Synopsis:
The text message arrives in the small hours of the morning: I need you.
Isa drops everything, takes her baby daughter and heads straight to Salten. She spent the most significant days of her life at boarding school on the marshes there, days which still cast their shadow over her.
Isa and her three best friends used to play the Lying Game, competing to convince people of outrageous stories. Now, after seventeen years of hiding the truth, something terrible has been found on the beach. The friends’ darkest secret is about to come to light…
This my fourth book by Ruth Ware and by far my favorite! I originally came across her books when I read The Turn of the Key, based loosely on the classic novel A Turn of the Screw. I really like the suspense of her novels!
After reading this novel, I told a friend that the imagery of the setting made you feel as if you were literally there. I later came across an article where Ruth Ware discussed where her idea came concerning the location. This was the first book where the setting came first then the story (click to read the article).
Something else…I am not sure if she meant to do this but I totally felt a little Rebecca and Wuthering Heights (two of my favorite books) in The Lying Game. I would love to hear what others thought about those similarities.
What I thought was interesting with this story is how we all how stories in our past that we regret – rather stories we actually told or believed. I can think back on times of hearing and believing something about a person, never questioning if it was actually true. As a teenager, you just believed whatever you heard. Today, I still (not intentional) think the same about that person based on preconceived notions from high school. I wonder how that individual must have felt having rumors or stuff being told. Regardless if the “gossip” was done maliciously or just “talk,” there are consequences for what may be considered funny at the time. As I was reading this book, I couldn’t help but cringe thinking how we all had those moments.
Anyhoo…if you are looking for a great book to read, this is one for you. Be sure, though, to read it when there is nothing else going one. I could not put down the book. Another plus – it is $1.99 right now on Kindle!!!! So…Happy Reading!
