Thriller

Alice and Rachel are twins, monochorionic and monoamniotic twins. They share so close a bond that when one disappears the other feels, right away, that something is wrong and when she starts experiencing physical trauma that she can’t account for, it accelerates her desire to find out what’s happening to her sister.

A few chapters into Beautiful Lies, Jessica Warman throws in a little twist and I had to re-read the earlier chapters to see if there were flags that indicated what was going on. The narrative is written in first person and a little further into the story I realized that the narrator is unreliable. I was not prepared for the unraveling of the mystery that happened after!

I would like to elaborate, but it’s difficult to review this story because I don’t want to spoil any parts. I can say this though, there is an unreliable narrator, twins who look so identical that even their family can’t tell them apart and a mystery that kept me turning the pages well into the wee hours of the morning. The tale that Warman weaves is tangled and complex, I wasn’t sure what to trust and what to believe. The ending, what a fabulous ending!

I know that some might be frustrated with this book - mostly because of the unreliability of the narrator - however, I thought that it was brilliantly written and fully engrossing and I found the fact that I wasn’t certain about what to believe and what not to believe added another layer of mystery to the novel. Warman did a great job in keeping the mystery thrilling by dropping little hints, enough to keep you guessing but never enough to give it all away.

The story stayed with me long after I was finished; I was not prepared for the way it gripped me nor the way it ended.

[Review of ARC from BEA]
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Beautiful lies is indeed a beautiful story! Though I found it very common and have watched and read it several times. The story is about the identical twins who have psychological connection with each other. Well, I really thought I will found this book predictable but I am wrong! This story has great flow of the story on which still makes me curious about what will happen next. I loved this book! Thanks Jessica Warman for sharing your talents. ( )

Wow! I did not see that ending coming! ( )

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales.

Quick & Dirty: A girl tries to find out who kidnapped her twin.

Opening Sentence: It’s one of those cool, crisp fall nights that make you feel like the air is ripe with possibility, like anything could happen.

The Review:

This is one of those books that it’s better to just jump in reading without background knowledge. It’s impossible to describe this story without spoiling anything because there’s a plot twist almost every other chapter. But I’ll try anyway.

Rachel and Alice are identical twins. As in so identical, nobody can tell them apart if the twins didn’t want them to. So when an evening at the fair turns to panic and worry, the twins must find each other – no matter the consequences. This is book will have your head spinning and guessing what will happen next. Not everything is as it seems.

First: the cover is awful. Like what?? It’s not appealing and it doesn’t have anything to do with the book besides the twin part. And the title? Umm…well it’s misleading. The lies in this book are not beautiful. Completely the opposite. But I guess if they were going for that it’s okay.

While the plot was fantastically clever, I was not a fan of this book. At all. I give it props for keeping me guessing, but most of the scenes in this book seem like fluff. Every now and then we’ll get a flashback to when the twins were younger. Okay, I see how Warman used this as character development, but really. Most of them were really boring. Then there was the extra geo-chaching plot arc that was confusing and easy to solve. Again, I can’t go into details, but I thought there could have been another way to show the character development.

Also, there was no draw to the characters. The only one I felt compassion toward (or anything nice at all) was Charlie, the twin’s mentally challenged brother. He is so sweet and adorable! On the other hand, the twins were just plain annoying. Rachel, the “serious” twin, was awful to her sister. I can’t say much, but humoring someone for their entire life is not a nice way to treat them. And then Alice, the rambunctious party-er that causes trouble wherever she goes, is just crazy. I feel for her, but it’s hard to connect with the character when you’re constantly pitying her (while also trying to figure out what the heck is going on).

I guess what I’m trying to say is there was too much going on. The plot took away from the characters. When there wasn’t a plot twist, I was bored. The only reason I give it two stars is because of the clever twists. There is a hint of paranormal in the book, but it’s not the main focus. It’s one of those “twin telepathy” powers with a twist of… umm… craziness? I think that’s the word.

Guys, you do not understand how hard it is to describe this book without spoiling anything. EVERYTHING is a spoiler in this book. But overall, I would recommend this to anyone who loves mind-bogglers and to anyone else, good luck getting through it. I honestly don’t think the end was worth it.

Notable Scene:

The air grows very cold all around me as I stand in complete darkness, frozen in place. My mouth is dry, but I can’t swallow. As I stand there, I am aware of someone lingering close behind me. I don’t know how, but I’m certain it’s a man – I’m also certain it isn’t Robin, not this time.

I can hear him breathing as he watches me; I can sense his gaze at my back. He has been observing me the whole time, I know, even though I’ve only become aware of him now. I don’t know who he is, but I understand that he’s staying close for a reason, reassuring himself of my immobility, keeping watch in the dark, ready to pounce if I get too close to her.

FTC Advisory: Walker Childrens’/Bloomsbury provided me with a copy of Beautiful Lies. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review ( )