It All Started With a Lie Review

Nicole Olayiwola

Wow! Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was a very easy read since the writing style is not overly descriptive. It was also a real page-turner; I literally could not put it down, except, well, when I absolutely had to. I was completely hooked from the first page, constantly scrolling and turning to the next page, wondering what would happen.

I knew this sort of plot wouldn't be the most original, but I will always enjoy it. However, I did feel like the climax and the revelation of the real mystery (as there were some red herrings) came very quickly and suddenly towards the end.

Pearl was a good narrator, though I sometimes felt she was being dramatic about things. The fact that she was constantly regretting looking into the mystery was a bit annoying, but overall, I did like her.
I liked Danny as well, at least at the start, but I didn't appreciate how he started to run his mouth about Pearl's problems to Samantha and Leon. It was absolutely not his place to do so. Then he became distant with Pearl and started keeping things from her, even though he had promised to be with her every step of the way. Overall, though, he was alright.

I didn't enjoy Samantha's character initially. I was annoyed when she suddenly started asking things that were none of her business, and it also felt like she was only in the group to get with Danny. In the end, however, I did end up liking her character as she helped with the case, and I felt bad for her because of the ending.

Lastly, I didn't like Leon much at first, and I honestly do not even know why. However, I grew to really like him as he showed  genuine care for Pearl and was very helpful.

The story’s structure was very nice. I enjoyed getting the text messages between Bex and Boo in the past, intermixed with the present moment. It really kept you thinking about what the truth was. The truth itself was a great shock to me, but after re-evaluating the clues and what led to it, it all made sense in the end. When it was revealed, everything discussed in the past fell into place which was very satisfying

Overall, great book! 4.25 stars.