Lies My Girlfriend Told Me

by Julie Anne Peters

Overview

National Book Award finalist Julie Anne Peters returns with a compelling novel about relationships, trust, romance, and loss—with a suspenseful twist.

When Alix's charismatic girlfriend, Swanee, dies from sudden cardiac arrest, Alix is overcome with despair. As she searches Swanee's room for mementos of their relationship, she finds Swanee's cell phone, pinging with dozens of texts sent from a mysterious contact, L.T. The most recent text reads: "Please tell me what I did. Please, Swan. Te amo. I love you."

Shocked and betrayed, Alix learns that Swanee has been leading a double life—secretly dating a girl named Liana the entire time she's been with Alix. Alix texts Liana from Swanee's phone, pretending to be Swanee in order to gather information before finally meeting face-to-face to break the news.

Brought together by Swanee's lies, Alix and Liana become closer than they thought possible. But Alix is still hiding the truth from Liana. Alix knows what it feels like to be lied to—but will coming clean to Liana mean losing her, too?

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316234948
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	06/10/2014
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Pages:	256
File size:	961 KB
Age Range:	15 - 17 Years

About the Author

Julie Anne Peters is the critically acclaimed author of Define "Normal," Keeping You a Secret, Pretend You Love Me, Between Mom and Jo, She Loves You, She Loves You Not..., It's Our Prom (So Deal With It), and Luna, a National Book Award finalist. 

Editorial Reviews

05/01/2014
Gr 9 Up—Alix's world is turned upside down after falling for popular and confident Swanee, so much so that ditching her friends and playing by her love's rules seems almost too easy. When her mom breaks the news that Swanee has suddenly died of an unexpected cardiac arrest, Alix has a hard time accepting that her vivacious and seductive girlfriend is really gone. In Peters's newest offering, questions of love and honesty abound. After Alix gets ahold of Swanee's cell phone, she discovers texts revealing that Swanee had been carrying on an affair with another girl. To find out more about the mysterious L.T., she sends her a message, pretending to be Swanee, before ultimately tracking her down and giving her the news of Swanee's death. Alix finds out her name, Lianna, and that they share more than just a girlfriend in common. They begin spending more and more time together, and despite her best intentions, and the fact that she's falling hard for her, Alix can't bring herself to tell Lianna that she had sent the texts pretending to be Swanee. This dilemma, which naturally resolves itself into a happy high school love affair, is the largest conflict in the plot. Questions about Swanee's controlling nature arise, as do the effect her neglectful parents had on her and her sister, but the majority of the book leaves readers with what is largely a love story with a small mystery thrown in. The book does not focus on sexuality, and it's a pleasure to read a typical teen romance that just happens to be between two girls. Romance fans of any persuasion will be swept up in this slow-paced but ultimately sweet story.—Joanna Sondheim, Columbia Grammar & Preparatory School, New York City

School Library Journal

06/09/2014
After Alix's track star girlfriend, Swanee, drops dead of sudden cardiac arrest, the high school junior is devastated. When a mysterious girl keeps texting Swanee's phone, unaware she has died, Alix learns she was not the only girlfriend Swanee left behind. Once Alix starts spending time with beautiful and grounded Liana, her father worries that it is a rebound, but Alix becomes convinced they were "always meant to find each other." This book tenderly explores themes of loss and forgiveness, but Peters's descriptions of Swanee as uncaring and possessive (after Alix's baby brother nearly chokes to death, Swanee immediately wants to "pick up where we left off" making out) make it difficult to understand why Alix or levelheaded Liana would be so devoted to her. Supporting characters, such as Swanee's troubled younger sister, can come off as contrived, but the two central protagonists have believable chemistry, and Peters (It's Our Prom ) capably addresses teen LGBT relationships without making them the story's sole preoccupation. Ages 15–up. Agent: Wendy Schmalz, the Wendy Schmalz Agency. (June)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Lies My Girlfriend Told Me:
"This book tenderly explores themes of loss and forgiveness... Peters capably addresses teen LGBT relationships without making them the story's sole preoccupation."—Publishers Weekly

"In Peters's newest offering, questions of love and honesty abound... This book does not focus on sexuality, and it's a pleasure to read a typical teen romance that just happens to be between two girls."—School Library Journal

"Peters has written another insightful, absorbing novel of relationships that is both emotionally and intellectually satisfying... This will have widespread appeal to both gay and straight readers and is another strong offering from a well-established, popular author."—Booklist

Praise for It's Our Prom (So Deal With It):"A fun read about a Denver high school whose idea of inclusivity goes beyond the norm to include all 'geeks, freaks, and uniques.'"—SLJ

"There are plenty of comedic missed and mixed messages...Romance readers will enjoy this alternative peek at prom."—Booklist

Praise for She Loves You, She Loves You Not...:"The story of friends, family, and lovers will pull readers into the deeper themes of trust, rejection, and intimate secrets revealed."—Booklist

"A warm and substantive character study and a welcome addition to stories about LGBTQ teens."—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

2014-04-09
After her new girlfriend dies unexpectedly, Alix discovers that the relationship was not all she had thought.The unlikely nature of Swanee's death—a sudden collapse while running despite a lack of known health concerns—receives oddly little attention. Instead, the focus is on her double life. In her grief, Alix finds Swanee's cellphone and discovers text messages that lead her to Liana Torres, whom it turns out Swanee was dating in secret alongside Alix. There is dramatic potential between Alix and Liana as the two uncover Swanee's many lies and manipulations, but it doesn't really deliver. In fact, the story feels phoned in. A subplot involving Swanee's troubled sister is poorly fleshed out. A series of text messages Alix sends Liana from Swanee's phone are regrettable but too seemingly small a transgression for the amount of emphasis placed on them. Alix moves—with very little explanation to readers—from just barely feeling ready to have sex to initiating it almost without thinking. Most unsatisfying is the unquestioned premise that head-over-heels serial monogamy is the only imaginable approach to dating for lesbian teens. Swanee's mom's suggestion that her daughter "was too young to be serious about just one person" is treated with as much knee-jerk horror and disgust as Swanee's deceptions.Enjoyable as a romance but lacking in substance. (Fiction. 14-18)

Kirkus Reviews