One Great Lie by Deb Caletti Review

 Title: One Great Lie 

Author: Deb Caletti 

Age Group: Teen/Young Adult 

Genre: Contemporary Fiction 

Series: Standalone 

Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars 

I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it. 

Deb Caletti is one of my very favorite authors; I’ve read almost her entire collection of novels, so when I was told that One Great Lie would be the book club pick in January, I was so excited. I just finished this book on Sunday, and I have to tell you, I’m still stunned. This book may be my favorite in her whole body of work. I loved it so much, all the way to the bitter, true-to-life ending. This would be a fitting book, too, to teach in the #MeToo era. Beautifully written, painful and real, I absolutely adored One Great Lie! 

Charlotte Hodges has wanted nothing other than to be a writer. When she spots a pamphlet for a writing contest, where the winner would be flown out to an isolated island off of the coast of Italy, she jumps at the chance, right after her high school graduation. When she wins, she is one of several different students, and they are studying under the famous author, Luca Bruni, the author of Miles of Faces and The Glass Ship. Eager to learn and find out more about a book one of her female ancestors wrote, Charlotte begins to find a home of a different sort when she meets Dante, a young professor’s assistant eager to help her in her quest. But Luca Bruni and Italy are not what they seem, and Charlotte begins to uncover some dark, twisted secrets about the country itself and her hero... 

I very much enjoyed this book; it might be my favorite of all that Caletti has written. The prose was gorgeous, the setting absolutely irresistible; I loved the descriptions of Venice and the tiny private island of La Calamita. The pacing was breakneck; I finished this book in a day and a half. I loved Charlotte and her fierce desire to find her voice and become a writer; I also adored the other characters in the writing program, but Dante was my absolute favorite. And Luca Bruni is an interesting (read: awful) character. I won’t spoil the ending, but it was very true to life and very relevant, particularly in today’s political and social climate. Easily one of my very favorite novels I’ve read this year. I loved how the bright colors and the food and culture of Italy hid dark secrets, both in the country’s history and in Charlotte’s own life. The bottom line: Heartbreaking, true to life, and rich with detail, I loved One Great Lie! Next on deck: The Dirty Book Club by Lisi Harrison!