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A review by michellesantiago
Hiding Lies by Julie Cross
4.0
I hope we'll see more Ellie and Miles in the future. Loved them! Full review to come.
Full Review (originally posted on Undeniably Book Nerdy):
I quite enjoyed reading Chasing Truth, the first book in the Eleanor Ames series, so when I learned that we're finally getting its sequel (after nearly two years) I jumped at the chance to get my hands on Hiding Lies and read it as soon as I can. And I very much enjoyed it, even more than I did Chasing Truth.
Hiding Lies began a few weeks after Chasing Truth ended. But, since it's been almost two years since I read Chasing Truth (and I didn't have time to reread it), I had a hard time remembering and putting together the events in CT and connecting them to Hiding Lies. You definitely need to read CT before jumping into Hiding Lies--events in CT were referenced quite a bit and you would lose a lot of Ellie's character growth as well as her and Miles's relationship development.
Once I was able to meld the events in Chasing Truth to what was happening in Hiding Lies about a third of the way through I was able to enjoy the book much more. I love Ellie! She's goes after things head on and wasn't afraid to bend the rules, but she's also smart and doesn't take stupid chances. I really like the friendship and partnership that developed between her and Dominic too, who was a bit of an antagonist in CT. Aiden and Ellie's sister Harper were back too, but they were more in the background as the focus was more on Ellie's dad and their "family" members. It was great learning more about them and seeing them in action doing a con.
And, of course, Miles was back. To be honest I wasn't too terribly impressed with Miles in CT because you couldn't quite trust him and he was hot and cold (and I understood why he was like that in book one, but nevertheless it's one of my biggest pet peeves in a love interest) towards Ellie. He didn't get as much page in Hiding Lies, but when he was around I swooned. Miles was hot and it's obvious how much he loved Ellie and I just love, love, LOVE them together. Definitely OTP status. They're kind of opposites in a way, but they complete each other and I love all their scenes together, especially the last chapter.
As for the mystery aspect, it wasn't as thrilling as the one in CT as none of the twists and turns really got me, but still highly enjoyable. I was never bored. I did like that it was set in New York, which added a different flavor to the setting yet we still got a bit of that prep school vibe since Ellie's Holden classmates were still around as they were on a weeks-long learning trip.
When I finished Hiding Lies I wasn't quite ready to leave Ellie and Miles behind so I hope Julie Cross brings them back to do more sleuthing and more traveling around the world. But, if the Eleanor Ames series is only a duology, then I really can't complain. The author did a good job tying all the loose ends and the ending was satisfying.
If you enjoy light YA mystery thrillers in the same vein as Ally Carter and Sara Shephard (though not as catty), I recommend Chasing Truth and Hiding Lies.
Full Review (originally posted on Undeniably Book Nerdy):
I quite enjoyed reading Chasing Truth, the first book in the Eleanor Ames series, so when I learned that we're finally getting its sequel (after nearly two years) I jumped at the chance to get my hands on Hiding Lies and read it as soon as I can. And I very much enjoyed it, even more than I did Chasing Truth.
Hiding Lies began a few weeks after Chasing Truth ended. But, since it's been almost two years since I read Chasing Truth (and I didn't have time to reread it), I had a hard time remembering and putting together the events in CT and connecting them to Hiding Lies. You definitely need to read CT before jumping into Hiding Lies--events in CT were referenced quite a bit and you would lose a lot of Ellie's character growth as well as her and Miles's relationship development.
Once I was able to meld the events in Chasing Truth to what was happening in Hiding Lies about a third of the way through I was able to enjoy the book much more. I love Ellie! She's goes after things head on and wasn't afraid to bend the rules, but she's also smart and doesn't take stupid chances. I really like the friendship and partnership that developed between her and Dominic too, who was a bit of an antagonist in CT. Aiden and Ellie's sister Harper were back too, but they were more in the background as the focus was more on Ellie's dad and their "family" members. It was great learning more about them and seeing them in action doing a con.
And, of course, Miles was back. To be honest I wasn't too terribly impressed with Miles in CT because you couldn't quite trust him and he was hot and cold (and I understood why he was like that in book one, but nevertheless it's one of my biggest pet peeves in a love interest) towards Ellie. He didn't get as much page in Hiding Lies, but when he was around I swooned. Miles was hot and it's obvious how much he loved Ellie and I just love, love, LOVE them together. Definitely OTP status. They're kind of opposites in a way, but they complete each other and I love all their scenes together, especially the last chapter.
As for the mystery aspect, it wasn't as thrilling as the one in CT as none of the twists and turns really got me, but still highly enjoyable. I was never bored. I did like that it was set in New York, which added a different flavor to the setting yet we still got a bit of that prep school vibe since Ellie's Holden classmates were still around as they were on a weeks-long learning trip.
When I finished Hiding Lies I wasn't quite ready to leave Ellie and Miles behind so I hope Julie Cross brings them back to do more sleuthing and more traveling around the world. But, if the Eleanor Ames series is only a duology, then I really can't complain. The author did a good job tying all the loose ends and the ending was satisfying.
If you enjoy light YA mystery thrillers in the same vein as Ally Carter and Sara Shephard (though not as catty), I recommend Chasing Truth and Hiding Lies.