Reviewed by HootRated editorial · Last updated
Liars, Inc
Paula Stokes
The text is written at a 4th grade reading level, the subject matter is intended for teens (ages 13+), and the content has moderate intensity with some emotionally heavy themes. Its HootRating code, ME, means moderate content, mostly emotional.
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About This Book
Max is hiding the truth again—this time, selling fake permission slips and cover stories to his classmates. Money is rolling in, but when his best friend Preston disappears after using one of their lies, everything spirals out of control. Now Max faces terrifying clues that could change everything.
Themes
Quick Assessment
Max Cantrell starts a business forging permission slips and cover stories for his classmates, but when his friend Preston vanishes after arranging a trip to meet someone he met online, the evidence begins pointing at Max as a suspected killer. Expect a tense psychological mystery centered on a teen's death, fear, and deception; the suspense is more intense than graphic, but parents may want to talk about online safety and the consequences of lying.
Why we rated Liars, Inc ME (Moderate)
Liars, Inc is written at a Level 4-5 reading level across 361 pages. Upper Grades (Ages 13+) is the typical interest range for this book — readers in that age band have the maturity and attention span suited to the story, separate from whether they can decode the words.
We rate Liars, Inc as ME (Moderate, mostly emotional) because the content sits in the "Moderate" range — moderate conflict that may involve loss, scary scenes, or interpersonal stakes. The strongest signals come from emotional weight, thematic difficulty — these are the dimensions parents should evaluate against their reader's tolerance.
No specific content flags were raised by community reviewers, which is consistent with the moderate intensity score.
Thematically, Liars, Inc explores honesty, friendship, coming of age, mystery, and adoption — these threads give the book room to mean different things to different readers.
Good fit for
- ✓ Children in the Ages 13+ range — the maturity and attention span match the story's pacing.
- ✓ Kids drawn to stories about honesty, friendship, coming of age.
Maybe not for
- ! Readers who get easily upset by emotional or moderately dark scenes — the conflict here is real, not just background flavor.
For Parents
Content Intensity
ME · Moderate · EmotionalReading the HootRating code: the first letter is the content intensity (C = Gentle · L = Mild · M = Moderate · I = Intense · V = Very Intense); the second, when there is one, is the kind of content that drives it (E = Emotional · P = Physical · S = Social · T = Thematic). Reading level and age range are rated separately. How we rate
Real stakes and emotional weight. May include sustained danger, loss, or bullying.
Was our "Moderate" content intensity rating accurate for this book?
Reading Insights
Discussion Potential
3/10A lighter read — great for independent enjoyment.
Book DNA
Multi-dimensional content fingerprint
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Details
Book Length
- ISBN
- 9780062323286
- Pages
- 361
- Publisher
- HarperTeen
- Published
- 2015
- Type
- Fiction