The Truth Against The World

Many thanks to NetGalley and Books Go Social for the opportunity to read the riveting The Truth Against the World by David Corbett.

Omg i love this book. Elegant, lyrical prose, compelling characters, suspenseful enough to not let me stop reading until the last page. It also frightens me with the timeliness and pertinence. Bravo, this is a brilliant and powerful novel, not to be missed.

Normally when I seek out novels that feature a society that is tearing apart at the seams, I am more than eager to delve into a fiction-driven world, but I had no issue restraining my enthusiasm for this crumbling world. Why? Because the civilization on the brink of an outright civil war is one that is arguably already unfolding before our very eyes.

The Truth against the World takes place in America, and the timeline could be five years from now or two decades at most. The country is on the brink of civil war, one that is heavily driven by right-wing religious ideology, and I can honestly say that while this information isn’t the main focus of the tale, David Corbett’s latest novel is one of the most terrifying pieces of fiction I’ve personally interacted with since I read Stephen King’s IT for the first time, because we are seeing the potential descent in real time.

However, as I said, the devout and unempathetic religious population is not the main plot point of the book. Instead, we keep our focus on a genuinely kind soul who goes by the name of Shane. An immigrant from Ireland with a rather colorful past, Shane takes on a mission to escort a young writer, Georgina O’Halloran, across the tense American landscape to recover a stolen piece of work and confront the man who took the book and published it as his own work. This man is not only a plagiarist, but he is also Georgina’s former professor and lover.

On this journey, Shane and Georgina must evade figures of authority as well as the dangers one could expect to find in a theocratic society. They encounter good souls, and awful folks as well, but every person that they interact with feels like a real person with honest characteristics, and I cannot commend Corbett any higher for making the character interaction run so fluidly. It was rare for me to stop and second-guess if someone would respond in the ways that the people in The Truth against the World did. Even more so than the side characters, though, for me, nothing really compares to the friendship that Shane and Georgina have. Not once did I pick up on a hinting at a forced romantic relationship between the two, which I find rather rare in media in general.

I will admit that initially, the plot did feel rather odd to me. I could not grasp why anyone, with the world seemingly at a breaking point, would risk their life to claim the authorship of a book. Even with the overall success of Georgina’s stolen work (which goes by the very same title as this book), the odds against our protagonists were well out of the realm of achieving that goal. From the very start, Shane and Georgina had damn near everything going against them. But I believe that is an intended discussion point from Corbett. The Truth against the World is a vehicle to drive the question: How far are we willing to go for the truth?

Packed with action and tragedy, this novel is a love letter to the Celtic tenets, and it holds a lot to admire. It is an interesting blend of a pending future with a mystical past, raw betrayal, powerful political messages, honest people, and above all else, hope. Hope for humanity even in the most desperate of times.

The Truth against the World will be finding a place on my bookshelf once I can get my hands on a physical copy, which will be available this June.

The Truth Against the World shows America on the brink of falling apart. Civil War is coming. Religion is threatening to divide the country. Sound familiar? I think it is timely at the very least.

This was a genre-defying novel. Part dystopia, part fantasy, part quest story. It was an engaging title narrated by Shane Riordan who has lived again and again. He's under a curse to do so until he learns what he is supposed to learn.

Currently, he is best friends with Georgie O'Halloran who suffers from depression. They met when she was in college and his was a janitor at the college. They became friends. She was intrigued by Celtic myths, and he told her lots of stories never revealing that they were about his past. She wrote them up and illustrated them and gave them to her lover as a gift. The lover - Reginald Feely - took her gift, claimed it was his own work, and sold it for publication. It, and the video game it inspired, became a cult hit which incited some of the factionalism that is plaguing the United States.

Shane breaks Georgie out of the hospital where she is being treated and the two take off to find Feely and gain his apology for stealing her book and intellectual property. They need to travel from the East Coast to the West Coast through a disintegrating United States filled with gangs each touting their own version of what should be. And they are being pursued by people who don't want them to interfere with the book or the video game.

I enjoyed the story once I got over the writing style which at first seemed to be filled with sentence fragments. I enjoyed learning more about Shane and what his quest was. He is definitely the main character of this one despite what the blurb seems to imply.

This is a timely novel considering the state of America. This is powerful ,, insightful and shocking as the author captures the reader and takes you on a journey through a civil war and a author devoted to his craft. This speaks to the love of books for all biblophiles. These characters are richly drawn, the plot intriquing and well crafted. I enjoyed reading this novel and recommend it to all who enjoy a dystopian read.

Thank you to the publisher, the author and to Net Galley for the opportunity. Well done to the author.

I received an ARC through "NetGalley" and I am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

This is a story which is about Geogie and Shane's journey to recover a book which someone else has published as their own work. It begins with Shane looking for information where the individual who stole the book resides. After learning if the information, he goes to a hospital where Georgie has been committed. While visiting Georgie an event happens and as a result Georgie and Shane escape.

Read along as they attempt to cross the country to California. Discover more of Shane's background and see all of the obsicles that Georgie and Shane encounter during their trek

The ending is one that I didn't expect but does answer some questions.

This stylish love letter to Celtic myth centers around trickster-figure Shane Riordan, who busts his friend Georgie O'Halloran out of imprisonment in a mental institution to go on a quest to hunt down Rory Fitzgerald, one of those sleazy older academics who prey on young women, not only for boinks on the beautyrest but to steal their work, in this case a book actually written by Georgie, published under his name. They journey across a fractured America, where a rather theocracy (depicted rather heavy-handedly) is fomenting national turmoil.

This novel is actually a mix of genres, which really good novels can be. It's a stylistic tour-de-force, with interesting characters, sometimes elusive, and a wild plot.

Based on the Irish legend of Oisin, Shane is an Irish ex-pat in the US, which is descending into civil war. His friend Georgie is a mental institution inmate - she descended into depression after being rejected by her college professor lover, who subsequently published her book under his own name. Shane visits Georgie in hospital and events force them to flee. They decide to travel across America to confront the plagiarist and it soon becomes clear that someone is trying to stop them. there's lots of bloody action, evoking memories of Cormac McCarthy's The Road. For English readers David Corbett's Oirish American knee jerk anti Englishness will seem unnecessary, but its a page turning thriller.

I’ve been wondering when I would meet a contender for My Book of The Year - not many have moved me in the first half, but at last here’s one. The Truth Against The World is an ingenious blend of genres - part quest fantasy, part futuristic dystopian thriller, with a load of Celtic mythology thrown in. I don’t often read ARCs from new authors these days, but received an invitation from the publisher to download this, and was seduced by the beautiful cover and intriguing synopsis - I’m very glad I decided to check it out. I’m shocked that at the time of writing, two weeks post publication, this only has five GoodReads reviews, as it deserves many more readers.

In Near Future America, society is crumbling as powerful factions pit ordinary people against one another. Shane Riordan is an Irish soldier with an unusual past, who is on a mission to protect his young friend Georgie. She suffered a nervous breakdown when her college professor lover plagiarised the book she created for him out of Shane’s folk stories, which became an international bestseller and led to a hugely popular video game which is now being used to recruit players to Alt Right causes. Breaking her out of captivity in a psychiatric institution, he agrees to escort her on a journey to the other side of the country to confront her ex and reclaim her art, but with unknown enemies hunting them, will Shane’s warrior skills be enough?

I don’t know much about Irish history and legends, but this cleverly blends them into an exciting adventure story with two very sympathetic lead characters whose unbreakable bond of friendship happily remains platonic. The world building was believable enough to be frightening - the breakdown of law, politics driven by religious fundamentalists, brainwashing of the masses by secret corporate-funded manipulators - this is exactly where the US is heading, and the various technological advances suggest that it’s only set a decade or less into the future. It’s grim, with some brutal and sometimes gory violence, but not actually depressing, with some wonderful minor characters who help our heroes on their way, and I liked the unexpected ending. My only complaint is the present tense throughout: it’s rare for me to give 5 stars in this case but I’m making an exception because the storytelling is just that good.

Thanks to NetGalley and Swell Media for the ARC. I am posting this honest review voluntarily.
The Truth Against The World is available now.

Looking for a read that will challenge you and scare you to your core? Help yourself to this amazing read by David Corbett. In a dystopian not-so-distant future, a reincarnated Irish hero assumes the role of protector to a young woman who has crafted a revolutionary book. Intended as a gift, the book is co-opted by her ex-lover and turned into a recruiting tool for shadowy conservative forces intent on destroying the existing social fabric and raising a new order at the expense of everyone else. Part odyssey, part a race against time, The Truth Against the World examines contemporary themes and topics in the light of ancient myths and legends. Oisin, cursed and destined to die and return repeatedly until he learns his lesson, is ever thwarted by his own nature.

I need to read this again to hold all the strands of the story together as Corbett takes us from the present into legend and back repeatedly. Most difficulty I had? The formatting from the Net Galley download was so wonky -- paragraphing, chapter divisions, dialogue -- that it was nearly impossible to process the narrative without really working at it. That said, I loved the concept and the story, but I hated all the betrayals!

“The Truth Against the World” is a compelling genre bending blend of historical fantasy/modern science fiction. Set in a dystopian version of the United States, the story weaves in frightening themes of civil war amongst average civilians, political chaos and corruption, corporations in control, and religious rule that is bleak and thought provoking- hinting at a dramatized version of what future America could look like. I’ve never read a book that had this setting or that wove old world legend and mythology with a futurist dystopia. Quite a unique read.

This book was gripping from beginning to end. Set in an apocalyptic world that becomes all too recognizable, the story entwines not only a suspenseful journey but ancient Irish myths that keeps you pondering long after you've finished reading it.

I loved the characters as well as the plot. Each character was memorable in his/her own right, and again kept me thinking of our acceptance of others' differences and judgments.

It may be too dark for some, and those who don't wish to have tradition and belief in politics and religion examined should not read it.

This was a very different sort of read for me. I liked the characters, some good, some not so good, some pretty bad. What surprised me most was the state of the world based on a video game. It's very close to what is happening today, everyone stuck on their phones or tablets playing violent warlike videogames that look and sound so very real! Are people smart enough to differentiate reality from fantasy? How can society as a whole allow this to continue? After reading David's book, one wonders. Thanks for a well written, quick read. Got me to thinking?!?!
Thanks Net Galley for sharing this Kindle read.

I have always enjoyed David Corbett’s writing style. This book was the best one yet. Such an interesting story. Can’t wait to see what he writes next.

There's a lot happening in this book. The political climate is frightening as well as the probable Civil War. We follow Shane and Georgina throughout the story. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

The book is set in part fantasy, quests, Irish folklore and part apocalyptic.
Is it still a thriller? Most definitely.
The book is set in the near future in the United States and has two main characters, Georgie O'Halloran a wonderful and talented writer.and her friend and protector Shane Riordan who will stop at nothing to help her.
The Truth Against The World is very thought provoking and will definitely make you sit and smell the rose's.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for the early read.

This was my first David Corbett book and he lives up to the hype. This book was great and I highly recommend checking it out!

This dystopian mystery truly surprised me. The Truth Against the World follows Shane and Georgie. Shane, an Irishman with a questionable past, is completely dedicated to his friend Georgie, an imaginative young woman who struggles with depression. After trusting the wrong man, (who then steals the novel she had painstakingly written), Georgie suffers a break down and is institutionalized. While this is happening, America is falling apart. Violence is a daily occurrence, and the country is nearing civil war, as every faction fights for what it deems the right cause. Amidst the chaos, Shane and Georgie attempt to confront the man who had wronged her, and end up encountering a much larger conspiracy.

This is a total mishmash of genres, in the best way. Mainly a dystopian thriller, but intriguing bits of fantasy and Celtic mythology are inserted. I was not prepared for them, and was so pleasantly surprised. The depiction of a terrifying near future America was evocative. This world is dark and dangerous. Not someplace I'd like to be. The characterization in this novel is also topnotch. Shane: fantastic hero. I really enjoyed the slow reveal of his past throughout the story. And you truly feel for Georgie. With Shane's help, she's conquering her demons, and her inner strength really comes out towards the end of the novel. I loved that their relationship was truly one of friendship, no romance thrown in. The people that they met along their journey were also fully realized, even if you only meet them briefly. This novel was unexpected, poignant and well written. Would recommend, though be prepared for a bit of gore.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Possibly the best book I have read this year. Grand mix of apocalyptic end of world urban fantasy, myth, and gunplay. Shane Riordan liberates Georgie O'Halloran from an insane asylum and they embark on a road trip through warring US militias to reclaim Georgie's manuscript that has become a world-wide best seller under her old lover's name. It's great.

The Truth Against The World is an ingenious blend of genres - part quest fantasy, part futuristic dystopian thriller, with a lot of Celtic mythology thrown in. I was seduced by the beautiful cover and intriguing synopsis - I’m very glad I decided to check it out.

In Near Future America, society is crumbling as powerful factions pit ordinary people against one another. Shane Riordan is an Irish soldier with an unusual past, who is on a mission to protect his young friend Georgie. She suffered a nervous breakdown when her college professor lover plagiarised the book she created for him out of Shane’s folk stories, which became an international bestseller and led to a hugely popular video game which is now being used to recruit players to Alt Right causes. Breaking her out of captivity in a psychiatric institution, he agrees to escort her on a journey to the other side of the country to confront her ex and reclaim her art, but with unknown enemies hunting them, will Shane’s warrior skills be enough?

I don’t know much about Irish history and legends, but this cleverly blends them into an exciting adventure story with two very sympathetic lead characters whose unbreakable bond of friendship happily remains platonic. The world building was believable enough to be frightening - the breakdown of law, politics driven by religious fundamentalists, brainwashing of the masses by secret corporate-funded manipulators - this is exactly where the US is heading, and the various technological advances suggest that it’s only set a decade or less into the future. It’s grim, with some brutal and sometimes gory violence, but not actually depressing, with some wonderful minor characters who help our heroes on their way, and I liked the unexpected ending.