The Lies of Ayungo opens with an excellent, memorable line: "There is no water in the City of Lies". I expect most reviews of the novella will start with it, and that’s ok. It’s that good :) I devoured the story in one sitting, and I’m impressed. Before I go into detail, a warning: not everyone will like it. It’s a bleak, disturbing story that comes with multiple content warnings. Even though most violence appears off-screen, the mentions of child mutilation might make readers uncomfortable.

The City of Lies has no water, so it’s made a deal with the Ayungo Empire, which sends water in exchange for the tongues of boys. The protagonist of the story, Tutu, will soon have his tongue cut off. Sadly, his parched mother may not live long enough. Tutu makes a deal with his Oba: the city saves his mother, and he will go to the desert and bring back water for the city.

The desert challenges Tutu’s ingrained beliefs and worldview. It teaches him that life is full of lies, both superficial and profound. Along the way, he encounters other characters destroyed by Ayungo, who took advantage of people’s desperation, offered them a broken deal, and then called them liars. Each encounter reveals a different facet of the cruel world and its atrocities. I won’t go into details because I don’t want to spoil everything for you.

The story's pacing is excellent, almost feverish, which leads to my only criticism. Tutu’s mental and physical development feels rushed (to say the least), especially considering how young he actually is. Some readers may find this problematic, but hey, it’s a fantasy world. The tone is bleak and gutting - the more we learn about the various lies, the more horrific the reality seems.

The Lies of Ayungo reads like a mix of gritty fable and dark fantasy, interested in power struggles and the way powerful people deceive the unprivileged and keep them obedient.

I loved the story and the world. Brutally destructive magic thrilled me. The Lies of Ayungo is an excellent novella that packs a lot in just 96 pages. Highly recommended.

I love it when my NetGalley reads work out!

I’ve been making an excel sheet, trying to plan my reads for the month. The lies of Ajungo were initially not on my list. I got approved for some books on NetGalley and ended up with 13 books to download. A fun fact about me is that I don’t like the number 13. I’m superstitious about it, even though I know that’s ridiculous. I do my best not to let it impact things, but I figured this was a small thing, and I could give into it this one time. Given that NetGalley has now added page numbers to the information section, I could download a small book and add it to my excel sheet.

And that’s how I started The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi, and I’m so happy I did!

Your girl isn’t a sci-fi fan. For instance, I’ve been trying to get through Dune, but honestly, I just can’t focus on it (I loved the movie, though). I also don’t like high fantasy (so yes, not that into the lord of the rings), steampunk, spies/assassins, or even urban fantasy. But I’ll try something every so often and hope for a different outcome. This is why I haven’t given up on Dune, and I loved Book of Night by Holly Black. This is also why I tried The Lies of the Ajungo, and as stated above, I’m so glad I did!

In Tutu’s city, they cut out your tongue when you turn 13 to appease the Ajungo empire. In exchange, the empire sends their drought-ridden city some water; not enough to thrive, just enough to survive. Tutu has only 14 days to go before his tongue is cut out. Still, as his mother collapses from dehydration, he volunteers to search for water if they keep her alive for a year.

While the story has some really interesting themes, such as collaboration with those in power and what people are willing to do to maintain control, anyone can do those themes. Many writers focus so heavily on those themes that they sacrifice the story. Moses Ose Utomi does none of that. He writes in a way that makes you want to slow down and savor each word. It’s not slow at all, but I don’t want for anything in terms of the world Utomi builds up here. I can recognise this as a prequel; it goes by like one. But it also makes me want to read the series when they come out, so it clearly does its job.

But I am leaving the book with 4 out of 5 stars. And it’s only fair to talk about what I didn’t like. My primary concern when reading this book is that Tutu comes into his powers faster than I think can be reasonably expected. It was also tougher to become emotionally invested in the characters, which is the trade-off when the author has less space to write about them. That’s important to me which is why it’s more 4 stars than 5.

This book is carried by its premise. It’s such a simple premise, yet surprisingly original! I loved that the world felt so expansive. The book is brought down by its length though, as i was not able to connect to any of the characters very well

This books was AMAZING!! It is a very well written story. I loved the character growth in Tutu. I love the repetition line such as “there is no water in the city of lies”. It added so much more depth to the story. I did not expect the Ajungo to be not real and it was all the obas’ doing. Five out of five! Amazing work with this I love it so much ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

This one is an easy five stars. An engaging, perfectly paced novella that's part dystopia, part legend in the making, this book was on I couldn't put down and find myself still thinking about, long after I finished it. Tutu lives in the City of Lies, a town that has no water. They have a deal with the shadowy Ajungo Empire, who provides a meager amount of water as long as all people living in the city agree to cutting out their tongues when they turn thirteen. Tutu is days from turning 13 when he realizes his mother won't last long, and decides to go on a dangerous quest outside the city to find water. Out in the world, Tutu learns that things are not as they seem as he finds allies from other cities that have similar stories. The reveal is heartbreakingly simple in its revelation, and the characters' fight for change to save their cities is a struggle that at times seems impossible. I wouldn't say there was a happy ending, but it is one with a spark of hope. The final scenes are strong and impactful, and how things end for the characters is surprising, but also not something that comes out of nowhere. I sincerely hope we get more of this series, i'll read anything the author is willing to share about this world they have created.

The Lies of the Ajungo by Moses Ose Utomi, a story that makes you think, and then tries to pull the rug out from under you. Are you paying attention?

There is no water in the City of Lies.

Many, many years of drought have plagued the city, and the people have been beholden to the Ajungo Empire for the meager reserves of water they do receive -- for a very steep price. After many attempts over the years by other children to leave the city and seek out water, never to return, 13-year-oldTutu has a heartbreaking decision to make: stay in the city, make his sacrifice, and watch his mother die of blood drought -- or leave the city to find water that might save her.

This powerful new myth, wrapped in a deceptively simple novella, offers a tale of one young man's determination to help his people, uncover the truth, and stand up to the oppressors. Tutu believes in his mother's advice that only learning will free them, and he embarks on his quest like a hero of old, facing multiple challenges and learning to treat kindly with strangers. Only by listening to others and helping them meet their needs does Tutu find the way forward for his own people.

And while the novella reads like a story told by a griot around a campfire, or a cautionary fairy tale, it also holds a deeper message for the reader. The dystopian world of the story offers a glimpse of our own future, marred by catastrophic climate change and the polarization of society, and it shows that we need to look beneath the lies we are told in order to save our communities -- and that we need the clear-sightedness of our youth to show us the way.

Absolutely unputdownable. 5 stars, and I look forward to what Moses Ose Utomi writes next.

Read this if you love: an unlikely and unassuming hero, quests to save the community, exploring fantasy worlds with a North African vibe, political intrigue, power to the people

Thank you, Tor.com and NetGalley, for providing an eARC of this book. Opinions expressed here are solely my own.

This was like the desert meets the novel The Water Knife, where water is a precious resource that needs to be cherished and honored. A touching story.

I requested a digital copy in order to sample the prose on my phone (since I don't have a eReader) before requesting a physical copy for review. My review will be based on the physical ARC I read (if I qualify)