ARC Book Review: We Fell Apart (We Were Liars #3) by E. Lockhart

November 20, 2025November 4, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 330 pages
Author: E. Lockhart
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: November 4th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A girl arrives at her long-lost artist father’s isolated seaside compound to find him missing, a mansion in neglect, and three teenage boys whose dark secrets might hold the key to her own family saga.

#1 New York Times bestselling author E. Lockhart delivers a standalone novel in the world of TikTok sensation We Were Liars, filled with her signature beachy gothic atmosphere, family intrigue, and high stakes romance.

Matilda has been through a lot. Her mum has run off to Mexico, her boyfriend has dumped her, and her friends have cut their ties.

So when her long-lost father, the famous and reclusive painter Kingsley Cello, invites Matilda to spend the summer at his seaside home, Hidden Beach, there’s nothing to stop her crossing the country to see him.

When she arrives, instead of a father, she finds a crumbling house in a state of neglect, filled with mysterious paintings and locked towers, and three teenaged

Meer – her open-hearted, tattoo-obsessed half-brother, who embraces Matilda as a sister, but is hiding a dark secret;
Brock – the damaged, professionally charming former-child star who is dealing with more than just the demons of his past;
and Tatum – sullen, wild, and hardworking – who for some reason wants Matilda to leave Hidden Beach as soon as possible.

With Kingsley nowhere to be seen, Matilda must delve into the twisted heart of Hidden Beach to uncover the answers she’s desperately craving. But secrets run thicker than blood, and blood runs like seawater.

And everyone here is lying.

Thank you Get Underlined for the gifted ARC.

IDK Y’ALL.

Honestly after not loving the second book I should have just stopped but I’m committed when handed an ARC so here we are.

I don’t know the point of this one? Its another mystery, but it feels like you can guess the entire thing from the beginning. The writing style didn’t work for me and I didn’t feel any connection between the characters.

There just wasn’t anything engaging about this book.

Overall audience notes:

YA Mystery
Language: mild
Romance: closed door
Violence: moderate
Content warnings: loss of life, a loved one with dementia

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Book Review: Family of Liars (We Were Liars #2) by E. Lockhart

September 14, 2025July 25, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 300 pages
Author: E. Lockhart
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: May 3rd, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The prequel to We Were Liars takes readers back to the story of another summer, another generation, and the secrets that will haunt them for decades to come.

A windswept private island off the coast of Massachusetts.
A hungry ocean, churning with secrets and sorrow.
A fiery, addicted heiress. An irresistible, unpredictable boy.
A summer of unforgivable betrayal and terrible mistakes.

Welcome back to the Sinclair family.
They were always liars.

Thank you Get Underlined for the gifted copy.

I WAS BORED.

While I don’t think there was anything WRONG with this book I was just so bored I found very little enjoyment in reading it. After We Were Liars and knowing the twist and the family dynamics in that book it made this one seem very predictable. Of course there was more drama and chaos, but nothing I couldn’t see from a mile away.

Maybe I read these two too close together? I’m not sure. I do have book three so I’m going to read that too and maybe that’ll make me feel differently about the series as a whole.

I did like the audiobook so if you wanted to read this, I’d recommend that format!

Overall audience notes:

YA Mystery
Language: moderate
Romance: fade to black
Violence: moderate – high
Content warnings: attempted r*pe, alcohol consumption, prescription drug use, grief/loss depiction, loss of a sibling, murder, drowning recounted

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Book Review: We Were Liars (We Were Liars #1) by E. Lockhart

August 2, 2025June 28, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★.5
Audience: YA Mystery
Length: 242 pages
Author: E. Lockhart
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: May 13th, 2014
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A beautiful and distinguished family.
A private island.
A brilliant, damaged girl; a passionate, political boy.
A group of four friends—the Liars—whose friendship turns destructive.
A revolution. An accident. A secret.
Lies upon lies.
True love.
The truth.

We Were Liars is a modern, sophisticated suspense novel from New York Times bestselling author, National Book Award finalist, and Printz Award honoree E. Lockhart.

Read it.

And if anyone asks you how it ends, just LIE.

Thank you Get Underlined for the gifted copy.

WELL WELL WELL.

Honestly this book didn’t have a lot going for it but I will give it up for the twist, that one got me (and now I understand more why there’s over a million ratings for this on goodreads). The writing style is definitely unique and I actually enjoy an unreliable narrator so those were all good points for me.

Somehow for 250 pages though there were scenes that dragged or didn’t feel totally necessary. As previously mentioned though, the twist was interesting and gave me a better view point of the whole book.

I’m curious how this has a sequel?? I’m going to pick that one up soon.

Overall audience notes: