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Overview
I had a life anyone would kill for.
Then someone did.
The worst part of being dead is that there's nothing left to live for. No more kisses. No more secrets. No more gossip. It's enough to kill a girl all over again. But I'm about to get something no one else does—an encore performance, thanks to Emma, the long-lost twin sister I never even got to meet.
Now Emma's desperate to know what happened to me. And the only way to figure it out is to be me—to slip into my old life and piece it all together. But can she laugh at inside jokes with my best friends? Convince my boyfriend she's the girl he fell in love with? Pretend to be a happy, carefree daughter when she hugs my parents good night? And can she keep up the charade, even after she realizes my murderer is watching her every move?
From Sara Shepard, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Pretty Little Liars books, comes a riveting new series about secrets, lies, and killer consequences.
Let the lying game begin.
Synopsis
I had a life anyone would kill for. Then someone did. The worst part of being dead is that there s nothing left to live for. No more kisses. No more secrets. No more gossip. ...
Biography
Sara Shepard graduated from NYU and has an MFA from Brooklyn College. She currently lives in Tucson, Arizona. Sara's Pretty Little Liars novels were inspired by her upbringing in Philadelphia's Main Line.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
Those who get past the improbable premise of Shepard's (the Pretty Little Liars books) series debut will find a fun and fast-moving mystery. Foster kid Emma never knew she had an identical twin until she sees an online video of a girl named Sutton being choked by a masked figure. She tries to contact her, but a planned reunion goes awry when Sutton never shows up (readers know this is because she has been killed; Sutton narrates the book as a ghost, unable to communicate with Emma, but eager to "solve my own murder"). Kicked out of her foster home and mistaken for Sutton by Sutton's friends and family, Emma starts living her privileged life; the stakes rise dramatically when she learns her other half is dead. Clique lit fans will recognize the familiar mix of label-dropping and mean girl behavior, but the dark mystery adds a compelling layer. Readers may have a hard time buying the ease with which Emma slips into Sutton's very different life, but they will race through the pages as Emma pieces together clues and will have plenty to ponder as they anticipate the next installment. Ages 14–up. (Dec.)VOYA -
Abandoned by her mother and raised in foster homes, Emma has no connection to family until she sees a disturbing Internet video featuring a girl who looks exactly like her. Realizing the girl has to be her twin, Emma travels cross-country to meet her. When she arrives, however, she discovers that her sister, Sutton, is missing, and even more disconcerting, Sutton's friends and family mistake Emma for Sutton. As Emma is thrust into her sister's privileged life, she finds out that Sutton is truly a force to be reckoned with. The queen of mean, Sutton is the leader of a clique of girls notorious for their cruel pranks. What is the truth behind Sutton's disappearance? Is she hiding out, or did someone hate her enough to exact the ultimate revenge? The Lying Game is a stay-up-past-your-bedtime type of thriller. The tension is palatable as Emma investigates her sister's disappearance and realizes that there could be a killer lurking behind any of the faces of Sutton's so-called friends. But the novel's real edginess comes from Emma's discovery of the extent of her sister's callousness. The one oddity is the appearance of Sutton's ghost, which seems more a plot device than an integral part of the story. Luckily, most readers will be too absorbed by the mystery to care, and their only real complaint will be that the killer is not revealed by the last page. Let's hope the sequel is as rewarding as the first. Reviewer: C. ClarkVOYA
This book is a very engaging read, full of amazingly believable plot twists and turns. Emma's struggle to find out who killed her sister will keep readers hooked and guessing until the final page. This reviewer recommends this book to anyone who appreciates a refreshingly unique and exceptional teen murder mystery. 4Q, 5P. Reviewer: Erica Alexander, Teen ReviewerSchool Library Journal
Gr 9 Up—In foster care for most of her childhood, Emma aches to belong to a family. She gets that chance when her foster brother frames her for theft and discredits her with a disturbing snuff film on the Internet that reveals a potential sibling. As a result, she is forced to leave her foster home. Emma immediately sets out to meet the mysterious star of the film only to be plunged into assuming the role of her popular and privileged dead twin sister, Sutton Mercer. Readers might initially balk at the easy acceptance of Emma playing the role of her twin. However, Sutton's friends are just shallow enough to barely notice the difference between mean-girl Sutton and introspective Emma. In fact, Sutton's friends appear to be her enemies as Emma works to uncover the truth about the girl's death. As she searches for answers, she learns about the Lying Game, a group of teens, including Sutton and her friends, whose object is to humiliate and frighten the students and parents in their community. The suspense reaches a dangerous frenzy as Emma gets closer to finding the identity of her sister's killer. The first in a projected series, this is a thrilling mystery with just the right doses of romance and danger. Readers will race to the end, hoping to reveal the truth behind the incidents surrounding Sutton's death, only to find themselves simultaneously frustrated by the lack of closure and eager for the sequel.—Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School, Marriottsville, MDKirkus Reviews
This first in an intriguing new series reunites long-lost twins, but only after one has been murdered. Emma, the living sister, has been raised in foster care and learns of her wealthy twin just as Emma's kicked out of her last home. Sutton realizes she's dead, but she can't remember much of her life. She attaches her ghostly self, undetected, to Emma and reads Emma's thoughts, giving the novel a compelling first-/third-person point of view. Both twins want to solve the murder, even as Emma almost inadvertently takes Sutton's place at her home, where no one knows she's dead. However, a good twin/bad twin scenario emerges, as Emma learns that Sutton and her friends enjoy playing cruel pranks. But could one of Sutton's friends, or even someone closer, be the murderer? Shepard keeps the action rolling and the clues confusing as she spends this installment uncovering the twins' characters but not solving the murder yet. Naturally, boys and fashion also figure into the story, fleshing out a distinctive scenario that should appeal to many teen girls. (Paranormal chick lit. 14 & up)