A ruthless high-tech conspiracy rewrote scientific history.
A young man in Appalachia finds a forgotten book in an old library that could unlock "The Hidden Truth."
The conspiracy suppressed a crucial paper by Oliver Heaviside. Three other scientists, Maxwell, Hertz, and FitzGerald, died - or were killed - before they could complete their work. Once is happenstance, and twice is coincidence, but three times is enemy action.
Who is this enemy? How have they corrupted, not just science, but also society? And what will happen when the conspirators become aware that someone else is seeking...
"The Hidden Truth"?
Readers React: "It's like Dan Brown meets Ayn Rand!" "Intriguing premise, provocative conclusion." "This is a real page turner. I couldn't put it down, and I'm anxiously awaiting the sequel."
Alternate history with a deadly government conspiracy to cover up truths about science, probably similar to a Dan Brown book. Teenagers come across the cover up during their studies, unwittingly drawing the attention of dangerous shadowy forces.
Good characters and enjoyed the conspiracy, hope the series continues.
As the title says, this is a science fiction thriller - a suspenseful mystery set in a world that is today, and yet not exactly today. It is a mystery story that starts off in a sleepy small town but slowly wraps up into a taught thriller with life and death on the line.
But it's not just an action story. The mystery itself is cleverly concocted to be both far out, and yet believable. It's easily accessible without any special knowledge, but if you know your E vector from your B vector, or an onion router from a firewall, it will only help make the mystery more interesting.
But there is more to the story than just geeky physics trivia and cyber warfare. The story also raises some deep socio-political issues that leave the reader with plenty to think about. It is an action adventure story that is grounded in big ideas.
I found it a very enjoyable read. It gets tense, perhaps even grim at times. But it is ultimately uplifting because of the kind of characters the story creates-clever, resilient, determined people, willing to take risks and live life to the fullest.
I so enjoyed this alternate reality story by Mr Schantz. Not only was it enthralling, I also enjoyed his conservative views and dismantling of liberal progressive ideology. 180 degrees out of phase with most recent books on Amazon.
Entertaining alternative history/Y.A. novel detailing a high-school boy's discovery that someone has been tampering with scientific history, particularly in the area of electro-magnetics. What begins as light-hearted detective work ends in blood as mysterious forces set out to stop the investigation and permanently silence our protagonist, his friends and family.
The story is very Tom-Clancyesque in its emphasis on pace and story. And while a bit geeky in certain technical details, with several characters coming across as cliched, the tale holds interest and moves along. Ending on an unresolved note, there is a sequel that takes us further into the protagonist's struggle against ruthless forces determined to steer history from the shadows.
I just finished one of the strangest books I have read in years. It wasn't written to be a parody, but there were parts that made me laugh out loud--because sometimes unintentional humor is the best kind.
The name of this thing was "The Hidden Truth" by Hans G. Schantz. It self-describes as a techno-thriller. It is written from a politically conservative viewpoint.
Have you read much Heinlein? Heinlein at his best was a fun, rewarding read--not deep, but fun. Heinlein was often not at his best, such as in his book "Starship Troopers," probably his best-known work, which would actually be much better if the multi-page rant on the necessity of corporal punishment for children had been entirely left out.
Like Heinlein, this book interjects political commentary--not once, but very frequently, pretty much on every page. There is nothing subtle about this--by comparison, Tom Clancy is a master of the delicate--and, like Heinlein's diatribe on spanking, it often breaks the flow of the story.
The book is full of unintentional humor. Every character is a conservative trope--the father figure who has technical knowledge and investigative skills that would put Batman to shame, incredibly competent, master of any skill or discipline you can name, who helps his children--one of whom is our protagonist-- from the rarefied height of his moral superiority.
The stay-at-home mother who has, of course, dedicated her life to her children, but secretly has the marksmanship (but not the indestructibility, sadly) of Natasha Romanoff--even though of course there is no time for her to spend time on the gun range to practice--because she is always at home for her children.
The apparently dim, "redneck" Sheriff who secretly has the deductive ability of Sherlock Holmes and is privately a champion of the rights of the accused.
In short, in the world this book presents, morality is linked with authority--the proper authorities are always supremely good, absolutely moral, and incredibly effective.
This is world-making on a fifth-grade level.
There is some tech in the book--the author knows a bit about physics and a bit about setting up routers and a bit about the Dark Web--but while the book promises a Big Mystery revolving around early discoveries in physics, it never delivers on its promise.
It is actually a fairly decent book as far as being enjoyable to read--I have read worse--but in the end proves frustrating as it merely stops instead of concluding, leaving the reader with empty hands for all it has promised.
Come to think of it, isn't that what Conservatives usually do?
I almost laid down my phone & did not finish this. At 40+% in. I thought it highly implausible. Every character was brilliant in their field. The 2 young men were brilliant students and very industrious, doing all kinds of extra work for credit. And tossing in ham radio certification & debate prep into the few spare moments they have. Both of which they aced, of course. They design & build all their own spyware equipment and scanners etc. Totally unbelievable.
Then there was the implausible, at that point, very weak plot. An almost non existent conflict few would believe would lead to anything adventurous, let alone dangerous.
Then there were all the references to scientists who developed electromagnetic theories. Even I, with college physics & math under my belt thought it was the worst kind of intellectual signaling.
But somehow it was edited well enough to make it readable. So I continued. And I'm glad I did.
Eventually the plot heated up and the characters grew real. Less perfect. More frightened. There was real conflict and some characters fooled you! Turning out to be entirely different than early impressions I had. It became easy to suspend disbelief.
So I do strongly recommend the book. But be aware, you may be rolling your eyes and thinking "yea. I bet" through most of the first half.
Conspiracy theory? Yes. But in a speculative historical way. Not in a modern conspiratorial way. Yes there was 1 secret society. But the book was not really about that. But it was critical to some motivations of certain characters.
I doubt that mainstream media believers, people who scoff at ideas of nefarious groups who seek absolute control of all the peoples of earth. People who are dissolute and will do anything to achieve their evil goals, will enjoy this book much. But I could be wrong. They should have a tolerance for tech talk, though. It is not overdone, but figures heavily into almost everything in the book.
My Kindle copy was well organized & used Kindle's extra features. Just as you would expect a techie author to do.
4 stars, only because the 1st half was so implausible, though still very readable
An interesting, philosophically significant, plausible reinterpretation of 19th and 20th century history, science, economic, and social developments. Educational as well as entertaining. A young student discovers that original thought and independence can bring more trouble than imagined . . . on the way to becoming a “hidden truth” himself.
Additional fun if you are already familiar with some of the history and heroes of physics. Even more with a free market, limited government orientation. Actual books, places, events are incorporated; references to real villains like Paul Ehrlich and real heroes like Julian Simon and Norman Borlaug; pointers to websites like wattsupwiththat and instapundit; technology like Linux, TOR, and Pringle cans. (Unfortunately, I cannot find an actual hookuplanding site.)
An eclectic range of things are woven in to flesh out the culture and drama: importance of Heaviside’s work, insight into hypnotism, literary significance of 1924, dishonesty in science, Project Gutenberg, DuckDuckGo, Homeland Security, Common Core, the TVA, the Oak Ridge Lab, FDRs confiscation of gold, and much more. So much that it is worth reading twice. Even has EVIL minions.
As common with a first novel, the writing is somewhat stilted (if that is the word). Perhaps, should have 4 stars, but truly deserves the attention of 5 stars on several levels.
Minimalist alternative history in the 21st century has a President Gore killed in the 9/11 attack, but his legacy lives on in a Gore Tax on energy. The government’s dream comes true with an Internet monopoly, Omnitia. Good news, the Firefly TV show gets a second season.
Additional book sections, About The Hidden Truth and About The Author, are interesting as well. Schantz recommends a number of related and coming-of-age sci-fi works. Gives me the excuse to add Moon’s "Trading in Danger," with an especially strong commercial aspect, plus "Once A Hero;" and Kirstein’s "Steerswoman," a science mystery quest of a different nature; and Crichton’s "State of Fear," tackling environmentalism and government, where the appendix is equally worthy.
A young budding scientist student and his IT know-how friend enthusiastically decided to compare a multitude of public domain books against original copies of titles written pre 1923. The world they live in is very similar to the USA we know, except it seems President Gore won the election and not President Bush. At least this is the way I interpreted the backdrop of the story. I’m assuming some of the other political characters, mentioned at the start, are people that may have held such office if the Gore candidacy won the election. The dreadful historical events of 9/11/ have all happened but the response is from the alternative politicians. Being a Brit, it took a moment or two for this to register. But it did – eventually. This intrigued me. Plus the story is written in first person singular from the young scientist’s perspective. With help from an IT proficient friend and an encouraging/positive father, our student science graduate takes the reader into a conspiracy world of economic truths. The story has an up close and personal feel. Especially with omitted scientific discovery. Much of the science was above my head, but the crux of withheld information certainly was not. The new online versions of many scientific books have been altered. The young explorers begin to go through books in a proficient yet independently founded town library. They discover hidden things when compared to the newly written digital versions. They open a Pandora’s book. That is when the story begins to get more interesting. The two techno warriors have already assumed they are going to be tracked before they embark upon their adventure. They have done some prep work to evade. However, government anonymity is a double-edged sword as the techno-thriller starts to role. Splendidly written, especially from the first person singular angle. I felt as though I was there all the way. If you are a conspiracy theory fan, then I would recommend this story. Also if you like government rouge style thrillers.
Schantz builds a sci-fi thriller on top of an robust and well-considered alternative history, but what makes it truly impressive to me is the sheer quantity of real world history and science he ties into it (he even provides quite a few references for the curious reader). He makes it clear that this is an alternate timeline by changing some big things right away, but those changes aren't key (at least in this first book) to the unfolding conflict.
It's in the details that things get interesting. Real world facts and actual printing errors mix with subtle fiction to become a pattern and evidence of an international conspiracy. The whole story has a carefully considered plausibility that I think is the mark of good hard SF.
I also really appreciated the way the author approached writing for a young adult audience (the protagonist is a high school senior, so I assume this qualifies as YA).
A problem I have with a lot of YA fiction is the tendency towards stories that require all of the teenagers to be brilliant and hyper-competent, always one step ahead of the inept, oblivious adults thanks to skills they most likely haven't been alive long enough to master. It just comes across as lazy writing.
The major characters in this book have all have plausible strengths and limitations. The main character is an above average student. His best friend is a computer nerd, not a super hacker, with IT knowledge within the realm of possibility for a smart 17-year-old with those interests (speaking from experience). They rely on the expertise of numerous adults throughout the story to fill in significant gaps in their knowledge and competencies and they make reasonable mistakes that have serious consequences.
There's a lull in the action in the first third as you follow the lives of a teen boy, his genius best friend, and their families, and you think maybe this geeky story is going to be rather mild. Then the intrigue kicks in and the sinister agents show up and its spy vs. spy and for the last half you can't put it down.
Hans G. Schantz had created a spellbinding thriller while managing to add just the right amount of clever speculative science, compliments of his background as a researcher and tech entrepreneur. And if that's not enough, he spices it up with a sprinkling of alternate history. (President Al Gore, anyone?) I will definitely be moving on to complete the whole series. So should you.
I love techno thrillers. Moreso, Schantz's The Hidden truth hit the right buttons for me. I'm an electrical engineer, so the viable tech references in the book were good. Computers and Networking- check. Physics- check. Ham radio- I'm a Ham- check. Mentions of Georgia Tech- geez my daughter is a student there working on her Phd. Throw in a good conspiracy, a good plot line, and decent writing made it a good read for me. I hope Hans writes many more follow ups.
Recommended by John Carter at Postcards from Barsoom.
It got off to a slow start; I paused about half-way through to read something else, and when I picked it back up, the real action of the story started, and, boy, did it start! Turns out, this is like many first episodes of K-dramas — lots of time establishing the rules of this alternate universe and laying the foundations of a multi-volume story. This is basically Peter’s origin story.
I have the second volume waiting for me and plan to dive in during my Christmas break.
Seriously, the first book I’ve read in a good bit that I couldn’t put down. Intelligently written; intriguing (if all too real) premise; real, engaging characters; compelling action. I’m hooked! Would love to tell you more, but I’m off to read Book 2, A Rambling Wreck, and Book 3, The Brave and the Bold. All I can say is, BUY these books! READ these books! Schantz is a new favorite on my list of authors.
Imagine The Da Vinci Code, except focused on science rather than religion and art, and written for the young-adult audience. That's my basic impression of The Hidden Truth.
If you enjoy tense hunts for clues through history, attempts to evade the surveillance of powerful enemies, and genuinely educational moments in between near-escapes, I'm sure you'll enjoy this book.
It's not often that I feel a book was written solely for my entertainment.
Could not put it down! First few pages sneak up on you for the first big plot point. After that, it's a roller coaster of history, science, detective work, homebrew gadgets, libertarians, feds, survivalists, community building, shadowy cabals, and even high school debate tactics.
A little slow at first, but exciting and thought provoking. The discussion about woman's sufferage was one I had not heard of before. The rest of the argument about the liberals was very interesting. They are focused, like a shaped charge, while conservatives are more like a hand grenade.
I almost never rate anything five stars. This book earned it.
Early in the story I thought I would be turned off by references to current politics. I was very wrong. I read this book in one long session broken only by dinner with my family.
The story may be science fiction but it is entirely plausible. I hope to find a sequel.
I picked this book because of the title. Never in my wildest expectations did I think it would be as captivating and entertaining so much. It is not physically action pack, but mentally so enthralling that I could not put it down. I will start the next book mediately. I will bing read the series.
Detailed, compelling and believable nonstop action and events. I could not stop reading. This tremendously well written story gripped me from beginning to end. Highly recommended.
Once I started reading, I didn't want to put it down. I had to discover, along with Peter, why someone would change the information in a book and cover up those changes with murder. A truly great mystery. I can't wait to read the next one.
Amazing thriller, found it neigh-impossible to put down. A well-crafted mystery, that keeps you guessing, engaging characters, science fiction written by someone who clearly knows about science. A delight, just bought the second volume.
I enjoyed the plot and the character. I like the way real issues in the world are brought in without being too political. I will be buying more books in this series.
This is how to write based fiction for a wide audience. The story thrills and informs in equal measure, and while I am not scientifically minded I was still entertained. In many ways, I was reminded of Tim Powers, though with science in place of mythology.
Very creative thriller with alt history-tech elements and well-drawn characters. Contains rather high-level science and technology discussion, so not easy reading fluff.