The Lies We Tell is a phenomenal thriller from start to finish. Filled to the brim with twists and a captivating plot, this one is sure to keep readers hooked. The characters are well-developed. The story is incredibly fast-paced. This is one not to be missed! Highly recommended! Be sure to check out The Lies We Tell asap.

Loved this, it has great characters, the story itself was really good and it was fast paced keeping me intrested and wanting to read more. I did think the basement part was a little rushed and I would have liked that as a whole section to have a little bit more drama but never the less a great book!

The first 200 pages of this book were a delight to read. Then I guessed the ending really easily, which I can never do with mystery books, so I felt it was a bit of an obvious ending. Then the situation with the two bakeries was magically resolved with no real explanation of how it happened. And then when everything was resolved and I was ready to put the book down, there was at least 50 pages more of dance contests and talk about court trials and pressing charges. I just didn't need so much ending on a book!

It was just such a disappointing because until then it had been a really pleasant read. Really easy to read with strong themes tackling racism and secret societies. The only complaint I had up until the last 100 pages was that she wasn't using her connection to Melissa Hong to get information (because I think people are much more likely to talk if you say you're asking because the girl used to be your babysitter rather than just being nosy).

All in all, I'm just extremely disappointed. This could have been something great, hell, it WAS something great until the ending.

this had the potential to be really good but unfortunately the pacing ruined it, the actual climax of the story felt very rushed and underwhelming and it took a long time to get to that point - the reveals weren’t very dramatic as well with not much mystery there. however it does spread an important message.

Every so often, when it comes to books I read, I find myself in a bit of a pickle. Stuck be-tween two sides, two opinions, not knowing where I should draw my line.

This book is a prime example of this problem.

THE LIES WE TELL has such a strong message about Asian American racism, and the hate Asian American’s face for simply living in the country they’re from. It stands up against the rac-ists and attempts to pave a new path away from the racism. But, unfortunately, the message was the only thing I really liked about this book.
Seven years ago, Anna Xu’s former babysitter, Melissa Hong was murdered at Brookings University and her murderer was never found. Anna has wanted to solve this murder ever since, and as soon as she moves into her own Brookings University dorm, she gets right to that. But, then her nemesis Chris’ family bakery is attacked and a racist message is scrolled over the walls. It seems as if the person who killed Melissa isn’t done, and that Anna may be their next target.

This book definitely had promise, but from the very get go, the prose bored me and threat-ened to pull me out of the story. There was almost no depth to it. I don’t like to use the phrase ‘show, don’t tell’ because I believe it’s outdated in today’s range of writing, but Zhao’s prose was exactly the opposite of that phrase. More tell than show. We didn’t get to experience what was happen to Anna with her, we were just simply told what was happening. And sometimes, there’d be an event that you would expect to go along with Anna, but instead you were just told about it after the fact. It was jar-ring. There were little descriptions, little metaphors and in the end, it just didn’t read very well.

Secondly, the characters. I don’t think they were very well developed. Anna’s personality was lacking any real depth, and I felt myself wanting to know who she was outside of looking for Melissa’s killer. She was very one-sided, and so where the other characters.

The pacing of the plot was strange. It takes about half of the book before the vandalism de-scribed in the summary happens. And then afterwards, a bunch of lines are connected that didn’t make sense. I’m still not sure how they got to the conclusion they did about the bad person’s accom-plice. It more just felt like the accomplice was shoe-horned in without any real thought behind it. It felt the same way with the actual person behind it. There was no real connection between the culprits and Anna, at least not ones you expect in a mystery novel.

All in all, this book was a disappointment, but I have hope for Katie Zhao because there’s room for improvement and I think she’s capable of that. I just hope she manages to pace her next sto-ry better and develop her characters a little more.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed The Lies We Tell even if it did creep me out and made me too scared to go downstairs by myself at night. What that tells you is one) I am wimp (you’ll already know this if you’ve read some my other reviews of thriller/mystery books) and two) this book was very effective in laying on the thrill/creep factor.

I enjoyed (weird to say since I was on the edge of my seat) the mystery element of this. I like how Zhao built up the suspense, the paranoia, the constant hyper awareness of danger. This went past the murder mystery plot point, and dug in to a conversation of the racism and discrimination that Asian American people experience in their day to day life. It’s a constant threat, that isn’t always obvious or outspoken, but it’s there. The book did a good job at highlighting the many types of dangers Asian American people face.

The mystery plot wasn’t the most complex, I guessed it all pretty much right away, but it was well plotted and paced.

I liked how Zhao balanced the romance with the mystery, with the enemies-to-lovers plot of Anna and Chris. While I mostly thought it was well balanced, I do wish we had more with them!

Overall, I really liked this and would recommend if you’re in the mood for a murder mystery/thriller. Definitely agree with the promotional tagline, if you liked A Good Girls Guide To Murder you’ll like this!

Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing for this e-arc in exchange for an honest review

Anna is just starting at the same University where her former babysitter was found murdered seven years ago. Determined to get to the bottom of what happened back then, she begins to investigate on her own an uncovers several surprises...

This is a fairly solid mystery, with some good twists. The big reveal at the end wasn't particularly surprising, but the rest of the writing was plenty good enough to make up for that!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Brilliant twisty thriller that had me hooked from the get go. I was guessing throughout and loved the way it threw me and made me doubt what I was thinking!. Cannot recommend it enough!

Anna Xu is starting her freshman year at the prestigious Brookings University. She might not come from wealthy roots, like most of her peers, but is determined to reinvent herself and fit in. Old mysteries continue to haunt both her and the hallowed walls she walls she walks between, however. The death of an previous student, the return of an old rival, the discovery of a secret society, and the arrival of new enemies all seek to lure her away from her studies and exploring them might lead to bigger consequences that just a failing grade.

I loved exploring this elite setting and Anna, who constantly felt like an outsider in this privileged world, provided the perfect perspective in which to do so, as so much was as new to her as it was the reader. The other students who lived and studied at the University were of equal interest, as they differed so greatly from Anna's own experiences. I liked the insights to cultures and upbringings other than my own.

The mysteries were numerous and provided the primary focus in the storyline. I had little clue what would occur next, who was behind the criminal acts occurring, and what the true motive was. The exploration of all of this kept me flying through the pages in search of answers and all that was delivered was well-executed and well-paced.

The romance, as well as the focus on other interpersonal relationships, never took centre-stage, which I appreciated, but also provided room for scenes of a less distressing nature and lighter note to feature. These were still played out in front of a backdrop of drama and deceit, and the evil that lurked never felt far away from the central characters, leading to a tense atmosphere to reign throughout.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'The Lies We Tell' by Katie Zhao.

I loved Katie Zhao's previous novel so I was giddy with excitement to find out that I had access to the eARC of her new book: 'The Lies We Tell'

This book follows Anna and I was obsessed with this. Anna's story follows several plotlines from the murder of someone she knew to racist scums attacking Asian people. I loved Anna's determination throughout this story and how eager she was to find out certain pieces of information - which may be a spoiler so I'll keep my definition to that. The reveal shocked me but I was even more shocked when the plot twist came which was wonderful for me because sometimes these stories never shock me.

Overall, Katie Zhao didn't disappoint with this novel and she is still up there in my favourites.

After reading Katie Zhao's intriguing debut novel, I was excited to read 'The Lies We Tell', particularly as the setting gets an upgrade from high school to following a freshman at college. Anna Xu is starting at Brookings college and just happens to be in the same classes as her academic rival, the handsome and charming Chris Lu. The romantic tension is a subplot to the main mystery, Anna determined to solve the murder of her babysitter whilst attending Brookings seven years prior.

Typical college themes, such as tension with a roommate, struggling with a high course load and wanting to make friends in a new environment are the least tantalising aspects of this novel, the topic of anti-Asian discrimination being the primary intrigue which will get the reader fired up for these characters. The murder of Anna's childhood babysitter is just one plot point in a tangled overarching web. There are some important messages regarding Asian discrimination but, unfortunately, these are lost in the fact that the answer to the mystery is obvious from the start. The writing is also quite simplistic in places, meaning my enjoyment was hampered.

Overall, a solid mystery with some interesting messages. I would read another Katie Zhao novel in the hope that it lives up to her debut 'How We Fall Apart'.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for this eARC!

This was a quick and easy read for me, and the sort of read I'd recommend for people who are in a reading slump, or getting back into reading. The writing was simple and understandable, and definitely accessible to most people.

The story line at the heart of it is pretty basic - your standard YA crime. mystery, thriller type, with elements reminiscent of the writing of Karen Mcmanus. What set this apart in some way, however, was the conversations about race, specifically towards the Asian community within the story. Sadly, it really rings true in this day and age, and it is definitely an important discussion to be had; I would recommend it simply for that, if nothing else.

Overall, I enjoyed reading this book, though it didn't stand out as particularly impressive. The writing style was fairly basic, and the plot itself wasn't anything groundbreaking - following the standard formula that this genre seems to stick to, for the most part. I worked out most of the plot twists and the identity of the main villain pretty early on, and I did feel like it was kind of obvious - so the mystery element was taken away, at least for me.

I liked Anna, the main character, well enough, though she did often come across as childish with some of her views - but I have to remind myself she is a sheltered eighteen year old, living in the adult world at college for the first time in her life. Some of her decisions were definitely not well thought out, which is perhaps to be expected; and I did find many elements of the mystery to be unrealistic. But then, what is the world of fiction for, if not to escape reality?

This is an interesting novel. I think this would be great to hand to a reader that had never read dark academia before.