September Young Adult Fiction Review

Hi, my name is Catrin. I really enjoy reading adventure, suspense and mystery young adult books. I enjoy reading when I am at home, in my garden or sometimes in a café. Here is a short introduction and review of a few books I have read recently…

We Were Liars is a beautifully written and atmospheric novel with a very unexpected ending. I found the entire novel very gripping and therefore I completed it in a day. The novel is centred around the Sinclair family who spend most of their summers on their own private island off the coast of Massachusetts. The main themes of the novel include wealth, power, family life, summer months and different versions of reality. We Were Liars is a great book to read if you are in a reading rut as it will really encourage your love for reading once more. Once I had finished reading the novel, I immediately reread the final few pages to take in and appreciate the amazing plot twist at the end. I am now extremely excited to read E. Lockhart’s new prequel Family of Liars. 

Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry is a very interesting read. The novel follows Quinn Jackson, an eighteen-year-old girl who keeps a list journal throughout her senior year of high school in New Waverly, a small town in Texas. Key themes of the novel include racism, courage, secrets and romance. Quinn gradually completes her ‘To do before I graduate’ list which provides the main narrative of the novel, following her life as she prepares for university. We gain an insight into Quinn’s challenges and learn how she overcomes them and amends some of her mistakes. I really liked the structure of the novel which included many of Quinn’s lists in each chapter, which made the novel exciting, fascinating and relatable. 

One of Us is Lying is a great murder mystery and detective novel which is the first novel of the five novel series. The novel follows five students in their after school detention during which tragedy strikes and the disliked Simon, creator of the school gossip app is fatally injured. You will really enjoy reading this book if you have watched the film The Breakfast Club as it has a similar plot line. This series is really fun to read as I enjoyed trying to guess who the criminal may be through deciphering the clues provided throughout the novel. I really liked the author’s use of plot twist at the end of the novel which exposed the shocking truth of what had actually happened during the school detention and revealed who was lying. 

Catrin Edwards