Sawyer isn’t surprised when her mother calls her to say she’ll be away for a couple of days. After all, she has left Sawyer on her own before. Now that Sawyer’s 18, it’s almost expected. When Sawyer learns it’s going to be even longer, she shrugs that off too, continues with her bar work and carries on as normal.

What does surprise her is a woman breaking into her house. A woman who says she is her grandmother. This is the grandmother who threw her 17 yr old pregnant mother out of her house and family over 18 years ago. This stranger has a deal for Sawyer and despite no contact her entire life and the terrible treatment her mother endured as a pregnant teen, Sawyer can’t resist.

But it’s not like she isn’t going to benefit big time from the deal. Life is suddenly a whole lot different from serving beers, watching for brewing bar fights or avoiding sexual harassment every night at work.

The world her grandmother whisks her off to, and the one her mother was raised in, is privilege, money and polite society. But under the manicures, perfect eyebrows, endless dress fittings and cucumber sandwiches, is a secret. This secret is what sealed the deal in Sawyer’s mind. Sure, her wealthy, powerful grandmother wants 9 months of her life, but during that time, Sawyer is keen to find the answer to a question her mother would never answer. Who is her father?

As Sawyer meets her cousins and their friends and acquaintances, she enters the drama of the debutantes and squires. These are the children of the wealthy in her family and social circle being presented into society. Many gatherings occur before the final ball, and Sawyer must endure all the plumping, plucking, preening and high heels, not to mention perfect manners whilst she investigates the possible men on her list.

It’s not long before she realises all is not as it looks, those around her are far from perfect, and even hiding something terrible. Sawyer isn’t one to mince words or tiptoe about, and she is soon a moving part of a complicated revenge.

Originally published in Australasia in 2019, I never read this series. Now popular again (probably with a little help from the fact that this author’s Inheritance Games series is huge, and a little Tiktok), I’m really glad to have got another chance to dive in.

Little White Lies is an apt title. Little is a polite word. White sums up the so-called innocence of the debutante (yeah right). And the lies? They are far from little or white – they are huge, and help throw plot twists at the reader.

Some say it is a little too long, but being from NZ, I find the whole idea of debutantes a curious tradition. It has been a perfect setting for other thrilling reads and movies, and is the backbone of this novel.

I do have questions however, and will no doubt have to gobble up the next book in the series to have them answered. I enjoyed the main character Sawyer immensely, from her name, to her straight-up way of dealing with everything thrown at her in her new life.

An entertaining read.

Author – Jennifer Lynne Barnes

Age – 12+

(2024, New Edition, Penguin Aust, Debutante, Squires, Family, Cousins, Parentage, Secrets, Lies, Wealthy, Influence, Rich, Polite Society, Balls, Dances, Luncheons, Revenge, Crime, Grandparent, Grandmother, Poor to Rich, Contract, Deal, Series, Mystery)