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Attention-Seeking Behavior
A confession from a liar that exposes the interrelation of language, control, performance, intimacy, and love
I have never told anyone about this before. There is no way to prove that it happened, but why would I lie?
The narrator of Attention-Seeking Behavior wants to tell you about Normal Ben, the man she’s been their running jokes, the stories she’s told him. She wants to tell you about the incorrect belief that tiny facial expressions betray a person’s real feelings. She wants to tell you about the time she went to a therapist to try to cure her lying habit. She wants to tell you about the body she found on a walk through the park. She wants to tell you about lies she’s told her demeaning, erratic boss. She wants to tell you about the history of police interrogation techniques, which use deception to extract false confessions. She wants to tell you that all lie-detection methods are phony. She wants to tell you what it’s like to read opposing testimonies in a sexual assault case. She wants to tell you about her ex-boyfriend, who is a liar. But is she telling you the truth―or does she only want your attention?
I have never told anyone about this before. There is no way to prove that it happened, but why would I lie?
The narrator of Attention-Seeking Behavior wants to tell you about Normal Ben, the man she’s been their running jokes, the stories she’s told him. She wants to tell you about the incorrect belief that tiny facial expressions betray a person’s real feelings. She wants to tell you about the time she went to a therapist to try to cure her lying habit. She wants to tell you about the body she found on a walk through the park. She wants to tell you about lies she’s told her demeaning, erratic boss. She wants to tell you about the history of police interrogation techniques, which use deception to extract false confessions. She wants to tell you that all lie-detection methods are phony. She wants to tell you what it’s like to read opposing testimonies in a sexual assault case. She wants to tell you about her ex-boyfriend, who is a liar. But is she telling you the truth―or does she only want your attention?
200 pages, Paperback
Published May 19, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 115 reviews
August 28, 2026
Oof.
I'll take partial blame for this one as it was a pop-up on Goodreads’ “since you liked that one, you’re sure to like this one” feature and since I’m a sucker who always is willing to sabotage my own TBR with a catchy title, I instantly downloaded this from the library without knowing anything else.
What I got was the amygdala and Eckman’s study of facial expressions and the Reid technique of interrogation and how the polygraph test doesn’t actually work and 842,000 reminders of how our narrator is a liar are the main themes on repeat in this story that is actually about memories of a past trauma which is triggered to the forefront due to a work assignment.
I wasn’t interested enough to research whether this author has an MFA, but this sure delivered that style of writing which I simply do not like.
1.5 Stars
I'll take partial blame for this one as it was a pop-up on Goodreads’ “since you liked that one, you’re sure to like this one” feature and since I’m a sucker who always is willing to sabotage my own TBR with a catchy title, I instantly downloaded this from the library without knowing anything else.
What I got was the amygdala and Eckman’s study of facial expressions and the Reid technique of interrogation and how the polygraph test doesn’t actually work and 842,000 reminders of how our narrator is a liar are the main themes on repeat in this story that is actually about memories of a past trauma which is triggered to the forefront due to a work assignment.
I wasn’t interested enough to research whether this author has an MFA, but this sure delivered that style of writing which I simply do not like.
1.5 Stars
May 21, 2026
This one grew on me. Or maybe it didn’t. I could be lying. You don’t know.
May 25, 2026
Shortlisted for the 2026 Goldsmiths Prize
Allegedly the amygdala, that small almond structure in the limbic system, the seat of your brain, knows the truth and it reveals itself in microexpressions. You can try to lie—make your gestures and expressions match how you should be moving—but apparently the amygdala knows the truth and will always give you away in a split second. Anyone could read the signs, with training.
This is not true, but many people believe it, therefore it is as true as any other fact may be.
Attention-Seeking Behaviour by Aea Varfis-van Warmelo, published by Peninsula Press (see below) is a wonderful hybrid of confessional fiction and essay. The narrator, who we learn late on in the novel is called Aea, opens with a confession of sort, one she later makes to her boyfriend (although she is not monogamous) who she refers to as Normal Ben:
You should know that when I found the body I did not scream.
On the phone, I feigned humanity. I performed the inflections of a person overwhelmed and confused, but the fact was ‘no, he is definitely not breathing and there is no pulse.’ I stood by him patiently as we waited for the police to arrive, hoping no dog walkers or joggers would amble near. I admit I drank my coffee, though I put my croissant in my bag for later.
The police asked their many questions and I was pragmatic in my answers. I felt like I was their colleague, my memory was so clear and my recounting so efficient. I felt like I answered in a way that suggested I was inured to horrors—humbled by them, perhaps, but no longer frightened. I said the precise time I had found the body (I’d checked), I indicated what footprints in the snow were mine and I described his original position, before I’d moved him to check for breath and pulse. They said I’d been very helpful, but I think they say that to everyone.
The man concerned someone she discovered frozen to death in Battersea Park.
Except this is one of a number of bodies the narrator claims (to her friends; to the reader; to herself?) to have discovered, and the first-sign that this is the avowedly unreliable narrator, since Aea is keen to tell us the reader, if equally keen to conceal this from Normal Ben, that she is a liar, indeed the confession came during an awkward moment in their relationship and 'it didn’t even occur to me to tell him something true'.
You should know I’ve never told anyone I am a liar before. You should know I know the consequences of making this confession.
Her other predilection is toward debunking the science, or rather, in her view supported by citing research, the pseudo-science of lie detection - the reading of facial tics popularised by Paul Ekman (her particular bête noire); those trained using these techniques to spot liars (she points out the evidence suggests this is not an acquirable skill, rather the person acquires confidence in their own abilities leading to an increase in false reading); polygraphs; and interrogation methods such as the Reid technique.
This is dealt with part is amusing polemic - here polygraph operators:
Several summaries I read about the profession warn that this role requires undertaking a training course, accreditation from established agencies, and is best suited to those who can drive and own a car because they will have to transport their own equpment to each job. Incidentally this is incredibly similar to what it takes to be a professional clown, but entry to clowning schools is more competitive. The people who become polygraph examiners do tend to have a background in law enforcement, and I can only assume that they discovered a proclivity or talent for interrogation in the line of duty and that this passion developed into the pursuit of further study.
and partly in cited facts (Wiki novel style), for example that the Reid technique was developed from the successful way in which its creator John E. Reid had gained a confession in 1955 from Darrel Parker for the rape and murder of his wife ... decades later the conviction was proven to be an error, yet the technique is still used by law enforcement, in the US particularly (see https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20...). Or that an experiment about reducing dishonesty in insurance applications proved to be based on falsified data (albeit the experimenters claimed they were unaware) - see here.
The main story explores the narrator's relationship with Normal Ben (one driven by his misassumptions based on her false statements) as well as her research work for a US journalist, including into a present-day rape case which ended with no trial, which she enhances (in her view, if not her clients) with her own interpretations.
Or at least so she tells us ...
Extract of novel's opening: https://electricliterature.com/attent...
Interview: https://www.anothermag.com/design-liv...
The publisher
Peninsula Press is an independent publisher founded in East London by booksellers.
Peninsula started publishing in 2018. Since then it has grown into one of the UK’s boldest and liveliest publishers of boundary-pushing fiction and essay, with a list that includes new and established authors.
There is no template for what constitutes a Peninsula book. However, one thing that brings together every book on our list is a commitment to challenging, subverting, or simply sidestepping received forms, formulas, and habits of thought. Our books all share a boldness of vision and a dedication to style as the way to realise it.
A peninsula is a piece of land that is almost entirely surrounded by water yet attached to the mainland. We have chosen this as the name of our publisher because we believe it captures the mixture of independence and connection that defines our publishing: our desire to reach for something new while remaining grounded in the community of readers, writers, booksellers, workers, and other publishers who sustain us.
Allegedly the amygdala, that small almond structure in the limbic system, the seat of your brain, knows the truth and it reveals itself in microexpressions. You can try to lie—make your gestures and expressions match how you should be moving—but apparently the amygdala knows the truth and will always give you away in a split second. Anyone could read the signs, with training.
This is not true, but many people believe it, therefore it is as true as any other fact may be.
Attention-Seeking Behaviour by Aea Varfis-van Warmelo, published by Peninsula Press (see below) is a wonderful hybrid of confessional fiction and essay. The narrator, who we learn late on in the novel is called Aea, opens with a confession of sort, one she later makes to her boyfriend (although she is not monogamous) who she refers to as Normal Ben:
You should know that when I found the body I did not scream.
On the phone, I feigned humanity. I performed the inflections of a person overwhelmed and confused, but the fact was ‘no, he is definitely not breathing and there is no pulse.’ I stood by him patiently as we waited for the police to arrive, hoping no dog walkers or joggers would amble near. I admit I drank my coffee, though I put my croissant in my bag for later.
The police asked their many questions and I was pragmatic in my answers. I felt like I was their colleague, my memory was so clear and my recounting so efficient. I felt like I answered in a way that suggested I was inured to horrors—humbled by them, perhaps, but no longer frightened. I said the precise time I had found the body (I’d checked), I indicated what footprints in the snow were mine and I described his original position, before I’d moved him to check for breath and pulse. They said I’d been very helpful, but I think they say that to everyone.
The man concerned someone she discovered frozen to death in Battersea Park.
Except this is one of a number of bodies the narrator claims (to her friends; to the reader; to herself?) to have discovered, and the first-sign that this is the avowedly unreliable narrator, since Aea is keen to tell us the reader, if equally keen to conceal this from Normal Ben, that she is a liar, indeed the confession came during an awkward moment in their relationship and 'it didn’t even occur to me to tell him something true'.
You should know I’ve never told anyone I am a liar before. You should know I know the consequences of making this confession.
Her other predilection is toward debunking the science, or rather, in her view supported by citing research, the pseudo-science of lie detection - the reading of facial tics popularised by Paul Ekman (her particular bête noire); those trained using these techniques to spot liars (she points out the evidence suggests this is not an acquirable skill, rather the person acquires confidence in their own abilities leading to an increase in false reading); polygraphs; and interrogation methods such as the Reid technique.
This is dealt with part is amusing polemic - here polygraph operators:
Several summaries I read about the profession warn that this role requires undertaking a training course, accreditation from established agencies, and is best suited to those who can drive and own a car because they will have to transport their own equpment to each job. Incidentally this is incredibly similar to what it takes to be a professional clown, but entry to clowning schools is more competitive. The people who become polygraph examiners do tend to have a background in law enforcement, and I can only assume that they discovered a proclivity or talent for interrogation in the line of duty and that this passion developed into the pursuit of further study.
and partly in cited facts (Wiki novel style), for example that the Reid technique was developed from the successful way in which its creator John E. Reid had gained a confession in 1955 from Darrel Parker for the rape and murder of his wife ... decades later the conviction was proven to be an error, yet the technique is still used by law enforcement, in the US particularly (see https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20...). Or that an experiment about reducing dishonesty in insurance applications proved to be based on falsified data (albeit the experimenters claimed they were unaware) - see here.
The main story explores the narrator's relationship with Normal Ben (one driven by his misassumptions based on her false statements) as well as her research work for a US journalist, including into a present-day rape case which ended with no trial, which she enhances (in her view, if not her clients) with her own interpretations.
Or at least so she tells us ...
Extract of novel's opening: https://electricliterature.com/attent...
Interview: https://www.anothermag.com/design-liv...
The publisher
Peninsula Press is an independent publisher founded in East London by booksellers.
Peninsula started publishing in 2018. Since then it has grown into one of the UK’s boldest and liveliest publishers of boundary-pushing fiction and essay, with a list that includes new and established authors.
There is no template for what constitutes a Peninsula book. However, one thing that brings together every book on our list is a commitment to challenging, subverting, or simply sidestepping received forms, formulas, and habits of thought. Our books all share a boldness of vision and a dedication to style as the way to realise it.
A peninsula is a piece of land that is almost entirely surrounded by water yet attached to the mainland. We have chosen this as the name of our publisher because we believe it captures the mixture of independence and connection that defines our publishing: our desire to reach for something new while remaining grounded in the community of readers, writers, booksellers, workers, and other publishers who sustain us.
July 10, 2026
I have a soft spot for weird girl lit, so the title was a shoo-in for me!
Premise - a nameless narrator with a lying problem tells her tale: of Normal Ben, the man she’s been seeing, and of the body she found while on a walk in the park. She tells about how deception is used in police interrogation to extract false confessions… but circle back to the first li(n)e.
I really enjoyed 'Murder Bimbo' by Rebecca Novack, another story in which the reader spends the bulk of the narrative being lied to, and in which It’s never quite clear whether the truth you parse is the real truth, so I was down for a psychologically uncomfortable read.
This reader is a lot more likeable than that one -- I was surprised to not find her off-putting at all. Her behavior was off-putting, of course, but it's steeped in her pain and she doesn't aim to hurt anyone. She isn't superior or particularly defensive. She's a young woman, struggling, who really needs to learn healthier ways to interact with the world (and healthier attachment patterns in her relationship).
This was a short story, a very quick read. I have to rate it 5 stars, because when it was over I wished it were longer, so I could sit with her for a bit more time. Not even for me necessarily, but for her.🤡 This fictional character. Y'all.😮💨
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Erifyli Gigante. She did a great job, delivering the sort of introspective, gentle, understated read this story required.
Thanks, NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Premise - a nameless narrator with a lying problem tells her tale: of Normal Ben, the man she’s been seeing, and of the body she found while on a walk in the park. She tells about how deception is used in police interrogation to extract false confessions… but circle back to the first li(n)e.
I really enjoyed 'Murder Bimbo' by Rebecca Novack, another story in which the reader spends the bulk of the narrative being lied to, and in which It’s never quite clear whether the truth you parse is the real truth, so I was down for a psychologically uncomfortable read.
This reader is a lot more likeable than that one -- I was surprised to not find her off-putting at all. Her behavior was off-putting, of course, but it's steeped in her pain and she doesn't aim to hurt anyone. She isn't superior or particularly defensive. She's a young woman, struggling, who really needs to learn healthier ways to interact with the world (and healthier attachment patterns in her relationship).
This was a short story, a very quick read. I have to rate it 5 stars, because when it was over I wished it were longer, so I could sit with her for a bit more time. Not even for me necessarily, but for her.🤡 This fictional character. Y'all.😮💨
I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Erifyli Gigante. She did a great job, delivering the sort of introspective, gentle, understated read this story required.
Thanks, NetGalley and Brilliance Publishing, for the audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Want to Read
April 7, 2026Thank you to Graywolf Press for the ARC! This premise sounds mind-bending (complimentary)
March 29, 2026
The way this book is composed is so interesting to me: it’s the type of memoir where you can’t quite tell what is nonfiction and what is speculation. The narrator/author does an incredible job articulating the nuance of her thought process and plays out her interactions with wit and grace, but I could have done without the droning chapters of scientific context about polygraphs and police proceedings. Aside from that bore the relationships between the other characters and our pro(an?)tagonist are so raw and written beautifully. Definitely thought provoking, and what more could you ask for out of a book?
July 15, 2026
Thank you Aea Varfis-van Warmelo and NetGalley for the free audiobook of this novella.
I think many of us in this world know someone like the main character of this story. Someone who can't help but lie because they just don't feel their own lives are that interesting. As the title suggests the Attention Seeking Behaviour is needed for them to feel important and worth while.
The problem with this, is when you discover this person is a liar it puts into question everything they ever have or will tell you, which in turn, triggers their fear of your loss of attention and the liar doubles down.
I enjoyed how the author explores this idea and mixes in factual information about lying and how it is used in law enforcement but at the same time you know she's lying to everyone around her making the entire narrative she is expressing in this novel put in question. Definitely a bit of a mind f*ck.
Interesting read.
I think many of us in this world know someone like the main character of this story. Someone who can't help but lie because they just don't feel their own lives are that interesting. As the title suggests the Attention Seeking Behaviour is needed for them to feel important and worth while.
The problem with this, is when you discover this person is a liar it puts into question everything they ever have or will tell you, which in turn, triggers their fear of your loss of attention and the liar doubles down.
I enjoyed how the author explores this idea and mixes in factual information about lying and how it is used in law enforcement but at the same time you know she's lying to everyone around her making the entire narrative she is expressing in this novel put in question. Definitely a bit of a mind f*ck.
Interesting read.
Read
October 5, 2026Shortlisted for the 2026 Goldsmiths Prize
2026 Goldsmiths Prize
in-progress ranking of shortlist
—The Vivisectors, Missouri Williams
—Attention-Seeking Behavior, Aea Varfis-van Warmelo
—What Am I, a Deer? Polly Barton
—Said the Dead, Doireann Ní Ghríofa
—Dooneen, Keith Ridgway
[5/6 read • up next: The Rouse, China Miéville]
2026 Goldsmiths Prize
in-progress ranking of shortlist
—The Vivisectors, Missouri Williams
—Attention-Seeking Behavior, Aea Varfis-van Warmelo
—What Am I, a Deer? Polly Barton
—Said the Dead, Doireann Ní Ghríofa
—Dooneen, Keith Ridgway
[5/6 read • up next: The Rouse, China Miéville]
August 29, 2026
I think the fact that I finished this book still not knowing exactly what to think about it is probably the point. This was unlike any novel I’ve read before, and the beginning immediately captivated me. I usually love unreliable narrators, especially when a story explores how their mental state affects their perception of reality. I also love unusual and psychologically unsettling situations, so the premise had a lot of things that naturally appealed to me. However, I struggled with the middle of the book. I understand that lying is at the very center of the story, but the constant focus on lying, lie detection, theories, and research started to feel less like a novel and more like I was reading nonfiction about deception and how we recognize it. There was so much information surrounding the subject that, after a while, I found myself losing interest in the actual story. I also think this section could have been considerably shorter. The ending, however, brought me back. I really loved how open-ended it was and how much it leaves up to the reader’s interpretation. I was left confused, but in a way that I think was intentional and actually suited the story. I’m still not entirely sure what I think happened or what the book ultimately wanted me to take away from it. But maybe that uncertainty is exactly what the author wanted to leave us with. If the goal was to make the reader question what is true, what is fabricated, and how much we can actually trust what we’re being told, then I think the novel succeeded. So, despite my issues with the middle section, I think it accomplished what it set out to do. I liked it, even if I’m still slightly confused by it.
August 13, 2026
This hybrid of fiction and essay is narrated by a self‑confessed liar who slips between confession and invention, always reminding us “you should know that…” The book probes deception detection, police interrogation methods, and the pseudo‑science of microexpressions, while staging the narrator’s own unreliable voice as a performance.
I found it witty, daring, and often very funny. The constant shifts between memoir and invention keep the reader off balance, but that’s part of the design: we’re made complicit, parsing clues like interrogators, never sure what to trust. The originality lies in how Varfis‑van Warmelo turns suspicion itself into narrative form.
It’s not seamless—at times the fragmentation can feel disorienting—but the energy and intelligence of the writing carried me through. A bold debut that rewards readers who enjoy being challenged by voice, form, and the slipperiness of truth.
I found it witty, daring, and often very funny. The constant shifts between memoir and invention keep the reader off balance, but that’s part of the design: we’re made complicit, parsing clues like interrogators, never sure what to trust. The originality lies in how Varfis‑van Warmelo turns suspicion itself into narrative form.
It’s not seamless—at times the fragmentation can feel disorienting—but the energy and intelligence of the writing carried me through. A bold debut that rewards readers who enjoy being challenged by voice, form, and the slipperiness of truth.
July 19, 2026
I have never told anyone about this before. There is no way to prove that it happened, but why would I lie?
Attention seeking behaviour is basically a story told by a woman where she recounts events in a way that leaves you doubting all credibility. There is also a huge focus on lying and police procedural which I found fascinating.
This story is the perfect embodiment of the unreliable narrator. Even now, I can't say for certain what all was completely true and what was fabricated or exaggerated.
I think the way this was written is actually pretty brilliant. Parts read like fiction where others nearly feel as if they could be coming from a memoir. Considering this is a debut, I'm won over and will definitely be looking out for more from this author.
I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.
Attention seeking behaviour is basically a story told by a woman where she recounts events in a way that leaves you doubting all credibility. There is also a huge focus on lying and police procedural which I found fascinating.
This story is the perfect embodiment of the unreliable narrator. Even now, I can't say for certain what all was completely true and what was fabricated or exaggerated.
I think the way this was written is actually pretty brilliant. Parts read like fiction where others nearly feel as if they could be coming from a memoir. Considering this is a debut, I'm won over and will definitely be looking out for more from this author.
I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.
July 20, 2026
This is one of those books that when you’re reading it you don’t realise how good it is, until you then finish it and you’re shook. Incredibly clever and witty, can’t believe this is a debut novel.
June 17, 2026
very very good
September 11, 2026
deeply strange (complimentary)
Read
February 16, 2026Gotta think of my rating on this one, damn! R.T.C!!!
Review of advance copy
Genuinely one of the most intriguing books I have ever read. Told by a narrator who is also a compulsive liar, the story weaves in and out of a non-fictional account of the history of lie detection methods, with emphasis on the role of language and story-telling in how anyone discerns fact from fiction in the world they live in.
A fascinating look into the psyche of people who enjoys flirting with the line between people-pleasing and outright deceit: the addiction to controlling other people’s perception of reality (out of fear, or the hunger for power?); the smugness in trying to outrun punishment and consequences; the need to define themselves only on their own terms; but maybe fundamentally, the desire to be loved, by any means necessary, through any and all versions of themselves that might elicit affection.
Is Aea the character making up lies to understand and articulate her own trauma, or is she just an attention seeker? “Fiction here is likely to contain more truth than fact”. Perhaps even my rationalisation now is guilty of imposing a particular narrative of them which they did not sign up for, but as far as novels go, I enjoyed it as much as I could enjoy any novel.
A fascinating look into the psyche of people who enjoys flirting with the line between people-pleasing and outright deceit: the addiction to controlling other people’s perception of reality (out of fear, or the hunger for power?); the smugness in trying to outrun punishment and consequences; the need to define themselves only on their own terms; but maybe fundamentally, the desire to be loved, by any means necessary, through any and all versions of themselves that might elicit affection.
Is Aea the character making up lies to understand and articulate her own trauma, or is she just an attention seeker? “Fiction here is likely to contain more truth than fact”. Perhaps even my rationalisation now is guilty of imposing a particular narrative of them which they did not sign up for, but as far as novels go, I enjoyed it as much as I could enjoy any novel.
July 17, 2026
i had been waiting for this to release and the prose was as fantastic as i'd hoped, but for me the autofictional aspect of revealing the character to be named aea undercut the entire work. up until then, it was such a well-done character study exploring something complex, but then it just muddled into a self-aggrandizing exercise. this is probably just my general disillusionment with autofiction coming in strong, but as a reader i want to see how this Character (mal)functions with her pathological lying and question her reliability, self-awareness, grasp of reality etc, but i'm deeply uninterested in the autofictional self and find that it actively takes away from the work instead of adding to it! the only question the author-character presents to its readers is: how much of this is "real"? which is way less interesting than the myriad of questions raised by how a work portrays and examines a character.
anyway, extremely skilled writer all the same, and will look forward to her next book.
anyway, extremely skilled writer all the same, and will look forward to her next book.
August 24, 2026
An interesting exploration of lying and lie detection, as told from the perspective of a protagonist who is an admitted liar.
Is she seeking attention? Running an experiment? Just messing with you? Evidence suggests you won’t be able to tell, because you probably won’t even be able to accurately assess whether she is lying at all.
The book discusses the many myths about how to spot a liar, and the interesting idea that the better people think they are at spotting a liar, the worse they actually become at doing it.
Myths about “tells,” faulty technology, and perhaps how little we still understand about how the human brain works all factor into the equation.
The narrator’s actions feel deeply unethical, but also bizarrely honest, an interesting result from what is essentially a deliberate pack of lies.
I’m not sure there’s a lot of profound truth to be gained from this novella (except that humans are hilariously bad at spotting a liar, and so is their lie-spotting tech), but it’s an interesting bit of writing to ruminate on.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
Is she seeking attention? Running an experiment? Just messing with you? Evidence suggests you won’t be able to tell, because you probably won’t even be able to accurately assess whether she is lying at all.
The book discusses the many myths about how to spot a liar, and the interesting idea that the better people think they are at spotting a liar, the worse they actually become at doing it.
Myths about “tells,” faulty technology, and perhaps how little we still understand about how the human brain works all factor into the equation.
The narrator’s actions feel deeply unethical, but also bizarrely honest, an interesting result from what is essentially a deliberate pack of lies.
I’m not sure there’s a lot of profound truth to be gained from this novella (except that humans are hilariously bad at spotting a liar, and so is their lie-spotting tech), but it’s an interesting bit of writing to ruminate on.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
September 23, 2026
This was strange, smart, and a little unsettling in a way I really enjoyed.
The narrator lies constantly, so pretty much from the beginning I was questioning everything she told me. But what made the book interesting wasn’t simply figuring out what was true. I liked the way it keeps asking why we believe certain stories, how people perform versions of themselves for others, and who gets to decide which version of an event becomes the “truth.”
It’s also much funnier than I expected, although the humor can be very dark. I especially liked the sections about journalism, interrogation, lie detection, and conflicting accounts because they made the book feel bigger than one woman’s personal mess.
Erifyli Gigante’s narration worked really well for such an unreliable character and made the confessional style feel even more intimate.
Definitely an unusual listen, but one that gave me a lot to think about afterward.
Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for providing me with an advance listening copy.
The narrator lies constantly, so pretty much from the beginning I was questioning everything she told me. But what made the book interesting wasn’t simply figuring out what was true. I liked the way it keeps asking why we believe certain stories, how people perform versions of themselves for others, and who gets to decide which version of an event becomes the “truth.”
It’s also much funnier than I expected, although the humor can be very dark. I especially liked the sections about journalism, interrogation, lie detection, and conflicting accounts because they made the book feel bigger than one woman’s personal mess.
Erifyli Gigante’s narration worked really well for such an unreliable character and made the confessional style feel even more intimate.
Definitely an unusual listen, but one that gave me a lot to think about afterward.
Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for providing me with an advance listening copy.
August 5, 2026
(3.5) I’ve been fighting this sinus infection, so it’s been hard to focus on reading. This book was super interesting, and I think I would’ve liked it more if I hadn’t been sick because I definitely feel like I missed some of the details. I really liked the mix of psychology and fiction. Some chapters made me feel like I was back in college reading lecture notes (in a good way), and I found myself wanting to stop and think about some of the ideas before moving on. It’s definitely one of those books that asks you to pay attention. I want to give this book another shot in the future because I think I’d get a lot more out of it when I can give it my full attention.
August 16, 2026
A darkly funny, surprising delight!
Part fact, part fiction, I loved the structure of this short story.
Our main character is as unreliable as an unreliable MC comes, she openly admits to the reader that she compulsively lies, but she is also deeply vulnerable as she shares about the relationship she has with the man she’s seeing, her career as a writer, her new boss, corrupt police interrogation techniques and the dead bodies she keeps finding.
I was deeply invested in everything she told us, from beginning to end, regardless of it being truth or lies.
More evidence that I should definitely dip my toes into the literary fiction genre every now and again.
Part fact, part fiction, I loved the structure of this short story.
Our main character is as unreliable as an unreliable MC comes, she openly admits to the reader that she compulsively lies, but she is also deeply vulnerable as she shares about the relationship she has with the man she’s seeing, her career as a writer, her new boss, corrupt police interrogation techniques and the dead bodies she keeps finding.
I was deeply invested in everything she told us, from beginning to end, regardless of it being truth or lies.
More evidence that I should definitely dip my toes into the literary fiction genre every now and again.
October 24, 2026
excellent and astoundingly layered exploration of truth and lies and perception and belief and trust and assumption and psychology and emotional expression and unnuanced categorisations.
written as this blend of fiction & non-fiction except the fiction is Maybe autofiction (so is there truth to it after all? but it is autofiction About lying!) and the non-fiction is deeply opinionated and on topics i knew nothing about previously, so i just have to decide to trust that it is grounded in truth.
place on the goldsmiths shortlist so well earned. another peninsula press win
written as this blend of fiction & non-fiction except the fiction is Maybe autofiction (so is there truth to it after all? but it is autofiction About lying!) and the non-fiction is deeply opinionated and on topics i knew nothing about previously, so i just have to decide to trust that it is grounded in truth.
place on the goldsmiths shortlist so well earned. another peninsula press win
July 30, 2026
surrealist and sharp
This novella threads the line between seeming like an exercise of a concept and a tight little story and a primer on lying and lie detection. Unusual in form and somewhat surreal in places, it also tackles sexual assault and the edges of consent, permission, desire, and self destruction.
Most impressively to me is that it manages to make clear and compelling on the page something that’s very difficult—in my mind at least—which is showing conflicted and contradictory mental processes. The narrator often seems to be having a million thoughts at a time and Warmelo conveys that in a way that allows the reader in, to experience it along with her.
I guess this is more autofiction in a way—or idk, does the narrator using the author’s name make it auto?—but knowing nothing about her life it didn’t trigger my auto confusion while I read.
This novella threads the line between seeming like an exercise of a concept and a tight little story and a primer on lying and lie detection. Unusual in form and somewhat surreal in places, it also tackles sexual assault and the edges of consent, permission, desire, and self destruction.
Most impressively to me is that it manages to make clear and compelling on the page something that’s very difficult—in my mind at least—which is showing conflicted and contradictory mental processes. The narrator often seems to be having a million thoughts at a time and Warmelo conveys that in a way that allows the reader in, to experience it along with her.
I guess this is more autofiction in a way—or idk, does the narrator using the author’s name make it auto?—but knowing nothing about her life it didn’t trigger my auto confusion while I read.
June 17, 2026
Literature is so back !
August 9, 2026
loved this little autofiction - dialogue and interiority were incredibly witty. is this book about lying an exercise in lying?! amazing debut
August 10, 2026
4.5. tour de force of a debut
September 14, 2026
2.5/5
hated the long non stop sentences i understand it was a literary choice but man i couldnt digest a single thing
hated the long non stop sentences i understand it was a literary choice but man i couldnt digest a single thing
August 25, 2026
There is no reason to have two parts because they barely have anything to do with each other. Frankly, this is not as deep as it wants to be. Some of it could have been, but it was then interrupted by an obsession over lying d how to tell if someone is lying that went on for longer than the plot ever did.
October 25, 2026
This is an odd little book that read more like a long short story than a novel. We never really understand much about our narrator (that may be on purpose, as she ensures no one in her life knows her either). We only get to guess at her motives from the hints she lets slip between her lies. By the end, you're left with an impression instead of a conclusion. I had the same feeling as reading artsy short story: what was that? No clue, but it seemed liked literature.
I enjoyed the writing, though it sometimes felt a little bit too pretentious. (The author is a Really Good Writer, you see.) It was compelling enough to be a quick, enjoyable read.
I enjoyed the writing, though it sometimes felt a little bit too pretentious. (The author is a Really Good Writer, you see.) It was compelling enough to be a quick, enjoyable read.
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