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A review by betwixt_the_pages
Liars, Inc. by Paula Stokes
3.0
Max Cantrell has never been a big fan of the truth, so when the opportunity arises to sell forged permission slips and cover stories to his classmates, it sounds like a good way to make a little money and liven up a boring senior year. With the help of his friends Preston and Parvati, Max starts Liars, Inc. Suddenly everybody needs something and the cash starts pouring in. Who knew lying could be so lucrative?
When Preston wants his own cover story to go visit a girl he met online, Max doesn’t think twice about hooking him up. Until Preston never comes home. Then the evidence starts to pile up—terrifying clues that lead the cops to Preston’s body. Terrifying clues that point to Max as the murderer.
Can Max find the real killer before he goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit? In a story that Kirkus Reviews called "Captivating to the very end," Paula Stokes starts with one single white lie and weaves a twisted tale that will have readers guessing until the explosive final chapters.
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Rating: 4/5 Stars
Quick Reasons: YA mystery; intriguing story, complex plot, characters you can't help but love; a surprising, heart-breaking ending you don't see coming; the author employs a bit of “red herring,” leading readers off the trail with a load of dropped hints and potential clues
If you know anything about me, you know I can't do the “normal” mystery/thrillers because I have a weird aversion to books with cop protagonists. I don't know why this is. But I LOVE a good mystery. I love trying to see if I can sort out the clues before the big reveal scene. I love being taken for a ride on a twisty, turny rollercoaster of doubts and paranoia. So when I find anything that even SEEMS like a mystery, with main characters who don't fit the usual bill, I grab them up.
The blurb for this book immediately grabbed my attention, so when I found out it was on sale on Kindle a few weeks back, I was quick to snatch a copy. I'm so, so glad that I did.
The characters are quickly defined for readers, bold and at odds with seemingly the rest of the world. They stand out, both on their own and as a whole. They break the mold in subtle, intriguing ways. This immediately helps set the mysterious, secretive tone the novel takes on—already, readers are wondering who these characters are, what their stories will share, where exactly they're leading.
When the story REALLY begins, with the disappearance of one of our main characters, a few clues have seemingly already been dropped: I found myself almost immediately looking at a fellow classmate as the guilty party, and in fact was expecting the novel—based solely on hints and “foreshadowing” I found laced throughout the text—to end with this person being outted as the killer or grand scheming mastermind, setting up Max, going to all this trouble to pin the blame on somebody else. Paula Stokes is a MASTER, apparently, at red-herrings; she planned out EXACTLY where to drop the hints, how to stack the clues, how to make readers follow a blind lead down the wrong path to keep them from guessing the truth. She knows how to write mystery, definitely—I was fooled until the reveal scene, just as she wanted. And I LOVE that.
The prose is easy to follow, the character's voice seeping clearly through the words. There are no apparent plot-holes or unanswered questions; everything comes back full circle, leaving readers satisfied and just a smidgen perplexed (at least, if they're anything like me, they'll be left wondering how they DIDN'T see that coming at all).
This was a fast-paced, enthralling read; I was hanging onto every word, reading into the shadows for clues, gripping the edge of my seat with the need to know, the need to find the answers. There's a breathless feeling to the writing, as if time is running out and readers are rushing, rushing, right along with the characters toward the ending—it works beautifully for this story.
This was an enjoyable, twisty-turny rollercoaster, and I loved every second of it. I'd definitely recommend to lovers of “classic” mysteries, as well as shows such as ABC Family's Twisted or Pretty Little Liars. Can YOU guess the ending before the big reveal?
When Preston wants his own cover story to go visit a girl he met online, Max doesn’t think twice about hooking him up. Until Preston never comes home. Then the evidence starts to pile up—terrifying clues that lead the cops to Preston’s body. Terrifying clues that point to Max as the murderer.
Can Max find the real killer before he goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit? In a story that Kirkus Reviews called "Captivating to the very end," Paula Stokes starts with one single white lie and weaves a twisted tale that will have readers guessing until the explosive final chapters.
- - - - -
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Quick Reasons: YA mystery; intriguing story, complex plot, characters you can't help but love; a surprising, heart-breaking ending you don't see coming; the author employs a bit of “red herring,” leading readers off the trail with a load of dropped hints and potential clues
If you know anything about me, you know I can't do the “normal” mystery/thrillers because I have a weird aversion to books with cop protagonists. I don't know why this is. But I LOVE a good mystery. I love trying to see if I can sort out the clues before the big reveal scene. I love being taken for a ride on a twisty, turny rollercoaster of doubts and paranoia. So when I find anything that even SEEMS like a mystery, with main characters who don't fit the usual bill, I grab them up.
The blurb for this book immediately grabbed my attention, so when I found out it was on sale on Kindle a few weeks back, I was quick to snatch a copy. I'm so, so glad that I did.
The characters are quickly defined for readers, bold and at odds with seemingly the rest of the world. They stand out, both on their own and as a whole. They break the mold in subtle, intriguing ways. This immediately helps set the mysterious, secretive tone the novel takes on—already, readers are wondering who these characters are, what their stories will share, where exactly they're leading.
When the story REALLY begins, with the disappearance of one of our main characters, a few clues have seemingly already been dropped: I found myself almost immediately looking at a fellow classmate as the guilty party, and in fact was expecting the novel—based solely on hints and “foreshadowing” I found laced throughout the text—to end with this person being outted as the killer or grand scheming mastermind, setting up Max, going to all this trouble to pin the blame on somebody else. Paula Stokes is a MASTER, apparently, at red-herrings; she planned out EXACTLY where to drop the hints, how to stack the clues, how to make readers follow a blind lead down the wrong path to keep them from guessing the truth. She knows how to write mystery, definitely—I was fooled until the reveal scene, just as she wanted. And I LOVE that.
The prose is easy to follow, the character's voice seeping clearly through the words. There are no apparent plot-holes or unanswered questions; everything comes back full circle, leaving readers satisfied and just a smidgen perplexed (at least, if they're anything like me, they'll be left wondering how they DIDN'T see that coming at all).
This was a fast-paced, enthralling read; I was hanging onto every word, reading into the shadows for clues, gripping the edge of my seat with the need to know, the need to find the answers. There's a breathless feeling to the writing, as if time is running out and readers are rushing, rushing, right along with the characters toward the ending—it works beautifully for this story.
This was an enjoyable, twisty-turny rollercoaster, and I loved every second of it. I'd definitely recommend to lovers of “classic” mysteries, as well as shows such as ABC Family's Twisted or Pretty Little Liars. Can YOU guess the ending before the big reveal?