Reviews

Perfect Lies by Kiersten White

kamitc's review against another edition

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4.0

Once again I love love love this writing but I feel like I like mind games a bit better. Hope there's a third!!

katiemichellereads's review against another edition

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4.0

This review was originally posted on my blog, Kittens and Books.

This review contains spoilers for those who have not read the first book, Mind Games. If you want to know more about Mind Games, see my spoiler-free review or the Mind Games Goodread's page.

If you have read Mind Games, but not Perfect Lies, don't worry! There are no spoilers for book 2 in this review.


In Mind Games, Annie and Fia are separated. They are on two different teams working towards the same goal: To bring down the school that has caused them, and other girls, so much grief. Annie has joined Lerner, where they are still doing research that will enable them to find girls with psychic abilities. And Fia is with James, who she knows is keeping secrets.

Fia's instincts don't feel so spot-on anymore. While Annie is having visions, they aren't necessarily helpful in telling her who is wrong or right. Neither sister knows who to trust, and they're finding it difficult to look out for themselves - yet alone each other.

I found this book quick to read and full of action, but I can't say I enjoyed it like I did the first. It was great to see what happened to the sisters and I really enjoyed the romance aspect of the story, but I felt as though something was missing. Fia's perspective, compared to book one, felt a bit lacking, although Annie flourished as a character and it really added to her point of view.

The romance was also fantastic. As in book one, it did not take over the plot, but it was there. I liked Fia's struggle, and the strength that Annie found with the help of Cole. The ending seemed to fit just right, and it was nice to see hope despite the awful situation and everything that happened at the end.

I think this book really gave Annie her chance to shine, and I'm very glad to have read it. I do wish there had been a bit ... more, where Fia was involved, although I have to admit that I'm not sure what was missing there. Still, I would definitely recommend this one and the duology as a whole. They are both great, quick reads with excellent characters.

carriestoller's review against another edition

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3.0

A quick & easy read--I read it in a few hours. My rating is really a 3.5. It was a good story, but nothing mind blowing. I figured out the love interest almost immediately. Ending was good and still plausible, although I felt it was vague what exactly happened to James and the school.

pantsreads's review against another edition

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4.0

Read my review here.

heyjudy's review against another edition

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4.0

~4/5

[Read more at my blog, Geeky Reading!]

I love Kiersten White’s stories. Everything I’ve read of hers so far has been fantastic. I will read anything of hers at this point.

This was a great continuation and conclusion to the series. It went by really fast, and is rather short, too.

I like both Annie and Fia, a lot. Their development was really nice, and some of it was surprising. It all really needed to happen, too. The ending for them was perfect, very fitting for each of them. Annie needed to take charge, not be taken care of; she always had it in her, she just needed to do it. Fia needed a break, badly. Time to find herself, grow into herself, be away from everything and everyone. Especially after what happened in this book.

I’m really happy for Annie. And I really like Cole.

I feel really bad for Fia. At the beginning, I wasn’t expecting what happened with James. By the middle (maybe even earlier, actually), I was starting to wonder, but hoping I was wrong. It’s frustrating, though, and sad.

This was a great book. It was exciting and intense, the development was fantastic, the characters are great, the writing was fantastic. It was a great conclusion, and now I really want to get my hands on White’s other books (The Chaos of Stars, which I still haven’t gotten, and her next books).

My one only complaint would be the lack of explanation of the previous book. There was absolutely no explaining what happened in the first book, and it really could have fit if only for meeting the minor characters on Annie’s side. Given that I read the first book this time last year, a lot of the characters were blurry for me. I got over that, but it still would have been nice.

bookworm097's review against another edition

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2.0

I did not enjoy this book. Much like the first book, I had many issues with this one. I had hoped that this book would expand on the storyline and general plot, but no.

This book kept jumping back and forth in time like the previous book did, however this time was quite confusing. I could never really tell when in time a chapter was taking place. Things kept getting jumbled up and there were times where I had no idea what was going on.

I was really hoping for some more background and plot details. However, there were none. I have no idea why Philip Keane wanted the girls. Was it just to spy on and manipulate politicians and other high ranking people? His methods seemed much to brutal and malicious for that. It doesn't make sense and I don't understand the motivation. The victory in the end didn't really feel like a victory, because what are they victorious over?

Lerner really confused me. Are they good, are they bad, is this a WICKED situation like in the Maze Runner series? I also felt like the story wasn't resolved well. How do they recover from the ruins left over? I didn't understand why Sofia's instincts were failing her at the end. If she has perfect instincts, shouldn't she have known what to do? Or was Kiersten trying to show that there was no right choice? I just don't get it.

As a whole, this duology is very weak. The characters aren't really relatable or likable. They had no growth and hardly any backstory. I consider this a waste of time, do not read this series if you are considering it.

my_name_is_elaina's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

abbievillehorror's review against another edition

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4.0

I definitely let too much time pass between the first book and the sequel, so I know I wasn’t able to get the full impact of the story because of that. Still, Kiersten White is a fantastic writer capable of drawing tension so tight may the further you venture into the story, and of creating worlds so immersive with such few words. That said, this book definitely felt a bit short. Not necessarily rushed, but I think there could have been more time devoted to what was happening in the relationships between characters.

sk24's review

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4.0

3.5/5 stars

Read more at SIK Book Reviews

Perfect Lies was all-in-all a pretty good book. I liked it more than the first book, Mind Games, so I'm glad I decided to continue the series. I really enjoyed the last bit of the story; it was completely captivating. Especially considering what Annie saw and it had me wanting to know how it was all going to go down. Kiersten White provided a great transition from Mind Games. She didn't overload the reader with information so that you feel like you are re-reading the first book, which seems to be much too common with sequels. Just enough information was provided to spark the memories.

Like the first book, Perfect Lies is told in non-linear fashion. There is no present time in this novel, which I found kind of odd. I'm not sure exactly why that was. I mean, I kind of get it, because it's all leading up to something. And I get why Annie's chapters are the way they are, because she's in the past and seeing things that will happen in the future. But, why weren't Fia's chapters in the present? They definitely could have been. I don't know. It was a bit odd, but I guess it doesn't really matter. It still made sense. There was no present time, just before and after a certain event.

I found that I liked Annie a lot better in this one. I didn't really care for her in Mind Games. But, something was different with her character in this one. She seemed more likable or something. I also liked Annie's relationship. It was way more believable and much easier to get into than Fia and James. I DO NOT like James! And I think Fia is stupid for loving him. She's supposed to have perfect instincts but she chooses to love that jerk? I don't get it.

bibliohannah's review against another edition

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4.0

still feel as if this was too short. and the ending was slightly confusing, but it was still very very good. recommend.