The Language of Liars

by S.L. Huang

Speak another people's language. Know them. Become them.

And discover you've destroyed them.

In his training as a spy, Ro was told: you will always be living a lie.
Jumping into a Star Eater's mind in the first place requires a moment of perfect psychic connection, and he has studied all his life to comprehend their species. Admires them, respects them, is reverent at the idea of being one of them—the only species physiologically capable of mining the element needed for lightyear-spanning space travel. The species all others crave to know more of, but who have notoriously shared so very little. The species Ro's own small civilization, with its dwindling resources and withering reach, needs to know more about.

It will feel real, his elders impressed upon him. It will never be real.

But Ro's certainty runs he will be different. Ro will not be an imposter hiding the truth of his past, because his heart will be one of them. He will be one of them.

To understand is to become. It never occurs to him that the mere act of understanding can destroy.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Genres: Science Fiction, Novella, Fantasy, Fiction, Adult, Aliens, Science Fiction Fantasy

176 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication April 21, 2026

Reviews

[Wole Talabi · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Language of Liars is, quite simply, a brilliant book. A fast paced and thoughtful linguistic deconstruction of the colonial mindset and enterprise. Its 'Get Out' meets 'Embassytown' with shades of 'Dune' while being something entirely its own. Incredibly clever and written with a love and reverence for the power of language, it will have you turning the pages in a frenzy to see what happens next. I inhaled it all in one sitting and you probably will too.

- Wole Talabi, author of SHIGIDI AND THE BRASS HEAD OF OBALUFON

(Official blurb based on an ARC)

[Kaye Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to ask for a sequel, but I would also understand if Huang left this as is. I thought I knew where this book was going, but the twist is what made this book four stars. Even though I'm left silently staring at the wall, that was beautifully and brutally done.

[Matt]

this book is so high on my anticipated reads of 2026 I swear to god

[Em Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

one of the most emotional, wrenching endings I've ever read. wheeeew.

(Also, the linguistics nerds really won with this one.)

[Aυѕтιη · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book provided by the publisher; all opinions my own.

Did you look at BABEL by RF Kuang and think "no, too simple"? Do you have an equally fervent love for science fiction and linguistics? Do you enjoy sharing confusion and frustration with the main character of what you're reading? Boy do I have excellent news for you, wrapped up in a mere 160 pages or so.

This was a truly delightful read that was dense enough that I had to take a break halfway through. It did not go where I thought it was going, and it ended up asking a lot of questions I was unprepared for. The main character is a highly ADHD-coded loveable dork, who manages to stumble far out of his depth into enlightenment almost accidentally.

This is super academic and pretty high concept but not (imo) hard sci-fi. It's hard to express why it's so great without a massive spoiler, but if you like making your brain work, this should be at the top of your TBR.

[Megan]

A deeply sad xenofiction novella that imo skewers the modern conversation around likable protagonists? I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Ro’s species is almost sickly cute. The Language of Liars is in conversation with Babel, with Ender’s Game, with James Cameron’s Avatar, with A Language of Dragons. I read about a third of it while I was getting my hair styled and couldn’t put the rest down after I got home.

Tor sent me an ARC.

[Genevieve Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short and breathtaking book about linguistics and culture, how words shape identity, and the appropriation inherent in scholarship. In which a linguist rabbit becomes a mining space squid, for the good of his people and in pursuit of academic ambition. I'll be thinking about this book for a long, long time.

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

FAVORITE SL HUANG BOOK BAR NONE!!!!!!! loved the academic nerding out about xenolinguistics and espionage, don't worry about the creeping existential dread and the disturbing mantras of "quota" and "work is work" and "work is life," and then suddenly everything imploDES BAM POW OK AUTHOR I DIDN'T EXPECT YOU TO GO THERE

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt like too big of a story for a novella, or maybe the storytelling was too direct trying to fit everything in.