The Lies that Bind (The Liar Society, #2)

The Liar Society: The Lies that Bind
Lisa & Laura Roecker
311 pages
Released: November 6, 2012
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Source: the publisher
★★★★☆

You can read the Goodreads summary here.

The Lies that Bind is the second novel in The Liar Society series by sisters Lisa & Laura Roecker.  In this installment, Kate is still reeling over the death of her best friend Grace, so it's surprising to her when little notes and trinkets belonging to Grace start showing up randomly.  Then when one of the popular girls at school goes missing, Kate decides she owes it to Grace's memory to help find the missing girl.  But who can you trust in a school ruled by secret societies?

I loved this book!  I haven't read the first book in the series, but that didn't dampen my ability to understand the plot of The Lies that Bind at all.  The first thing that struck me while reading The Lies that Bind was Kate's character.  She's such a driven, determined young woman who I think can be an excellent role model, even if she does a little lying to her parents to get stuff done.  It's clear that Kate really loved her best friend Grace, that she's still hurting from Grace's death and those little things she does, like send e-mails to Grace's account even though they can't be answered, makes Kate seem very realistic and human in a novel where the mystery itself is a little less than realistic.

But that's okay!  The mystery in this book was great really because secret societies are so interesting.  The battling secret societies at Kate's school, Pemberly Brown Academy, were very fun to read about, though what it seemed to boil down to was a traditional girls vs. boys battle.  I was a little shocked though, to read that the boys would go so far as to kidnap and seemingly torture one of the girls though, just to make a point.  That's one of the main reasons I read as fast as I could, I felt there had to be more to it.

And in the last fifteen or so pages, we learn what it's all about.  I didn't see that coming!  I believe my exact words were, "Oh, snap!"  (Do the kids still say stuff like that these days?)

Four stars!  I loved this book because of the characters and the mystery, but I was confused as to why the authorities weren't involved.  Why weren't Bethany's parents freaking out?  Still, I think this is a great read for any YA contemporary mystery lover.  I'm looking forward to reading the first book in the series to find out what happened to Grace, but I think The Lies that Bind can definitely be read as a standalone if you wish.  Go check it out!