I have to say I'm pretty curious to see how the book community reacts to Even When You Lie to Me by Jessica Alcott. Each month I'm trying to read an ARC that I picked up from ALA MidWinter. This month Even When You Lie to Me started calling from the stacks. It was slim and I needed some light vacation reads.
Charlie was a likeable enough character. For the most part she reminded me a lot of myself at that age. Charlie is introverted, loves to read, and has a smoking hot best friend who uses those looks to her advantage. Too much of that was familiar. My smoking hot firend and I don't talk anymore and I'm sure that's why I really disliked Lila. They were too similar.
Spoilers from here on out!
I really can't talk about the plot without spoilers. If I'm being honest, if it wasn't for Charlie pursuing Mr. Drummond this book would have been the most boring book on the face of the planet. Without that a girl goes to high school, is forced to extrovert a little, gets in a fight with her best friend, and graduates. The end.
I think Alcott is trying to force conversation about these types of situations but I'm not sure what that conversation is. What I do know is that I felt awkward reading Even When You Lie to Me. Clearly the situation with Charlie and Mr. Drummond is skeezy to the max but at what point do we become responsible for our own actions? Charlie went after Drummond like a half-starved dog for a steak. She was relentless but Drummond is the adult. Maybe that was Alcott's goal. Simply put, this book makes you think and think again. I still haven't decided where I stand on it which is why I'm a solid three out of five.