An Academy for Liars

Alexis Henderson sets An Academy for Liars in Savannah, Georgia, drawing from her personal experiences growing up there. Savannah was the first city in the state of Georgia—it was founded in 1733 by General James Oglethorpe and other British settlers. Georgia became one of the original 13 colonies in 1751. During the Revolutionary War and the Civil War, Savannah was an important seaport and played an important role. The city is named after the Savannah River and has since become the fourth most-populous city in Georgia.

Henderson credits her upbringing in Savannah for her interest in gothic and haunted themes. Savannah is widely considered one of the most haunted cities in the United States because a large number of individuals died there during the Revolutionary and Civil Wars. Additionally, the city saw outbreaks of yellow fever and other diseases in the 1800s, as well as deadly fires in both 1789 and 1820. Georgia was also a member of the Confederacy and served as a port for the transatlantic trading of enslaved individuals, so the violent history of enslavement plays an important role in Savannah’s haunted legacy. Savannah has a number of purportedly haunted places that still exist, including the Hamilton-Turner Inn that features prominently in John Berendt’s nonfiction book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, which covers Berendt’s experience of living in Savannah during a murder trial.

Henderson’s intimate knowledge of Savannah adds texture to the setting of An Academy for Liars, and Savannah’s haunted history adds to the gothic atmosphere of the novel. Though Lennon and the other characters never encounter literal ghosts, the narrative is metaphorically haunted by past events and the shadowy history of Drayton’s creation. Drayton itself exists like a phantom—it is located in the heart of Savannah, invisible to those without the persuasive magic that is at the heart of the novel.