Book Review: Liars, Inc.

Liars, Inc.

By: Paula Stokes

Published by: Harper Teen

Release date: March 24, 2015

Genre: YA suspense

368 pages

Buy it at Amazon, IndieBound, Book Depository, or Barnes & Noble

Source: ARC kindly provided by publisher

Hello, Paula Stokes!  Make yourself comfortable there on my “authors to watch” list. With Liars, Inc., you have certainly earned a spot.

Liars, Inc. is told from Max Cantrell’s point of view. Max is a kid with a rough past; he spent some time as a homeless child after his father’s death, and ended up in a group home. Because he has seen firsthand how people can let you down, he relies on no one, and trusts precious few. The two people he has actually let get close to him are his friend, Preston, and his girlfriend, Parvati.

When Preston asks Max to cover for him one weekend while he sneaks away, Max figures there’s no harm in covering for a buddy. He is dead wrong, though- and before he knows it, he’s being framed for Preston’s murder. With precious few people to rely on and few other resources, Max starts chasing the real killer as he runs for his own life.

One of my favorite things about this book is how authentic and three-dimensional these characters are. Everyone Max comes in contact with is described in a way that makes them seem familiar and real. Stokes makes excellent use in her training in psychology to create characters that seem like they could step right off the page.  

My other favorite thing is that the suspense isn’t the watered-down kool-aid version that you sometimes see in YA lit. This is the kind that makes you raise an eyebrow, then mumble about how something is fishy- and by the time you’re 70% through, you’re wondering WHAT THE CHICKEN-FRIED MONKEY BUTT IS GOING ON?? It’s the kind that fools you into thinking that you can read “just one more chapter” six times in a row, until you stop fooling yourself and resolve to put real life on hold long enough to finish the book.

This is a stand-alone, so I won’t be waiting on a sequel. I will, however, be watching for news of Stokes’ next project. In the meantime, I’m putting The Art of Lainey on my tbr list.

Summary:

For fans of Gone Girl, I Hunt Killers, and TV's How to Get Away with Murder.

Max Cantrell has never been a big fan of the truth, so when the opportunity arises to sell forged permission slips and cover stories to his classmates, it sounds like a good way to make a little money and liven up a boring senior year. With the help of his friends Preston and Parvati, Max starts Liars, Inc. Suddenly everybody needs something and the cash starts pouring in. Who knew lying could be so lucrative?

When Preston wants his own cover story to go visit a girl he met online, Max doesn’t think twice about hooking him up. Until Preston never comes home. Then the evidence starts to pile up—terrifying clues that lead the cops to Preston’s body. Terrifying clues that point to Max as the murderer.

Can Max find the real killer before he goes to prison for a crime he didn’t commit? In a story that Kirkus Reviews called "Captivating to the very end," Paula Stokes starts with one single white lie and weaves a twisted tale that will have readers guessing until the explosive final chapters.