Summary: The Liars Society
Weatherby is a new kid at the Boston School on a sailing scholarship and is immediately thrust into a world she knows nothing about. Old school phone booths, scrambled phone service at school, friends with kids who go to the country club.. and a boy who seems to hate her guts. It is told from two perspectives, Weatherby’s and Jack Hunt’s, a rich kid at the school who is also on the sailing team. When Jack, Weatherby, and their friends Pres, Iris, and Harper are contacted by what they think is the school’s famed secret society, they get sucked into a mission, only to unravel a deep secret about the Hunt family that involves Weatherby.
The Good
This is one of those books that’s hard to explain without leaving a trail of spoilers so I won’t bother trying to explain–I’ll just tell you what I liked about it. While it does start a bit slowly to allow readers to orient and adjust to multiple important characters, this picks up somewhere at the 20% mark and starts moving at breakneck speed. As always, Gerber’s writing is engaging and Weatherby is a mysterious character with so many questions about her background that will keep readers guessing.
I enjoyed seeing the kids come together as friends as the story progressed, and I’m particularly eager to see Weatherby and Jack develop their (platonic) relationship. This is unlike anything this author has ever written so I recommend coming to it with fresh eyes and sans expectation that it will be like the sports fiction she’s known for. Gerber is a private school alum (I’m guessing) and nails the entire private school setting, making the Boston School almost a character on its own.
Finally, this book seamlessly integrates sailing into its plot so that even readers who do not understand the sport (like me!) will still be drawn in. I can only imagine how much more the kids who love sailing will appreciate that plot point.
Content Notes
Here are some specifics to know about the content.
Content Warnings
- Death: None on the page
- Alcohol/substance abuse: None on the page
- Illness: One kid’s parent is chronically ill
Diversity
- Ethnic: Some kids in the friend group are cued Jewish and Asian
- Sexual orientation: None
Recommended for ages: 10+
Good for kids who like:
- Mystery/thrillers
- Stories set in boarding/private schools
- Books about friend groups
- Addictive middle grade book series
Publisher Details
Publisher details | Scholastic Press |
Author: | Alyson Gerber |
Illustrator: | N/A |
Publication date: | February 6, 2024 |
Audiobook? | Yes, Libro.fm |
Page count: | 304 |
Cover artists | Designer: |
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