Title: Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus
Genre: YA Thriller
Pub Date: July 30, 2024

💎 One Last Heist
🖤 Counterfeit Jewelry
✨️ Epic Betrayal
💎 Twisty YA Thriller
🖤 Abusive Ex Husband
✨️ LGBTQ Representation
💎 Short Chapters
🖤 Dual POV


My Review:

Poor Kat! Everything that could go wrong, does go wrong. She's naive and doesn't really think things through, but she has good intentions! Augustus and Liam were cute! There were so many twists (most of which wereunexpected), and the short chapters made for a quick, unputdownable read! I hoped the end would be a little more "eventful" but overall I enjoyed it!

Thank you so much, NetGalley and TBR and Beyond Tours, for the digital review copy 💗

Such Charming Liars is a tale of grifters, liars, crosses, double-crosses, and triple-crosses. When Ross Sutherland throws his weekend birthday bash, he expects his guests, along with the haughty Sutherland children, to stay the weekend at his compound (who has a compound?). What he doesn’t expect is that amongst them are two grifters and their teenaged children. Jamie is there for “one last heist” to steal a necklace before going straight, and she’s brought along her daughter, Kat, who doesn’t seem as willing to leave the life behind. Meanwhile, her 48-hour-Vegas-husband Luke has brought along his son Liam to the party. Luke is invited by Annalise Sutherland, whom he’s wooing into marriage and out of her diamonds. When the two grifters meet, they’re automatically suspicious, but their children Kat and Liam are happy to see each other. When plans go awry and one of the Sutherlands winds up dead, there’s whispered conversations in the dark, an impromptu switcheroo, and a delightful interloper. Augustus is the grandson of Ross Sutherland, but he seems to be a much more companionable member of the family. He helps secretive Kat and Liam, who is not cut out for deception at all.

Kat is a piece of work. She’s very untrusting. Except with Liam - there’s more backstory there. Liam is the sweetest, most precious character, and I really feel bad that he’s stuck in the middle of all this. Augustus is a riot, and he’s interested in a blushing Liam (and making Liam blush). I enjoyed that the two main characters were not love interests but past step-siblings. I think it gave a nuance to the story that was unique. When the ending came, I thought it was over. Then came the twist.

Such Charming Liars follows Kat and Liam. Their relationship is a complicated web starting with becoming step siblings when they were kids. Their parents split after a 48 hour marriage and then years later, stumble across each other again, meeting at the Sutherland mansion involved in their parents’ own crooked agendas.

The story alternates between Kat and Liam. We got to understand each of their stories in this format, but at times, I was confused about which narrative I was reading. The plot was just meh. I expected a heist story to be captivating, but it didn’t grip me the way McManus’ other books did. The end had some satisfying plot twists that helped redeem the story a bit for me.

Many thanks to Netgalley for a gifted copy of the book in exchange for an honest review :)

Kat is a teenager who lives in an interesting situation. She is the daughter of a jewel thief and her closest people in her life, besides her mom, is the owner of the jewel thief business. Kat's mom, Jamie, decides that she is going to do one more heist and then stop stealing and create a better life for her and Kat. Kat decides to tag along with her mom and they end up running into Liam and his dad; whom Jamie was married to in Vegas for 48 hours. Trouble is on the way for Kat, Liam, and Jamie.....will they be able to escape?

I have loved all of Karen McManus's books that I've read, to this point. But for this book, it didn't wow me like I was expecting. It was an interesting story, but not believable to a point. If you have loved her prior books, definitely give this a try. Maybe you will enjoy it more than I did!

Such Charming Liars is another stunning murder mystery by YA thriller queen Karen! I genuinely have no idea how she manages to continually write the same kind of story eight times and still not have them feel repetitive or boring. Each book is a fresh and exciting adventure where I still have no clue as to who the culprit is, and Such Charming Liars is no exception.


One of my favorite things about this book was how instead of going the obvious route of romantically pairing Kat and Liam, Karen really focuses on developing their "stepsibling" bond instead. It was a refreshing take on a classic McManus tale, and their respective love lives were still fun to follow as B-plots (or in Kat's case, the lack thereof – she don't need no man).


Kat's relationship with Jamie was a very well written element as well, and reminded me a lot of Rory and Lorelai from Gilmore Girls, but if Lorelai was even less responsible. The theme of setting boundaries between the friend/friend and parent/child dynamic was really interesting, and I enjoyed reading about it.


If there's one complaint I have, it would be the second hand embarrassment I got from Kat's incredibly idiotic behavior and choices at the beginning. She's a 16-year-old girl that didn't have any good role models growing up, so they're entirely plausible with how her character was set up, but that didn't make me want to bang my head against a wall any less sometimes. They definitely were a bit far-fetched and required some extra suspension of disbelief,


All-around, this was a fast-paced, well-developed story with some excellent twists and a unique cast of characters that had me glued to my Kindle for basically 48 hours straight.


READ IF YOU LIKE: Karen M. McManus's other books, every single character is morally gray, dual POV narration (but they're not in love with each other), shiny things, Holly Jackson, Gilmore Girls, found family, and LOTS of rich family drama.

Kat has only ever had her mother, Jamie, to depend on. Jamie works for Gem, who specializes in creating counterfeit versions of expensive jewelry. These fake pieces are then used to steal the originals by swapping them out. When Jamie decides to leave the business, Gem tells her she needs to work one more job. This last heist will occur at billionaire Ross Sutherland's birthday party, where Jamie will pose as a member of the wait staff to get inside the secure estate.

Shortly after arriving, Jamie unexpectedly falls ill. Kat decides to take her mom's place and try to pull off the heist by swapping the jewelry pieces herself. But Kat isn't as experienced as her mom, and things quickly go wrong. Everything gets even more complicated when one of the Sutherland kids is found murdered in the woods, leaving Kat scared and worried that she might be the next target. Will she be able to make it out of the weekend alive?

This book was full of unexpected twists and was such an entertaining read! Right from the start, I was drawn in and couldn't put it down. I liked that it was written from a dual POV, switching between Kat's and Liam's perspectives. The author did an excellent job of tying their stories together. While there were some slightly predictable parts, the big reveal at the end was a completely brilliant surprise! This book will definitely be a big hit with fans of YA mysteries and thrillers. Overall, I gave it five stars on Goodreads and highly recommend checking it out!

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, and Delacorte Press for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion!

This book tells the story of Kat who's mom is a jewelry thief. She tags along for one last heist but gets the surprise of her life when old acquaintances show up and one of the family members they're stealing from ends up dead.

This was such a good YA story that keeps you captivated. It delves into the importance of family and having people by your side that you can trust. It was the perfect who-dunnit and why story and did a great job of answering all your pressing questions. Great read!

My library kiddos love McManus, with good reason! Her books are clever, thoroughly YA-centric mysteries that make their brains work at full speed. SUCH CHARMING LIARS is just as good as her other books and I know I will have to buy at least a few copies of the book for my library to keep up with the demand my students will have for it! It has excellent twists and turns, and I am a sucker for a heist story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's for the ARC.

When Kat was little, she and her mom went to Vegas, where her mom Jamie married Luke, a man with a son Kat's age named Liam. Kat and Liam got lost in Vegas due to Luke's negligence, and Jamie left him. Over a decade later, Jamie is now a jewelry thief about to embark on her final heist, and Kat decides to sneak along. On the way, they run into Luke, a con man running his own game, and Kat gets to reunite with Liam. That isn't the only complication Kat will run into during this weekend, however, and someone ends up dead. Can Kat and Liam figure out what went wrong and how to avoid ending up dead themselves?

I really love the characters in this book. Kat is delightful chaos and Liam is so wholesome, as Augustus declares fairly early in the story. His ability to call things as they are is also charming. I enjoyed their closeness as sort-of stepsiblings, and the way they each have their own strengths. The mystery itself felt very messy to me for rather a long time, and it wasn't really helped by Kat's crazy theorizing (though that was fun to listen to!). It comes together in a satisfying way at the end, while also not being too perfect.

Another great mystery from a YA go-to author, Karen McManus! "Such Charming Liars" was a fun thriller that teens and adults will love. This book follows Kat and Liam who are linked through a traumatic 48 hours when their parents married in Vegas. Over 10 years later, the two are thrown together again to try to protect/thwart their parents nefarious behavior while spending the weekend at a billionaire's New England compound. Honestly, the summary may be overwhelming and I will admit the beginning of this book was a little slow, but it really picked up and ended in true Karen McManus twisty fashion.

I will definitely be recommending this books to the teens in my library who love a mystery! Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

Such Charming Liars is definitely one to watch as another McManus favorite! it started off a little slow for me but i slowly began to immerse myself into the characters and story, can’t wait for everyone to read it!

This was a rollercoaster ride filled with unexpected twists. McManus expertly weaves a complex web of deceit and suspicion, keeping readers guessing until the final page. The characters are well-developed and the plot is fast-paced, making it impossible to put down. A must-read for fans of the genre!

The queen of YA is back with another exciting, twisty thriller! I absolutely love her books, and she nailed it once again. I was hooked from the start and could not put this one down. There were so many twists and turns that kept me guessing until the very last page. I loved getting both Kat’s and Liam’s perspectives. They were such an entertaining and unexpected duo, and the ending made it seem like we might get a sequel, which I would be all for. I had so much fun reading this book!

Kat wants to heist. Kat's mom Jamie is tired of heisting. Jamie's mentor Gem doesn't want Jamie to leave heisting.

I think I've realized that teen heist books just don't work for me. Wash this a good book? Sure. But I think I'm past the point of believing that teens make good heisters. Granted, there are lots of mistakes made by the teens in this book, but I just wasn't feeling it for most of it. I also don't think this one was up to par with McManus' previous books (well, it might be on par with that one with the cousins. That one was also...fine.)

This was a fine book. It has all the elements you expect from Karen M McManus--rich teens, rich people problems, one or more poor kids that somehow has fallen in with the rich ones (though there is no school aspect to this one) and hijinks of the murderous kind ensue. Except now we add jewel thievery to the mix. And that just was kind of...meh for me.

If you liked McManus' other books, I'm sure you'll enjoy this one as well--I did enjoy it, but it was like I was watching Cheryl Hole on Drag Race UK laughing about another day of being mediocre. And mediocre is what this book was compared to McManus' other books.

Solid YA mystery, with a creative plot that moves quickly. The characters are well done in this one, and overall this is one that will satisfy fans of the author.

As I sat in the Las Vegas B Terminal last night for far too long, my only consolation was that I was in the last 20% of the latest Karen McManus book and, as such, the pace had ratcheted up to a sprint.

Here’s the very much simplified set-up: Kat and her mom Jamie are on their way to the Sutherland mansion to pull off one final heist before they leave the grifter life forever. When they find themselves on the side of the road with a flat, a car stops to help them. Who do they come face to face with? Liam (Kat’s former step-brother) and his father Luke (mom’s ex-husband and a professional scammer). The two are also on their way to the Sutherland mansion because they’ve been invited by Luke’s latest mark, the very wealthy Annalise, owner of the necklace Jamie’s been tasked to steal. A very complicated plot with a chaotic number of characters ensues.

Listen, this isn’t her best book. McManus had to establish quite a number of subplots in order to make this story work. Unfortunately, this exceptionally complicated plot coupled with dual narration and what seemed like a village of characters to keep straight made the novel drag a bit. (Which is why I haven’t posted a book review in over a week.) Now, in true McManus fashion, the end did speed up and there was a twist, but I wasn’t as invested in this story as much as her others. This is truly a shame, because Augustus, one of our thousand characters, is truly a gem and worthy of getting to know. So read this, but expect to be underwhelmed.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on July 30.

you won’t want to miss this book. absolutely incredible. karen mcmanus, you’ve done it again. from complex and deeply interesting characters to a killer heist with insane plot twists, this book is absolutely stellar. i cannot wait for everyone else to get their hands on it and read it for themselves, it’s a non stop page turner that will reel you in and leave you reeling. thank you netgalley and random house for the opportunity to read this early, and thank you karen mcmanus for this unique, high stakes thriller i couldn’t get enough of.

Two step siblings reunited when their perspective con artist parent ends up on the same job trying to steal from a wealthy family but when bodies start piling up on the job they'll have to find a way to save each other before it's too late. Kat is great at stealing, all her life it's just been her and her mother Jamie and her mentor Gem, working on cons yet when her mother is determined to go straight and do one final job, Kat decides to tag along.... and the last thing she expects is to rub into her stepbrother Liam and his scam artist father, Luke. Jamie and Luke were married for 48 hours until it ended in an epic divorce all those years ago and Kat and Liam have never met since. Yet now years later when Jaime is doing her final jewel thief job at billionaire Ross Sutherland's birthday, they run into Liam ad Luke... as Luke is a serial scammer who has set his sights on Sutherland's youngest daughter. And when Sutherland dies both Kat and Liam become the real killer's next target....and they'll have to work together to save each other, if only they could actually trust one another. They'll have to use everything they've ever learned from their con artist parents to survive... but they'll have to learn to trust one another despite it going against their nature. I have been a huge fan of Karen McManus books for so long and while this one wasn't one of my all time favorites from her it was an easy and fast read. I liked the sibling relationship between Kat and Liam and how despite not being around each other for years, their relationship was strong. The mystery had a ton of twists and turns with plenty of villains with different motives, and while the ending felt a bit abrupt and a little open ended, overall it's a propelling read. It wasn't what I was really expecting but it's a fun read featuring a gay guy, a bi guy, and a straight girl all working together to solve a murder mystery while being chased by a killer and dealing with their own respectively messed up family.

Release Date: July 30,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Children's | Delacorte Press for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

My ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. A jewelry heist at a billionaire’s compound unexpectedly finds long-lost teenage stepsiblings reunited and trying to solve take care of business before it’s all too late.

McManus does the it again and again! Bringing us another enthralling YA thriller.
Such Charming Liars was a captivating read!
This well-plotted novel kept me turning the pages as the whip smart twists kept coming.
The story was suspenseful and thrilling. This is a fantastic read! I could NOT stop reading it! Just when I thought I had figured it all out, twists and turns caught me by total surprise!
Absolutely consuming book for the ones who love the mysteries and thrillers! This book seriously was the definition of devour. It devours you while you devour it. The plot is so smooth, the character development is enticing and you connect and visualize the situations as if the images are right in your face on a tv screen.

Thank You NetGalley and Delacorte Press for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!