Dangerous Lies

I will start off by saying that I was pleasantly surprised by Dangerous Lies right from the start. Fitzpatrick's previous books were not among my favourites I must admit, but this one I liked straight away.
Apart from the unputdowanable element that exist in all of Fitzpatrick's books regardless whether you enjoy them or not, Dangerous Lies does not really depend upon mystery and suspense aspects but more on character development, and that is what I think was missing from Fitzpatrick's previous work. We could see Stella's transition to a mature and grown up individual throughout the whole book. Her relationship with Carmina, who I must say was my favourite character, was very well written without resorting to cliches and the inevitable sappiness. The romance element was still present, this time featuring a male character so different from Fitzpatrick's Patch or Mason. Chet is as casual and chilled as they come and that's what I loved about him. He was not over the top or dominating in any way. He is just a good looking guy who falls in love with a girl he meets over the summer. It may sound plain but if you ask me, normality was a breath of fresh air compared to all the over exaggerated romantic relationships in YA I'm so tired of. Secondary characters were not left in the background either, each one of them different and distinct, playing an important part in the story (see Carmina).
What I would have liked however was a better ending. I felt a bit unsatisfied in the end and slightly disappointed at how everything wrapped up so quickly. I would have preferred the bad guys to be as bad as advertised and not just some run of the mill thugs who just popped in to finish the story.
Those of you who are sceptical about Fitzpatrick's books, don't be: Dangerous Lies will definitely appeal to you. I really hope Fitzpatrick will write more books like this in the future.

Dangerous Lies is a slow burn of a read. It takes its time building its momentum but when it gets there, it's worth it.

Dangerous Lies is kind of not what I was expecting and more than I was expecting all at once. At first, I wasn't much impressed, as I was expecting more. Stella takes time to warm up to and reading this one takes a push. I was easily frustrated with Stella's immaturity. She's in witness protection, her life is in danger, and all she does is whinge about being away from her boyfriend. She lacks some serious perspective. To make matters slightly worse, she begins to struggle with her feelings for Chet and that becomes the focus. For a bit there, Dangerous Lies reads more like a teen romance drama than any sort of thrilling mystery. It's not bad, it's just not what I was wanting. Fitzpatrick does offer hints at the mystery though, as well as the subplot of Trigger and his reign of terror, and that kept me reading. We know Stella apparently witnessed a murder, that a dangerous crime boss is involved, as well as her mother, and that her boyfriend was seriously injured. Stella's testimony is the be all end all of the case. But nothing is what it seems, and that hidden truth is intriguing. The way Fitzpatrick develops the story really is great. Her characters, their relationships, the mystery - it all develops into an intense and heart-pounding read. I now appreciate Fitzpatrick's writing Stella as annoying early in the novel because her growth, her reactions to the truth as it's revealed, are more genuine. Fitzpatrick's ending is a real "wow". It was more than I'd been expecting and I came to really enjoy this book.

Fitzpatrick's characters really grew on me, thanks to how she developed their stories. While I admit to being impatient at first, frustrated with Stella's selfishness, Carmina's mean strictness and Chet's issues, these provided the characters a realness. There's a backstory to all of it that garners empathy. Their histories shape their relationships and these, as well as the tense climax, made Dangerous Lies for me. I especially loved the relationship that formed between Carmina and Stella. The novel portrays the true meaning of family and it's beautiful and emotional. Chet's a great guy and I felt for his situation. I enjoyed the slow build of his relationship with Stella, as development over insta-love is always a plus! Trigger is another stand out, but for all the terrible reasons. Such a disgusting bully, but his part throughout the book kind of blew my mind. Fitzpatrick definitely knows how to add some extra shock value to this novel.

It takes a moment, but Dangerous Lies develops into a thrilling read that is full of action and emotion. All of its details come together to leave quite the impact when finished.

Gripping and fun! The exploration of the main character & her mother's relationship was the most interesting part to me.