I Can See Your Lies, by Izzy Lee

18 Feb 2024

The Book

I Can See Your Lies
Pages: 158
Age Group: Adult
Published on 13 Feb 2024
Publisher: Dark Matter INK
Genres:
Horror
Available on:

Synopsis:

FOR LOVE. FOR VENGEANCE.

Fin's reality is crumbling.

Her husband has abandoned her, she's now a single mom to a nine-year-old daughter, her Los Angeles home is sweltering, and she's being haunted by disturbing hallucinations that make life a waking nightmare. Are the visions a product of stress, trauma, psychosis, or something else? The answers to those questions become more clear when Fin starts digging up dark secrets connected to her mother's cold-case disappearance, a once-rising actress who mysteriously vanished in 1979. Will Fin slowly unravel the truth? Or will it remain hidden forever beneath the glitz and glamour of illusion?

My Review

I Can See Your Lies is a horror novella, the debut of Izzy Lee as a novelist, published by Dark Matter INK (under their line Dark Hart). A really cinematic novella which explores the supernatural themes in a context of the world being in shambles for the protagonist, Fin, who is also investigating what happened to her mother many years ago.

Fin's life is a mess. Her marriage is an abusive relationship, her husband is going to abandon her and she's left as the sole mother for a nine-year-old girl; along with the stress and trauma derived from these conditions, she starts to have disturbing visions. But not only her, as she's called from the school reporting her daughter has been frightening other kids with tales of a strange she's the only one seeing; things get even more complicated when she starts investigating the cold-case disappearance of her mother, whose secrets might be connected with their visions.

Overwhelmed, and with the journal of her mother, Fin takes some days in a remote location, without suspecting that the truth behind her disappearance is hidden in that place that mysteriously appeared on her computer. In such a short length, Lee weaves an intriguing story that compels you to continue reading, a novella that you will devour in a single sit.

The writing style is kinda cinematic, in the sense of playing with the visual elements, creating impactful moments; characters not as developed as I would have liked outside of Fin, some just fulfilling roles that are important for the plot, but overall, it's a satisfying balance taking into account the length.

I Can See Your Lies is a great horror novella, mixing trauma and impactful moments to create an engaging story; really eager to read more stories from Izzy Lee.

The Author/s

Izzy Lee

Izzy Lee

Profiled in Chronicle and named as one of A.V. Club's 10 female filmmakers to hire, Izzy Lee is a director on the rise. Lee has directed nearly two dozen shorts and shadowed director Adam Egypt Mortimer on the SpectreVision feature Archenemy. She’s currently developing a long-awaited feature. Several of her short stories have found publication, as well as a forthcoming novella from Dark Hart Books, I Can See Your Lies, which she also plans to adapt to film.

Her award-winning tales have screened at major international genre festivals such as Fantasia, Overlook, Morbido, FrightFest, Fantaspoa, Brooklyn Horror, Boston Sci-Fi, Boston Underground, Chattanooga, and more. From 2022-2023, Lee earned five Certificates of Completion from Sundance Collab’s directing, producing, and visual storytelling courses.