Another example of a flawed judicial system and a clear lack of initiative and motivation to find and convict the right person for a brutal crime. Joshua Sharpe did an amazing job investigating this and getting it down on paper in a way that kept the true story intriquing. Often these types of Journalistic true crime novels end up just being fact’s spewed at you on the pages and don’t focus on the true narrative of the story being shared. I really found that Joshua did a great job balancing this on the pages. Honestly such a hear breaking story to read about but one that everyone should take the time to learn about and reflect on.

The Man No One Believed is out August 5th, 2025! Thank you NetGalley, Joshua Sharpe, and W. W. Norton & Company for the ARC. This ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Joshua Sharpe delivers a riveting, deeply humane work of literary journalism that rises far above conventional true crime. Centered on the 1985 murders of Harold and Thelma Swain—beloved leaders in their Black church community in rural Georgia—and the decades-long wrongful conviction of Dennis Perry, The Man No One Believed is part investigation, part moral reckoning, and wholly unforgettable.

Sharpe reconstructs how thin evidence, small‑county politics, racial bias, and prosecutorial tunnel vision converged to put the wrong man behind bars. His reporting is meticulous yet propulsive; the book reads with the urgency of a thriller even as it peels back systemic rot layer by layer. I was especially struck by the way Sharpe weaves courtroom records, forensic missteps, and first‑person interviews into a narrative that indicts complacency as much as corruption.

What gives the book its emotional voltage is Sharpe’s compassion for everyone harmed by the crime and the miscarriage of justice that followed: the Swain family’s grief, Perry’s stolen years, a mother who never stopped believing her son, and a community divided by race and doubt. The scenes of Perry’s long wait for vindication—and the eventual unraveling of the case against him—left me gutted and grateful in equal measure.

If I had one wish, it’s that the post‑exoneration stretch were longer; after so many pages spent exposing failure, I wanted more on what accountability and repair could (or couldn’t) look like. Still, the impact is enormous. Sharpe stands comfortably alongside Bryan Stevenson (Just Mercy) and the journalistic rigor of works like Ghettoside in showing how individual stories illuminate structural injustice.

Powerful, urgent, and necessary—this is narrative journalism doing its highest work.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the gifted copy in exchange for my honest review.

Wow what a read. Heartbreaking and also maddening, this does not disappoint.
Thanks to author, publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book. While I got the book for free it had no bearing on the rating I gave it.

This book was difficult to stay engaged with. It read very slow and it was a story that could have been told in fewer pages.

*some spoilers ahead*

This is a well researched and well written account of the Georgia Church Murders. I hadn't heard of this case before reading this book, but it did an excellent job with recounting that night and retelling all of the suspected events and theories that were floating around. I'm also glad that this wasn't only a rehashing of those events, but also included a broader discussion of the racism and hate bound up in this crime. I'm sad that it took so long for Perry to get justice and to have his conviction overturned, but I'm glad it came before it was too late for him to enjoy his life. However, it's awful that there was a bigger push to free Perry than to pour the resources needed into finding the Swain's real killer. The DA's office was so frustrating, and the reluctance to free Perry and prosecute Sparre was infuriating. I'm glad that there's still some hope for the Swain family, and that there were a few people pushing for justice even when everyone else was content to let Perry take the fall and move on.

The Man No One Believed: The Untold Story of the Georgia Church Murders by Joshua Sharpe is an outstanding and powerful true crime book that tells the harrowing story of a double murder committed in a Georgia church in 1985. The victims—a prominent African American couple—deserved justice, but instead, the case became a tragic example of corruption and wrongful conviction.

Sharpe’s research is meticulous, guiding readers from the night of the murders through both the original investigation, and the deeply flawed investigation, the wrongful arrest and conviction of an innocent man, and ultimately, the hard-fought battle to exonerate him. He paints such a vivid and detailed picture that you feel like you're right there with him, sitting in on interviews and uncovering the truth piece by piece.

The book also exposes the staggering level of corruption and negligence it took for such a miscarriage of justice to occur. It’s infuriating, heartbreaking—and ultimately, hopeful.

I can’t recommend this book enough. It’s a triumph not only because the real killer was eventually found, but because the innocent man was freed, and thanks to Sharpe’s work, their stories are now known. This is true crime journalism at its best.

I received a copy to review. All opinions are my own.
This was a very well written book that covered every aspect of the crime and subsequent conviction and everything afterwards. I definitely was shocked by this case and how it was handled and it’s so important for writers and journalists to cover things like this to keep the public informed and educated. I also enjoyed the authors ties to the area and how he handled gathering the information for this book.

Joshua Sharpe writes an incredible story of a 1985 double murder, and the fight to exonerate an innocent man.

A white man walked into a South Georgia church and brutally murdered Harold and Thelma Swain in 1985. The killer vanishes into thin air. The case remained unsolved for 15 years and then one day authorities charge an innocent man. Dennis Perry received a double life sentence.

Joshua Sharpe discovers a path of corruption and injustice. Even after he hits dead ends during his investigation he finds it unacceptable. He is determined to find the truth. He eventually finds evidence to prove Perry's innocence and discovers the real killer. The real culprit is an alleged white supremacist who wasn’t shy to tell everyone he had committed the murders. I find it scary that he decided he needed to face the real murderer.

As he was fighting for justice, people that were to help with the investigation turned up dead. The local officials fought to keep Perry in prison in spite of evidence that proves he had nothing to do with the murders.

This is one of the most unbelievable books of corruption in a local community and the cover up is even more incredible. This book kept me on the edge of my seat.

THE MAN NO ONE BELIEVED by Joshua Sharpe is an absolute must-read for anyone interested in true crime—and especially those interested in learning more about cases where justice took far too long to be served.

Sharpe, an investigative journalist, was asked by a Georgia Innocence Project to look into the conviction of Dennis Perry, who was (wrongfully) convicted of the double murders of Mr and Mrs Swain. The Swains, who are black, were killed while in their country church attending a missionary meeting. Despite zero physical evidence, and the only witness statement coming from a woman who suffered from hallucinations and delusions, Perry was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to life.

It was heartbreaking to read this book in many ways. To know what Perry went through as well as the Swain family, who believed police when they were told the right man was behind bars. Much applause goes to the few investigators who knew Perry was innocent and who did all they could despite pushback to help prove it. The amount of racism, shoddy police work, and blind eyes due to politics displayed throughout this case is mind boggling.

I literally finished this book in a single day. I could not put it down. The author did a stellar job researching and investigating and I was so happy to see the outcome of his (and everyone involved… including the brave witnesses who came forward) hard work. People need to realize that something like this can happen to anyone.

Sharpe writes in a way that is easy to read and quickly become invested. Some of his descriptions, especially of the area, are at the same time so beautiful.

Many thanks to the author, the publisher, and netgalley for providing me an advanced reader copy of this title in exchange for my honest review.
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