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Nine Liars
by Maureen Johnson
I was excited to have the opportunity to read an advance e-book copy thanks to the publisher and Netgalley.
Nine friends. Seven suspects. Two murders. And one chance to get it right. Stevie Bell, now semi-famous for solving the Truly Devious and Camp Wonder Falls mysteries, is on a study tour with her friends in London--which, not-so-coincidentally is where her boyfriend David is studying. Stevie has been missing David terribly, and with decisions about her future looming (college, studies, love, and growing up), all she wants to do is to feel safe and loved with him. But no sooner have they reunited than he introduces them to his friend Izzy (a cute classmate of David's) who invites Stevie and the group to help solve a cold case from 1995 that involves the death of two of her aunt's friends.
The cold case from 1995 forms the second of the dual timelines. Nine best friends who have formed a theatrical group together, live together, date each other, and support each other are spending one last week together at a country house after graduation from Cambridge. But during one of their traditional games of hide-and-seek, two of their number are gruesomely murdered. The authorities write it off to burglars, but suspicions remain and don't resurface until the present day when Stevie and her friends arrive on the scene.
The mystery was crafted so well, in typical Maureen Johnson fashion. Such a twisty, dark, and tragic cold case. A country manor mystery in the tradition of great closed-door mysteries. And I love how the characters in both timelines are about to uncertainly embark on the next phase of life without their ride-or-die friends. The difference for me between this book and the previous four in the series was that with the previous books I really struggled to put them down (and that's saying something, since I'm a full-time working mom and treasure my sleep above all else!). But I found this one easier to put down, mainly because of Stevie's self-destructive toxicity and the significant portions of the book that were unnecessarily dedicated to London tourist stops. Nine Liars was definitely an ode to London. Flawed characters are important, and Johnson's magic is still there, but I really don't like Stevie and David very much after this. The way the book ended another book or two must be coming to give us resolution, so maybe they will be redeemed soon. I hope so, because I really love this series!
Nine friends. Seven suspects. Two murders. And one chance to get it right. Stevie Bell, now semi-famous for solving the Truly Devious and Camp Wonder Falls mysteries, is on a study tour with her friends in London--which, not-so-coincidentally is where her boyfriend David is studying. Stevie has been missing David terribly, and with decisions about her future looming (college, studies, love, and growing up), all she wants to do is to feel safe and loved with him. But no sooner have they reunited than he introduces them to his friend Izzy (a cute classmate of David's) who invites Stevie and the group to help solve a cold case from 1995 that involves the death of two of her aunt's friends.
The cold case from 1995 forms the second of the dual timelines. Nine best friends who have formed a theatrical group together, live together, date each other, and support each other are spending one last week together at a country house after graduation from Cambridge. But during one of their traditional games of hide-and-seek, two of their number are gruesomely murdered. The authorities write it off to burglars, but suspicions remain and don't resurface until the present day when Stevie and her friends arrive on the scene.
The mystery was crafted so well, in typical Maureen Johnson fashion. Such a twisty, dark, and tragic cold case. A country manor mystery in the tradition of great closed-door mysteries. And I love how the characters in both timelines are about to uncertainly embark on the next phase of life without their ride-or-die friends. The difference for me between this book and the previous four in the series was that with the previous books I really struggled to put them down (and that's saying something, since I'm a full-time working mom and treasure my sleep above all else!). But I found this one easier to put down, mainly because of Stevie's self-destructive toxicity and the significant portions of the book that were unnecessarily dedicated to London tourist stops. Nine Liars was definitely an ode to London. Flawed characters are important, and Johnson's magic is still there, but I really don't like Stevie and David very much after this. The way the book ended another book or two must be coming to give us resolution, so maybe they will be redeemed soon. I hope so, because I really love this series!