Cyber security expert, Ted McCord, has been fired. He risked everything in a game far beyond his control.
Charlotte McCord never understood her husband's addiction to the trappings of corporate life - the titles, the money, the promise of visible success he sees as opposite his Montana upbringing. Ted uncovered an embezzlement scheme, did something unthinkable to gain a promotion, and hid his actions from his wife. Then the guilty co-conspirators turned the tables on him. Charlotte leaves, taking their daughter. As Ted works to clear his name, Charlotte leans on her friends. But one friend's secret shocks Charlotte, upending everything she believes about Ted. Unsure who to trust, she jettisons from hurt and anger to the tempting promise of solace in the arms of a handsome River Rescue officer.
Stretching from Pittsburgh's urban skyline to the beautiful ranch country of Montana, What Lies We Keep is a moving story of corporate ambition that shakes the very foundations of a marriage and asks: What happens when we embrace the life we think we should have rather than the life we have?
About the Author :
Janet Roberts is a former global leader in cybersecurity education. Her fiction is set wholly or partially in Western PA, where her roots run deep. Her readers know to expect a female character who awakens to the discovery of her own inner strength while facing adversity. Her award-winning novel What Lies We Keep (2024) combined cybersecurity with domestic suspense and was the winnder of: 2024 Literary Titan Silver Award, Firebird Book Award, Pencraft Summer Awards for Literary Excellence -Suspense, and 2025 International Impact Book Awards - Contemporary Fiction/Realistic Fiction. It was a 2024 Finalist for the American Writing Awards' Hawthorne Prize, 2024 American Fiction Awards - Best New Fiction, and 2024 American Book Fest Best Book Awards - Best New Fiction. Her poetry has been published in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and in San Fedele Press' Art in the Time of COVID-19. A member of Women's Fiction Writers Association, Pennwriters, and Sisters in Crime, she lives in Pittsburgh. She loves travel, wandering through bookstores in other countries, reading on her porch swing, and sharing a bottle of wine with friends. Learn more about her at www.booksbyjanetroberts.com
Review :
"Roberts resists any temptation to offer moral platitudes or cheerfully neat resolutions-as in real life, all of the biggest decisions are fraught with compromises. This is a deeply intelligent work, and, unlike its protagonist, a refreshingly honest one, too. A thoughtfully rendered combination of crime thriller and emotional drama." - Kirkus Reviews
"What Lies We Keep will captivate fans of writers like Jennifer Weiner, that best-selling expert at writing about family secrets and the ties that bind, but it's Janet Roberts'brilliant and fresh prose, and her big-hearted, messy, real characters that set this work apart. There is no easy ending here, and I'm so grateful for that."
- Lori Jakiela, author of They Write Your Name on a Grain of Rice and more
"In her compelling novel about the devastating impact of lies and the search for a fulfilling life, Janet Roberts balances a thrilling plot of corporate greed and corruption with credible, richly-drawn characters. Through sharp dialogue, cinematic descriptions, and even a covert FBI operation, this novel explores the relationship between a husband and wife in the aftermath of one well-intentioned but misguided decision. What Lies We Keep raises powerful questions: Are lies justified if they are made to protect the ones we love? Can success be defined by more than social status and salary? I devoured this creative, twisty story with its flawed but sympathetic characters."
- Jill Caugherty, author of THE VIEW FROM HALF DOME and WALTZ IN SWING TIME
