The Girl Who Couldn’t Lie is a contemporary story with a twist of magic that utterly enchanted me:  a story that sparkles bright with so much heart and humour and with strong bonds of family and friendship.

Twelve-year-old Priya Shah has been keeping her truths inside, telling lies to her family and friends so that she doesn’t let anyone down, letting them believe that her life is perfect so that she doesn’t disappoint.

But her life is far from perfect.  She is grieving the loss of her Ba who was the one person who she felt she could speak honestly to.  She is struggling with the pressure of expectation in her gymnastics, feeling that she must win to get the prize money to help her parents pay for her training.  Her home life is chaotic with parental arguments and financial worries, so much so that she is losing sleep which, coupled with her heavy gymnastics training schedule, is making her fall asleep in class. 

After another terrible day, she is comforting herself by looking at the gold bangle her Ba had given her, a bangle with a broken clasp making it unwearable but, when the bangle suddenly opens, she puts it on, wondering if her life will, at last, get any better …

The next day, Priya discovers that she is unable to answer a direct question with a ready lie.  She finds herself telling the truth, no matter how hard she tries not to.  Could her inability to lie have anything to do with the bangle, a bangle which she cannot take off? 

Imagine being twelve years old and never being able to tell a lie – even a white lie – not to your teachers, your friends, your family and even the boy who you’ve been hiding your crush from.  Luckily for Priya, she has two amazing friends in Mei and Sami who are incredibly supportive, but even they can’t always prevent her brutal honesty from getting her into trouble.  Can Priya find a way to open up and be honest with those she loves without hurting them?  Will her truthful revelations help or hinder her in finding true friendship and bringing her the happiness she has been yearning for?

This is an incredibly powerful and thought-provoking read with plenty of humour and insight into the ups and downs of relationships.  There is so much opportunity to empathise with the situations of others as people often keep hidden what they are scared to share with others as they are worried about a negative reaction or being judged. 

Priya is an incredibly sympathetic young girl who is so busy protecting others that she is bottling up her emotions, her feelings of grief, her anxieties and worries and her loneliness.  Whilst her Ba’s gift doesn’t always feel like a blessing, it helps Priya find the courage to face up to her own truths.  I really enjoyed the friendship between Priya, Mei and Sami which felt so genuine and brought lots of humour.  I also adored her younger sister, Pinkie, who has ADHD, and is a force to be reckoned with, not scared to show her emotions, express her own style, and stand up for herself. 

An insightful, relatable and absorbing story of family and friendship for children of 9+ who I have no doubt will be discussing it with, and recommending it to, their friends.

Thank you to Usborne for providing me with a proof copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
• Finally… reveal the book!

Kelda’s little sister seemed like a perfectly normal baby until her seventh day, when it was time to throw her in the river. They they found out she couldn’t breathe underwater.

Any ideas?

Goodreads Synopsis:

Kelda has always protected her little sister Isla from danger on the rivers, and from the suspicions of their community. For Isla cannot breathe underwater – and so her very existence is forbidden by silvermen’s Lore. Now the rivers of England are growing, monstrous creatures are awakening and a fierce torrent of blame falls upon Kelda’s family. When betrayal comes, the sisters escape on a desperate journey upstream. Joining forces with a mysterious boy, Kelda discovers the darkest depths of her kind’s secret history. But to save both her sister and the very life of Britain’s waterways, Kelda will have to make a sacrifice – one that will change her life forever.

I’m almost finished reading The Narzat which I’m really enjoying – it’s a really playful and humorous story with wonderfully heart-warming friendships. I’ve also just started listening to the audiobook of Son of the Sea which I was keen to listen to after finishing The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy.

I finished reading Serpent of the Sands which I absolutely loved. Gan is a brilliantly strong character, and I’m loving the sapient animals. I’m really looking forward to seeing where this series goes next. I also finished listening to the audiobook of The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy which was absolutely wonderful. I loved the messages of acceptance and the fishing puns! Finally, I devoured Ember Spark and the Thunder of Dragons on Saturday and, oh my goodness, Abi Elphinstone has done it again – an absolutely gorgeous adventure with such fantastic characters. I will be posting my review shortly.

I’m hoping to read The House at the End of the Sea next.

What are you reading? Have you read any of these?

I’m about half way through Serpent of the Sands as my evening read and am absolutely loving it. It’s a fantastic adventure with plenty of surprises and danger. I’m really enjoying having Gan as a main character, but it’s still wonderful to have Maud and Arthur mentioned.

I’ve read a proof copy of Flame Chasers (which is being published in June) which I absolutely loved. I have posted my review. I also read Fablehouse: Heart of Fire which was a brilliant second book in this series. I loved the references to Arthurian legend and the growing magic powers of the children in Fablehouse. I will post my review shortly. I also listened to the audiobook of The Book of Secrets which I thought was brilliant – so full of Irishness that it sang to my heart – tricksy fae, pooka, merrows and danger on All Hallow’s Eve as two siblings are taken and need to be rescued. I’m really looking forward to reading The Harp of Power in this series. I also read a very sweet book for younger readers, Tiny Dogs: Bea’s Secret Friends – I have posted my review.

I’ve waited longer than I ever intended to read Ember Speak and the Thunder of Dragons and I’m very excited to get to read it this weekend.

What are you reading? Have you read any of these?