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Reviewed by:
  • The Book of Lies
  • Cindy Welch
Moloney, James The Book of Lies. HarperCollins, 2007 [368p] Library ed. ISBN 0-06-057843-2$17.89 Trade ed. ISBN 0-06-057842-4$16.99 Reviewed from galleys R Gr. 5-8

In the dead of night, three teenagers have been brought separately to a foundling and orphan's home in the isolated village of Fallside, where two of them, Fergus and Nicola, have had their memories systematically replaced with fiction dictated to them by the enigmatic Book of Lies. The third and youngest teen, Marcel, has evaded the full impact of the procedure; he has managed to retain his true name, [End Page 432] he knows that his memories have been erased, and he is determined to learn the secrets of the Book and its creator, the frightening Lord Alywn, so that he can take back what was stolen from him. There are other secrets afoot: two strangers convince Marcel that he, Fergus, and Nicola are the heirs to the kingdom of Elstenwyck and that they must escape Lord Alwyn's grasp to join their parents and retake the throne by means of secrets hidden within the Book of Lies. But the Book has become corrupted over its long life of collecting lies told in its hearing, and the teens, along with Marcel's best friend who has secrets of her own to unravel, are being misled by the very people they need to trust. Australian author Moloney's elegant and descriptive prose begs to be read aloud, and the atmospherically charged opening chapters will make readers tremble with anticipation as they try to disentangle the truth from the lies told to the young folks. The Book of Lies itself is a creative ingredient in this mix of mistaken identities and royal ambition; it becomes a character, helping heighten tension as the plot progresses. Middle-school readers will enjoy this absorbing tale well told, and they will be intrigued by an ending that hints at a sequel to come.

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