Ah it’s the end and it is a doozy! The Liars are at the end of the line since being accused of Ali’s murder and their prospects are grim. The world has turned on them and counter evidence to their innocence is sparse.

They try to put up a brave front but it’s hard considering the circumstances. Spencer does what she does by researching and planning ahead possibly to ditch town for good but finds doing so in reality is much harder as an old romance and burgeoning family news keeps her at home. Aria on the other hand does take that risk but the paranoia is too great for her. Hanna, on the other hand is trying to soak up the last few happy moments she can have by getting married to Mike and Emily makes the biggest decision of all.

And Emily’s final act is what nearly splinters the Liars apart just when they need each other most.

And that’s just in the first 100 pages.

Anything after that is pretty much a spoiler so I will just finish with my thoughts.

Shepard does an excellent job in keeping the Liars and the readers on the precipece of disaster but also delivers on a happy ending and bringing things full circle.
What I most enjoy is how the girls have grown stronger from their trials and closer, none of them are the same from when they started and it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Spencer finally loses the stick that has been up her ass and her insanely competitive drive. Being forced to lose everything, she comes to enjoy her life and not worry about coming ahead ontop as she used to. She’s able to let go and smell the roses with her sister and her new beau.

Hanna is no longer the popularity-obssessed former fat girl fearing her dorky past. And she no longer judges others for their geekiness or not fitting into her precise box of acceptability. She is finally happy with Mike and able to cut out toxic bonds in her life. She finds validity from herself, not from everyone else. For the most part.

Aria doesn’t hold herself above others as she used to, romanticizing her European horizons and that Rosewood was “too small” for her. She has learned to be more open-minded. Not culturally but with other people and learn to let go of old grievances because people are capable of change and nuance.

Emily has changed the most of all from mousy scared best friend, fearing that she will disappoint everyone by being true herself. She has found her inner strength and fortitude and broke the pedestal she has held for other people in her life.

As for A, she’s not dead but she does get her comuppence. It’s not entirely resolved either which I felt was realistic. The Liars may have a nagging fear here and there, but they no longer have the paranoia that Ali held over their heads with her manipulations. They aren’t going to let her win by cowering under her possible return.

Shepard has deftly managed all the twists and turns to keep me guessing until the end and somehow even upped the danger quota which is perfect for grand finale.

While there are some unanswered questions or threads that I felt went unresolved (Mr. Khan’s secret, Hanna’s blackmail of Kate, Aria’s one day marriage, the split between Riley and Naomi, where is Jason in all of this?), perhaps they were never connected to the Liars. Just another red herring or regular interesection in their small town lives blown out of proportion thanks to their paranoia.

Anyway, I was fully satisfied with the ending and Shepard’s skill in unravelling the thrilling mystery until the very last lie.