Review: The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

I had a life anyone would kill for.

Then someone did.

The worst part of being dead is that there’s nothing left to live for. No more kisses. No more secrets. No more gossip. It’s enough to kill a girl all over again. But I’m about to get something no one else does—an encore performance, thanks to Emma, the long-lost twin sister I never even got to meet.

Now Emma’s desperate to know what happened to me. And the only way to figure it out is to be me—to slip into my old life and piece it all together. But can she laugh at inside jokes with my best friends? Convince my boyfriend she’s the girl he fell in love with? Pretend to be a happy, carefree daughter when she hugs my parents good night? And can she keep up the charade, even after she realizes my murderer is watching her every move?

Review:

I LOVE Sara Shepard and her brilliant, captivating stories. Her Pretty Little Liars series has been one of my favorites for years and I have been eagerly anticipating her next release. Luckily, The Lying Game did not in any way disappoint and I had an impossible time putting it down. Filled with mysterious clues, shocking twists, and heart pounding suspense; The Lying Game has earned a place on my favorites shelf.

Emma has given in to the rocky, hopeless life of a foster child when she learns something that turns her life upside down. She has a twin sister named Sutton who wants to meet her! But what Emma doesn't know is that Sutton was murdered. Unfortunately for Emma, no one else knows either. Not Sutton's family, not her friends, not her boyfriend... and the killer wants to keep it that way. Now Emma is stuck impersonating her sister while the murderer watches her every move.

Suspense and chills dripped off the pages in The Lying Game and I was always on my toes. Would Emma be able to pull off pretending to be her twin? Would the truth ever come out? And what exactly is the Lying Game? There were constant plot twists and I never knew what was going to happen next. Every chapter left me anxious to read more and I finished the book very quickly- I just couldn't set it down for a second.

The characters were all very complex and each person had something they were hiding- or so it seemed. Sutton and Emma were the two main characters and I liked getting to know more about them. I felt for Emma throughout the story because she was dealing with so much and never knew whom she could trust. Sutton was also an intriguing character and it was interesting finding out more about her and her past as the story progressed.

I am so glad I loved Sara Shepard's newest series as much as I did and I will definitely be recommending it over and over again. There were so many interesting details and twists and the ending was a big cliffhanger. I am looking forward to reading Never Have I Ever and finding out more about Sutton and Emma this August!

Overall: 5 out of 5 stars

December 7, 2010/HarperTeen/307 Pages/Young Adult/Book One

Source: BEA 2011 and Purchased Copy

Other books in the series: Never Have I Ever (Aug '11), Two Truths and A Lie ('12)