This book was good. It was a bit hard to get into but once I was in, I was hooked. I enjoyed the story and really liked the authors writing style. It made it easy to follow along and understand.

This book is about Sadie, who inherits the title of Liar of the Red Valley after her mother dies. She also gets a clear idea about the power of lies, and the limits to that power on that day when she discovers her mother had cancer for a while but lied about being healthy. The lie holds truth until the very last moment - and I think that's a statement to ponder about.

Magical mystery fantasy in which Sadie suddenly finds herself taking over from her recently deceased mother as the Liar.

Although she knew her mother was the Liar, she knows very little about what is actually involved. She only found out her mother was ill as she died so her mother was clearly in the habit of hiding things from her.

Almost immediately she is approached by people who have a vested interest in uncovering her mother's secrets, but Sadie is not going to give in that easily and uses all her skills and knowledge to get to the bottom of the mystery and protect the town.

Great world building and characters, and the mystery element was right up my street.

If American Gothic is your thing and/or you're a fan of Welcome to Night Vale, then you'll enjoy this one. Finished it in about 12 hours, much of which I should have been sleeping.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and Rebellion for the ARC!

I like a good horror book and this one seemed to be a new american Gothic, but I found it lacked the horror to back up the magic and mystery.

Well planned out and with a credible system, in this case magic/lies, the story is ok, but for me it was just ok.

Grab this for a little mystery and magic, but look else where for some gothic horror

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

I love a unique horror and I’m always open to discovering spooky books with original premises. It’s a genre where a lot of things have been done over and over again, so anything that doesn’t remind me of another horror story will always pique my interest.

Sadie is now, unexpectedly, the new Liar of Red Valley. This means that she is responsible for the town’s secrets and turning lies into truths. But Red Valley is a strange place inhabited by all kinds of creatures and not all of them are friendly. As well as taking on her new role, Sadie wants answers as to what’s really going on in the underbelly of the town she can never leave and who she really is.

The machinations of how the Lies work are interesting. The idea of time as a kind of currency actually reminded me a little of Everless by Sara Holland but the subject is actually treated quite differently in this book. I think I would have liked a little more information on how the time is actually taken from the Liar’s clients and if anyone is actually keeping track of how much time someone has spent on Lies. It was fun to form my own conclusions though!

Red Valley has the ability to appear both sleepy and humdrum while also being very dark and eerie. There is no doubt that anywhere that houses supernatural beings alongside humans will always be a dangerous, intriguing place but the fact that this is normal (and always has been) for Red Valley fills it with questions about its history that I needed answers to.

Red Valley is ruled by the King, an invisible, seemingly malevolent force. The King’s army, or King’s Men, patrol the town and ensure that Red Valley residents are abiding by the King’s rules. As well as this, there are a number of unique, truly terrifying beings living in Red Valley and there were several scenes where I was genuinely frightened. It’s rare for me to be properly chilled by a horror book but the Laughing Boys will haunt me for a very long time!

There is another dark force festering underneath the town that threatens to bring war and destruction to the human world. This threat simmered ominously for most of the narrative and I wasn’t quite sure exactly what it was, which added to the suspense. The scariest entities are the ones that you can’t quite see or comprehend and Walter Goodwater is great at writing them.

The Liar of Red Valley is an engaging spookfest with plenty of twists and unique creations. I don’t know whether this is the first in a series but it easily could be because there is a lot of folklore still to explore. A great, quick, Halloween read for anyone who loves small town, darkly magic stories.

An interesting story with lots of twists and turns and you really don’t know just what is real and what is a lie! Thanks for writing such an interesting story!

Not a book I would usually read but I enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. Sadie did get on my nerves when I first started it but I was soo invested in her story and wanted to see hee suceed.
If you like a bit of fantasy and magic then definitely give this one a read.

Definitely not my normal puck but this is why reading ARCs are so great. They take you out your norm!

There were many points during this story I thought what is going on, but sticking with it, I ended enjoying it. Lots of characters to unpick and my trusty notebook was out to take notes!

There were some bits I felt I was reading the book between my fingers as I’m not going to lie I was scared but a great read all round.

“Power does not come from nothing. Life comes from life. The truest fires are not fueled by wood or grass, but by the end of one life and the start of another. Nothing burned like a soul.”

What is this book about?

“”

My opinions

*minor spoilers ahead*

Characters

Sadie: This poor woman deserves so much, I rooted for her throughout the entire story. I was afraid for her life. She’s a likable main character that will give you heart attacks. I wish I could be as bold as her!

Graciela: She’s the funny side character! Her relationship with her family and girlfriend made me tear up multiple times, and I wished the best for her.

Undersheriff Hassler: I hate this man so much. That’s it.

Thomas & Charles: My favorites!!!! So wholesome, both of them. I WANT them to adopt me! I loved their ‘dry’ humor so much!

Plot

The first half of the book:

Mysterious, I liked it a lot because I was trying to rack my poor brain for answers. This was like the “calm before the storm”, even though it wasn't calm at all.

The second half of the book:

Hellfire, but like, in a good way. Chaos, twists, a bunch of people dying. I thought I solved the mysteries but I was so, so wrong. I want to mention the fact that I made a list of all the characters(including a tree) that I wanted to survive and a separate list for all the characters that I wanted to suffer.

If you like:

-strong female characters that are (probably) having a crisis
-flawed mother/daughter relationships
-fast-paced books
-a lot of action
-magical towns
-disappearing houses
-” Good Omens” by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett
-apocalyptic vibes

THEN READ THIS BOOK!!

Rating: 4.5/5💫

*many thanks to Netgalley and Solaris for providing me with a copy!!*

I loved this book so much not my usual type of genre but it had me wanting more .
Horror book that was twisty with an urban feel to the books and setting .
I will be definitely be reading more by this author .

This kept me guessing from the start because you never know where it's going to go; it's unpredictable and full of twists.

It was not what I expected from this book; I had no idea it had anything to do with the supernatural, and the monsters in it were extremely creepy.

Excellent world building, with a unique plot and a lovable main character in Sadie.

If you like urban fantasy with horror elements, I highly recommend you try this one.

Very original book where you will need to suspend belief and go on the journey. It’s clever and it’s a very strong 5/5. Please go and buy this!

I am deeply, DEEPLY annoyed at myself for taking so long to read this. Goodwater perfectly balances plot, world building, and character development as Sadie follows along the archetypical Hero's Journey. That being said, Sadie herself is not the archetypical hero and her world is a deliciously dark mirror of our own. After finishing this book I felt sated, like I'd had a full meal for my imagination.

The Liar of Red Valley was an intriguing American Gothic about a middle-of-nowhere US town that has something unnervingly weird about it. This book held me in suspense from the beginning to the end because you never really knew exactly where it's going to go, it's absolutely unpredictable and filled with twists. The central character Sadie is terrific and the premise is fantastic, littered with good ideas lightly worn. The world building was absolutely magnificent and I would highly recommend you to give this book a try if you're into urban-horror-fantasy!

With this book, Walter Goodwater has set up a unique and totally immersive world: paranormal entities on one side of the river and humans on the other (with a little slippage each way) and it’s all held precariously together by the will of the King and the enforcement of the King’s Men.

As the daughter of the Liar and inheritor of the role, Sadie is forced to reluctantly walk the fine line between the two worlds, and the reader is pulled in from the very beginning and is right there with her to the grand finale! The set-up alone is an instant hook – with the function of the Liar and how the process works – and then the casual blending of horror with the mundane keeps you on edge as Sadie’s investigations begin to chip away and the secrets and lies.

There are underlying and overt themes of deception, doing the right thing, what is really real, and of the power of unity against strength. I definitely did NOT see some of the twists and turns coming and was blown away when the truth was finally revealed.

I’d love to see a series based on this setting and characters as it felt there was so much potential for further stories here, and I was really reluctant to tear myself away from Red Valley. I’ll be keeping an eye on this author’s new releases, for example, The Name Thief, which released last week and looks equally intriguing…!

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog

The liar of red Valley- Walter goodwater

Didn’t get chance to finish as the title expired before I got chance to. Sorry

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a suspensful thriller jammed with mind-blowing plot twists and a great exectution. It's dark, creepy and entertaining. Highly recommended!

I loved the mix of horror and fantasy intertwined in this book. Great writing, great plot, great characters! Would definitely recommend.