Book Review: Lying Out Loud by Kody Keplinger

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Lying Out Loud
The DUFF companion novel
Author: Kody Keplinger
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Contemporary
Released: April 28, 2015
Review Source: Scholastic

Kody Keplinger returns to the world of The DUFF in this brand-new companion novel!

Sonny Ardmore is an excellent liar. She lies about her dad being in prison. She lies about her mom kicking her out. And she lies about sneaking into her best friend's house every night because she has nowhere else to go.

Amy Rush might be the only person Sonny shares everything with -- secrets, clothes, even a nemesis named Ryder Cross.

Ryder's the new kid at Hamilton High and everything Sonny and Amy can't stand -- a prep-school snob. But Ryder has a weakness: Amy. So when Ryder emails Amy asking her out, the friends see it as a prank opportunity not to be missed.

But without meaning to, Sonny ends up talking to Ryder all night online. And to her horror, she realizes that she might actually like him. Only there's one small catch: he thinks he's been talking to Amy. So Sonny comes up with an elaborate scheme to help Ryder realize that she's the girl he's really wanted all along. Can Sonny lie her way to the truth, or will all her lies end up costing her both Ryder and Amy?

Sonny is a liar. She lies. All. The Time. Who can blame her? Girl has it rough compared to her best friend, Amy Rush. What they do agree on is that the new kid, Ryder, is an annoying snob that has the biggest crush on Amy. So one night, he emails her asking her out and Sonny, being the mean-spirited person she is, decides to reply back with some very rude choice words. That leads to Ryder and Sonny chatting all night. Only Ryder thought it was Amy the entire time. And, now Sonny sees Ryder for who he truly is and is falling for him. But, like I said, she's a liar and instead of coming clean that it was her whom he was speaking with it all snowballs into some major problem that becomes too big for lies.

Basically, this is one big catfish story. And, to be honest, with the MTV show Catfish being so popular, I'm surprised there aren't more books like Lying Out Loud. With Kody Keplinger's writing style though it is easy to finish the book within a couple of hours. I love her writing style! It's easy to follow and paced well enough that you won't want to set the book down. Sonny's character is a riot. While she did annoy me throughout most of it, her quick wit was amusing and definitely made up for it. I also wasn't a big fan of Amy, until the end of the book. Speaking of, I move that Amy should get her own companion novel! Mostly because I just love Wesley and Bianca so much and I need more of this world Keplinger has created!

If you're a fan of The DUFF you will love following it with Lying Out Loud. Wesley and Bianca are in this more than you'd expect and *sighs* are still the best at bantering as ever! Now, I will say I loved The DUFF more. I felt Lying Out Loud fell short in few ways. I liked the characters well enough but didn't feel connected to them. The romance aspect was okay, but not as epic and Wes and Bianca's was. I hate comparing the two, but it happens. I would still recommend Lying Out Loud nonetheless because I really do love Kody's writing style. You'll be hooked for sure!