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3.2 AVERAGE
3.2 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Okay, so this was a typical young adult story about the girl who lives in a town on the East Coast where rich tourists come every summer and then the families leave and the people who live there are left without work who tries to fit in with the rich kids who come vacation there. This one has a murderous twist. I was a little bit more intrigued initially and was a tiny bit reminded of We Were Liars because no one knew what had happened and no one could really find out, but the ending just didn't do it for me. The fact that a kid murdered his own family was just insane, and I know it was meant to be that way. This murderer was just too out there and weird and not believable. I really like my murderers to be a bit more believable. Maybe it would have helped if the author had given a little bit more time and description to that, but I just didn't feel for the kid at all, and I kind of wanted to.
"Miniatures are for people who need the illusion of control. A world where they get to decide everything." Tristan, a member of a well known rich family is the sole survivor. His parents and siblings died in a tragic fire. Many suspect Tristan due to his dark, broody demeanor but most blame the caretaker, who is drowning his guilt in alcohol. Pearl, a server and the caretaker's daughter is determined to get to the heart of the truth. Pearl, who observes the young, spoiled socialites is not prepared to infiltrate a world that is foreign to her.
This was a great depiction of class struggle, mental illness and cycles of addiction. People deal with trauma in different ways and the author did a great job of weaving them into the story. One takeaway from the novel is that you never know the whole truth about someone until you dig deeper. The author did a great job providing depth to the characters and building the plot and suspense. The ending completely caught me off guard. This novel was an example of perfect YA suspense.
Thanks to Harper Teen and Gillian French for the book and chance to provide an honest review.
This was a great depiction of class struggle, mental illness and cycles of addiction. People deal with trauma in different ways and the author did a great job of weaving them into the story. One takeaway from the novel is that you never know the whole truth about someone until you dig deeper. The author did a great job providing depth to the characters and building the plot and suspense. The ending completely caught me off guard. This novel was an example of perfect YA suspense.
Thanks to Harper Teen and Gillian French for the book and chance to provide an honest review.
The Lies They Tell was boring. There’s no other way to put it. The beginning does nothing to grip you, aside from the initial prologue where the family dies, and the book really doesn’t improve from there.
I felt nothing for the characters, not even the main one. She didn’t have much of a personality.
Since this is a thriller, it could have at least had a decent twist. However, it’s pretty clear who the culprit is from the start. It was so obvious that I almost started to believe it couldn’t be them, and that there would be some sort of twist to mix things up a bit. But no. It was that person, and I wasn’t shocked at all.
If you’re looking for a good summer thriller, this isn’t one for you.
I felt nothing for the characters, not even the main one. She didn’t have much of a personality.
Since this is a thriller, it could have at least had a decent twist. However, it’s pretty clear who the culprit is from the start. It was so obvious that I almost started to believe it couldn’t be them, and that there would be some sort of twist to mix things up a bit. But no. It was that person, and I wasn’t shocked at all.
If you’re looking for a good summer thriller, this isn’t one for you.
Ending was disappointing but the atmosphere had me hooked the entire time.
"It seemed everyone felt fascination-meets-revulsion in Tristan Garrison's presence, followed by but the police cleared him; they let him go, didn't they? Somehow, it wasn't a comfort. Not at all."
Over the past year I've become an avid fan of Gillian French; her writing is so character driven and atmospheric that it takes little to no effort in being transported to the setting of each of her novels. When I first saw the cover reveal for The Lies They Tell, I knew I had to get my hands on a copy and I'm so glad I did! This story was a seamless blend of mystery, suspense, and intrigue while also maintaining a traditional "YA Contemporary" feel, which is no easy feat. If you enjoy a plot that deals with dark, heavy content while sustaining a lighter, summer read feel, this may be the book for you.
As stated above, this is a character driven novel that centers around the past and present; the reader is guided along a thrilling path where both sides of the story are open-ended. Who really torched the Garrison estate? Why did Tristan survive? Will Pearl clear her father's name and reinstate his good reputation? How much danger is she really in? As the reader we find the answer to all these questions and more, and while I've heard that some people had this one solved from the beginning and others were 100% shocked by the ending, I think I was blissfully somewhere in between. The answer to the whodunnit did cross my mind a few times, but I still felt that I grappled with other solutions and genuinely felt the stun at the big reveal regardless of my prior thoughts.
I can't really say more about the plot for fear of spoilers, but if we're being honest my favorite things to talk about here are the characters and atmosphere. I have always dreamed of traveling seaside in Maine, and each time the urge hits me I grab one of two authors-Stephen King and Gillian French. While their writing style and content are on opposite ends of the spectrum, I find they both deliver the setting immaculately in their novels and fill a void in my reading soul that I didn't even know existed before. The writing is lush and descriptive in a natural way; instead of telling you what a summer in Tenney's Harbor is like, she says "Here, let me show you." The characters fit right into this style of writing as well; emotion is conveyed effectively and I felt those moments with Pearl as she experienced innocent, young love with Reese, turmoil over her father's situation, and terror as she realizes who murdered Tristan's entire family.
The sign of excellent YA fiction is when it can reach beyond the scope of teenagers and lure in readers of all ages, and the author has given us such an excellent example of this with The Lies They Tell. While a good bit of the middle portion is a slow burn, I believe the patient, character intrigued reader will really take to this growing build up and find themselves gripped from beginning to end. Highly recommended for those looking for a book that's not too dark but not too light over the summer.
*Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me an advance review copy. Mood board images acquired via We Heart It and can be found on my original post HERE.
Over the past year I've become an avid fan of Gillian French; her writing is so character driven and atmospheric that it takes little to no effort in being transported to the setting of each of her novels. When I first saw the cover reveal for The Lies They Tell, I knew I had to get my hands on a copy and I'm so glad I did! This story was a seamless blend of mystery, suspense, and intrigue while also maintaining a traditional "YA Contemporary" feel, which is no easy feat. If you enjoy a plot that deals with dark, heavy content while sustaining a lighter, summer read feel, this may be the book for you.
As stated above, this is a character driven novel that centers around the past and present; the reader is guided along a thrilling path where both sides of the story are open-ended. Who really torched the Garrison estate? Why did Tristan survive? Will Pearl clear her father's name and reinstate his good reputation? How much danger is she really in? As the reader we find the answer to all these questions and more, and while I've heard that some people had this one solved from the beginning and others were 100% shocked by the ending, I think I was blissfully somewhere in between. The answer to the whodunnit did cross my mind a few times, but I still felt that I grappled with other solutions and genuinely felt the stun at the big reveal regardless of my prior thoughts.
I can't really say more about the plot for fear of spoilers, but if we're being honest my favorite things to talk about here are the characters and atmosphere. I have always dreamed of traveling seaside in Maine, and each time the urge hits me I grab one of two authors-Stephen King and Gillian French. While their writing style and content are on opposite ends of the spectrum, I find they both deliver the setting immaculately in their novels and fill a void in my reading soul that I didn't even know existed before. The writing is lush and descriptive in a natural way; instead of telling you what a summer in Tenney's Harbor is like, she says "Here, let me show you." The characters fit right into this style of writing as well; emotion is conveyed effectively and I felt those moments with Pearl as she experienced innocent, young love with Reese, turmoil over her father's situation, and terror as she realizes who murdered Tristan's entire family.
The sign of excellent YA fiction is when it can reach beyond the scope of teenagers and lure in readers of all ages, and the author has given us such an excellent example of this with The Lies They Tell. While a good bit of the middle portion is a slow burn, I believe the patient, character intrigued reader will really take to this growing build up and find themselves gripped from beginning to end. Highly recommended for those looking for a book that's not too dark but not too light over the summer.
*Many thanks to the author and publisher for providing me an advance review copy. Mood board images acquired via We Heart It and can be found on my original post HERE.
2.5/5
god. that was one of the most underwhelming endings i’ve ever read. it was so predictable and the way everything played out afterwards was so unsatisfactory. i was very interested throughout the book but that last act was just terrible.
god. that was one of the most underwhelming endings i’ve ever read. it was so predictable and the way everything played out afterwards was so unsatisfactory. i was very interested throughout the book but that last act was just terrible.
Meh. The narrator was trying to create tension where none existed, at least not for me.
Pearl lives in a small, oceanside Maine town where there is a fine line between the rich and poor. She is part of the latter and works at the town’s country club along with her dad. Six months earlier, four out of five Garrison’s (one of the rich families who live on Millionaire Row) were shot in their sleep and their house was set ablaze. Pearl’s father was on duty that night and didn’t see anything suspicious until he smelled the flames, and by then it was too late to save the family. Now he is blamed for not seeing the intruder and not saving the family, and on top of that, many rich people think he was the one to set the house on fire and murder the family.
Tristian is the sole survivor of the Garrison family. He was hours away in the mountains when his family was murdered. Now he is back in town for the summer with his two BFFs and they typically dine at the country club. Tristian’s BFF Bridges suddenly becomes enamored by Pearl and asks her out. Pearl says yes even though she hates rich people. She has her own secret agenda to solve the murder and proclaim her drunk father’s innocence. Pearl and Bridges venture to parties and go on boat rides. Then Pearl’s BFF Reese (whom she is crushing on) realizes that Pearl is hanging with Tristian’s posse and shuns her for a good portion of the book. Let’s not forget that all these characters are over eighteen and have every right to choose who they want to hang out with.
Pearl works at the country club, hangs out with Bridges, is ignored by Reese, babies her drunk father, plays on her tablet, and oh yeah, stalks Tristian a lot. One night during a party at the club, Tristian, Bridges, Akil (Tristian’s other BFF), Hadley (Bridge’s ex-girlfriend), and Pearl go on a boat ride to caves in the middle of the Atlantic. The boys dutifully turn off the lanterns and leave the girls to fend for themselves in these mysterious caves while the tide rises. We learn that Cassidy (Tristian’s deceased sister) was cheating on her boyfriend Akil with Bridges while Bridges was cheating on Hadley with Cassidy. Then we find out who killed the family.
This was very bland and slow paced. No action or suspense or mystery. I don’t like third person narrative and this book would be an example why. There were too many characters to keep track of and everything was described and told so tediously. For example, Pearl’s semi-nemesis is her coworker Indigo since Reese and her sometimes hookup. When Reese and Pearl drive to Indigo’s grandmother’s house to inquire about the Garrisons, there are random long details about what Indigo looked like in pictures hanging up in the house and the attire she had on. Why would we need to know this? The sole purpose of going there was to obtain information, not focus on pictures of a character that is hardly part of the story. Indigo’s only purpose was to provide friction between her and Reese since Reese chose Indigo and not Pearl. The timeline moved at a snail’s pace with repetition regarding Pearl working, parenting her dad, and chilling with her tablet. Kind of like Bella’s life in Twilight regarding how she always made her father dinner every single night. The killer was predictable and then the story abruptly ended.
I received an ARC of The Lies They Tell from Edelweiss.
Tristian is the sole survivor of the Garrison family. He was hours away in the mountains when his family was murdered. Now he is back in town for the summer with his two BFFs and they typically dine at the country club. Tristian’s BFF Bridges suddenly becomes enamored by Pearl and asks her out. Pearl says yes even though she hates rich people. She has her own secret agenda to solve the murder and proclaim her drunk father’s innocence. Pearl and Bridges venture to parties and go on boat rides. Then Pearl’s BFF Reese (whom she is crushing on) realizes that Pearl is hanging with Tristian’s posse and shuns her for a good portion of the book. Let’s not forget that all these characters are over eighteen and have every right to choose who they want to hang out with.
Pearl works at the country club, hangs out with Bridges, is ignored by Reese, babies her drunk father, plays on her tablet, and oh yeah, stalks Tristian a lot. One night during a party at the club, Tristian, Bridges, Akil (Tristian’s other BFF), Hadley (Bridge’s ex-girlfriend), and Pearl go on a boat ride to caves in the middle of the Atlantic. The boys dutifully turn off the lanterns and leave the girls to fend for themselves in these mysterious caves while the tide rises. We learn that Cassidy (Tristian’s deceased sister) was cheating on her boyfriend Akil with Bridges while Bridges was cheating on Hadley with Cassidy. Then we find out who killed the family.
This was very bland and slow paced. No action or suspense or mystery. I don’t like third person narrative and this book would be an example why. There were too many characters to keep track of and everything was described and told so tediously. For example, Pearl’s semi-nemesis is her coworker Indigo since Reese and her sometimes hookup. When Reese and Pearl drive to Indigo’s grandmother’s house to inquire about the Garrisons, there are random long details about what Indigo looked like in pictures hanging up in the house and the attire she had on. Why would we need to know this? The sole purpose of going there was to obtain information, not focus on pictures of a character that is hardly part of the story. Indigo’s only purpose was to provide friction between her and Reese since Reese chose Indigo and not Pearl. The timeline moved at a snail’s pace with repetition regarding Pearl working, parenting her dad, and chilling with her tablet. Kind of like Bella’s life in Twilight regarding how she always made her father dinner every single night. The killer was predictable and then the story abruptly ended.
I received an ARC of The Lies They Tell from Edelweiss.