narniaxisxhome's review
4.0
Although I gave this book 4 stars, I really think the author should have done her research--all the stuff on the Witch Trials was good, but to someone who has been in college psychology and is going for a counseling/psych major, Lidda's problem was definately NOT bipolar disorder as the author states. It was schizophrenia.
hsquared's review
2.0
An interesting take on the Salem witch trials involving a character with bipolar disorder.
emma_mo's review
3.0
To start off, this book presented a few challenges for me. I hesitated to pick it up because of the entire premise. I love historical fiction, but the Salem witch trials never really did it for me. I always found the delirium around those event so unappealing.
The events in Father of Lies were interesting in a different way than the usual paranoia. Lidda is so different than the other girls who are claiming witchcraft. She sees them as being attention-seeking, and using their power to gain some kind of control over the rigid lives they lead. Lidda is also suffering from her own personal demons. While her condition is revealed in the Author's Note at the end of the book, it seems to overtake her so completely that it ties in easily to the rest of the events in the rest of the book.
I found this book interesting but not necessarily my cup of tea. Lidda is a sympathetic character, but I think that if the author had limited her involvement to doubting the other girls, the novel would have been just as potent. I think her issues are an interesting but unnecessary plot twist.
My rating: 3.5 out of 5
More...