Synopses & Reviews
You should know, right now, that I'm a liar.
They're usually little lies. Tiny lies. Baby lies. Not so much lies as lie adjacent.
But they're still lies.
Twenty one-year-old Max Monroe has it all: beauty, friends, and a glittering life filled with adventure. With tons of followers on Instagram, her picture-perfect existence seems eminently enviable.
Except it's all fake.
Max is actually 17-year-old Kat Sanchez, a quiet and sarcastic teenager living in drab Bakersfield, California. Nothing glamorous in her existence — just sprawl, bad house parties, a crap school year, and the awkwardness of dealing with her best friend Hari's unrequited love.
But while Kat's life is far from perfect, she thrives as Max: doling out advice, sharing beautiful photos, networking with famous influencers, even making a real friend in a follower named Elena. The closer Elena and "Max" get — texting, Snapping, and even calling — the more Kat feels she has to keep up the façade.
But when one of Max's posts goes ultra-viral and gets back to the very person she's been stealing photos from, her entire world - real and fake — comes crashing down around her. She has to figure out a way to get herself out of the huge web of lies she's created without hurting the people she loves.
But it might already be too late.
Review
“My favorite thing about this novel is Maldonado's willingness to leave its resolution a little complicated, because, in real life, not all endings are happy ones.” Autostraddle
Review
“As with social media, the real story here requires digging beneath the surface, and it richly rewards the effort.” Kirkus Reviews
Review
“Readers looking for a drama featuring a bisexual character that's unrelated to coming out will appreciate this contemporary story with a strong sense of setting.” Booklist
Review
“Maldonado's writing has a warm and relatable feel, full of insight regarding societal expectations, accountability, and the need to belong within one's own family and the wider world.” Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
About the Author
Crystal Maldonado is a young adult author with a lot of feelings. Her debut novel, Fat Chance, Charlie Vega, is a New England Book Award winner, a Cosmopolitan Best New Book, and a POPSUGAR Best New YA Novel. Her next novel, No Filter and Other Lies, explores teenage life in the social media age — and the lies we tell to ourselves and others. By day, Crystal works in higher ed marketing, and by night, is a writer who loves Beyoncé, shopping, spending too much time on her phone, and being extra. Her work has also been published in Latina, BuzzFeed, and the Hartford Courant. She lives in western Massachusetts with her husband, daughter, and dog. Find her everywhere @crystalwrote or CrystalWrote.com.