Review: Deadly Little Scandals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
SYNOPSIS:
“Think of the White Gloves like the Junior League-by way of Skull and Bones?”
Reluctant debutante Sawyer Taft joined Southern high society for one reason and one reason alone: to identify and locate her biological father. But the answers Sawyer found during her debutante year only left her with more questions and one potentially life-ruining secret. When her cousin Lily ropes her into pledging a mysterious, elite, and all-female secret society called the White Gloves, Sawyer soon discovers that someone in the group’s ranks may have the answers she’s looking for. Things are looking up… until Sawyer and the White Gloves make a disturbing discover near the family’s summer home–and uncover a twisted secret, decades in the making.
No one is quite who they seem to be.
REVIEW:
*Book Received in Exchange for Honest Opinion/Review*
It took me a while to get back into this world but once I remembered who was who, I was so invested I couldn’t put the book down. This story was wild, if I thought the plot twists, betrayal, and chaos of Little White Lies was a trip, nothing could prepare me for this story line. I swear I spend half the book saying “what the f*ck am I reading” and I mean that in the best possible way.
First off, you have the family dynamic, I won’t lie, it’s complicated to say the least. It’s almost like you need a family tree except that there are so many lies circling the characters that you’d be scribbling out lines and drawing new ones as each revelation is revealed. As the last several chapters fully reveal everything and the story becomes full circle, I was left with my jaw on the ground. I could never predict this story in my wildest dreams, and that is probably my favorite thing about Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ writing, she constantly keeps me guessing!
The parents were just as shocking as their children. Wow…just wow. There wasn’t enough of Boone’s comic relief in this story but there was Sadie-Grace’s endless nervous chatter. I adored Campbell and Sawyer teaming up. Sawyer wasn’t so much on the island of misfit toys by herself this year. She finally learns to trust her friends and finds comfort and solace in this new world.
Then there is the romances, Lily and Walker and Sawyer and Nick. I was 100% on the Nick and Sawyer ship in the first installment of this series and I was still on it as things concluded. The romance is a backburn plot line to the story that I wish would have been touched upon more. There is enough of it to entice me and interest me, but it’s constantly leaving me wanting more. The playout of the Lily and Walker relationship left me shocked and reeling. I swear, I think I spent half this book gasping from the plot twists.
The story is told in different timelines, present day, several months in the past, and then 25 years ago from the parents POV. What a trip, these little bursts and glimpses are like connecting the dots and I lived for it. The story does end on a more final note but I could definitely read more about this wild ride. Another stellar read from Jennifer Lynn Barnes.
LINKS:
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
