Join the (book) club — Lill’s Library is a biweekly series where former KidLit agent intern and avid reader Lillian Heckler tells you what young adult titles are taking up space on her bookshelf. This week, we’re reading We Were Liars by E. Lockhart.

I love the beach. I love to read on the beach. I hate “beach reads.”

Okay, sure, boo me if you want. I just can’t get myself to crack open a book labeled “steamy” on a Barnes and Noble display without bailing 10 pages in, eye-rolling so hard that my mother would yell at me to “Stop, or they’ll get stuck like that.”

Don’t get me wrong, I think that any book someone enjoys qualifies as a good book. And I would never coerce others away from genres that they like. Reading of any kind is valid and important, especially as books face threats of potential bans. If you enjoy reading about writers and lovers (or some other play on a Lily King title), I applaud you.

However, for those who tend to avoid the stereotypical “beach read” like me, I spent my spring break in sunny California reading about a girl losing her mind on a rocky island in New England. This week’s book club pick, E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars, is an atmospheric psychological thriller that explores the limits of privilege and familial bonds. 

The story takes place on Beechwood, a fictional private island near Martha’s Vineyard where the Sinclair family spends each summer. The Sinclairs are “athletic, tall, and handsome.” They are “old-money Democrats.” Their “smiles are wide, chins square, and tennis serves aggressive,” among other traits that the eldest grandchild, Cadence “Cady” Sinclair Eastman, lists as you wade into the story. Cady’s dearest relatives are her cousins, Johnny and Mirren, and her aunt’s boyfriend’s son, Gat, who are closest to her in age. The other family members begrudgingly (but fondly) put up with the chaos that the four produce, calling them the “Liars” for their tendency to cause trouble and pass blame. 

From June to August each year, the Liars are inseparable. They lie on pebble beaches, read to one another, and make a mess of their three mothers’ private cottages. They drink on the roof and take the boat into town. They dance and sing and play pretend. Specifically, they pretend not to hear when their wealthy grandfather, Harris Sinclair, threatens to take away their mothers’ inheritances. They pretend Harris doesn’t avoid eye contact with Gat as if his South Asian heritage is contagious. They pretend a lot of things aren’t happening. 

The summer the Liars are 15, Cady gets into an accident that mysteriously takes away the bulk of her memories from the preceding months. Her family’s answer to the problem? Ignore the topic, evade all questions, and deny, deny, deny. But there are only so many summers the Sinclairs can spend avoiding the glaring, blazing truth before the flames take them down, too. And Cady is determined to piece everything from those lost months together as she turns 18.

I can’t say much more because enjoyment of this story relies on total ignorance about the major plot twist that flies at you in the last 80 pages or so. In Cady’s words at the end of chapter one, “Perhaps that is all you need to know.” But I can share more about the bones of the story and what made me like it so much without giving away any sensitive information.

Much of my trouble with beach reads, I think, comes from the style’s tendency to tell rather than show. The books are meant to be easily processable and engaging, and often, that means pages spent building atmosphere are sacrificed to plot movement. However, Lockhart isn’t afraid to spend entire chapters layering vivid language with rich sensory details to fully immerse you in the world before the plot really picks up speed.

Cady’s voice is incredibly distinct and is made sharper by Lockhart’s storytelling risks. She uses variable sentence structure, lyrical prose, and unconventional imagery to create an intimate, deeply subjective reading experience. I’m even tempted to call We Were Liars a gateway experimental novel because it bends genres without straying too far from the traditional boundaries of a book written for younger audiences.

With its strangeness, speed, and sincerity, We Were Liars is exactly the type of story I reserve time for when I’m on vacation, sprawled out on a blanket and probably burning every exposed inch of skin on my body. It captures your attention without needing a flashy tagline or genre category. It is, in essence, an “anti-beach read.” 

So, reader, as you find more time in the warmer weather to squeeze in a chapter, tread carefully on rocky shores and remember the sunscreen — especially if you burn easily.

(Come back after you finish the book, and you’ll probably chuckle). 

Onto the next chapter.

Title	We Were Liars
Author	E. Lockhart
Genre	Psychological thriller
Form	Prose
Page Count	256
Favorite Quote	“We were warm and shivering, and young and ancient, and alive.”