Shattered Sea
young adult fantasy
Series · young adult
We Were Liars
The We Were Liars series by E. Lockhart has 3 known books (3 published) and is best read in publication order, starting with We Were Liars (2014).
- Books
- 3 known books (3 novels)
- Published
- 3
- First published
- 2014
- Status
- ongoing
- Shelved under
- Young Adult
- Last checked
Start here: We Were Liars (2014) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The date order of published books and any announced future entries — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
We Were Liars
Published in 2014 at 227 pages, We Were Liars is E. Lockhart's original novel and the shortest book in this set -- narrated by Cadence Sinclair Eastman, it follows her return to her family's private island after an accident leaves her with amnesia, and it is best read first since its twist depends on going in cold.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of We Were Liars - Book 2:
Family of Liars
Family of Liars arrived in 2022, eight years after the original, as a prequel following Cadence's mother Penny Sinclair and her sisters during their own fateful island summer a generation earlier.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Family of Liars - Book 3:
We Fell Apart
We Fell Apart, published in 2025, is a same-world companion novel with a new cast of characters rather than a direct continuation of Cadence's story, arriving alongside an Amazon Prime Video adaptation of the original novel that Lockhart herself produced.
Alternative text for cover: Cover of We Fell Apart
About the We Were Liars series
We Were Liars (2014) is E. Lockhart's best-known novel: a psychologically twisty story about Cadence Sinclair Eastman, a teenager from a wealthy, image-obsessed old-money family who spends every summer with her cousins and a family friend, Gat, on the Sinclairs' private island off Massachusetts. After a mysterious accident during her fifteenth summer leaves Cadence with amnesia and chronic migraines, she returns to the island two years later determined to piece together what really happened -- and the novel builds to a twist ending that made it a word-of-mouth bestseller and a fixture of YA book clubs.
Lockhart returned to the same world twice more: Family of Liars (2022) is a prequel following Cadence's mother, Penny Sinclair, and her sisters during their own fateful island summer a generation earlier, and We Fell Apart (2025) is a companion novel set in the same Sinclair-family universe with a new cast of characters and its own set of secrets, published alongside the launch of an Amazon Prime Video television adaptation that Lockhart herself produced.
Frequently asked questions
What order should I read the We Were Liars books in?
Start with We Were Liars (2014) itself -- it's the original and its twist should be read cold. Family of Liars (2022) is a prequel about an earlier generation of the family and can follow at any point. We Fell Apart (2025) is a same-world companion novel with new characters, best read after the other two.
Does We Were Liars have a sequel?
Not a direct sequel to Cadence's story, but the world has expanded: Family of Liars (2022) is a prequel, and We Fell Apart (2025) is a companion novel set in the same Sinclair-family universe with different characters.
Is We Were Liars connected to a TV show?
Yes -- Amazon Prime Video adapted We Were Liars into a television series, with E. Lockhart on board as a producer; a second season has been reported to be in development.
How many books are in the We Were Liars series?
3: We Were Liars (2014), Family of Liars (2022), and We Fell Apart (2025).
If you like the We Were Liars series
Reading order last verified .