Who is the Liar hooked me right away with its sharp opening and intriguing setup. The story has that magnetic quality where you feel like you’re being let in on something dark, witty, and clever. Laura Lee Bahr knows how to pull a reader into a surreal, noir-like world, and the first stretch of the book had me fully invested.

But then there’s Topaz. At first, her character had so much promise, multi-faceted, bold, and fascinating in a way that made her stand out. As the story unfolded, though, her arc began to twist into something strange and distorted, almost like a funhouse mirror version of who she was at the start. Instead of feeling like organic character growth, the shifts in her personality came across as jarring and inconsistent, which pulled me out of the story.

That said, Bahr’s writing remains vibrant and original. The prose is sharp, often lyrical, and carries that unique blend of dark humor and surreal edge she’s known for. The atmosphere kept me intrigued even when I wasn’t fully connecting with Topaz’s development.

By the end, I was left with mixed feelings. The concept is fresh, the writing is strong, and the start is excellent. But Topaz’s warped transformation left me unsettled in a way that wasn’t entirely satisfying. I didn’t hate it, I just wanted more cohesion in her arc to match the strength of the book’s beginning.

Overall, Who is the Liar is a bold, unconventional read that will work best for readers who enjoy experimental storytelling and don’t mind characters spiraling into distorted versions of themselves. For me, it was a 3.5-star experience, engaging but uneven.

Topaz is a 10-year-old whose older sister Ruby has a man tied up in the root cellar. Ruby claims the man is responsible for killing several children in town. The man claims he is innocent and begs Topaz to release him. This held my interest through the whole book despite being somewhat unbelievable, but then it just kind of ended. It didn't feel like The End. 3 stars?

This book was different than what I had expected but unfortunately I couldn't enjoy it. It was so far fetched and just not my preferred type of book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the review copy of this book.

I had never heard of this author or title but the synopsis drew me in. I think this is one of those books that is best enjoyed when you allow yourself to be taken on the ride that the author is writing, and suspend your disbelief a little. Was it at times unrealistic? Sure. But I don’t mind that in a thriller as long as I’m having fun. I really enjoyed the unique pov we got from our 10 year old protagonist. It read like an episode of criminal minds but told through the lens of the characters involved in the crimes as opposed to the law enforcement team. I really enjoyed the setting of the book also; as I was reading it was as if a movie was playing in my head the entire time. I’ve seen some people dislike the book simply because the characters were “unlikeable” but that has never hindered my enjoyment of a book. I don’t need to like or relate to a character to get lost in their story.

I do enjoy a thriller but I don’t pick them up as often as I should, and reading this has really re-sparked my interest in the genre. I would be interested in picking up more from this author in the future.

I don't think this book was for me, as much I hoped it would be. I can see this for some other readers possibly, but for me plot and characters didn't really resonate very well. I think there were some really interesting ideas going on especially with the involvement of the church and what children keep hidden from their parents. But overall it was difficult for me to get through and I'm find it difficult to recommend to an average reader.

This book was remarkably equal parts intelligent, well written, and entertaining. The suspense (so many twists and turns!) and dark humor carried a story that looked deeply into what it means to be a part of a family and learning who you are. The narrator's voice was pitch perfect. I had no idea where the story would lead until I came to the end and realized it couldn't have led anywhere else.

Such a great book. I read this in one weekend because I couldn’t put it down (but still had responsibilities lol!). I cannot wait to see what is next in store from this author. On my auto buy list for sure!!!

TBH I struggled with this one.

The cover screamed trippy thriller, which drew me in. Unreliable narrator is an enjoyable trope. I liked the premise of not knowing who is being truthful and who is lying.

For an interesting perspective, this was written from the POV of a 10-year-old child. It was a tough/dark topic and from the eyes of the child - strange.

I think the plot had potential, but it didn't work for me, particularly from the perspective of the child. The child felt younger than 10 based on her misunderstanding of topics. The whole thing was a bit far-fetched, especially the ending.

This book surprised me. I’m not usually a fan of thrillers or books that feature the POV of children, but this book uses both aspects to their full advantage. The thriller side is used to explore questions of morality, and the young narrator asks us to question if we can trust the morality we’ve been taught. Topaz is a ten year old girl. She likes being the youngest, the baby, but she’s already started realizing that it might be better to start growing up. She has three older sisters who are all navigating their own adventures into adulthood, but Ruby, the oldest, is the furthest along. She’s in full teenage rebellion mode and she often isn’t the best person. When the entire town is suddenly on alert due to several children disappearing, Topaz realizes that Ruby might know more about the world than the adults do. While the town falls into Satanic Panic, blaming teenage boys with the misfortune to have listened to metal music, Ruby has taken action against someone she thinks is the real culprit. Someone no one else will suspect before it’s far too late. Because normal people don’t do bad things and if bad things happen to people they must have done something to deserve it. Or at least that’s what Topaz and everyone around her used to believe. Topaz has to quickly adjust to a world where good and evil aren’t quite so obvious, and it can be very difficult to tell who is lying, or if anyone is ever telling the truth. I’d recommend this to thriller fans wanting to delve a little deeper into the literary side of the genre.

This was a great book. I loved every paragraph, every sentence and every word of this masterpiece! I read it in 12 hours, which is a lot for me to do! It had everything and more laid out in the novel! I sure hope There is more to come from this author! I am totally hooked!

The sister relationship in this one is super compelling. Right away we side with Topaz, and we wonder just how bad Ruby is and what she would do. The twins add an interesting dynamic as well. I did get a bit frustrated wondering why Topaz wouldn't tell the parents what was going on, but I understand that she was young and also Ruby had threatened to harm her hamster so that kept her quiet.

It is hard having a 10 yr old narrator, and I felt the voice was uneven. In some sections the narrator really sounded 10. In other sections she sounded much older. It just wasn't consistent throughout the novel.

However, overall, this is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Throughout the beginning I kept changing my mind as to who the guy in the cold space was and whether he was the villain or an innocent victim. The author does a wonderful job of keeping you guessing.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance e-galley; all opinions in my review are 100% my own.

set your beliefs aside. stop over thinking how real this could be. and just have fun. because once you have done that you will most certainly have fun with it.
this book brings us Ruby and Topaz. they are sisters and very different from each other. Ruby is somehow always getting into trouble. Topaz just wants everything to be ok. and so finds herself trying to 'make it ok' so that Ruby is on side.
we also have the angst of their being a serial killer who's choosing victims in children.
horror comes to their door when Ruby says she has the killer. shes caught the killer. she has the killer tied up in their house!
is she telling the truth? is this even the killer?
do you feel tense yet? do you feel that chill and feeling of unease creeping in? well yes so did i.
the standout part to this book and what added to the vibes of it was getting the narrator to be this younger sister. you feel her fear, her questioning and uncertainty. you also aren't quite sure whether she can be relied upon. so you get more tense yourself alongside her but also feel that young vulnerable and need to protect this voice too.
the power of manipulation is used heavily in this book which leads to more confusion and anger on both sides. for us readers too. particularly when the parents or people meant to be the safe people just aren't. or certainly aren't stepping up to be so.
this book offers a lot of questions. both surrounding guilty, victims and how we act and portray both things in society. and this was also told in our past so the times of that era rang through well in some of the narrative.
a unique and fresh take on the genre. one i have definitely not seen the likes of before so this book became instantly exciting and i could wait to follow it from beginning to end.

This was different, the pov of topez and the who is actually honest was a struggle for her

Wasn’t a bad quick read, I was intrigued and enjoyed it

Well this book was a pleasant surprise! I was not expecting all the twists and turns. I definitely didn’t expect that ending! This was so good!

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publisher for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I found the plot way too far fetched and unbelievable. I didn't like the characters either.

I hope others love this book.

This was hard for me to get into, and I felt like the plot was a bit messy. I thought it was interesting to have this told in the POV of the child, but it also felt a bit lacking at times because of that. I think if it was done different then it could’ve been a higher rating

Content
In a community in the 1980s a child killer is on the loose - everyone is on edge, including Topaz‘ parents. But her oldest sister Ruby tells her not to worry - she has trapped the beast in their cold cellar and it is someone they know. Influenced by strong-willed Ruby and frightened Brother Johnson, Topaz has to decide what to do and which one to support. Who deserves what? Who can she trust? Who is the liar?

Comment
Unfortunately, this book did not really work for me. At the beginning, I was intrigued but then the story dragged on - full of repetitions and inconsistent characters.

The setup as described in the blurb is very promising - we are following a young girl, partly too young to understand what is really going on with the cases of missing children. But her environment is too happy to discuss it and the theories they have about satanic cults operating, so that she starts to pick up more and more sordid details.
That fuels one of the inconsistencies that I personally see in this book: the main characters age and how people behave towards her.
Take her parents: Her mother supposedly coddles her, asking multiple times throughout the book if she wants to sleep in her parents bed, holding her on her lap and so on.
But at other times, they are using language and imagery that seems totally inappropriate to me for communicating with a small child. For example, right at the beginning they discuss how the criminal responsible for the missing children will get the electric chair.

Another topic I felt was inconsistent was the religious interest of the family. At times, it seems to be very strong - since Topaz is calling nearly everyone „Brother“ and „Sister“ in her head. The family visits church and is connected with other attendees, but we also learn, that during the quiet time which is supposed to be used for religious studying, they watch TV and play.

Them being more religious could have made a stronger point for the constant bringing up of satanic panic - this way, it was just background noise and barely had any effect on the story. Or was it supposed to be a red herring, then why wasn’t the point that the supposed beast is a member of the church not hammered home more?

A few topics like this were brought up, but either not strong enough or not connected enough to make for a compelling read.

It was too long for the content it really had, and the actions that were taken in the end. Personally, that’s the the only moment where I found the story to be a bit more interesting. I have read some people describe the ending as unrealistic and abrupt but I think these are words that in the thriller or horror genre (while I would not count this book as that) mean the ending works, because it’s unsettling since it’s not what you logically expect and it keeps you on edge until the end.

Conclusion
This book tried to tackle an interesting topic from a new perspective but failed to provide a solid and memorable experience.

This book got me hooked from the moment I read the plot. Reading from the point of view of a fourth year old girl was something that I did not thought it would happen in a genre like this but definitely got me interested in

I had high expectations about this book after reading the blurb. The first part of the book was good and it got me hooked in the story but the second part fell down. What a pity! The author's writing is good. Even I didn't enjoy the story as I wanted it, i want to read her another books.

This book is told from the perspective of a young girl raised in a strict religious home. One day she makes a horrifying discovery, a man being held in hthe basement. Her sister gives her one explanation, but the man says she's lying. Who is telling the truth? This is not a complex book, which is expected when the perspective is from a child. I wouldn't say it's a pleasant read, but it is an interesting one.