Even though I figured part of it, I was riveted and glued until the very end. Great story. ( )

This is book two of 7 in 7 Readathon and it was pretty great. I found it a little hard to get into at first but towards the last chunk of the story, I really enjoyed it.

This story centers on an eighteen-year-old named Max, who starts a business at his high school lying for classmates and fabricating cover stories. Along with his best friend Preston and girlfriend Parvati, Max starts making a ton of money. Things turn when Preston goes missing and the FBI suspect Max. This story has a few twists and some pretty interesting characters and thrills. I gave it 3 stars because while it was good, there seemed to be something that was missing. I enjoyed it nonetheless. ( )

The two-star rating is not a reflection on the book, but rather on myself.

It gets harder and harder for me, at my ripe old age (48), to give an adequate review of YA/coming of age novels. So I ask myself, "What's in there that you would want to discuss/share with your children?" (The last of whom is 16 going on 61). I'd say, we'd discuss:

Re: The Style: Did it ring true for how 17-18 yr olds REALLY speak?
Re: The Characters: Did they reflect anyone you know? Think like they think?
What is Truth? (heavy, I know...)
And Why people lie.
And is it ever "OK" to do so.

And then I'd pack those answers away knowing a little bit more about my child and her world. ( )

Max grew up on the streets and in various foster homes, which made it hard to get to know people. Now a senior in high school, Max still feels on the edge of life as he struggles to make ends meet at a surfing job while his girlfriend Parvati and best friend Preston, who are both rich, glide through life without any worries.

Parvati’s father forbade their relationship, so Max plans to get detention to spend time with her. His taking the blame for someone else’s infraction creates the opportunity to do so for other students, and lays the groundwork for “Liars, Inc,” which Parvati and Preston decide would be the name of their new venture of creating excuses for money.

Max fabricates a lie that allows Preston to escape to Vegas for a weekend rendezvous with someone he met online. When he disappears, Max and Parvati team up to try and figure out what happened. Things become complicated when Preston’s blood is found in Max’s car, along with his missing cell phone. When Preston is found dead, Max becomes the main suspect and is soon on the run from FBI agents. As he and Parvati piece together clues, it becomes obvious that he is being framed. The question is who would do so, and why?

I wasn’t a fan of this book as I found the plot to be far-fetched and unrealistic. Thus I will leave it up to readers 14 and older to decide if you want to read it or not.

Book review link: https://shouldireaditornot.wordpress.com/2017/04/29/liars-inc-paula-stokes/ ( )

Seventeen-year-old Max, his girlfriend Parvati, and best friend Pres form Liars, Inc., expecting that forging notes and lying for their peers will lead to easy cash, but when Pres asks Max to cover for him, it may be a fatal mistake. ( )