Great read! I love all of Karen's books. Lots of good characters, drama and fantastic storylines. I read it in just a few days!

4 stars

You can read all of my reviews at Nerd Girl Loves Books.

This is an entertaining YA Mystery/Thriller set on a billionaire's swanky compound. Kat is a teenager that grew up fast and had to be older than her years. Her mother is a jewel thief working for a woman that rescued her and Kat in Vegas after a disastrous quicky marriage and divorce to a smarmy con-man. Jamie is planning to go straight, but owes her boss one last job at the billionaire's birthday party. When they arrive at the location, they discover Jamie's ex-husband and his son Liam there too. Liam was Kat's step-brother for a hot minute while their parents were married. Neither has forgotten the other, and yearn to develop a relationship with each other again.

When things start to go wrong with the job, Kat steps up and tries to save it. But when someone is killed at the party, Kat, and eventually Liam, are put in the killer's cross-hairs. As one truth after another is revealed, Kat feels her life will never be the same.

This is a fun, quick, and easy read. I liked Kat right off the bat. She's smart, tough, and resilient. She watches out for her mom and is determined to have a better life. But she's grown up with shady people, so she doesn't trust easy and knows she can't believe everything she sees or hears. Liam lived a relatively normal life until he moved in with his father, and does everything he can to thwart his father's scamming ways. He just wants to graduate high school and move on with his life. Despite not trusting each other, I liked how Kat and Liam finally worked some things out and got closer. At first I had no trust for the Sutherland that Liam has a crush on, but as the story progressed, I felt better about the person.

The plot has plenty of twists, although I was able to work out most of them ahead of time. It was still fun to see how the author got there. This book isn't rocket science. It's just plain, good ole fun, and should be read with that in mind. If you like the author's other books, you'll like this one too.

I received a complimentary e-copy of this book from TBR and Beyond Book Tours. All opinions are my own.

"Such Charming Liars" by Karen M. McManus is a thrilling ride filled with twists and turns that kept me hooked from start to finish. The story follows Kat and her estranged stepbrother Liam, who are unexpectedly reunited during a high-stakes jewel heist at billionaire Ross Sutherland's birthday party. McManus expertly weaves a tale of deception and suspense as Kat and Liam navigate a world of con artists, scammer fathers, and unexpected deaths. The intriguing premise and the tension-filled heist storyline make for an engrossing read that I couldn't put down.

However, the book does have its shortcomings. The characters, while complex, are sometimes difficult to relate to, which may distance some readers from their struggles and motivations. Additionally, the story starts off a bit slow, taking some time to build momentum before diving into the heart-pounding action. Despite these minor flaws, "Such Charming Liars" is a compelling read that fans of heist stories and psychological thrillers will surely enjoy. McManus's ability to craft a captivating narrative ensures that this book is a standout addition to the genre.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
Pub Day: 7/30
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Huge fan of McManus, so I was super excited to read this one. Such Charming Liars is about a jewelry heist that goes wrong at every possible turn, the biggest issue being murder.
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Such Charming Liars is pretty addicting right off the start. I felt like I really needed to know where this story was headed. Told in a dual POV between Kat and Liam we really get a sense of both sides. I felt a connection with the majority of the characters, they were well written and fleshed out. The only thing that drove me insane was some of the decisions that were made were so unbelievable juvenile even for a teen to be making.
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The pacing was more of a slow burn with some very intense / suspenseful parts. I love the twists that were thrown in to make you be like "waittt whaaattt?" I wouldn't say that the ending was overly mind blowing, but there was a decent twist within a semi-predictable ending which I really enjoyed. Everything was tied up nicely in the end - which is exactly how i like my books.
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Overall, this was a hit for me, I enjoyed it and I think that YA fans and McManus fans will love this one! Be sure to check it out!! Huge thank you to NetGalley, Karen M. McManus and Random House for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Kat and her mother Jamie are thick in a web of lies as con artists and jewel thieves. So when Jamie decides it’s time to leave the business, she is sent on one last mission before her exit. When everything starts to go horribly wrong, Kat decides to step up and take matters into her own hands. But what she doesn’t account for is a long lost step brother, a mysterious illness, and the murder of a millionaires son on top of the jewelry heist she must take part in. A twisty novel that leaves you guessing until the end whether everyone is a charming liar.

Thanks to Delacorte Press and NetGalley for an advance copy!

I'm a big fan of Karen M. McManus! Her books got me into the YA mystery genre. This installment was still suspenseful and kept you on your toes, but it wasn't my favorite of McManus's books. I didn't feel super invested in the characters or their relationships. It was fun to see how all the dots connected at the end, though!

I love a good con artist mystery/thriller and this did not disappoint! This was an absolute trip! Just when I thought it was going one way, another twist! I both listened to this and read on kindle. The audible book had a couple of narrators and was really well done. I definitely recommend this one!

loved this mystery and keeping secrets and the different point of views. Also loved trying to figure out who did it . I enjoyed the mystery behind it.

In the latest entry from the author of bestseller One of Us Is Lying, we leave the high school campus setting and head for the glamor of real estate magnate Ross Sutherland’s family compound. Adding to the glamor? Kat and her mother are jewelry thieves, planning one last heist before going straight.

But things get complicated quickly. For starters, Kat and her mother run into Luke and Liam. Luke and Kat’s mother were married briefly, and they’re both still scarred from the time Luke left Kat and Liam alone to get lost in Vegas. Luke’s a con artist in his own right, and he’s playing his own game at the Sutherland compound.

And then Kat’s mom gets sick, leaving Kat to handle the jewelry heist on her own. The replacement jewels go missing, Kat witnesses a murder in the woods, an attacker breaks into Kat’s room, and it’s not long before Kat teams up with Liam and one of the younger Sutherlands in an effort to just stay alive.

This was another fast-paced ride, and we enjoyed both the glamor of the Sutherland compound and the twists and turns of the mystery as Kat and Luke worked to get to the bottom of things. Profanity and references to mature situations do make this a more appropriate recommendation for high school students.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Children’s, and Delacorte Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are our own.

*Review will be posted at https://threeheads.works/category/blog/ya-books/ on October 28, 2024.

Karen McManus is back again with another page-turning YA mystery! Told from dual perspectives, *Such Charming Liars* follows 16-year-old Kat—the daughter of a jewel thief who is trying to pull off one last big score so they can leave their life in the shadows behind—and Liam, Kat’s once step-brother who is actively trying to sabotage his con-man of a father. While the two are unexpectedly brought together again after over a decade at the site of Kat’s mom’s last job on billionaire Ross Sutherland’s compound, they quickly have to decide whether or not to trust each other when someone is murdered at the opening night birthday party. What follows is a fast-paced, thrilling adventure for Kat and Liam to figure out who the murderer is—especially when it seems they might be next.

>> ❤️ What I loved: The relationship development across the board in this novel is great—I love watching the sibling relationship develop between Kat and Liam, as well as the little romance between Liam and Augustus! McManus is skilled at writing believable YA characters, and while Kat’s choices at times made me put my head in my hands, they felt perfectly reasonable for a 16-year-old.
>> 💔 What I didn’t love: A very minor note, but a lot was going on in the plot of this book and so, at times the pacing felt a bit all over the place as we tried to get things on track. I would say this was a bit more predictable than some of her other works, but I think there was still plenty to work out and keep you engaged through the end!

This is an easy recommendation to many of my students reading Young Adult novels, and I know they are going to eat this up in a couple of weeks when we’re back in school! Looking forward to seeing what McManus does next :)

**Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 (4-4.5)**

**Acknowledgments & Disclaimers**
✨ Thank you to NetGalley, Karen McManus, and Random House/Delacorte Press, for providing an ARC and the opportunity to share an honest review of this book.
✨ All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.
✨ My reviews and ratings strive to evaluate books within their own age-demographic and genre.

I've read all of Karen M. McManus' books and I was excited to read her new one. Sadly, this one just didn't work for me.

The premise wasn't as intriguing to me and I feel like I went into not really caring, but KMM has fun twisty books so I thought maybe I could be turned.

A lot of it just felt really far-fetched to me. Maybe that's just me? I don't know how teen readers would react to this one, but curious to see at my library.

Even though I didn't love this one, I'll still read KMM's next book.

Such Charming Liars was another fun mystery from Karen McManus. We enter the book getting to know our first main character, Kat, who has a unique family structure including her mother Jamie, who had Kat when she was very young, and Jamie's employer who blurs the line between found family and employer to her advantage. Noticing this, Jamie agrees to take on one more hiest and then is out. Kat isn't sure what to make of their life changing but decides to coerce Jamie into taking her along on the con so she can find out. What Kat doesn't expect is to run into Liam, who was like a brother to her for about a day when their parents made a brash decision to elope in Vegas. When Liam's father leaves the kids alone and they get lost in the casino, Jamie quickly realizes she made a mistake. Both Liam and Kat's parents are the last person each other wants to see, especially when they realize they're both trying to run a con that weekend at a wealthy family's party. When Jamie becomes suddenly ill, can Kat run the con alone? The alternating perspectives were fun, kept a good pace, and were characteristic of how McManus unfolds her mysteries. It did take a while to set up all of the plot lines and characters which made the first half feel a bit slow. However, the second half was, to me, more characteristic of McManus' writing and more exciting to read. I loved the twists and turns, character development, suspense, alternating points of view, and how it all turns out in the end. Definitely recommend if you like mysteries, McManus' other books, suspense, or teens solving crimes; you'll love it!
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC to review.

Karen McManus’s latest YA thriller is a gripping, twist-filled read that hooks you from the start. It's a standalone, which I appreciate. The packing is exceptional in this heist-mystery. However, Kat was a very frustrating character. I find this a bit in YA, and I'm curious as to what teen readers think.

McManus has a way of writing a YA thriller where you stay engaged and don’t see the end coming. That rings true with Such Charming Liars.
Con artists by trade, a job gone wrong, step-siblings reunited, deception. This book has it all.

McManus returns with a twisty thriller that you simply cannot put down. I have to admit her last couple books were meh for me and this one was more of what I had come to expect for her. I was drawn into the lives of professional grifters and a web of schemes that entangles the characters as the reader works to figure out the pieces. I loved that it was a little different with interesting characters.

The story is narrated by two step-siblings: Kat, sixteen, daughter of Jamie, a thief, who is trying to escape from a dark past only to get recruited by a handful of grifter Gem for years, now she is doing one last job. . But this plan is doomed to fail when Kat decides to join her mom to protect her back as a team, as she's been doing for years, and they realize that Jamie's ex husband( married for only 48 hours), Luke, whom she met in Vegas 12 years ago, is at the same place as her last job with his son, Liam, who is reluctantly living with his conman dad after his mother’s death. He is the other narrator and I really enjoyed his character.
Of course things go wrong, people end up dead and secrets are everywhere. Nobody knows who they can trust.
Overall, especially the last third of the book, was mind-spinning, and addictive. I predicted most of the twists, but they were still well-plotted and smart. I highly recommend this book for YA thriller lovers and devoted fans of McManus. I have already put in my PO for this book in our library.

Thanks to NetGalley sharing the digital copy of one of the most anticipated thrillers of the year in exchange for my honest review, which is highly appreciated.

Ready for a thrilling ride? Such Charming Lies is just the book for you! Ms. McManus has been one of the top popular mystery writers for young adult fiction. This entry does not disappoint. The story has so many twists and turns that keeps the reader guessing on who is behind the death of a Sutherland family member. Not only does the mystery of who committed the murder but what is the real story between her mom and her mom's current boss. Will this be the last job, will her mom finally go straight? With all of the questions, twists and turns, readers will devour this quick page turner.

I received an ARC ebook from NetGalley and the publisher, Random House Children in exchange for an honest review.

Let me tell you, pick up this book blindly and you'll most likely love it.

Theres so many twists and turns and secrets and so much chaos happening that something is sure to keep your attention. I'm being dead serious, there was SO many twists and turns I felt like I was on a merry-go-round.

I took a star off due to how confusing it got at some points, and how there did to be small gaps in the story holes, but it was a really good book. If you like dinner parties gone wrong, you'll love it.

Such Charming Liars by Karen M. McManus delivers a compelling blend of mystery and drama with its intricate plot and engaging twists. While the novel effectively captures attention, its execution may appeal differently based on individual preferences for suspense and character development.

Had never read any Karen McManus books before, so was looking forward to reading Such Charming Liars. It did not disappoint, even if I found it a little predictable. It’s about Kat, a teenager who has helped out in jewelry thefts. She is helping her mom with one last heist when things go awry (and she meets her ex-stepbrother Liam along the way). All in all, an enjoyable read!

Real rating 3.5

As soon as I heard there was another book by McManus coming out I immediately added it to my TBR. Was I a little sad that it wasn’t like her others, but still. It has her name on it and I loved it.

Ok so I thought this was going to be very different than what McManus usually wrote, but it actually turned out to be exactly “her” lol There’s a murder mystery and a great group of characters. In this one, the characters are actually my favorite part. They all had something that they excelled in and they came together and used those things to their advantage. And that to me is so cool. Definitely a small found family that made sure to let everyone know they belonged.

The mystery was a bit weird. I felt like it was too much happening. And the ending was entirely too easy to figure out. I knew as soon as I was introduced to someone they were going to have something to do with it. And then the way they introduced that one thing they did? It was immediately obvious. And because of that, I was thinking there was going to be some thing else that happened in the end with her signature like big bang? Yeah I think that WAS the signature big bang. And because it was so easy to figure out, I have to admit, I was a little annoyed. I think I wanted something that was going to make me put the book down and stare at the wall like I usually do with her books.

The plot itself was crazy cool tho. I do think it would have been better if they focused more on the actual heisting tho. I read murder mysteries all the time and they aren’t nearly as stressful as the heist novels I’ve read recently. What made me NOT hate this was the fact that I’ve read like 3 other heist novels just recently too. Maybe this was the best way to go about it lol Give myself a heist novel and not stress myself out too much when reading it.

This wasn’t her usual, but I definitely loved it even still. Do I wish there were some things different? Yes. But I still think it was entertaining enough for (me and) the teens who will be picking this up. I can’t wait for this to hit shelves. My teens love her!