This dark story follows each of the characters and their journey through this hard subject.
Angela is a troubled 12 year old who over the last few years has become disruptive for her mother Donna since her and her father split up. Their relationship is distraught and can be physical.
She accuses her drama teacher Nick Dean of sexual assault. The police get involve and Nick and his family are tested.
Angela is confused and unsure of the truth but her true attacker will be found.

A fairly quick read with characters I tended not to like or feel much empathy for apart from Angela of course who really was a victim of everyone and everything.
I lost interest about two thirds way through but was only mildly surprised by the ending.

Nick is very happily married with two small children and teaches drama at the local school.

Angela lives at home with her mum, she is still angry over her parents splitting up. They have wrecked her life. She also hates all of her friends.

Angela accuses Nick of abuse and henceforth both their lives unravel.

Is Nick guilty? Is Angela telling the truth?

Lisa Ballantyne has written a harrowing tale of how abuse affects not only the accuser but also the accused. She deals sensitively with both sides and writes a very honest and disturbing account of how each family copes in the aftermath of Nick’s arrest. As secrets emerge, I did not know who to believe or trust.

This is a very moving and thought-provoking story which will have you on the edge of your seat.

Little Liar follows the story of Nick Dean. After enjoying an evening at home with his family, he’s arrested on suspicion of sexual assault of a twelve year old. The accuser is Angela, she hates her parents and has no friends at school. Innocent of guilty? This book follows the lives of two families torn apart. It’s chilling, harrowing and will keep you hooked to the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, Little, Brown Book Group and the author for the chance to review.

Little Liar is a really interesting novel exploring the reactions and impact on the lives of those affected by a serious crime. These are explored through the eyes of the victim, the accused and their families. The multiple viewpoints work exceptionally well here with each chapter being narrated by a different character. The side effect of this is that it was very hard to put the book down because I just wanted to read one more chapter all the time.

I found that the truth of the situation was clear after a few chapters, but that didn't affect my enjoyment of the book at all. The whole point is to see the fallout and how the effects spiralled out from the two people at the centre.

However, I can only give this book three stars as I was left unsatisfied. The ending was rushed and the tacked on epilogue was insubstantial and didn't help. MILD SPOILER WARNING (though I'll try to be as vague as possible). The most annoying thing was how many threads were left dangling: the photobooth, the other job that was affected, the twitter user. Then there were the things that didn't make sense, like the reaction to the visitor, the sister, various living arrangements, the incredibly light sentence for the crime, the violent bit, the reaction at the picnic, and so on. END SPOILERS.

Despite these irritations, I did like the book. Ballantyne's writing flows beautifully and she does a brilliant job of showing us what's inside the characters' heads. The style draws you in and kept me fully engaged until the end. The characters are rich and diverse, each with their own unique voice. I was particularly impressed by the skillful weaving in of the backstories. I would read more by this author.

Little Liar tells the story of two families ruined by an accusation of abuse in an emotionally charged he said/she said tale. Nick is a happily married actor who is working at the school whilst in between roles and Angela is a troubled young girl. I personally took to both Nick and Angela so throughout I found myself unsure of what I personally wanted to be true. Is this seemingly good man actually a lying predator or has this sad teenager made up one of the most awful lies possible to destroy his life?

Through Nick's perspective, it was interesting to find out how an accusation could ruin someone's life which is a very unique point of view to experiences. I have no sympathy for those who have actually committed these types of crime, but for the few that have had false allegations held against them, it was devastating to read. Especially when witnessing the personal hell it causes for their friends and family.

This is the first book by Lisa Ballantyne that I have ever read so I didn't quite know what to expect. I loved her style of writing and flew through the novel in a few days. It was a real page-turner as I constantly kept changing my mind about who I believed which kept me wanting to read until the end. I'd recommend it to all.

My thanks to NetGalley for the copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

I learnt my lesson the hard way and did not realise that this book was due to be archived so I bought a personal copy to review!

The story follows Nick a teacher who is arrested for allegedly abusing Angela a young female. It must be every teachers literal nightmare to be in this position and I have to confess I was rooting for Nick - the tension for him and his family was evident and I was gripped to get to the conclusion and see if I had guessed right the outcome.

You won't be disappointed by this book, I can thoroughly recommend it and hope you'll be as gripped as I was! It was clear the effect it had on both sets of families and was so sad that it could easily happen.

My first read from this author but I'll gladly read more. My thanks to Little Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley for offering me the chance to read an advanced read copy of the book which I have reviewed honestly.

A brilliant read. Compelling, and well-written. It is not often that I cannot put a book down, but Little Liar was an exception. Throughout the narrative keeps you guessing-Did he-didn't he. A fabulous read definitely recommended. Five stars.

My introduction to this author and will not be my last. She tackled a difficult subject very well introducing well rounded characters. She demonstrates just how easily someone’s life can be altered by a simple statement. Nick , a teacher, is accused of sexually assaulting a young girl and his world sets off into chaos.

I really enjoy this book. This is the story of Angela a troubled child, and Nick who teachers drama at her school. Angela accuses Nick of sexually abusing her and this book tells of both their stories, as well as Nicks wife and Angela's parents. I really felt a lot of empathy for these characters, the writer made sure I knew them inside out and how they would feel. Excellently written.

This was a very depressing story. An abused 12 year old girl accuses an innocent teacher of sexually interfering with her. It completely destroys his life and doesn't do an awful lot for hers. I struggled to continue reading this story at times, due to very mixed emotions. but I stuck with it because it really was a well written story. There was some closure and hope in the conclusion.

This is the story of a teacher falsely accused of sexual assault by one of his pupils and the impact it has on his life. It is very layered and thought provoking.

Sadly it is an accurate reflection of our society where we label a schoolgirl as disruptive/naughty and unable to see past these labels and beliefs about them, rather than recognise their behaviour could be due to a trauma. That as a society we haven't created a culture of speaking out about the difficult things.

And whilst I was sympathetic for NIck's predicament it's good to remember that men have 57 more chance of being raped than being falsely accused according to the Office for National Statistics

This book had me gripped from the very beginning.....a young troubled girl claims a teacher assaults her and the impact is huge....is it true?! Excellent and makes you think about repercussions to lies!

This is a good, thought provoking read. Angela's allegations against Nick cause spiralling actions and doubts on both sides. This is an uncomfortable read at times. The truth does come out eventually. I thought the topic of alleged child abuse was dealt with really well in this book. It looked at both sides and how the allegations were dealt with by both families.

Thank you to Netgalley for my copy.

Little Liar is the story of a 12 year old girl who accuses her drama teacher of sexual assault. What follows is a multi-layered story from various points of view.

I found this book thrilling from beginning to end. I felt the subject matter was handled delicately, while the darker undertones to some of the characters was also portrayed well. There were enough twists to the story to leave me guessing until the end as to what would be revealed to be the truth and I was not disappointed.

All in all, an enjoyable read and I will certainly look out for other books by Lisa Ballantyne in the future.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This is an exceptionally well written story, dealing with a very challenging topic. IT kept me enraptured from beginning to end and I would highly recommend it.

The whole way through this book right up until the end chapters, I was going back and forth in my mind as to whether I thought Nick was guilty of these accusations. One chapter I’d be leaning towards thinking him innocent, and then in the next chapter some new information would come to light that would make me question my initial thoughts.

The book switches back and forth between Nick, Angela, and those closest to them. This was such an interesting way to read the book as not only do we see how Nick and Angela are affected by what’s happening, but we also get to see how Nick’s wife, Angela’s mum and dad, and even Nick’s parents are dealing with things.

Accusations of this kind have far reaching and long lasting effects. I really empathised with all the characters at some point or another throughout the story. They might not be the most likeable, but they are authentic. This was an intricately written book which weaves together multiple characters perspectives with a surprise twist at the end. If you like to be kept guessing until the very end then this book is for you.

This was a particularly harrowing story that kept me gripped from start to finish. Nick, an actor who when resting takes drama workshops into schools, was accused of molesting one of his students, a troubled 12 year old called Angela. The book follows their separate stories and looks at how one event could have catastrophic consequences for two families. Throughout the story I really battled with empathy, there were times I felt particularly empathetic towards Nick or Angela, but then something would happen which would make me feel significantly less empathy. The story also looks at the situation from the point of view of Nick’s wife Marina, and Angela’s parents Stephen, a police officer, and Donna who has a fractured relationship with her daughter.

There is a twist in the story, which I must admit I had mildly contemplated and then dismissed, before I reached the actual twist, so it came as a shock because I had dismissed it earlier. It was a fitting conclusion to the story, and I was impressed by the story progression. It was a difficult subject matter, that raised a whole gamut in emotions as I read the book, but in spite of the subject matter I really enjoyed it.

Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group for the ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Little Liar

This is an emotionally charged and thought provoking read that I highly recommend.

Little Liar is a great book, it’s hard to review without giving much away but it’s basically a book based on the allegations of sexual abuse made by Angela about her drama teacher Nick.

Told from the viewpoint of both parties involved, rest assured you’re in for a fantastically emotional read that you won’t want to put down. What makes it all the more chilling is how easily a situation like this could arise in real life. Four shiny stars.

This can be an uncomfortable read at times and it blurs the boundaries between what we think of as innocent and guilty. The accuser is an innocent child but she has serious issues with behaviour and has obviously lied by accusing her drama teacher of sexual assault. The accused is obviously innocent but as the book progresses we find out that his behaviour is not exactly pure. This makes it very difficult for his wife to determine what has actually happened.

It is interesting to hear the different perspectives (accuser, accused, mother of accuser, wife of accused, father of accuser) and see how an allegation can have long lasting impacts on all concerned.

I did guess the twist quite a bit before the end but this did not affect my enjoyment of the book (although enjoyment seems like the wrong word!).

Definitely provides food for thought.