My Initial Reaction...
I continue to enjoy Shelby's adventures! Lie or Die was a bit more active detective work on Shelby's part than the others and I loved seeing her solve her cases!
The Narration...
Wendy Tremont King IS Shelby for me at this point. Her voice just matches the personality perfectly. Otherwise, she's an okay narrator. I'm not blown away by her male voices - they lack a bit of masculinity as female narrators often do, but they are not bad at all. There we no accents to trip her up like in the last book, so this was a more solid read for me.
The Characters...
Shelby is THE reason to read this series. In Lie or Die I got more of the spunky, honest-to-a-fault, suburban housewife turned detective. I particularly love Shelby's inner dialogue when she's thinking about what she'd LIKE to do to someone and the ways she talked herself out or into doing those things. She's up against a PI in Lie or Die and he keeps following her around - making himself a nuisance - and I laughed my ass off seeing Shelby interact with him and deal with him. She's got quite the personality.
My favorite thing about the characters in Lie or Die was the personal development on the part of Chris - Shelby's husband - and, as a consequence, their marriage. He's been struggling, as I imagine any husband would, with Shelby's ability to read his mind. But what has bothered me in the previous books were the things Shelby would hear... Chris didn't see her as the strong woman she is. But in Lie or Die I think he's finally getting it. Sure, he's still super protective of her, but he's also letting her be super protective of him. They're much more of a team, even if Shelby still has to hide things from him (I LOVE the way she rationalizes when to lie to him BTW. It felt very familiar). The result is my loving their relationship that much more!
The Story...
So with Lie or Die Shelby's finally opened her own private consulting business! We've seen this coming since book 1 and I felt really giddy when I realized it was finally happening. Shelby's case is to find the missing money from the bank robbery we learned about in Fast Money and Lie or Die took on a stronger detective feel than the previous books for this reason. Shelby's having to actively find and put together clues - and she's good at it! I have to say, I worried that this would make me like the series less since I am NOT your procedural girl. But Lie or Die never felt procedural - probably because of Shelby's personality and the mix of family life.
Of course, there's always more going on in Shelby's world than just one case. As usual, she's also working with the police. This time Dimples has called her in to help with an FBI (or was it CIA? IDK, all the same to me...) case and it definitely upped the stakes. I love seeing Shelby working with the police, since this is where we get to see some truly great moments where her abilities do good for people, rather than corporations or the mob.
Speaking of Uncle Joey - he's landed in it again too - and what do you know, this time the problem's are pulling in Chris! The case he's working on involves Uncle Joey and as a result, he's facing threats and real danger. I loved this twist because now more than ever Chris is learning to work with Shelby, rather than fighting her powers.
Concluding Sentiments...
All-in-all Lie or Die was another great installment in the Shelby Nichols Adventures and I can't wait to see what messes Shelby lands in next time!