Search
Log in
  • Home

  • Categories

  • Audiobooks

  • E-books

  • For kids

  • Top lists

  • Help

  • Download app

  • Use campaign code

  • Redeem gift card

  • Try free now
  • Log in
  • Language

    🇳🇴 Norge

    • NO
    • EN

    🇧🇪 Belgique

    • FR
    • EN

    🇩🇰 Danmark

    • DK
    • EN

    🇩🇪 Deutschland

    • DE
    • EN

    🇪🇸 España

    • ES
    • EN

    🇫🇷 France

    • FR
    • EN

    🇳🇱 Nederland

    • NL
    • EN

    🇦🇹 Österreich

    • AT
    • EN

    🇨🇭 Schweiz

    • DE
    • EN

    🇫🇮 Suomi

    • FI
    • EN

    🇸🇪 Sverige

    • SE
    • EN
  1. Books
  2. Teenage and young adult
  3. Mysteries

Read and listen for free for 42 days!

Cancel anytime

Try free now
3.0(1)

This Story is a Lie: World Book Day 2025

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer in this gripping teen thriller for World Book Day from award-winning author Benjamin Dean. Perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Sophie McKenzie.

Harley Matthews is used to fading into the background. But all that changes when he’s selected to compete in the Rising Stars programme for gifted and talented students.

Harley’s world is soon turned upside down as he’s thrust into the school’s limelight. So much for laying low. But with new-found supporters comes envious enemies. And when he finds a chalk outline of his body drawn at the bottom of the school stairs, he has to face the reality that someone wants him out of the competition – permanently. But the underdog deserves to win, right?

Remember, this story is a lie.

PRAISE FOR BENJAMIN DEAN

‘A scandalous thriller.’ The Guardian

‘Benjamin Dean has written a royal triumph.’ Juno Dawson, author of Clean

‘Scandalous, funny, and deliciously compelling!’ Catherine Doyle, co-author of Twin Crowns

‘All hail this exquisitely twisty, delightfully queer mystery.’ Chelsea Pitcher, author of This Lie Will Kill You

‘A compelling thriller that stays with you long after you’ve finished reading.’ Kathryn Foxfield, author of Good Girls Die First

‘More jaw-dropping, OMG-twists than even the most salacious tabloid journalist could create.’ Erik J. Brown, author of All That's Left in the World

‘One page-burning scandal after another. Benjamin Dean is YA royalty.’ Femi Fadugba, author of The Upper World

‘A scandalous, twisty mystery that had me on the edge of my seat gasping for more.’ Kate Weston, author of Murder on a School Night

‘A twisty thriller that kept me guessing until the very end.’ Lex Croucher, author of Gwen and Art are Not in Love

‘Addictive, compelling, and utterly delicious.’ Simon James Green, author of Noah Can’t Even


Author:

  • Benjamin Dean

Narrator:

  • Joshua Riley

Format:

  • Audiobook
  • E-book

Duration:

  • 2 h 13 min
  • 49 pages

Language:

English

Categories:

  • Teenage and young adult
  • Mysteries

More by Benjamin Dean

Skip the list
  1. How To Die Famous

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook
  2. Bury Your Friends

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook
  3. The King is Dead

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook
  4. The Boy Who Fell From the Sky

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook
  5. The Super Sunny Murder Club

    Abiola Bello, Maisie Chan, Benjamin Dean, Nizrana Farook, Roopa Farooki, Sharna Jackson, Patrice Lawrence, Elle McNicoll, E.L Norry, Annabelle Sami, Dominique Valente, J.T Williams

    audiobook
  6. The Secret Sunshine Project

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook
  7. The Very Merry Murder Club

    Abiola Bello, Maisie Chan, Benjamin Dean, Nizrana Farook, Roopa Farooki, Sharna Jackson, Patrice Lawrence, Elle McNicoll, E.L. Norry, J.T. Williams, Annabelle Sami, Dominique Valente, Harry Woodgate

    audiobook
  8. Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow : The most joyful book you'll read this year!

    Benjamin Dean

    audiobookbook

Others have also read

Skip the list
  1. Til Death

    Busayo Matuluko

    audiobookbook
  2. Twenty-Four Seconds from Now . . . : A LOVE Story

    Jason Reynolds

    audiobookbook
  3. The Hysterical Girls of St. Bernadette's

    Hanna Alkaf

    audiobookbook
  4. The Blood Orchid

    Kylie Lee Baker

    audiobook
  5. Heist Royale : The enemies to lovers sequel to Waterstones prize-winning Thieves' Gambit

    Kayvion Lewis

    audiobookbook
  6. The Blonde Dies First

    Joelle Wellington

    audiobookbook
  7. This Is Why They Hate Us

    Aaron H. Aceves

    book
  8. People to Follow

    Olivia Worley

    audiobook
  9. Bonesmith

    Nicki Pau Preto

    audiobookbook
  10. Make My Wish Come True

    Rachael Lippincott, Alyson Derrick

    audiobookbook
  11. The Witch Haven

    Sasha Peyton Smith

    audiobookbook
  12. Betting on You

    Lynn Painter

    audiobookbook

  • 9 books

    Benjamin Dean

    Benjamin Dean is a full-time author with a background in celebrity journalism. He has interviewed a host of glitzy celebrities and broke the news that Rihanna can't wink (she blinks, in case you were wondering). His award-winning middle-grade debut, Me, My Dad and the End of the Rainbow, was described as 'One of the most joyful books you'll read this year' (The Bookseller), and he's since gone on to publish The Secret Sunshine Project, as well The King is Dead and How to Die Famous for older readers. Benjamin can be found on Twitter as @notagainben tweeting about Rihanna and LGBTQ+ culture to his 10,000+ followers.

    Read more

Help and contact


About us

  • Our story
  • Career
  • Press
  • Accessibility
  • Partner with us
  • Investor relations
  • Instagram
  • Facebook

Explore

  • Categories
  • Audiobooks
  • E-books
  • Magazines
  • For kids
  • Top lists

Popular categories

  • Crime
  • Biographies and reportage
  • Fiction
  • Feel-good and romance
  • Personal development
  • Children's books
  • True stories
  • Sleep and relaxation

Nextory

Copyright © 2025 Nextory AB

Privacy Policy · Terms ·
Excellent4.3 out of 5