Pretty Little Liars #5: Wicked

Written by Sara Shepard

Narrated by Cassandra Morris

#1 New York Times bestselling series

The fifth book in the #1 New York Times bestselling series that inspired the hit ABC Family TV show Pretty Little Liars.

In idyllic Rosewood, Pennsylvania, four very pretty girls just can't help but be bad. Hanna will do anything to be Rosewood's queen bee. Spencer's digging up her family's secrets. Emily can't stop thinking about her new boyfriend. And Aria approves a little too strongly of her mom's taste in men. The girls think they’re in the clear now that Ali's killer is finally behind bars. But someone new is mimicking “A’s” blackmailing ways with wicked and mysterious messages. And it’s only a matter of time before they let some secrets slip.

Full of unexpected twists and shocking revelations, Wicked is the fifth book in New York Times bestselling author Sara Shepard’s compelling Pretty Little Liars series. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Aug 3, 2010
• ISBN: 9780062014153

Sara Shepard

Sara Shepard graduated from NYU and has an MFA from Brooklyn College. She currently lives in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania. Sara's Pretty Little Liars novels were inspired by her upbringing in Philadelphia's Main Line. All the Things We Didn’t Say is her first novel for adults.

Reviews for Pretty Little Liars #5

[Mariesa Haynes · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I love the PLL series but this book wasn’t as exciting as the first 4 books. Not much happened in this book. If I had to skip a book in the series I would skip Wicked (Book 5).

[Selina Cooper · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Keeps getting better and better! Wicked indeed! Following right along here….on to #6.

[Daysi Mariel Camacho · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great! I really love this book more than the previous ones.

[angelarenea-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was completely obsessed with the word cul-de-sac or however you spell it. It was in there like 90 times. But other than that I really liked it, it took some time to get through but I flew through the end.

[pamzaragoza · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Oh just the usual serving of chick problems, secrets and the continuous search for "A".

[y2ash · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I will admit: Wicked was a bit creepy. Why? Because the new and improved A is downright brutal. I mostly enjoyed Wicked because of the psychological torture A was using on the main characters of Aria, Spencer, Emily, and most intensely on Hanna.

I will always praise Shepard on knowing exactly how manipulative and bitchy teenage girls are and all of the mind games that they played. If you're not popular, your life will be made into hell. I especially felt bad for Hanna who was a tragic victim of her own A-induced paranoia. Is she right to not trust Kate?

Spencer's story kills me too. She is isolated from her ntire family. Her parents blantantly ignored and are cold to her. At least things with her sister, Melissa have improved.

I can't wait to read the next one!!!!!

[mrsz5104 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book was a good continuation of the story and it's nice to know what is happening with our favorite Little Liars. I didn't enjoy the time jump and then trying to go back and fill us in on what happened.

[scote23 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sometimes I wonder why I continue to read this series. It keeps me reading, but I know that each of the four girls is going to make a mistake or misread a situation and then get in trouble for it. And I don't really feel pity for some of them much longer. So why do I keep reading? I'm not quite sure.

[ctmsanke · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wicked, Pretty Little Liars #5, my least favorite out of all of the books so far. I know it's like a new beginning for the second half of the series, considering the fact that Mona, "A", just died but I find it too boring in the middle and it seemed just to drag out, which is why i rated it a 3.5/5. Sure there was drama but not like the other four books! I would go through those in a day, literally! I never put them down! I felt like now that Mona was dead, no one could really take the place of "A". The best part of this book, frankly is the ending. It was so surprising and shocking, and it just leaves at a cliffhanger! Sara Shepherd is a master at adding twists into her books, especially with all of her mysterious, bitchy characters. I mean, how can you not like a shocking ending.Wicked is about four girls, Hanna, Spencer, Aria, and Emily. In the book they each strugle with the death and closure of Ali Dilaurentis, there old and now dead best friend. But now there is a "copycat" A, or so the girls think. They get harassed and threatened by the new "A", only this time, I feel like "A" is trying to help them, trying to lead them to a clue about Ali's death. And then, at the very end, there is the biggest twist and cliffhanger i have ever read in my life. It's scary, crude, and almost impossible. I read this part at night and i couldn't help but be a tad bit scared of what was out in MY woods. ( you'll get the jest of what I mean after you read the book."My least favorite character in the book is Hanna. I think she is disloyal, snobby, vain, and doesn't really think about what she's doing until after the damage is done. And now that her oh-so-perfect step sister moved into her house, things are about to get a whole lot worse. Now, everything Hanna does is either out of spite or to create drama. She always needs to be better than Kate at everything she does. But surprisingly, in the middle of the book, they actually become friends! I think Hanna was stupidly sucked into one of Kate's evil plans, but i can't be sure yet. I guess I'll have to read the rest of the series to figure out what's really going on.

[littleton_pace · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another great installment, and I breezed through this one quite quickly. The mystery is still great and keeps me reading.My issue with the parents acting like children is still annoying; moreso in this book than the last one. Hanna's father chooses his step-daughter over his daughter, I just don't believe that. And Aria's mother's boyfriend is hitting on her while sleeping with her mother. That's gross. And unnecessary, and just hammers home the point that Aria is attracted to older men. Also gross. Aria does not come off as likable as the others girls. Even Hanna, who is a total bitch to everyone and only cares about her popularity, I prefer her to Aria and her whining ways.And there's a new A in town, or maybe it's always been the same A... whatever it is; I am excited to get to the bottom of that mystery.

[callmecayce · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One of the things I both love and hate about these book is the way they toy with my emotions. I go through phases where I dislike a lot of the characters and the way they act, but I've always liked Emily. Not that she's more innocent than the other three, but I just like her story a lot more. Hanna, on the other hand, just when I start liking her, she does something (or many things) incredibly stupid. Another thing I've noticed is that, sadly, Shepard treats her male characters horribly, even worse than the female. They get accused more often, they cause a lot of trouble, they get hurt a lot. I dislike this, because it feels petty and mean, but at the same time, the twists are so pivotal that I don't actually mind. I like this series, not really because I can identify with the characters or because I care about any of them (most of the time, save Emily), but because the books are so much fun to read. I want to know what's going to happen, and I want to know it badly.

[raco0301 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

After finding out who A was in the fourth book, I didn't think there could be a good book after that, but after the author introduces the new a to the girls, the lost every feeling of protection that they felt when they found out who the previous A was and they think this A could be even more trouble. When they tell the police about the new A, they don't seem to care and the four girls are on their own.

[readingdate · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this book after taking a six-week break from the series due to library availability. I recently picked up the four final books in the series and I’m reading them back-to-back. Glad to get back to this series. However, it’s kind of nice to take a little break between these books, otherwise they blur together. It was easy to pick up the story again, and Sara Shepard does a nice job of catching you up to speed at the beginning of each book.The Pretty Little Liars series is the story of four friends living in Rosewood Pennsylvania: Aria, Emily, Hanna and Spencer. They are trying to solve the mystery of who killed their friend Ali, and who is their blackmailer “A?”After finding out the identity of “A” and Ali’s killer in Unbelievable, the fifth Pretty Little Liars book feels like a new beginning for the series. But what’s this? There’s a new “A” blackmailing the four girls? And did they really catch the right killer? It’s more confusing than ever in Rosewood.Spencer wonders if she was adopted, Aria’s inappropriate taste in men comes back to haunt her in a big way, Emily is dating a guy(!) and Hanna is dealing with her new living arrangement with step-sister to be Kate.The girls begin receiving the mysterious and threatening texts again. “A” is on a warpath and intent on bringing down the girls. It feels like things are spiraling out of control again. Some of the people in Rosewood that seem very suspicious to me are Kate, Officer Wilden, Ali’s brother Jason, and Spencer’s sister Melissa. At this point I wouldn’t be surprised who the killer is or who “A” is or if Ali is even dead.The series is still fun, enjoyable and surprising with the twists and turns. This installment poses more questions than answers, but I’m still along for the ride. What will happen in the next installment Killer?

[trishalynn0708 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book. The girls were older so to me it was more interesting. And they matured more in this book. Spencer thinks she is adopted, so she goes through great measures to try and find her adopted mom, only to have the worst thing imaginable happen. Emily has gotten over her love for girls and has her eyes set on a sexy new boy. Hanna is going through everything to make sure that she is at the top of her school. She wants to be the most popular and sexy girl there. What does she do to get it? And Aria grew up the most for me. She hasn't seen her English teacher since he moved, and she seemed to be getting past the older guy thing until her mom's new boyfriend comes into the picture.

[scoutlee_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I finished reading Unbelievable yesterday and immediately started Wicked. At the end of Unbelievable, we learned “A’s” identity and someone was arrested for Ali’s murder. At the beginning of Wicked, it’s a few months later and the trial for Ali’s murder is set to begin. Spencer, Hanna, Emily and Aria will testify against the defendant, hoping to finally bring this tragedy to an end. Unexpectedly, the accused murderer is released on bail due to a family emergency until the trial’s start date. Everyone is stunned after hearing this, especially the four former best friends. Moments later, each girl receives another text from “A”. Not sure whether or not to take it seriously (after all we already know who “A” is) or not, the girls shrugged it off thinking someone is just playing with their minds. Until they each start to receive more texts and soon realize that “A” is back. This time, it’s a “new A” and this “A” seems more deadlier than the first.Wicked takes the reader back in time to show the events that led up to Ali choosing Emily, Aria, Hanna and Spencer as her new best friends. The four girls were thrilled to belong to Ali’s new clique, but each will learn that there was a price to pay. As each girl tries to accept “A’s” identity, Ali’s murder trial and letting go of their past friendship with Ali, each realizes that it’s not easy to bury the past. Especially when someone is trying very hard to not allow them to forget.Like the four previous books, Wicked ends with a cliffhanger. I’ve been reading this series back-to-back for the last two weeks and I have to admit, I cannot wait for book 6: Killer. The only problem is, it’s not released until June!