SuitabookThere Will Be Lies
Nick Lake
- Reading
- Read in manageable sections and pause after shifts between the road journey and the Dreaming. Discuss impressions without resolving the mystery too early; the ending includes a major revelation that re-frames earlier events.
- Themes
- Truth, secrecy and family: Shelby depends heavily on her mother, then confronts secrets and difficult questions about their relationship while becoming more independent. The story treats truth and self-understanding as central problems, but its suspense structure leaves interpretations unsettled for much of the book.
- Reality, dreams and identity: The road journey alternates with the Dreaming, where Shelby encounters a coyote, talking animals and threatening sequences; the book keeps the relationship between these worlds uncertain. The uncertainty is purposeful and supported by the book’s structure, typography and repeated movement between realities.
- Deafness and representation: Shelby is deaf, and the prose and typography distinguish her experience from how other characters’ speech is presented; the book also depicts everyday challenges associated with hearing impairment. The book presents this mainly as information or explanation.
- Worth knowing
- Before reading, consider whether themes of family secrecy, danger and unsettling imagery might be difficult. The book includes strong language, a stabbing, a shotgun standoff, sexual implications, drinking and smoking.