*I got this book from the publisher for my honest thoughts*

I really found this book to a prefect read. I really was loved Owen and Noah is a lead characters. It is rather rare to have YA novel focused only on the male POV. I also really enjoyed the duel time line part of the story and found both storylines to be super compelling. I also really liked the balance that Elston created in the various genres between contempoary and thriller. I really found this book to be super compelling. I also thought this book tackled family issues super well. I think the own character really was so well done I would say this book is more of a contemporary novel with hints of mystery but the ending of this book was super shocking and i would def re-read this book in the future. ( )

*I got this book from the publisher for my honest thoughts*

I really found this book to a prefect read. I really was loved Owen and Noah is a lead characters. It is rather rare to have YA novel focused only on the male POV. I also really enjoyed the duel time line part of the story and found both storylines to be super compelling. I also really liked the balance that Elston created in the various genres between contempoary and thriller. I really found this book to be super compelling. I also thought this book tackled family issues super well. I think the own character really was so well done I would say this book is more of a contemporary novel with hints of mystery but the ending of this book was super shocking and i would def re-read this book in the future. ( )

FROM PUBLISHER: Owen Foster has never wanted for anything. Then his mother shows up at his elite New Orleans boarding school cradling a bombshell: his privileged life has been funded by stolen money. After using the family business, the single largest employer in his small Louisiana town, to embezzle millions and drain the employees' retirement accounts, Owen's father vanished without a trace, leaving Owen and his mother to deal with the fallout. Owen returns to Lake Cane to finish his senior year, where people he can barely remember despise him for his father's crimes. It's bad enough dealing with muttered insults and glares, but when Owen and his mother receive increasingly frightening threats from someone out for revenge, he knows he must get to the bottom of what really happened at Louisiana Frac--and the cryptic note his father sent him at his boarding school days before disappearing. Owen's only refuge is the sprawling, isolated pecan orchard he works at after school, owned by a man named Gus who has his own secrets--and in some ways seems to know Owen better than he knows himself. As Owen uncovers a terrible injustice that looms over the same Preacher Woods he's claimed as his own, he must face a shocking truth about his own past--and write a better future.

The Lying Woods
By
Ashley Elston

What it's all about...

Owen is suddenly pulled out of his private school and everything familiar to him is gone. His father has deceived everyone in their town and run away with all of his company’s cash. Owen and his mom are penniless and move in with a not so kindly aunt.

Why I wanted to read it...

Boarding schools and bullies make up much of this book. Owen has to dig deep to find his inner and outer strength. Every aspect of his old life is gone. He meets a man who gives him a job, lends him his truck and helps him to find his way. The surprise is when he finds out who this man really is.

What made me truly enjoy this book...

I liked Owen. He was thrown into a life where he had to defend himself every minute of his day. His classmates hated him. Townspeople hated him. People were threatening Owen and his mom. They both had to figure out how to survive their new reality.

Why you should read it, too...

This book was well written and interesting. I enjoyed watching Owen grow.

I received an advance reader’s copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley and Amazon. It was my choice to read it and review it. ( )