We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

“The island is ours. Here, in some way, we are young forever.”

― E. Lockhart, We Were Liars

I am generally very apprehensive reading books that are very over-hyped. Usually I am disappointed. On this occasion, I can't say I was completely disappointed, but I was expecting - I don't know - what does one expect when they hear that something is insanely brilliant? Perhaps I can say that I was expecting more, but to be honest, I still enjoyed this one.

I am not going to say anything about the plot - at all. If you decide you want to read it, go in completely blind. It is the best way. All I will say is that it is about a rich extended family who holiday together on an island near Martha's Vineyard (a place I only ever heard about on The Gilmore Girls...)

What I will say is that I really enjoyed the writing style. Lockhart uses some great metaphors, especially when it comes to describing emotional pain. I also enjoyed the word play, “I suffer migraines. I do not suffer fools.”

“Then he pulled out a handgun and shot me in the chest. I was standing on the lawn and I fell. The bullet hole opened wide and my heart rolled out of my rib cage and down into a flower bed. Blood gushed rhythmically from my open wound,
then from my eyes,
my ears,
my mouth.
It tasted like salt and failure. The bright red shame of being unloved soaked the grass in front of our house, the bricks of the path, the steps of the porch. My heart spasmed among the peonies like a trout.”

― E. Lockhart, We Were Liars

I also appreciated the "act normal" idea, the one where you are supposed to pretend that you are fine and not upset, even when it is completely acceptable to be upset, such as when a grandparent passes away. It is weird to think that in a day and age where psychology is prevalent and where one knows that talking about things helps in healing, that there is still a huge belief out there that ignoring problems or by pretending that they aren't there, they will go away.

I can't say I was the biggest supporter of the narrator. But she kept me very curious as to what was happening, or trying to figure out what had happened. I think that by the end of the story she becomes completely understandable though.

We Were Liars is a quick read. I think most fans of YA contemporary would enjoy it.

This was the 24th book I have read for the 2015 TBR Pile Reading challenge.
I gave this book 4 stars on Goodreads.