Old money, family, loyalty, and tragedy. These four things are all wrapped up into one book, We Were Liars, written by E. Lockhart. This fictional story, set on the East Coast, combines old money with elegance and modernity. It starts off with a view of a quote-on-quote perfect family, the Sinclairs. They love each others’ company, love the island that they vacation on, they love everything. Every summer they visit their beloved island that their grandparents own.  However, a twist occurs in which everything seems to fall to shambles but not in the way the audience expects.

The main character is Candance Sinclair, who is portrayed as a perfect, blonde-hair girl. Lockhart then expands her storyline in which she endures a few traumatic experiences throughout the story, one in which is not fully known until the very end of the book. This leads her to change her appearance, lose her interest in her many sports and hobbies, and do poorly in school. With this the storyline shifts and shows the other family members struggling as well and not acting the same as they used to. This storyline leaves readers to keep guessing until the very end. It is not only a tragic love story, but an earth-shattering family tragedy as well.

The book We Were Liars really honed in on the imperfections of family and the reaction to traumatic events. I would rate this book a 9.5/10. It kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time trying to wrap my mind around what could have happened that caused Candence’s tragic accident. The end was the best part. The author really hones in on the incident and reveals an unexpected outcome to its truth. If you are looking for a book to enthrall you, this book is definitely the one.