Review: Veracity by Laura Bynum

After a pandemic swept the world, the government took control of their citizens actions and speech in the name of security. They burned books, killed the resistance, and implanted slates in the throats of their citizens to ensure that no ever spoke words that weren't sanctioned by the government. At first these words were few, but over the years they grew. Art, music, and human expression was banned. Casual sex with prostitutes and excessive drinking was encouraged and the Christian faith was replaced with a version of Christianity where Jesus sat on a cross for a few days and came off it gleaming in a blue suit.

This is the world Harper lives in. Harper, however, has a gift. She can read people's feelings and see the truth in them. She can also sometimes dream the future. This makes her an incredible asset to the government. They use her to sort out the growing resistance against the government. But then one day, the very name of her daughter lands on the lists of words that can't be used and Harper is given a reason to join the very resistance she fought against.

Veracity is told in a non-linear fashion...when the story opens, Harper is trying to "break her slate" but some chapters go back in time all the way to her childhood to explain how the government took their power. It's told in the first person from Harper's point of view.

I enjoyed many aspects of this book. I thought the world and the controlling government created were very interesting. I thought it was interesting how the people gave themselves over to comfort and abandoned all intellectual thought. I have to admit I wasn't always sure how it worked, but the warning the author was trying to make was very clear.

I do think the book was a bit long...it could have been just a little shorter. And I didn't understand how Harper fell in love with love interest after talking to him for something like 5 minutes. Additionally, I felt like I got no background on her relationship with her daughter or her ex-husband at all. I would have even welcomed more information on her relationship with her best friend and goddaughter. I found her motivations difficult to completely understand due to this underdevelopment. It seemed that Harper would fight against the government simply because she was a "good person." But overall, this was an interesting and at times, thought provoking read.

Rating: 3.75/5
Things You Might Want to Know: Language, violence, sex
Source of Book: Provided by the publisher for review
Publisher: Pocket Books