Pretty Little Secrets: a Pretty Little Liars Collection by Sara Shepard

Jun 05, 2012 Courtney rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I took a very long break from the PLL series. However, I started this when a friend loaned it to me. I haven't read past the book 'Wicked', but this book sucked me in.

Hanna's story, as always, was witty, fun, fast paced, and depressing. Why must every single new character be as much as a bitch as all the other ones? Sometimes I wish one of the PLL would just met someone friendly and nice. But then again, if any of the girls were happy, it wouldn't be PLL at all. Sara Shepard seems to like to tor...more

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Mar 03, 2012 Elisa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: mean-girls, completed-series, read-2012

Sara Shepard has run out of ideas. Pretty Little Secrets is not exciting at all. It should really have been published after Unbelievable not after Ruthless.

Hanna's story: So unbelievably pointless and stupid. She just flirted with a guy that went for somebody else. How is that in any way scandalous?

Emily's story: Boring but a little bit more interesting than Hanna's. It's so stupid how Emily's just sent off to spy on some girls that are stealing stuff.

Aria's story: More far-fetched and surpris...more

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May 20, 2013 Erika Aivazi rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I chose this book because I really like the series and I enjoy reading along as the t.v. show itself is showing. This is the 11th book of the entire series and it's about what Aria, Spencer, Hannah, and Emily do during their christmas breaks. As always their stalker -A is following them around and watching their every move. Hannah is having relationship issues and jealousy is coming in between. To cope with that she starts to hit on her gym trainer which is absolutely ridiculous. Spencer is deal...more

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Apr 16, 2013 Emily rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Awful. I tried reading this on vacation, but it wasn't even good enough to be a beach read. I loved the first 8 novels in the series, as well as the other add on Ali's Pretty Little Lies, but this was terrible.

Firstly, it's not a cohesive story like the other books - it's just four short stories, one for each girl. To be perfectly honest, I only got about two paragraphs into the second story (Emily's) before giving up entirely. Mrs. Fields signed Emily up to be an elf at Christmas? I'm sorry, n...more

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Oct 15, 2012 Amrin rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ok, first of all I love the PLL books and the show. I couldn’t wait for the long breaks between the seasons so I decided to read the books and they are great although different from the show. So far Iv'e read the first 8 and decided I would go for pretty little secrets instead of twisted. This is as I thought, or hoped that there would be some intense and shocking secrets come to light. Also as its from A's point of view and takes place between Unbelievable and Wicked.
I won't go into too much de...more Ok, first of all I love the PLL books and the show. I couldn’t wait for the long breaks between the seasons so I decided to read the books and they are great although different from the show. So far Iv'e read the first 8 and decided I would go for pretty little secrets instead of twisted. This is as I thought, or hoped that there would be some intense and shocking secrets come to light. Also as its from A's point of view and takes place between Unbelievable and Wicked.
I won't go into too much detail about the stories as most reviewers have done this. Each girl has her separate story and no connection to each other apart from the odd call to ask for a lift or to go and watch a movie.
Hanna has issues with popularity, self esteem, bingeing etc. The same old stuff, however I did like her story as she does things she’s not comfortable with to get what she wants, albeit rashly.
Emily showed some strength in her character by also doing things outside her comfort zone and nothing like what she has done in any other book, like blackmailing an officer. This made her character more likeable to me as there wasn't much whining but more doing from her. It also did not centre around a love interest as in the other books.
Arias story was just stupid for want of a better word. I expect Aria to be more sensible even though she is kooky. But to go and do what she did, I can’t imagine the Aria on the show would do something so rash and crazy.
And Spencer, well her, Melissa and a boy, again.
I was disappointed that the book does not lend anything to the other books in the series. It can be read on its own or not read at all, and you won’t miss anything or gain any info to tack onto the other books.
Also how can A be in Atlantic City and everywhere else is beyond me. Also I didn’t feel I was reading from A’s point of view apart from at the end of each chapter when A gives her/his usual routine of recapping what we have just read, and basically he/she will make sure the girls pay. Also there’s no texts or threats from A and A does nothing apart from step on a few twigs and giggle, unless thats just all the girls being paranoid and hearing the same thing. There’s also no mention of the things the girls get upto in this book in any of the other books.
It seems like it was written for no real reason , an add on with no particular juice to give to its avid readers.
Unless Shephard is planning on adding all this into another future PLL book in the series, which may well get confusing, I would say avoid this as it may cloud your judgement over the other books, which are great by the way.
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Jun 03, 2012 Tracy Pham rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was another addition to Sara Shepard's series, Pretty Little Liars. Except in this book, it's in A's point of view. Honestly, I found this really confusing to read because the plot was happening during the time of her early books Wanted, and Heartless. I had to rewind all the way back to when they thought A was a different person, but I already read the last book so I know who A really is. Also, I felt like it had nothing to do with what the series has been talking about and it was just mak...more

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May 21, 2012 Semhal Hadgu rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty Little Secrets, a novel written by Sara Shepard, is definitely a must-read if you are into suspense, secrets, mystery, and drama. However, I do suggest that you first become familiar with the Pretty Little Liars series before reading this novel. This novel is a small side-story that accompanies the Pretty Little Liars series. It takes place in the time period between the series' books Unbelievable and Wicked. Although it is not necessary to read Pretty Little Secrets to understand the plo...more Pretty Little Secrets, a novel written by Sara Shepard, is definitely a must-read if you are into suspense, secrets, mystery, and drama. However, I do suggest that you first become familiar with the Pretty Little Liars series before reading this novel. This novel is a small side-story that accompanies the Pretty Little Liars series. It takes place in the time period between the series' books Unbelievable and Wicked. Although it is not necessary to read Pretty Little Secrets to understand the plot of the Pretty Little Liars series, Pretty Little Secrets is fun to reaede if you want to unravel the main characters' never-before-seen misadventures over their winter vacations.
The novel begins with a message from the main characters' new stalker. The main benefit from this message is that it gives a short background about the four main girls, Hanna, Emily, Aria, and Spencer. It then goes into the main part of the novel. Each of the four girls has her own section in Pretty Little Secrets, each told in a third-person omniscent point of view. Each section is like a short story written for the main character it is about. Following each girls' story is a message from their stalker, reminiscing on the events that went on during that girl's winter break. Personally, I found that the messages added the right touch to the suspense of the story because they were so threatening yet interesting.
One concept about this book that is least enjoyable is the fact that it is written in a different way than the main Pretty Little Liars series. The style is different, and many readers may not adapt to it as easily as others such as myself. Unlike the main series, Pretty Little Secrets is written in four separate parts, as oppose to the main novels being written in chapters only.
The main thing that I believe is most enjoyable about this novel is the style it was written in, such as the four separate short stories for each of the main characters. The separate stories really help the reader connect with the character easily by having the reader focus on one character only. Each girl has her own conflict that is written about, and it allows the reader to see how the girl handles herself in certain situations. It also allows the reader to get to know the characters on a whole 'nother level.
The "holiday special" Pretty Little Liars novel, Pretty Little Secrets, is definitely fun to read if you want to know some of the shenanigans the girls have gotten themselves into during their eventful winter break. I enjoyed this book a lot and I can't wait to continue reading the main Pretty Little Liars novels!
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May 16, 2012 Charlynn rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty Little Secrets was more than just a little disappointment. Taking place during the winter break between the end of Mona's reign of terror and the beginning of Alison's, the book shows Hanna battling her body image issues yet again, Emily is desperate to replace Ali's friendship in her life, Aria puts herself in a vulnerable and dangerous position in her quest to feel needed and loved, and Spencer, true to form, competes with Melissa for the affections of a guy in order to mask the pain of...more Pretty Little Secrets was more than just a little disappointment. Taking place during the winter break between the end of Mona's reign of terror and the beginning of Alison's, the book shows Hanna battling her body image issues yet again, Emily is desperate to replace Ali's friendship in her life, Aria puts herself in a vulnerable and dangerous position in her quest to feel needed and loved, and Spencer, true to form, competes with Melissa for the affections of a guy in order to mask the pain of not having the affection of her family. The Liars' motivations are true to form, the trouble they find themselves in because of their emotional pitfalls on par with everything else seen in the series, but there are two differences, and these differences are exactly what separates Pretty Little Secrets from the rest of the series... and not in a good way.

Whereas all the previous books had the girls interacting together, Pretty Little Secrets consisted of four contained storylines. Without picking favorites, this blending seen in previous works is necessary to balance out the characters' flaws and make the Liars less frustrating. It also lends the series a sense of camaraderie, especially because the readers can feel as though they are a part of this close knit group of friends. Without it, this book seemed more shallow. Secondly, there were no consequences to their secrets, their lies. The issues were resolved, and, though Alison was aware of them, it's far-fetched to believe that she would never have exploited those secrets, only the personality traits which caused them. This lent the book a lack of credibility. Plus, it did not feel as though it was written during the time frame in which it was set. What would have improved this was if the novel had been told from Alison as A's point of view. Not only would this have provided insight into a very influential character's motivations, but it also could have explained Alison's non-action, perhaps even humanizing her somewhat. After all, it's not like her identity needed to be protected in this work; her duplicity had long since been revealed in previous books.(less)

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Apr 22, 2012 Rosie M. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I wish she just finished the series already. I mean, the first four books--A's revealed, her killer is revealed, alrighty then let's go on with our lives. Nope! Another four books! Sure, I guess we could use some more closure I guess. So then, the next A is revealed, throw in a new crazy twist and character, etc. etc. and now it should be officially over. It has to be. But no, it's not. I feel like she's just doing it for the money now. And it makes me kind of sad because Pretty Little Liars act...more

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Mar 23, 2012 Alexa rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-2012-advisory

In this novel, each girl is away for the holidays. While they are away on vacation they have their own obstacle. But surprisingly A isn't there to cause trouble and threaten them. Hanna is celebrating the 12 days of Christmas with her new stepmother and stepsister. But she celebrates Chanukah so things get awkward. Aria goes to this ski resort and instead of celebrating Christmas, she celebrates the solstice. But when Aria thinks this is going to be the time for her and her brother Mike to bond...more

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Mar 11, 2012 Clementine rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

This book is just straight up trash. Pretty Little Liars used to be entertainingly bad; now it's just bad. None of this makes sense with the timeline. There's no way this stuff would have happened and never been mentioned in the later books. If A keeps threatening to expose the mundane things that happened in this book, why HASN'T she, over a year later?

None of the stories are compelling at all. Hanna gets "fat" and competes with a girl with big boobs for some dumb vitamin water salesman. Emily...more

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Mar 01, 2012 Paula Phillips rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. OMG , I have to admit that this series is one of my all-time favourites and I am loving every bit of it , when I read that their was to be a new book - I couldn't wait , though at first I was a tad disappointed as the title was originally called Ali's Little Secrets and I thought it might have been more a prequel to the whole Pretty Little Liars saga but I soon got over that.
Pretty Little Secrets is in fact, in a way a collection of four short stories and has been slotted as an in-betweener nov...more OMG , I have to admit that this series is one of my all-time favourites and I am loving every bit of it , when I read that their was to be a new book - I couldn't wait , though at first I was a tad disappointed as the title was originally called Ali's Little Secrets and I thought it might have been more a prequel to the whole Pretty Little Liars saga but I soon got over that.
Pretty Little Secrets is in fact, in a way a collection of four short stories and has been slotted as an in-betweener novel which authors like Janet Evanovich has done and proved to be popular. Pretty Little Secrets takes place after Book #4 Unbelievable , the girls school days are over and it's time for the Christmas/Winter Break and of course, these 4 pretty little liars are still up to mischief and can't seem to find themselves out of trouble especially when school is out. The Pretty Little Secrets is split into four stories , each one telling the Winter secrets of the characters.
First up is Hanna, Lucas is away on holiday with the gorgeous family friend Brooke and Hanna is bored so she hits the gym and meets the hunky and good-looking instructor Vince. Vince talks Hanna into joining the Winter Boot-camp and Hanna wanting to dig her claws into him , goes along but it seems Hanna has competition in the form of a girl named Dinah. Can Hanna win over the affections of Vince even if it means getting her Pretty little liar hands dirty once again ? We also see some blackmailing going on between Hanna and her step-sister Kate and we discover that Hanna and Ashley Marin are in fact Jewish.
Next up on the Pretty Little Liars list is Emily. Somebody is messing with the Christmas decorations at her mum's church, community groups and the neighbourhood and they have their eyes on the elves at the local mall as the suspects. The old Santa has been fired for lewd behaviour - for more take reference to the creepy Santa in Hanna's story. Emily with much reluctance from her mum has been hired as the replacement elf and been sent in to spy. Can Emily find herself a part of the group and get them to spill their secrets? When a prank goes wrong and her friends are arrested , can Emily spring them with a little blackmail heading the officer's way as Emily has photos of him in a compromising position and he could lose his job, credibility if they were ever to get out .
Third , which was the most surprising and interesting story and I can admit I was shocked and would never have guessed it. Aria's family is celebrating the Winter Solstice, when a retreat visit goes bad , Aria finds herself back home alone in Rosewood . However, not for long as she recieves a visit from her ex-boyfriend in Iceland Halljborn. He is on the run from the police and staying on a temporary visa , he needs a way to stay in the country - so get ready for this "ARIA AND HALLJBORN HIGHTAIL TO VEGAS AND GET MARRIED". Will her parents find out about this little adventure and what will Aria's reaction be when she discovers the real reason Halljborn fled Iceland ?
Last but not least , Spencer's tale. It seems that a common thread has developed between Spencer and Melissa , they both like the same type of guys and they have a habit of sharing them between the two of them. On a family holiday, Spencer meets Colin at the local Tennis Club and falls head over heels with him but it seems that Colin has another admirer that Spencer doesn't know about - Melissa and when he chooses Melissa over Spencer - it's a War of the Sisters once again but what will happen when the sisters realise they have been duped and that Colin is in fact married , will the two be able to stay friendly to exact revenge on Colin ?
Find out what these Pretty Little Liars did over Winter Break in "Pretty Little Secrets" by Sara Shepard.(less)

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May 01, 2013 Becky Courage rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: on-my-shelf

This book was completely ridiculous and quite honestly stupid. It takes place after the identity of A has been revealed and Ali’s killer is in jail. The girls are on Winter break and don’t know about the new A watching them. The novel is written through the perspective of the new A, so we get story lines about the girls’ new secrets and learn about them without the A & murder mysteries. In my opinion, this book takes away from the awesomeness that is the PLL’s series. Do yourself a favor and...more This book was completely ridiculous and quite honestly stupid. It takes place after the identity of A has been revealed and Ali’s killer is in jail. The girls are on Winter break and don’t know about the new A watching them. The novel is written through the perspective of the new A, so we get story lines about the girls’ new secrets and learn about them without the A & murder mysteries. In my opinion, this book takes away from the awesomeness that is the PLL’s series. Do yourself a favor and don’t even buy it. Have a read of my book discussion below and be glad you saved your time and money. This review contains spoilers and a plot summary.

The story lines aren't really connected to things in the past -they are really random and have sugary sweet bullshit endings.
First Hanna’s story is told, then Emily, Aria and Spencer. It’s not like the other PLL books where they are interconnected. All the girls are still haunted by what happened with A, and over what Ian did to Ali. Plus throughout the book are clues that they are being watched by someone who looks and laughs like Ali…which leads us to believe she’s not really dead.

Hanna: She is dealing with her new family arrangement and Lucas going on vacation- they are now boyfriend and girlfriend. As a new hobby and to feel better, she goes to a gym program and starts flirting with her instructor when she doesn't hear from Lucas. She continues to deal with her body issues, battling with Kate and trying to impress her Dad. She misses Mona too. She tries to pursue the gym trainer and gets into a rivalry, finally giving up on him. I found her story line really shallow- she was betraying Lucas. He comes home at the end and they make up. That’s it. Ok…..? Hanna’s story did have elements from the previous books such as her body issues and family troubles. Overall, I found her section to be a bit catty and shallow, but it was still somewhat interesting.

Emily: This was honestly one of the most stupid things I have ever read in my entire life. I kid you not; this was her story line in this book: She’s sad and trying to accept Ali’s death. I get that, they were close and it’s a hard thing to get over. But then: Her mom had a decoration stolen so Emily has to work in the mall as a Santa to get information about the group who stole it- kind of a undercover mission for her Mom which she feels she has to do now that her Mom is all accepting over her being a lesbian. Her mom is completely insane and annoying. She gets closer to the group who stole it- the elves they are called- to get them to admit they are pranksters. To spend more alone time, she creates a bedbug diversion to shut down mall in efforts to close work. (WHAT THE FUCK). They hang out and are taking pictures of a stripper in someone's window. She has fun with the group and feels like she’s going over to the dark side with the girls and doesn't want to be a spy for her Mom anymore. They pull this big prank, get busted when Em’s mom tracks her phone and everyone acts like it’s a murder with a full police invasion and everything. The group realize she’s a spy. The stripper turns out to be the cop that busted them- so Emily blackmails the cop into releasing the elves. They see that she liked them and didn't want to spy so the elves and Emily and her Mom make up in the end. What. The Fuck. I was honestly shocked at how completely STUPID STUPID STUPID this was. Where is Maya? Where is the struggle of her trying to figure out her feelings of being out? Why isn't she swimming? Her story had NOTHING to do with previous plot lines. Absolute garbage writing.

Aria: Initially I felt sympathy for her because her dad is so clueless and such a dick when he doesn't respect their family time together. It must have sucked having to start new traditions and try to accept her new family style. She's still missing Ezra- I find this aspect really annoying with so much back and forth. She leaves her family trip and heads home. Her old boyfriend from Iceland shows up randomly acting weird and paranoid and they start up their romance again. Turns out that he’s wanted by the police, but Aria’s cool with that. So cool in fact that she says-Hey let’s get married at 17 so you can stay in the country. WHAT THE FUCK! So they actually go and get married. Totally legit- she even forges her Mom’s name in sparkly pen. Cause that’s the way to do it! Her ‘save the environment’ husband thinks it’s the right thing to do in rescuing some panthers that are caged in the hotel where they get married. Aria does not agree however, and they have a disagreement. He decided to say fuck it to the wifey and does it anyways and then peaces out on Aria. So panthers are loose in the city and Aria’s husband has already left her. So she hops out of bed and goes and gets the marriage void. What the fuck was the purpose of this entire story? In the end she sees her ex-husband getting arrested for his panther release and pretends nothing happened regarding the marriage when her family gets home. Helloooo! Did anyone with a brain proof read any of the drafts and realize how dumb and ridiculous they are?!

Spencer: Spencer and her family head to Florida for the holidays. Melissa is still pissed because Spencer turned Ian in, and her folks are angry because she did the right thing in admitting she plagiarized the economics paper- thereby ruining the perfect Hastings image. What the hell- she did the right thing and her parent’s freeze her out? Spencer is still pretty bummed over Ali’s death, and also bummed that her family is not getting along.
She meets his hottie Tennis player and they start flirting. (I guess Wren is no more). Turns out hottie has a girlfriend. Melissa is being super nice to Spencer and encourages her to pursue him hardcore. Right away I predicted what would happen. Never trust Melissa cause she’s a sneaky bitch. Spencer embarrasses herself in front of Colin the tennis hottie, but keeps on trying to get him to like her. So hottie breaks up with his girlfriend but then goes off with Melissa who has secretly been after him behind Spencer’s back in revenge for the Ian-Wren-Pushing her over the stairs-Stealing her paper thing! Spencer is pissed and feels betrayed. This was beyond predictable. Spencer gets revved up and is going to get revenge on Melissa and get hottie tennis player back. She does some sort of jellyfish plan, but that fails. She then puts blue hair dye in Melissa’s shampoo- and you can guess the rest. Their fight brings their parents closer together which was cool I guess. But then Colin realizes that Melissa is a priss and that he should have chosen Spencer. He tells her this and they bungee jump their troubles away. Oh god. Why am I still reading this? Spencer and hottie have dinner, but he’s cocky. Turns out he’s a husband and a daddy! And also super old! Spencer sees that he’s a playa playa and is all sad again. Her and Melissa sort of reconcile over him being a sleaze ball and create a plan to get revenge. They put Viagra in his drink and embarrass him during his tennis match. This story, while weird and creepy, did however make me laugh. In the end her and Melissa are not best buds again, but reach some sort of understanding. After all, Melissa is still a prude and Spencer did put her boyfriend in the lockup.
A little side story line which I found very interesting (basically the only interesting thing in this book) was the awkward tension between Ali’s Mom and Spencer’s Mom when she suddenly appears on their vacation. There are further hints to past family drama. What’s her Dad been texting about…?

Ending: This is written by the new A as a recap of all the drama he/she/whoever witnessed over the winter break. There is also a clue to some big family secret that Spencer has to do with. Plus some foreboding to the drama to come.
Three words to describe this book: lame, cheesy and disconnected. I think it was a quickly written money grab. I've read some other reviews of the book from people who read it after being well into the series, and it doesn't fit into the story timeline and also aspects and secrets are not mentioned in future books (such as Aria’s quickie marriage and divorce).
Plus, something that does not fit and annoyed me beyond all belief -How can this new A be spying on them and giggling behind the bushes when they are all in separate places?! It is not physically possible!!

I did not enjoy reading this book and could not believe how dumb it was. It didn't fit into the rest of the series at all. It was like watching someone fall over the stairs. Painful to watch, but I just could not look away. Cannot wait to get back to regular and interesting story line. The PLL’s series are awesome, however this book was garbage.
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May 07, 2012 Trina rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: suspense, chick-lit, year-26, young-adult

This book is a Pretty Little Liars holiday special. It's set between the 4th and 5th book, during Christmas break from school. If you've read the series you know that that is the point right after the first A got taken down. The A in this book is the new A from books 5-8 just starting out and picking up dirt on the Liars.

This book is very different from the rest of the series. The girls are dealing with the backlash of the first A and aren't being stalked yet, so there was much less mystery. The...more

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Jan 13, 2013 Carelle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty Little Secrets (447 pages), by Sara Shepard, is one of the young adult books from the “Pretty Little Liars” collection. The series revolves around the story of four girls: Aria, Hanna, Emily and Spencer, whose lives changed when, Alison, their friend and the leader of the group went missing in the 7th grade. After Alison’s disappearance, the clique fell apart and each girl went on a different path. During their junior year, Alison’s body is found and the four girls start receiving message...more Pretty Little Secrets (447 pages), by Sara Shepard, is one of the young adult books from the “Pretty Little Liars” collection. The series revolves around the story of four girls: Aria, Hanna, Emily and Spencer, whose lives changed when, Alison, their friend and the leader of the group went missing in the 7th grade. After Alison’s disappearance, the clique fell apart and each girl went on a different path. During their junior year, Alison’s body is found and the four girls start receiving messages that threaten to expose their biggest secrets, these secrets that only Alison would know about. The strangest part is that the message are always signed “A” and come from an anonymous source. Subsequently, the girls start getting closer to each other and the “A” sabotage begins…In this book, the story is written from A’s point of view, in comparison with other books where the girls are the ones narrating it. “A” is narrating the story as he or she is spying on the four girls during their winter break. The novel is divided into four different short parts; each part focuses on one girl. They show Hanna fighting her body image issues once again, Spencer competing with her sister Melissa to win a guy’s affection, Aria’s bad decision that put her in danger just to feel loved and needed, and Emily’s need to find someone to replace the special friendship her and Alison had, that out of desperation she become friends with a group of girls that were once sent to jail.
I found this book quite amusing and interesting. The author writes in such a simple and concise way, it is very easy and fun to read, and there are always good descriptions that help you visualize and understand what’s happening. She also seems to always want to torment the characters in her book, which of course, is probably why the series is very successful. I really like how so many different little stories are combined in this one book. I recommend this book to young teenage girls, they are the ones that can understand and relate to it the most.
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Nov 24, 2012 Ash rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I think I will always be a fan of this Pretty Little Liars series because it is so good! This is all due to author Sara Shepard. She writes teenage girl bitch who pretends to be a friend so well it gives me chills! It also made me realize I've known girls like this when I was a teenager and didn't quite know it.

This may be excused and ignored as another teen book and therefore categorized as inferior but it's not. Shepard created complex characters with their own individual neuroses and a formi...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Nicole rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-books, pretty-little-liars, scandals-drama

The Pretty Little Liars return with a collection of shorts stories during the holiday season.

First up is Hanna,

Hanna is upset that her father, Isabel and Kate have moved into her home. Lucas goes away on a vacation with his family and their friends leaving Hanna totally alone. She is not one bit happy as Lucas goes to Yutacan with his old friend, Brooke who literally throws herself at him making Hanna extremely jealous. She resolves to forget about Lucas and focus on getting the best body ever b...more The Pretty Little Liars return with a collection of shorts stories during the holiday season.

First up is Hanna,

Hanna is upset that her father, Isabel and Kate have moved into her home. Lucas goes away on a vacation with his family and their friends leaving Hanna totally alone. She is not one bit happy as Lucas goes to Yutacan with his old friend, Brooke who literally throws herself at him making Hanna extremely jealous. She resolves to forget about Lucas and focus on getting the best body ever by signing up for boot camp, she flirts with her instructor and competes with someone for him but soon realizes it isn't worth it and regrets being attracted to him at all.

Next is Emily,

Emily is sort of happy that her family is more accepting of her now and her mother enlists her to pose as Santa Clause at the new mall to catch a group of suspected pranksters in the act. She forms a companionship with them and just when she is getting into their group and she accepts what they do, they are caught and Emily's position is revealed. She feels guilty and helps the girls to get off without charge using some dirty information she has and bribing.

After that comes Aria's tale,

Aria is looking forward to her vacation in the mountains with her father and Mike but when Meredith appears she flees back to Rosewood and comes upon Hallbjorn her ex-boyfriend from Iceland. She and Hallbjorn realize their feelings have returned and make the shocking decision to be married when Aria finds that Hallbjorn cannot stay long here as his travel visa is about to expire. I was seriously stunned when I read this. They go to Atlantic City and have a small ceremony, Aria is naively swept up in the romance and then finds out that her husband is an eco-terorrist. She annuls the marriage and go home feeling silly.

Finally, Spencer's story,

Spencer and the Hastings travel to Florida to stay at Nanna Hastings's beach house and what a house it is. Spencer's parents are arguing and refuse to speak to one another. She tries to reconcile with Melissa and they go to the club together. Spencer spots a tennis player who she feels attracted to but Melissa advises her on how to get him then steals him away. Spencer then does all she can to win him back but a revelation makes her shocked. Collin is actually married with a child. He played Spencer, Melissa and Ramona his ex. Spencer and Melissa get back at him and she is hopeful both of them make up.

We now know there is a new A stalking them but who? and how will this new A reveal their dirty secrets? This book was fun to read and very entertaining like most PLL books.(less)

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Jan 22, 2012 Kelly Hager rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is set post-first A and pre-second A. Like all the books, there is a storyline for Spencer, Aria, Hanna and Emily but unlike the others, it's all Hanna chapters and then all Aria chapters and so on. (I kind of prefer that, honestly.) I'm pretty sure the A in this book is second A, although if it's not, that may make her (I'm guessing it's a her) the A that is now tormenting them or there could be a fourth A. CRAZY TOWN.

I completely love this series. It's funny and fun and addictive. I keep...more

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Mar 03, 2013 Eva Suárez rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: tontos-pero-divertidos

Un libro en el medio, entre Unbelievable y Wicked, sobre unas vacaciones... Descontroladas, sobre todo cuando se trata de las cuatro pequeñas mentirosas; Spencer, Aria, Emily y Hanna.

Lo que me gustó de este libro es que, esta vez, no termina con una gran intriga, las chicas perdiendo sus novios o arruinando sus familias; esta vez tienen su lindo final feliz, en algunos casos medio melancólico, como el de Aria, y en otros hilarante, como es el de Spencer.

SPOILER
Me encanta como creció la relación...more

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Jan 17, 2012 Virginia rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This "collection" of Liars stories takes place between two of the previous novels and explains the shenanigans the girls got up to over one eventful winter break. Each Liar gets her own separate section of the novel, which has the effect of intriguingly isolating the types of stories which are usually interspersed amongst each other in the regular PLL books. While the first two stories, which are by far superior to the latter two, benefit from this method, the predictability of the second half o...more This "collection" of Liars stories takes place between two of the previous novels and explains the shenanigans the girls got up to over one eventful winter break. Each Liar gets her own separate section of the novel, which has the effect of intriguingly isolating the types of stories which are usually interspersed amongst each other in the regular PLL books. While the first two stories, which are by far superior to the latter two, benefit from this method, the predictability of the second half of the book stands out more than it would if mixed in with other, more interesting tales.

Hanna's story, which kicks off the proceedings, is an often downright harrowing account of her insecurities mounting after Isabel and Kate move in and start taking over. As usual, Hanna's dad's tiny moments of redemption do little to excuse his often callous neglect of his daughter. This plotline is combined with an often hilarious gym adventure wherein Hanna tries to win the heart of a personal trainer.

Emily actually gets a lighthearted story this time out, which I'm fairly sure has never happened before, and it suits her beautifully. Her attempts to infiltrate a crew of "naughty elves" while working at the mall is cute and even suspenseful.

Aria's section of the book feels like filler, and is the weakest of the four. Her ex-boyfriend from Iceland is so obviously sketchy and lacking in charm that - even though we can buy her emotional desperation and romantic neediness - it's frustrating and fruitless to witness her attempts to make something out of nothing. Elements of this story that are supposed to be funny are just goofy and sometimes even annoying. The panther adventure is actually funnier when fleetingly referred to in the other parts of the book, though not as funny as the Aminowater references.

Spencer enjoys a fun, if by-the-numbers, little romp on vacation in Florida, once again competing with Melissa for a guy who clearly doesn't deserve either one of them. This section reminded me of a quick little Sweet Valley High story, tightly plotted and very readable, but paling in comparison to the earlier parts of Pretty Little Secrets.

Check out my blog: http://virginiamaeblog.blogspot.com/(less)

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Sep 13, 2012 Jenny W. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Pretty Little Secrets
By: Sara Shepard
Realistic Fiction
450 Pages

Aria, Spencer, Emily, and Hanna spend their winter break thinking that "A" is truly gone, but sadly they are wrong. They may not know, but actually a new "A" is watching their every move. These four girls think that Allison's murderer is in jail and "A" is dead but they don't know what really is going on in the small town, Rosewood. First of all Emily is spending her Christmas with the elves in Santaland, little do they know that sh...more

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May 28, 2012 Michael rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: don-t-judge-me

Pretty Little Liars - among so many other YA series that I unabashedly read - have become one of those series that I automatically purchase every time a new installment comes out - usually the day it's released. It took me quite a while to buy Pretty Little Secrets, though, because it seemed like a really awkward add-on to the series: the tenth book was recently released, but this novel takes place between the fourth and fifth ones and revolves around the "scandalous" (I use that term loosely) e...more

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Mar 13, 2012 Emily Brown (TheBrownReviews) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, reads-of-2012

Concept/Ideas: 3.5./5
Storyline(s)/Plot(s):
Hanna: 4/5
Emily: 2/5
Aria: 4/5
Spencer: 2/5

Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 5/5
Overall Rating: 4/5 stars

I really enjoyed this one... I thought it was a nice touch to the series, and I like that it was centered around the Christmas holiday. The only thing that irritated me, was that it took place between Unbelievable and Wicked, which takes you way back. In a way, it was nice because it explained a lot of things that happened in the future books, but it also...more

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Mar 28, 2012 Susana rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: tv-show-movie

My BEFORE research message:
If you are reading the pretty little liars series and you haven't read this book its not worth it. the book doesn't really include A at all and doesn't really contribute to the Pretty little liars series. Someone seriously needs to tell Shepard that the more books you write in a series the less spark the books have (with exceptions to SOME series of course). I really like the series in the beginning but now i don't see the point of reading them and have come to think...more My BEFORE research message:
If you are reading the pretty little liars series and you haven't read this book its not worth it. the book doesn't really include A at all and doesn't really contribute to the Pretty little liars series. Someone seriously needs to tell Shepard that the more books you write in a series the less spark the books have (with exceptions to SOME series of course). I really like the series in the beginning but now i don't see the point of reading them and have come to think the SHOW is better than the books, which is sad to say because i'm a book lover and most book lovers would say that the book is better than the movie, show, etc. but not in this case. Apart from all of that, the book should in no way whatsoever have come out after Ruthless, it should have come out after Unbelievable.

My AFTER research message:
Ok so i did some research when i was trying to find out what book "Pretty little secrets" should have come after and i realized that "Wanted" is the "figuratively" last book in the Pretty little liars series. The reason that Shepard got out 4 more books (twisted, ruthless, pretty little secrets, and [later on]stunning) is[based on the messages i read],because of the tv series. This is what confused me and made me say "Someone seriously needs to tell Shepard that the more books you write in a series the less spark the books have." I now realize that I'm not the only Pretty little liars fan who will be confused and now realizing that "Wanted" is the "figuratively" last book in the series i take my "More books = less spark" comment and the "i really like the series in the beginning....." comment back. I now believe that if you're reading the 4 books that come after the "figuratively" last book, Pretty little secrets should NOT be 1 of the 4 because it STILL doesn't include A and doesn't contribute to the 2 books[Twisted and Ruthless idk about Stunning because it still hasn't come out yet] before it. I still believe that if "Pretty little secrets" was part of the "Pretty little liars" series than it should have come after Unbelievable. I will now say that I still like the series as in "Pretty little liars" all the way to "Wanted." I believe that all Twisted, Ruthless, Pretty little secrets,Stunning, and more books to come are doing is getting pretty little liars fans, who don't know that "Wanted" is the figuratively last book, bored with the series as it was or did happen with me as you can tell from the above message.(less)

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Feb 09, 2012 Ashlee rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I have to say, that it is really odd to me that no matter what kind of mood I am, a Pretty Little Liars book always strikes my fancy. I have to admit, that I was disappointed a little in this book for one reason, it is MISLEADING. The book is supposed to be told from "A"'s perspective, but except for a little tidbit of "A"'s words before and after each girls story, it wasn't from A's perspective at all. Now what I did like about the book, is that there was more. Usually there's about 15 pages ab...more I have to say, that it is really odd to me that no matter what kind of mood I am, a Pretty Little Liars book always strikes my fancy. I have to admit, that I was disappointed a little in this book for one reason, it is MISLEADING. The book is supposed to be told from "A"'s perspective, but except for a little tidbit of "A"'s words before and after each girls story, it wasn't from A's perspective at all. Now what I did like about the book, is that there was more. Usually there's about 15 pages about Hanna, then Aria, Spencer, and Emily. In this book there was about 120 pages for each girl (Generally a PLL book is from the perspective of each of them). So I loved reading more into them and their lives. This book wasn't the next in the series, but rather a "companion" book that is set between books 4 & 5. I'll go in order of the girls to write a review for how I felt about different parts of the book.

Hannah- I really liked her when I was reading the series in the beginning, but now I can't stand her. She is so willing to shove anyone under the bus to get what she wants. In this book her boyfriend Lucas goes on winter vacation a little early, and he doesn't have wifi to Facebook her or anything. We find this out later, but in the meantime she thinks he is ignoring her for an old childhood friend that went with him on the trip, so she starts flirting with this cute gym instructor. She joins a retreat to get herself in shape after she starts to feel bloated and fat. There is a pinup punk chick in the class also who competes with Hannah over the gym instructors attention. I think Hannah acts like a total skank because she is so willing to drop Lucas if cute guy will give her attention. In the end the cute guy chooses the punk chick and when Lucas comes back and Hannah realizes he wasn't purposely ignoring her, then she is totally okay about the cute guy and she focuses her attention back on Lucas. Those kind of qualities in a girl drive me nuts. SHALLOW! So yea, Hannah was not my favorite in this book. She hasn't been a favorite in a long time.

Emily- I think Emily Fields is quite a pushover, and her parts are really not my favorite either, simply because I get annoyed with how much she lets everyone influence everything she does, and she NEVER stands up for herself. Well, I was very wrong in this book. Her part is primarily about her getting a job at "Santa Land" to spy on some girls believed to have taken her mothers ceramic baby Jesus. She befriends the girls but doesn't want to spy, and then her mom gives her an Iphone to use to help spy but Emily doesn't use it for that. Instead though, without telling Emily, her mother put a tracking device on the phone, and one night after Emily goes to a party with the, and starts to actually BOND with them, she decides to join them on one of their pranks. (The girls called themselves 'The Elves'). Her mom traces the phone back to them and they are caught. All the girls think Emily is a narc and spit at her before being rushed off to the police station. Emily grows a pair and sneaks out to the police station that night and blackmails the cop (who she found out was a male stripper on one of her adventures out with the elves.) The Elves are let free and they all know Emily was behind it, so they show up at her house and thank her. I have to say in this book, I was pretty damn proud of Em.

Aria- This girl had a CRAZY role in this book. Aria is trying to deal with her mom being away for the time being and her dad getting some young bitch pregnant. I am disgusted by Byron. The fact that he cheated, ruined his marriage, and then got some girl who's only a few years older than Aria PREGNANT, is just unforgivable in my opinion. I have no idea how Aria doesn't hate him. Or I should say, I have no idea why Sara Shepard doesn't write it that way. But moving on...Aria's dad takes her and her brother Mike to his awesome ski resort for vacation. Little did they know, Meredith (home wrecking preggo) is there. She eats like a bird, pees 100x and pukes like there's no tomorrow. Once Aria finds out all 4 are sharing a room, she heads back to Rosewood by herself. Her father doesn't even STOP her. Once she gets home, her old boyfriend from Iceland finds her because he is 'visiting' family in NY, but there is a layover. This is where the rest of Aria's part just kills me. Halljorn admits he is wanted by the police and he lied about visiting family in NY. Turns out he says he got arrested for protesting the cutting down of some puffin reservation. Which is a lie, he actually tried to burn down the place. Aria only finds this out later. She offers to MARRY this guy to keep him in the states. Aria NEVER thinks before jumping into things. *MAJOR FACE PALM* So she uses some money she has saved up to go to some elaborate Hotel to get married. She forges her mothers name and actually marries this guy. Only after they are married and se ea show at the hotel with live panthers does Hallborn get all 'animal rights' crazy and tries to persuade Aria to help him let the panthers out. She says no and they go back to the hotel. She awakes in the morning to a panic, apparently Hallborn packed his shit and let the panthers out himself. Aria realizes what a psycho shithead she has gotten involved with and goes to the courthouse to get the marriage voided. She tells the lady she forged her mom's signature. Of course because she did it so quickly the records hadn't hit the permanent record books yet so the marriage is like it never happened. Funny how Hallborn doesn't know that though. VERY weird twist in the book. I honestly couldn't say if I liked it or not..it was just so...weird.

Last but not least, Spencer. I have learned that I enjoy certain things about each girl. I LOVE Aria's style, I love Emily's dedication to her friends, and at first I thought all things Hannah were fabulous..but I really think Spencer is my favorite character overall. Through and through I have always really liked her. She is a good friend, she apologized when she is wrong, and sometimes she makes mistakes but will at least admit them and get her head out of her ass. In this book she is going on vacation to Nana Hastings beach house in Florida, even though it's January. Melissa, her evil-hateful sister says they should try to get along since they will both be bored on the trip by themselves. So they play nice and go for a spa day. When they get to the spa they see a cute guy playing tennis. The guy takes an interest in Spencer, and then they play a game later and afterwards are sitting down to a little picnic and then a girl shows up who turns out to be cute guys GIRLFRIEND. Spencer feels really embarrassed and upset. Melissa then helps her plan to get the guy back. They go to this big New years Eve bash and Spencer tries to flaunt it in front of cute guy and then busts her ass by falling. The next morning she goes to a parasailing lesson with him and they seem to hit it off. Finally he breaks up with his girlfriend and guess who he goes after? MELISSA! Melissa had been playing against Spencer the entire trip and winds up stealing cute guy from her. But then Spencer steals him back. In the end it turns out this guy is 33 and married, he has played Melissa AND Spencer. So of course they seek revenge. The slip some Viagra until his Aminospa (a drink mentioned in all 4 girls perspectives). At the end of the book he pops a boner at one of his matches and Spencer and Melissa are there to crack up laughing and giving the three fingered wave. On their way back to Nana Hasting's house, they agree to try to get along better. Melissa says it will not happen overnight but Spencer is hopeful.

So aside from A not really being present in the book...at ALL, it was an amazing book. One of my favorites, even if it isn't in the series but a 'companion' book. (less)

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Jun 21, 2012 Anonymous rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Me and hopefully u depending on who u r

Recommended to Anonymous by: Me, myself, and I

Shelves: gave-up-reading-it-because-the-book

Books like these are so amazing. The only part that annoys me is I want to know what happens to all of the liars at the end of the books. So I read all the last chapters of the liars after I'm done reading the first chapters for them. However, for this book of the series it doesn't really work like that. So please reply to this post to give me spoilers if your awesome and really nice! Love ya readers!

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Oct 31, 2012 Kachina rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Nov 29, 2012 7709julia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the best pretty little liars book i have read so far. Instead of mixing up all the liar's stories, it concentrates on their stories one at a time.

if you have ever read one of these books, you should know that they are usually pretty juicy. usually when i read this series, i am engaged because of the plot, but disappointed at the lack of poetic and descriptive language. However, this book was chock full of great writing AND interesting problems.

it follows the girls on their winter break....more

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Jan 21, 2012 Michelle Shipe rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: kindle

This book is separated into four different sections. One for each character. There is little to no over lapping of the characters. And as of to the end of the book no other characters know about the others secret. I wish this book was out sooner so I could of read it in its intended place (between Wicked and Killer). But I am not convinced that this book was even needed to be added to the series. I much rather the format of the previous books where there is overlapping of the characters stories....more

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Feb 28, 2013 Alex rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: to-read-in-2013, alternating-pov, contemporary, drama, female-pov, fiction, mystery, not-what-i-expected, sara-shepard, romance, owned-books, books-into-shows

Um... This was not one of my favourite's by Sara Shepard. I just found that she wanted to make more money so she made another book, but I guess this book was a little good. First off, Hanna. Wow. This is why I don't like reading your part of the story. You think, he must be doing this so that means I can too! Stupid girl. Emily. Your part was actually one of my favourite's (I think that was partly because you weren't freaking out about a relationship) to read out of this book. That is kinda rare...more

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topics	posts	views	last activity
Is this book worth reading?	5	35	May 09, 2013 07:50pm
Crazy for Young A...: Pretty Little Secrets by Sara Shepard → Start Date: December 15th, 2012	25	19	Dec 17, 2012 03:50pm
Before or after reading Wicked	10	43	May 29, 2012 01:29pm

title link	preview: Pretty Little Secrets: a Pretty Little Liars Collection
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13142761-pretty-little-secrets?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1355344229l/13142761.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13142761-pretty-little-secrets?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Pretty Little Secrets: a Pretty Little Liars Collection by Sara Shepard[/url]

Pretty Little Secrets: a Pretty Little Liars Collection (Pretty Little Liars #4.5)

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