The Best Lies by Sarah Lyu

☆☆☆☆
Kindle Edition, 352 pages
Published July 2nd 2019 by Simon & Schuster Canada and Simon Pulse
About the Book:
Remy Tsai used to know how her story would turn out. But now, she doesn’t even know what tomorrow will look like. She was happy once. Remy had her boyfriend Jack, and Elise, her best friend—her soulmate—who understood her better than anyone else in the world. But now Jack is dead, shot through the chest. And it was Elise who pulled the trigger. Was it self-defense? Or something deeper, darker than anything Remy could have imagined? As the police investigate, Remy does the same, sifting through her own memories, looking for a scrap of truth that could save the friendship that means everything to her.

We’re the heroes in this story, born of tragic circumstances, yes, but also strong enough to overcome them. We’ll win the day.
This story drew me in right away with the taunt plotting and characters that felt like they could be a real teens. I liked the change of now and then throughout the novel, it added to the the suspense and mystery, kept my attention, kept me guessing and turning pages until the end.

While I have enjoyed a few young adult/teen novels sometimes they are a little too soft for me, but I love when they have some tension or suspense behind them. Lyu definitely delivered on the suspense. From the start I was convinced Elise was guilty. I had no idea how or why, but she skeeved me out from the beginning. Then it occurred to me that it would be too easy of a guess. She obviously was an antagonist in the book, but a killer? I was stumped and didn’t quite figure out what was coming until the final pieces started falling in to place. The author did a great job of revealing just enough to make a guess, but not enough to know if I was right.

They were such beautiful lies. The best lies. But now I am ready for the truth.
The story is carried by multiple characters and each one is a totally different type of person. Each character brought a great angle to the story and touched on some hard hitting topics that a lot of authors stray away from, and Sarah Lyu did them beautifully. I think what I loved the most is that one big lesson anyone could take from this novel is that no matter who you think you are or who your friends are, you can find the most unlikely of companionship in people you would never have suspected. This novel was well written and engaging. I would definitely read more by this author.

Thank you NetGalley, Sarah Lyu. Simon & Schuster Canada and Simon Pulse for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an impartial review; all opinions are my own.

#TheBestLies #NetGalley