City of Lies (novel)

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City of Lies
Author Sam Hawke
SeriesPoison Wars
Genre Young adult urban fantasy, murder mystery
Publisher Tor.com
Publication date
July 3, 2018
Pages560
ISBN 978-0-7653-9689-1
Followed by Hollow Empire  

City of Lies is a 2018 urban fantasy murder mystery novel by Sam Hawke. It is Hawke's debut novel and the first installment in the Poison Wars series.

Contents

Background

The book was Hawke's debut novel. She stated in an interview that she wanted to write "what was effectively a closed room mystery in a fantasy setting, as a kind of homage to my two favourite genres of stories growing up." [1] In writing the book, she wanted to avoid the usual tropes and character archetypes of the fantasy genre. [2]

Synopsis

Jov and Kalina are brother and sister, born to a family of spymasters in the city-state of Silastra who are tasked with protecting the Chancellor from poison. After both the Chancellor and Etan, their mentor and uncle, are poisoned they must work together to solve the murders.

Reception

The book was well received by critics for its portrayal of sibling dynamics, urban fantasy style worldbuilding, intrigue, and representation of disability. [3] [4] Kirkus Reviews called it "A well-crafted debut with believable political intrigues, solid worldbuilding, and original characters." [5] Paul Weimer of Tor.com praised the worldbuilding and writing, but felt the ending was "frustrating" in comparison to the first portions of the book. [6] Emma Davis of the Fantasy Book Review, gave the book a rating of 8/10, praising the overall plot and mystery while criticizing aspects of the language and pacing. [7]

The book won the 2019 Ditmar Award for Best Novel, [8] the 2019 Norma K. Hemming Award, [9] and was tied for the 2018 Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel with Maria Lewis' The Witch Who Courted Death. [10] It was longlisted for the BSFA Award in 2019. [11]

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References

  1. ↑ "Interview with Sam Hawke (CITY OF LIES)". The Fantasy Hive. 20 July 2020. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "Q&A: Sam Hawke, Author of 'Hollow Empire'". The Nerd Daily. 30 November 2020. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "City of Lies by Sam Hawke". www.publishersweekly.com. Archived from the original on 25 December 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  4. ↑ City of Lies, by Sam Hawke | Booklist Online.
  5. ↑ CITY OF LIES | Kirkus Reviews.
  6. ↑ Weimer, Paul (13 July 2018). "City-State Fantasy: City of Lies by Sam Hawke". Tor.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  7. ↑ "CIty of Lies by Sam Hawke book review - Fantasy Book Review". www.fantasybookreview.co.uk. Archived from the original on 23 September 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  8. ↑ locusmag (10 June 2019). "2019 Ditmar Awards Winners". Locus Online. Archived from the original on 24 December 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  9. ↑ Glyer, Mike (8 June 2019). "2019 Norma K Hemming Awards". File 770. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  10. ↑ Tehani (4 May 2019). "2018 Aurealis Awards Winners". Aurealis Awards. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  11. ↑ The Editors (16 January 2019). "BSFA Awards Longlist". Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.{{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
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