Customer Reviews

Truthseeker

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

When I recently obtained my copy of Truthseeker, I had high hopes for an exciting story with a twist on the "human woman meets handsome, powerful faerie lord" setup common to many books in the urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and dark fantasy genres. For one, C.E. Murphy's previous outings featured enough wit to make the story trot along, and she does a good job juxtapositioning the familiar toils and troubles of a single young woman (even one with an unusual gift for detecting whether others are lying) to supernatural events.

Unfortunately the book didn't live up to its initial promise in the least, and it feels like an amateur is ghostwriting as Ms. Murphy. The first several chapters practically obsess over how thin and flat-chested Lara is compared to her buxom, curvaceous friend Kelly. This contributes nothing to the plot other than an underlying sense of insecurity about her looks. So of course Dafydd singles out the slightly awkward, unusual Lara for his attention after Kelly tries to play matchmaker on their part. The entire early story arc made my teeth ache and almost derailed my efforts to read the book, mostly because it was so long and irrelevant to why he was there in the first place. Some examples: explaining what women do when they go off into the washroom together; all the agonizing over how hot Kelly's boobs are; describing how neurotic Lara is. Who talks like that? More importantly, what reader wants to be bombarded by a number of whiny complaints when there is a story waiting to be told?

None of Ms. Murphy's usual witty writing appears except in a few short, sparse passages. The rest of the story is extremely formulaic (I could predict things well in advance) without much redemption from the lengthy passages of dialogue or occasional action. So many chapters go by without accomplishing much of anything except to reveal how neither Dafydd or Lara uses contractions. I understand it's a common writing device to have an intelligent or experienced character use much more formal language, but almost every major character in the book speaks this way even in very relaxed situations or casual scenarios. I found it very jarring.

Truthseeker had an interesting premise it never delivered upon. I don't believe much in the romance between Dafydd and Lara as it seems forced, and how could he be interested in someone so flat and boring? Despite plot twists and turns, the story is very predictable, and the last quarter of the book was an unhappy slog to reach a letdown of a conclusion.

I just finished readying Truthseeker, and am surprised it only took me a day to read. I do want to start out by saying that I did enjoy this story, and I will be waiting eagerly to read the conclusion in Wayfinder. However, there were some things about this book that are keeping me from giving it a full five stars.

At first, I wasn't sure if I would like the book at all, because the protagonist annoyed me greatly. Lara seemed socially inept when she started quoting dictionary definitions at a guy she was supposedly interested in. I also was not very fond of the large amount of description on how Lara heard truths and what she experienced towards the end after her power had grown. But that may be just something personal, as I was eager to get on with things to learn the fates of the characters involved.

Now, on to what I enjoyed about this book. After warming up a bit to Lara, when she stopped being so dry and annoying, I found it hard to put the book down. I couldn't find any place to put a bookmark that wouldn't have me itching to find out what happened next. I love books that have that effect on me.

I also quite thoroughly enjoyed the worldbuilding. I thought the way the author handled the real-world dealing with these sudden and unexplained happenings was creative. I liked that she had people actually deal with it, instead of glossing over it like it wasn't there, or worse, covering it up with some magical mass mind alteration.

I found myself cheering for Lara and Dafydd after a while, which caught me off-guard at first. Somewhere along the way, I started connecting with them, and became involved with their lives and cared about what happened to them. It did take a little longer than it usually does, but it did happen.

I have been reading a lot of werewolf & vampire UF lately, so I found this book to be a wonderful break. Overall, I would recommend this book to my friends.

Just wanted to add a quick 4 stars to this book review, as I noticed others rated it a tad bit lower-which is less than it deserves! The main character isn't a fast-talking, bitchy, leather-clad, she-warrior, like some other urban fantasy or supernatural romance novels (which I do like as well), so apparently other reviewers found her harder to immediately like-or like at all. However, I found her very amusing; she is actually quite witty and very intelligent-nothing wrong with dictionary and book smarts, as opposed to street smarts! Her profession as a tailor was unique and also intriguing-as long as you understand the concept that clothes (and their fit) can, in fact, make or break a person! :) Who knows, maybe she starts out a bit nerdy, and maybe I'm a bit of a nerd for immediately connecting with her, but I thought her character was well-developed and multi-faceted; additionally, she certainly changes and matures over the course of the book-becoming more street savvy and sarcastic-less limited by speaking only literal truths. The plot itself is unique and different-and with any such undertaking, there will be the risk of alienating some readers who simply can't get it. But if you are interesting in good writing, language, how language is used, and the ways in which truth can be used and manipulated, I am sure you will enjoy this book greatly! It was an entertaining read, truthfully.

Not having read C.E. Murphy before, I was mislead by the Kindle sample and the book description to expect more of a Fantasy-genre story here. Turns out actually to be a Romance-genre fluff story that just so happens to have borrowed the main characters from Fantasy. Yes, there are plenty of Fantasy-elements in the plot, but Yikes! Give me break with the overdone juvenile obsession with romance! I really don't care how beautiful this guy and his friends are!

Contrary to other reviewers, I actually did like the inept, stilted conversation from the main character and the detailed descriptions of her "gift". However, couldn't force myself past the first quarter of the book. Yes, that bad.

The story was hard to follow and some parts of the plot were slow and others to fast. it didn't flow right. The love interst was weak...I like strong heroines but there should be an equally strong male. The first chapters had promise but it all fell apart for me and I couldn't wait to be done.

I will admit that I am a total fan of Ms. Murphy's Walker Papers series - those books and audios are keepers for me. As soon as a new book in the series is released, I've got it.

This book - meh. I don't know yet whether or not this will be a series that I'll follow book after book. As others have said, the character of Lara Jansen is a rather unlikeable character in the beginning of the story, mainly because I don't think that many of us can identify with her ability to identify lies and her need for truthfulness. Also, as I was reading the book, I remember thinking to myself, "Aw, this is going to be one of those books were the heroine discovers that Faerie exists, finds herself a handsome fairy prince, and has the special ability needed to save the kingdom". And for a lot of chapters it was, but as the book progressed things didn't work smoothly, characters didn't always stay in their assigned roles and by the end of the book I actually started to like Lara somewhat because she evolved as the book progressed. I began to appreciate her necessity for exactness in word choices and started to understand the physical pain that lies caused her and why she developed the personality she had.

So, as of this point in time, I'd recommend this book with the caveat that you're going to have to read it through to the end before you can make a fair decision on the characters. Ms. Murphy's world-buidling, of course, is well done, as is her writing style. I really like it when an author's writing allows me to visualize the everyday settings of the story. I like the fact that she made Lara a tailor; it made perfect sense and sets her apart from the (now) usual kick@ss heroine of urban fantasy novels. I like that she injected humor into the story. I'll give the series a fair chance and read the next one whenever it is published.

In Truthseeker, Lara Jensen's talent for detecting lies and half truths is exactly what Seelie Prince Dafydd ap Caerwyn has been searching for and despite her reluctance, Lara agrees to help Dafydd who is desperate to avenge his foster brother's death and prove his innocence in his murder. In the Barrowlands, Lara discovers that not only has Dafydd not been entirely truthful with her but she has stepped into the middle of a brewing civil war between the Seelie and UnSeelie. Someone is stirring up trouble, targeting fairy royalty and as a Truthseeker who is prophesized to be the one that 'breaks the world', Lara's presence is unwelcome, particularly as her power grows. With an unseen enemy that threatens both fairyland and her own reality in Boston, Lara must search for the truth of the schism and master her unique ability in order to save the two worlds from destruction.
Lara Jensen is such a unique heroine for the urban fantasy genre, her strength doesn't lay in her ability to kick ass, but instead in being able to recognise the truth. It's such an intriguing idea because half truths and white lies are part of everyone's everyday interaction and Lara's ability impacts her life in ways I would never had considered. In Fairyland however her ability is a gift and truth has an inherent power that ordinary society is afraid of. Lara, able to see the truth, doesn't waste time denying the existence of fairyland so there is no painfully wilful self deception, instead she embraces the hidden world which I find refreshing.
I also love how CE Murphy uses music to illustrate Lara's gift, describing the strong clear notes of truth and the discordant chords of lies. It makes sense and adds such an original quality to the story.
Though Lara is surrounded by some great characters, she remains the featured protagonist of the novel. Kelly, her (human) best friend makes a great sidekick, contrasting with Lara's more reserved personality. It may seem odd but Dafydd remains more of a background character than might be expected and even though there is a developing romance between he and Lara it is an ephemeral thing. I actually liked that as it made the story more completely Lara's but those who like a romantic or sensual component may be disappointed.
The plot is cohesive and the story moves at a fast pace. Her characters not only shift between worlds, but also time, seamlessly, adding an extra layer of complexity. The world building is excellent and the mythology familiar but with unique touches. I think Murphy shows great attention to detail throughout the novel.
I really enjoyed Truthseeker for it's unique story and strong heroine. I had been waiting to read it until the release of Wayfinder because I knew I'd be annoyed at a cliffhanger ending. It was worth the wait - after finishing Truthseeker I moved straight on to Wayfinder and it is an equally wonderful story to conclude the duology.

It's another first-of-the-series from C. E. Murphy, and given that I was expecting a spunky heroine to be dragged bass-akward through a pile of world-view-changing revelations, it did not disappoint.

Truthseeker moves a little too fast for the plot to gain much in the way of depth, and the action was explained away rather than explained. However, that speed is complimented by dialog that I found to be witty as well as wry. The four main characters are presented well, from the angles of description, dialog, and reaction by the other characters. Lara's ever growing talent and emotional maturation in the story work well together, and Kelly's practical competence, combined with the sarcastic/ironic commentary, provide excellent relief for Lara's tiresome hangups. The ending was a gimmie, but I'm ok with that. I was reading the book for entertainment and the occasional giggle, not for psychological exploration of self. The sequel isn't out yet, but is listed on the last page, so I'm expecting more from Lara and Kelly, Dafydd (David), and hopefully Dickson.

I initially loved CE Murphy. Her first few Walker Series books had great characterization, good plots, and a fast pace. The last installment of that series was gravely disappointing. This book was also disappointing. You do not even find out until Chapter 6 what the true premise of the book is. The first six chapters are spent in character overdevelopment. And the heroine is not even likable. As someone else noted she is "uptight and neurotic". Is she writing too much, too fast? Or just out of ideas?

In this fast-moving story, the heroine, Lara, has the ability
to detect the truth. Lara is a likeable very precise sort of
person. I won't go through the whole story about how she ends
up in Faerie, but her ability begins to mature so that she can
not only detect truth, but force the truth she "wants" to
happen.

There are some defects. The romance in it seems a little
confused: there are two brothers (Faerie royalty) and the
presentation suggests the author is not completely clear which
one Lara is interested in. Also, though I like a hero or
heroine gaining powers, at the rate Lara ia gaining power, she
will be a "goddess" in another book.

I have read Murphy's other books. This book is better (and
certainly much faster-moving) than the books in the Negotiator
series. I like it a slight bit more than the Urban Shaman
series.

Given that I enjoyed the book, I liked the heroine, I was sorry
the book ended, and I will certainly buy the next book in the
series, I give it a rating of 5.