Tuesday, January 20, 2026

THE LIES WE TRADE by Kristine Delano, Reviewed by Rebecca Maney #ReleaseDay


REBECCA'S REVIEW:
"It's starting to feel like everyone knows something they shouldn't."

When Wall Street portfolio manager Meredith Hansel is convinced by others in her financial firm to sign a restraining order against her former sales manager, numerous confounding circumstances begin to circle like hawks. It's not as if Meredith's life is picture perfect to begin with, she and her husband have been growing apart while her two children have spent their time growing up, or maybe it's just that Meredith is working way too many hours to feel a part of her family any more.

What begins as carefully constructed innuendos rapidly changes into an all out assault on everything and everyone that Meredith holds dear, secrets that she has kept for reasons of her own are being used as leverage to get Meredith's undivided attention and ultimate cooperation. Unfortunately for her, the truth and lies are scheduled to converge in a matter of days, holding Meredith hostage in her own life if she cannot find a way to re-establish her most stable alliance, her husband.

For readers with more than a rudimentary knowledge of investment markets, the financial scheme in this story will most likely prove both fascinating and perhaps even brilliant. Surprisingly, my simple base line understanding didn't distract me at all from the core elements of this story. For whether a hard working mother invests her time on Wall Street or Main Street, many of the stress points are exactly the same. Communicating with a spouse about deep matters of the heart is never easy, especially when the risk factors could be heart breaking. And who has has a magic wand when it comes to raising teenagers? No one.

An astonishing array of legal suspense, family drama, and women's fiction, creating a palpable tension from beginning to end, with bonus points for how well it landed!

"It's hard to trust, but that's the point, we need to learn. And we are. We're finding that trusting in a God who knows us and created us is a whole lot easier than in the people who have 
hurt us." 
*I purchased a copy and was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 4.5 stars


BackCover Blurb:
A high-powered Wall Street career, a beautiful family in a quiet suburban neighborhood—she seems to have everything. Which means she has everything to lose.

Meredith Hansel should be having the best week of her life. After establishing herself as a portfolio manager at a prestigious Wall Street firm, she’s in the national spotlight for the innovative funds she created. But as Meredith prepares to celebrate, the plates she’s kept spinning for years begin to crash: Her strained marriage reaches a breaking point. Her conscientious teenage daughter acts out under mysterious pressures. Someone vandalizes her home with disturbing graffiti. And Betsey, her most trusted ally at the financial firm, goes rogue, and Meredith is forced to sign a restraining order against her.

Then her worlds collide when she receives a thumb drive and a cryptic note from Betsey threatening to reveal a secret that could have devastating effects on Meredith’s family . . . unless she can figure out what Betsey wants and deliver it in time.

As Meredith begins to dig into the data, however, she begins to suspect that it’s no coincidence her life is crumbling. That maybe what’s happening to her family is connected to what’s boiling beneath the surface at her investment company. Soon Meredith realizes there’s only one way to avoid taking the fall, and it all hinges on Betsey’s true motives. Was she really threatening Meredith or trying to warn her?

-Great for fans of Colleen Coble, Laura Dave, Dani Pettrey, and Lisa Scottoline
-Clean, high-stakes women’s domestic suspense with workplace secrets and family drama
-A stand-alone Wall Street thriller
-Includes discussion questions for book clubs
 
Tyndale Fiction, January, 2026

No comments:

Post a Comment

Share This Post

How Our Giveaways Work: The Official Rules

We, the ladies of Inkwell Inspirations, would love to give free stuff to everybody. Since we can't, we will often have a giveaway in conjunction with a specific post. Unless otherwise stated, one winner will be drawn from comments left on that post between the date it was published and the end of the giveaway as determined in the post. Entries must be accompanied by a valid email address. This address is used only to contact the commenter in the event that he/she is the winner, and will not be sold, distributed, or used in any other fashion. The odds of winning depend on the number of entrants. NO PURCHASE, PLEDGE, OR DONATION NECESSARY TO ENTER OR TO WIN. ALL FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL AND MUNICIPAL LAWS AND REGULATIONS APPLY. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED.

Pinterest