Nothing But the Truth

May 15, 2022
How would your life change if you could only tell the truth? A few hours into her 30th birthday, Los Angeles publicist Lucy Green makes a startling discovery: She is no longer able to lie. Her actions and words can only be truthful. Unfortunately for Lucy, this clashes with her plans for the day, which center around nabbing a prime Hollywood starlet as a client: "1. Lock down Lily Chu. 2. Secure promotion. 3. Gracefully ascend into the divine decade of her thirties. 4. Have one hell of a birthday bash on a rooftop in downtown L.A. where her boyfriend would finally propose to her." Lucy's life immediately starts to change as the truth forces her to reject the constraints that she, and the patriarchy, have put on herself: She eats a bagel because she can no longer convince herself that yogurt and berries are satisfying, she tells her best friend she hates spin class, and she yells at a man who catcalls her. As Lucy goes about her day she continues to question her life: Why is she forcing her body into a mold just to please others? Why has she never stood up for herself as her boss sexually harasses her? Why is she letting her mother and society convince her that she needs to marry her (loser) boyfriend and have kids immediately? Thus Lucy's candid curse (gift?) ushers in a whirlwind of changes, including a budding romance with Adam, the hot bartender who served her a mysterious cocktail the night before just as she made a fateful wish for the next day to go well. While the novel's undercurrent of girl-boss feminism feels a little dated, James' ability to dive right into the drama from the get-go makes this a nonstop fun ride. A beach read with a morality lesson.

COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Starred review from June 17, 2022

DEBUT James's debut is a sharply funny feminist spin on the 1997 Jim Carrey film Liar Liar. The night before her 30th birthday, publicist Lucy Green is in a bar waiting for her boyfriend--whom she's hoping will propose marriage to her tomorrow. The cute bartender makes her a special cocktail, and Lucy makes a silent wish for a perfect birthday. The next day something has changed, though she's not sure what. She seems to have lost her usual zeal for self-improvement: why should she go to spin class every morning, where the instructor shouts at her? Why should she squeeze into shapewear that restricts her breathing? Why shouldn't she have a gooey egg sandwich for breakfast? Soon Lucy realizes that she's entirely lost the ability to lie. This is bad news for her PR career, but it's even more earth-shaking that Lucy can't lie to herself anymore. She can no longer swallow the slights that life hands to professional women or the many ways in which societal norms and pressures force her to tie herself in knots. James (who's trained in clinical psychology) uses her novel's amusing premise and relatable heroine to engage readers, while Lucy's plight is a way to explore deeper issues of workplace politics, harassment, and the social constraints placed on women. VERDICT Could be the next The Devil Wears Prada.--Jane Jorgenson

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from June 1, 2022
It's the night before Lucy Green's thirtieth birthday, and once again, she's waiting for her boyfriend to show up for their date. The handsome bartender offers her a "life-changing cocktail" that grants her wish for a perfect birthday--but she loses her ability to lie, an essential skill for a high-powered celebrity publicist. Her birthday begins with throwing out the intense beauty routines that are required of women in L.A. Then things get serious: the firm's CEO offers Lucy the promotion she's been waiting for--if she'll give him what he wants in return. Appalled, Lucy not only stands up to him, she shares her story with a coworker who goes public with a similar experience, setting in motion a series of events that could change the culture at her workplace--if it doesn't cost Lucy her job first. Is Lucy's perfect birthday a perfect disaster, or is it exactly what she needed? James' debut is a delightful, frothy, feminist take on classic chick-lit themes and characters, featuring a charming lead whose hang-ups will resonate with readers. Ideal for fans of Camille Perri or Katie Heaney, or any reader in search of a beach read with lots of heart and a little bit of edge.

COPYRIGHT(2022) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.