Chiswick Author R. L. Heber Publishes Fourth Novel
Faculty of Liars is a story of the dark side of academia
R L Heber and the cover of her new book
August 8, 2026
Chiswick novelist R. L. Heber — already known to many readers under her previous pen name Rebecca Thornton — has released her fourth novel, Faculty of Liars, with Oneworld Publications. A former WHSmith Fresh Talent author and a well-established communications strategist who runs her own business, Words With Bex, Heber lives locally and continues to build a reputation for sharp, psychologically rich storytelling.
Faculty of Liars takes readers deep inside the polished halls of an elite New England institution — a place where prestige is everything, secrets are currency, and reputation is protected at any cost. The novel sits comfortably in the lineage of Anatomy of a Scandal and The Maidens, blending dark academia with a tense, character-driven mystery.
At the centre of the story is Elizabeth Harker, whose life unravels on the day her husband is announced as the incoming President of the university. While the world celebrates his ascent, Elizabeth is hiding a dangerous truth: at the very moment her husband’s future is secured, she is in the arms of another man.
Minutes before she is due to step on stage for the inauguration ceremony, Elizabeth learns her lover has been brutally murdered. What follows is a suffocating descent into institutional secrecy, as the university closes ranks and Elizabeth is forced to grieve in silence while guarding a secret that could destroy her family — and the institution itself.
The novel asks a pointed question: how far will a powerful university go to protect its own? As Elizabeth digs deeper, she discovers that her affair was never just an indiscretion, and the murder was never just a crime of passion. Beneath the immaculate façade lies a world where power is absolute, and threats are quietly erased.
For Heber, Faculty of Liars marks a new chapter in a career already recognised for its psychological acuity and narrative tension. Her previous novels established her as a writer who deals with the complexities of human behaviour — and this latest work pushes those themes into even darker, more ambitious territory.
The book is available from Thursday 6 August at Waterstones and other major retailers.
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