Review: Lie

Lie by Caroline Bock

My rating: 5 of 5 stars



4.5 Stars


This is the story of the aftermath of a hate crime. The setting is Long Island, New York. Those involved in the incident are Jimmy…a wanna-be military leader, high school senior. Sean, Jimmy’s best friend, high school senior with a tendency to follow rather than lead. Skylar, Jimmy’s girlfriend, recently lost her Mother to ovarian cancer, and is lost…Jimmy is her life preserver. And Lisa Marie, Skylar’s best friend, secretly in love with Jimmy, and tends to be an “athletics” groupie. The victims are two brothers, Arturo and Carlos Cortez. Arturo is not in the US legally, but Carlos was born in the States and is a citizen.

WOW is really the first word I uttered upon finishing this book. I will be honest, I shied away from this story after reading the synopsis. Hate crimes are ugly. For me they rank right up there, just below child abuse. Not something I want to read about in my spare time…know what I mean? That said, the reviews I’d read about “LIE”, were all overwhelmingly positive so I decided to read it anyway.

I’m glad that I did. If for no other reason than to becoming familiar with, and a fan of, Ms. Bock’s writing. She is talented beyond measure. She crafted such a touching and thought-provoking story…one where I cried and yelled at the characters, quite often. The story is told from numerous shifting perspectives…everyone touched by the “incident”. So you, as the viewer, got to see everything unfold from many viewpoints…which made it interesting, but what made it fascinating was that with each of these viewpoints also came with some of the character’s history, thus putting the character’s filter on that viewpoint.

It was tough read and I struggled through parts of it, even though it was a work of fiction. The author doesn’t pull any of her punches. I urge you to read it, better yet, read it with your kids and use it as a stepping stone for some great discussion…but be forewarned and go into it with your eyes open.





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