To begin with I enjoyed the dystopian focus of the book but unfortunately I lost interest and found that it dragged. The narration was quite confused too and went off on random tangents sometimes.

In a world full of 'fake news' the Golden State in Winters' novel can seem like a utopia. The Golden State of the title is, obviously to us, California and the book is set after some kind of catastrophic event - as far as the people of the Golden State are concerned they live in the last inhabitable place left. Their survival is attributed to the fact that they adhere to the truth. At all times. In fact, more than that, they keep records of everything so that everyone agrees on what is real and true - they refer to it as the 'Objectively So'. This situation is monitored by cameras, which are pretty much everywhere, and policed, in part, by the Speculative Service. They are the only people who are permitted to, well, speculate (since speculation is the act of considering and rejecting things which may not have really happened) and they can tell when people lie. Laszlo Ratesic is from a family who have worked and died for the service but his latest investigation, and his unwelcome new partner, will make him doubt himself, the service and even the truth itself.

This book is not just a fascinating blend of science fiction and Chandleresque hardboiled crime but also a look at what could happen if we try to replace our current world of 'fake news' with a benevolent dictatorship based on narrow focussed view of what the truth is. Let's face it, any world where the truth is written in stone but works of fiction are banned doesn't sound like much of an improvement to me.

This isn’t a genre I usually read but I was intrigued by the synopsis. I’m glad I read something out of my comfort zone as I really enjoyed the story and ate up the pages and plot as if it was my usual crime/thriller. The characters are well rounded and the dystopian world is very subtly introduced so as to make it accessible to the uninitiated reader. A great piece of writing

I quite liked this book – it was proper old-fashioned science fiction along the lines of Philip K. Dick and reminded me very much of Minority Report. The story centered around Lazlo Ratesic, a citizen of the Golden State and member of the Speculative Service whose job it was to enforce the Objectively So: the criminal offense of lying. The upholding of the truth requires Lazlo’s special sixth sense combined with the constant surveillance of all Golden State citizens but absolute power corrupts absolutely and when he stumbles across previously unknown truths, his reality unravels.

I really enjoyed the Big Brother overtones within the novel and it was interesting to read from the point of view of the enforcers, not the average dissenting citizen. The world building was great, very cohesive for such a bold idea and held together well. I enjoyed the questions that the book raised around morality – is it possible to be completely honest all of the time? Is freedom always such a good thing or should we appreciate the use of CCTV etc. as a protectionist measure? However, as the book went on it became a bit absurd, then a lot absurd, then descended into an ending that came so far out of left field that it could have belonged to another novel entirely. Still, I enjoyed the majority of the book very much so I gave it 3.5 stars

This was a very strange, Dystopian story. It is based in what was once California but is now a new world, where the biggest crime is to lie. There are various controls on peoples lives, cameras everywhere, everyone has to keep a diary and these are stored when a person dies. Anything from the old world is forbidden. and there are police who detect when people lie. I had up and down feelings about this one and at times it seemed almost childish. Certainly an interesting concept.

I really loved this book right up until the final section, when it seemed to lose its way.

Wonderfully different and refreshing in a genre that's at risk of being done to death, "Golden State" tells of a world not too dissimilar to our own where lying is punishable by imprisonment or even exile and Speculators can sense a lie and track it down to its source.

Into this world comes a murder mystery with multiple layers and plenty to keep you guessing until the Big Reveal. The problem that I had with the end (without giving away spoilers) is that it built up to a particular ending and then suddenly veered off on a tangent, presumably for the shock twist, which wasn't necessary and took away from the more political/philosophical aspects of what went before.

I'd rate this as a 3.5 rounded up to 4 because I really did thoroughly enjoy most of the book. Had the ending been different, this would have been an undoubted 5.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

Ben Winters is an inventive and talented writer, capable of creating the most detailed and believable speculative fiction. Like his previous novel Underground Airplanes, Golden State presents a world similar enough to our own to be completely credible, but different enough to jar the reader's perspective. It's a world in which lying has been all but eliminated and honesty prevails - a Golden State, right? But also a deeply unsettling, creepy background against which Winters sets his fast-paced, compelling detective story. It's a fantastic read, without a doubt one of the best books of 2019.

We are in the Golden State, where everyone speaks the truth, records their daily activities, and are monitored everywhere.

But this is a good thing, because we tell each other facts as a form of greeting. There are Speculators, those with the power to sense a lie, and Lazlo Ratesic is one of these. He's been a Speculator for 10 years, and always worked alone.

Until today, when he is assigned Aysa Paige to mentor. She has an even greater gift for lies. She can sense when objects are wrong or missing, and this skill helps with the case that they are sent out on.

This was a very well crafted world, where all of this monitoring is justified at all times, and talked about in such a positive way that you can see the brain washing that has been carried out on the inhabitants of the Golden State, which is set in California.

This is a post apocalyptic tale, with you only finding out this at the very end of the book, but isn't something that impacts the tale.

I really enjoyed this book, and would thoroughly recommend it. It would be classified as sci-fi for the lie detection powers, and because it's post apocalyptic.

Golden State is out now, and is available on Amazon, and everywhere else you can find books! It was published on 24th January this year.

I was given this book for free in return for an unbiased review, so my thanks to NetGalley and to Random House, and Cornerstone (the publishers) for this book.

Check out my GoodReads profile to see more reviews!

The Golden State is a futuristic dystopian California where truth is all important and those who lie are jailed. Everyone is constantly under constant video surveillance and must keep a Day Book recording all their daily actions and conversations. People greet each other by reeling off facts (such as the square of three is nine) and there is no fiction only 'novels' stating known truths. Laszlo Ratesic is a human lie detector, employed by the Speculative Services to enforce the law as he can somehow sense when someone is lying. He has been in the service faithfully doing his job for 19 years following in the footsteps of his brilliant brother Charlie who died a hero on the job. When Laszlo and his new partner Ayso Paige are called out to an accidental death, he senses that something is not right. As Laszlo and Ayso investigate why the man was on the roof, they discover something is very wrong indeed but it may cost Laszlo his job or destroy his life.

An intriguing novel where those in power manipulate or twist the truth to suit themselves while maintaining control over those they serve. With echos of 1984 and similar dystopian novels, this is also a timely commentary on contemporary political issues such as 'fake news' and autocratic states.

I do love the dark and thought provoking dystopian novels. Reminding me of 1984 and Fahrenheit 451, where lying can result in exile. I would have preferred this to be shorter as I felt it did start to drag out a little.

I loved the book and the idea of a Golden state where Speculation Agents could sense if people were lying and everything was recorded, be it paper or video of everyone's day, so everything could be known. Imagine the big brother state we sometimes feel we have with cctv cameras everywhere, but times it by 1000 and that every interaction and receipt for a day is recorded and kept - forever, so there us a true record of everything.

Its an interesting novel, the whole premise of a Golden State is great, but boy it was a confusing read too. It is a true record of a story interjected with a narrator, who also adds two other stories within it as part of the main story! Its hard to explain its flow.

However, I felt so let down from part two as there didnt really seem to be a proper explanation as to why and the ending - or lack there of - it doesn't explain how someone is there or even why. I am left with the feeling of far too many unanswered questions.

I received this book from netgalley in return for a honest review.

A fantastic, slickly written dystopia where The Truth is held above all else- liars are punished and everything you say and do is recorded. The state has full control. Amongst this we have a murder mystery- brilliantly portrayed and played out. Fantastic book.

A world-weary hero, state control, set in a dystopian future Golden State is a haunting and deeply relevant book for our time.

Golden State builds an unique dystopian existence around truth. Everything you utter must be true, lying is illegal and punishable by exile. The time before is unknown and unknowable and not to be questioned or examined in any way. It is a peculiar world born of knowable facts and quite serious. It dwells somewhere in California, near Los Angeles, but it is simply the Golden State now. Laszlo Ratesic works in the Speculative Service and is sensitive to lying. He prowls the Golden State taking into custody any who utter lies. But, something is afoot that doesn't quite add up. Can Laz crack it?

I was thoroughly hooked by the premise and just when I felt I could get onboard with what was happening, the scope shifted and left me floundering. The first half of the book was solid and engaging but slid out of control for me after 'the big event'. It just became stranger and stranger. Having just finished the book I'm not sure I could sum up what it means and what transpired. Sorry, maybe I failed to focus enough to track the story properly?

Sadly I have to admit defeat when it came to this book. I was unable to connect with the characters nor plot.
Thank you to both NetGalley and Random House UK for my eARC in exchange for my honest unbiased review

"Imagine if everyone did it. Imagine if each person was allowed the luxury of claiming their own truth, building a reality of their own in which they can live. Imagine the danger that would pose, how quickly those lies would metastasize, ad the extraordinary threat that would pose to the world."

Set in what is ostensibly a post-apocalyptic Los Angeles, GOLDEN STATE tells the story of Laszlo, a man whose job it is to tell when people are lying and to see that they are arrested for it and put into a penal system where only the truth, and nothing by the truth, is acceptable. In this city you must speak only facts, at every hour of every day, or you will suffer the consequences.

But what happens when Laszlo is sent to investigate what seems to be an accidental death, only to find that not all is as it seems - and those who should respect the truth the most seem to be doing their best to hide it from him?

GOLDEN STATE is a mysterious thriller set in a mysterious world. Something dire has happened in the United States of America and, as a result, an entire new governmental system has been put in place to protect the people. During the course of the book, Laszlo, our grumpy and imperfect hero, is tested to his limit when his faith in the Golden State is put in doubt. Shocks and surprises lay around almost every corner as we follow him trying to work out the real truth that lies beyond the supposed truth.

I enjoyed this story and the scope of the concept, but I struggled a little with not having a full explanation of this new world and how it came to be. On finishing the book, it felt to me as though there were some loose ends - however, I totally respect that in this sort of dystopian fiction - that which takes place in a world of the author's invention - not every aspect of that world may ever be totally clear to the reader.

I would happily read more by the author.

A futuristic dystopia world where you cannot lie. The book centres too much around the unique view, and not enough about the storyline, plot or characters. Whilst there have been some truly outstanding dystopia novels, which seem to fill a niche market, this is not one of them.

This novel really gave me the shudders because it seemed that it could all become too real. Don't get me wrong I aren't a compulsive liar just think that everyone at times twists the truth, mostly not to hurt someone's feelings but imagine if not telling the truth was a serious crime. The thought of having to keep a diary that has to be confirmed by other people who were with me just tells me how extreme the law is. Big brother is definitely watching.
You would think that as no-one tells lies that a police force wouldn't be needed but unfortunately the human race haven't grown that much. The story centres round Laz, a law enforcement officer with a real talent of sensing when someone is telling a lie. When a guy falls off a building the case shatters all he has believed in.
This is a crazy story that just played with my mind in so many ways. Set in the Golden State, formerly California the time is now and there isn't a past, everything before has gone so no-one knows why this all came about. Laz is still mourning the death of his brother, a man who had the same talent as he has, that was also an Officer like him. Laz is set on a course that could destroy him if he is so determined to find the real truth. A brilliant character.
You could say that this story has been done over and over in the past but really give this a read. Somethings don't ever change, power, money and greed mean more than life, especially if it is someone else's. It is shockingly good.
I wish to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an e-copy of this book which I have honestly reviewed.

4 stars

Another great read by science fiction novelist Ben H. Winters. This had all the elements of a dystopian novel, fear and hope under new systems of belief and justice and the establishment of a new normal. With hints of 1984 and a touch of supernatural, main protagonist Lazlo Ratesic can sniff out a lie in a noisy and crowded café, and lies are just not on in the Golden State. 

As far as mystery’s go, this one had me guessing all the way with its current story arc and the flashbacks to Lazlo’s big brother Charlie who was the supreme ‘Speculator’ and hero of the State.

I really enjoy this author and I very much liked Underground Airlines, which was released in 2017. I must add some of his back catalogue to my reading list and I look forward to what he comes up with in his next book.

Thank you to Random House UK, Cornerstone and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Welcome to the Golden State by Ben H. Winters, where you are legally only allowed to tell the truth, or the speculators will find you out. Golden State is dystopian fiction, akin to Orwell's 1984 in its format and the bleak landscape. It is an interesting kind of world to imagine yourself being a part of, however it didn't cause me to fear that it would one day happen. Golden State by Ben H. Winters was published yesterday by Century.

The story
Laszlo Ratesic is a speculator, which means that he helps to enforce the law by speculating upon lies people tell, or lies that could surround a crime. He is introduced to a new partner, Aysa Paige, a young woman who is incredibly enthusiastic and raring to get started with the job. After Laszlo's brother died a few years earlier, he has been trying to find out why it happened and connect the dots. He now enlists Aysa to help him, which could be a fatal mistake or a ground-breaking success.
My thoughts...
Golden State by Ben H. Winters is a difficult book to get into right away. You are thrown into the deep end in terms of style of language, their laws and beliefs and their relationships. There isn't a huge amount of 'world building', but what is there is pretty good. Once you settle into the pace of the novel, it's a good story. It reads like a murder mystery for the most part, but with using the facts and only speculating when absolutely necessary. I enjoyed the middle section of the book the most, and was really starting to get into it when their 'big discovery' happened and then the book fell a bit flat.

Character-wise, I liked Aysa and wished that she had been the main point-of-view, especially because we only saw her through Laszlo's eyes, which made her seem a bit annoying, while that was just his view to begin with. I have to say I couldn't care less about Laszlo. I didn't get his character, and just when I felt that I was starting to understand and like him, the third section began and I was spun right round again and didn't understand what he was all about. I also felt that there was a lot of information lacking about any other character.

Overall, this book is okay. I didn't struggle to read it, but struggled with the unrealistic plot and unsympathetic characters. I felt that Winters could have gone a lot further with his truth-telling world, or come out of it sooner and explored the other part of the world more. This, for me was a 3* read. I would recommend this to people who want to read incredibly politically-driven books. Thank you to Century and NetGalley for my e-arc of Golden State by Ben H. Winters in exchange for an honest review.