Book Review: What Lies Within

Title: What Lies Within

Author: James Morris

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Reviewer: Aly

Book Blurb: 

"You’re going to die" A single text message and Shelley McCray’s world is upended. A normal high school senior, Shelley discovers she is adopted. She goes on a journey to uncover her past, only to find she was part of a horrific experiment to test the theory of nature versus nurture. In a culture of violence committed by young people, she may be one of these killers. With the lives of her and her friends in the balance, one thing is certain: she will never be the same.

Review: 

This book. Just this book gives you a lot to think about. I’m not sure about how much you’ve heard about the whole Nurture vs. Nature thing but I have to admit that in psychology class the topic didn’t even seem half as interesting as Jim Morris made it seem. It was just disturbing that there could be something that can turn anyone into a killer or someone who would do terrible things even though they may not seem like they would. It’s a disturbing thought to have and definitely made me a little suspicious of people’s motives for a day or two.

The prologue draws you in and the writing style keeps you hooked. There is few down moments and you’re constantly trying to figure out who is who and who is on which side. What Lies Within makes you ask questions and sometimes those questions aren’t the most comfortable of things. I was confused at times but I feel like it wasn’t a terrible thing. You were trying to figure things out just as Shelley was. It makes you understand her a bit better even if sometimes her motives aren’t entirely clear.

The characters, especially Shelley were captivating. And it was never clear cut except for one or two characters who the good guys or bad guys were. And I think especially for books in the thriller genre, it’s almost necessary to have that additional tension. Even with Shelley you weren’t entirely sure where on the moral compass she fell.

What Lies Within definitely pushes readers past their comfort zone and makes them think about a lot of things that you honestly don’t think about and I don’t think you would think about normally. I have to say that that is definitely one of the most important and if not enjoyable things it is brilliant and James Morris certainly pulled it off.

Rating:

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