Book Thoughts: The Lying Game and Never Have I Ever

Book Thoughts
Definition: Where Jess groups together a couple of mini reviews on books she’s bought and recently read.

The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

Amazon Summary:
"Sutton Mercer had a life anyone would kill for – and someone did. But thanks to a view from the afterlife and Emma Paxton, her long-lost twin sister, Sutton has a chance to solve her own murder. Emma slips into Sutton’s old life to piece together her disappearance. But can Emma keep up the charade long enough to discover what really happened to Sutton…or will she become the next victim?


Let the lying games begin."

The first book in this series I had a real love/hate relationship with. The plot kind of reminded me of one of those cheesy teen slasher movies and at the beginning I really questioned how believable it all was and if I was going to continue reading. The thing that I’ve found with this series is that it’s so bad it’s good and there’s something very very addictive about it.

It really took me a while to get into this story and the way that it’s written as it jumps from Emma to Sutton’s perspective at times without any warning or indication that the protagonist has changed and with Emma pretending to be Sutton it can get a little confusing.

I also didn’t really like any of the characters with the exception of Emma. The group of girls the story centres around are the bitchy, mean girl kind making them not very likeable but despite this books faults I absolutely flew through it and ordered and read the second one immediately.

There’s something so addictive about this Mean Girls meets The Lovely Bones meets Sorority Row book and it’s admittedly a fun, fast paced, thrill of a read. All in all there are better young adult thrillers out there at the minute but there’s something very addictive and compelling about this series and that alone may be strong enough to carry me through to the end. 3.5 Stars

Never Have I Ever by Sara Shepard

Amazon Summary:
"MY PERFECT LIFE WAS A LIE.


NOW I’D DO ANYTHING TO UNCOVER THE TRUTH.


Not long ago, I had everything a girl could wish for: amazing friends, an adorable boyfriend, a loving family. But none of them know that I’m gone – that I’m dead. To solve my murder, my long-lost twin sister, Emma, has taken my place. She sleeps in my room, wears my clothes, and calls my parents Mom and Dad. And my killer is watching her every move.


I remember little from my life, just flashes and flickers, so all I can do is follow along as Emma tries to solve the mystery of my disappearance. But the deeper she digs, the more suspects she uncovers. It turns out my friends and I played a lot of games – games that ruined people’s lives. Anyone could want revenge . . . anyone could want me – and now Emma – dead."

This book follows its predecessor on in much the same style with Emma still pretending to be Sutton to unravel the mystery surrounding her twin’s death. Never Have I Ever unearths some new clues and therefore some new suspects and I enjoyed this sequel a little more if only because I was used to the characters and writing style and knew what to expect.

Never Have I Ever picks up literally where The Lying Game left off with no time having passed at all so that the reader is automatically swept back into the action. Sara Shepard takes us in a new direction in this second novel and more is discovered about Sutton and her mysterious death.

This book has all the same thrills and twists as The Lying Game but with a brand new set of clues and suspects. Basically if you loved The Lying Game you’re going to love this one too. All of the faults I found with the first book are still present but so are the things I loved about it too. The Lying Game series is fast turning into my favourite guilty pleasure that maybe I shouldn’t like but I do anyway and I’m already getting impatient for my next fix, flaws and all. 3.5 Stars

Book Thoughts: Ultraviolet and Birthmarked

Because I receive so many books to review I decided to create this feature Book Thoughts. I don’t always have time to review every single book that I read so in Book Thoughts I group together 2 or 3 books that I purchased myself and give a brief summary on my opinions after I’ve read them. Think of them as mini reviews! I’m going to keep them quick and snappy whilst still informative and I hope you guys find them helpful! :-)

Ultraviolet by R J Anderson

Ultraviolet is honestly like nothing I’ve ever read before. Our main character Alison has been sectioned in a mental institute for teens after killing her classmate, popular and perfect, Tori. Except Tori’s body hasn’t actually been found and all Alison can remember is noise, pain and- she knows it sounds crazy but hey if the shoe fits!- Tori disintegrating piece by piece in front of her.

I loved the fact that this book is told from the point of view of somebody who is seen to be mentally unstable. As the layers of this story unfold you can’t help but question everything Alison tells us. Especially as the story gets more and more crazy and unbelievable! Is there some kind of strange phenomenon going on? Or is Alison simply an insane and imaginative narrator? R J Anderson certainly keeps you on your toes and I absolutely raced through this book for answers. Anderson’s writing is so beautifully descriptive and this books ending completely blew my mind. I adored this books uniqueness and individuality and it comes with my highest of recommendations and a warning that once you pick up this intense psychological thriller you won’t want to put it down!
 5 stars.



Birthmarked by Caragh M. O’Brien

Unfortunately this book fell a little short for me. There’s no denying that Caragh M. O’Brien’s writing is gorgeous her descriptions really sucked me into our heroine Gaia’s harrowing world but unfortunately the rest of the book didn’t really do anything for me.

I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting from this book but with it being a dystopian I went into it expecting something futuristic and instead Gaia’s world despite being set 300-400 years in the future if anything has gone back in time and instead of the “code” that’s talked about on the cover being all high tech and extreme like I imagined it was all fairly simple and dull compared to what I’d built up in my head.

That being said when I got over my disappointment surrounding the books plot and the code I could appreciate this book for what it was. Gaia’s a strong likeable heroine and the future she inhabits is brutal and terrifying. O’Brien isn’t afraid to make her world unfair and cruel. With Caragh’s haunting writing she really paints a picture in your mind of a shocking future that’s easily believable. Is this the best dystopian story I’ve ever read? No. But would I recommend it? Sure.
3.5 stars.

Book Thoughts: Forgotten and Die for Me

Because I receive a lot of books for review I’ve found lately that I don’t always have time to review on my blog all of the books that I purchase myself like I used to. I like to try and mix reviews with meme’s and other posts to keep things fresh and because I need to review the books that I get sent to me I’ve been finding that my purchased books have been getting left behind.


I want to offer you guys a range of reviews from different publishers and I don’t want my blog to be one big promotion. I want to share with you guys my thoughts on the books that I buy too and so I’ve come up with book thoughts! Instead of a full on lengthy review, every so often when I’ve read 2 or 3 books I bought myself I want to group them together and write a brief book thought on each book just to let you guys know my opinion and if it’s worth a read just like I would in a review, just in less detail!


I hope you enjoy this new series and I would love some feedback on if this is helpful to you or if you’d rather I just stick with my usual reviews and review my bought books as and when I can. I haven’t included a synopsis for now just because I don’t want them to be too long however if you’d like to see one for each book in future book thoughts let me know in the comments :-)

Forgotten by Cat Patrick

Forgotten reminded me a lot of a “The Time Travellers Wife” for teens. It’s about this girl called London who’s just like me or you but here’s the deal, London knows what’s going to happen in the future but she remembers nothing about her past- nada- not even what she had for dinner the night before. So when she falls in love with perfect, lovable, Luke she’s devastated that she doesn’t know him in her future. Meaning she won’t BE with him in the future. But she loves him today and she never wants to forget how much.

This book has a real contemporary feel to it than that of a paranormal book. London lives in our world and is a normal girl except for her unique ability. There’s nothing paranormal about this book at all and so I found it very original and different to any other YA books out there. I loved the characters; London’s a very likeable, funny, teenage voice. And I loved her sweet and tender relationship with Luke. I defy any girl NOT to fall in love with Luke as every day he gets London to fall in love with him all over again. This book was quirky, fun and a complete breath of fresh air to read.
4 stars.

Die For Me by Amy Plum

Books set in Paris seem to be a big trend in YA right now and I’ve got to say I am loving it! A paranormal romance set in the most romantic city in the world? Err yes please! Amy Plum creates a beautiful backdrop for this story. Whether it’s with Kate sitting in a French cafe reading a book or Kate and Vincent taking a romantic boat trip on the river Seine *swoons* Amy Plum uses Paris to her advantage to capture some really magical, romantic moments that girls are going to go crazy for.

Our main character Kate is a big reader and I definitely connected to her as our heroine. I love Amy Plum’s brand new paranormal creature the Revenants and loved learning their “rules.” Amy creates a whole too believable world and a fantastic cast of vibrant, colourful characters to fill it up with. I loved this escapist, paranormal love story and can’t wait for book 2.
4 stars.