Here We Lie

This is a timely novel about female friendships, family, the rich vs the poor and other topics that are a mirror of what is currently going on in our society. I don't want to spoil it so I can't go into a lot of detail but do want to say that it's a wonderful novel with two very well written, though pretty unlikable main female characters. Megan and Lauren meet in college and become fast friends. How good of friends they are is in question because they are from totally different backgrounds - Lauren is the daughter of a rich Senator and Megan is a poor girl from the Midwest. They also lie to each other in telling their pasts to each other. Despite the question of how good their friendship is, everything changes when Megan spends a few show more weeks in the simmer before their senior year at the island retreat owned by Lauren's family. After that summer, they don't see each other again for years until Megan decides to tell the world what really happened that summer even though it will be disastrous to Lauren's family.

This is a fantastic novel about friendship and betrayal.

I received an advance review copy of this book from the Great Thoughts Ninja Review Team. All opinions are my own. show less

DeBoard is one of my favorites, and has been ever since I devoured her book The Mourning Hours in 2013. Ever since then, I excitedly wait for her next book - like all readers everywhere do, for those authors we particularly enjoy. I was so excited to receive this book, with a handwritten note from Paula Treick DeBoard, in the mail, and to dive right in.

Here We Lie is the story of two unlikely friends - one from a regular old midwestern family, the other, a daughter of privilege and prestige, the daughter of a Senator, and an old family to boot. Like the Kennedys, but of course, not the Kennedys. Through a sad series of events, Megan is able to kick the dust off her proverbial boots and go to college, away from home, and from the show more memories that it holds, good and bad, and a terrible secret. It is here that she meets Lauren, who has caused her political family some headaches with her wild ways, just avoiding scandal by a razor's edge. She has to prove herself to her family, that she can be something, and do something. Be responsible and good.

These two on paper should not be friends - but inside, they are keeping a secret from others. In true DeBoard fashion, there is a darkness. In most books or movies or tv shows, where opposites attract (Betty and Veronica for instance), at the core is a friendship born out of a true blending and sharing of something good. In Here We Lie, however, we get a friendship that is built on with the sharing of dark secrets.

But the story doesn't end with this. Megan slides right into Lauren's family dynamic, Lauren's buddy.Yet something horrible happens on a trip to Lauren's family's private island over the fourth of July holiday the summer before their senior year, that destroys their friendship. And after fourteen years of silence, Megan is about to tell the truth.

I really loved this book, the darkness, these characters, knowing that somewhere something was going to drop. The overall feel that despite seeming like a buddy book, this kind of really wasn't. DeBoard does a great job of putting all the pieces in this book together into a gripping, thought-provoking book. show less

4.5 stars.

A close college friendship and the circumstances surrounding its abrupt end lie at the heart of Paula Treick DeBoard's newest release, Here We Lie. Weaving back and forth in time, this incredibly fast-paced novel is an intriguing mystery with a socially relevant storyline.

Megan Mazeros and Lauren Mabrey form an unlikely and exceptionally close friendship when they become roommates at an exclusive all girls college. Megan is from a small town in Kansas where she worked as waitress while helping care for her father as he was dying from cancer. The youngest child of a US Senator, Lauren's attempts to break free of her family's expectations are met with disdain and derision from her rather cold mother. With enough money to pay for show more her four year degree, Megan carefully counts every penny and works hard to get good grades. Despite her family's disapproval, Lauren has a generous allowance and she maintains her careless attitude toward her education although she excels in her newfound love of photography. Despite all of their differences, the women forge a close friendship yet they each keep secrets, tell some rather elaborate lies and jealousy and anger occasionally come between them. However, their bond remains unbreakable until a shocking act and family loyalty rip them apart.

Megan and Lauren are very well-developed characters with all too human strengths and weaknesses. Megan is surprisingly comfortable at school despite the fact that most of her schoolmates are wealthy and privileged. She is slightly uncomfortable with Lauren's generosity when they first begin spending time together, but their easy friendship soon eclipses her reservations. Lauren's desire to be her own person, make her choices and experience life on her own terms is understandable yet she is quick to rely on her family's money and connections to ease her way.

The novel begins with a press conference in the present then quickly flashes back in time to before Lauren and Megan meet. The story is written in first person and alternates between Lauren and Megan's points of view. They each have very distinct personalities and each of the perspective shifts are clearly marked but it is sometimes difficult to keep up which women is the currently narrating the story.

Most of the novel takes place during Megan and Lauren's college years but there are brief glimpses of their lives in the present. Both women are in relationships but only one of them has children. How they arrived at this point in their lives is a bit of an unknown but a brief recap eventually provides answers. What truly drives the story is the circumstances surrounding the mysterious press conference and the flashbacks of Megan and Lauren's friendship gradually leads up to the horrific act that destroys their friendship.

Here We Lie is an absolutely entrancing novel that explores the bonds of friendship. While not a conventional mystery, Paula Treick DeBoard does an excellent job building and maintaining suspense about the incident that ends Megan and Lauren's friendship. With a storyline that could very well be ripped from today's headlines, readers won't have too much difficulty guessing what happened, whereas figuring out the who will be much more difficult. This riveting novel comes to a heartwarming conclusion that is quite touching. show less

This book was captivating.

I was drawn in from the beginning and never left. The characters are still with me as I write this, long after putting the book down and I know they will stay here with me for awhile.

Two girls thrown together as roommates through very different circumstances with nearly no chance of ever being friends, become best friends and confidants. The political and wealthy family of Lauren are not pleased with the relationship and it shows when Meghan is invited to family gatherings. Lauren is somewhat of a rebellious sort, and mostly ignores what her family thinks about most things. She takes her place in the world for granted. Meghan's mother is thrilled that her daughter is attending a prestigious girls' college and show more that she has Lauren for a roommate. Lauren doesn't meet Meghan's mother, as Meghan has told some untruths about her own background.

One thing leads to another, as things do, and a horrible incident ruins the relationship between the two girls, and ruins parts of Meghan's life. She is left floundering for some time.

Years later, something happens that reaches back into the past and touches this incident. Both girls and their families are put in a position where they must address the past.

A solid story in light of current times, and the writing puts you right in the middle of it. You are captured and must read your way out of captivity. show less

Here We Lie is an incredibly timely read. I do not want to risk spoiling any portion of the plot so I will just say that Here We Lie adds another useful and thoughtful perspective on an ongoing social/political issue dominating the news today. The book touches on numerous thought-provoking topics including female friendships, family ties, male dominance, and the harmful effects of brushing horrible events under the rug instead of addressing them head-on.

I struggled a little with Lauren and Megan’s relationship. Both girls are attempting to find their places in life, but they are such polar opposites and really on’t have what I would call a true friendship – it is more based on lies, privilege (on Lauren’s part), and the fact show more that they are both intrigued by the other; clearly as the story plays out they don’t really know each other that well. But maybe that is what DeBoard is getting at- ultimately how hard some female relationships can be.

I definitely enjoyed Here We Lie. I received this book to read and review. All opinions are my own. show less

I received an Advance Review Copy of this book. All Opinions are my Own.

This book reaffirmed my love of “campus novels”, and it touched on some prominent themes in today’s news. The dichotomy of the rich girl/poor girl friendship was so well done, and I enjoyed the backgrounds and the current day stories throughout the entire book. There was a lot of foreshadowing throughout the book, so I was able to guess the ending pretty early on. That being said, it didn’t affect my enjoyment of the book at all—I was racing back to my Kindle to get back to the story!

Megan was more relatable for me than Lauren, but both characters were very well developed and believable. I found myself rooting for Megan throughout the book and wanting her show more to end up with the happy tie-up at the end. I don’t want to include any spoilers, but suffice to say that Megan overcame all of her obstacles by the end of the novel.

This was definitely one of my favorite books in a long time, and I will look forward to more books from Paula DeBoard in the future! show less

Friendships can be complicated. Megan and Lauren are the mirror image of each other. Megan comes from a solid middle-class, upbringing in America’s heartland. Lauren has had a life of privilege as the daughter of a New England senator. Yet, as life would have it, they find themselves navigating college together.

The two women share a room, clothes, and college life. Gradually, they also share advice and eventually secrets. Inseparable, their bond deepens through these important college years. Through highs and lows, the girls are there for each other.

Before their senior year, they come together for fun and sun at the vacation home of Lauren’s family. It is there that their lives are forever altered. Friendship cannot withstand show more everything, as Megan comes to realize. Somethings are just too heinous. That is when bonds are broken, but secrets are formed.

Many years after that fateful Summer, Megan faces the secrets she kept buried. Thrust into the spotlight of the harsh political arena, she goes back to that Summer of secrets to expose Lauren’s family truths.

Paula Treick DeBoard has done it, again. Her novel is an important read in the climate of today’s world. Her understanding of family dynamics is always clear and accurate. In this book, Ms. DeBoard also addresses deeply human elements often not discussed. In Here We Lie, she delves into women’s relationships, both with each other and with men. She also bravely confronts the taboo issue of male dominance and its lasting effects on the women it rules.

This is the fourth novel of Paula Treick DeBoard. She is an author that I always eagerly anticipate. Reflecting the world around us, her books are timely, well-written and meaningful. I highly recommend Here We Lie, and all of Ms. DeBoard’s fascinating books. show less