The Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey

 "That summer, the summer of '77, everything had edges. Our laughter, the sideways glances we gave and got. Even the air was blade-sharp. I figured it was because we were growing up. The law might not recognize it, but fifteen's a girl and sixteen a woman, and you get no map from one land to the next. ... But it turns out the sharpness wasn't because we were growing up. Or it wasn't only that. I know, because three of us didn't get to grow up."

 The plot:  Heather, Brenda, and Maureen are best friends. They're even in a band together. But their friendship is beginning to fray because Maureen is keeping secrets. When Heather and Brenda chance upon one of them, it's so shocking they vow they'll never tell what they saw. Then Maureen disappears, the second girl in Pantown to disappear in a week. Only no one seems to be looking for either Maureen or Beth. And while Heather and Brenda didn't really know Beth, they're sure Maureen didn't run away. When Heather starts investigating on her own, she uncovers more secrets than she ever knew existed about the men in Pantown. Including the sheriff and her very own father. Even the boys she's known her whole life can no longer be trusted.  

My thoughts:  Wow! Talk about a riveting read. This novel is part coming-of-age, part psychological thriller, and I could not put it down. Lourey does an excellent job of capturing that 1970s setting, along with creating an undercurrent of danger directed at these young women. After a few mediocre books in a row, it was a relief to read something so well-written and well-plotted. I loved it! This is one of the best books I've read this year. And I will definitely be checking out more by this author. 

Happy Reading! 

The Lying Game

"It's not a game," she said. "It's the game. It's the Lying Game."

It began seventeen years ago at Salten House, a boarding school in Southern England.

It began with four teen-age friends:  Kate, Thea, Fatima, and Isa.

There were four basic rules:  Tell a lie, Stick to your story, Never get caught, and Never lie to each other.

It didn't end well.

With a career and a new baby, Isa Wilde hasn't thought about the Game or those days at Salten House in years. Then she gets a text from Kate saying:  I need you. And she has to go back. They all do. And while Isa is glad to see her old friends, it's not exactly a happy reunion for any of them. Because the past they thought they'd buried, and all their old secrets and lies, are starting to come to light.

They are here: Luc, Ambrose, and not just them, but ourselves, the ghosts of our past, the slim laughing girls we used to be before that summer ended with a cataclysmic crash, leaving us all scarred in our own ways, trying to move on, lying not for fun, but to survive.

This is not exactly a fast-paced page turner, but I didn't mind the unhurried way this mystery unfolds. It takes its time, but I never felt that it dragged. I was too caught up in the story of these four girls. Isa's narrative flows effortlessly between her memories of her year at Salten House with Fatima, Thea and Kate, and what's happening now with Kate and what's been uncovered. And since I'm a sucker for boarding school novels, I have to admit I liked all those bits set in the past with this quartet of imperfect girls and their unbroken bond of friendship. The rest of the plot kept me guessing as to who was behind what and where the truth actually lay. And I did not see that ending coming! Not having read either of Ware's other novels, I don't know how this one compares, I just know that I liked it. What made it even more fun was reading it with Melody. Make sure you go to her blog and check out her awesome review of this book.

Happy Reading!

Similar read:         

The Lake of Dead Languages
by Carol Goodman

P.S.  Melody had a few questions for me after we finished reading this book; here they are along with my answers:

Q. How do you feel about our four characters--Kate, Isa, Thea and Fatima?
A.  I liked all four of the girls, though I didn't agree with the choices and decisions they made. I had the most sympathy for Kate, even when I found her close-mouthed and frustrating; Fatima and Isa were the most likeable and the two I'd probably get along with the best; and beautiful, prickly Thea was the biggest mystery. I found myself really wanting to know more about her.

Q.  Since this is your first Ruth Ware book, how do you find it and do you like the story?
A. This book is good, although not nearly as suspenseful as I thought it would be. Still, I really like the way Ware writes and I can't wait to try her other books.

Two books that inspire:

Elizabeth Smart and Malala Yousafzai.

On the surface, these two girls could not be more different.

One was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, the other in the Swat Valley in Pakistan.

One is blond, the other brunette. One is Mormon, the other Muslim.

What they have in common is that both experienced something horrible and shocking as teen-agers, and they both survived. More importantly, they have each shown an amazing spirit of hope, grace, courage, and unfailing optimism. I admire both of them and I think each of their memoirs are worth reading. Here are a couple of my favorite excerpts from their books:

My Story by Elizabeth Smart:

     "When faced with pain and evil, we have to make a choice. We can choose to be taken by the evil. Or we can try to embrace the good. ... Life is a journey for us all. We all face trials. We all have ups and downs. All of us are human. But we are also the masters of our fate. We are the ones who decide how we are going to react to life."

I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai:

     "I thank Allah for the hardworking doctors, for my recovery and for sending us to this world where we may struggle for our survival. Some people choose good ways and some choose bad ways. One person's bullet hit me. It swelled my brain, stole my hearing and cut the nerve of my left face in the space of a second. And after that one second there were millions of people praying for my life ... I know God stopped me from going to the grave. It feels like this life is a second life. People prayed to God to spare me, and I was spared for a reason--to use my life for helping people."

Happy Reading!