Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Review: Dangerous Lies

DANGEROUS LIES
Becca Fitzpatrick
Young Adult/Thriller
400 pages
Simon & Schuster BFYR
Available Now
Source: ARC from publisher for review

THE STORY (from Goodreads)
Stella Gordon is not her real name. Thunder Basin, Nebraska, is not her real home. This is not her real life.

After witnessing a lethal crime, Stella Gordon is sent to the middle of nowhere for her own safety before she testifies against the man she saw kill her mother’s drug dealer.

But Stella was about to start her senior year with the boyfriend she loves. How can she be pulled away from the only life she knows and expected to start a new one in Nebraska? Stella chafes at her protection and is rude to everyone she meets. She’s not planning on staying long, so why be friendly? Then she meets Chet Falconer and it becomes harder to keep her guard up, even as her guilt about having to lie to him grows.

As Stella starts to feel safer, the real threat to her life increases—because her enemies are actually closer than she thinks…


MY THOUGHTS
Dangerous Lies is a quick, exciting read, introducing us to Stella on the eve of her entry into Witness Protection and then whisking us off to the small town of Thunder Basin, Nebraska. From there we have the pleasure of watching as Stella grows and matures, forced to walk a mile in the shoes of good people living a small town life and thus change her perspective on a number of things. We're never allowed to forget the reason for Stella's new home situation however, the threat of discovery hanging over our heads throughout to ensure we ultimately choose one more chapter over going to bed at a reasonable hour.

Stella makes it a touch difficult to like her in the opening chapters, her very understandable hurt and anger at her mother for leaving her no choice but to join WITSEC in the first place spilling over onto all the wrong people. She chafes at the bit for the first few weeks, determined to weigh, measure and find wanting everything and everyone in Thunder Basin, and content to judge those around her left and right for choosing a life different from she's known. She also disobeys direct orders from the U.S. Marshal responsible for her safety by trying to get in touch with her boyfriend Reed (who is also in WITSEC), but she at least does so in arguably the smartest way possible, and once she receives no response she doesn't attempt further contact even as her desperation for news grows.

Once Stella gets a job and takes time to get to know some of the people she was so quick to consider beneath her, she becomes someone we can easily root for, standing up to the resident athletic hotshot/sociopath even when the cops try everything in their power to get her to look the other way. Her romance with Chet is something that could have easily gone wrong considering she's initially with someone else, but the way she handles herself makes the cheating issue more palatable, and she proves time and again that she doesn't take her shifting feelings lightly. She stays strong in the face of everything that's thrown at her, and by the end she takes every step necessary to remedy her past mistakes, learning more than she thought possible about herself along the way.

Overall, Dangerous Lies is pure entertainment, perfect for late night binge reading and snacking, and with just enough suspense and romance to keep us on the edge of our seats.

Rating: 4/5



Find Becca:
This book was sent to me by the publisher free of charge for the purpose of a review
I received no other compensation and the above is my honest opinion.

33 comments:

  1. It sounds like a good one. I didn't know about this one but I would love to discover Stella.

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  2. I loved this book and it's been a while since I've read anything by this author. I love Chet and Camille and I loved seeing a whole new side to her, a new person. I would to think what Estella was like. Great review!

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    1. I really loved Chet too, he was a winner:) So glad you enjoyed this as well!

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  3. Fitzpatrick's last book was a bit of a disappointment for me, so I am glad to hear this one was better and entertaining. Great review, Jenny!

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    1. I go into her books just wanting to be entertained Christina, so I usually have fun with them:)

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  4. I started this one last night, Jenny and the main character is driving me insane. I'm close to DNFing it, but since you say that she changes I'll keep pushing. Plus, I like Chet. I was worried about the romance but thank you for clearing it up.
    I hope I'll end up loving it too. :)
    Lovely review!

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    1. I definitely wanted to shake Stella a few times in the beginning, but she did grow on me. I hope she works better for you if you keep going:)

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  5. This sounds like a book I'd like, even with the bit about the cheating that is absolutely a no-no for me... Maybe this will be the book to give Becca Fitzpatrick another try after giving up on the Hush Hush series!

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    1. Cheating is a no-no for me as well Pili, but it didn't bother me here. We don't really know Reed at all, so I couldn't get upset about her kissing Chet instead:)

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  6. I really want to read this one. I love her Hush Hush series and Black Ice as well.

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    1. Then I think you'll really enjoy this one as well!

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  7. I really enjoyed her other book she did in this genre and I think I'm going to have to pick this one up as well. ;)

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    1. I did too! There were some things I just had to roll with in that one as was the case with this story too, but I had fun with it:)

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  8. I have this on my wishlist...it sounds like a perfect Autumn rainy evening read!

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    1. Yes! I've been in a funk and this was a nice way to spend a couple hours:)

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  9. Hmmm.... I might have to pick this one up. I did like Black Ice even though I wasn't a fan of the romance. I did enjoy the suspense and the setting.

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    1. Me too Heidi. If you enjoyed that one overall I think you'll like this one too:)

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  10. I ordered this one for my teens, but I think I'm going to skip it for myself. I'm not sure if I could tolerate and wait for the main character to mature. Glad you liked it though.

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    1. It doesn't taker her too too long Rummanah. She gets over herself after about a quarter of the way through:)

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  11. I don't why but I didn't even hear of this book until yesterday. I did enjoy her other mystery/thriller book so I might like this one as well.

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    1. I hope you try it Candace! I really like her thrillers:)

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  12. I think the library got this one, I was all what? Go library

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  13. Great review! I want to try this. Her paranormal was a huge guilty pleasure of mine!

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  14. I love romantic suspense. Why have I not tried this author Jenny? I am thinking I need to fix that stat. Wonderful review, I am up for a late night binge read :)

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  15. I love a binge read since otherwise, I simply don't have the motivation or time to pick up a novel so this is perfect. I've definitely seen this around the blogosphere so I'm excited to see it has your endorsement. Lovely review, Jenny! :)

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  16. wonderful review, I am currently reading it and loving it, the writing is just amazing.

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  17. I read Black Ice last year by Becca and was surprised on how much I enjoyed it (I'm not one to pick up much romantic suspense) but I think I'm going to try more - good to know this is great as well!! :)

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  18. I started to read this book but I put it down because I felt disconnected from the characters and the situation but after reading your review and your praise I am tempted to pick it up again. The suspense and romance sounds like they were done well.

    A lovely review! Sharon – Obsession with Books

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  19. I wanted to read a book by this author for a while, I was thinking about her Black Ice. But you totally sold me Dangerous Lies. I love books with character growth, and I love when the author makes the readers root for the character they previously disliked. I admit though I’m a little worried about romance. Wonderful review, Jenny!

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  20. That's what I can't get past the two boys in this book. I don't know how I feel about that. Mind you, I haven't read too much of it lately. Sigh.

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