fatimareadsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, HarperCollins, in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!*
Holy shit. I read the synopsis of this book and immediately fell in love with the story; I'm a sucker for tragic stories. Oops.
I devoured this book in one 6 hour sitting, it's a very quick, but gripping read. The Lies About Truth is a tale of friendship, truths, and forgiveness. I loved everything about the book - how realistic it was, the writing, dialogue, romance... everything.
This story is about a girl, Sadie Kingston, who gets into a car accident which leaves her body, face, and soul scarred. But she's not the only one affected. Her best friend died in the wreck, and her three other friends are scarred too, mentally and physically. Everyone is entangled in a messy web of grief, anger, guilt, and love and there are truths to be revealed about that night never told before. Only Sadie can decide if she wants to embrace her future or stay trapped in the past.
I've come across and read tons of YA Contemporary stories with the same storyline, so I was afraid that this'll be no different than the others. I was scared it'd be boring and overused. However, Courtney C. Stevens manages to stir up new emotions in you while immersing you in her characters' world.
So many things in this book were very realistic, they never felt fake or forced and I'm really glad for that because that's really hard to find in other stories like this one.
I've seen many of the reviews for this book talk about her other book Faking Normal, which I haven't read yet, but I'll definitely have to look into it after this. I'd love to read more of her work because this was definitely a masterpiece.
Another thing I really like about this book is that there's romance, but the story doesn't revolve around it. It was just like the story had this perfect balance between focusing on her romance, her friendships, and her family without making any of them feel overweighted. The romance between Max and Sadie was there, but the story didn't rely heavily on it; and I loved how the relationship between Sadie and her parents and the adults in general was portrayed.
Also, the whole story felt very... smooth. I love how the author revealed everything about Sadie's past piece-by-piece; it was very easy to read and engaging to the reader. The writing style helps with that, too. It was beautiful! At times, it took my breath away with the amazing quotes.
Overall, this was a very beautiful book with an amazing writing style and a breathtakingly emotional plot. A must-read for lovers of deep YA Contemporary books.
Holy shit. I read the synopsis of this book and immediately fell in love with the story; I'm a sucker for tragic stories. Oops.
I devoured this book in one 6 hour sitting, it's a very quick, but gripping read. The Lies About Truth is a tale of friendship, truths, and forgiveness. I loved everything about the book - how realistic it was, the writing, dialogue, romance... everything.
This story is about a girl, Sadie Kingston, who gets into a car accident which leaves her body, face, and soul scarred. But she's not the only one affected. Her best friend died in the wreck, and her three other friends are scarred too, mentally and physically. Everyone is entangled in a messy web of grief, anger, guilt, and love and there are truths to be revealed about that night never told before. Only Sadie can decide if she wants to embrace her future or stay trapped in the past.
I've come across and read tons of YA Contemporary stories with the same storyline, so I was afraid that this'll be no different than the others. I was scared it'd be boring and overused. However, Courtney C. Stevens manages to stir up new emotions in you while immersing you in her characters' world.
So many things in this book were very realistic, they never felt fake or forced and I'm really glad for that because that's really hard to find in other stories like this one.
I've seen many of the reviews for this book talk about her other book Faking Normal, which I haven't read yet, but I'll definitely have to look into it after this. I'd love to read more of her work because this was definitely a masterpiece.
Another thing I really like about this book is that there's romance, but the story doesn't revolve around it. It was just like the story had this perfect balance between focusing on her romance, her friendships, and her family without making any of them feel overweighted. The romance between Max and Sadie was there, but the story didn't rely heavily on it; and I loved how the relationship between Sadie and her parents and the adults in general was portrayed.
Also, the whole story felt very... smooth. I love how the author revealed everything about Sadie's past piece-by-piece; it was very easy to read and engaging to the reader. The writing style helps with that, too. It was beautiful! At times, it took my breath away with the amazing quotes.
Overall, this was a very beautiful book with an amazing writing style and a breathtakingly emotional plot. A must-read for lovers of deep YA Contemporary books.
jang's review against another edition
4.0
This covered a lot of issues that are very common in YA books and in real life today: depression, acceptance, friendship, sexuality.
The story is fine: nothing new, really. But what I LOVED about this book was the author's way with words. I don't think I highlighted as many phrases as I did here before. So many quotes and anecdotes that hit so close to home. I don't really relate to Sadie in the story because I've never experienced what she went through but the way Courtney Stevens worded Sadie's thoughts really made me connect with the character. There were times when I'd go "damn that line was just so good and so right." The author's writing style is simple but very sharp and direct, no BS. Love it.
The love angle, I wasn't really crazy about. Guess it's the kind of love story that wasn't supposed to make you feel crazy and giddy because their stories were dark. I loved how Sadie handled herself, though. She's strong and very logical. She's a feeler. That I can relate to.
Here are some of my fave quotes from the book:
The story is fine: nothing new, really. But what I LOVED about this book was the author's way with words. I don't think I highlighted as many phrases as I did here before. So many quotes and anecdotes that hit so close to home. I don't really relate to Sadie in the story because I've never experienced what she went through but the way Courtney Stevens worded Sadie's thoughts really made me connect with the character. There were times when I'd go "damn that line was just so good and so right." The author's writing style is simple but very sharp and direct, no BS. Love it.
The love angle, I wasn't really crazy about. Guess it's the kind of love story that wasn't supposed to make you feel crazy and giddy because their stories were dark. I loved how Sadie handled herself, though. She's strong and very logical. She's a feeler. That I can relate to.
Here are some of my fave quotes from the book:
"Once you've been held, you know what it feels like when there's no one to hold you."
"I lost okay a long time ago."
"I'd been waiting for a feeling and had gotten it backward. The feeling had been waiting for me. Choosing forgiveness takes more courage (and far less energy) than sustaining anger."
"Chasing someone was a lover's game."
cupcakegirly's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars Another heart-felt story of love and loss, family and friendship and hope from Courtney C. Stevens.
mlarue12's review against another edition
5.0
I love how she was able to overcome her "hate" over her friends by hanging out with them. This is an amazing book with upsides and downsides but it's a really good book and I would read it again.
e33215's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
lisbethill97's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars rounded up.
What a beautiful ride. I got such great quotes out of this book! While I did really enjoy this, it didn’t completely blow me away like Faking Normal did. If you don’t know that’s another book by Courtney C. Stevens that just destroyed me. Anyway this was a great story dealing with grief and how it changes you as well as overcoming and accepting change. I will definitely continue to read this authors books!
What a beautiful ride. I got such great quotes out of this book! While I did really enjoy this, it didn’t completely blow me away like Faking Normal did. If you don’t know that’s another book by Courtney C. Stevens that just destroyed me. Anyway this was a great story dealing with grief and how it changes you as well as overcoming and accepting change. I will definitely continue to read this authors books!
alienor's review against another edition
4.0
Actual rating : 3.5 stars
"Here's a secret. I want to matter. I want to be known. I want to be myself. I want you to write this day on a piece of paper and put it inside Big. And one day, when you open him, you'll read about me and think, 'God, that day with Trent was one of my favorite days ever."
LIE : This novel was an instant favorite of mine.
(hard) TRUTHS : a) There's nothing really original about this synopsis : a teenager overcoming grief, been there, done that.
b) The first 30% bored me to death.
Yet the multiple layers of this story drew me in little by little - email by email, flashback by flashback, envelope by envelope. The unraveling of all the little things we call our life, of all the little lies we use as a blanket protection every day gradually won me over.
LIE : Sadie May is an easy character to relate to.
TRUTHS : I'm not gonna lie, I spent most of the book feeling disconnected to the MC : not out of hate or from a lack of understanding on my part, but I couldn't shake off the unpleasant impression that I didn't really know her, and it took me a while to realize that the reason lay in the way her characterization was handled. Indeed throughout the novel Sadie is defined by her relationships with others (her parents, her friend, her ex, Max) rather than as an individual, and I had a hard time to connect with her at first. Yet if I can't say when I started to care, it did happen. She let me in and from that moment, I couldn't stop the flow of my emotions.
LIE : [b:The Lies About Truth|24892774|The Lies About Truth|Courtney C. Stevens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1423864847l/24892774._SY75_.jpg|44541340] is a fast-paced, feel good novel.
TRUTHS : It captures perfectly how messy grief is. How appealing the numbness is. How closed-off our heart can be. I strongly believe that life sometimes offers us moments where there's no such thing as understanding.
There's no such thing as selflessness.
There's no such thing as empathy.
There are blame and anger and despair.
There are shame and guilt and confusion.
Yet somehow, someday, our heart starts beating again, and it's so beautiful.
"Step one : Change happens. (The wreck.)
Step two : Pretend the change doesn't exist. (What wreck?)
Step three : get angry the other person can't be who they used to be. (You're a wreck.)
Step four : Create change. (Wreck this.)
I wish I could hate them and mean it".
LIE : Grief is a solitary process.
TRUTHS : I'm not saying that introspection isn't needed, because it is, and Sadie understandingly goes through lonely phases. Yet the strength of this novel lies in the truthful way relationships are portrayed, without sugar-coating anything but always showing how support is important, whether from her parents or her friends : Family ties are rarely well-done in young adult, that's why I can't stress enough how much I appreciated the endearing relationship between Sadie and her parents. Moreover, friendship was pictured in a honest manner without hiding the pain and resentment, and I found it really refreshing. Gray, Trent, Max, Sonia, Gina... I cared for every one of them.
"It took millions of years for that ocean to beat rocks into sand.
We're not that broken."
LIE : Love heals all.
TRUTHS : What bothers me in books that imply that we need a love-story to overtake a traumatic event is the fact that it considerably (and falsely) simplifies what is complex by essence : we humans beings. I can't accept a story in which sex heals everything and where some huge issues are dealt with by the mere presence of some man (and his big dick). This being said, I do believe that the love of someone can help, and that's why the romance between Max and Sadie moved me : no instalove, but a slow growth that we are unconventionally following backwards, mostly through the emails they sent each other the year before. It doesn't hurt that Max is supportive, sweet, and all kinds of adorable.
Forgiveness (n.) releasing the toxins of bitterness.
► [b:The Lies About Truth|24892774|The Lies About Truth|Courtney C. Stevens|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1423864847l/24892774._SY75_.jpg|44541340] is a very character driven novel that took its time in making me feel invested, but from the moment I started to care, it never wavered.
For more of my reviews, please visit:
