Don't ask by Hilary Freeman

Piccadilly Press, 2009. ISBN 9781853409974.
Lily thinks she has the perfect boyfriend, apart from the fact he won't discuss much about his life before they met - in particular his dead father and his last girlfriend. Lily becomes obsessed and determines to find out more by creating a virtual identity for herself on a social networking website, where she effectively stalks and befriends Jack's ex. But matters run out of control as Lily's virtual persona, Laura, takes on a life of her own and arranges to meet up with Jack's ex Alex.
Soon the lies and the subterfuge escalate and what started as a quest to find out the truth about Jack descends into a growing web of deceipt with unhappy consequences for Lily. Revelations about Jack's previous life, the lies he has told, the secrets he hides and the possible violent tendencies he may have, as a result of domestic violence as a child, all come to a dramatic climax.
A well written, engaging story with believable characters and an accurate depiction of teenagers - their humour and their obsessions. One is left wondering at the end whether the moral is whether it is better to trust people if you love them and to ignore the doubts you may have, or whether in fact if you are unsure and they cannot trust you with the truth then they don't really love you at all.
Laura Taylor