In this twisty, fast-paced thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of Find You First and Take Your Breath Away, a man desperately tries to track down his father—who was taken into witness protection years ago—before his enemies can get to him.

Your dad’s not a good person. Your dad killed people, son.

These are some of the last words Jack Givins’ father spoke to him before he was whisked away by witness protection, leaving Jack and his mother to pick up the shattered pieces of their lives as best they could.

Years later, Jack is a grown man with problems of his own. He’s a talented but struggling author, barely scraping by on the royalties from his moderately successful first book. So when the U.S. Marshals approach him with a lucrative opportunity, he’s in no position to turn them down. They’re recruiting writers like Jack to create false histories for people in witness protection—people like Jack’s father.

The coincidence is astonishing to Jack at first, but he soon realizes this may be a chance to find his dad. Only there’s one problem—Jack’s father hasn’t made contact with his handlers recently, and they have no idea where he is. He could be in serious danger, and Jack may be the only one who can find him.

But how will he find a man he’s never truly known? A man who has done terrible things in his lifetime and made some deadly enemies in the process—enemies who wouldn’t think twice about using his own son against him.

Linwood Barclay is a former columnist for the Toronto Star. He is the #1 internationally bestselling author of many critically acclaimed novels, including The Accident, Never Look Away, Fear the Worst, Too Close to Home, and No Time for Goodbye. Multiple titles have been optioned for film.

Linwood Barclay's profile page

“A vein of humor runs through The Lie Maker, lightening the mood of a menacing tale…It takes a gifted writer to perfectly balance all the suspense, wit, violence and poignance in a book such as this. Lucky for us, Mr. Barclay is one of the best in the business.” — Wall Street Journal on The Lie Maker

“Barclay nails this riveting standalone thriller about a washed-up writer’s search for his long-lost parent… Barclay expertly knits the strands together and constructs a fully realized everyman in Givins. Crafty plotting and rich characters make this a winner.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review) on The Lie Maker

"[The Lie Maker] is filled with such imaginative plot twists and turns that it becomes physically impossible to put the book down at any point.... It is easily one of the best thrillers of 2023!" — Bookreporter.com

"The latest thriller from Barclay asks the reader to accept a slightly out-there premise but delivers a tightly plotted, surprising novel that winds up explaining why the premise wasn’t really so out-there at all. It’s the kind of thriller Barclay does so well: a story that constantly changes direction and forces readers to reconsider their notions of what the book is actually about. We soon find, when reading Barclay, that it’s better simply to put ourselves in the author’s hands and enjoy the ride, because trying to guess what’s going to happen is a fruitless exercise." — Booklist

"A twisty tale of skullduggery....[Barclay is] a pro." — Library Journal on The Lie Maker

“Barclay’s latest is a fun ride…with dips and swerves that should delight his fans.” — Kirkus Reviews on The Lie Maker

"A terrrific read.... Barclay does really spin a tale well." — Winnipeg Free Press on The Lie Maker

"Take Your Breath Away is finely paced and full of surprises. What places it above your average missing-spouse mystery is Mr. Barclay’s ability to make you not only believe in his characters but to care about them.” — Wall Street Journal

“Perhaps the most complex and unsettling of Linwood Barclay’s oeuvre so far.” — Toronto Star on Take Your Breath Away

“Linwood Barclay once again proves himself a master of pace, structure, and suspense. Take Your Breath Away had me guessing and turning pages all night, and I still didn’t figure it out till the end. Gripping, propulsive, and surprising—he wasn’t kidding, I’m breathless.” — David Koepp, Jurassic Park screenwriter and author of national bestseller Cold Storage

“Find You First starts with a bang and ends with an even bigger one. Barclay is a terrific writer, but he’s outdone himself with this. It’s the best book of his career. I couldn’t put it down, and you won’t be able to, either. If you enjoy thrillers, this is the real deal. It never lets up.” — Stephen King

"In typical Barclay fashion, subplots and characters weave together in a tight, satisfying story. Perfect for fans of suspense novels by Harlan Coben and Lisa Gardner." — Library Journal on Take Your Breath Away

“An especially good read. The author keeps us guessing right up until the end.... Motives are hinted at and secrets gradually revealed, leading to an ending that will knock your socks off.” — Booklist on Take Your Breath Away

“An infectious thriller--one of Barclay’s best.” — Kirkus Reviews on Take Your Breath Away

"Suspenseful....The story will suck you in from the first chapter." — AARP Magazine on Take Your Breath Away

“Linwood Barclay has plenty of surprises up his sleeve that will have your head spinning.... Brilliantly crafted.... As the title states, prepare to have your breath taken away!” — Bookreporter.com on Take Your Breath Away

“[A] well-paced standalone…Barclay shifts among multiple viewpoints to keep the tension high.... Everyone is a plausible suspect, and the disparate plot pieces eventually fit together with the precision of a Chinese puzzle box. Barclay reliably entertains.” — Publishers Weekly on Take Your Breath Away

“Perhaps only John Grisham is his equal in creating show-stealing supporting characters.” — Sunday Times (London)

“Mr. Barclay is known for keeping readers on the edge of their seats. In Find You First he surpasses his own past successes with a multi-strand plot that bounces, in short, cliff-hanging chapters… Propelled by Dickensian twists of fate and Hitchcockian suspense, the book is populated by a large and colorful cast, including some chillingly pragmatic hit-people, a couple of foolishly adulterous spouses, a desperately lonely comic-book fan and an underage runaway in a gilded cage. All of them help Miles Cookson learn: ‘Being a parent is a lot more than just biology.’" — Wall Street Journal

“Prolific novelist Linwood Barclay delivers a clever twist on an old trope . . . Science meets megalomania in this up-to-date nifty entertainment.” — Washington Post

“Twisty, emotional, surprising, and told at a breakneck pace, Linwood Barclay’s The Lie Maker shows once again he’s one of the best thriller writers working today. This is a read-in-one-sitting kind of story.” — David Koepp, Jurassic Park screenwriter and author of national bestseller Cold Storage