The Lying Game

By Sara Shepard

From the author of the New York Times bestselling PRETTY LITTLE LIARS comes a killer series, THE LYING GAME.

Sutton Mercer had a life anyone would kill for – and someone did. But thanks to a view from the afterlife and Emma Paxton, her long-lost twin sister, Sutton has a chance to solve her own murder. Emma slips into Sutton’s old life to piece together her disappearance. But can Emma keep up the charade long enough to discover what really happened to Sutton…or will she become the next victim?

Let the lying games begin.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins UK
• Release date: Mar 31, 2011
• ISBN: 9780007432509

Sara Shepard

Sara Shepard is the author of two New York Times bestselling series, Pretty Little Liars and The Lying Game, as well as the series The Perfectionists. She graduated from New York University and has an MFA from Brooklyn College.

Reviews for The Lying Game

[thelittlebookworm · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Little BookwormEmma is a foster kid bouncing from house to house. When she sees a disturbing video online with a girl that looks exactly like her, she wonders what is going on. Figuring out that she must have a twin, she goes to the girl's hometown only to end up impersonating her twin sister, Sutton, while trying to figure out what happened to the real girl and who is out to get them both.Gossip Girl meets Desperate Housewives meets Lois Duncan. And really really good. This is a carefully woven tale of games people play, lies they tell and feelings that get hurt and the vengeful road that leads down. I was sucked in almost immediately and spent the whole book jumping from person to person as the suspect. And then the book ended with no real answer. NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! It is a series so I guess I should have expected that. Having never read the Pretty Little Liars series, I didn't have any ideas of Shepherd's style. But now, after reading The Lying Game, I do and I'm definitely reaching for the first one of that series. All of the characters are so well drawn that I can picture them in my head. And the whole concept of the Lying Game that Sutton and her friends play. Chilling. I really want to know more about Sutton. She is such an enigma and I feel like there is a whole lot about her that has yet to be explored. The same goes for her friends and sister. There are quite a few mysteries going on besides the bigger mystery of Sutton and I'm excited to read the next one. Review based on the ARC

[heatherlinc · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thought this would be a great little crime story as it is a popular book in our library. Unfortunately, it failed to deliver. The concept was intriguing and the book started fairly well, but it really lagged in the middle as the reader became bogged down in Sutton's frivolous life-style. It was only at the end of the book that the murder was revisited in any depth but the crime wasn't solved. Obviously, this was the first book in a series but I'm not interested in reading any more. I can see the plot being strung out to suit a teenage audience.

[meags222_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Well, I have to say that I quite enjoyed this little book. I say little because it is just a little over 200 pages and thus it is quite an easy and quick read. This book kept you on your toes. At every corner there is someone new who may or may not be the killer. This is all compounded by the fact that this group of friends plays horrible games with each other and everyone in town. I haven't read the Pretty Little Liar series but I have just recently started watching the show. I love the show and I was excited when I got this book through NetGalley. Shepard didn't disappoint with this novel that's for sure. The only thing that I really didn't like was the fact that it was over so quickly. I also hate leaving a book on such a cliffhanger. You never find out who the killer is and I realize this is going to be a series but when that happens I almost feel ripped off. I want to know what happens and now I have to wait until the next book comes out. If that is the worst thing that someone can say then I guess it's not too bad. Anyhow, I have now put the Pretty Little Liars series on my Christmas wishlist. Overall, I give this book 4.5 stars out of 5.

[chaoticbooklover · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I understand now why everyone was telling me to read the book and not just watch the show. So I will tell all of you now...The show is TOTALLY different from the book!!
Sutton Mercer is the narrator in the book, and as you will find out from the beginning; she's dead. So there is the first major difference from the show. We still get that Emma is in foster care and her foster brother is a jerk. Emma finds out that she has a twin due to a video showed to her and her foster mother by her foster brother. Emma then finds her on face book of all places and sends her a message.
After a little while Emma receives a reply from who she believes is Sutton and then heads to Arizona, to meet the twin she never knew. Emma arrives and goes to the designated meeting spot, but there is no Sutton. Emma is instead found by Sutton's friends. Emma is dragged to a party where she steps into pretending to be Sutton.
Emma continues the "game" as Sutton, going so far as to go to her house and take up being Sutton. Emma goes to school as Sutton, plays tennis as Sutton and pretty much just takes over her life. A little bit into the book ( I believe a few chapters) you learn the truth that Yes, Sutton is dead, and who ever killed her knows that Emma is there and wants Emma to continue to play Sutton.
As I said, Sutton is narrating the story, so when Emma is going through the days as her, you get little flashes of Sutton's death as flashbacks from Sutton, but since she can't remember anything specific you never do find out who it was.
With the book being narrated by the dead twin, I found myself lost more than once. And really, I understand being dead and not really remembering anything, but you would think that Sutton would remember a lot of more thing than she does. Like really, how could she not know why she is friends with the girls that are her BFFs? All you get from Sutton is feelings and that she knows that she should know such and such about this person. I found the whole thing a little hard to believe, how would a sister, parents, best friends and even a boyfriend not know that the person they are talking to isn't who it should be? I like to believe that even if I had a twin, my family and friends would know if it was actually me or not.
While I wasn't too thrilled with the book in itself, I will be getting the 2nd and 3rd one in the series just so i can find out exactly who killed Sutton, and if anyone ever figures out that Emma isn't really Sutton.

[michaellakufner · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is not a typical long-lost twin sisters find each other after a lifetime apart kind of story. Emma Paxton, a foster child since age 5, discovers she had a twin sister she never knew about. She travels to Arizona to meet her, Sutton Mercer, only to find out that she is dead, and no one knows. Emma must assume the role of her sister and find out who killed her. Shepard writes the book with 2 different points of view: Emma and ghost Sutton. I liked the idea of 2 narratives and getting to hear the thoughts of both twins, but at some times it can be confusing as to who is speaking. Another thing, I found it strange that ghost Sutton remembers her whole life except how she died. I don't really see the point of this, because even if Sutton knew who killed her, it's not like she could tell Emma or anything. I did like how as the story progressed, Emma discovered new information and secrets of every character. It seemed like everyone had secrets, even agendas, of their own. From Sutton, her friends, to her own sister and parents, everyone had things to hide.One thing that bothered me was that Emma did not seem affected much by Sutton's death. Yeah, she didn't really know her, but Sutton was her twin sister. You would think she would be a little more affected. Emma just stepped into Sutton's life and began to uncover the identity of the killer, not concerned about her dead sister. One story that really intrigued me was Thayer, Madeline's brother, who is missing. The author hints of Sutton's possible connection with him throughout the book. It makes me very interested to what Sutton did to him, considering she didn't seem like the nicest or most caring person. I give this book a 3.5 because it has a good concept and good characters, but I felt that the story didn't develop enough by the end of the book. It left me hanging and set up to read the next book, which I will probably do. I just felt like Emma didn't do much to narrow down the list of possible killers, and by the end of the book, you were lead to suspect everyone, even Sutton's close friends and family.

[girlaboutbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the first Sara Shepard novel I've read and I must admit that I do love the TV series, Pretty Little Liars like every one else. I haven't read the books, though, I'm planning to.*There's a teenie-tiny bit of spoilery in this review, just a teenie-tiny bit.I kept on saying how much I love a good mystery novel and Shepard brought me The Lying Game. The Lying Game is a fast-paced, bloodcurdling story. I was hooked by the first page and I knew it's a kind of book I would want to read.The plot is full of drama, secrets, lies and never-ending twist and turns. Along with Emma, I kept on guessing and guessing throughout the whole story but I think none of my guesses were right, but then we'll see. The writing was superb. I just love how Shepard thought of making Sutton as the narrator who is a ghost in the story by the way. I thought it was very innovative and refreshing!However, there were some characters that were a bit off. They appear to be a little bit unreal or exaggerated for me. But then, of course, a little bit of exaggeration adds a spice into the story. I enjoyed Emma, though, as the lead protagonist. She's not one of the "unreal" or "exaggerated" that I was talking about. She's got lots of common sense.Nevertheless, I enjoyed The Lying Game more than I ever thought. I'm rating this 4 out of 5. The story left a huge room for the next book, Never Have I Ever which will be out this April 2011 and I cannot wait to read it! I highly recommend this to those who enjoy a gripping mystery and thriller!Cover Thoughts: 4.5 out of 5 I think it's simply charming, with the black background and with Emma and Sutton's inviting stare, it'll make you grab the book and wonder what it's all about. Plus, it gives the readers a little bit of hint on what the story is all about.*I received this free e-galley from publisher, HarperCollins via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!

[sublunarie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's been a long time since I've read an entire book in one sitting. I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed this.

[sixteendays · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's been a long time since I've read an entire book in one sitting. I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed this.

[y2ash · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I am a fan of the television series The Lying Game but reading the novel is based off made me realized how much the series really deviated from the book. I really wish that the series could have followed the book much more closely than it has.

The Lying Game begins with Emma Paxton being shown a snuff video on YouTube by her her foster brother, Travis. It's of a blindfolded young girl, tied to a chair, being strangled with her silver necklace. The video ends just as a figure takes of the blindfold from the dead girl's face. On closer inspection, Emma realizes that the girl bears an uncanny resemblance to...her.

Emma decides to use Facebook to investigate and finds Sutton Mercer: her twin sister. She Facebook messages Sutton and gets the response back that she wants to see Emma to begin the long awaited bonding process. Emma takes off to Arizona but Sutton doesn't show. But Emma meets up with one of her friends who cannot tell the difference between the two and Emma, having no choice, pretends to be Sutton.

However, Emma receives a note saying that Sutton is dead and she needs to keep on pretending to be Sutton or else, she'll follow her sister. Have I mentioned that Sutton's spirit is narrating this story?

First of all, Sutton's dead. Her spirit is the narrator. There is re-coning that if you tried. I like that. It shocked me when I first started reading. Then, this little conspiracy that quietly emerge from the book. All of the people closest to Sutton, including her sister Laurel, had a reason to want her dead. It was so intense. I can't wait for the next one!

[erikawastaken · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Pro: Heathers/Jawbreaker for the preppy set.
Con: YA that's very heavy on the Y

Pro: Starts with a murder
Con: Narrator is the dead girl which leads to some jarring 1st/3rd switches.

Pro: Light, easy reading
Con: Heavy focus on brand names rather than descriptions -- especially early on.

I don't sleep very well, which leads to a lot of late night Netflix watching. Recently, I burned through the first season of "The Lying Game." I was surprised at how different the mystery was from the TV show, but it's nice to read a different story.

This book really reminds me of the Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, and Lois Duncan novels of my youth.

[rosetyper9 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I tried hard to get into this book but the genre I think is just not my thing. Considering I couldn't read 'The Lovely Bones' or 'PLL' (which the back-flap describes this book sort of as) I expected this. I just felt like everything was over explained and I just couldn't get into it. Cover is gorgeous though.

[Pushkar · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

amazing book!!!! I loved it.

[iwriteinbooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Imagine Princess and the Pauper told in the modern day American South West.Sounds pretty neat.Sounds neat until you add murder and then it just sounds awesome.Emma Paxton isn’t sure that “awesome” is the right way to describe her life when, right before her 18th birthday, her life as a foster kid goes from bad to worse thanks to a lovely little internet video. The video, found by her scummy foster brother, shows Emma being strangled on camera, possibly to death.With a few short clicks of her mouse, Emma discovers that it isn’t her in the video (duh) but her twin sister, the universe somehow forgot to mention she had. Since her life isn’t exactly honey and roses, Emma ditches her last few golden days in the foster system and gets sucked in to a life she couldn’t have imagined, days before.Her sister, Sutton, was living the good life with tennis, friends, school council and other perks of being her high school’s queen bee. Hard as it might be for a runaway foster kid to play the part of “it girl”, her life (and Sutton’s vengence) hangs on her ability to do so. Though her life was pretty peachy, Sutton’s past quickly reveals to Emma that the A-lister was not exactly the sweetest chickie at school and even those in her inner circle might have wanted to see her pushing daisies.Watching her step and her back, Emma has to race against the clock to solve the mystery before someone calls her out and she loses access to Sutton’s life and the cause of her sister’s death forever.The is one more tiny twist. OK, maybe it’s not so tiny. While we are watching Emma solve Sutton’s murder, we are watching with Sutton herself who is somehow, spiritually tethered to Emma. Emma doesn’t know she’s there but Sutton is getting a first hand recap of the nasty things she did when she was alive. Her memory evaporated with her last breath so she’s no help aside from the occasional flash back, added into the mix enough to confuse things a bit. It’s a neat twist and I definitely like the idea. Sometimes it makes it hard to follow who is speaking but after a little bit it gets easier.This is the first book in a four part, mega-mystery. When I first picked it up, I was expecting it to be solved in the first book as most mysteries are. I was sort of bummed that the killer won’t be revealed until the fourth and final book (due out this summer) but, I think it’ll be worth it. The story is well done and tends to follow, for all of its modern teen angst, a very classical murder plot. I’m almost done with the second, now, and loving it, just as much. This is probably one of my favorite young adult books, at least recently. It’s a little bit silly but it’s also pretty dark and twisted so it passes in my book.

[ajarn7086-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A reader might think that Sutton Mercer and Emma are alter egos of the same person in the first couple of pages of the book. But it becomes quickly apparent that both of them are or were real, because in fact Sutton, one of the identical twins, is dead, but hangs around as a ghostly entity watching Emma’s attempts to solve the crime. At least in book 1, Sutton does not have physical powers to help Emma. When Emma shows up, much to the surprise of the killer or killers of identical twin Sutton, Emma’s life is also in danger.This is a “cool” young adult novel I will recommend to my 13-year-old son. The language can be more direct that some parents would like, the acts hinted at objectionable, but it is close to reality.My problem with the book was one of my own making. I saw a blurb about the book and immediately downloaded a Kindle sample. I decide to buy based on my reading of the book without looking at more information about the book. So I was surprised at the non-ending. Because this is a book in a series and I was not paying attention. I sort of feel trapped into buying the rest of the books in the series. On the positive side for the author, I feel trapped by Shepard’s interesting writing style.So, read the book descriptions before buying.

[leftik_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Emma has just discovered she has a long-lost twin sister. An Identical twin sister. An Identical twin sister, Sutton, who appears to have disappeared – or been killed. Now Emma is trapped playing Sutton to solve the mystery of her sister’s disappearance. But when your sister was the head of The Lying Game, truth and fiction blur, leaving Emma with no idea who to trust.

The Lying Game sets us up for a new series from Sara Shepard (Pretty Little Liars series), one that is bound to give twists, thrills and chills if the first book is any indication. While I had a few problems with the set-up of the story, The Lying Game was intriguing and left me with so many questions – which is always good with the first book in a mystery series.

[librarybrandy · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Fast-paced, suspenseful, and ultimately unsatisfying due to the need to make this an ongoing series, so this first installment ends with a huge number of loose threads.

[scote23 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I liked this one, although not as much as the Pretty Little Liars series.

Also, why is the TV show done so differently?

[calibrary1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Book review by Ashley L., posted by CA Library:"The Lying Game by Sara Shepard is told in an interesting way. The narrator is Sutton Mercer and also her point of view and her past memories. The book is fiction, but told like it were nonfiction.Spoiler Alert: The story starts with Sutton waking up in a bathroom. Emma Paxton walks in, and Sutton tries to reach out to her. Sutton is completely ignored. She starts to realize that she died and is now a ghost. She now follows around Emma in hope of finding out how she died and why she is still here.Emma is shown a video with Sutton in it, and notices that they look exactly alike. She goes onto Facebook and messages Sutton that they should meet. Sutton replies that they should and gives Emma her address. But Sutton knows she didn’t send the message. On her way to meet Sutton, she is kidnapped by Sutton’s friends and taken to a party. Emma doesn’t stay at the party too long, before she is taken by to Sutton’s house. The next morning she finds a note telling her that Sutton is dead, and she has to continue pretending to be Sutton or else.I loved this book and am excited to read the rest of the series. There is a cliff hanger at the end that will make the reader want to read more of the series. Overall, I give this 5 out of 5 stars."

[tlhelen · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The Lying Game is a thrilling book, you don't know what's around the corner. The book is about a girl, Emma, who does not realise that she has a long lost sister, who leads a life completely different to her. When she finds out that she had a sister she always longed for, she was determined to find her, secretly hoping to be able to live with her sister like she had always dreamed of. But fate had a different idea, Emma does find her sister, she does get to live in her sister's world but not as she had hoped for. Emma realises with shock that her sister was dead. Murdered. She then gets mysterious notes saying that she must become her sister, live her life and pretend to be her sister. Emma tries to find out who killed her sister. She doesn't realise that her every move is being watched. This series is exceptionally interesting and mysterious. This book is retold by her dead sister, Sutton. MUST read

[jolerie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Tossed from foster home to foster home, Emma has always longed for that normal family and is utterly in shock when she discovered that she has a long lost sister. The only problem is that this twin sister has been murdered and Emma finds herself thrown into the middle of the charmed life she has always dreamt of. Underneath the perfect family, close circle of girlfriends, and doting boyfriend, Emma finds a sinister secret - someone knows that her sister has been murdered and that very person is now watching over her every move. To solve the mystery of her sister's death, Emma must question everything about her newly acquired life and the truth of it all may hit closer to home that she could have ever imagined. The Lying Game is a perfect summer read. A quick and suspenseful story, filled with a who dunnit mystery that keeps you wanting to find out what happened. There are a lot of unanswered questions and plenty of areas that could be explained in more depth, but I figure that is why it was not written as a stand alone novel. Not your typical boy meets girl YA fare, but that is what makes it intriguing and worth reading.

[sarahmcy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A mysterious book on finding your twin sister and relizing she is dead, then being threatened by the person who killed her. How would you do if you had to life your sister you have never met before's life.

[_lily__1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

* Paperback: 336 pages * Publisher: HarperTeen; Reprint edition (December 6, 2011) * ISBN-10: 0061869716 * Author:Sara Shepard * Cover art: I really liked the cover art. * Overall rating: **** out of 5 stars * Obtained: My personal bookshelf.The Lying Game by Sara ShepardReviewed by Moirae the fates book reviews.I had a life anyone would kill for. Then someone did.I may not remember much, but I know I led a charmed life. Even in death I’m getting something no one else does: an encore performance, thanks to Emma, the long-lost twin sister I never got to meet. Now, in order to figure out what happened to me, Emma needs to become me. But can she laugh at inside jokes with my best friends? Convince my boyfriend she’s the girl he fell in love with? Hug my parents good night like she’s their daughter? And can she keep up the charade even after she realizes my murderer is watching her every move?Let the lying game begin. (Synopsis provided by goodreads)This was the first book I have read by this author. As a fan of the tv shows based on her work, I decided to pick up a copy of the first book in each series. I opted to read this one first.It should be stated that the book is way different then the show. I was stunned when I read the first page and found out just how different the book is to the show. In the book from page one Sutton is dead. (Not a spoiler it's in the synopsis.) Like the show Emma has to get everyone to believe she is Sutton, and like the show she has very little information on the twin she has never met.I really like Emma's character in the book. She feels very real and the reader can really relate to her. Mads and Char are pretty likable to, I really like how different "The Lying Game" is in the book verses what it is in the show.Shepard is a fantastic author with a fertile imagination. I really liked the touch of Mads having stickers all over that say Swan Lake Mafia. That made me smile each time I saw it in the book. I'm really looking forward to reading the next book in the series and the next season of the show. I like them both separately.Ethan is the only character whom I like better in the show then I do in the book, but with the ending of book one, I think I might like him more in book two then I do now as it seems like his character will get more face time in the next book.I would recommend this book to fans of the show and to fans of the Pretty Little Liars series and show.

[mistycliff · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Imagine Princess and the Pauper told in the modern day American South West.Sounds pretty neat.Sounds neat until you add murder and then it just sounds awesome.Emma Paxton isn’t sure that “awesome” is the right way to describe her life when, right before her 18th birthday, her life as a foster kid goes from bad to worse thanks to a lovely little internet video. The video, found by her scummy foster brother, shows Emma being strangled on camera, possibly to death.With a few short clicks of her mouse, Emma discovers that it isn’t her in the video (duh) but her twin sister, the universe somehow forgot to mention she had. Since her life isn’t exactly honey and roses, Emma ditches her last few golden days in the foster system and gets sucked in to a life she couldn’t have imagined, days before.Her sister, Sutton, was living the good life with tennis, friends, school council and other perks of being her high school’s queen bee. Hard as it might be for a runaway foster kid to play the part of “it girl”, her life (and Sutton’s vengence) hangs on her ability to do so. Though her life was pretty peachy, Sutton’s past quickly reveals to Emma that the A-lister was not exactly the sweetest chickie at school and even those in her inner circle might have wanted to see her pushing daisies.Watching her step and her back, Emma has to race against the clock to solve the mystery before someone calls her out and she loses access to Sutton’s life and the cause of her sister’s death forever.The is one more tiny twist. OK, maybe it’s not so tiny. While we are watching Emma solve Sutton’s murder, we are watching with Sutton herself who is somehow, spiritually tethered to Emma. Emma doesn’t know she’s there but Sutton is getting a first hand recap of the nasty things she did when she was alive. Her memory evaporated with her last breath so she’s no help aside from the occasional flash back, added into the mix enough to confuse things a bit. It’s a neat twist and I definitely like the idea. Sometimes it makes it hard to follow who is speaking but after a little bit it gets easier.This is the first book in a four part, mega-mystery. When I first picked it up, I was expecting it to be solved in the first book as most mysteries are. I was sort of bummed that the killer won’t be revealed until the fourth and final book (due out this summer) but, I think it’ll be worth it. The story is well done and tends to follow, for all of its modern teen angst, a very classical murder plot. I’m almost done with the second, now, and loving it, just as much. This is probably one of my favorite young adult books, at least recently. It’s a little bit silly but it’s also pretty dark and twisted so it passes in my book.

[annesanse · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My awesome mom-in-law recommended this book to me, and I'm soooo glad she did! I loved it!! The Lying Game had just about anything you could want in a book. I could barely put it down. I feel so bad for Emma being thrown into this situation, but I almost feel worse for Sutton. What an excellent story! Now I'm in a rush to finish the other book I'm reading so I can move on to the sequel, Never Have I Ever. While I have my own ideas about what's going on, I hope that Sara Shepard has lots more surprises in the next book. This is my first of her books, and I'm definitely going to move on to her Pretty Little Liars series when I'm done.

[annakay21 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The perfect combination of suspense and humor. I loved the twin-switch, murder mystery element to this plotline. Surpasses Pretty Little Liars by far!

[cleoppa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wow. Not totally sure what to make of this book. I definitely cannot give it my "average" marker of three stars. It's either above average or below average... not sure which. I can see why this is popular, but can't decide if I like it or not. Bizarre for certain. Narrated by the dead twin who doesn't know herself who her killer is. Not original... Lovely Bones did something similar... For certain it leaves you wanting more. Whether you love it or you hate it, you want to know the truth behind all the lies. For this reason, I'm almost tempted (but still undecided) to read the sequel.The themes in this book are common to so many popular teen books--catty, fighting best friends. Girl who is thrust into the limelight as the "it" girl... But it's definitely original, as well.

[bookspot · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Sutton Mercer lives a privileged life: loving parents, beautiful sister, tight group of best friends, hot boyfriend, expensive clothing, her own car, she has it all. But Sutton Mercer's not around to live that life anymore, she's dead.Emma Paxton's lived in foster care since she was five years old: no real parents, no boyfriend, no expensive anything. Emma believes herself to be biologically an only child until she sees a video online of a girl who looks exactly like her. After sending the girl a message on Facebook they make plans to meet.Soon, with ghostly Sutton accompanying her (unbeknownst to Emma), Emma finds herself forced to fill in for the missing Sutton. Can she fool Sutton's friends and family, who don't seem to know Sutton's missing, into believing she's her twin while she unearths what happened? (And keep herself safe?!)The Lying Game is more than a little bit like Pretty Little Liars, Sara Shepard's other series, with death/murder (that I want to say like mehdehr), backstabbing, treachery, and tons of twists and turns.Having, in essence, one and a half main characters, with Emma doing everything but usually as Sutton and Sutton taking part as sort of her subconscious (that she couldn't hear) made for a very interesting telling. Usually when there's a 'dead' character in a book that is a part of the story someone else can hear them or they're more separate from everything, but with Sutton participating in everything, but also really removed, it made for a unique reading experience.I'm really inters ted to see if this style, with Sutton and Emma continues for the rest of the story or if Sutton gets more involved.This first book in the series was really an introduction to the series and ending without resolving much, but it definitely got me hooked on the story enough that I really cannot wait for the next installment(s) to find out more about the both Sutton and Emma and their lives and have more of the mystery unfold.(NB: The prologue of The Lying Game was a little confusing, but things really picked up (and made more sense) once the first chapter started--so if you pick it up to see if you're interested, I'd suggest reading at least that far! )

[graceschumann · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I picked up The Lying Game because I had thoroughly enjoyed Sara Shepard's other series Pretty Little Liars. I was a bit apprehensive thinking it might be exactly like that series in plot-line and form. However, I tried to go into this book with an open mind and not expect anything too standard from Shepard's previous writing. I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this book.Emma is a foster child abandoned by her mother at a young age. She's been shuffled around from family to family, never really feeling comfortable in any set place. She has always hoped that one day there would be something more in her life, that maybe her mother might show back up and she could have the family she so desperately longed for. But Emma is in for a rude awakening. One day she is shown a video of a girl who looks exactly like herself online, right down to the very last detail of her appearance. What's even more disturbing that the girl's exact resemblance to herself, is the matter in which the video takes place. Emma watches helplessly while the girl on the video is strangled with her own locket necklace. Did Emma just witness a murder? She can't believe her eyes so she sets out on a journey to find this other girl. When she finds her on facebook and sends her a message, she immediately receives one in response from the supposed twin girl with a plan to meet up. However Emma is unaware that the entire time she is looking for her, the girl in question is with her already. Because the other girl, her long-lost twin sister Sutton IS dead...and she's a ghost. As Emma uncovers the truth that Sutton is no longer alive, she is thrown into a viscous game of cat-and-mouse where nobody is who they seem and everybody has a secret. But how far are any of them willing to go to keep their secrets and at then end of the day who is Sutton's killer? How far will they go to ensure that Emma doesn't uncover the truth about what really happened to her twin sister? Let the Lying Games begin!When I first started this book, I still wasn't sure whether I was going to honestly like this story as much as I did Pretty Little Liars. The beginning was a bit iffy for me. The plot-line didn't really take hold until a couple chapters into the book and the characters were a little flat at the beginning. I didn't really like how Sutton was the main narrator at the beginning of the book but after a while I got used to it and wasn't so bothered that she was narrating while the story revolved around Emma's actions. The characters started to develop more toward the middle of the story and after the halfway point I didn't want to put the book down. The suspense and intrigue of the story started to accelerate at that point and drew me in to the point where I was completely engrossed in the story and scrambling to try and predict what was going to happen next. The key word right there was "try" because as much as I did attempt to figure out the future prospective happenings in the novel, I couldn't because it was unpredictable which kept me hanging on the edge of my seat guessing what would occur next. I loved the cliffhanger ending and can hardly wait until the next book comes out in August. I have my ideas about who the killer is but with new findings coming to light in every subsequent chapter until the end, I was hesitant to commit one person to that position. I think Shepard is a superb writer and really knows how to weave the perfect story about mystery.

[littleton_pace · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I don't really know what to say about this book except that I've never felt such irritation and annoyance at an author before. For starters, the long-lost twin idea has been flogged to death in books, film and TV. Not only that, but this author already jumped the shark with it in her Pretty Little Liars series. Now to do it again with her next series right after it? Desperate much? I also am becoming fed up with how superficial all her characters are. In Pretty Little Liars and in this new series, the importance of high fashion clothes, popularity and boyfriends is so over the top it makes me sick; and screams of an author who was a total nerd in high school and is now trying to make up for it by writing "the popular girls". All the characters are stereotypes and written as such. And none of them have any depth. And to top that off, as well as the long-lost twins, she's made two of the friends twins. That along with the fact you're reading a ghost's POV just adds to the complete question mark of this book.I don't understand how her publisher/editor and everyone in between gave this the go ahead when it is clearly the same subject matter recycled, down to characters having stuffed animals with stupid names (Emma with Socktopus and Aria with Pigtunia). Even the weird, no-name text messages are back. And aside from the completely unbelievable fact that Emma would just take over Sutton's life, Sutton's views on her own life are skewed, as if she can't believe she was a bitch. Yawn. Who cares? I could hardly finish the book and definitely won't be reading the series. I don't recommend it, you get the same story in Pretty Little Liars. For all I know; this series will merge with PLL and Emma and Sutton will wind up being Alyson and whoever her long-lost twin was. Unlikely and I'm past caring.

[farnsworthk_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Despite the silly premise (long lost twins, one of whom is dead and now following the other), I really enjoyed the book. I am disappointed in the ending, but since this is a series, it is to be expected.