Review: LIE By: Caroline Bock (Out Today!)

Title: LIE
Author: Caronline Bock
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin, 224 Pages (August 30th 2011)
From: the Publisher, Thank You!

Synopsis: Everybody knows, nobody’s talking. . . .

Seventeen-year-old Skylar Thompson is being questioned by the police. Her boyfriend, Jimmy, stands accused of brutally assaulting two young El Salvadoran immigrants from a neighboring town, and she’s the prime witness. Skylar is keeping quiet about what she’s seen, but how long can she keep it up?

But Jimmy was her savior. . . .

When her mother died, he was the only person who made her feel safe, protected from the world. But when she begins to appreciate the enormity of what has happened, especially when Carlos Cortez, one of the victims, steps up to demand justice, she starts to have second thoughts about protecting Jimmy. Jimmy’s accomplice, Sean, is facing his own moral quandary. He’s out on bail and has been offered a plea in exchange for testifying against Jimmy.

The truth must be told. . . .

Sean must decide whether or not to turn on his friend in order to save himself. But most important, both he and Skylar need to figure out why they would follow someone like Jimmy in the first place.

Review: 5 Stars - LIE by Caroline Bock is an extremely powerful, emotional charged, well written, heart wrenching story that’ll leave you stunned time and time again as you follow along with the characters throughout the novel.

Written from many different points of view, the ever changing voice of the narrator gives the reader a chance to see the effects of others from a vast array of voices, young and old. With shocking moments that left me stunned, I can say that LIE had me gripping the pages of the book and shaking my head with disgust over the traumatic events that charged through the novel from beginning to end.

Peer pressure rears its ugly head and it’s not just the teens that inflect this on one another, some of the adults also reach to new lows and become bullies themselves.

With so many characters I could talk about, I think I’ll stick to the basics. First, lets talk about Skylar… she’s a weak girl who falls for the wrong guy. She’s naive and is dealing with the death of her mother. She’s broken and when Jimmy comes to town, he sees her as someone he needs to fix and mold. The more I learned about Jimmy the more he set the tone for who all these other characters are. And it’s sad to think that one person can have such a strong affect on so many others.

Many people are involved or know the truth and no ones talking. Many people are in pain and still, they remain silent. With characters spiraling deeper and deeper, it became fact that only one person needed to stand up for what really happened.

Throughout the story and the different points of view, I found myself asking how so many could be so blind to such a troubled person. I guess it only takes one leader, who’s out spoken, fun and a joker for so many to fall in line.

Bock’s writing and the many different points of view made this an amazing book that I couldn’t put down. It is without a doubt one of those titles that more people should read to grasp the effects of assault and the aftermath of all who know what happened, who where there that night and who might finally stand up and speak out to do the right thing. I’m thankful that I was suggested this book by a friend at the publisher. Without her recommendation I’m sure I would have sadly passed this one by. I highly recommend this novel for all who are ready for an emotional driven and shock story based on true events.

FTC Disclaimer: I did NOT pay for this book, nor have I been compensated at all in any way or means for reading and writing this HONEST review.