Farewell to the Liar

Farewell to the Liar by D.K. Fields. Head of Zeus

Cora Gorderheim, recently stripped of her job as a detective, is currently on a single mission: to protect her sister Ruth, the Wayward storyteller, until the story is told for the election. As a former detective in Fenest, she is quite skilled at getting places. But she runs against a number of challenges in the run-up to the story, and there are those who don’t want the Wayward story told and are willing to kill to prevent it.

I will start by advising I was unaware of this book being the third in a trilogy when I requested it and went into this without the considerable world-building and background that reading the earlier books would have afforded. That said, I was able to piece together some of the story while reading and so feel able to give this a fair review. I will admit it was really difficult to get started, feeling very much like I was thrown into the deep end. The whole concept of storytelling in this world is hard to grasp in this volume but I did get a good feel for some other aspects of this world. The two stories told in this book were quite engaging in their own ways. I had little or no understanding of either the Rustan or Wayward before these stories but I felt they gave a lot of insight into how they live.

I liked the character of Cora in that she seems to be quite rough around the edges but she’s a good detective and she is dedicated and loyal to those who deserve it. It seems she’s been dealt a few bad hands in her life but she has risen above it and made her own choices to live the life she wants. Her sister, on the other hand, is much harder to fathom and she has made choices that are quite different. Ruth has little value to her own life during this book, except that she must deliver the story. Outside of that she puts no importance on herself or others who might get in her way. Perhaps earlier story helps round out Ruth’s background but I find her hard to reconcile her becoming a Wayward when she was born and raised in Fenest. I’m not quite sure how that works in this world. I do feel as though she is meant to be a less complete character, at least in the sense of her life story being told. Certainly from Cora’s point of view, there are massive empty spaces in Ruth’s past that may never be known.

Overall I enjoyed this book for what it was but I imagine I’d have enjoyed it more had I been able to read the previous parts of the story. Based on what was presented I will give this a 4 star rating. I would like to thank Netgalley and Head of Zeus for a free advanced reader copy. I am providing this review voluntarily.