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zerosixjune's review
4.0
Well, okay. This book is all about friendship. It's also a journey to find yourself back after an unfortunate incident.
First of all, I liked that Sadie and Max got together even before the story started. It made me more focused on the healing journey and friendship problems. Second, the writing was great. I think it was simple and realistic. Third, I loved the steps Sadie took to overcome her issues. And Max... He's such an amazing boyfriend. They are together throughout the story (I'm glad the author didn't push a breakup act to add more drama to the romance part).
Overall, I enjoyed it. There was a bit of misunderstanding and miscommunication, but I was okay with it. Also, if you expect a mindblowing plot twist, there's none. It's a pure YA story.
First of all, I liked that Sadie and Max got together even before the story started. It made me more focused on the healing journey and friendship problems. Second, the writing was great. I think it was simple and realistic. Third, I loved the steps Sadie took to overcome her issues. And Max... He's such an amazing boyfriend. They are together throughout the story (I'm glad the author didn't push a breakup act to add more drama to the romance part).
Overall, I enjoyed it. There was a bit of misunderstanding and miscommunication, but I was okay with it. Also, if you expect a mindblowing plot twist, there's none. It's a pure YA story.
emz333's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
morganek's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
dannafs's review
4.0
One year ago, Sadie Kingston was in a car accident that killed her best friend. It also left her severely scarred, seriously injured a third, and tore apart life-long friendships. For the last year, Sadie's been quietly recovering. The only people she talks to are her parents, a therapist, and Max, the other boy injured in the accident. And Max is easy to talk to because he's in El Salvador and can't see her scars.
Sadie's therapist asked her to write a list of seven impossible things, from wearing a tank top in public to driving again. These once easy goals seem insurmountable, but Max is determined to help Sadie check off this revised bucket list. It remains to be seen if facing these fears will cause more harm than healing.
Sadie is likable. She's self-pitying, but not egregiously so. In the year of home-schooling, she's acquainted with new friends. The relationships made me smile. For example, Pete is the owner of the salvage yard where the car she crashed in was towed. He's got a dog named Headlight, and Sadie makes daily visits to help scavenge scrap parts. Or Rosie, the lovely and warm cashier at Sadie's favorite donut shop. When we meet Sadie, she's a year into her therapeutic journey, and it's palpable how far she's come. She's a runner, but she's not running away any longer.
As Sadie works to piece her life back together, we witness the progress and setbacks of grief, for her unscarred self, for her best friend, for the life she lived before the accident. Utterly readable, sad, and inspiring. I finished the Truth About Lies in a day, and encourage you to find time to do the same.
Favorite quotes:
"Some days, everything –… Was Gina and Gray's fault. Some days, God was the fall guy. Some days, blame never entered my mind. I liked those days best. I didn't want to be an angry jerk who sat around reminiscing about old grievances and pointing fingers, but I couldn't seem to control the emotion with any accuracy."
"Trent was good with plans. I hopped down beside him rather than ask what it was. He always had breadcrumbs in his voice, and I followed them like a fairy tale."
"I have a theory on what happened.
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.)"
"My dad's mom, Pazie, has this formal dining room, and it's so formal no one is allowed to use it. Some people have hearts like that, and I'm worried I'm becoming one of them. I feel myself shutting down, closing off, like I should tell people, 'No, we don't use this heart anymore. It's too fragile.' ... I don't want this thing in my chest to beat me to death, but I also don't want to protect it so much that I never use it again."
"'Hey, most of it's good,' I argued.
'Most?' Gray repeated. 'Most will kill a man. The gap between all and most is a canyon of suck.'"
Sadie's therapist asked her to write a list of seven impossible things, from wearing a tank top in public to driving again. These once easy goals seem insurmountable, but Max is determined to help Sadie check off this revised bucket list. It remains to be seen if facing these fears will cause more harm than healing.
Sadie is likable. She's self-pitying, but not egregiously so. In the year of home-schooling, she's acquainted with new friends. The relationships made me smile. For example, Pete is the owner of the salvage yard where the car she crashed in was towed. He's got a dog named Headlight, and Sadie makes daily visits to help scavenge scrap parts. Or Rosie, the lovely and warm cashier at Sadie's favorite donut shop. When we meet Sadie, she's a year into her therapeutic journey, and it's palpable how far she's come. She's a runner, but she's not running away any longer.
As Sadie works to piece her life back together, we witness the progress and setbacks of grief, for her unscarred self, for her best friend, for the life she lived before the accident. Utterly readable, sad, and inspiring. I finished the Truth About Lies in a day, and encourage you to find time to do the same.
Favorite quotes:
"Some days, everything –… Was Gina and Gray's fault. Some days, God was the fall guy. Some days, blame never entered my mind. I liked those days best. I didn't want to be an angry jerk who sat around reminiscing about old grievances and pointing fingers, but I couldn't seem to control the emotion with any accuracy."
"Trent was good with plans. I hopped down beside him rather than ask what it was. He always had breadcrumbs in his voice, and I followed them like a fairy tale."
"I have a theory on what happened.
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.)"
"My dad's mom, Pazie, has this formal dining room, and it's so formal no one is allowed to use it. Some people have hearts like that, and I'm worried I'm becoming one of them. I feel myself shutting down, closing off, like I should tell people, 'No, we don't use this heart anymore. It's too fragile.' ... I don't want this thing in my chest to beat me to death, but I also don't want to protect it so much that I never use it again."
"'Hey, most of it's good,' I argued.
'Most?' Gray repeated. 'Most will kill a man. The gap between all and most is a canyon of suck.'"
verypeculiarbooks's review
4.0
Courtney Stevens did an absolutely fantastic job writing this book. There's so much I have to say about it but I'm going to keep it summarized so this isn't a 8 page novel. First of all, the entire plot of the books was very well done. It was moving and inspirational and easy to relate to each character. Secondly, the character development. The way Courtney grew each character, especially Sadie, was smart. They didn't grow too fast or too slow, which made it believable. Thirdly, the battles going on in Sadie's life was hard at times to imagine because I've never gone through them, but her struggle with overcoming those hurtles was relatable. Her problems didn't vanish at the end of the book but her attitude towards them changed and it was beautifully captured. I've got so much more to say but I'm going to stop. Highly, HIGHLY, recommend this book!
fafabookcorner's review
4.0
Review posted on Fafa's Book Corner !
Beware spoilers ahead!
I had heard about this book through Twitter. There was a giveaway going on and I entered. Now I didn't win the giveaway but this book was always in the back of my mind. After reading several reviews I decided to buy it. I am happy to say that I enjoyed it!
The book begins with Sadie walking to the beach. Going to the beach in shorts is apart of Sadie's list of goals that she made with her therapist Fletcher. So far she's managed to do it until she sees whose on the beach. Gina who is her former best friend calls her over. Seeing no other choice Sadie follows suite and the two talk. Their conversation goes as it normally does. Gina tries to get Sadie to keep in touch, she apologizes profusely, and assures her that Gray (Sadie's ex boyfriend) and her aren't dating.
Gray joins the conversation and it just goes south from there. He can't look Sadie in the eye. She has a few scars from the accident and he simply cannot bear to look at her because it reminds him of their best friend dying. Sadie takes that as her cue to leave. Once her old friends are out of sight she writes in the sand her goal list. Then she jogs back home.
At home her mother gives her a letter that came for her in the mail. Noticing Sadie's expression she asks what happened. Sadie tells her that she ran into Gray and Gina and that it didn't really go well. Her mother then mentions that she was talking with Sadie's dad and they have decided to put Sadie back in school in the fall. She further explains that they found homeschooling necessary because of the therapy sessions and surgery. But now Sadie is better and should go back to school. Sadie argues but her mother points out that Sadie isn't happy at home and that she can't spend the rest of her life avoiding people.
Sadie says that she'll think about it and her mother leaves. She decides to open the letter. It has no return address just her name typed up. Once she has it open she is shocked at what she reads. It was something she wrote years ago. Sadie has this blue ostrich toy. Trent had won it for her and they named it Big. Her mother then pointed out to her that there was a hole in the bottom of the toy. Trent then suggested that Sadie put papers in Big. Much to Sadie's surprise the words on the letter are one of the papers she put in Big years ago.
Sadie thinks that her parents are behind this and confronts them. It becomes obvious that her parents aren't behind it. Her father brings up going to school again and Sadie storms off to her bedroom. She immediately checks Big for the paper and finds it. Sadie doesn't have any idea who is doing this and how the person even got the paper, but she intends to find out.
I honestly did not expect to enjoy this book! When I started reading it I thought that I rate it 3 stars. But as I continued to read on I found myself enjoying it immensely! The book is written in first person all in Sadie's point of view. There are letters, emails and flashbacks that come in this book.
A year prior to The Lies About Truth Sadie, Max, Gina, Trent, and Gray were in a car crash. Trent was killed. Sadie who had forgotten to put her seat belt on went flying out of the window. Sadie has some scars on her and she went through several surgeries to look somewhat the same. Max's vocal chords are not what they used to be. He has a hard time speaking and it usually comes out as horse. While Gina and Gray didn't have physical injuries they were scarred as well.
Max's family moved to El Salvador for a year (his family comes back in the beginning of the book). Sadie stopped keeping with Gina and Gray. After she saw Gray (her boyfriend at the time) kiss Gina. Sadie kept up with Max through emails. Sadie pretty much stopped getting out of her house. She's very conscious about her scars and she now has social anxiety. So she can't be in a crowd. Sadie's parent decide to put Sadie through a Social Experiment. To get her ready for school. At first Sadie does not want to participate but it becomes very obvious that she has no choice and decides to go along with it.
I liked how the author showed the readers the aftermath of the car crash. It's true that there isn't only injuries especially if you lose a loved one. The grief was messy and dealt with very well. I understood Sadie's need to forgive Gina and Gray but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to do it. It was realistic. The relationship between all four of them was also dealt with well. There were a lot of Before and After's which was to be expected.
I liked reading about Max and Sadie. They had a nice relationship and it was sweet to see it unfold with the emails. I also liked reading about Sadie and her parents. They were an amazing support system! I also liked reading about her therapist Fletcher and the goals she set for herself. A lot of the people Sadie met were nice and supportive. This is probably one of the most realistic contemporaries I have ever read.
I liked how there was a strong focus on forgiveness and finding the strength to move on. The flashbacks were also sweet. You saw what all the characters were like before the accident including Trent. The mystery aspect wasn't that great. But it didn't bother me and I understood why the person did not. What is nice about this book is that I got to relax and turn off my brain and just enjoyed the ride. I also liked how everything came to a full circle at the end.
I did have one problem with The Lies About Truth. I couldn't relate to the characters. I felt that they were defined by their lies, regrets, and mistakes. Sadie was defined by the relationships she had with the people around her. I didn't know any one of the characters. I honestly thought that because of this I wouldn't rate it higher than 3 stars. But much to my surprise the plot sneaked up on me. I'm not sure when this happened but it did.
Note this is a really slow contemporary. This didn't bother me but it might bother some readers. It takes a very long time for anything to really happen. Including the mystery with the letters. It also deals with a lot of grief so if you don't like that I would skip this book.
Overall this was a fun ride. I recommend it to fans of contemporary and people who like reading books dealing with grief.
Beware spoilers ahead!
I had heard about this book through Twitter. There was a giveaway going on and I entered. Now I didn't win the giveaway but this book was always in the back of my mind. After reading several reviews I decided to buy it. I am happy to say that I enjoyed it!
The book begins with Sadie walking to the beach. Going to the beach in shorts is apart of Sadie's list of goals that she made with her therapist Fletcher. So far she's managed to do it until she sees whose on the beach. Gina who is her former best friend calls her over. Seeing no other choice Sadie follows suite and the two talk. Their conversation goes as it normally does. Gina tries to get Sadie to keep in touch, she apologizes profusely, and assures her that Gray (Sadie's ex boyfriend) and her aren't dating.
Gray joins the conversation and it just goes south from there. He can't look Sadie in the eye. She has a few scars from the accident and he simply cannot bear to look at her because it reminds him of their best friend dying. Sadie takes that as her cue to leave. Once her old friends are out of sight she writes in the sand her goal list. Then she jogs back home.
At home her mother gives her a letter that came for her in the mail. Noticing Sadie's expression she asks what happened. Sadie tells her that she ran into Gray and Gina and that it didn't really go well. Her mother then mentions that she was talking with Sadie's dad and they have decided to put Sadie back in school in the fall. She further explains that they found homeschooling necessary because of the therapy sessions and surgery. But now Sadie is better and should go back to school. Sadie argues but her mother points out that Sadie isn't happy at home and that she can't spend the rest of her life avoiding people.
Sadie says that she'll think about it and her mother leaves. She decides to open the letter. It has no return address just her name typed up. Once she has it open she is shocked at what she reads. It was something she wrote years ago. Sadie has this blue ostrich toy. Trent had won it for her and they named it Big. Her mother then pointed out to her that there was a hole in the bottom of the toy. Trent then suggested that Sadie put papers in Big. Much to Sadie's surprise the words on the letter are one of the papers she put in Big years ago.
Sadie thinks that her parents are behind this and confronts them. It becomes obvious that her parents aren't behind it. Her father brings up going to school again and Sadie storms off to her bedroom. She immediately checks Big for the paper and finds it. Sadie doesn't have any idea who is doing this and how the person even got the paper, but she intends to find out.
I honestly did not expect to enjoy this book! When I started reading it I thought that I rate it 3 stars. But as I continued to read on I found myself enjoying it immensely! The book is written in first person all in Sadie's point of view. There are letters, emails and flashbacks that come in this book.
A year prior to The Lies About Truth Sadie, Max, Gina, Trent, and Gray were in a car crash. Trent was killed. Sadie who had forgotten to put her seat belt on went flying out of the window. Sadie has some scars on her and she went through several surgeries to look somewhat the same. Max's vocal chords are not what they used to be. He has a hard time speaking and it usually comes out as horse. While Gina and Gray didn't have physical injuries they were scarred as well.
Max's family moved to El Salvador for a year (his family comes back in the beginning of the book). Sadie stopped keeping with Gina and Gray. After she saw Gray (her boyfriend at the time) kiss Gina. Sadie kept up with Max through emails. Sadie pretty much stopped getting out of her house. She's very conscious about her scars and she now has social anxiety. So she can't be in a crowd. Sadie's parent decide to put Sadie through a Social Experiment. To get her ready for school. At first Sadie does not want to participate but it becomes very obvious that she has no choice and decides to go along with it.
I liked how the author showed the readers the aftermath of the car crash. It's true that there isn't only injuries especially if you lose a loved one. The grief was messy and dealt with very well. I understood Sadie's need to forgive Gina and Gray but at the same time she couldn't bring herself to do it. It was realistic. The relationship between all four of them was also dealt with well. There were a lot of Before and After's which was to be expected.
I liked reading about Max and Sadie. They had a nice relationship and it was sweet to see it unfold with the emails. I also liked reading about Sadie and her parents. They were an amazing support system! I also liked reading about her therapist Fletcher and the goals she set for herself. A lot of the people Sadie met were nice and supportive. This is probably one of the most realistic contemporaries I have ever read.
I liked how there was a strong focus on forgiveness and finding the strength to move on. The flashbacks were also sweet. You saw what all the characters were like before the accident including Trent. The mystery aspect wasn't that great. But it didn't bother me and I understood why the person did not. What is nice about this book is that I got to relax and turn off my brain and just enjoyed the ride. I also liked how everything came to a full circle at the end.
I did have one problem with The Lies About Truth. I couldn't relate to the characters. I felt that they were defined by their lies, regrets, and mistakes. Sadie was defined by the relationships she had with the people around her. I didn't know any one of the characters. I honestly thought that because of this I wouldn't rate it higher than 3 stars. But much to my surprise the plot sneaked up on me. I'm not sure when this happened but it did.
Note this is a really slow contemporary. This didn't bother me but it might bother some readers. It takes a very long time for anything to really happen. Including the mystery with the letters. It also deals with a lot of grief so if you don't like that I would skip this book.
Overall this was a fun ride. I recommend it to fans of contemporary and people who like reading books dealing with grief.
meganlouise815's review
5.0
This was a story of friendship, grief, love, and loss, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The writing style was wonderful - Sadie's voice was great to read - and I enjoyed reading her thoughts and feelings. I loved all of the characters, there wasn't one I didn't like, which made a nice change. And the story of Sadie's journey was fantastic. It had a happy feel to the story, despite the themes, and I kept wanting to read more. I thought it was funny, and awesome, and it was also a quick read - I read it in a few hours! But even though it didn't take long to read, I still enjoyed every second.
I thought Max was so cute!, and I really liked Sadie's parents, and Trent, and Gina. The flashbacks of memories with Trent was awesome, because I felt like we got to know him, even though he was already gone when the book started.
The friendship between Sadie, Max, Gina and Gray was so sweet and perfectly realistic, in a way that made me wish I had friends like them. I could tell by the way they all talked about Trent how much they loved and missed him, and I loved that theyall found acceptance in the end by talking to each other. Which, to be honest, was very unique, and in YA novels, most of the time, the friendships aren't explored nearly enough.
All in all, a fantastic book which I recommend to all you people who want a book about real people accepting the death of a friend they all lost, but with laughs and cuteness at the same time.
I thought Max was so cute!, and I really liked Sadie's parents, and Trent, and Gina. The flashbacks of memories with Trent was awesome, because I felt like we got to know him, even though he was already gone when the book started.
The friendship between Sadie, Max, Gina and Gray was so sweet and perfectly realistic, in a way that made me wish I had friends like them. I could tell by the way they all talked about Trent how much they loved and missed him, and I loved that they
All in all, a fantastic book which I recommend to all you people who want a book about real people accepting the death of a friend they all lost, but with laughs and cuteness at the same time.
juliamariereads's review
4.0
This is the first Courtney C. Stevens book I've ever read, but now I'll certainly read more in the future!
The Lies About the Truth is heartbreaking and relatable for anyone whose had to deal with friendships changing, grief or finding forgiveness. After the death of their friend Trent, the group is forced to reassess their relationships as grief changes each one of them, but we focus on our narrator, Sadie Kingston -- the one who was left with multiple scars (both physical and emotional) as the story takes place after a year of physical therapy she needed after the car accident that killed Trent. This book is the perfect blend of sweet and devastating, with writing that's easy to follow and evokes a lot of emotion.
This is definitely for fans of Morgan Matson and Emery Lord.
The Lies About the Truth is heartbreaking and relatable for anyone whose had to deal with friendships changing, grief or finding forgiveness. After the death of their friend Trent, the group is forced to reassess their relationships as grief changes each one of them, but we focus on our narrator, Sadie Kingston -- the one who was left with multiple scars (both physical and emotional) as the story takes place after a year of physical therapy she needed after the car accident that killed Trent. This book is the perfect blend of sweet and devastating, with writing that's easy to follow and evokes a lot of emotion.
This is definitely for fans of Morgan Matson and Emery Lord.