The Big Lie by Julie Mayhew * ARC #Bookreview

Title: The Big Lie
Author: Julie Mayhew
Publisher: Candlewick Press 
Published Date: November 14th, 2017
Genre: Alternate History, Historical fiction, YA
Page Count:352
Format: Kindle   

My Rating: ★ ★ ★.5

Goodreads Summary: 
In a gripping novel set in present-day England under a Nazi regime, a sheltered teen questions what it means to be "good" -- and how far she's willing to go to break the rules.

Nazi England, 2014. Jessika Keller is a good girl -- a champion ice skater, model student of the Bund Deutscher Madel, and dutiful daughter of the Greater German Reich. Her best friend, Clementine, is not so submissive. Passionately different, Clem is outspoken, dangerous, and radical. And the regime has noticed. Jess cannot keep both her perfect life and her dearest friend, her first love. But which can she live without? Haunting, intricate, and unforgettable, The Big Lie unflinchingly interrogates perceptions of revolution, feminism, sexuality, and protest. Back matter includes historical notes from the author discussing her reasons for writing an "alt-history" story and the power of speculative fiction.

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 My Review:

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.

"You question EVERYTHING. Just because you can. Because it's right there in the laws of your land. But is there nothing you'd greet with a simple Yeah, Okay, fine? What if the love of your friends depended upon it? The love of your family? Would you tell a lie? People who are good don't lie, but a good person might, quite reasonably, leave out something that they didn't realize was really very crucial to everyone else. That isn't a lie. But it can be as bad as telling a lie, I have come to understand." 

This book I went into it knowing as little as possible because it would be modern time Nazi Europe. Having said that this book won't be for everyone. If you don't like reading alternate history or what could have happened if the Nazi's would have won don't read it. 

Also, this books is very white and is true to what the Nazi's were going for during WWII. This book is very bleak most of the time. The best I can compare it to is kind of like what North Korea currently is thought to be, or what we kind of know Soviet Russia being before it fell. The Big Lie world is one that is very controlled and everyone must do their part for the Reich just like how it was during WWII for the Nazi's. 

Now there is no fighting and instead, they are all living 'normal' lives. Neighbors still report neighbors and kids go to special schools and have meetings they attend after. It seemed like very little had changed since the war. Jessika is a character that was seen as the good girl and did what she was told, but she had a secret of her own, one that could get her killed. She is on the LGBT spectrum and that isn't allowed. So instead she hides it as best as she can and she goes about 'normal' life. She is one of the best ice skaters and is set to represent her country. But she's also friends with someone who isn't who they say they are and after a while, things start going terribly wrong. For both of the girls because of this. 

The Big Lie is told in memories that 2014 Jess is reliving. We see her go from a teenager and living her life, to being held in a camp because of what she does. We see her start a new life after she proves she is good again. But most importantly throughout all of this Jess manages to still keep who she is and she learns a lot about how her country works to control EVERYTHING and why. 

Overall I have mixed feelings about this book. I always find alternate history books fascinating and terrifying all at the same time. I really liked seeing LGBT in this book and how it was handled while not the way we want it to be handled was true to what the Nazi's believed. LGBT isn't something we've seen very often in Historical Fiction books and seeing it talked about is good and I hope it continues. As for the rest of the book, it was terrifying to think of something like this having happened to Europe. So many more lives would have been destroyed and the aftermath of it is one that I don't want to think of. I do want to say Mayhew made it seem very real and the way she had it all explained while a little confusing worked. I did get a little confused with the timeline though at times, but I just think that's because I had an ARC so some things weren't always marked. 

"I am good Jessika and Bad. All of it is in me. But I am whole. And I am here."