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jnikolova's review against another edition
3.0
Read on the WondrousBooks blog.
Verdict: Too high expectations.
I was preparing to absolutely love this one, since I loved The DUFF. When I read the latter, I had low expectations, it had been sitting on my to-read shelf for 3-4 years and I was like "Just read it already!". But I really liked it. it had spunk, a nice story, a feisty main character and it was also very sexy.
This book, though, seemed to be lacking in all of these departments.
At first the characters seemed like the ones from The DUFF had come back to life, only with changed names. I don't know, how many ways are there to writing a teenager? But with time the characters in LOL became flawed in different ways and their flaws lead to them being sort of unpleasant. Sonny(which FYI is a way worse name than Sonya) seemed like someone with multiple personalities, her actions were completely nonconsecutive, even towards the people she supposedly loved she'd act rude and weird and then go on and on about how much she loved them. Huh?! Amy was described as someone who kept to herself and was not loud about her opinions, but oh boy! She was a total doormat. There was not a second in the book where I actually cared about her. And Ryder was the craziest of all. I kept expecting that I'd get some insight as to his way of thinking but nothing really happened. He was a total jerk to Sonny, then after one forced conversation, BAM everything is forgotten. Because realistically speaking, they might have been trying to make him like Sonny throughout the entire book but it happened literally in-between two chapters. Also, absolutely nothing in this book was sexy. At all. Which on its own seems like a pointer to the fact that Lying Out Loud is a companion to PG-13 movie!The DUFF and not the actual book. It might be an attempt to continue the book version of Hamilton High's story, but the entire mood of the book is the reflection of the light-themed movie.
What I did like about Lying Out Loud was the way we got to see what was going on in Sonny's head, all of her secret shame, all of her fears. It was honest and realistic, so it won the book many points.
Verdict: Too high expectations.
I was preparing to absolutely love this one, since I loved The DUFF. When I read the latter, I had low expectations, it had been sitting on my to-read shelf for 3-4 years and I was like "Just read it already!". But I really liked it. it had spunk, a nice story, a feisty main character and it was also very sexy.
This book, though, seemed to be lacking in all of these departments.
At first the characters seemed like the ones from The DUFF had come back to life, only with changed names. I don't know, how many ways are there to writing a teenager? But with time the characters in LOL became flawed in different ways and their flaws lead to them being sort of unpleasant. Sonny(which FYI is a way worse name than Sonya) seemed like someone with multiple personalities, her actions were completely nonconsecutive, even towards the people she supposedly loved she'd act rude and weird and then go on and on about how much she loved them. Huh?! Amy was described as someone who kept to herself and was not loud about her opinions, but oh boy! She was a total doormat. There was not a second in the book where I actually cared about her. And Ryder was the craziest of all. I kept expecting that I'd get some insight as to his way of thinking but nothing really happened. He was a total jerk to Sonny, then after one forced conversation, BAM everything is forgotten. Because realistically speaking, they might have been trying to make him like Sonny throughout the entire book but it happened literally in-between two chapters. Also, absolutely nothing in this book was sexy. At all. Which on its own seems like a pointer to the fact that Lying Out Loud is a companion to PG-13 movie!The DUFF and not the actual book. It might be an attempt to continue the book version of Hamilton High's story, but the entire mood of the book is the reflection of the light-themed movie.
What I did like about Lying Out Loud was the way we got to see what was going on in Sonny's head, all of her secret shame, all of her fears. It was honest and realistic, so it won the book many points.
tamj96's review against another edition
4.0
Kody Keplinger is a guilty pleasure for me apparently. Her books are just so fun and easy to read. Lying Out Loud was no different.
alexanntremb's review against another edition
3.0
Let's start by saying I ADORED The Duff. In fact, if I remember correctly, I devoured it in less than 24 hours.
Meanwhile, something felt a bit off with Lying Out Loud. I felt like it was missing the spark and the hilarious snarkiness that made it's companion book such a good book in the first place. Even Wesley and Bianca, who made a couple of appearances here and there, felt flat and boring in this installement. I don't know, it wasn't horrible, but I expected more from Kody Keplinger having read and loved some of her other work.
Also, Sonny was so mean to Amy at moments, I wanted to smack her so bad! I know it was a part of her fatal flaw to overcome in the story, but it still infuriated me a lot. Let's just say that the fact that I didn't connect with the main character didn't really improve my reading experience.
And the ending, GOD, WHAT WAS THAT? Why did you need to pull a Rainbow Rowell on us Kody??
Overall, I don't regret reading this book, but I don't think I will ever re-read it in the future.
Meanwhile, something felt a bit off with Lying Out Loud. I felt like it was missing the spark and the hilarious snarkiness that made it's companion book such a good book in the first place. Even Wesley and Bianca, who made a couple of appearances here and there, felt flat and boring in this installement. I don't know, it wasn't horrible, but I expected more from Kody Keplinger having read and loved some of her other work.
Also, Sonny was so mean to Amy at moments, I wanted to smack her so bad! I know it was a part of her fatal flaw to overcome in the story, but it still infuriated me a lot. Let's just say that the fact that I didn't connect with the main character didn't really improve my reading experience.
And the ending, GOD, WHAT WAS THAT? Why did you need to pull a Rainbow Rowell on us Kody??
Overall, I don't regret reading this book, but I don't think I will ever re-read it in the future.
nverjudgeabook's review against another edition
4.0
Lying Out Loud made me LOL every step of the way. Pun completely intended. I read The DUFF only a few months ago before the film comes out, which I haven't seen yet, and I absolutely loved it. Kody Keplinger really tackles high school life and diverse nature we all live in and she didn't fail in her companion novel...
Sonya and Amy have been best friends since childhood, they are nothing a like but they had something each of them needed to complete themselves. Amy brother of Wesley, (yes the famous Wesley of The DUFF) is painfully shy, rich girl but she has a heart of gold on her. She even let Sonny live with her when her mum kicked her out and her father in prison. They are inseparable, so when Sonny's car breaks down, Ryder Cross comes to the rescue. Ryder a new kid from LA has had a crush on Amy for a while. It's when he starting emailing..that it gets interesting. Amy isn't interested and she expressed that in a reply with a little help from Sonny of course. Though when Sonny borrows the computer, they start IMing, only to realise Sonny is actually talking as Amy. An unlikely relationship sparks between them however, will it come between Sonny's most important things in life.
Sonny is by all means not innocent in a lot of things, she is indeed queen of lying. But whilst some of her lies are quite pathetic and damn right annoying, she has a reason, a good and heartbreaking one at that. I got her from the beginning. I'm not saying I lie but I understood why. What I loved about her was how believable her character was straight away, she didn't beat around the bush, her bluntness really defined her for me in a good way. This really complemented her with her relationship with Ryder and her friendship with Amy. All her life she has practically been alone and her mum has swanning off, here there and everywhere with numerous guys. Sonny got used to it, she told one lie and then two and she couldn't stop. Lying was a surviving mechanism to her a way to conceal the truth but mainly her truths and acknowledging them.
What was great is that we had Amy back, Wesley's younger sister. In The DUFF she was very shy and that still hasn't changed, It hasn't changed that she adores her brother like anything. But Amy is also very different, she's kind-hearted, beautiful (shocker) and intelligent, she doesn't has have a bad bone in her body. She will do anything for Sonny too, she wouldn't be without her. But when Ryder Cross comes between them, they become distant and this is quite foreign for Amy, she hasn't known anything to really change. In a way I wish we got to see her perspective too, to really get a sense of their friendship and that connection that we did with the previous book.
Ryder started out as a bit of an arse, you could tell that with his blatant act of trashing Hamilton whenever he had a chance too. He totally undermined everyone. He spoke before he thought about it. Ryder also comes from a family of politics so I guess, instantly you could have a real disliking against him, I think I did. But I think that was intentional from Kody's perspective of creating Ryder's character. His bluntness and being confrontational at times was his copying mechanism like lying was to Sonny.
When Sonny first started her relationship with Ryder through IM it reminded me of the film You've Got Mail with Tom Hanks! Anyone know that film or is that just me!? Regardless that she was posing as Amy still, in each of the those conversations she was revealing a layer of her persona everytime. This was good for her. She didn't realise how much Ryder had an influence over her in a good way. Sonny realised this was wrong to Amy though, she struggled with the truth at first, but she made the effort to do a truce with Ryder (in person) and actually get to know him for real. Together they were far more a like, and together they tried to comfort and help each other. In a way like Amy, Sonny and Ryder complimented each other in different ways.
It was great going back into Kody's writing. What Kody did with Sonny, Ryder and Amy was build her characters based on the realistic stereotypes of teenagers and I love her for it. Kody has brought around another novel of positive messages, in The DUFF it was sex in a positive and realistic light, in LOL it's diverse relationships, being yourself and also building or rekindling relationships with lost members of your family too. Kody Keplinger is a positive voice of teenagers and young adult.
I'd also like to share my favourite quote which I shared on my Instagram...
"'Have you read all of those? Or even half?'
"It's more of a collection" she said."
This is what I should say to anyone who complains about my bookcase. LOL!
Rating - 4
Sonya and Amy have been best friends since childhood, they are nothing a like but they had something each of them needed to complete themselves. Amy brother of Wesley, (yes the famous Wesley of The DUFF) is painfully shy, rich girl but she has a heart of gold on her. She even let Sonny live with her when her mum kicked her out and her father in prison. They are inseparable, so when Sonny's car breaks down, Ryder Cross comes to the rescue. Ryder a new kid from LA has had a crush on Amy for a while. It's when he starting emailing..that it gets interesting. Amy isn't interested and she expressed that in a reply with a little help from Sonny of course. Though when Sonny borrows the computer, they start IMing, only to realise Sonny is actually talking as Amy. An unlikely relationship sparks between them however, will it come between Sonny's most important things in life.
Sonny is by all means not innocent in a lot of things, she is indeed queen of lying. But whilst some of her lies are quite pathetic and damn right annoying, she has a reason, a good and heartbreaking one at that. I got her from the beginning. I'm not saying I lie but I understood why. What I loved about her was how believable her character was straight away, she didn't beat around the bush, her bluntness really defined her for me in a good way. This really complemented her with her relationship with Ryder and her friendship with Amy. All her life she has practically been alone and her mum has swanning off, here there and everywhere with numerous guys. Sonny got used to it, she told one lie and then two and she couldn't stop. Lying was a surviving mechanism to her a way to conceal the truth but mainly her truths and acknowledging them.
What was great is that we had Amy back, Wesley's younger sister. In The DUFF she was very shy and that still hasn't changed, It hasn't changed that she adores her brother like anything. But Amy is also very different, she's kind-hearted, beautiful (shocker) and intelligent, she doesn't has have a bad bone in her body. She will do anything for Sonny too, she wouldn't be without her. But when Ryder Cross comes between them, they become distant and this is quite foreign for Amy, she hasn't known anything to really change. In a way I wish we got to see her perspective too, to really get a sense of their friendship and that connection that we did with the previous book.
Ryder started out as a bit of an arse, you could tell that with his blatant act of trashing Hamilton whenever he had a chance too. He totally undermined everyone. He spoke before he thought about it. Ryder also comes from a family of politics so I guess, instantly you could have a real disliking against him, I think I did. But I think that was intentional from Kody's perspective of creating Ryder's character. His bluntness and being confrontational at times was his copying mechanism like lying was to Sonny.
When Sonny first started her relationship with Ryder through IM it reminded me of the film You've Got Mail with Tom Hanks! Anyone know that film or is that just me!? Regardless that she was posing as Amy still, in each of the those conversations she was revealing a layer of her persona everytime. This was good for her. She didn't realise how much Ryder had an influence over her in a good way. Sonny realised this was wrong to Amy though, she struggled with the truth at first, but she made the effort to do a truce with Ryder (in person) and actually get to know him for real. Together they were far more a like, and together they tried to comfort and help each other. In a way like Amy, Sonny and Ryder complimented each other in different ways.
It was great going back into Kody's writing. What Kody did with Sonny, Ryder and Amy was build her characters based on the realistic stereotypes of teenagers and I love her for it. Kody has brought around another novel of positive messages, in The DUFF it was sex in a positive and realistic light, in LOL it's diverse relationships, being yourself and also building or rekindling relationships with lost members of your family too. Kody Keplinger is a positive voice of teenagers and young adult.
I'd also like to share my favourite quote which I shared on my Instagram...
"'Have you read all of those? Or even half?'
"It's more of a collection" she said."
This is what I should say to anyone who complains about my bookcase. LOL!
Rating - 4
shogins's review against another edition
3.0
This was fine, but I didn't like it nearly as much as her other two books that I read. I found the resolution to Sonny's family issues unsatisfying, and never really understood Amy as a person - I'd be interested in learning more about what makes her tick.
I did really like that the male romantic lead wasn't perfect - he was believably flawed and I liked how Sonny ultimately handled him.
I did really like that the male romantic lead wasn't perfect - he was believably flawed and I liked how Sonny ultimately handled him.
hazelstaybookish's review against another edition
4.0
"You can love people and still realize they're screwed up."
Despite the compulsive liar that Sonny was, this book was so honest. Loved the themes of friendship and family and imperfection. The humor and wit, as expected, were awesome. It was also nice to see Bianca/Wesley and even Nathan/Whitley! LOL was a great companion novel and a fun but meaningful read!
Despite the compulsive liar that Sonny was, this book was so honest. Loved the themes of friendship and family and imperfection. The humor and wit, as expected, were awesome. It was also nice to see Bianca/Wesley and even Nathan/Whitley! LOL was a great companion novel and a fun but meaningful read!
denisechaoo's review against another edition
2.0
Before I cracked open this book, my impression on Kody Keplinger was that she was my childhood idol. I had loved all her other books, but never got the chance to pick this one up until now. At 18, this book was dull and wasn’t for audience members like me. I usually have no problem with young adult books, but this is actually just a children’s book. The plot was cliche and super basic. The characters were monotone. I didnt enjoy this book as much as I thought I would.
bookmarklit's review against another edition
4.0
It's becoming clear that I'm going to love anything Kody Keplinger writes. She takes flawed characters + hate-to-love romance and makes it work every single time. The MC of this one bugged me a BIT more than the ones in previous books, so I can't give this one my usual 4.5 or 5 stars. Overall a cute story with some nice character growth.