Two years after the siege of the city of Silasta, where the oppressed Darfri minority were manipulated into attacking the capital by an unknown outside force, the city has started to recover. Retrieved 16 February 2023.Publisher: Bantam Press (Trade Paperback – 1 December 2020)Īfter a two-year wait, we finally get to see the epic sequel to Australian author Sam Hawke’s impressive debut novel, City of Lies, with her blockbuster new novel, Hollow Empire.

Archived from the original on 1 October 2022. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Archived from the original on 24 December 2022. Archived from the original on 23 September 2021.

^ 'CIty of Lies by Sam Hawke book review - Fantasy Book Review'.

'City-State Fantasy: City of Lies by Sam Hawke'.

^ City of Lies, by Sam Hawke | Booklist Online.

Archived from the original on 25 December 2022. Archived from the original on 17 February 2021.

^ 'Q&A: Sam Hawke, Author of 'Hollow Empire' '.

Archived from the original on 9 August 2022.

^ 'Interview with Sam Hawke (CITY OF LIES)'.

It was longlisted for the BSFA Award in 2019. Hemming Award, and was tied for the 2018 Aurealis Award for Best Fantasy Novel with Maria Lewis' The Witch Who Courted Death.

The book won the 2019 Ditmar Award for Best Novel, the 2019 Norma K. Emma Davis of the Fantasy Book Review, gave the book a rating of 8/10, praising the overall plot and mystery while criticizing aspects of the language and pacing. Kirkus Reviews called it 'A well-crafted debut with believable political intrigues, solid worldbuilding, and original characters.' Paul Weimer of Tor.com praised the worldbuilding and writing, but felt the ending was 'frustrating' in comparison to the first portions of the book. The book was well received by critics for its portrayal of sibling dynamics, urban fantasy style worldbuilding, intrigue, and representation of disability. After both the Chancellor and Etan, their mentor and uncle, are poisoned they must work together to solve the murders. Jov and Kalina are brother and sister, born to a family of spymasters in the city-state of Silastra who are tasked with protecting the Chancellor from poison. She stated in an interview that she wanted to write 'what was effectively a closed room mystery in a fantasy setting, as a kind of homage to my two favourite genres of stories growing up.' In writing the book, she wanted to avoid the usual tropes and character archetypes of the fantasy genre. It is Hawke's debut novel and the first installment in the Poison Wars series. City of Lies is a 2018 urban fantasy murder mystery novel by Sam Hawke.