Ground Truth

by Rob Sangster

Epic Award Winning Author!The Jack Strider Thriller TRUTHDEEP TIMENO RETURN"A masterful, high-stakes thriller."--Lisa Turner, bestselling author of A Little Death in DixiePracticing law has never been so deadly.Hotshot Stanford law professor Jack Strider is on the fast track to serve on the Supreme Court until a bullet and a nasty, front-page family scandal shatter that ambition. After he's unjustly fired from the law school faculty, a powerhouse law firm run by a former Secretary of State offers Jack a job and a chance for redemption. His first do whatever it takes to defend a sleazy corporate client in Juarez, Mexico, the Murder Capital of the World. Soon, Jack realizes that if he can't stop his client, millions of people on both sides of the border will be poisoned. Plunged into the violence of the Texas-Mexican borderlands, Jack discovers that he can trust no one, not even the law firm he works for, so when attorney Debra Vanderberg is sent to assist Jack, he doesn't know whether she's an ally or a spy. He has no choice but to trust her and pray he isn't wrong. Racing against the clock and dodging bullets, Jack and Debra uncover corporate greed and political corruption that lead all the way from a sacred cave in the Mexican mountains to the Oval Office. When the President of the United States refuses to stop the impending catastrophes, Jack risks everything, including his life. But can he learn the "ground truth" fast enough to save the millions destined to die?Rob Sangster's first Jack Strider novel, GROUND TRUTH, was #1 on Amazon Kindle. His second, DEEP TIME, won the 2017 EPIC Award for best suspense/thriller of the year. A Stanford lawyer with experience in finance, politics, and public service, he's an avid sailor who has travelled to more than 100 countries. Rob and his mystery writer wife divide their time between their homes in Tennessee and on the wild coast of Nova Scotia.

Genres: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Ebooks, Mystery Thriller

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 30, 2008

Reviews

[Christi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Truth

I couldn't get into this. I kept putting it down, hoping that the next time I picked it up it would grab me. Sadly, it never did. There is so much filler and fluff that completely distracted me from the story. Trying to keep track of how water (and sludge) gets from point A to point B, what location we're in, which honcho is an immediate threat - there were just too many things going on. The random sex wasn't helpful either. If it carries along the story, fine -- I can overlook it. When it's simply inserted to add another layer to a story that's already toppling, it's just overkill. Too much filler, not enough substance.

[Carin Rafferty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good thriller. The only thing I love more is a good thriller that teaches me something new about our world. Ground Truth is both a timely environmental thriller that shows just how important it is to protect our water supplies, but it's also a great thriller with an intrepid hero with some interesting and fun sidekicks. I look forward to more books from this author.

[Tulay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eco-thriller.

Jack Strider is very good professor and lawyer. He was dealt a bad hand by his father's legacy, but against all odds he did managed to expose how nuclear and very deadly waste was being transferred and possessed. Money hungry, corrupt lawyers, American and Mexican officials.

[Jerry Walch · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has to be one of the best, if not the best, legal thrillers that I have read in years. It's a page turner, you wont want to stop reading until you have read the very last word in the very last sentence. I can only hope that Rob has plans for writing another book featuring Jack and Debra. Get it, read it, you'll be glad that you did.

[Cndy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nuclear waste and what does and doesn't happen to it. Intriguing story. And how is it we treat Mexico? Makes you wonder what's true and what's make believe.

[Don Vert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kept me interested

I was sceptical in the beginning of the story, but was hooked by the second chapter. Well written, could not stop reading.

[Rodney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this story. Very gripping and fast paced. A look into how corrupt people really are.

[Sandra Casile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbelievable storyline.

This is one of those stories you don't want to put down because you need to get to the end.

[Pauline J · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powerful!

What a read!! My first time with this author, and a great experience! Fast moving and very informative. Looking forward to this author's next read.

[Hua · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suppose the story was quite alright. The version I experienced was an audio style performed by Menesses. It was a good performance. I have to confess that I was about 85% into the story and just couldn't go any further. I felt that the story was written for typical American white middle-class and has many cliché characters, I mean really cliché, like watching a Hollywood movie. The Mexicans were all (but maybe 2) mean, nasty, drunk, money hungry and devilish. Anyway, after listening to most of the story, I really don't feel like having anything to do with Mexico or Mexicans in real life if that nation is really how it is depicted in the story. There was just not enough 'real life' complexities and humane characters to maintain my interest.

[Jill Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very fast-paced and kept me on the edge of my seat. Why hasn’t Sangster written more than two books?
Jack Strider goes to work as an entry-level partner in a S.F. law firm. Justin Sinclair, one of two managing partners sends Jack to Juarez, Mexico to look into claims that Palmer Industries, a client, is not following Mexico’s environmental protection laws and is dumping toxic waste into the water supply affecting Juarez and El Paso, TX. Jack discovers that it is a much worse situation than first suspected and that the manager of the Juarez plant is deep in illegal dumping and profiting from it. Who else is involved? This is what Jack is determined to find out and risking his life, a female co-worker’s and Gano, a pilot he has hired.

[Peggy Tree · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning of the book seemed dull. Then it took off running like the "Jaws" white shark. It's a great story and is based on actual problems with the problems of treating and storing high and low nuclear waste. It's a terrific page turner and I 'm glad that I kept reading. Secrets, bribery, murder, intrigue, spying, high stakes in protecting the environment in Mexico and the USA makes for a darned good book you won't want to put down.

[Kelvin Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Ground Truth" (2017) by Rob Sangster is not a courtroom drama, as I had thought. Still, the story about law professor Jack Strider fighting corruption at every turn as he fights to stop a huge American company from illegally dumping tons of toxic waste in Mexico has its moments of entertaining intrigue and action. Recommended.

[Kira · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick moving plot filled with lots of drama. I like that there was a small love interest but that it in no way dominated the story line. I got this for free on the Amazon top seller list but definitely would have paid for it.

[GW · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ground Truth

I've tried to read this book twice now. Once again, I'm throwing in the towel. If just seems like it meanders along using a bunch of words without saying anything.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great start to a great series

[Lisa Steiner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating

Intrigue.....mystery.....action....bit of romance....perfect novel! Appeared to be well researched....sad to think greed is such a powerful motivator over concern for human life!

[Shari Morehouse · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ground Truth was requested through netgalley.com to review. I requested it because it was a mystery/thriller and because it is Sangster’s first novel although not the first book that he's had published.

The main character is Jack Strider, a corporate lawyer with aspirations to the Supreme Court. His world is turned upside down when his father commits suicide and ugly truths are revealed about what he was involved in. Jack is immediately tainted by this even though he and his father were not close or working together. As a result he is thrust into a new company with a new mandate which almost immediately starts getting him into trouble.

This novel is a fast-paced thriller that was only slowed down for me by some of the awkward formatting on my Kindle. I felt some of the scene changes were a bit sloppy and I sometimes had to read a few pages back to figure out how the transition had happened. This could just be an editing issue rather than a flaw in the writing.

The plot centers on hazardous waste and water issues in Mexico. It turns out that Sangster has the background to write this type of novel since he was a lawyer, has done a lot of travelling and is involved in bringing clean water to Mexico.

The story is interesting and the characters are well-developed. It seems a bit preachy at times but clearly the author is passionate about his subject so that the novel not only entertains but informs.

I would highly recommend this book and look forward to more from this author.

[Pat Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Page turner, page turner, page turner! This book surprised me. I'd met the author, knew he was a lawyer and a world traveler with a strong interest in social justice (right down my alley) so I bought it. By the time I got to the third page I was hooked on the book and the pace picked up with every chapter as "hotshot Stanford law professor Jack Strider" gets fired from his job because his cold-hearted, highly successful father (who commits suicide in front of him on page 3) has been caught smuggling underage girls into the U.S.from Mexico and Jack is deemed guilty by association. Strider reluctantly accepts a position at a politically well-connected firm that sends him to Mexico to work with a sleazy client who is importing hazardous waste from the U.S. and has no problem with dumping it into the Rio Grande, knowing that it could poison thousands of Mexicans. How Strider and Gano, the tough, savvy, fearless and funny companion he enlists to help him keep this from happening kept me turning pages into the wee hours. The few passages about the composition of nuclear waste were above my pay grade but the passages about Strider's brief, rather steamy interactions with a Mexican woman he tries to rescue and with a former student now a beautiful lawyer in his new firm, more than make up for it. This action-packed book with a strong message about the shortage of potable water in Mexico and our problem with nuclear waste could easily be the first in a series--or a movie. I loved it.

[John]

Ground Truth (A Jack Strider Novel)
by Rob Sangster (Goodreads Author)
4.17 · Rating Details · 295 Ratings · 25 Reviews
Racing against the clock and dodging bullets, Jack and Debra
uncover corporate greed and political corruption that lead all
the way from a sacred cave in the Mexican mountains to the
Oval Office. When the President of the United States refuses
to stop the impending catastrophes, Jack risks everything,
including his life. But can he learn the "ground truth" fast
enough to save the millions destined to die? (less)
Was very interesting--well written

[Terric853 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I almost stopped reading this book because the first half was so slow and crappy. Jack Strider's world is thrown into chaos when his father, a well-respected judge, kills himself because it's about to revealed that he was the owner of a cargo freighter that illegally kidnapped and transported Mexican girls aged 14 - 16 into the US for prostutition.

After getting fired from his job as a law professor at Stanford (because of the scandal associated with his father), he takes a job at the premier San Francisco law firm. They promptly send him to Mexico to defend an American company who's being charged with violating environmental law. Once there, he realizes that the company is not only violating environmental laws, but is also posing a threat to the local community.

Bring in nuclear threats, people with no morals who will stop at nothing short of assassinating Jack and his friends to prevent the "real" story from becoming public, the hopelessly bumbling President of the US, and the story picks up. The last half was better, but I still feel that this book was a waste of time and I will not bother with any of the sequels.

[Hester Maree · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stanford law professor, Jack Strider, is forced to abandon his goal of serving on the U.S. Supreme Court when his father involves him in a scandal, effectively ruining his reputation. Jobless and desperate, he accepts an assignment from an accredited law firm, which takes him to crime-ridden Juarez, Mexico, San Francisco and the Oval Office.
His brief is to defend a corrupt corporate client, who is a kingpin in the business of illegal nuclear waste disposal. In the end Jack doesn't know who to trust, but decides that defending his client goes against his own principles of upholding the law and saving a poor community from nuclear annihilation.
This is a busy, action-packed thriller with lots of suspense and intriguing twists. It took me a while to get into it with its multiple characters, rather intricate legal jargon and frequent translations from Mexican, but once I did it was fast-paced and a page turner. It also covered well-researched and interesting information about the problems nuclear production companies have concerning waste disposal and the incredible hazards involved.

[Arum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book. I could not put it down. I felt as if I was in the book itself; as if I was in the story and seeing and watching the event unfold. I felt same kind of confusion as Jack in the beginning. However, I was not surprised by the backlash maybe because I know many people who would react as his "mentor" or his boss would. I was also a little bit shocked that he didn't seem to fully understand how his rivals and enemies at work would take advantage of his situation. I know if what had happened to Jack happened to me. I would be working pulling all connections to protect myself. I really like the book. The science did not seem to far-fetched or out there. I think it made me realize to a greater extent how American companies may operate in other countries that do not have the same protections and laws that protect their employees.

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack Strider strives to eventually be appointed to the Supreme Court. He thinks he's on a set course by making a name for himself as a law professor. However, his father's suicide and the discovery that his father was likely involved in smuggling young Mexican girls into the country for human trafficking, derails Jack's path. Jack accepts the advice of a mentor who lines up a job with a big law firm. However, Jack soon finds himself shuffled off to Mexico to deal with a problem for one of the firm's clients. In Mexico, Jack finds that he must choose between what he knows to be the right thing and his career ambitions.

This book raises some important questions that should be considered by anyone who finds themself in that same predicament.

[Ian Carrillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing occasionally suffers from what seems to be a lack of editing and a reliance on clichés, but I was captivated from page one. At first, the very fast pace of the story threw me off. Characters make decisions very quickly and change their minds on a dime. But after a while I started to appreciate that. Sangster doesn't include a lot of extraneous detail and keeps the story moving forward.

Though the actions and motives of some characters aren't completely believable to me, I highly recommend this book if you're looking for a fast-paced and engaging thriller.

[Layne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the premise and most of the plot. I thought the book was going along great until about 3/4 of the way into it. The second that he boarded Air Force One, the wheels came off the story. I don't mind stretching the limits of plausibility in this genre (actually, I would expect it) however, this one wandered a bit too far.
Also, the end seemed a bit protracted and it appeared that a political agenda was being pushed on the reader.

[Sally Bartlett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chock full of intrigue, bad guys, danger and suspense

Actually it was too chock full for my reading taste and too detailed about every maneuver so I only gave it 3 stars but to the right reader it would be 5. Very well written but I skipped lots of chapters after half way through to get to the final 2.

[Sandi Stover · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. I really like the characters Jack, Debra and Gano. What a crazy adventure they had. I'll definitely read the next book in the series to see where their adventure takes them next.

[Wendy Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a fun, easy read if you enjoy action adventure. A real page-turner. The starter book for what promises to be a series I will continue.

[LDean · Rating 3 out of 5]

S,L