Pretty Little Liars by Sara Sheppard

Kirstyn Iovino

This summer I read the first book in the Pretty Little Liars series by Sara Sheppard. This realistic fiction novel consists of five main characters including Aria, Spencer, Emily, Hanna and of course Alison. One night in the summer between seventh and eighth grade the girls had a sleepover and that night Alison, one of the four girls best friends vanished. After Alison goes missing the girls break apart but reunite three years later because of mysterious texts from "A" revealing all of their secrets. Since Alison signed all of her texts "A" and was the only one who knew all of their secrets they still think that she is alive. Once Alison is pronounced dead they think their secrets will never be exposed but that might not be the case since they all get a text at the same time from "A" at Alison's funeral.

The author's style is very unique since she ends most chapters with a text from "A" and how she cleverly switches off between each character. This novel is written in third person allowing the reader to understand the feelings of each individual character. The strange texts from "A" symbolize that someone whether it be Alison or somebody else is haunting them and their secrets will soon be exposed. This leaves all four girls wondering if Ali is still there or if not, how someone could figure out all their secrets. I would certainly recommend this book because you will never want to put it down and the conflict is clearly highlighted. It was an extremely good book with many twists, emotions and suspense. It is a story that you will never forget and always remember to never keep a dark secret.