Book Review: Beautiful Lies

Title:  Beautiful Lies
Author:  Jessica Warman
Where I got it:  From NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review

Amazon Summary:
Rachel and Alice are an extremely rare kind of identical twins-so identical that even their aunt and uncle, whom they've lived with since their parents passed away, can't tell them apart. But the sisters are connected in a way that goes well beyond their surfaces: when one experiences pain, the other exhibits the exact same signs of distress. So when one twin mysteriously disappears, the other immediately knows something is wrong-especially when she starts experiencing serious physical traumas, despite the fact that nobody has touched her. As the search commences to find her sister, the twin left behind must rely on their intense bond to uncover the truth. But is there anyone around her she can trust, when everyone could be a suspect? And ultimately, can she even trust herself? Master storyteller Jessica Warman will keep readers guessing when everything they see-and everything they are told-suddenly becomes unreliable in this page-turning literary thriller.

My Thoughts:
Mysteries have become more and more my thing lately, because I discovered I really like a touch of suspense and the unknown in my reading at times.  Beautiful Lies was definitely a pick that played to this new preference of mine, especially since I’ve really enjoyed Jessica Warman’s other books.

Rachel and Alice have an amazing twin connection, to the point that they literally show up with each other’s injuries, and can switch places and no one can tell the difference.  However, their personalities are completely different, about as opposite as can be.  So when that connection is severed and one twin disappears…  The other knows something is terribly wrong.

It’s hard to describe this book without giving away the details, so that’s about all I will say on that front.  From the mystery perspective, there is not a single point in time where you really know who to trust and what’s really going on.  The downside for me was that the book ended, and I still wasn’t completely sure what happened…  Maybe I missed something key, maybe there was a loose end that wasn’t tied up, I’m not really sure, but even thinking about the ending as I write this, there’s a little but of “huh??” running through my head.

Despite that, this is a pretty engaging mystery/thriller type book.  There’s more to the story than meets the eye, and it’s interesting watching the journey of discovery on multiple levels.  While I can’t say that this is my favorite work by Warman, it’s definitely worth the read.