So. Much. Teenage. Drama.
Totally here for it.
Tommy is an influencer all about elaborate pranks. His senior class travels to Sunny World -with his connections, Tommy sets up an epic senior event. The rides will be available to ride - something no other senior class has experienced.
But at what cost? Tommy uses people, including his girl friend, fellow influencer and classmate, his best friend - for what they can provide.
And in the morning, Tommy is found dead. Who was the last to see him?
Agyemang does a great job showcasing not only young love but toxic relationships.

HEART-SHAPED LIES by Elizabeth Agyemang

Pub date: Nov. 26th, 2024
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Rating: 3 / 5


How far would you go for love?

Tommy Harding gained his social media following through elaborate pranks. Now, he's gone viral once more after a hacker exposes him for cheating and the prankster is found murdered the next day. All eyes are on the three girls Tommy was seeing prior to his death: Kiara, Priscilla, and Nevaeh. Each girl loved Tommy, but they also all had a reason to want him dead. When the hacker's attention turns to the girls, the trio must work together to find out what really happened to Tommy. Or else.

HEART-SHAPED LIES is a YA debut that leans into the cultish mindset of social media and the dangers of sacrificing for love. Or at least, what young people may think love is. Kiara, Priscilla, and Nevaeh are all vastly different girls and each of their arcs explore ways people navigate heartbreak, self-preservation, and growing up. The girls also endure various amounts of toxicity from Tommy and internet commentators, which adds an unfortunate but realistic weight to the plot. The plot itself begins slow, which prolongs feeling any major connection to the girls, but once the action kicks off, it is almost nonstop twists. This thriller will likely appeal to readers who love to hate their characters and want to see young women get their lives back from abusive men.

Readers should note that the book includes possibly triggering content including abusive relationships, descriptions of sexual assault, and violence.


(Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!)

4.25 ⭐️

Heart-Shaped Lies is a gripping thriller romance that delves into the chaos of young love and the destructive grip it can have on our very souls. The story follows Nevaeh, Priscilla, and Kiara—three young women who all find themselves entangled with the manipulative Tommy Harding. Tommy, with his obsessive need for control, uses each of them as stepping stones for his own gain. When Tommy ends up dead, the three girls become prime suspects, and a mysterious hacker starts wreaking havoc on their lives.

I spent the latter half of this book constantly switching my guesses about who killed Tommy, and the second first eagerly (and somewhat gleefully) waiting for his inevitable demise. Tommy’s toxic presence brought out the worst in every character, making some scenes difficult to stomach while keeping me hooked nonetheless.

One of the highlights of the book is its nuanced commentary on social media stardom. It does a great job exploring how proximity to fame affects the development of each character, adding a layer of depth to an already intense story. The pacing, character dynamics, and unexpected twists made this a solid and enjoyable read.

Thanks to TBR and Beyond Tours and NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

CAWPILE Rating
Characters: 8 – Complex and flawed, each character felt realistic, even when frustrating.
Atmosphere: 8 – The tension and chaos were palpable, drawing readers into the drama.
Writing Style: 7.5 – Engaging and sharp, though some moments felt overly dramatic.
Plot: 7.5 – Twisty and unpredictable, keeping me guessing the entire time.
Intrigue: 8 – I couldn’t stop turning the pages to uncover the truth.
Logic: 7 – Some choices by the characters were frustrating but believable in the context of their age and emotions.
Enjoyment: 8 – A solid thriller that balanced suspense with emotional depth.

This was definitely a very teen centered book and I enjoyed the concept as it showed the negative to social media whilst also keeping me invested in the mystery and choices of the teens throughout the book. However, the pacing feels uneven, the first half sets up the mystery and relationships well, but the latter half rushes through crucial plot points, leaving some twists feeling unearned. A solidly entertaining YA thriller with an inventive premise, though it occasionally gets lost in its own chaos.

This was definitely a very teen centred book and I enjoyed the concept as it showed the negative to social media whilst also keeping me invested in the mystery and choices of the teens throughout.

Heart-Shaped Lies brings an intriguing concept to the table: three betrayed exes navigating a social media-fueled murder mystery. With its mash-up of John Tucker Must Die and A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, this YA thriller promises plenty of drama, twists, and teen antics, but doesn’t fully deliver on its potential.

The premise is undeniably fun. Kiara, Priscilla, and Nevaeh are vividly distinct characters, each with a compelling backstory. Their dynamic as three unwilling allies is where the novel shines most, blending humor, suspicion, and reluctant camaraderie. The exploration of toxic social media culture and the consequences of viral fame adds a sharp and relevant edge to the narrative.

However, the pacing feels uneven. The first half sets up the mystery and relationships well, but the latter half rushes through crucial plot points, leaving some twists feeling unearned. Tommy, the charismatic prank star at the center of it all, feels more like a caricature than a fully fleshed-out character, which diminishes the emotional stakes of his demise.

Despite its flaws, Heart-Shaped Lies offers a fun, fast-paced read with enough suspense to keep readers flipping pages. Perfect for fans of messy high school drama and murder mysteries with a modern twist—but don’t expect too much depth.

Bottom Line: A solidly entertaining YA thriller with an inventive premise, though it occasionally gets lost in its own chaos.

When I received this ARC at Penguin’s Summerween, I was equal parts intrigued and nervous to read it. I used to watch Pretty Little Liars and Riverdale to have something to talk to people in high school about, but I was never really a fan of the show and the synopsis of the book gave me similar vibes.

The beginning of this story made me feel so weird. I felt like no time was really spent establishing the characters, we got thrown right into their life and not in a good way. I therefore did not like Tommy right from the start. Influencer culture is something I struggle with despite my background in marketing and social media. Tommy gave me the ick and that did not sit well with me.

As the story unfolded, the characters continued to be unlikeable. The plot twist was not twisted into the narrative well and overall, I was sadly not a fan of this read.

Thank you @penguincanada @penguinteenca and @netgalley for this ARC.

This was a fun and thrilling read! I totally got the “John Tucker Must Die” vibe (I love that movie). The author has done a magnificent job of capturing the raw emotions of teenagers. The impulsiveness and naivety. Thinking they are making smart choices when in reality it couldn’t be further from the truth. This is a YA book, I feel it would be appropriate for ages 12/13 and up. Teens will completely relate, and adults will remember the feeling *sigh*. It is very well written, I was turning pages and making so many assumptions! The chapters are long, but it didn’t bother me.

this is a great thriller for a young adult audience that touches with how impactful social media and influencers can be. there were plenty of red herrings which I’m not the biggest fan of but it definitely kept me on my toes. there’s a sprinkling of drama and romance on top of the mystery aspect too!

the beginning was a little too slow for me and I found it hard to connect with the characters but overall it was an entertaining read I’ll recommend to anyone looking for a ya thriller.

Great thriller for the YA audience. Captivating characters and an intriguing story line that will have readers thinking about the impact of social media and influencers. Some mystery, romance, and drama mixed in as well. Plenty of red herrings.

This book had me at john tucker must die meets agggtm. Two of my favorite things, and now this is the 3rd! This was perfection on paper.

Oh goodness one should know that the other woman always finds out and when they do hell will have no wrath especially if they team up. I loved the dynamic characters in this book, and how all of them had reasons to want Tommy dead. Now which one of them did it, or could they still be being played. Teens are going to love this fast-paced mystery, having it set in a dynamic amusement park adds to the drama. It is just a well written book that readers are going to devour.
Thank you to Random House Children’s and Netgalley for allowing me to read an advance copy of this title.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the advanced copy of this book.

To me this book started off slow. I did not build any special connection with any of the characters, felt like there could have been more to them. I will say this is YA mystery, it kept me guessing who the murderer was I think I believed it was each of them at the some point. I did not expect for the murderer to be who it actually was.

I love a drama filled revenge plot and the description of this book and the opening few chapters gave me really high hopes. I enjoyed the multiple perspectives and the theme park setting but overall I just wasn’t connecting with this book or the characters no matter how much I wanted to. I will say I did like some of the twists, so because of that I give it 3.5 stars. Per the acknowledgements this was the authors first go at thriller and I definitely think I’d read more if she wrote more thrillers.

tommy was one of the most GRATING characters I have EVER read, and that is a compliment. the characters had a lot of hate for each other, which was meh, but they grew from it. 3.5 stars, rounded down. tsym for the arc.

This book had some great points. I think that this book nailed what it is to be a teenager. It was so great how the characters all felt so real. I could totally see kids acting the way they did in this book. I feel that sometimes it’s hard to write this age group and get it so spot on, but this author did a fantastic job. Despite nailing the writing of the teenagers, I really couldn’t get into this book like I prefer. I love YA books; I usually find something I connect to the characters with despite our age difference. However, that was not the case here. The male main character was insufferable and just a piece of work. The female character wasn’t all that great either. However, the mystery of the book was good and kept me guessing. There were a lot of details though, which was hard because like I said I struggled to get into the book. It was a mixed bag for me. Not entirely without joy, but not the normal amount I prefer from a book.

If you liked Just a Girl by Alyssa Cole this is a comparable YA adjacent thriller. Heart-Shaped Lies is a cautionary tale of how social media influence can become deadly. When young adults don't have the room to make mistakes, learn from them without the critical eye of public opinion the pressure to live up to whatever caricature becomes the goal; coupled with impressionable minds and hive-like fandom, this combo is a recipe for disaster. Tommy was the villain to the end but the destruction he left along the way made this read pretty quick. I did not see the reveal which was really satisfying (even though it felt rushed). I enjoyed the ride (pun intended).

I’m very much on the fence about this book. There were things I enjoyed about this book and things that I feel missed the mark. I do feel like the author did a great job of capturing the raw emotions that come with being a teenager. The kids all felt like kids. That’s very important to me in any book, but especially a YA novel. I did enjoy the multiple POVs. We got a villain that EVERYONE could get behind hating. I appreciate so much what this book was trying to do, which was highlight emotional abuse, toxic relationships and calling out bad behavior, no matter his follower count. However, I feel like the message didn’t come across or hit as hard as well as it could have. It gets bogged down with the murder mystery which was interesting, but had A LOT of little details to keep track of. I wish we would have gotten a few more scenes of the girls really coming to terms with what Tommy did to them. The ending alludes to that happening, but I would have liked to have actually seen it. The twist was definitely one I didn’t see coming until right before and I did think it was a good one. The pacing was a little slow and felt repetitive at times, but I still was wanting to keep going. I think, as a murder mystery, it was pretty great, but I just felt like it could have been more.
CW: infidelity, emotional abuse, domestic violence, toxic relationships, murder

Thank you to NetGalley and Delacorte Press for an advanced digital reader’s copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my e-ARC of Heart Shaped Lies!

Unfortunately this was a DNF for me. I couldn’t get into the storyline as the characters felt very flat for me. The chapters were a bit long and the MMC was so terrible that I didn’t care what happened to him. He probably deserved it and more. I really wanted to like this one. I’ll be checking out the author’s future works though! Lots of potential here.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read this advanced copy. I love the plot of this book! I love the social media chat format, it makes me feel like I am there. I did get frustrated with the characters, but they were well written. I did figure out the twist.