E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars is a standalone novel. Cadence Sinclair Eastman is a part of the rich Sinclair family. The Sinclair family work had to maintain the appearance of being a beautiful, healthy and perfect family. Every year, the Sinclairs meet on Beechwood Island. Cadence, Johnny, Mirren, and Gat all look forward to this one time of the year they are all together, but something happened on their fifteenth summer together. There was an accident that left Cadence with migraines and no memory of the incident that caused them. When she goes back to Beechwood for her seventeenth summer, she is determined to find out what the accident was.
Cadence is a character that can either be loved or hated. She comes from a rich family and seems extremely shallow at first glance. When a person looks deeper, they can see that her shallowness comes from ignorance. She seems to really care about the welfare of others. Although she suffered from a serious accident, she doesn’t want anyone to feel any pity for her.
We Were Liars turned out to be a surprisingly good read. The story draws you in its mysterious tone. Most would immediately notice the broken and fractured way of writing. While it fits the story, some may not enjoy this writing style. This book requires a lot of perseverance and determination. The characters are rich, pretentious and kind of annoying, but those who finish the book are rewarded with a great contemporary story. I can’t say much about the story because the less you know, the better the book is. I can say that the book is surprisingly deep despite its slim appearance. I give this 225 page book 3.5 stars.