by G.P. Putnam's Sons

Pages: 373

Source: Publisher 

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Audible | Libro.fm | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

I was a little hesitant to pick this up when I read Leo was a pathological liar, which was a label stuck on him that may or may not have fit. Not a fan of someone who lies all the time, but if/when he lied it was for the best of reasons and I loved how Leo’s clever manipulations of the truth kept him one step ahead of the bad guys! So many things were not as they seemed. I completely rooted for Leo, especially after that backstory.

I hit the 40% mark, and the story really took off, surprising twist and revelation at every turn! I stayed up into the wee hours to finish and see how it all turned out. The Best Lies was so good!

4 Stars

Book Description:

Bestselling and award-winning author David Ellis delivers a fast-paced, twisty thriller that will surprise readers at every turn.

Leo Balanoff is a diagnosed pathological liar with unthinkable skeletons in his family's closet. He's also a crusading attorney who seeks justice at all costs. When a ruthless drug dealer is found dead and Leo’s fingerprints show up on the murder weapon, no one believes a word he says. But he might be the FBI’s only shot at taking down the dealer’s brutal syndicate.

Risk his life going undercover for the feds or head straight to prison for murder? Leo accepts the FBI’s offer—but it comes with a price, including a collision course with his ex, Andi Piotrowski, a former cop and “the one who got away.” Forced to walk a tightrope between an ambitious FBI agent and a cruel, calculating crime boss, Leo’s trapped in a corner. But he has more secrets than anyone realizes, and a few more cards left to play.

AUTHOR BIO: David Ellis is a judge and a #1 New York Times-bestselling, Edgar Award-winning author of eleven novels of crime fiction, as well as nine books co-authored with James Patterson. In December 2014, Ellis was sworn in as the youngest-serving Justice of the Illinois Appellate Court for the First District. He lives outside Chicago with his wife and three children.