Reviews

The Color of Lies by C.J. Lyons

tepmurt12's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

A slow first half and a rocket of a second half but overall a decent story. It was obvious that Alec was a good guy so I wish the investigation part of the story started more quickly. While I found the identity of the killer obvious (there was a clue in an early chapter), I definitely did not predict the reason. Decent story even if it was a little too YA for my typical tastes. Also, Max was such an annoying character lol

When Alec is going to meet Ella's family for the first time, she explicitly says not to use the word "sugar" and he does and Joe doesn't respond and I clocked that and thought it was weird.

beastreader's review against another edition

3.0

I am a fan of this author's. My first introduction to Mrs. Lyons was to her medical thriller series, Angels of Mercy. Which I enjoyed that series. This newest book from this author was one that sounded interesting and one that I had to check out.

I did like this book. Although, I will say that I do feel like it is a book that may be enjoyed by the younger adult audience. Not to say that I was not a fan of this book but I just felt like the characters were in that borderline area of teen to almost an adult.

Ella's special ability was cool. Yet, it was not showcased enough. The story seemed to be more focused on her parents murder then Ella's ability. I would have lied to have had more details and seen Ella use it more. Of course, there is romance between Ella and Alec. Their relationship is fine, not a bunch of sparks flying but at least it did not take over the main storyline.

retiredlibrarylady's review against another edition

3.0

A slow start but exciting finish. Sort of unbelievable since a "long con" is a matter of weeks or months rather than years...and years!

smittenforfiction's review against another edition

2.0

This review can be found on my blog Smitten For Fiction. http://www.smittenforfiction.wordpress.com

Hey book lovers! I'm here to share a review of an audio book I finished recently, The Color of Lies by C. J. Lyons.

› Ella Cleary is a high school student in rural Pennsylvania with a rare condition called synesthesia (a real medical condition where one sense comes through with another). For Ella, she can see the colors of people's emotions. Gram Helen, Ella's grandmother, can see sounds. Ella's uncle Joe can taste words. She's expected to take over the family business after graduation but is struggling to find the courage to tell Gram Helen and uncle Joe that she wants to study art. Ella could always see the colors of everyone's emotions until she met Alec.

› Alec is a young, good-looking black journalist from South Carolina who's found Ella because he wants to find out what really happened to her parents. Helen and Joe told Ella her parents died in a fire, but Alec reveals their deaths were no accident. Shocked that her family lied to her, she teams up with Alec to try and find the truth.

“The world is filled with magic. You just have to look and listen”

› Audio Book/Writing Style
• The narrator does different voices for each character.
• The voice done for Alec is a little annoying.
• Accents changed and there are over-pronounced words.

› Likes

jamiedee24's review against another edition

5.0

This was such a mind trip! Intrigue, lies, murder...so much more. It was insane, and hard to put down.

jessm135's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

ebralz's review against another edition

1.0

I just had a lot of issues and questions with this book from the very beginning to the very end. I also highly question the author’s research when it comes to synesthesia and how she portrayed its symptoms in the main character. I have a hard time believing that if you have this then you will be able to “see” that someone has dyslexia just by their aura alone. I also felt this book was extremely predictable and not in a good way. There were so many instances where I questioned people’s actions, thoughts, and words to lead me to realize that in my opinion the writing was just not good.

I listened to this book which lead to a whole bunch of issues in itself, the main one being why would a character speak in a southern accent, but not think in one?

mirandazie's review against another edition

Didn’t like the portrayal of synesthesia

rctovillo's review against another edition

adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

annayise's review against another edition

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5