Scan barcode
A review by dejreads
Twisted Lies by Ana Huang
4.0
I started this book last year and then dnf'd because I entered a major reading slump. With the new year, I decided to pick up this book and start rereading it from the beginning. I surely underestimated Ana as an author because I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the building of Stella and Christian's relationship. It made me feel so warm inside. Granted, some 'touch her and you'll die' type of male characters make me internally cringe sometimes. Christian motherf*cking Harper was written so well with that character trope.
Now on to the criticism.
I must note first, that this is the first book I have read in the Twisted series. I know, it's insane to read the very last book of a series because you practically have spoiled the three previous books. But that's beside the point. One criticism of the book is that I feel like within all the guys (except for Josh) they seem to have the same personality. Frankly, every scene where the guys interacted with each other wasn't as interesting as the girls' scenes because I felt a sense that it was just the same guy talking to each other. How is it that when you read scenes where all the Twisted girls are interacting with each other, each girl you can point out their personality and how different they are compared to each other? However, with the guys...just by reading this one book, I can't do the same with the guys. My opinion may change when if I read the other books, but I will be strangely disappointed if my viewpoint stands correct.
The traitor reveal was super obvious. It's always the right-hand man. I kinda suspected it to be Brock or Kage as soon as the traitor plot was brought up.
The stalker reveal was underwhelming for me. The build-up and the fear that Stella has been through and then when her stalker is revealed, I kinda just said 'oh'. But it wasn't a shocked 'oh', it was more so, an 'oh okay' and just kept reading. I think it would been more suspenseful and gut-wrenching if the stalker wasn't just someone Stella had forgotten about from college. If it was someone she'd known longer than her getting the feature piece written about her. Someone she worked with at the job she got fired with? A male nurse at the retirement home Maura resided in? Julian being the stalker did not build the suspenseful feeling in my gut the way I wanted it to be.
Anyway, other than those two things—I truly enjoyed this being my first read of the new year. I'm still on the fence about if I want to get the other books if I'm going to be honest with myself. But Ana Huang, you did your big one with Twisted Lies.
mage:
Now on to the criticism.
I must note first, that this is the first book I have read in the Twisted series. I know, it's insane to read the very last book of a series because you practically have spoiled the three previous books. But that's beside the point. One criticism of the book is that I feel like within all the guys (except for Josh) they seem to have the same personality. Frankly, every scene where the guys interacted with each other wasn't as interesting as the girls' scenes because I felt a sense that it was just the same guy talking to each other. How is it that when you read scenes where all the Twisted girls are interacting with each other, each girl you can point out their personality and how different they are compared to each other? However, with the guys...just by reading this one book, I can't do the same with the guys. My opinion may change when if I read the other books, but I will be strangely disappointed if my viewpoint stands correct.
The traitor reveal was super obvious. It's always the right-hand man. I kinda suspected it to be Brock or Kage as soon as the traitor plot was brought up.
The stalker reveal was underwhelming for me. The build-up and the fear that Stella has been through and then when her stalker is revealed, I kinda just said 'oh'. But it wasn't a shocked 'oh', it was more so, an 'oh okay' and just kept reading. I think it would been more suspenseful and gut-wrenching if the stalker wasn't just someone Stella had forgotten about from college. If it was someone she'd known longer than her getting the feature piece written about her. Someone she worked with at the job she got fired with? A male nurse at the retirement home Maura resided in? Julian being the stalker did not build the suspenseful feeling in my gut the way I wanted it to be.
Anyway, other than those two things—I truly enjoyed this being my first read of the new year. I'm still on the fence about if I want to get the other books if I'm going to be honest with myself. But Ana Huang, you did your big one with Twisted Lies.
mage: