Lisa-Jewell_Hero-Desktop_Penguin

Extracts

Lisa Jewell’s None of This Is True: Extract

An illustration of an ice cream van, where books are being given out

Ice20Cream-Main201800x1200.jpg

Features

What you should read, according to your taste in ice cream

An image of Lisa Jewell's novel The Family Upstairs against a colourful but subdued backdrop.

The-Family-Upstairs_Hero-Desktop_Penguin.jpg

Read: An exclusive new chapter from Lisa Jewell’s The Family Upstairs

A photo of Agatha Christie at her writing desk, in a collage against a red backdrop.

Agatha-Christie-Main-Image-1800×1200.jpg

How Agatha Christie turns readers into bestselling novelists

A photo of author Lisa Jewell, with the cover of her book The Family Remains to her right against a yellow background.

Lisa-Jewell-main.jpg

Extract: Three chapters from Lisa Jewell’s The Family Remains

Lisa Jewell, Nadiya Hussain, Lady Halle, and three other Penguin authors smile in a 2021 photo collage.

Authors-favourite-books-2021-main-image-1800×1200.jpg

Penguin authors pick their favourite books of 2021

A collage of photos of Ruth Ware, Abir Mukherjee, Lisa Jewell and more against a black, shadowy background.

PRH-Crime-Authors-main-image-1800×1200.jpg

Reading lists

So good it’s criminal: Penguin authors pick their favourite crime novels

A photograph of Lisa Jewell on a midnight blue background, with the words 'Shelf Life' in white and yellow to her left.

Lisa20Jewell-Main201800x1200.jpg

Lisa Jewell on the books that shaped her life

Article20card.jpg

The book that changed my summer

Ralph's Party

The 25th anniversary edition of the smash-hit story of love, friends and flatshares

25th ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF THE BESTSELLING DEBUT ABOUT A PARTY YOU’LL NEVER FORGET 
FOR FANS OF ONE DAY AND THE FLAT SHARE 
 'Addictively readable' The Times 
 
 'A joy… a fun summer read’ Guardian 
‘The fabulous first novel by the fabulous Lisa Jewell: it's pure 90s and completely brilliant'. Jenny Colgan, bestselling author of Little Beach Street Bakery. 
 ---- 
THE SMASH-HIT STORY OF LOVE, FRIENDS AND FLATSHARES TURNS 25 
 Meet the residents of 31 Alamanac Road . . . 
 Ralph and Smith are flatmates and best mates. Nothing can come between them – until the gorgeous Jemima moves in. They’re both falling for her, but which one of them does Jem want? 
 Upstairs, Karl and Siobhan are happily unmarried and have been for fifteen years – until Cheri, in the flat above, fixes her sights on Karl. Why should a little problem like his girlfriend get in her way? 
 Sooner or later it’s all going to come to a head – and what better place for tears and laughter, break ups and make ups than Ralph’s party? 
 Tropes/themes:1. Love triangle 2. Forced proximity 3. Best friend’s current lover 4. Roommates 
 ---- 
Praise for Lisa Jewell 
 
‘A big warm-hearted book’ Marie Claire 
 ‘Jewell's readability and emotional intelligence make her the cream of pop fiction’ Glamour 
 
 ‘A book you simply disappear into’ Sunday Telegraph 
 Readers love Ralph’s Party 
 ‘A refreshing take on falling in love and living happily ever after. I couldn't wait to curl up in bed and read it most evenings!!!’ ***** Reader Review 
 ‘An interesting, funny and absorbing story. This one takes me back to student days in London’ ***** Reader Review 
 ‘This is a good story of friendship, love and crossing the line’ ***** Reader Review 
 ‘I read this book when it was first released. I loved it. And now I am loving it all over again’***** Reader Review 
 ‘Love is in the air, what a brilliant story, what a party!!!! Can always guarantee a great story by Lisa Jewell, loved it!’ ***** Reader Review 
 ‘I always know when I love a book because I want to recommend it to the people I care about. This will definitely be one of those stories’ ***** Reader Review

Deliciously enjoyable . . . addictively readable

A book about relationships which appeals to men and women . . . pulls off a rare trick which even Helen Fielding and Nick Hornby couldn't manage

The best romantic comedy we've read in ages

Magnetic, unpretentious and bursting with one-liners

Jewell's readability and emotional intelligence make her the cream of pop fiction

THE SMASH-HIT STORY OF LOVE, 
FRIENDS AND FLATSHARES TURNS 25Meet the residents of 31 Alamanac Road . . .Ralph and Smith are flatmates and best mates. Nothing can come between them &ndash; until the gorgeous Jemima moves in. They&rsquo;re both falling for her, but which one of them does Jem want?Upstairs, Karl and Siobhan are happily unmarried and have been for fifteen years &ndash; until Cheri, in the flat above, fixes her sights on Karl. Why should a little problem like his girlfriend get in her way?Sooner or later it&rsquo;s all going to come to a head &ndash; and what better place for tears and laughter, break ups and make ups than Ralph&rsquo;s party?

None of This is True

Buy now and prepare to be hooked from the Number One bestselling thriller author . . . 
 
* AN INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * 
* OVER 6,000 FIVE STAR REVIEWS * 
* AUDIBLE NO.1 SIX WEEKS IN A ROW * 
 
'Gloriously dark' Lucy Foley 
'A moody, slippery novel' Gillian McAllister 
'One hundred percent brilliant' Clare Mackintosh 
'Shocking and creepy and glorious' Nicola Walker 
'Utterly addictive' Claire Douglas 
___________ 
 
Celebrating her 45th birthday at her local pub, podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie is also celebrating her 45th. 
 
A few days later, they bump into each other again, this time outside Alix's children's school. Josie says she thinks she would be an interesting subject for Alix's podcast. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life. 
 
Alix agrees to a trial interview and indeed, Josie's life appears to be strange and complicated. Alix finds her unsettling but can't quite resist the temptation to keep digging. 
 
Slowly Alix starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it Josie has cajoled her way into Alix's life - and into her home. 
 
Soon Alix begins to wonder who is Josie Fair really? And what has she done? 
 
* The Hi! I'm Your Birthday Twin podcast has been bought to life! Listen to all 4 episodes and find out more at penguin.co.uk/BirthdayTwin * 
___________ 
 
Readers can't get enough of None of This is True . . . 
 
***** 'Lisa Jewell is BACK with a banger baby!!! and this might just be my favourite of hers yet.' 
***** 'I'm speechless after reading this bone chilling, dark, twisty, mind bending thriller' 
***** 'Did it deliver??? OMG !!! wait until you read this!!!' 
***** 'OMG!!!!!! Dare I say this may just be Lisa Jewells best book yet!?' 
***** 'What in the actual hell did I just read???? Bingeable, unreliable, unhinged in the best way, and well developed!' 
___________ 
 
More love for None of This is True . . . 
 
'Left me reeling' Adele Parks 
'You will ignore everyone and everything until you’ve finished it' India Knight 
‘A tense, superbly crafted exploration of obsession.’ Steve Cavanagh 
'Really dark and twisty' Graham Norton 
'MAGNIFICENT' Marian Keyes 
'So suspenseful, so smart, so insightful.' Katherine Heiny 
'A pitch-black fever dream of a novel' Ruth Ware 
'Have never read a book so fast!' Hayley Morris 
'A sleek, playful, mesmerising read' Louise Candlish 
'Twisty twisty twisty' Emily Henry 
'You're in for a treat' Jojo Moyes 
'Rollercoaster of a read' Jane Fallon 
'I inhaled it!' Harriet Tyce 
'Lisa Jewell [has] confirmed her status as a powerhouse of psychological thrillers' Sunday Express 
'The most gripping thriller I read this year' Daily Express 
 
Lisa Jewell, Number 1 Sunday Times bestseller, September 2023 
None of This is True, instant Sunday Times bestseller July 2023 
Number 1 on Audible, July-August 2023

Lisa Jewell is the #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of twenty-two novels, including The Family Upstairs, Then She Was Gone and her latest novel, None of This is True. Her novels have sold over 10 million copies in the UK and internationally, and her work has been translated into over thirty languages. She lives in London with her husband, two daughters and their amazing Romanian rescue dog, Daisy. Connect with her on Twitter @LisaJewellUK, on Instagram @LisaJewellUK, and on Facebook @LisaJewellOfficial.

Celebrating her 45th birthday at her local pub, podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie is also celebrating her 45th birthday. They are, in fact birthday twins. 
 
A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix's children's school. Josie has been listening to Alix's podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for Alix's series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life. 
 
Alix agrees to a trial interview. Josie's life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can't quite resist the temptation to keep digging. 
 
Slowly Alix starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it Josie has inveigled her way into Alix's life - and into her home. 
 
Soon she begins to wonder who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

the addictive, psychological thriller from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Family Upstairs

Then She Was Gone

A missing girl. A buried secret. From the ten-million-copy bestselling author comes a brand new look for this compulsively twisty psychological thriller that will keep you hooked to the very last page. 
 
&lsquo;A tense, clever page-turner that everyone will be talking about.&rsquo; Adele Parks 
&lsquo;Dark and claustrophobic but also heartfelt and moving ... packs a huge emotional punch that will leave you winded. I loved it.&rsquo; C. L. Taylor 
&lsquo;Both utterly gripping and startlingly original. Prepare to be hooked.&rsquo; Sun 
_____________ 
 
Ellie was her mother's golden girl. 
She had her whole life ahead of her. 
And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone. 
 
Ten years on, Laurel has never given up hope of finding Ellie. And then she meets a charming and charismatic stranger who sweeps her off her feet. 
 
But what really takes her breath away is when she meets his nine-year-old daughter. 
 
Because his daughter is the image of Ellie. 
 
Now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back. 
 
What really happened to Ellie? And who still has secrets to hide? 
_____________ 
 
OVER 180,000 5* RATINGS - this is why readers love this book: 
 
'Breathtaking. Compulsive. Suspenseful. Poetic.' 
'One of the top 5 thrillers I&rsquo;ve ever read.' 
'I wanted the book never to end.' 
'Suspense filled&hellip; edge of my seat&hellip; I could not put this down!!' 
'This was my first Lisa Jewell book, and it will definitely not be my last.' 
'Dark, winding and haunting, I couldn't put this one down.' 
 
Lisa Jewell, Sunday Times bestseller, October 2023

She was fifteen, her mother's golden girl. 
She had her whole life ahead of her. 
And then, in the blink of an eye, Ellie was gone. 
 
Ten years on, Laurel has never given up hope of finding Ellie. And then she meets a charming and charismatic stranger who sweeps her off her feet. 
 
But what really takes her breath away is when she meets his nine-year-old daughter. 
 
Because his daughter is the image of Ellie. 
 
Now all those unanswered questions that have haunted Laurel come flooding back. 
 
What really happened to Ellie? And who still has secrets to hide? 
_________________ 
 
OVER 1,000 5* REVIEWS - this is why readers love this book: 
 
'Grips to the point of OBSESSION' 
'My life STOPPED while I read this book' 
'My heart was THUMPING in my chest' 
'This is EDGE OF YOUR SEAT reading' 
'This book left me BREATHLESS' 
'Cancel all plans and BUY THIS BOOK'

the gripping Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller

The Family Remains

Prepare to be hooked . . . 
 
* #1 UK SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * 
* A NEW YORK TIMES BSETSELLER * 
* OVER 2,000 5 STAR REVIEWS * 
 
'I was ENTHRALLED' Gillian McAllister 
'A GRIPPING read' Shari Lapena 
'A sheer PLEASURE to read' Harriet Tyce 
'Artful, slippery, HUGELY SATISFYING' Louise Candlish 
'The story EVERYONE has been waiting for' Adele Parks 
___________ 
 
LONDON. Early morning, June 2019: on the foreshore of the river Thames, a bag of bones is discovered. Human bones. 
 
DCI Samuel Owusu is called to the scene and quickly sends the bag for forensic examination. The bones are those of a young woman, killed by a blow to the head many years ago. 
 
Also inside the bag is a trail of clues, in particular the seeds of a rare tree which lead DCI Owusu back to a mansion in Chelsea where, nearly thirty years previously, three people lay dead in a kitchen, and a baby waited upstairs for someone to pick her up. 
 
The clues point forward too to a brother and sister in Chicago searching for the only person who can make sense of their pasts. 
 
Four deaths. An unsolved mystery. A family whose secrets can't stay buried for ever . . . 
___________ 
 
'GRIPS from first page to last' Paula Hawkins 
'Compulsive, gripping and immersive' CL Taylor 
'Twisty and strange and surprising' Emily Henry 
'Perfection on a page' Alice Feeney 
'Guaranteed to send your blood pressure soaring' Red Magazine 
'It's a triumph. Brava!' Erin Kelly 
'Lisa Jewell is, simply, outstanding' Alex Marwood 
'Compelling, ingenious, breath-stopping' Tamar Cohen 
'A witty and propulsive stunner of a novel' Katherine Heiny 
'This is Lisa Jewell at her absolute best.' Paul Burston 
'A compulsive, dark, satisfying tale' Catherine Steadman 
___________ 
 
Readers can't get enough of The Family Remains . . . 
 
***** 'There's nothing about this book that I would change. Seriously.' 
***** 'My expectations were high and this still managed to surpass them.' 
***** 'The writing is outstanding from start to finish and it's an engrossing read.' 
***** 'I could not put it down and loved the surprises and twists.' 
***** 'Lisa Jewell can write one hell of a thriller!!' 
 
 
The Family Remains, Number 1 Sunday Times bestseller, May 2023 
New York Times bestseller, August 2023

PREPARE TO BE HOOKED . . . 
 
Early morning: on the foreshore of the river Thames, a bag of bones is discovered. Human bones. 
 
DCI Samuel Owusu quickly sends the bag for forensic examination. The bones are those of a young woman, killed by a blow to the head many years ago. 
 
Also inside the bag is a trail of clues which lead DCI Owusu to a mansion in Chelsea where thirty years previously three people lay dead, while a baby upstairs waited for someone to pick her up. 
 
Four deaths. An unsolved mystery. A family whose secrets can't stay buried for ever. 
_________________ 
 
'I was ENTHRALLED. Empathetic, gripping, authentic' Gillian McAllister 
'A GRIPPING read. Superb!' Shari Lapena 
'Fast-paced, cleverly plotted. GRIPS from first page to last' Paula Hawkins 
'Artful, slippery, HUGELY SATISFYING. A rare treat awaits!' Louise Candlish 
'The story EVERYONE has been waiting for.' Adele Parks

A psychological thriller from the bestselling author of The Family Upstairs

I Found You

Everyone has secrets. What if you can't remember yours? 
 
'Fresh and intriguing, with characters so real I ached for them. I loved I Found You' Clare Mackintosh 
'I LOVED I Found You. A proper thriller with wonderful characters' Sabine Durrant 
'Dark and moody, this is a mystery with substance' Kirkus Reviews 
____________ 
 
Two women. Twenty years of secrets. And a man who doesn't remember anything. 
 
Or does he? 
 
Lily has only been married for three weeks. When her new husband fails to come home from work one night, she is left stranded in a new country where she knows no one. 
 
Alice finds a man on the beach outside her house. He has no name, no jacket, no idea what he is doing there. Against her better judgement, she invites him into her home. 
 
But who is he, and how can she trust a man who has lost his memory? 
____________ 
 
Readers love I FOUND YOU . . . 
 
***** 'Wow! I loved this book. A fantastic psychological suspense novel.' 
***** 'This book had EVERYTHING!!! I enjoyed this very, very much.' 
***** 'Lisa Jewell never lets me down ever. A great book with an ending you may not be expecting.' 
***** 'This is my favourite novel by this author so far.' 
***** 'For fast paced suspense, well developed characters, and a great story, it just doesn't get any better than this!' 
 
Lisa Jewell, Sunday Times bestseller, October 2023

Two women. Twenty years of secrets. And a man who doesn't remember anything. 
 
Or does he? 
_____________________ 
 
'Fresh and intriguing, with characters so real I ached for them. I loved I Found You' 
Clare Mackintosh 
 
'I LOVED I Found You. A proper thriller with wonderful characters' 
Sabine Durrant 
_____________________ 
 
Everyone has secrets. What if you can't remember yours? 
 
'How long have you been sitting out here?' 
'I got here yesterday.' 
'Where did you come from?' 
'I have no idea.' 
 
Lily has only been married for three weeks. When her new husband fails to come home from work one night, she is left stranded in a new country where she knows no one. 
 
Alice finds a man on the beach outside her house. He has no name, no jacket, no idea what he is doing there. Against her better judgement, she invites him into her home. 
 
But who is he, and how can she trust a man who has lost his memory?

The #1 bestseller. ‘I read it all in one sitting’ – Colleen Hoover

The Family Upstairs

Prepare to be hooked . . . A compulsive thriller from Lisa Jewell. 
 
* #1 UK SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * 
* OVER A MILLION COPIES SOLD * 
* HOLLY WILLOUGHBY'S SUMMER READING HIGHLIGHT * 
 
'I read it all in one sitting.' Colleen Hoover 
'I loved The Family Upstairs!' Sarah Jessica Parker 
'Really good, gripping. I couldn't bear for it to finish...' Olivia Colman 
'A twisty and engrossing story of betrayal and redemption.' Ian Rankin 
'Rich, dark and intricately twisted' Ruth Ware 
_______________ 
 
In a large house in London's fashionable Chelsea, a baby is awake in her cot. Well-fed and cared for, she is happily waiting for someone to pick her up. 
 
In the kitchen lie three decomposing corpses. Close to them is a hastily scrawled note. 
 
They've been dead for several days. 
 
Who has been looking after the baby? 
 
And where did they go? 
 
Two entangled families. 
A house with the darkest of secrets. 
_______________ 
 
More love for The Family Upstairs . . . 
 
'My eyes were glued to this book!' Hayley Morris 
'You don't read a Lisa Jewell book, you fall into it.' Erin Kelly 
'I swear I didn't breathe the whole time I was reading it.' Clare Mackintosh 
'Creepy, intricate and utterly immersive.' Guarian 
'I had a thrilling for-God's-sake-tell-me-what-happened sensation in my stomach for the entire read' Ruth Jones 
'Absolutely brilliant.' Sarah Pinborough 
'Glitters like a blade and cuts even deeper.' AJ Finn 
'I was hooked from the first page.' Alice Feeney 
'Utterly compelling. Deliciously dark and twisty .' Jane Corry 
'It's absolutely bloody brilliant.' Tammy Cohen 
'I genuinely struggled to put this one down.' The Unmumsy Mum

Lisa Jewell

Breaking the Dark

Select a format:

Pre-order:

More books from this author

Sign up to the Lisa Jewell newsletter