This book really messes with you, it is so far from your standard YA novel. There is so much to talk about in terms of the themes, the characters, who you loved and who you hated. To me, it had a Gatsby-esque feel to it. But it's hard to talk about this book without giving it away, but it had me mesmerised and is highly, highly recommended!

E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars offers a great insight into the lives of the Sinclairs. Following the story of Cadence we get a taste for what life is like living in a New England “old money” family on their summer getaway island. Their seemingly perfect lives are but a thin veneer for the troubles that boil under the surface. A short an enjoyable read, my only complain was that there was very little character development other than the broad generalisations placed upon the characters. While the ending was not surprising, it is a refreshing approach and Lockhart’s great writing style keeps it entertaining.

The plot moves really quickly. Cadence is the main character, who isn't really very likeable. She's really a bit of a spoilt brat. She is part of a very rich All-American family who spent their summers on their private island near Martha's Vineyard.
I don't really think saying more than that is wise, so I'll leave it there.

I had issues with this book. If it was any longer I think I would have chucked this on my imaginary "Stuff to donate or give away" pile. I didn't like the weird writing style, for one.

What is with the trend for weird, choppy, faux-literary writing style? It just pissed me off. I dislike authors not using capital letters at the best of times! It's like reading a toned down Tim Winton. I LOATHE Tim Winton's work with a burning passion, straight from the fires of Mordor, so of course anything that reminds me of Cloudstreet is going to get me a bit riled.

Cady was really not likeable- none of them were, really, except Gat. The reasons why they weren't likeable weren't dealt with in any depth either. I don't think it matters that the book is short- it had room to deal with the underlying reasons for the conclusion. In fact, it didn't even deal with Cady's self styled personality trait- "I don't suffer fools". She states this three times in the novel but never shows that it even applies to her. In fact, she is a fool, so maybe she shouldn't suffer herself.

Cady is a super unreliable narrator, not just for the amnesia thing. I found it hard to work out what parts were overwrought metaphor and what parts were real.

I give the extra half star because this book did make me cry, which is a bit unusual. I'm a pretty hard reader to make cry! It was in relation to dogs, a surefire way to get me emotional!