THE TRUTH IS SLIPPERY
 
unreliable narrators in fiction
 
 
Can you ... trust them? Believe anything they say?  
What happens when you catch them in a lie?
 
"Who you gonna believe?  Me or your lying eyes?"

 
The Lace Reader
 
by Brunonia Barry

Having left her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts, fifteen years ago under troubling circumstances, psychic Towner Whitney reluctantly returns after her eighty-five-year-old great-aunt Eva suddenly disappears and joins local cop John Rafferty in his investigation into the mystery. 
The Queen of the Night
 
by Alexander Chee

A legendary opera singer tries to discover who betrayed her secret past as a courtesan when she is offering her a chance at immortality through a libretto that tells her tale.
Room 
 
by Emma Donoghue

A 5-year-old narrates a riveting story about his life growing up in a single room where his mother aims to protect him from the man who has held her prisoner for seven years since she was a teenager. 
Sometimes I Lie
 
by Alice Feeney

A psychological thriller by a former BBC News producer depicts the harrowing experiences of a coma patient with shut-in syndrome who, while unable to move or speak, must listen to those around her to figure out what happened and who is responsible for her injuries.
The Woman in the Window
 
by A. J. Finn

An agoraphobic recluse languishes in her New York City home, drinking wine and spying on her neighbors, before witnessing a terrible crime through her window that exposes her secrets and raises questions about her perceptions of reality.
Gone Girl 
 
by Gillian Flynn

When a beautiful woman goes missing on her fifth wedding anniversary, her diary reveals hidden turmoil in her marriage and a mysterious illness; while her husband, desperate to clear himself of suspicion, realizes that something more disturbing than murder may have occurred. 
Everything is Illuminated 
 
by Jonathan Safran Foer

Hilarious, energetic, and profoundly touching, this debut novel follows a young writer as he travels to the farmlands of eastern Europe, where he embarks on a quest to find Augustine, the woman who saved his grandfather from the Nazis, and, guided by his young Ukrainian translator, he discovers an unexpected past that will resonate far into the future.
Keep Her Safe
 
by Sophie Hannah

A British woman's relaxing holiday at a sunny Arizona resort transforms into a dark, obsessive quest for the truth when she becomes convinced that another guest is the woman who disappeared in a sensational headline case years earlier. 
The Girl On the Train
 
by Paula Hawkins

Obsessively watching a breakfasting couple every day to escape the pain of her losses, Rachel witnesses a shocking event that inextricably entangles her in the lives of strangers.
Elizabeth is Missing
 
by Emma Healey

Maud, an aging grandmother who is slowly losing her memory, is convinced that her best friend Elizabeth is missing and in terrible danger.  She becomes obsessed with saving her beloved friend despite the fact that no one—not her daughter, the police and Elizabeth's son— believe her. 
The Wife Between Us
 
by Greer Hendricks

A psychologically charged tale of suspense follows the unexpected twists that shape a divorce and second marriage that are anything but what they seem. 
We Were Liars
 
by E. Lockhart

A modern, sophisticated suspense tale follows the revolutionary activities of four friends who turn against each other in the wake of trauma, differing political views and a devastating secret. .
The Magician's Lie 
 
by Greer Macallister

When a notorious female illusionist uses a fire ax to saw a man in half in front of policeman Virgil Holt, the subsequent discovery of a dead body leads to an interrogation and an unbelievable, spellbinding story.
I Let You Go
 
by Clare Mackintosh

Devastated by a hit-and-run accident that has ended the life of her young son, Jenna moves to the remote Welsh coast to search for healing while two dedicated policemen try to get to the bottom of the case.
Fight Club 
 
by Chuck Palahniuk

In a confusing world poised on the brink of mayhem, Tyler Durden, a projectionist, waiter, and anarchic genius, comes up with an idea to create clubs in which young men can escape their humdrum existence and prove themselves in barehanded fights.
An Instance of the Fingerpost
 
by Iain Pears

When a fellow of New College in seventeenth-century Oxford is found dead and a young woman is accused of his murder, four witnesses, each with their own agenda, tell what they saw, but only one speaks the truth. 
Bad Monkeys
 
by Matt Ruff

Confessing that she is a member of a secret organization called "Department for the Final Disposition of Irredeemable Persons" dedicated to assassinating bad guys, murder suspect Jane Charlotte lands in a psychiatric hospital, where she recounts her increasingly bizarre life as a trained killer. 
Swamplandia!
 
by Karen Russell

The Bigtree children struggle to protect their Florida Everglades alligator-wrestling theme park from a sophisticated competitor after losing their parents. 
The Thirteenth Tale 
 
by Diane Setterfield

Having spent sixty years creating a series of alternate identities for herself, enigmatic Vida Winter pens a painful letter to young Margaret Lea when the latter begs her to disclose the truth about her secretive birth.
Before I Go to Sleep
 
by S. J. Watson

Without her husband's knowledge, Christine, whose memory is damaged by a long-ago accident, is treated by a neurologist who helps her to remember her former self through journal entries until inconsistencies begin to emerge, raising disturbing questions. 
 
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