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Lies My Girlfriend Told Me

Julie Anne Peters

3.71 · Rating details · 4,088 ratings · 488 reviews

When Alix's charismatic girlfriend, Swanee, dies from sudden cardiac arrest, Alix is overcome with despair. As she searches Swanee's room for mementos of their relationship, she finds Swanee's cell phone, pinging with dozens of texts sent from a mysterious contact, L.T. The most recent text reads: "Please tell me what I did. Please, Swan. Te amo. I love you."

Shocked and be ...more

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Hardcover, 256 pages

Published June 10th 2014 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

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Lists with This Book

Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater

2014 YA Books with LGBT Themes

193 books — 546 voters

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth

Keeping You a Secret by Julie Anne Peters

Lesbian teen fiction

402 books — 602 voters

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Feb 12, 2014 mg rated it it was amazing

Shelves: teen, 2014, lgbtq, local-interest-colo

Review of ARC received at PLA, 2014:
Readers: please take note of this turning point in teen lit!

I loved this book. Mostly for what it is and what it represents than for the content itself. But what it represents in the broader context is so big, and so wonderful, it trumps any minor quibbles I may have with the plot and/or the writing.

The plot: A seventeen-year-old girl, Alix, is woken one morning by her parents telling her that her girlfriend, Swanee, has suddenly passed away. In the midst of h Review of ARC received at PLA, 2014:
Readers: please take note of this turning point in teen lit!

I loved this book. Mostly for what it is and what it represents than for the content itself. But what it represents in the broader context is so big, and so wonderful, it trumps any minor quibbles I may have with the plot and/or the writing.

The plot: A seventeen-year-old girl, Alix, is woken one morning by her parents telling her that her girlfriend, Swanee, has suddenly passed away. In the midst of her grieving, Alix comes across her dead girlfriend's cell phone and impulsively decides to take it. Alix quickly learns through observing text messages and missed calls that Swanee was clearly seeing another girl - who also very clearly doesn't know that Swanee has passed away. Enter drama, confusion, healing, love, and all the things that teen lit so typically is.

And THAT is what makes this book so amazing. It's just a teen book about romance and relationships and school and life. Not about being gay! There are minor references to when characters came out to their families and how their families are dealing, but it's in NO way central to the plot of this book. It's just a book about teen romance (and betrayal) that features lesbians as the main characters! How fabulous is that??

Julie Anne Peters' book very clearly illustrates how society is changing, and beautifully mirrors those changes that in this plot. And I'm not talking some kind of gay utopia high school a la Boy Meets Boy; this is the real deal. An actual setting (in Northern Colorado) with real characters and real issues that go beyond telling their friends & family that they like people of the same sex. This book discusses what happens (or might happen) next in a young LGBTQ teen's life AFTER that coming out...

This book is a clear barometer of how LGBTQ teen lit is changing on-the-whole. And I'm ridiculously thrilled about that! I can't wait for my library to own it so I can recommend it constantly to teens from all walks of life.

Thank you, Julie Anne Peters!! ...more

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Apr 07, 2017 Chelsea (chelseadolling reads) rated it really liked it

Another book that I read completely on a whim and ended up loving! I just want to read all the F/F YA romances I can get my hands on tbh

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Jan 20, 2014 Journey rated it really liked it

Shelves: diverse-ya, lesbian-main-character, contemporary-ya

i love this SO MUCH that i cannot read any of the one or two star reviews because i know i will end up vehemently arguing with people.

julie anne peters is important to me. when i was in high school, i kept keeping you a secret under my pillow and i think it's the book that made me finally visualize myself as a lesbian, with another girl. and i think she continues that here.

i gave this four stars because no, it's not a literary masterpiece or anything. the plot is solid, but fairly predictable. b ...more

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Sep 15, 2016 Elise (TheBookishActress) rated it really liked it

Shelves: that-lgbtq-rep-tho, read-2015, genre-contemporary, 4-star, that-gay-sapphic-books-shelf

This book is straight-up fluff of the best kind. Despite the dark inital plot, this book is about two people healing together and learning to accept another’s death, along with her bad characteristics.

Alix and Liana have such a sweet relationship. Yes, their relationship is nothing particularly special, but tell me their banter and development isn’t a ton of fun. The idea of two girls getting together after their girlfriend dies is amazing, and was absolutely executed to my satisfaction.

Alix is ...more

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Mar 27, 2017 no rated it liked it

Recommended to no by: Elise (TheBookishActress)

Shelves: lgbtqiap-plus, meh

ahh this is so cute and beautiful I love it 6/10 would recommend if you want something short and sweet

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Aug 04, 2014 Michael rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: audio-book, read-in-2014, summer-reading-2014, young-adult

Perusing reviews of Lies My Girlfriends Told Me, it appears the books is a bit polarizing among readers. There are some who call is "ground breaking" while others are quick to dismiss it as your standard teen angst novel.

My thoughts on the subject are that yes, the novel is full of teen relationship angst and that it's not necessarily as ground breaking as some reviewers would have you believe.

When Alix's girlfriend Swanee passes away of cardiac arrest during a run, Alix's entire world is shat Perusing reviews of Lies My Girlfriends Told Me, it appears the books is a bit polarizing among readers. There are some who call is "ground breaking" while others are quick to dismiss it as your standard teen angst novel.

My thoughts on the subject are that yes, the novel is full of teen relationship angst and that it's not necessarily as ground breaking as some reviewers would have you believe.

When Alix's girlfriend Swanee passes away of cardiac arrest during a run, Alix's entire world is shattered. But not nearly as much as when Alix sneaks into her girlfriend's room and discovers her cell phone full of voice-mails and text messages from LM. Seems that Swanee had more than her fair share of secrets, including the fact that she was in a relationship with not only Alix, but also this mysterious LM.

Driven by a need to find answers, Alix quizzes Swanee's younger sister, Joss for clues and eventually begins to answer back the mysterious LM's texts. Alix eventually founds out that LM is Liana, a cheerleader at another school who Swanee assured Alix she'd broken up with when they got together. Confused, Alix seeks out Liana, wanting to find answers and possibly get some closure. But things get complicated when Alix and Liana share a connection, becoming friends and possibly more.

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me has teenage angst that comes off the page (or in my case through your earbuds) in waves. Alix's conflict about the Swanee she thought she knew and the real Swanee helps drive the novel and helped keep me interested during the first half of the book. The story shows us just how manipulative Swanee really was (she gets Alix to drop all of her friends, see her parents as terrible people for wanting her to help out around the house and not buying her a car, etc.) and it's a nice character arc for Alix to slowly realize that while she loved Swanee, that Swanee wasn't necessarily the great girlfriend in the world. We also see Alix come to realize that Swanee's family has some fundamental problems that she wasn't aware of when Swanee was alive (Swanee's mom reveals that she encouraged her daughter to date as much as possible while she was young. It feels almost as if Mom gave her approval of how manipulative Swanee and her sister Joss are of other's feelings).

A little teen angst can be a good thing, but there are times when it feels like Lies My Girlfriend Told Me seems to be pouring it on. Early on, I realized that Swanee was being emotionally manipulative of both Alix and Liana (she convinces Liana to buy an expensive engagement ring, promising that she'll buy one as well while she has no intention of doing so. She also promises both parties they will go to college together and have their own apartment). Seeing both girls come to terms with this is the novel's most interesting character arc and one that is well earned by the Julie Anne Peters.

Where the novel stumbles is in its portrayal of Alix (at times). There were moments I wanted to reach through the ear buds and tell her to wake up and realize that she was being a perfect little snot to her friends, family and those who care about her. I get that Peters is trying to help us understand just how much Swanee manipulated Alix, but there are times when Alix's feeling of entitlement became a bit cloying and annoying.

There's also the elephant in the room of that fact that Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is a main-stream young adult novel that centers on romantic relationships between people of the same sex. There were times as I listened to the story that the story worked and there were time I felt like this book was being as manipulative to readers (or potential readers) as Swanee was to Alix and Liana. Part of it comes from a lack of really significant or interesting character development. I kept finding myself hoping for a bit more development or understanding of what made Swanee the way she was or why these girls found her so irresistible. Unfortunately, we don't get any answers to this.

And while Alix does go on a bit of a journey, it doesn't necessarily seem like an earned one. Nor does her change feel natural enough or reasonable enough to support some of her parents' decisions (allowing her to take care of her little brother for the weekend, buying her a car) in the novel's closing pages. It felt like this was a bit of wish fulfillment on the part of Alix and Peters with a sudden turnaround in Alix's life that isn't earned. And don't get me started on how easily forgiven Alix is once Liana learns the truth about how they met.

All in all, what started out as a novel with an interesting hook turns out to be little more than a standard YA angst and wish fulfillment novels. It's not as ground-breaking as some would want you to believe, but it's not entirely worth dismissing. Go into it with lowered expectations and you'll probably enjoy most of what Peters is trying to do here. ...more

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Aug 04, 2015 Natasha rated it did not like it

Shelves: lgbtqiap-all, lgbtqiap-lesbian, lgbtqiap-f-f, 0-stars

Okay! So It's been a good 8 months since I read this book. I gave it a short little review expressing how much I didn't like it. But here's the thing, it's that book you hate that doesn't leave you and you can't stop thinking about your seething hatred.

This book is... awful. From the first page I didn't like the writing. It was extremely basic and I'm a genuinely sorry, but her name is Alix? Really? Was the author just trying to make her seem unique?

This book has a lot of problems to it, even Okay! So It's been a good 8 months since I read this book. I gave it a short little review expressing how much I didn't like it. But here's the thing, it's that book you hate that doesn't leave you and you can't stop thinking about your seething hatred.

This book is... awful. From the first page I didn't like the writing. It was extremely basic and I'm a genuinely sorry, but her name is Alix? Really? Was the author just trying to make her seem unique?

This book has a lot of problems to it, even small ones. First off, girlfriend that died (her name is also trying to make her seem unique) was horrible. She displayed abusive characteristics that just weren't addressed which REALLY bothered me.

Next, Alix texting the girl her girlfriend is cheating with, it was just awful of her. And I'm just gonna say it, other girlfriend is stupid. Girlfriend that died gave her a fake name but she somehow didn't connect that the name given to her that was almost identical to her real name, the name plastered on TV (without her picture somehow) wasn't the same girl. That is just unbelievable.

There was a moment she referred to the other girlfriend as her enemy and I was actually shocked. No, this girl is going through exactly what you did, she is in no way your enemy.

Next is that jab at open relationships. It was revealed that girlfriend that died parent's are in an open relationship and it was treated as the reason she had multiple girlfriends. Ok, I'm personally not polyamorous but I found this just to be really disrespectful since open relationships are 100% consensual and for it to be treated as a reason someone cheated is just disrespectful to all polyamorous people.

There's also a point where Alix refereed to girlfriend who died sister as a slut. The issue with this was that the sister was clearly going through trauma and was seeking attention from men. It wasn't 'she could put herself in danger with older men being a minor' this was 'wtf she's dressed like a slut'. Again, found that to be horrible.

(view spoiler)

It's a shame I didn't like this book. I was really excited about the book, I was excited about the mystery. But the mystery part was short and turned into some I hated, into one of my most hated books. I don't usually tell people to not read a book, but don't read this book. It's one of the worst books I've read. There are better lesbian books you could read, this is not one of them. This actually makes me want to not read the authors most popular book Keeping You A Secret'. Maybe it's better, maybe it'll make me break my kindle, I don't know. I'm just angry I wasted my time on this book ...more

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Sep 05, 2018 Lo O'Neill rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, read-in-2018, romance, lesbian-fiction, contemporary, queer

I really wanted to love this book, as a gay teenager growing up in a small town, I craved a novel like this where a gay relationship is just normal and not fraught with the agony of being outed, yet I have had to wait until I was an adult to find it. I can see how a teenager could really find an escapism in this and a hope that their relationship will just be accepted and treated the same way that a hetromormative relationship would be. All that being said, I just found the plot to be a bit lack ...more

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May 26, 2018 Alissa Haley rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook

Review is now up on Diva Reads!

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Sep 17, 2014 Layla rated it liked it

Shelves: lgbt-fiction, ya

Julie Anne Peters’s latest – and last, it seems – novel, Lies My Girlfriend Told Me really made me think about what I want from LGBTQ YA. (It also made me want to check out Julie Anne Peters’s book Luna, which Wendy has read and reviewed.)

To begin: there are lots of things to like about this novel: it avoids the coming-out narrative and surrounding conflict that is common in LGBTQ YA; the queer protagonist isn’t destined to a life of solitude and unending misery; the prose is good (and there are ...more

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Sep 22, 2014 Sabrina Grafenberger rated it it was amazing

Shelves: lgbt, favorites

This book is awesome! Of all the contemporary lgbt romance fiction I've read until now, this one is by far the best.

It has everything I want from a young adult novel and more. The story is intersting and never gets boring, the characters are realisticly written and likeable and the writing style is enjoyable.

I don't want to reveal too much about the plot or what happens, because I think you're better off if I tell you nothing about this book. Just buy your copy and start reading it!

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Sep 25, 2014 Melinda rated it liked it

Shelves: lesbian, young-adult

— A little predictable, but fast-paced and easy to read
— Unlike Julie Anne Peters's Rage, this novel offers a much more subtle — and realistic — portrayal of an abusive relationship: verbal abuse, lies, manipulation, coercion
— While also portraying the importance and elements of a healthy relationship (and family dynamic) without coming off as didactic
— A lesbian young adult novel that isn't a coming out story — all of the characters have already come out, and it's OK
— It's also totally OK to no ...more

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Mar 11, 2014 Rossy rated it it was amazing

Amazing book, so emotional. I really don't know how to review it without spoilers, but I do recommend it, I loved it!
I definitely felt LOTS OF THINGS T___T while reading this book.

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Oct 25, 2018 Claire (Book Blog Bird) rated it really liked it

No one expects to die aged seventeen. So when Swanee (bad name) dies of a cardiac arrest while she's out running, she leaves a lot of loose ends untied. One of which is the fact that she's stringing along two girlfriends. In some respects it's kind of funny, but also kind of arsehole-ish. We never actually meet Swanee, we only hear about her through other characters' recollections of her, but she sounds like a fairly selfish person. The story itself is quite good though, and the MC makes some il ...more

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Mar 08, 2018 Lin rated it liked it

I think I already said that, but I am going to repeat myself, this month is my diverse read month . I am picking only books with diverse characters without even realizing it. LOL and you know what??

Резултат с изображение за and i dont mind it gif

Резултат с изображение за and i dont mind it gif

So having this in mind, expect a lot of diverse book reviews coming your way ^^

Uhmm.... I am like 60% sure that this is the first time that I picked F/F character based book, but don't quote me on that it might be a wrong guess. Anyway, let me jump right into the review part.

This one was a totally ...more

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May 08, 2018 Dylan rated it really liked it

Shelves: lgbt-read, read-in-2018, favorite-of-2018

4.5 stars.

AHHGHHHHHBHBDHSBDSHDBSHDBS THIS WAS SO GOOD!

Diverse, emotional, amazing.

I know I'm in the minority for this, but I just loved it SO much.

Critically, it's probably more of a 3.5-4, but I couldn't help but rate it up because I enjoyed reading it so much!!!

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Aug 11, 2017 Laura rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, romance, lgbtqiap-ya, contemporary, ff-or-sapphic-rep, 4-star

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is an intense read. It’s a f/f YA novel, which I naively assumed to be fluffy and fun, and I did get that to a certain extent – but I also got a book with complex family drama, morally ambiguous characters, and the struggles of growing up.

There were moments I really loved Lies my Girlfriend Told Me and then there were other moments where I severely disliked it. Like I said – it’s a complex novel, especially for a YA.

Alix was an engrossing character: she had just lost w Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is an intense read. It’s a f/f YA novel, which I naively assumed to be fluffy and fun, and I did get that to a certain extent – but I also got a book with complex family drama, morally ambiguous characters, and the struggles of growing up.

There were moments I really loved Lies my Girlfriend Told Me and then there were other moments where I severely disliked it. Like I said – it’s a complex novel, especially for a YA.

Alix was an engrossing character: she had just lost what she thought was the love of her life, and then discovered that the same love was cheating on her. She struggled after the death of Swanee, and her relationship with her parents took a hit. She “rebelled” against them – “rebelled” in quotation marks because her version of rebelling was lying about where she was (all teens do this) and forgetting to call them – and seemed to strain under their regulated rules that she had always lived with.

I was absolutely fascinated by Alix’s growing relationship with Liana, primarily the way it began. Imagine knowingly starting up a relationship with the person your significant other was cheating on you with – what kind of thoughts would run through someone’s head to do that? What kind of a person would do that? I wanted answers to these questions, and for the most part I got them.

Despite the strange way their relationship started, I really adored Alix and Liana’s slow developing romance. There was a lot of cute banter, and enough fluffy scenes to make me swoon.

I absolutely despised Swanee, although the more we learned about her life, the more we understood how she came to be such a person – although that is not an excuse for her behaviour. She was an incredibly abusive young woman, not only to her girlfriends, but to everyone around her, including her younger sister.

Speaking of the younger sister – who’s name I have forgotten, oops – Alix frequently slut-shamed the young girl, who had just lost the person she was closest to in the entire world, and sought attention in all the wrong places. Not to mention, there was a scene where the sister began sleeping with a much older man while she was underage (14/15), and instead of being concerned for this young girl, or even helping her, Alix reinforced the slut-shaming behaviour. Ughhhhhhhhhhhh, no.

Lies my Girlfriend Told Me is definitely not the best f/f YA novel out there, but for the most part, I enjoyed the novel. There were a few instances where I was angry and annoyed at the characters, but I was able to put aside my feelings and enjoy a majority of the book. ...more

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May 21, 2014 Em rated it it was ok

I managed to pick up an ARC of this book at TBF 2014! Which I was really excited to start reading it right away. With that being said the book was okay. The story line and the idea was a great idea. But I think the author is relying on the topic too much. I think the author realized that because this book has to do with lesbians that it would draw people no matter what. I have not read anything else by this author but my understanding is that their other stuff was better than this. The reason I ...more

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Jan 10, 2016 Đurđica Sarjanović rated it really liked it

Shelves: standalone

Everyone would say that Swan is a mean girl, even though she died. But it's not everything about her. I think author wanted to show her readers that everyone deals with grief in their own way. Ups and downs in this book are so intense, and I like stories like that. Special thing about the whole story is that this is no ordinary love triangle. Go on and see yourself :)

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Mar 28, 2016 Jana rated it really liked it · review of another edition

This was a wonderful story! As I'm not a lesbian, I can't really say, but I feel like it was great LGBT representation and a beautiful story. The main character Alix did start off pretty frustrating, but it got a lot better.

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Sep 21, 2014 Mike rated it it was amazing

Shelves: realistic-fiction, best-of-the-year

I first came across Julie Anne Peters when I was thirteen. One of my friends - the first queer person my age that I'd ever met - told me that Luna was one of the only books with a trans character, and that it was really good. I did read it, a few months later, and at the time, I mildly enjoyed it. I read a couple more of her books when I was thirteen, and I enjoyed those as well. But then I turned fourteen, and suddenly, I didn't like any of her novels anymore. I've read three of her novels sin ...more

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Jun 05, 2018 Latanya (CraftyScribbles) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ya, women, romance, realistic-fiction, lgbtqa, contemporary

"We want you know we forgive you and we thank you for bringing us together."

Julie Anne Peters' Lies My Girlfriend Told Me offers fresh blood into YA. Not only does it focus on positive lesbian representation, but it's honest, sweet, and realistic. No one's buried (aka dies). No one suffers for their love. No one becomes this super representation of what being a lesbian precludes by becoming a caricature.

What this story does do is set a tone about grieving and finding friendship and love as res ...more

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Jul 29, 2014 Sarika Patkotwar rated it really liked it

Actual rating- 3.5

The main reason I was looking forward to Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is because it's a LGBT book. I had no idea what to expect from the book, but what is clear by the end of it is that it was- slightly if not overly- beyond my expectations. I haven't read any Julie Anne Peters book before, and now I can't wait to try more of the author's books. I am absolutely astounded and thrilled by the mystery surrounding this book. Lies My Girlfriend Told Me begins with the death of Alix's Actual rating- 3.5

The main reason I was looking forward to Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is because it's a LGBT book. I had no idea what to expect from the book, but what is clear by the end of it is that it was- slightly if not overly- beyond my expectations. I haven't read any Julie Anne Peters book before, and now I can't wait to try more of the author's books. I am absolutely astounded and thrilled by the mystery surrounding this book. Lies My Girlfriend Told Me begins with the death of Alix's "girlfriend", Swanee. She is devastated with the sudden and out-of-nowhere incident and when she visits Swan's place, something makes her pick up Swan's phone and keep it with her. She even texts another of Swan's playmate as I like to call it from the phone of a dead person. That's when Alix and Liana start developing a bond. They connect over the lies Swan fed them, the miscalculated events she plans and the hippie, almost way too free lifestyle her parents let her lead.

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is the first F/F romance that I read. I love LGBT books, but it's usually been more along the lines of GBT for me as yet. That's the reason why I found Lies My Girlfriend Told Me very amusing. It was a whole new world for me. I must admit that sometimes it got a bit cheesy and overboard for me, but like I said, it was an experience and I liked it. The three main characters in the book, Alix, Liana and Swanee were each different in their own ways. The book goes from Alix's point of view. I wish her character was more developed since she lacked some individuality to me, and I wish she had been at a better place with her family. Once we got a deeper look into the story about her relationship with Swan, I got why she acted the way she did and she realised how least bothered she'd been and she wanted to get back to her usual self which is who, I have no idea. Even though a lot of things seemed off to me at a few times, she shared a nice relationship with her parents and she was more of a made to be caring sister to her little brother Ethan. I found it hard to believe but still loved how her family was cool with Alix being a lesbian. It just made everything easier and it added to making the family a strong unit, which I adore.

Alex's relationship with Swanee was just not there. It was wrong on all levels, just like Swanee's relationship with Liana. I had a feeling there was more surrounding Swan's death than just a random attack, but as we moved ahead, I realised I was not going to get the answers I was looking for. I just couldn't seem to like Swan. She was just too much for me, and by that, I mean that she was everything a person shouldn't be, at least not in relationship(s). She was quite the charming and interesting person she's made to sound, but we barely get to know much except for the lies she fed herself and others around her. She was too destructive. Her family was also way beyond normal, and not in an acceptable or nice way. Then we have Liana and her relation with Alix. The two had to fall hard individually, but they got back up together and held hands. Liana seemed like a bitch at first, but she was an okay girl. I liked how Alix and Liana found not just a common point to cry over, gossip about and feel bad for each other about, but they each found a friend in one another, but it straightout irritated me when the two went back to the past in the present.

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is not solely a romance. It's actually more of a thriller with all the mystery surrounding Swan's death, but unfortunately, it's not much of a mystery. There's an air of intrigue and chilly feels that surround the book and it only adds to the charm of it. Author Julie Anne Peters has written it well. Her writing is pretty good and she has executed her story in a simple fashion. From the first page until the very last, there's no point where the reader might get bored. There is a lot happening, and at times it may seem like one thing happens and then the story jumps on to another thing altogether. I was expecting more mystery and I did not get the answers I was looking for but keeping that aside, Lies My Girlfriend Told Me was a really good read. ...more

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May 22, 2014 Jen • Just One More Page rated it it was amazing

Shelves: stand-alones, young-adult, owned, female-authors, glbtqa-authors, contemporary, death, glbtqa, realistic-fiction, romance

This review is also posted on my blog.

(view spoiler) ...more

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Jun 03, 2014 Crystal ✬ Lost in Storyland rated it liked it

Shelves: contemporary, review-copy

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is a likable story with likable characters.

Following the death of their girlfriend Swanee, Alix and Liana discover each other and the double life that Swanee has been living. Both have been emotionally abused by Swanee and have a lot of pent up sadness and anger. As the only ones who understand what the other is going through, they find themselves drawn to each other. Initially, it's hard to connect with them as they alternately withdrawing and lashing out at the world Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is a likable story with likable characters.

Following the death of their girlfriend Swanee, Alix and Liana discover each other and the double life that Swanee has been living. Both have been emotionally abused by Swanee and have a lot of pent up sadness and anger. As the only ones who understand what the other is going through, they find themselves drawn to each other. Initially, it's hard to connect with them as they alternately withdrawing and lashing out at the world in their grief. Alix especially because she doesn't provide an adequate explanation for why she was so depressed and in denial about Swanee's death.

I also don't see how Alix and Liana could be so drawn to each other in such a short period of time. Okay, I can kind of understand considering my own relationship experiences, but both of them were so very strongly drawn to Swanee—as in they thought they were holding forever. I'd expected more of a mourning period even after finding out that Swanee had been duping them. There isn't a strong development of the whole Swanee angle, which I expected considering how large of a role she played in the girls' lives, but it's okay since the story is mostly one of recovering, forgiveness, and finding new love.

It also feels like the stealing Swanee's phone and texting Liana angle was made out to be a greater deal than it is. Alix doesn't seem to have a reasong for withholding this bit of information from Liana, and Liana seems overly angry about the "prank texts" she received. It also doesn't come up all that often in the story—to the point that I wonder why it's there at all. It's not the only plot thread that's loosely woven in the story. All in all, there's a lot of potential for complexity in this novel, but it just didn't live up to them and ended up being a quick read. (Which isn't entirely bad.)

One of the greatest things about this novel is how it could be about anyone. As other reviewers have pointed out, you could replace any of the girls with someone else, boy or girl, and the story would be the same. While there is mention of the girls' sexuality, it isn't made out to be a huge deal or factor largely into the plot, which I liked. It's important to have books addressing the issues that come with sexuality, but it's also important to have books that accept it as a part of life.

Overall, Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is an interesting, captivating read once I got past the first pages and was able to form a connection with Alix and Liana. I recommend this as a quick contemporary read that addresses some serious topics.

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For more of my reviews, visit my blog Imaginary Reads.

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May 31, 2015 Naoms rated it liked it

Shelves: audiobooks, audiobook, contemporary-ya, diverse-ya, lgbt, ya-fiction, read-in-2015

Originally reviewed at: Confessions of an Opinionated Book Geek

Alix loves Swanee. Everyone knows it. Love is the reason she abandoned her best friend. Love is the reason she breaks rules and is in a rocky relationship with her parents. Their love is real. It doesn’t matter what anyone says. It’s forever. Well, it was supposed to be forever and then Swanee died.

Swanee’s death does a lot to Alix, because suddenly she’s alone. No clubs, no after school activities and no friends. Swanee was everyth Originally reviewed at: Confessions of an Opinionated Book Geek

Alix loves Swanee. Everyone knows it. Love is the reason she abandoned her best friend. Love is the reason she breaks rules and is in a rocky relationship with her parents. Their love is real. It doesn’t matter what anyone says. It’s forever. Well, it was supposed to be forever and then Swanee died.

Swanee’s death does a lot to Alix, because suddenly she’s alone. No clubs, no after school activities and no friends. Swanee was everything and in a blink of an eye, Alix lost everything. So, when a text comes into Swanee’s phone from mysterious LT claiming to love Swanee forever, Alix loses it. She has to know who this LT is. She becomes obsesses. She does the unthinkable and texts LT as Swanee. But, she knows that’s not good enough. She has to know more. So, she goes and meets LT and it changes her entire world forever.

I’m torn about this book. It’s a love story and I honestly don’t think it should have been, because it’s just stronger as a coming of age novel. Alix does what many of us do when we’re young. She loses herself completely in her first love. When that love is taken away she can’t function and when she realized that her love had secrets, devastating, world shattering secrets, she has to learn to rebuild herself.

I wish that she could have rebuilt herself alone. I wish that she could have clung to her family and friendship, over love. And, considering who her new love interest is, I just couldn’t buy it.

I feel Julie Anne Peters wanted to tell young people that their first love isn’t everything. That they shouldn’t get all caught up in romance and lose themselves in the relationship, but then Alix just loses herself in yet another friendship. The message is confusing and really undermines the progress Alix makes in the wake of Swanee’s death.

I will say that the lgbt aspect of the book is done well. Because, it’s just a normal teen relationship. The fact that they’re lesbians, that they’re young gay women doesn’t shake the world. Their love is normal, because all love is normal. Swanee could have been named Jake and it would have been the same exact story. Love is love and I think this novel is really good at highlighting this.

At the end of the day this book isn’t awful. My own preferences on what I wish the story was, is why it’s only a 3, but I think many of you will really enjoy it.

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Jun 17, 2014 Kelsey rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2014, e-book

This is my second book by Julie Anne Peters and it certainly won't be my last. Lies My Girlfriend Told Me dealt with a lot of heavy subjects, but it never felt like an "issues book" to me, something that I was very happy about. For example, there was no need to make a big deal about the sexuality of the main characters, they were who they were and that was that. Family, death, and love were just a few of the topics explored in this latest offering from Peters and I would recommend it to any fan
This is my second book by Julie Anne Peters and it certainly won't be my last. Lies My Girlfriend Told Me dealt with a lot of heavy subjects, but it never felt like an "issues book" to me, something that I was very happy about. For example, there was no need to make a big deal about the sexuality of the main characters, they were who they were and that was that. Family, death, and love were just a few of the topics explored in this latest offering from Peters and I would recommend it to any fan of contemporary YA with a grittier feel.

Alix's girlfriend, Swanee, dies tragically and it is only after this that Alix discovers the truth about the girl she thought she loved. The biggest plot element was Alix discovering her late girlfriend had been cheating on her with a girl named Liana. I liked Liana's character and she brought out a new side of Alix. Unfortunately Alix is hiding something from Liana and this might tear them apart forever.

Alix was a complex character. She seemed to be struggling to find herself and didn't always know the right thing to do. I liked how big of a role family played in this book. Alix's parents and younger brother were key players in the story and I especially enjoyed watching Alix's relationship with her baby brother develop. Alix also interacts with Swanee's family and it was interesting to see how different Swanee's family life was from Alix's and how that shaped them individually.

While I liked this book overall, I did have a few issues. First off, I sometimes felt frustrated with Alix's character and wanted her to be more independent and confident. I also wish we got to see more of Swanee before she died so I could better understand who she was.

Contemporary YA is one of my favorite genres and Julie Anne Peters has written a unique read that many readers can relate to in some way. She faces the struggles of being a teenager head on and I will definitely be reading more by her in the future. There are not a lot of young adult books out that feature LGBTQ characters and while Lies My Girlfriend Told Me wasn't perfect, I would still recommend it to fans of contemporary reads.
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Jul 09, 2016 Ashleigh rated it liked it

Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is a YA Lesbian… I’m tempted to say ‘coming of age’ story. The story focuses on Alix as she comes to terms with the sudden death of Swanee (Yes, those names) her first love and first girlfriend.

I read this completely on a whim, I’m currently reading Game of Thrones and just finished the Daughter of smoke and bone and fancied something light and fun…. Why I picked this I don’t know. It was definitely a fast read and in that essence light but fun - it was not.

Swanee, w Lies My Girlfriend Told Me is a YA Lesbian… I’m tempted to say ‘coming of age’ story. The story focuses on Alix as she comes to terms with the sudden death of Swanee (Yes, those names) her first love and first girlfriend.

I read this completely on a whim, I’m currently reading Game of Thrones and just finished the Daughter of smoke and bone and fancied something light and fun…. Why I picked this I don’t know. It was definitely a fast read and in that essence light but fun - it was not.

Swanee, we find out through the story was manipulative to the point of cruelty, not only to Alix but to her sister and ex-girlfriends, we don’t seem to get much more in-depth than that… she seemed to just be one-dimensionally “bad”. Early on in the story, we do learn her home life is chaotic but I really felt her actions and motives should really have been explored and addressed.

Alix we discover through the story doesn’t really have much of a personality… we see the occasional wit but mostly she’s very angsty, I guess I’m too old and my days of considering asking taxi drivers to drive into walls and kill me because my girlfriend/friend were upset with me are long forgotten, So basically I found it hard to warm to her as a character.

Liana, The “secret” girlfriend, I found more interesting, she was a lot more relatable and more than a few times I found myself wishing the book had been written from her point of view instead of Alixs’ .

The book had a good flow and despite my quarrels with the protagonist, my attention was kept and I finished the book in a sitting. I’ve read a few reviews saying this book is “ground-breaking”, I wouldn’t go that far … but I can see it being made into a good movie, the style of riding in cars with boys or Thirteen or something…

Overall it was ok… the world was a bit rosy… there were ideas I think should have been developed more… we don’t get much closure but I found it interesting enough and I’ll be checking out some more of Julie Anne Peters work.
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Aug 30, 2014 Teagan (TEAZ) rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2016, books-borrowed-from-library, books-i-binge-read, first-time-with-this-author, underhyped

So, I don't know how I've done it, me, someone who suffers terribly from reading slumps, has finished two books in less than 24 hours. Who knew I had it in me.

Anyway, to the review.

I loved this book - I saw that the reviews weren't the highest, and it made me hesitant, but I've had this book on my iPad forever, and then I saw the physical copy in the library - I just had to borrow it.

I went into this book knowing nothing about it, like, at all. At first, I felt like this was going to have some ...more

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Jul 08, 2014 Kara rated it it was amazing

I loved this book. So great to see a book with strong LGBT themes that has nothing to do with the struggles of coming out or facing raging homophobia. Obviously those are important but they aren't the only things that LGBT teens experience.
I loved the portrayal of grief.
One question I had was about Ethan. Alix is clearly 16/17 while he is ~1. This significant age gap is never mentioned. Especially since there seemed to be some significant health issues I thought it would turn out that he was ad ...more

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About Julie Anne Peters

Julie Anne Peters

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Julie Anne Peters was born in Jamestown, New York. When she was five, her family moved to the Denver suburbs in Colorado. Her parents divorced when she was in high school. She has three siblings: a brother, John, and two younger sisters, Jeanne and Susan.

Her books for young adults include Define "Normal" (2000), Keeping You a Secret (2003), Luna (2004), Far from Xanadu (2005), Between Mom and Jo ( ...more