E. Lockhart is the author of a number of teen novels. She has had nine official boyfriends, if you count the boy who asked her to go with him at a 7th grade dance and then basically never talked to her again. She has never been on a sports team of any kind and got excused from gym class by going to ballet lessons. She has a tattoo, cuts her own hair, and has worn the same perfume since high school (Kiehl’s Chinese Flowers). In her office are two Betty & Veronica dolls, a photo of a particularly fat bull dog, an official business card from “Sherlock Holmes, Consulting Detective,” and the 1920s flapper dress she wore to the prom.
This was an amazing story… A must read.
First, I have to thank Jamie at Perpetual Page Turner for raving about this book because otherwise I might have missed it. I’ve not read anything by E. Lockhart before and the cover didn’t grab me, but when I saw her comments, I knew I had to give it a try.
I’m not even sure what I can say about this story, I’m afraid I might say something I shouldn’t. Instead I’ll list the reasons you should pick this book up.
A unique and poetic writing style that instantly will have you hooked.
He looks pitiful. He looks powerful. I love him, but I am not sure I like him.
Beautiful and lovely language that provides wonderful imagery. I could imagine every bit of the island and it’s inhabitants and I found myself going back and rereading certain passages just to get the full impact of every single word.
His nose was dramatic, his mouth sweet. Skin deep brown, hair black and waving. Body wired with energy. Gat seemed spring-loaded. Like he was searching for something. He was contemplation and enthusiasm. Ambition and strong coffee. I could have looked at him forever.”
and
Every time Gat said these things, so casual and truthful, so oblivious – my veins opened. My wrists split. I bled down my palms. I went light-headed.
A cleverly mysterious story filled with unexpected twists and turns that I never saw coming.
Interesting layered characters that will have you both loving and hating them.
If this book isn’t currently on your ‘to be read’ list, make sure you put it there immediately. I can’t tell you enough what an amazing read this was. It’s one that I know I’ll revisit often for the beautiful prose and unique style. I’ll also definitely be checking out Lockhart’s other books as well!
Thank you to Netgalley and Random House/Delacorte Press for the advance copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Wow…a beautifully written story with an unexpected twist. No spoilers here as I tried to be vague.
This book – let’s just say I was sucked into this and couldn’t put it down until I finished it. Also…there may have been some tears. (Who am I kidding – there definitely were). I absolutely had no idea where Lockhart was going to go with this story and to be honest; I couldn’t stop thinking about all the things.
Cadence is from a wealthy family and every summer she and her cousins along with her aunt’s boyfriend’s nephew meet on the island her grandparents own. Cadence refers to herself, her cousins Mirren and Johnny, and Gat as The Liars.
We are introduced to each of the characters as well as the rest of Cadence’s family. Most of the conflict of the story comes from the wealth Cadence’s grandfather has amassed and who will inherit or get what they want out of him (between Cadence’s mother and two aunts).
Immediately as a reader you know that something has happened but as I mentioned, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. Cadence is suffering from memory loss based on something that happened her fifteenth summer on the island as well as crippling headaches. Since no one will tell her what happened and why The Liars didn’t respond or reach out to her while she was recovering she has decided she will spend the month she is there for her seventeenth summer trying to figure it all out. Plus, she gets to see everyone and she really is looking forward to it.
As the month progresses, Cadence begins to remember and when she finally realizes what happened and what the end result was, she is devastated…I was too. I honestly didn’t have an idea that was the way it would end and when I finished, I had to go back through the story to find the hints. They are there but they are so subtle I applaud Lockhart on sneaking them past me. I was so absorbed in Cadence’s story that I didn’t even realize until she did, what was going on.
The only other thing I can say about this book is that you should read it. It is a great example of why I love the YA genre and I will absolutely re-read this book. This one will be on my favorites list forever and I recommend you get this as soon as you can.
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