Release Date: August 28th 2012
Genres: Young Adult, Contemporary, realistic fiction, romance
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 276
Goodreads Page: Click here
Source: Library
Rating: 3/5
Summary:A powerful debut novel about the gray space between truth and perception.

Quinn’s done the unthinkable: she kissed a guy who is not Carey, her boyfriend. And she got caught. Being branded a cheater would be bad enough, but Quinn is deemed a traitor, and shunned by all of her friends. Because Carey’s not just any guy—he’s serving in Afghanistan and revered by everyone in their small, military town.

Quinn could clear her name, but that would mean revealing secrets that she’s vowed to keep—secrets that aren’t hers to share. And when Carey goes MIA, Quinn must decide how far she’ll go to protect her boyfriend…and her promise.

Review:

I can’t tell you exactly what drawed to If I Lie when I saw it at the library a few days ago but it just did. If I lie is the type of book that is both thought provoking and beautifuly written and I couldn’t help but not put it down. If I Lie is very much a character driven book, with the protagonist Sophie Topper Quinn dealing with the all too familiar burdens that come along with being a teenager, the cold shoulder from friends, isolation, and having a torn family. If I Lie though isn’t only a story filled with burdens, no instead its a story that holds it head high and touches your heartstrings, its a beautiful story of frienship,perseverance and hope.

Sophie is caught kissing a boy- who isn’t her boyfriend, Carey, and is shunned by everyone in her town. Carey is away in the army and when he goes MIA Sophie begins questioning her loyalty to Carey and his secret. A secret she promised to keep for him but she now isn’t sure if it’s really worth keeping. After all Carey is MIA. Sophie is left to deal the burden of being the new town slut by herself, and if things couldnt get any worse she is constalty compared to her mother who left her military father years ago and left Sophie for good.

If I lie was an intense read. Were immediatly told what the secret is thirty or so pages into the book and i couldnt help but sympathize for Quinn. She was left to fend for herself without anyone by her side, including her father whose practically ashamed of his daughter and still mad at his ex-wife for leaving him. Carey’s also MIA and the whole town, including her, feel she has no right to miss her military boyfriend when she cheated on him. Quinn is also left to face the idea of having her bestfriend never come home again, be possibly dead already by herself too.

Every character in If I Lie is multi-dimensional. I felt like I got to know every character well in this book even if they made just a small appearance. I don’t know how Quinn could hold her own like she did but Quinn gives FRIENDSHIP a new meaning. honestly, If i were in her shoes I’m pretty sure I would crack, she’s completely alone in this, her mother left, her father is physically there but isn’t, her best friend is MIA, the love of her life isn’t talking to her and she’s branded the town whore. The only person she has, who doesn’t believe the nasty rumours all over town is a seventy year old veteran, George.

George was my favourite character in this book. He takes Quinn under his wing and acts very much like a father, since Quinn’s biological father is pretty much absent. Quinn and George also share a love for photography and this serves as what brings them together, he gives her private photography lessons when he can and Quinn benefits from this. He pushes Quinn to consider photography as a career option— to even think about what her future since her father doesn’t do any of that. Geroge pretty much serves as the rock that holds Quinn up, if it werent for him i’m sure she would have crumbled but he was always there to hear her out and didn’t buy any other bullshit “I’m Fines”.

“Some words hit you like a tree branch slapping you in the face. And some words rip into your flesh, leaving scars so deep, they never completely fade.”- Quinn

I think what really stuck with me in If I Lie was the loyalty Quinn has. She all alone, treated like utter garbage by the whole town and she could clear her name. All it would take would be one sentence and she could be cleared and people would stop harrassing her and she could be with the boy in the picture that she kissed and maybe her father wouldn’t think of her as such a burden and she wouldn’t be compared to her mother. Nonetheless Quinn doesn’t admit she didn’t cheat. She would then have to give up Carey’s secret and she promised him— no matter how shitty her life may be she would keep it. Even if he never comes home Quinn made a promise to her bestfriend and she have to stick it through.

“Sometimes a moment defines you, defines how people see you for the rest of your life. You can accept it or fight it. If you’re lucky, you’ll recognize the moment when it happens.”

If I Lie really struck a cord in me. It made me value all my friendships and I questioned myself on if i were in Quinn’s shoes would I keep such a secret for my best friend? I don’t want my opinion of this book to effect yours, but i do recommend it to contemporary YA lovers especially if you like military based stories. Quinn story is sure to struck a cord within you too, not matter how cold hearted you may be. There’s something about the valure of friendship that always gets to me and this book did just that.