We Were Liars

We Were Liars

E. Lockhart We Were Liars, by E. Lockhart, is a heartbreaking novel about the beautiful Sinclair family. In particular, the first granddaughter, Cadence Sinclair Eastman. The Sinclair family is perfect. Beautiful, pretty, elegant, handsome, athletic, polite, the list just goes on and on. Cadence was once a perfect Sinclair too. That was until the accident. Now, she’s the exact opposite of what she used to be. Her story started in summer of fifteen. Even with her world slowly falling, she and her mom showed no signs as they packed their bags to go back to Beechwood Island. Johnny, Mirren, Gat, Cadence, the Liars, the family calls them. Ever since the summer of being eight, the four of them have gotten into more trouble than they can grasp. In summer fourteen, an unlabeled love started to bloom between Cadence and Gat. At least, that’s what she thought. But once summer fifteen arrived, she wasn’t so sure he felt the same way she felt. Although everything he did was a show of love, there was still another element to the picture. Something Gat didn’t know Cadence knew. One night, Cadence went swimming. Where were her friends? She doesn’t know. All she remembers is the raggedy rocks out in the middle of the ocean. She remembers swimming to the bottom. A blurry haze that seemed alive surrounding her. Her mother found her on the sand, no towel, shivering and numb. She remembers doctors around her. Saying directions and words above her head, none which she could really understand. That’s all Cadence remembers of summer fifteen. All she knows is that now she has headaches and migraines, has to take pills and medicine, and is no longer, a perfect Sinclair. That year, Cadence and her mother miss summer sixteen. She tries to contact the other Liars, but no luck. She really did feel alone. She finally goes back to Beechwood for summer seventeen after a lot of arguing and debating with her mother. Even though Cadence knows why her mother doesn’t want her back at Beechwood, she just wants everything to go back to normal. No more medication, headaches, doctors, and to just be 1 out of the 4 Liars. She wants to remember. Remember her accident, why she was alone, why Gat left her, what happened that night, and so much more. But no one will tell her. Yes, the Liars are back together again, but somethings changed. She’s not treated normally, her friends act restricted with what they say, they pretend their lives outside of Beechwood is better than what it really is, the aunts gossip about her, but the only things normal is Gat and Cadence. At least, that’s what she thought. With only little pieces of her memory back, she doesn’t understand her accident. That is, until she does. Now, is her accidents really what everyone told her? Or did all of the Sinclair’s become Liars?

We Were Liars, is one of my favorite books I’ve ever read. Although the plot and elements of the story are for more mature audiences, it is written beautifully as well as it is able to create an entire world around. You can perfectly imagine Cadence, and everything she feels and sees. When you read the story, you can tell the author, E. Lockhart, has put her heart and soul into the story, and you can truly tell that she did. This story will and is capturing the hearts of readers around the world. I truly think that this story is beautiful and perfect. The characters are realistic and expressive, the plot of ever changing but still adaptable in it’s own way, and the writing is elegant and strong. This book is perfect for older audiences, for example 7th or 8th grade. Grade Level: - Suggested: 7th-9th - Advanced: 6th Genre: Realistic-Fiction Key Elements: Injuries, love, disorders, medication Possible Themes: We can’t all be perfect, sometimes great things don’t last Overall Rating: 5/5 Happy Reading! -The Book Lover- If you like more details about the book or would like to request something for me to read, you can contact me at thebooklovercontact@gmail.com