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Lie to Me
Ever since Amelia woke up in the hospital, recovering from a near-death fall she has no memory of, she's been suspicious. Her friends, family, and doctors insist it was an accident, but Amelia is sure she remembers being pushed. Then another girl is found nearby -- one who fell, but didn't survive. Amelia's fears suddenly feel very real, and with the help of her new boyfriend, Liam, she tries to investigate her own horrific ordeal. But what is she looking for, exactly? And how can she tell who's trustworthy, and who might be -- must be -- lying to her?
The closer Amelia gets to the truth, the more terrifying her once orderly, safe world becomes. She's determined to know what happened, but if she doesn't act fast, her next accident might be her last.
The closer Amelia gets to the truth, the more terrifying her once orderly, safe world becomes. She's determined to know what happened, but if she doesn't act fast, her next accident might be her last.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 7, 2020
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February 3, 2022A Review from a Middle School Teacher:
"Lie to Me," by Kaitlin Ward was recommended to me by a reluctant reader at the school I'm currently teaching at. She absolutely consumed this book. She's 13, a typical middle school girl and I think the exact demographic that this book is aimed for.
I'm 29, well-read and I figured out the mystery just from reading the back cover. I'm not this book's demographic.
I think this is an excellent book for reluctant readers because the action starts from the beginning. There's quite a bit of romance - so much that it felt a little excessive to me at times - and plenty of friendship fights, sibling rivalry and respect and more.
What I liked:
-the heroine and her brother have a nice relationship
-depression is handled delicately and mental illness in general is not portrayed as anything to be ashamed of
-bisexuality is represented well, as is lesbianism
-the family unit is solid and there is respect for the parents
What I would warn parents about:
-there is a lot of physical contact; while there is no sex, there is plenty of kissing, handholding, etc.
-the main character is part of the LGBTQ+ community (bisexuality & lesbianism); while I liked the representation, parents should know what is in this book for their own children.
And that's it. Overall, I think this is a nice 7th or 8th grade book for a quick read and might get those reluctant readers finally reading.
"Lie to Me," by Kaitlin Ward was recommended to me by a reluctant reader at the school I'm currently teaching at. She absolutely consumed this book. She's 13, a typical middle school girl and I think the exact demographic that this book is aimed for.
I'm 29, well-read and I figured out the mystery just from reading the back cover. I'm not this book's demographic.
I think this is an excellent book for reluctant readers because the action starts from the beginning. There's quite a bit of romance - so much that it felt a little excessive to me at times - and plenty of friendship fights, sibling rivalry and respect and more.
What I liked:
-the heroine and her brother have a nice relationship
-depression is handled delicately and mental illness in general is not portrayed as anything to be ashamed of
-bisexuality is represented well, as is lesbianism
-the family unit is solid and there is respect for the parents
What I would warn parents about:
-there is a lot of physical contact; while there is no sex, there is plenty of kissing, handholding, etc.
-the main character is part of the LGBTQ+ community (bisexuality & lesbianism); while I liked the representation, parents should know what is in this book for their own children.
And that's it. Overall, I think this is a nice 7th or 8th grade book for a quick read and might get those reluctant readers finally reading.
December 27, 2021
Rep: bi mc, lesbian li
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January 6, 2020A murder mystery at the core.
Amelia had a fall, but she was sure she was pushed. Girls were being killed and that scared her. Had she been the target of a serial killer or was that an accident?
My first book by Kaitlin Ward, the book was fast paced. It had hints of murder mystery, but it was basically a high school drama with rampant hormones in most parts. Amelia was a typical teen. Her relationship with mom and brother was good. Rest had too much drama.
Liam as the boyfriend felt supportive. Characters were few, with not many red herrings so it was easy to guess. Only the killer understood reasons for murder and justified it. I didn’t!!
Then came my niggles, writing was juvenile. Where the blurb said thriller, the book had more of romance. Ugghh!! What a waste of good cover.
Overall, the book is good only for teenagers.
Amelia had a fall, but she was sure she was pushed. Girls were being killed and that scared her. Had she been the target of a serial killer or was that an accident?
My first book by Kaitlin Ward, the book was fast paced. It had hints of murder mystery, but it was basically a high school drama with rampant hormones in most parts. Amelia was a typical teen. Her relationship with mom and brother was good. Rest had too much drama.
Liam as the boyfriend felt supportive. Characters were few, with not many red herrings so it was easy to guess. Only the killer understood reasons for murder and justified it. I didn’t!!
Then came my niggles, writing was juvenile. Where the blurb said thriller, the book had more of romance. Ugghh!! What a waste of good cover.
Overall, the book is good only for teenagers.
September 14, 2019
DNF. I read an I corrected proof. I read the first 50 pages and last 30. The first chapter made it seem mysterious enough that teens might get intrigued, but it was poorly written and full of cliches and a bit over the top. I was looking for a teen mystery to recommend to my students: this isn’t it. I’d give it one star, but since I didn’t finish it, I gave it one for the possibility of the middle redeeming g the over explained beginning and ridiculous end.
January 10, 2020
Amelia wakes from nearly falling to her death, unable to recall what happens and doctors say she may never remember. Everyone says the fall was an accident, but Amelia thinks someone tried to push her. And she’s not the only one. Two other teenage girls have been killed. The creepy guy next door might be the culprit. Or not. Now Amelia is getting threatening texts. Time may be running out.
Amelia has a LOT going on. Not only is she recovering from a concussion and broken arm, she’s questioning her sexual orientation with crushes on both a close female friend and her brother’s teammate and nemesis. She and her BFF are fighting too.
Having a positive reading experience means more to me than the quality of writing. Although I guessed the culprit Kaitlin Ward’s LIE TO ME and the writing was mediocre, it was a fun, easy read that provided me hours of enjoyment.
Amelia has a LOT going on. Not only is she recovering from a concussion and broken arm, she’s questioning her sexual orientation with crushes on both a close female friend and her brother’s teammate and nemesis. She and her BFF are fighting too.
Having a positive reading experience means more to me than the quality of writing. Although I guessed the culprit Kaitlin Ward’s LIE TO ME and the writing was mediocre, it was a fun, easy read that provided me hours of enjoyment.
December 7, 2020
Amelia nearly died. Her friends, family, and doctors all say the near-fatal fall was an accident, but Amelia remembers being pushed. When another girl who had previously went missing was found dead nearby, and had also fallen, just hadn’t survived, Amelia becomes suspicious. Not just of the creepy neighbor who seems to be watching her, but everyone. Friends, family, and with the help of her incredible new boyfriend, Liam, she tries to investigate. The entire book is entertaining, and it’s the twist at the end that I feel like a idiot for not realizing sooner. AMAZING!
August 11, 2023
2.5 I didn’t like sky and the only character I really liked was Grace. Wow this book is one that just bored me the entire time. It wasn’t bad but that didn’t make it good to me either. It was obvious by the 20% mark who the killer was. But it was on my TBR and it’s read so I call that in some way a win. I never thought such a short book would take me so long to read.
January 10, 2020
Uuuuuuuugh.
I don't know what to say about this book other than that I was really disappointed by it from start to finish.
I didn't care about the romance or the mystery. I cared about Grace and Amelia's friendship, and Sky, and that was about it. While there were some interesting things said and I liked the focus on how trauma affects everyone in a person's life, overall it was extremely disappointing.
I think my least favorite part was
One star, unfortunately. Not well written enough to make up for the plot. :(
I don't know what to say about this book other than that I was really disappointed by it from start to finish.
I didn't care about the romance or the mystery. I cared about Grace and Amelia's friendship, and Sky, and that was about it. While there were some interesting things said and I liked the focus on how trauma affects everyone in a person's life, overall it was extremely disappointing.
I think my least favorite part was
One star, unfortunately. Not well written enough to make up for the plot. :(
August 20, 2021
Eh.
This book wasn't bad, per see. It was just... a bit bland. And I always hate to say this, but I think this should've been longer. Amelia jumps from "I have a bad feeling about my accident" to "I'm going to take these insane measures to ensure my own safety," but she's not the only one. The culprit starts sending creepy messages WAY too soon - that's one way to guarantee someone won't let something go!
The ending wasn't bad, but Amelia was kind of being an idiot. The characters weren't terrible, though, and I liked that Amelia was bi. 2/5 stars.
This book wasn't bad, per see. It was just... a bit bland. And I always hate to say this, but I think this should've been longer. Amelia jumps from "I have a bad feeling about my accident" to "I'm going to take these insane measures to ensure my own safety," but she's not the only one. The culprit starts sending creepy messages WAY too soon - that's one way to guarantee someone won't let something go!
The ending wasn't bad, but Amelia was kind of being an idiot. The characters weren't terrible, though, and I liked that Amelia was bi. 2/5 stars.
November 26, 2019
Not sure why but Kaitlyn Ward's books I always love.
July 26, 2020
”I don’t want someone to have tried to kill me. But if they did, I want to know who it was. And why me. And I want to catch them before they try it again.”
Synopsis: Solving mysteries is fun, but kissing is even more fun, as one girl finds out as she tries to solve the mystery of who tried to kill her but gets frustratingly distracted by kissing her boo-thang.
Biblio-Babble
We Could’ve Had It All: There is no feeling quite like the feeling of being disappointed. When I was a kid, knowing that my parents were disappointed in me felt even worse than if they were angry at me. Somehow, the disappointment cuts deeper than anger. And boy oh boy, was I disappointed in this book.
What makes this so tragic (melodramatic much, but this is a YA novel, after all) is that up until the final act, this book was SO GOOD. There were so many good elements to this novel that I was prepared to give this sucker five stars. I rarely, if ever, give out 5 stars to books, and I rarely give them to YA mystery novels. There were so many good elements that this book had that it made it an enjoyable and fast read. I probably could have finished this think in a single night if I weren’t a complete grandma and was too tired to read another page.
The Land of Communication: The first element that I need to note that was done particularly well was the amount of communicating and understanding each character had between not only themselves, but with others. It’s actually possible to write mature YA characters, y’all. Authors, please take note.
Amelia had such a wonderful relationship with her parents and brothers and friends. Her friend group was honestly one of the most supportive friend groups I’ve read about. They had their arguments and disagreements, but after they cooled off they took the time to talk about what went wrong, apologized (gasp!), and discuss what they could do better the next time.
I can’t fucking believe it. That’s a goddamn unicorn element that’s missing in so many YA novels.
Their frank and honest discussions of mental health and sexuality were so refreshing to read about. Yes, it’s true that a lot of teenagers make a lot of mistakes because they’re young and trying to figure things out. Some make more mistakes than others. However, there is a sect of mature YA teens that take the time to actually have honest conversations with each other, and this is one instance of that. It was so much appreciated.
Um, Guys? We Have a Mystery to Solve: This is marketed as a YA romantic thriller, but I would put a hell of a lot more emphasis on the romantic element than the mystery element. Amelia suffered a fall at a creek which her friends, family, and doctor think was nothing more than an accident. However, there’s a nagging feeling in the back of her head that she was pushed instead of her just falling. She keeps these suspicions to herself and tries to solve the mystery… but then this hot guy shows up and that plan goes partially out the window.
Liam is essentially the picture of the perfect boyfriend. Attentive, supportive, and drop-dead handsome, I’m pretty sure the author modeled him to be the perfect dreamboat. But the more time the main character spent with him, the more the mystery got pushed to the side. Because making out with hot guys is totes more interesting. Amelia obviously never read any Nancy Drew books: ”Romance and detective work won’t mix tonight.”
Look, I’m all for my mysteries to have a little bit of kissing, but I don’t want it to take over the plotline. This book is the equivalent of what would happen if a director of movie yells “cut,” but the two players keep on kissing. It’s like, y’all. You can stop now. The take has ended. Let’s move on, shall we?
Shades of Gossip Girl: One of my favorite shows as a preteen/teen was Gossip Girl. It made me partial to headbands and New York, and I was absolutely obsessed with it. It was the Riverdale of my generation. The show started when I was in 7th grade and ended when I was in 12th grade; so I essentially grew up along with it.
Anyways, the resounding question that surrounded that show (other than where did everyone get their chic outfits), is who was Gossip Girl. Everyone had their theories, and there were hints dropped here and there, but it was essentially kept under wraps.
The show inevitably ended, which meant that we would finally get to find out who the elusive Gossip Girl was.
They were revealed, readers. And it should have stayed a mystery.
Absolutely nobody was right in their guess. Not the viewers, not the media. Nobody. It was completely, utterly, maniacally ridiculous. Even worse, there was a reason it was so ridiculous.
Considering the show ended almost eight years ago, I shouldn’t have to use spoiler tags, but to err on the side on Internet caution, Imma use them anyways.
I give you this extremely long comparison because the last half of the book felt exactly like that. I think the author, editor, publisher, or a combination of all three had a an original killer in mind, but hit the panic button somewhere halfway through and changed it to be another person.
They shouldn’t have hit the panic button, because it killed the entire mood of the book. It went from being a top-notch YA novel to a ridiculous one. And the exact same thing happened. You spent the whole time thinking that Amelia’s attacker is one person (pretty obvious), and then around the 80% mark a whole new theory is thrown at you and the main character. Everything after that felt extremely unbelievable and contrived.
*****************************************
This book had so much potential. It had great character development, wonderful communication skills, and frank discussions about mental health and sexuality. It was all going well until someone hit the panic button and made the ending a completely convoluted mess. All the positive elements can’t really make up for that colossal blunder, and that’s a damn shame. I would still pick this up if you’re looking for a quick YA romantic thriller, but be warned that the ending will leave a confused taste in your mouth.
Synopsis: Solving mysteries is fun, but kissing is even more fun, as one girl finds out as she tries to solve the mystery of who tried to kill her but gets frustratingly distracted by kissing her boo-thang.
Biblio-Babble
We Could’ve Had It All: There is no feeling quite like the feeling of being disappointed. When I was a kid, knowing that my parents were disappointed in me felt even worse than if they were angry at me. Somehow, the disappointment cuts deeper than anger. And boy oh boy, was I disappointed in this book.
What makes this so tragic (melodramatic much, but this is a YA novel, after all) is that up until the final act, this book was SO GOOD. There were so many good elements to this novel that I was prepared to give this sucker five stars. I rarely, if ever, give out 5 stars to books, and I rarely give them to YA mystery novels. There were so many good elements that this book had that it made it an enjoyable and fast read. I probably could have finished this think in a single night if I weren’t a complete grandma and was too tired to read another page.
The Land of Communication: The first element that I need to note that was done particularly well was the amount of communicating and understanding each character had between not only themselves, but with others. It’s actually possible to write mature YA characters, y’all. Authors, please take note.
Amelia had such a wonderful relationship with her parents and brothers and friends. Her friend group was honestly one of the most supportive friend groups I’ve read about. They had their arguments and disagreements, but after they cooled off they took the time to talk about what went wrong, apologized (gasp!), and discuss what they could do better the next time.
I can’t fucking believe it. That’s a goddamn unicorn element that’s missing in so many YA novels.
Their frank and honest discussions of mental health and sexuality were so refreshing to read about. Yes, it’s true that a lot of teenagers make a lot of mistakes because they’re young and trying to figure things out. Some make more mistakes than others. However, there is a sect of mature YA teens that take the time to actually have honest conversations with each other, and this is one instance of that. It was so much appreciated.
Um, Guys? We Have a Mystery to Solve: This is marketed as a YA romantic thriller, but I would put a hell of a lot more emphasis on the romantic element than the mystery element. Amelia suffered a fall at a creek which her friends, family, and doctor think was nothing more than an accident. However, there’s a nagging feeling in the back of her head that she was pushed instead of her just falling. She keeps these suspicions to herself and tries to solve the mystery… but then this hot guy shows up and that plan goes partially out the window.
Liam is essentially the picture of the perfect boyfriend. Attentive, supportive, and drop-dead handsome, I’m pretty sure the author modeled him to be the perfect dreamboat. But the more time the main character spent with him, the more the mystery got pushed to the side. Because making out with hot guys is totes more interesting. Amelia obviously never read any Nancy Drew books: ”Romance and detective work won’t mix tonight.”
Look, I’m all for my mysteries to have a little bit of kissing, but I don’t want it to take over the plotline. This book is the equivalent of what would happen if a director of movie yells “cut,” but the two players keep on kissing. It’s like, y’all. You can stop now. The take has ended. Let’s move on, shall we?
Shades of Gossip Girl: One of my favorite shows as a preteen/teen was Gossip Girl. It made me partial to headbands and New York, and I was absolutely obsessed with it. It was the Riverdale of my generation. The show started when I was in 7th grade and ended when I was in 12th grade; so I essentially grew up along with it.
Anyways, the resounding question that surrounded that show (other than where did everyone get their chic outfits), is who was Gossip Girl. Everyone had their theories, and there were hints dropped here and there, but it was essentially kept under wraps.
The show inevitably ended, which meant that we would finally get to find out who the elusive Gossip Girl was.
They were revealed, readers. And it should have stayed a mystery.
Absolutely nobody was right in their guess. Not the viewers, not the media. Nobody. It was completely, utterly, maniacally ridiculous. Even worse, there was a reason it was so ridiculous.
Considering the show ended almost eight years ago, I shouldn’t have to use spoiler tags, but to err on the side on Internet caution, Imma use them anyways.
I give you this extremely long comparison because the last half of the book felt exactly like that. I think the author, editor, publisher, or a combination of all three had a an original killer in mind, but hit the panic button somewhere halfway through and changed it to be another person.
They shouldn’t have hit the panic button, because it killed the entire mood of the book. It went from being a top-notch YA novel to a ridiculous one. And the exact same thing happened. You spent the whole time thinking that Amelia’s attacker is one person (pretty obvious), and then around the 80% mark a whole new theory is thrown at you and the main character. Everything after that felt extremely unbelievable and contrived.
*****************************************
This book had so much potential. It had great character development, wonderful communication skills, and frank discussions about mental health and sexuality. It was all going well until someone hit the panic button and made the ending a completely convoluted mess. All the positive elements can’t really make up for that colossal blunder, and that’s a damn shame. I would still pick this up if you’re looking for a quick YA romantic thriller, but be warned that the ending will leave a confused taste in your mouth.
January 4, 2021
My daughter wanted me to read this one to see if it was okay for her to. I think it was a pretty good YA book it was very predictable and I would have liked a little more detail at the end. That being said who the book was written for it was probably enough...
December 8, 2022
It was very obvious what happened and there was really nothing else interesting
Want to read
December 27, 2019This hasn’t gotten the best of ratings but it looks hella good so into the 2020 tbr pile it goes...
January 22, 2020
Amelia has woken up in the hospital after falling over a cliff that she's visited countless times. With a broken arm and a concussion, she can't remember the fall, but she has a feeling that it was more than just a fall. What's worse, is that this isn't a single incident, yet she isn't sure if she should speak up about her feelings. We follow her in her not only in her quest to figure out what happened to her but as she navigates her friendships and relationships.
I had mixed feelings about Amelia. At times she was rather funny, and I really liked her. But other times, she had suspicions and gut feelings, and she just ignored them. True, I'm not a teenager anymore, so I can't say if that's typical, but it doesn't feel it. As far as the writing, it was simplistic, with some poor word choice here and there (saying crafting supplies were inexplicable when her mother is crafting Halloween decorations, for example).
I felt Grace and Sky's characters could have been more developed because they made great friends to Amelia. I also really liked how well Amelia and her brother got along because that isn't always typical, so it was refreshing. I had the plot mentally written out before it came to fruition somewhere around 30% in, but it didn't stop me from reading because it was an enjoyable read. There's a bit of everything in this one, some thriller, some romance, and some general feel-good moments, so I think this will be a hit or miss for some readers. Overall I liked it.
I had mixed feelings about Amelia. At times she was rather funny, and I really liked her. But other times, she had suspicions and gut feelings, and she just ignored them. True, I'm not a teenager anymore, so I can't say if that's typical, but it doesn't feel it. As far as the writing, it was simplistic, with some poor word choice here and there (saying crafting supplies were inexplicable when her mother is crafting Halloween decorations, for example).
I felt Grace and Sky's characters could have been more developed because they made great friends to Amelia. I also really liked how well Amelia and her brother got along because that isn't always typical, so it was refreshing. I had the plot mentally written out before it came to fruition somewhere around 30% in, but it didn't stop me from reading because it was an enjoyable read. There's a bit of everything in this one, some thriller, some romance, and some general feel-good moments, so I think this will be a hit or miss for some readers. Overall I liked it.
December 9, 2019
So this book was ok. Not my favorite though. (3.5)
i liked the story line, but there wasn't much drama, yes there was the occasional little speed bump, but that was it. It was also very obvious Liam was the killer. I realized it when he showed up out of nowhere. Also the whole thing about found corpse bugs was I dunno, a little suspicious.
Also I mean this in the nicest way possible, Amelia's conflicting feelings with Liam and Grace were just kinda thrown in there. It just felt a little out of place with the story line.
i liked the story line, but there wasn't much drama, yes there was the occasional little speed bump, but that was it. It was also very obvious Liam was the killer. I realized it when he showed up out of nowhere. Also the whole thing about found corpse bugs was I dunno, a little suspicious.
Also I mean this in the nicest way possible, Amelia's conflicting feelings with Liam and Grace were just kinda thrown in there. It just felt a little out of place with the story line.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 14, 2019
This book was about a girl named Amelia who was pushed off of a guard rail waiting for one of her friends Sky. She finds out that the same day another girl was found dead in the lake she was near when she was pushed. Amelia is determined to find out who tried to kill her and who killed three other teenaged girls. I definity recommend this book for people who like murder mysteries. This book will keep you interested the whole way thought.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 15, 2020
Lie to Me was a very quick read with a plot full of potential. I was kinda let down because it was over the top for me and overwhelming. The characters were so so, and some characters were just no. There is a f/f romance. I love how it had you just stringing along until the very end where the culprit was right in your face. I give this a good ol’ 3!
January 25, 2021
Lie To Me by Kaitlin Ward is a romantic, mysterious, and adventurous book. This book is about a 17 year old girl named Amelia. She has been pushed off of a guardrail into the creek. Thankfully she was found by her friend Sky, she found her on a branch that saved her from falling and dying. She went back to school to find that a boy Liam likes her and was worried for her. They end up being together for a while. In this book you get the suspense that leads up to finding out who tried killing Amelia.
I think this book is a very good book that you get sucked into and can't put down. I this is because of how the author leaves you off with cliffhangers and makes the book mysterious and makes you think and want to be apart of the story. She has a few things in the book that makes me think of who tried to kill Amelia and makes you be like a detective like. She structures this book so well by building and building ideas and details that makes you so involved and loving to this book.
I think this is a great book for people to read and want to read more because of books like this and by the same author Kaitlin Ward. If you like romance it's for you, if it mystery you like this can be for you too. This book and books published by POINT are the reason why I am reading more because they pull you in and get your attention.
I think this book is a very good book that you get sucked into and can't put down. I this is because of how the author leaves you off with cliffhangers and makes the book mysterious and makes you think and want to be apart of the story. She has a few things in the book that makes me think of who tried to kill Amelia and makes you be like a detective like. She structures this book so well by building and building ideas and details that makes you so involved and loving to this book.
I think this is a great book for people to read and want to read more because of books like this and by the same author Kaitlin Ward. If you like romance it's for you, if it mystery you like this can be for you too. This book and books published by POINT are the reason why I am reading more because they pull you in and get your attention.
January 25, 2023
I love the the mystery and how she was trying to figure out what happened to her
July 18, 2023
So much suspense during this book
March 25, 2022
Defenitly a really good book! One of my favorites.
October 22, 2019
It was awsome.
March 10, 2020
It is a good book if you want a short read and don’t mind cliches. The plot was pretty predictable but it was entertaining enough to make up for that.
December 4, 2019
Meh...it was ok. Some middle school student will probably like it.
November 27, 2019
I personally did not like this book at all.Very weird and would not recommend this to anybody. I found the storyline hard to follow It didn't make sense.
December 13, 2019
ARC received through the Young Adult Literature Festival (Y'ALLFest)
If there's such a thing as a trashy murder mystery, this is it. Rife with tropes and cliches, the only thing thing that made it stand out in my mind was the fact that the protagonist was bisexual, which was refreshing. The mystery itself, however, was transparent and predictable (and that's coming from someone who binge-read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys).
If there's such a thing as a trashy murder mystery, this is it. Rife with tropes and cliches, the only thing thing that made it stand out in my mind was the fact that the protagonist was bisexual, which was refreshing. The mystery itself, however, was transparent and predictable (and that's coming from someone who binge-read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys).
February 3, 2020
I really enjoyed this book. I kinda knew who it was before the end of the book, but was hoping I was wrong. It's a great, quick read. Took me a day and a half to read while at school.
December 25, 2022
i agree with the avg rating-started off a bit boring, a YA-ish novel and then took a kinda gross turn
November 18, 2019
Drowning is one of the top fears in the world, and it's also one of the top ways to cover up a murder. In Lie to Me, Ward's fourth YA novel, she uses drowning as the basis of the story. Yet, this book fell very short in the thriller/mystery genre: Ward gives away too many hints at the beginning of the book, that most readers will have the murderer figured out by chapter 7; she also focuses too much on romance, something that should have caused this story to be filed under a different category other than mystery/thriller. But luckily she didn't bring in a wide circle of characters to cause confusion, using only one view point from the main character of Lie to Me: Amelia- - - a teen girl who believes she was pushed down a ravine to be left for dead in the raging water below.
Besides her 'accident,' Amelia leads a normal life with her mother, father and brother, Hunter - - - she also has a small group of friends. After her 'fall,' a body of a teen girl from the same town is found in a nearby river, but the town gossips, and makes it seem that this girl committed suicide, leaving Amelia worried that her family would think the same thing about her. Depression is something that Amelia's family has had to deal with before, but the talk of depression is candid and not very enlightening; her brother, Hunter, who is in therapy for such doesn't even talk about it, instead he's usually seen playing soccer or Fortnite, this seems to be a broad attempt to bring mental health into the story,but without going into that subject, it failed as a story line. Yet, one of the main causes of depression today is social media, which we find Amelia stalking one of her best friends/love interest on- - -if Ward was trying to reach the YA community about depression, she went the wrong way about it.
Another mistake that Ward made was when Amelia receives an anonymous text message from someone telling her to 'Just let it go,Amelia,' this occurs after she has started investigating whether her 'accident' was an accident. Amelia tells us that she is always suspicious of everyone, but when this text message comes around, it's as if she could care less. She even tries to take the anonymous message as advice: " 'Or it's advice.' I feel backed into a corner. It's one thing to believe someone hurt me and another thing to have proof of it. I don't want this to be proof. 'I mean, Sky's always telling me I should let my life get back to normal, and she doesn't even know I'm thinking any of this. Maybe someone else feels that way,too.' " In reality, if you believed that someone attempted to murder you, and suddenly you are receiving a cryptic message about letting it go, wouldn't the logic thing to do is go to the police?? Amelia doesn't!
Ward has written three other YA novels, 'Lie to Me' being her fourth. The writing in this story is bad in some places, for example, a scene with Amelia and her best friend, Sky, meeting up at the 'screen' (technically a giant drive-in movie theater screen); Amelia thinks about how this town is a haven for her, that everyone feels safe, but the very next paragraph, she's stating she doesn't feel safe anymore. This makes sense if you haven't read it, but the way it's written could have been in a much better and concise way. This and most scenes makes the story read like a sloppy diary entry. That, and the killer being predictable so early on in the story made me very disappointed with this book. 'Lie to Me' had great potential from the synopsis, but it lacked story, mystery, suspense and diverse characters.
I can't recommend this book to people who love horror stories, like I do. I think the only ones who would enjoy this story are the die-hard YA fans. It has everything that YA is known for: romance and teen drama, but it's lacking in everything else. Other than that, I don't think I'll read another book by Ward, but as far as Point horror books go, I will still give them a shot.
For more YA horror book reviews, check out my blog at GoreAndTea.com
Besides her 'accident,' Amelia leads a normal life with her mother, father and brother, Hunter - - - she also has a small group of friends. After her 'fall,' a body of a teen girl from the same town is found in a nearby river, but the town gossips, and makes it seem that this girl committed suicide, leaving Amelia worried that her family would think the same thing about her. Depression is something that Amelia's family has had to deal with before, but the talk of depression is candid and not very enlightening; her brother, Hunter, who is in therapy for such doesn't even talk about it, instead he's usually seen playing soccer or Fortnite, this seems to be a broad attempt to bring mental health into the story,but without going into that subject, it failed as a story line. Yet, one of the main causes of depression today is social media, which we find Amelia stalking one of her best friends/love interest on- - -if Ward was trying to reach the YA community about depression, she went the wrong way about it.
Another mistake that Ward made was when Amelia receives an anonymous text message from someone telling her to 'Just let it go,Amelia,' this occurs after she has started investigating whether her 'accident' was an accident. Amelia tells us that she is always suspicious of everyone, but when this text message comes around, it's as if she could care less. She even tries to take the anonymous message as advice: " 'Or it's advice.' I feel backed into a corner. It's one thing to believe someone hurt me and another thing to have proof of it. I don't want this to be proof. 'I mean, Sky's always telling me I should let my life get back to normal, and she doesn't even know I'm thinking any of this. Maybe someone else feels that way,too.' " In reality, if you believed that someone attempted to murder you, and suddenly you are receiving a cryptic message about letting it go, wouldn't the logic thing to do is go to the police?? Amelia doesn't!
Ward has written three other YA novels, 'Lie to Me' being her fourth. The writing in this story is bad in some places, for example, a scene with Amelia and her best friend, Sky, meeting up at the 'screen' (technically a giant drive-in movie theater screen); Amelia thinks about how this town is a haven for her, that everyone feels safe, but the very next paragraph, she's stating she doesn't feel safe anymore. This makes sense if you haven't read it, but the way it's written could have been in a much better and concise way. This and most scenes makes the story read like a sloppy diary entry. That, and the killer being predictable so early on in the story made me very disappointed with this book. 'Lie to Me' had great potential from the synopsis, but it lacked story, mystery, suspense and diverse characters.
I can't recommend this book to people who love horror stories, like I do. I think the only ones who would enjoy this story are the die-hard YA fans. It has everything that YA is known for: romance and teen drama, but it's lacking in everything else. Other than that, I don't think I'll read another book by Ward, but as far as Point horror books go, I will still give them a shot.
For more YA horror book reviews, check out my blog at GoreAndTea.com
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