Book Review: The Best Lies

Author: Sarah Lyu

Genre: YA Thriller

Release Date: 07.02.19

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Source: Purchased

My Rating: 3/5 stars

Synopsis: “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.”

I don’t even know where to begin for this review.

This book was intense, emotional, and genuinely leaves me speechless (for more than one reason). It has one of the scariest and most realistic toxic/codependent friendships I’ve ever read. And wow! It’s terrifying. The author nailed this relationship and the dynamic, it was terrifying through the pages. So much so, that I was very very anxious while reading. I’m still not sure if that’s a good or bad thing, honestly. It was this creepy development that gave me chills and made me want to scream. I could feel this toxic friendship growing and it was so unsettling to watch.

I was anxious and worried through of this book. It felt like walking on a balance beam waiting to fall off.

Then, the other main thing I felt while reading this book was boredom. While the development of the relationship gave me chills, I found myself bored in the middle section. The plot didn’t move quickly and I lost interest in the narrative and the huge amount of chapters told in the past. While the building is good, it is also very slow and didn’t have me completely hooked.