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A review by bigdreamsandwildthings
No Filter and Other Lies by Crystal Maldonado
5.0
"You should know, right now, that I'm a liar.
They're usually little lies.
Tiny lies.
Barely lies.
Not so much lies as lie-adjacent."
There is something about Crystal Maldonado's writing that absolutely sends me every time. I LOVED THIS.
Kat Sanchez lives an ordinary life. She lives with her grandparents, and has a group of friends that she loves, though Hari, her best friend, wants more with her. She loves photography, and she loves her job working at a dog shelter, helping to find homes for the pups that need it the most. In short, nothing is wrong with Kat's life, except...she lies. Small lies, bigger lies, every kind of lie in between. When a split second decision that results in a new Instagram account and a fake persona lead Kat to more with a girl she really likes, though, Kat is forced to confront those lies - and she might lose everything because of them.
Just like in Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, this book has the best characters. Kat is so funny, so dry with her sense of humour and so weirdly relatable, despite having almost nothing in common with her outside her love of dogs. This is a girl who is making not great decisions, but who remains so sympathetic regardless; when she chooses to steal her acquaintance's face and create a new account, your stomach turns for her, as a reader, but at the same time...you get it, also as a reader.
The synopsis of this one is detrimental to it, I think. This isn't a story about going viral on Insta. It's a story about breaking free from the examples of your parents, finding what you want in your life, and figuring out who you want to be. It's a rough road getting there, but that element of "Instagram fame" isn't really present here. If that's what you're looking for, this isn't the book for you.
However, this is a sapphic romance!! I had no idea going into it that that would be the case. Anytime I'm not expecting a F/F relationship and I get it, I'm always the happiest. It's such a genuine, sweet part of this one too, full of bittersweet emotions.
What you will get instead is an emotional story of lessons learned with characters that will get you straight in the heart. I loved Kat, I loved Elena, I swooned at their scenes, but even more than that, I just felt for Kat so, so much. Her story is expertly written, tender, and engrossing.
They're usually little lies.
Tiny lies.
Barely lies.
Not so much lies as lie-adjacent."
There is something about Crystal Maldonado's writing that absolutely sends me every time. I LOVED THIS.
Kat Sanchez lives an ordinary life. She lives with her grandparents, and has a group of friends that she loves, though Hari, her best friend, wants more with her. She loves photography, and she loves her job working at a dog shelter, helping to find homes for the pups that need it the most. In short, nothing is wrong with Kat's life, except...she lies. Small lies, bigger lies, every kind of lie in between. When a split second decision that results in a new Instagram account and a fake persona lead Kat to more with a girl she really likes, though, Kat is forced to confront those lies - and she might lose everything because of them.
Just like in Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, this book has the best characters. Kat is so funny, so dry with her sense of humour and so weirdly relatable, despite having almost nothing in common with her outside her love of dogs. This is a girl who is making not great decisions, but who remains so sympathetic regardless; when she chooses to steal her acquaintance's face and create a new account, your stomach turns for her, as a reader, but at the same time...you get it, also as a reader.
The synopsis of this one is detrimental to it, I think. This isn't a story about going viral on Insta. It's a story about breaking free from the examples of your parents, finding what you want in your life, and figuring out who you want to be. It's a rough road getting there, but that element of "Instagram fame" isn't really present here. If that's what you're looking for, this isn't the book for you.
However, this is a sapphic romance!! I had no idea going into it that that would be the case. Anytime I'm not expecting a F/F relationship and I get it, I'm always the happiest. It's such a genuine, sweet part of this one too, full of bittersweet emotions.
What you will get instead is an emotional story of lessons learned with characters that will get you straight in the heart. I loved Kat, I loved Elena, I swooned at their scenes, but even more than that, I just felt for Kat so, so much. Her story is expertly written, tender, and engrossing.