An Academy for Liars will be an all time favorite of mine for years to come. It's a mixture of so many things I love in books - dark academia, psychological magic, memory manipulation, secret societies, hidden agendas and time travel - all carefully crafted together as a meditation on truth, love and free will.

In the midst of Lennon Carter's life falling apart, she receives a phone call that draws her to Drayton College's campus, which exists in a secret square in Savannah. She discovers that she has the gift of persuasion, and is able to force people and things to do what she wants. She learns alongside her classmates how to strengthen her skills, and grows close to her academic adviser Dante.

As Lennon's skills strengthen, she learns disturbing facts about the history of Drayton College, and why she was brought to Drayton in the first place.

I was hooked by this book from the beginning. My brain just clicked in immediately with Henderson's writing style. This story is richly atmospheric, stunningly cinematic, and darkly twisted, while exploring big moral questions about free will, suffering and use of power. Lennon's journey through Drayton is compelling, empowering and satisfying, and the secondary characters are distinctly lovable. The final 20% is absolutely riveting, and multiple story lines converge in a high octane finale. I was glued to the finale pages, and without giving away spoilers, LOVED the way Henderson wrapped up a thematic question in the final scene. I will be yapping about this book for the foreseeable future!

Fans of Ninth House and Their Vicious Games will love An Academy for Liars.

4 stars. This is the first book I've read from Alexis Henderson, and I'm really impressed. I enjoy dark academia, but it's something that I especially enjoy reading in the Fall, so the timing could not be more ripe for this release. An Academy for Liars has everything that I love about dark academia. A university setting that's steeped in history... but also secrecy (the university, is in fact, hidden from society); a protagonist that's more than a little in over her head; and lots and lots of mystery and betrayal. Henderson does a great job creating the suspense, which was probably buttressed by the fact that I kind of had no idea what was going on for the majority of the book. The protagonist would definitely qualify as an unreliable narrator who keeps making terrible decision after terrible decision. There's also a really unique magic system, that's not necessarily magic, but also isn't necessarily not magic. Basically, Drayton is a secret school for gifted students who have the skill of persuasion. Not the used car salesman type, but the I can get into your head and manipulate your body/ brain to get you to do what I want type. But turns out some super powerful people can manipulate more than just living beings... they can also manipulate space and time. Tripy. Beyond the story itself, An Academy for Liars definitely poses some philosophical questions (good vs bad, important of free will, etc). Although it's not dark academia, I could see fans of The Night Circus finding a lot to enjoy about An Academy for Liars. And the writing quality itself was top notch. All in all, I really enjoyed An Academy for Liars. Dark Academia fans should flock to read this one. It's very very good.

Thank you so much to Henderson, Ace/Berkley, and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Well, I don't really know how to star this, because I am not going to finish it. I can do morally grey, but this main character is really just depressing me. I don't read to be depressed, and she's self-destructive to the point of utter foolishness. I do like the idea of a magic school essentially just sitting in a pocket dimension in Georgia, and I think the entire book has an interesting concept, but I have yet to come across a character that I actually like, and that includes the narrator. Cool, no thanks.

Lennon is not happy with her life. It does not help that she finds her fiancé with another woman. She leaves at once and cannot produce a good reason to keep living. That is until she stops at an abandoned mall and the phone in an old phone booth rings. She hears that her application to Drayton College was accepted, but she must show up for an in-person interview in the morning. There is only one problem, she never applied and has no idea who did. But it is a puzzle and a reason to live through the night.
At the ripe old age of 22, Lennon is going back to school. Yep, somehow, she was accepted. She is immediately drawn to her advisor, Dante. It is a good thing too, since this woman who could not stand up for herself, suddenly is questioning everything about this magical college. She’ll need all the help she can get from Dante.
There is a lot to unpack in this story. The history of the college, its purpose, an eclectic group of fellow students, and the professors, who may or may not be trustworthy. As I was reading, I checked to make sure that this was not the beginning of a trilogy. Nope. I swore I’d never read another trilogy until all three books were published.
Things changed quite a bit in 464 pages, and while I was still a bit confused about some of what happened, I thought it wrapped up nicely. I am not saying more about the plot because it is best to go into this one with as little information as possible. As always, I wish that I had been accepted into a magical school.

Enjoyed this one a lot. Fascinating concept, interesting plot, and just close enough to our reality to be creepy. No traditional protagonist - everyone moving through the story was a little bit awful - but that can make for a good read in the right hands and in this case, Henderson’s were definitely the right ones. I would have liked to see a little more DEVELOPMENT in Lennon’s case but, at the same time, she acted the way an actual person likely would thrown into the circumstances into which Lennon was thrown at Drayton so she also works quite well as is.
The mental health angle does sort of disappear about half way through; I would have been interested to see how it integrated with later story developments. I would also vote for the novel to be about 50 pages shorter but I have that quibble with most books these days and that’s more of an editing issue than anything else. I do, however, as a former nurse, beg authors and editors to get a medical read through on any MS with injuries or body trauma.

Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable read. It’ll be great for spooky season!

Among the darkest of dark academia I've read in some time.

Eep.

Dante tells Lennon, "You did what you needed to do." And I think that pretty much sums up the book.

An Academy for Liars has the potential to work as a series or duology because there was so much more to be explored and I felt like the author only touched the surface. The author's signature lush writing and atmospheric storytelling shines through but I needed a bit more from the plot. wanted this to be darker and more macabre but this just felt very straight forward and I wanted to feel shocked and more uncomfortable like I did with the author's previous novels.

I did like the author's unique take on time travel and the concept of "persuasion." And calling down elevators with your mind was a very cool idea. The murder mystery and all the secrets is what kept me turning the pages. The overall story felt like it could have been more fleshed out but it's probably because this was a very ambitious novel. It had interesting ideas but I think it needed more time to explore all the concepts in depth. I liked nearly every single element of the story separately, but wanted to understand those things more deeply. Ultimately, I found An Academy for Liars was a fascinating exploration of a young woman's yearning desire to be significant at any cost. I really, really hope we get a sequel.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed Vita Nostra, Catherine House, or The Atlas Six.

Rating Breakdown:

- Writing -
Alexis Henderson's prose is lush and atmospheric. I expect nothing less.

- Character Development -
The romance with Dante did not work for me. This felt like a student-mentor romance with only the dark academia elements as the background.
I wanted more from the supporting characters. Based on the title, I expected there to be more backstabbing. Sure, Lennon made a couple of enemies but I felt like the line between their morals was very black and white.

- Plot/Pacing -
The concept way intriguing but the pacing gave me whiplash. The author takes us from Denver to Oregon to Savannah to Amsterdam to New York (or was it Boston?) in less than 400 pages. Instead, I think Lennon should have stayed on campus and focused on the other students and why the elevators were so important. The murder mystery was interesting but I felt like the suspense could have been built up more.
My favorite scenes were with the rat, Gregory, and when one of the students thought he had a psychic connection to him. That was pretty funny.

- World-building -
Arguably, the setting was the most unique element but not as utilized as I had hoped. When I read dark academia, I usually expect that the school itself is going to be the focal point. But we are constantly moved around so I didn’t feel very rooted. But I loved the idea of the elevators, the art of persuasion, and time travel!

Okay, this dark academia is what Gothikana wishes it was. It is hard to find good dark academia books, but this one certainly fit the bill.

The magic system was so unique and it constantly had me wondering and questioning everything. This idea of “persuasion” was very fascinating. The romance was important, but not overwhelming in a way that takes away from the creepy factor of the book, which is definitely a plus.

There were so many crazy twists that had my jaw dropping and the last few chapters of this book are absolutely insane! They definitely stick with you.

Thanks to Berkley - Ace for the copy of this book!

AN ACADEMY FOR LIARS is one of my favorite genres: dark academia. But WHEW this is like dark dark.

Lennon Carter gets a mysterious phone call inviting her to take an entrance exam to attend Drayton College, a secret magic school in Savannah, Georgia. Instead of a bunch of letters through a fireplace like Harry, she has a series of written and oral tests that test her gift of persuasion. As she continues in her studies, her understanding and control over her gift increase, she learns more about the history and expected future of the College, and more secrets and tests start coming out of the woodwork.

This is one of those books where I am left wondering how I really feel about it days later. I did enjoy this read, but it was really dark with a lot of horror elements, extremely bad choices made by every MC, and a bit of a feeling of "WTF" at the end. The synopsis says the FMC is "...increasingly disturbed by what she learns" and I mean, me too, honestly. I did have a bit of an issue wondering what the magic system and ability of persuasion looked like outside of Drayton College because it seemed very cultlike -- they go to the school, work at the school, and only really use their gifts at the school. Can they use this gift for anything good?! This was entertaining and a great fall read, but probably check the trigger warnings before reading this one.

This was my first book by Alexis Henderson and fantastic for the fall season.
An Academy for Liars is a seductive, dark, atmospheric read, perfect for readers who are drawn to the mysterious and suspenseful side of dark academia, portraying the seductive yet frightening allure of power, where the line between truth and deception blur.
AAFL is dark academia at its finest — corrupting power, sex, lies, deception, privilege, betrayal, deliciously flawed characters with questionable morals— it has it all!

Now, it's been weeks and I'm still thinking about it but something was missing to be a 5 star read.
The book is so ambitious, there is so much world building and layering of the plot, it feels like Alexis was trying to contain everything in this one book that some aspects of the story suffer because of it.
One of my biggest problems was the romance which didn't feel fleshed out enough and neither did the relationships with Lennon's friends.
It takes more than 350 pages for Lennon and Dante to get together and it's a bit anticlimactic.
I wasn't expecting an overly descriptive sex scene but what we got just felt . . . summarized? It would've been better if there was more emotion in the scene—that's what it should've been expanded on.
At the end you can't help but question whether or not it's just Lennon falling into her pattern which I don't think was the point given everything that's hinted at and foreshadowed between the MCs.

Lennon's relationship with her friends also didn't feel developed enough especially for what happened at the end , to a point it felt weird how her friends defended her since we don't really see her being that close with most of them.

I loved the ending and it definitely looks like Alexis is leaving the door slightly cracked in case she wants to come back to this world and give us a sequel but I did message her and found out that so far it was sold as a standalone and there weren't plans for more at the moment. To be fair, when I started it I thought it was a standalone BUT there is just so much to be explored here especially with everything that was revealed in the last 30% of the book that I'll lose my mind if we never get answers to some questions I still have. My questions are definitely spoilers for the plot so don't read them until you've finished the book —
**SPOILERS***
so I still don't understand how Lennon dreamt of young Dante from the beginning and that whole thing with when she used the elevator for the first time and she ended up in the past and she interacted with him as a boy???? Like what?? And there is no way it wasn't him if his reaction wasn't enough of an indication the boy gave her a moth, so how are they connected and why what does that mean??? That was never clarified. Also, the very first time Lennon meets Dante and she introduced herself I thought their connection was foreshadowed in the way he reacted when he heard her name and I'm still not sure what that was exactly about. For all we know it could've been something about him seeing her in his past, at this point I don't even know what to think because there are so many possibilities and this is why I'm losing my mind lmao. And Dante's name??? We learn so much about his past right at the end and yet not everything, that whole thing with his name being erased from everywhere - what exactly was that indicating? What did it mean and why was it done exactly?? OH and one of my biggest curiosities is the moths!!! What did they mean!!!???? The tattoos, where we see them in the past, the gift he receives — what exactly did they mean for Dante ??
***END OF SPOILERS****
It definitely feels like Alexis left all of this unanswered on purpose and not just to add to the mysterious air of the book.

I really hope we come back to the southern gothic atmosphere of Drayton college and explore more because the questions I still have will be haunting me for a while.

Eternal gratitude to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC

This dark academia story is everything it claims, and more… both good and bad. The writing is surprisingly well-done and the plot is unique and gripping. The story revolves around Lennon, a young woman who, at the lowest point of her life, is invited to attend a secret, unknown, yet elect university. She feels it is her one chance to make something of her otherwise useless life, though, so she readily agrees.

What follows is an ever deepening realization that this school is not at all what the surface facade shows. Rather, it is a deeply disturbing education into how certain talented individuals can learn to persuade and ultimately control the minds and wills of others, even to the point of changing their surroundings. The darkness comes to play as one realizes the repercussions and opportunities that ability can afford. It is a dangerous temptation as much as an incredible gift and not many care which.

The story is riveting with its plethora of nuanced ideas that really make one think and consider their own choices and what they would be. The overall tone throughout the majority of the book, however, is considerably cynical and gloomy in nature. This is especially true of Lennon. She is not a particularly sympathetic heroine. Her entitled, yet defeatist personality can be extremely hard to connect with enough to want her to succeed. She lives her life fatalistically bemoaning her circumstances, yet consistently makes decisions that will cause those very events to affect her. Her choices are to escape by taking drugs, or just going along with the easiest option. This does exemplify the current ennui and entitled disconnect that so many complain about, however, so her personality may ring true to many. The portrayal comes with a very nuanced shading and is extremely well penned. Lennon just won’t be a character some may enjoy rooting for.

The remainder of the characters are more one dimensional, with the slight exception of Dante, Lennon’s advisor. He is quite an enigma and his truth only unravels near the end of the story. But then, it is in such an eye-opening way that it makes him the true hero of the entire book!

It is the story, itself, that keeps the star rating so high. All the questions and expectations are completely blown out of the water one at a time, leading up to a truly jaw-dropping and genius climax! Then, it lets the reader down slowly with a reflective and satisfying ending. SO good!!

This is a dark book. It had a great premise that made me want to give this a try even though I don't always like really dark books. I did enjoy this one. It was definitely hard to get through at some points, but I still couldn't stop because I wanted to see what happened next. Lennon was a character I wanted to see good things happen for. She had it pretty tuff in several spots in the book. I had a hard time with Dante. In the end he mostly pulled it together, but was still my least favorite out of Lennon's friends/classmates/teachers. If you like books with dark themes that are set in a school setting (college age) then you should definitely give this one a try. It will keep you guessing at what is happening until the end.

“Persuasion is often a perverse exercise in empathy.”

I have never read a dark academia/ fantasy book where the magic system is persuasion; elements of logos, ethos, and pathos as well as the id and ego are included in the world building. I was sucked in by the first page, and I devoured more than half in one night. It’s definitely a top 3 dark academia book for me.

While I wish certain scenes and parts to the magic (aberrations!!) were explored more, I enjoyed every second of this book. I truly wish this was a duology or more because there’s TONS to elaborate on beyond Drayton College.

Lennon’s arc is one of my favorite parts. She’s navigating such a complex magic system in a new environment, and it only makes sense for her to be imperfect in the process. Morally grey is literally imbedded in this college, and we see her trying to keep her own empathy while also taking on the power she has to save this world. Her emotions were also beautifully tangible, and Alexis did a great job, in my opinion, of depicting her mental health struggles in a right but complicated fashion.

Don’t get it twisted, this book is horrifyingly dark. A few times I had to stop reading because the details were too much.

Also, I know people will have complicated feelings about the power dynamics between Lennon and the love interest, but that’s only one of the hard things Alexis tackles.

An Academy For Liars portrays a lot of the problems within academia. Many professors want power and tenure over caring about their students; they reminded me of politicians in the final 100ish pages, particularly when they change their tune once power changes hands. Death and cruelty are rampant on the campus with little to none done via consequences because of the greed for power. We even find out Drayton staff and alumni manipulate political ballots, wars, the economy, and so much more, which again is something powerful universities do too.

Ultimately, persuasion, power and greed are synonymous throughout the book, and it’s one of the greatest warnings upon finishing. I can’t wait to post a spoiler review on its release date. 🤭

Thank you Berkley/Ace Books for the eARC!

EMBRACE ABSOLUTE POWER BECAUSE ABSOLUTE POWER CORRUPTS ABSOLUTELY

Coming in as someone who has never read an Alexis Henderson book. I knew that this was going to be good. It was the first thought I had as the last sentence of the first chapter ended. Marked by that final period. And good it was. As we first meet Lennon she is beaten and broken down mentally. She was struggling with her mental health. Having been in and out of facilities, compounded with the fact that she just caught her fiancée cheating on her with the one person she thought was her only friend (at their engagement party no less, ugh). When she finds Drayton College she is on the cusp of a mental breakdown. Taking a heavy toll. So much so, that she thinks she should end her life. That is until she gets a phone call that changes everything.

I don’t think I will be able to express how much I loved this book. With representation in it, not just a Black woman seen as mentally unwell but the hidden threads of something more to the story. Things deep with the questions you ask yourself day over day, year over year even decades later. And with this representation comes the hard shadow of uncertainty. Questioning the validity of Lennon. Marking her as something more than just unstable. Something weightier, more ponderous.

“THE FIRST STEP TO PERSUASION IS OBSERVATION.”

What lies beyond the doors of the draped campus is a haze thick and murky. Darker. Colder than you can imagine. There is a wrongness to the walls. Like a heavy leaden ball in the pit of your stomach, cementing you, leaving you bristling with a creeping sensation that something isn’t right. As the story progresses tension builds, ratcheting up until you are screaming RUN LENNON!

an academy for liars
The joy in a story like An Academy for Liars is in its distortion. Blurred vision and images formulating a masterpiece for some and nonsense for others.

In addition to the well-created storyline in An Academy for Liars is its pacing, and character development. At the same time, creating compelling backstories and building upon them taking and balancing multiple elements like the supernatural and horror, and even the forbidden teacher-student relationship that develops as a secondary thread.

“DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR NAME?”
Running throughout the story are moths. Dante is covered in them via his tattoos, he is gifted one by the vice-chancellor. It is on the cover of the book. They are everywhere. When you look into the meaning behind moths you will see that they represent change, transformation, and growth. Then you realize that it is a foreshadowing of sorts. With magic hidden from Lennon (in a way. She doesn’t realize she has it), you see the growth, change, and transformation it takes for her to get to the place that rare cases get to (I can’t tell you it would be a SPOILER). In turn, she also realizes that she isn’t alone, she has brilliant classmates whom she notices are her friends and willing to stand by her.

In contrast, there are several questions I have about An Academy for Liars. Two that I can’t seem to let go. One is the frequent line Do you still have your name? When do you lose your name? How do you lose your name? And while I think I should know this and it was probably given to me point blank in the story, I can’t seem to wrap my head around it. The other is the constant storms. This probably was also given to me while not so point-blank.

Henderson's novel, a mesmerizingly dark tale set at a college dedicated to the art of persuasion, is impossible to put down. Students receive mysterious invitations to apply, but few are chosen, and not everyone survives their courses. Academics can be brutal.

I absolutely loved this book! It’s dark academia, it’s Black leads, it’s thrilling, enthralling, engaging all at once. I loved the ties to Lennon’s mental health challenges and the relationships she built with her peers. I wanted a bit more about the mirror reflection piece and Dante’s entire story, but here’s hoping for a sequel. The plot twists were amazing and I love the themes of seeing your role in the past. It was really amazing and I’m so grateful to have received this one!

After reading and enjoying Year of the Witching, I was so excited to dive into Alexis’s next novel.There was so much potential for this one. I loved that persuasion plot line. But this student/teacher relationship and all the drugs just weren’t for me.

I am always skeptical of "dark academia" branded novels but really enjoyed Alexis Henderson's take on the genre: a biracial protagonist plucked from her life and deposited in a secret PWI designed to teach students the extremes of persuasion. There were strong echoes of Max Barry's Lexicon (secret organization & elite academy teaching students persuasion via manipulation language) but Henderson manages to steer shy of Barry's concept by focusing the story within a haunting, hidden Savannah campus & centering abilities of telekinesis & teleportation. While I can't stay that any characters stuck out as memorable, the plot was propulsive and engaging, smoothly paced with the exception of an extraordinarily rushed conclusion that clumsily propped open the door for a sequel without sufficiently wrapping loose ends. I really liked how Henderson approaches the ethical squishiness of persuasion as an enhanced ability, though wished she had leaned into more of Drayton College's odious implications on the world at large. However, I was BEYOND fed up with the over-reliance on the miscommunication trope by the end of the story: another frustrating example of 1/2 of the problems in the story being solvable by a few characters having an honest conversation.

DNF @ 13%
I think this could be great, but it just wasn’t for me. What I did read was well written, but also wasn’t quite convincing me to stay for the ride. Like it felt like a hard left turn from how it opened to her getting to the academy. Like literally she just happens to get a call at the right moment and place? The atmosphere and gothic elements were wonderfully written. But I also am skieved out by teacher/student relations
I think this book is definitely for someone and will be loved. It just wasn’t for me sadly.
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

An Academy for Liars is darkly poetic and hypnotically mystical, in a way that had me believing in magic for just a minute. This was the dark academia I NEEDED this season. The perfect cocktail of beautiful prose, wonderful storytelling, and complex relationships - this is a book I will spend a lifetime raving about.