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REVIEW: THERE WILL BE LIES by Nick Lake

Why choose between high stakes drama and mythical adventure? Nick Lake is giving readers both in his latest book, THERE WILL BE LIES.

Shelby Jane Cooper has always been sheltered by her overbearing mother, but she can’t blame her caretaker for being careful. The two have a quirky but special understanding of each other– until the day Shelby is hit by a car and the fallout from the incident has devastating consequences.

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However, Shelby also has more to worry about than her own life. Despite the real world unfolding in new and scary ways all around, she’s also needed in a subconscious landscape known as “The Dreaming”. A lingering nightmare is coming to a head in this otherworld and Shelby has no choice but to face it with the help of Mark, a mysterious boy from town.

This book is steeped in rich, unsettling mysteries, so we’re keeping our description a bit vague!

Shelby is a compelling protagonist with honest grit. Her choices are never easy, but she provides a wonderful sense of realism in her decision-making and thought processes. The writing style is a choppy first person narrative that’s only a few steps above netspeak at times. This can make reading from Shelby’s point-of-view jarring at times, but stick with it! The narration, while over-exaggerated at times, serves a surprising purpose.

Despite a great concept, there were issues with pacing in this book. Shelby’s story shifts back and forth between her real-life drama and The Dreaming quite often. However, we found ourselves getting more attached to one storyline than the other: As Shelby’s true journey became a Young Adult crime thriller of epic portions, her fantasy landscape (the one we expected to be more excited about) beats the reader over the head with metaphors.

It’s important to note that the story takes place in Arizona and incorporates Native American culture and mythology, but it does so fairly loosely. Lake has clearly studied up on his Native American literature but has a tendency of clumping all the distinct cultures into one category.

THERE WILL BE LIES experienced peaks and valleys, but it was an enjoyable read overall. It’s a great read for a fan of traditional thrillers who want a little genre bending to spice things up. Start reading for the gut-wrenching thriller action, stay for the fantastical escape!

THERE WILL BE LIES is out January 6th, 2015. You can order it now!

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RATING: 3 out of 5 stars