Book Review | We Were Liars by E. Lockhart.

There are three things I urge you to do going into this book.

One: Come in with as little knowledge about the plot as possible.

Two: Come in with as few expectations as possible.

Three: Experience the book. Do not try to deliberate or uncover why things happen the way they do.

For these reasons, and these reasons alone, I have included  no synopsis (even if the synopsis itself is really vague).

First things first (I'm the realest)*, the things I loved.

The writing is pretty spectacular. If you need any reason to read this, read it for the writing. It's haunting. It's gorgeous. It's so goddamn poetic. I actually get flustered when I think about the writing in this. I know by typing this, I'm disregarding Rule #2 entirely, but the writing is the highlight of the book for me.

In fact, I'd argue that the writing is what really propels the story. We Were Liars is not a huge book. It's only about 240 pages. But on a technical level, there isn't a huge amount of plot development. Nevertheless, the writing makes it wickedly compelling. This is kind of unique in situation, but it really works for the tone of the novel.

Likewise, it's only a small novel, but it really packs a punch. Especially that ending. This is where Rule #3 comes in. Don't try and guess, otherwise the whole effect of the book will be ruined. You'll be a little heartbroken but, after much consideration, it will make sense. I promise.

I also really liked the characters? They were just generally fascinating and multi-faceted people, that were really interesting to read about.

If I had to give the book one critique, it would be this. Especially at the beginning, I found myself confused. Most of the characters were introduced at once, and this left me grasping at straws. It took me a while to get that this character was apart of that family, while another character was that other family.

Overall, however We Were Liars is a fantastic read. Easily up there in my top 2014 books so far. It's just a book you really need to experience. 4 stars.

Rating: **** (4 stars)

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Publication Date: 1st of August 2014

Goodreads | E. Lockhart's Twitter | E. Lockhart's Website

Want to buy this book? You can get it here:

Book Depository | Fishpond | Amazon | Bookworld

Thank you to Allen & Unwin for providing me with an ARC

*sorry, for reasons unknown, I can now no longer say 'first things first' without that bloody song popping into my head. it's a problem.