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Overview
Four pretty little liars have been very bad girls.
Spencer stole her sister's boyfriend. Aria is brokenhearted over her English teacher. Emily likes her new friend Maya . . . as much more than a friend. Hanna's obsession with looking flawless is making her sick. But their most horrible secret yet is so scandalous that the truth would ruin them forever.
And why shouldn't I tell? They deserve to lose it all. With every crumpled note, wicked IM, and vindictive text message I send, I'll be taking these pretty little liars down. Trust me, I've got enough dirt to bury them alive.
Synopsis
Spencer stole her sister's boyfriend. Aria is brokenhearted over her English teacher. Emily likes her new friend Maya . . . as much more than a friend. Hanna's obsession with looking flawless is making her sick. And their most horrible secret yet is so scandalous that the truth would ruin them forever.
And why shouldn't I tell? They deserve to lose it all. With every crumpled note, wicked IM, and vindictive text message I send, I'll be taking these pretty little liars down. Trust me, I've got enough dirt to bury them alive.
KLIATT
The sequel to Pretty Little Liars continues the stories of Aria, Spencer, Emily, and Hanna. The girls all used to be best friends, but after their friend Ali went missing three years ago, they drifted apart. Now Ali's body has been recovered and the girls are brought back together by threatening messages they are receiving from an anonymous source who goes simply by "A." A. seems to be everywhere at once, seeing everything they do and knowing intimate secrets from their pasts. The girls feel they cannot go to their parents or the police about what is happening because A. knows about their involvement in an accident, something they've long kept quiet. A. manipulates the girls and threatens to reveal their deepest secrets unless they do what they are instructed to. The girls cannot figure out who is out to get them. Though reluctant to be brought together again, the four former friends must rely on each other and reveal secrets they have long kept hidden. Flawless initially seems like many of the other chick lit books so popular right now. The main characters are privileged, promising, well-liked girls. They have problems with their peers and boyfriends, just like other teens; but there is more going on: they struggle with bulimia, coming out, and disintegrating families. A. seems to know it all. The suspenseful mystery is what really sets this title apart from the pack, giving it a wider appeal than its cover may indicate. Reviewer: Amanda MacGregor
Editorials
VOYA -
Any novel produced by Alloy Entertainment (Gossip Girls, The Clique series) flies off library and bookstore shelves. This sequel to Pretty Little Liars (HarperTempest, 2006/VOYA December 2006) will not disappoint series readers. The four girls are back and haunted by someone who leaves text messages and notes signed, "-A." Alison was the ringleader of the group who blackmailed friends and everyone loved to secretly hate her. But now Alison's disappearance has turned into murder, and the four girls are being frightened by someone who knows all their secrets. Emily struggles with her attraction to other girls, Aria's dad cheats with a yoga instructor, Hanna suffers from bulimia, and Spencer steals cars, boyfriends, and sex. The four girls are drawn together again as secrets are revealed after the big charity ball. Just when all the problems seemed solved, Emily receives another text from A, and readers will be scrambling to read Perfect (HarperTeen, 2007), the third book in the series, to see what happens next. The characters are fashion hungry, boy crazy, addicted to trouble, and living like soap-opera stars. Chick lit readers will be pleased with the addition of mystery and murders. With no bad language or graphic sex scenes, this novel is unlikely to stir up problems, but it will still satisfy teenage girls looking for accounts about rich girls in trouble. Alloy Entertainment's Web site notes that the Pretty Little Liars series is being developed into a series pilot for the CW channel.KLIATT -
The sequel to Pretty Little Liars continues the stories of Aria, Spencer, Emily, and Hanna. The girls all used to be best friends, but after their friend Ali went missing three years ago, they drifted apart. Now Ali's body has been recovered and the girls are brought back together by threatening messages they are receiving from an anonymous source who goes simply by "A." A. seems to be everywhere at once, seeing everything they do and knowing intimate secrets from their pasts. The girls feel they cannot go to their parents or the police about what is happening because A. knows about their involvement in an accident, something they've long kept quiet. A. manipulates the girls and threatens to reveal their deepest secrets unless they do what they are instructed to. The girls cannot figure out who is out to get them. Though reluctant to be brought together again, the four former friends must rely on each other and reveal secrets they have long kept hidden. Flawless initially seems like many of the other chick lit books so popular right now. The main characters are privileged, promising, well-liked girls. They have problems with their peers and boyfriends, just like other teens; but there is more going on: they struggle with bulimia, coming out, and disintegrating families. A. seems to know it all. The suspenseful mystery is what really sets this title apart from the pack, giving it a wider appeal than its cover may indicate. Reviewer: Amanda MacGregorChildren's Literature
With a quick flashback to the evening when a deep, dark secret bound five friends together, the second book of the "Pretty Little Liars Novel" series picks up the story some years later. After Alison's disappearance, the girls parted and went their separate ways in the town of Rosewood. The discovery of Alison's remains and her memorial service bring the girls together briefly. The four remaining friends, Spencer, Emily, Aria, and Hanna, are now juniors in high school. There are many more secrets that each girl harbors separately. Alison knew about those secrets, and a mysterious person called A also knows them, as well as about the girls' current activities. A threatens to reveal all their scandals. Adding to the suspense, Toby returns home to Rosewood from a reform school in Maine; he has his secrets, too. The tension grows as Spencer, Emily, Aria, and Hanna try to figure out who A is now that Alison is dead and why this person wants to mar their flawless, designer appearances with their darkest secrets.School Library Journal
Gr 9 Up
This sequel to Pretty Little Liars (HarperTeen, 2006) opens with the story of Ali, Aria, Spencer, Hanna, and Emily's involvement in an accident that caused a classmate to be hospitalized at the end of seventh grade and Ali's subsequent disappearance. Chapter one then picks up three years later: Ali's body has just been found and the four ex-best friends are at her memorial service reading a virulent communiqué from someone named A. Throughout the remainder of the book, the text messages, notes, and emails from the mysterious A continue to plague the girls, threatening to reveal their darkest secrets. And now A has stepped up the pressure, manipulating them just like Ali did. They've been able to hide these secrets from everyone and present the appearance of being flawless. Only Ali knew, and she's been dead for almost three years. So who is A? And will the threats be carried through to ruin their now-perfect lives? The girls are similar to those in Cecily von Ziegesar's "Gossip Girl" series (Little, Brown): they are wealthy spenders who smoke, drink, think/talk about sex, and attend fabulous parties. What makes this book stand apart is the overriding mystery of A's identity and the girls' fear of discovery. This second book also continues to develop the characters as they work through their very real worries and insecurities. Secondary characters and situations are also more complex. Flawless won't stay on your shelves.
—Heather E. MillerCopyright 2006 Reed Business Information.