Books
With one last "A" unmasking, a hauntingly procured diamond pendant, and a teary group hug, everyone's favorite teen mystery soap opera, Pretty Little Liars, came to an end. After seven years of secrets, lies, murders and missing people, of course PLL fans would have many of their own thoughts and opinions on the show's swan song. While some are heralding the twist ending and praising the actors involved, others felt more confused than anything, and felt that they left the show with more questions than answers.
Whichever camp fans fall into, one thing everyone can agree on is that they want more. And although the PLL cast has taken their final bow and the curtains have closed on Rosewood for the last time, there are still ways to get that eerie mystery fix. Sure you can just rewatch the show from the beginning, trying to pick up on all of the clues and loose ends you might have missed on the first go around, but might we suggest picking up a book instead? All of the 11 picks below carry similar themes and elements to PLL, from murderous high school drama and high-stakes friendships to missing girls and, yes, maybe even an evil twin or two.
1
'Final Girls' by Riley Sager (July 11, 2017)
Ten years ago, Quincy Carpenter went on vacation with five friends and came back alone, the only survivor of a horror movie–scale massacre. In an instant, she became a member of a club no one wants to belong to—a group of similar survivors known in the press as the Final Girls. Now, Quincy is doing well—her memory won’t even allow her to recall the events of that night. That is, until Lisa, the first Final Girl, is found dead, and Sam, the second, appears on Quincy's doorstep. And when new details about Lisa's death come to light, Quincy's life becomes a race against time as she tries to unravel Sam's truths from her lies, evade the police and hungry reporters, and remember what really happened at Pine Cottage.
2
'Little Monsters' by Kara Thomas (July 25, 2017)
Kacey is the new girl in Broken Falls. When she moved in with her father, she stepped into a brand-new life, eerily charming compared with the wild highs and lows of the old one she lived with her volatile mother. She’s even been welcomed into a tight new circle of friends. Bailey and Jade invite her to do everything with them. Which is why it’s so odd when they start acting distant. And when they don’t invite her to the biggest party of the year, it doesn’t feel like an accident. But Kacey will never be able to ask, because Bailey never makes it home from that party. Suddenly, Broken Falls doesn’t seem so welcoming—especially once everyone starts looking to the new girl for answers. Start reading now!
3
'First We Were IV' by Alexandra Sirowy (July 25, 2017)
Izzie loves nothing more than her three best friends, Viv, Graham, and Harry. And she’s terrified of their friendship falling apart next year when they go off to college. To bind them together, she decides to create the Order of IV, a secret society devoted to mischief that rights wrongs and pays back debts. At first, it works like a charm—but when the Order of IV’s escapades get recognition beyond their wildest expectations, other people start wanting in. And soon, what started as a game of friendship is spiraling into something dangerous and beyond their control—and before it’s over, they’ll pay the ultimate sacrifice.
4
'Genuine Fraud' by E Lockhart (September 5, 2017)
Genuine Fraud is the story of Imogen and Jule. Imogen is a runaway heiress, an orphan, a cook, a cheat; and Jule is a fighter, social chameleon, and athlete. The two girls get caught in a web of intense friendship, murder, and romance. One girl refuses to give people what they want from her. One girl refuses to be the person she once was. But the reader has to decide: who is genuine? And who is the fraud? Start reading now.
5
'One Of Us Is Lying' by Karen McManus
On Monday afternoon, five students at Bayview High walk into detention. Bronwyn is Yale-bound and never breaks a rule. Addy is the picture-perfect homecoming princess. Nate is already on probation for dealing. Cooper is the all-star baseball pitcher. And Simon is the creator of Bayview High’s notorious gossip app. Before the end of detention Simon's dead. And according to investigators, his death wasn’t an accident. On Monday, he died. But on Tuesday, he’d planned to post juicy reveals about all four of his classmates, making them suspects in his murder. Or are they the perfect patsies for a killer who’s still on the loose?
6
'Vanishing Girls' by Lauren Oliver
Dara and Nick used to be inseparable, but that was before the accident that left Dara's beautiful face scarred and the two sisters totally estranged. When Dara vanishes on her birthday, Nick thinks Dara is just playing around. But another girl, nine-year-old Madeline Snow, has vanished, too, and Nick becomes increasingly convinced that the two disappearances are linked. Now Nick has to find her sister, before it's too late.
7
'The Female Of The Species' by Mindy McGinnis
When her older sister, Anna, was murdered three years ago and the killer walked free, Alex uncaged her violent nature. While her crime goes unpunished, Alex knows she can’t be trusted among other people. But Jack Fisher sees her. He’s the star athlete gunning for valedictorian with the prom queen on his arm. But guilt over the role he played the night Anna’s body was discovered hasn’t let him forget Alex over the years. So does Peekay, the preacher’s kid. When Peekay and Alex start working together at the animal shelter, a friendship forms. While partying one night, Alex’s darker nature breaks out, setting the teens on a collision course that will change their lives forever.
8
'Last Seen Leaving' by Caleb Roehrig
Flynn's girlfriend, January, is missing. The cops are asking questions he can't answer, and her friends are telling stories that don't add up. All eyes are on Flynn—as January's boyfriend, he must know something. But Flynn has a secret of his own. And as he struggles to uncover the truth about January's disappearance, he must also face the truth about himself.
9
'A Good Idea' by Cristina Moracho
Fin and Betty’s close friendship survived Fin’s ninth-grade move from their coastal Maine town to Manhattan. And in the fall of their senior year, they both applied to NYU, planning to reunite for good as roommates. Then Betty disappears. Her ex-boyfriend Calder admits to drowning her, but his confession is thrown out, and soon the entire town believes he was coerced and Betty has run away. Fin knows the truth, and she returns to Williston for one final summer, determined to get justice for her friend. But Williston is a town full of secrets, where a delicate framework holds everything together, and Fin is not the only one with an agenda.
10
'The Third Twin' by C.J. Omololu
When they were little, Lexi and her identical twin, Ava, made up a third sister, Alicia. If something broke? Alicia did it. Cookies got eaten? Alicia's guilty. Alicia was always to blame for everything. Now they use Alicia as their cover to go out with boys who are hot but not exactly dating material. Now one of the guys Alicia went out with has turned up dead, and Lexi wants to stop the game for good. As coincidences start piling up, Ava everything will be fine. But when another boy is killed, the DNA evidence and surveillance photos point to only one suspect: Alicia. The girl who doesn't exist. As she runs from the cops, Lexi has to find the truth before another boy is murdered. Because either Ava is a killer…or Alicia is real.
11
'Everything You Want Me to Be' by Mindy Mejia
Hattie Hoffman has spent her whole life playing many parts: the good student, the good daughter, the good girlfriend. But Hattie wants something more, something bigger, and ultimately something that turns out to be exceedingly dangerous. When she’s found brutally stabbed to death, the tragedy rips right through the fabric of her small-town community. It soon comes to light that Hattie was engaged in a highly compromising and potentially explosive secret online relationship. The question is: Did anyone else know? And to what lengths might they have gone to end it?
