Liar by Justine Larbalestier

Liar starts out with a promise to tell the truth.  But depending on what you believe, the first sentence could be a lie.  Micah is a pathological liar and an outcast at her New York City high school.  She hates being packed into her tiny apartment with her overprotective family and loves nothing more than the freedom of going running in Central Park.  During these running sessions, Micah starts hanging out with gorgeous Zach, the most popular guy in school.  Micah is thrilled when they start secretly dating, but her world falls apart when he is mysteriously murdered and she becomes a suspect.  This book is Micah’s attempt to sift through her own lies and finally tell the truth about the night he disappeared.  However, she’s not entirely successful in her attempt to stick with the truth and it’s hard to even write a plot summary because of the blurry line between what’s real and what’s not. 

This book is confusing, frustrating, and amazing at the same time.  It’s definitely the most original YA book that I’ve read in a long time.  About halfway through the book, Micah reveals a huge family secret that explains why she lies so much.  Except the secret may just be another lie to cover up an even worse secret.  As soon as the events that Micah describes seem to align and make sense, some detail would be slightly off and I would remember that the title of the book is Liar and nothing is straightforward.  Liar definitely pulled me in and kept me guessing.