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Eva | Howell High School, Grade 11
Rating: *****
We Were Liars by E. Lockhart is a thrilling story following the lives of the wealthy Sinclair family. Cadence, the protagonist and her family enjoy every summer at their own private island. However, their fifteenth summer visiting the island takes a twisted turn causing Cadence to forget everything that happened. After skipping out on their sixteenth summer, Cadence is back for her seventeenth summer on their luxurious island. This time she is determined to piece together what truly happened to her.
I truly enjoyed this story and I would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of teen mystery. The main message of the story is that your decisions have consequences which I think is an important lesson for everyone to learn. After thinking about this book for a little while, I noticed all the foreshadowing throughout the novel and how it all led to the twist ending. I think the book was very well-written and the unexpected ending made this story enjoyable.
Lily | Howell High School, Grade 11
Rating: ****
Cady Eastman has spent countless summers at her family's private island in Martha's Vineyard with all of her family, the Sinclair's. One summer Cady's Aunt brings her boyfriend who has a son the same age as Cady named Gat. Cady, Gat, and her two cousins, Johnny and Mirren, become the absolute best of friends while spending every summer together. They names themselves "the Liars". As the years go on Cady and Gat begin to spend more time together alone, slowly falling for each other. One summer after Cady has an accident everything changes and she's left extremely confused. Memories don't fit together and her picture perfect family only tries to keep her accident a secret from her. The book follows her throughout a summer of struggling to find out the truth of what happened, and who she truly is.
I really really enjoyed this book. It is extremely fast paced so there isn't a chapter that will bore you. The book has an extreme plot twist that left me in tears for an hour. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes unexpected endings as well as mysteries. The suspension the author creates will make it almost impossible to put the book down!
Isabella | Howell High School, Grade 10
Rating: ****
We Were Liars is centered on the wealthy, perfect on the outside Sinclair family, who spend every summer gathered on their private island. The story is told from the perspective of the eldest granddaughter Candace who struggles with self and family acceptance, mental and physical illness, memory loss, love, and guilt. After the accident on the island during the summer of 15, she cannot remember anything from that summer and hasn’t been back since. Finally, during the summer of 17, she goes back to tries to piece together what really happened to her. And through it all she has her liars (Gat, Mirren, and Johnny) to help her escape from reality, I mean that’s what summer is about, being whoever you want to be.
Each of these characters are pretty complex, as there is always something else we didn’t see before, which really adds to the mystery aspect. Throughout the book, there are many unanswered vague topics that go with the mysterious plot twist ending, a lot of foreshadowing! This book is pretty easy to read and understand, very enjoyable. At first, going back and forth from her memories is a little confusing, as well as the big family relationships, but in the end, it all makes sense. It is a really well-written book and I definitely did not expect the ending.
Alexa | Wall Intermediate School, Grade 8
Rating: ****
Eighteen-year-old Cadence comes from the wealthy family of Sinclairs and has spent every summer she can remember at their private island, Beechwood. As Cadence grows up, she separates herself from the things that upset her and becomes attached to her two cousins, Mirren and Johnny, and her best friend Gat, who bring her overwhelming joy. The four of them name themselves the Liars, and hang out every day of the summer, causing trouble and having fun. However, everything goes wrong when Cadence suffers from a head injury of which she has barely any memory of. The reader joins her as she tries to recall what happened to her and why everyone around her is so on-edge all the time now, all while discovering horrifying truths along the way.
The story, We Were Liars, is developed in a very unique way, and the ending contradicts almost any assumptions the reader had of the real truth. This book is hard to put down and always leaves the reader searching for an answer. I recommend this book to anyone who likes a good mystery, yet enjoys reality and drama.
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