Great start but then gets lost
Laszlo Ratesic is a Speculator, an agent of the truth in a society where it is illegal to lie, but when he is called to investigate a murder, suddenly the truth begins to become more fluid than it first appeared.
I really enjoyed the premise of Golden State, it's very Minority Report meets 1984. The characters are well rounded and interesting and the world is really nicely defined. There is a lot of backstory to get to know but it never feels like this gets dumped on you all in one go which a lot of dystopian novels are guilty of. Everything is introduced naturally in the text and you are immersed into the world where the truth is upheld as a bulwark of society.
I was completely drawn into the story from the outset and powered my way through it as I wanted to find out more - not just about the mystery Laszlo and his partner are solving but about the wider world in general. There are some really nice parallels to our society in terms of 'fake news' and some parts of it are genuinely thought provoking. Unfortunately, I found the book floundered a little in the middle and the ending wasn't particularly satisfying. I can't really tell if it's set up for a sequel and I would like to find out more about what happens next or perhaps what happened to the world for this society to have prevailed but am also very happy for it to have been a standalone story as well. I would have happily given this book 5 stars if it had stuck to its guns and continued in the same vein throughout (maybe even with more of an opening for a sequel) but I was a little disappointed with it as it stands.
Overall Golden State is a great premise and a really good story, I just felt it lost its way towards the end of the book. Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Cornerstone and Century for a chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
