'The best books, reviewed with insight and charm, but without compromise.'
- author Jackie French

Friday, 25 October 2024

Review: Such Charming Liars

This book by bestselling ‘Queen of Teen Crime’ author Karen McManus, is touted as an explosive new YA thriller. And yes, McManus well and truly earns the label – Such Charming Liars gives generously!

It’s told from the perspective of two teenagers, Kat and Liam, who were step-siblings for just 48 hours when they were five and their respective parents briefly married in Vegas.

This story contains all the important elements of a teen thriller: action, thrills, lust, spills, twists, power, fortune, fame. And of course, a little bit of gender-fluid snogging on the side.

With a complex storyline that will reward readers’ attention to detail (I suggest an intensive rather than extended reading period for this work), the book is pacy and well-written. 

The story contains a diverse and large cast of characters. These include a stable of con artists, a mega-rich extended family who are dripping in wealth and an excess of material things (which conveniently for the plot, don’t extend to much of a moral compass), and teens who are trying to navigate their respective ways through tricky times.

The people within this story of a jewellery heist that turns into a murder, are well-crafted and fleshed out. Individual flaws are very evident and their endearing qualities are also fabulously transparent.

With twists and turns that even seasoned thrill-seekers won’t see coming, this book will have readers engaged and breathless to the very end.

Title: Such Charming Liars
Author: Karen M McManus
Publisher: Penguin, $27.99
Publication Date: 6 August 2024
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780241676998
For Ages: 14+
Type: Young Adult