Title: Family of Liars
Author: E. Lockhart
Publisher: Delacorte Children’s
Publication date: May 3, 2022
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Bookshop.org | Book Depository | Goodreads | StoryGraph
Summary
The Sinclair family has always had its secrets. Following the parents of the family from We Were Liars, we’re taken back to 1987 the fateful events of that summer. Without spoiling too much from We Were Liars, here’s the blurb from the book:
A windswept private island off the coast of Massachusetts.
A hungry ocean, churning with secrets and sorrow.
A fiery, addicted heiress. An irresistible, unpredictable boy.
A summer of unforgivable betrayal and terrible mistakes.
Welcome back to the Sinclair family. They were always liars.
Review: Family of Liars
Thanks to Delacorte and NetGalley for an advaced copy of Family of Liars to review! We Were Liars made such a splash on TikTok last year; I was excited to read the prequel! If you loved We Were Liars, you’ll definitely enjoy getting more background on the Sinclair family. Even if they’re not a particularly likeable family overall.
The writing style of this is much the same as We Were Liars, with short chapters and a lot of dialog. Honestly, Lockhart is just great at capturing teen dialog. The conversations flow easily between characters and help to move the plot forward quickly. While the characters might not be the most likeable characters, you’re still invested in their story.
Like with We Were Liars, there are plot twists abound in this book. While I found them a little predictable, they still add a sense of intensity to the story overall. From the beginning, there’s an air of mystery of what’s going to happen on the island over the summer. You know something will happen, but it’s not immediately clear what. Lockhart is an expert at keeping that air of mystery, even without making it totally obvious. However, I did think the book took a little too long to find it’s narrative voice. The voice didn’t really pick up until about halfway through the book.
Overall, if you enjoy summer themed mysteries, you’ll definitely enjoy this book! Especially if We Were Liars is one of your favorites.
3/5 stars