We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

Welcome to the beautiful Sinclair family. No one is a criminal. No one is an addict. No one is a failure.”

Cadence Sinclair Eastman is seventeen, almost eighteen. Her family has always sought to present itself as perfect, wealthy Democrats. In the book, she narrates what happened to her during her fifteenth summer at her family’s private island, Beechwood, as she struggles to remember. She had an accident that summer which left her debilitating headaches and amnesia, not being able to remember what happened to her. She sees herself as damaged and believes she no longer fits with her perfect family. Nearly two years after her fifteenth summer, her family still won’t tell her the details of her accident and she still hasn’t seen her closest cousins: Johnny, Mirren, and her handsome boyfriend, Gat. The story details the life of Cadence and the rich Democrat members of her family as they struggle to deal with a tragedy to which they have all contributed.

Since Cadence struggles to remember the accident, she is relatively an unreliable narrator, which makes the story a bit confusing. However in the end, you will find yourself putting all the pieces together and notice lots of hints being told throughout the book. Regardless of whether or not I guessed the ending overall correct, it was very painful to see Cadence slowly recalling the suffocating truth and trying to accept it. I felt her guilt and her love towards Johnny, Mirren, and especially Gat. I will never forget how often and adoringly Cadence has said “Gat, my Gat.” I can’t discuss this book highly enough since I feel like I will unintentionally spoil the ending, but I loved this book and couldn’t stop crying when I finished it. It is a pure, betraying, realistic, and dreamy tale, touching on the themes of materialism, racism, love, friendship, grief, and decisions we wish we could take but never can. Definitely a must-read for any readers.