The Liar Society Blog Tour of Awesome (Interview & Review)

Summary/Cover Image from Authors' Website:

Kate Lowry didn't think dead best friends could send e-mails. But when she gets an e-mail from Grace, she’s not so sure.

To: KateLowry@pemberlybrown.edu
Sent: Sun 9/14 11:59 PM
From: GraceLee@pemberlybrown.edu
Subject: (no subject)

Kate,
I'm here…
sort of.
Find Cameron.
He knows.
I shouldn't be writing.
Don't tell.
They'll hurt you.

Now Kate has no choice but to prove once and for all that Grace’s death was more than just a tragic accident. But secrets haunt the halls of her elite private school. Secrets people will do anything to protect. Even if it means getting rid of the girl trying to solve a murder...

Review:

When I first sat down to read this book yesterday, I only expected to read a few pages and then put it down until it was closer to its March release date, but before I knew it I was halfway done, and once you're that far, you can't put it down, right? Especially if it's as amazing as The Liar Society was? So, before I knew it, I was done with the book and dying to read the next, because if The Liar Society isn't one of the most thrilling and unique books out there, I don't know what is.

The Liar Society tells the story of Kate Lowry, a girl who hasn't felt the same since her best friend Grace died last year. Kate feels there was more to Grace's sudden demise than told, but after a year of seeing a shrink, Kate's learned to be quiet about her theories. Well, until an e-mail from Grace appears in her inbox, telling her to contact Cameron, Grace's some-what boyfriend, so she does, and before she knows it, she's hooked on the case and finding out the truth, even if means finding out disturbing secrets about her crush Liam and recruiting her nerdy neighbor Seth to be her side-kick. But is Kate prepared for the truth? Especially if it means uncovering more than she ever expected? Only time will tell in this thrilling mystery!

One of the things I loved most about this book were the characters, especially Kate. Kate is like a new Nancy Drew in the way that once she finds a mystery, she has a hard time stopping herself from seeking the truth, which is one of the main reasons why I loved Kate's character so much. Because with this trait, it was easy to see Kate was a fearless, smart, and witty character, one you not only didn't want to mess with but couldn't help but to root for. Along with Kate, came several other great characters, such as the charming and secretive Liam, a boy who's after Kate's heart if she'll let him close, and Seth, Kate's sidekick who managed to steal the show with his dweeby yet adorable antics time and time again.

Another high point of The Liar Society was the plot at hand. The plot of this contained so many mysteries, twists, and turns, that even the most truth-seeking of readers won't be able to figure out just what happened until the very last pages- a very, very good thing, in my opinion. Better yet, I loved how Lisa and Laura Roecker put the perfect touch of romance in this, one that leaves you eager for more of it in future sequels.

And this review wouldn't be complete if I didn't say at least once how amazing of authors Lisa and Laura Roecker are! They created such a great and believable world in this, one I hope readers, like myself, will be able to visit time and time again in the future.

Wit, romance, suspense, and action- this book has it all! I seriously can't express in words just how much I LOVED this book. Lisa and Laura? You've kind of created a fan-girl in me with this- one who can't wait to read more books involving Kate, Liam, and Seth and anyone else you two dream up.

Grade: A+

The Liar Society is now out!

Source: Authors/Publicist at Sourcebooks. Thanks Paul, Lisa, and Laura!

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Interview:

I also had the chance to ask Lisa and Laura some questions, so without a further ado....

1. What are the top three reasons why teens (or even adults) should consider picking up The Liar Society the next time they see it in stores or online?

Lisa: 1. Two words. Pink hair.
Laura: 2. You'll laugh out loud. Well, at least, we do.
Lisa: 3. It'll make you want to break out your pearls. Or buy some. And who doesn't want an excuse to buy new jewelry?

2. I absolutely love Liar Society's main character Kate Lowry, but for readers out there who don't know much about about her, would you mind sharing a little about her? Also, if you could offer her any advice what would you say?

Lisa: Kate Lowry is who we wish we could have been in high school. She lost her best friend the year before and is basically pissed at the world. When she gets an email from Grace (from beyond the grave, no less), she starts her mission to figure out what really happened. She's strong and independent, but also teams up with some pretty bad ass sidekicks along the way.
Laura: If we could give Kate advice we'd definitely tell her to be nicer to Seth.
Lisa: Yes, with lots of pointing and finger shaking for emphasis.
Laura: Because, spoiler alert, 20 years from now, Kate and Seth are totally getting married.
Lisa: Unfortunately, Kate doesn't realize that yet.
Laura: Or ever.

3.The Liar Society takes place at a private school named Pemberly Brown, so what inspired you to set the story there?

Lisa: We went to a cookie cutter public school, complete with orange lockers and funky smells. When we sat down to write Liar Society we wanted the school that would be a character in and of itself.
Laura: Pemberly Brown is one of those places that takes itself way seriously. It's built upon all sorts of wacky traditions and legends and is a great backdrop to Kate and all of her adventures.

4. In The Liar Society, one of the trademarks of Kate's appearance is the fact that she wears Grace's pearls, so what inspired you two to give Kate this trademark? And why pearls exactly?

Lisa: In the original manuscript, we wrote in a bunch of references to Nancy Drew. The references were eventually cut, but Nancy's pearls stayed. Every girl needs a set of pearls.
Laura: The pearls also act as a bit of a trigger. Whenever Kate is investigating, the pearls come out. Pink hair and pearls, this ain't your mother's Nancy Drew.

5. One of the things that originally drew me to The Liar Society was its awesome title, so how did it come to be? Was it always the title or did it come later on in the game?

Lisa: Ahh, titles. This is a LONG story. Basically, we suck at titles. For example, our working title for this book was G-Mail, then when we submitted to agents it was called Finding Grace and when we submitted to editors it was called The Haunting of Pemberly Brown. You know what all three of those titles have in common? They all suck.
Laura: Apparently, The Haunting of Pemberly Brown sounded like a Jane Austen-esque historical, who knew? Seeing that this has NOTHING to do with our book, it needed to go. Our original editor was tough on us. We'd email suggestions pretty much daily, but until we sent off Liar Society, he didn't approve. Finally we got a one-word response back. Genius. SCORE!

6. Do you two have a favorite scene or line within Liar Society? If so, would you mind sharing it or a little about it with us?

Lisa: There's this one part where Seth and Kate are investigating the campus at night and he sees something in the shadows and calls it an "upright deer." I have no idea why, but it makes me laugh every single time.
Laura: Favorite scene, hands-down, is toward the end of the book when Kate's in the office and Seth calls Liam down over the loud speaker. It never fails to crack me up.

7. If The Liar Society had a theme song, what would it be? Why?

Laura: Pump It, by the Blackeyed Peas for no other reason than it gets me pumped up before I write.
Lisa: Pump It? Seriously?
Laura: What? It makes me think about that time that Fergie peed her pants because she was so into the music. THAT'S inspriing.
Lisa: Personally, I find toilets far more inspiring. But maybe that's just me.

8. As I'm sure most people know already, you both wrote The Liar Society together, so what inspired you two to write books together? Also, what's your favorite part of working together? And what's the hardest part of working together?

Lisa: We always wanted to write books, but could never get it off the ground separately. When we came together, everything clicked into place. I brought my snarky dialogue and Laura brought her descriptions and feelings and stuff. It just worked. Laura claimed it would be easy to get published. Famous. Last. Words.
Laura: Favorite part about working together is how close we've gotten. We literally talk every day and often say the same exact thing at the same exact time. It's actually kind of scary. Hardest part would be the feeling that you're letting someone else down if you write a crappy chapter or miss a deadline. We're well-versed in guilt trips.

9. What inspired you two to write for a YA audience? And what has been your favorite aspects of writing for teens so far?

Lisa: Because Laura taught middle school, she always had access to amazing (and occasionally not so amazing) YA books. She'd often pass them along to me. After reading Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson (okay fine, and the Pretty Little Liars series), I was hooked. Lucky for us we never matured beyond high school, so writing YA is pretty much the only thing we'd ever be any good at.
Laura: The part we've been looking forward to the most is hearing from actual teens. Now that the ARCs have been making their rounds, we've received a few emails from girls who get Kate and get what we were trying to do with the book. It feels sooooo good. We seriously squee like little girls when we read fan mail.

10. What's up next for you two book wise? Is there anything else you would like to add?

Lisa: The Liar Society is book 1 in a series, so hopefully people will like Kate enough to want more.
Laura: We're also working on a super-fun, top-secret project that we're really excited about. The writing is coming very naturally and were having a ton of fun with it.

P.S.
If you want to enter The Liar Society Blog Tour of Awesome contest, and really, who wouldn't want to enter!?! There's a $100 Amazon gift card up for grabs! Just click here and enter the super secret password, CLUE, for an entry. Remember you can enter one time for each stop on our blog tour, so be sure to click here and see where else we're visiting this month to maximize your chances of winning.

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Thanks so much!

Now what are you waiting for? Go buy The Liar Society ASAP! I demand it! No really, I do. :) Seriously I promise that you'll LOVE this book, and in the rare chance you don't, you have my official permission to send me a scathing email. Though, I highly, highly doubt that will occur.