I was a little unsure of what to expect when I bought this, but having read the synopsis, it captured my attention, and the 4 and a bit stars gave me hope. It's a large book at nearly 800 pages, but given the ground it covers, it needed to be. Some Authors would have been tempted to maybe go for the cop out and put it in two (or even really sad and go for three) parts, but Falconer was kind to his readers and gave it to us in a single block at a decent price point.
This is an amazing story, with so many twists, secrets, conspiracies, turns and reveals that by the end of it, you will be wondering what was real, what was fake, what was a lie, and more importantly, you are NEVER going to look at the World Political Machine in the same way again.
Oh, and you are going to wonder why you keep hearing the name ‘Dan McCarthy’ in your head a lot…
The story follows Dan McCarthy, a young guy who has spent a large portion of his life pondering about the existence of extra-terrestrial life. One day, whilst delivering a book for the place he works for, he is knocked off of his bike by an armed man, who has just broken into a Government building, run by a rather sinister Government official.
During this encounter, Dan sees that the man has stolen several folders from the building, including one about the current President. The armed man, pointing a gun at him, takes the folders and runs.
But he accidentally leaves one, and this is where the story really gets interesting. The folder contains information about a secret cover-up of monumental proportions that will shake humanity to its very foundations. We are NOT ALONE.
Dan leaks this online – trying to be anonymous, but his name is soon revealed, and Dan is dragged into a public relations circus. I'm going to try not to expose too much more than this for fear of giving too much away, and giving up Spoilers, but I will discuss some of the main characters.
As well as Dan, the other 2 main characters in the story are Emma Ford, a PR agent that Dan takes on, and Clark, Dan’s older brother.
The characters in this story are utterly brilliant. Dan is a clever combination of enthusiastic nerd, crossed with naïve kid, but there are also some other things about him. Falconer immediately draws you to Dan and as the story progresses, you grow more and more attached to him, feeling each of the emotional ups and downs as events are revealed and the course of the story undulates backwards and forwards. Dan’s unrelenting search for Truth is infectious and you can’t help but continue reading, hoping that he will find his Truth.
Emma’s character started off somewhat irritating, as all PR agent’s should, with too much ‘in your face’ happy happy joy joy. But as the story progresses, and things unfold, Emma changes drastically, and although she is still the ‘PR agent’ you realise this is a front, and there is actually a really sweet girl underneath. As the relationship with Dan grows (not what you think), you actually start to build a relationship with Emma to as the Reader, and realise how clever, cunning, smart and caring she is. Falconer is very clever with his development of this character and how she grows on you very quickly.
It is difficult to say too much more without giving away spoilers, but needless to say, Emma is probably the best character in this story simply for the sheer skill she has, and the way she adapts and the relationship she has not only with everyone else in the book, but with you the reader.
Clark is the protector of the group, being the ex-soldier and now high risk security person. Initially he is away when the story begins, but quickly returns as things evolve. Falconer again gives you a character that starts off slowly, with what you think is going to be a bit of a dumb grunt personality, but that you quickly learn is not only incredibly protective of Dan, but he has a vulnerable spot for those in his life. Clark is also capable of intelligent strategic thought, which makes his character that much more interesting.
These are just the 3 Main, there are also some exceptional Secondary Characters, such as Walker, Godfrey, Slater, and a slew of people within Dan’s life. I don’t want to dwell too much on them as it will give potentially give away parts of the story. Needless to say, whilst the story and plot are outstanding, it is the Character writing by Falconer that makes this story not only incredibly brilliant, but also thrilling, believable and compelling.
This is as good as it gets for an ‘Aliens are amongst us’ Sci-Fi story, as I said earlier in this review, there are more twists and turns than on a Roller Coaster. Rather than just doing it for some pointless reason though Falconer has built an incredible story around these plot twists, that if you saw unfolding in today’s current media, you would believe in a heartbeat. Falconer has done some wonderful research as well to create parts of the story, giving it even more depth and believability.
Without giving too much away, there are some great concepts in this story (the capital ‘D’ for Disclosure was one of the most interesting discussed), and the fact that this is actually a real concept (I actually looked it up online). In fact, I spent a bit of time looking up a lot of the stuff discussed in this book as a result of curiosity and interest in its credibility, and it is all legitimate.
One of my only gripes about the book was the naming of the chapters. I can’t point out why without giving away spoilers, but when you get to the point in the book, you will know what I mean.
If you are a fan of the early X-Files, where Mulder was seeking the Truth before it lost its path, this is definitely for you.
This is about the search for the Truth, and is an absolutely spectacular ride along the way.
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Popular Highlights in this book
Wherever he looked, he saw people who demanded to be heard but had nothing to say.Highlighted by 306 Kindle readers- “Politics is all about artificial fear and the illusion of control. Politicians and the media create fake threats and play down the real ones.”Highlighted by 252 Kindle readers
- Dan openly believed in intelligent extraterrestrial life, stubbornly insisting that the absence of proof did not equate to proof of absence.Highlighted by 171 Kindle readers
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Reviews with images
There's more to come
I liked the tempo, the steady pace, reveal, and rhythm of surprises in the novel.
Top reviews from other countries
folks
From truth comes hope, here’s to the truth
Reviewed in Canada on August 24, 2018
J. M. Simmonds
Cool idea but needs a better editor
Reviewed in Japan on May 14, 2019
