Review: The Girl in the Mirror

The Girl in the Mirror by Rose Carlyle
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Daaaamn this book made me so anxious.

I hate lying. Lying makes me nervous. Liars always get found out. ALWAYS.

But this concept fascinates me.

It's similar to the plot of that TV show with Sarah Michelle Gellar that got axed, leaving me without a conclusion. So it was nice to get some closure through this story.

But still.

It was close to agony living through this story.

The blurb sums up the first third of the book, which is something that frustrates me a little but it also allows you to hang in there for the boring first 100-odd pages while rebel sister Iris goes sailing with perfect sister Summer and then loses her to the sea. Now Iris - who has been living in the shadow of her perfect twin all her life - is faced with the opportunity of stepping into that very same perfect life.

Look, I should have known from that blurb that it'd make me uncomfortable, but the lies upon lies really made me nauseous. I don't know why it gets me so much! Just the thought of the humiliation and pain that will come from being exposed in the lie ... it does something to me. I don't want that for anyone - especially not a character like Iris who I tragically related to so much. She's the one who's considered a bit of a rebel, the black sheep of the family, and she's cynical and ruthless and totally awkward with kids but at the same time she actually just wants to be loved as much as her twin is.

I loved the way Iris was written, because she has some very clear flaws and is a bit of a lost soul but somehow I still felt drawn to her. You can feel how much she's hurting, and you can tell all the bluster about nice people being idiots is just a false layer to cover how much it hurts that her twin is preferred by everyone.

The story is twisted, and damn near broke my heart so many times. But all the lies and false pretences make it such a wild, thrilling ride, and you know it's all going to end badly but you can't help but keep reading anyway. It really did make me anxious lol. The twists are unreal though so if you love a good twisty thriller you'll eat this right up.

Once you get over the mildly dull start that sets it all up, you won't be able to put it down.

This is an intelligent, anxiety-inducing thriller that I highly recommend. You will be on the edge of your seat til the very last page.

With thanks to A&U for a copy

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