Title: Terminal Veracity
Author: Greg Hickey
Genre: Fiction: Sci Fi/Noir
Year: 2026
A jaded PI in a climate-ravaged future. A client out for revenge. When an assignment leads to murder, can he catch a vicious killer before they strike again?
San Antonio, 2081. Marcus Carver takes his job seriously. So when a woman in trouble asks for a ride, the dogged private detective dodges the omnipresent surveillance cameras and gets her to an underground appointment, no questions asked. But their secret puts him in the crosshairs of an influential politician and leads him into a murder scene.
As if that isn’t enough, Carver must contend with an exoskeleton-clad rival with several tricks up his sleeve while evading terrorist factions who will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. And when a sniper takes aim at his client, he knows one more fanatical killer intends to silence the truth.
Can Carver put this case to rest before someone claims another life?
Terminal Veracity is a thrilling science fiction crime novel. If you like stories about dystopian systems and hard-boiled detectives battling corrupt institutions, then you’ll love Greg Hickey’s propulsive futuristic whodunit.
Get your copy (ebook – available from 10 November 2026):
My rating: ****1/2
My review:
“Terminal Veracity” by Greg Hickey is the second in the Marcus Carver Sci Fi series. It doesn’t disappoint, continuing on in the same vein as the first, “Murder in Retrograde” with challenging and current political and social issues.
In this edition, our hero, Carver finds himself thrust into a nasty court battle, after providing a chauffeur service for a young woman, in need of assistance to procure a lifesaving (but largely unwanted) pregnancy termination. Once his court case is finalised, Carver is engaged to investigate the dealing of the woman’s former partner, a politician facing re-election, to clear his and her name. Carver finds himself falling into a rabbit hole of bribery, corruption and technology/AI based subterfuge.
The characters are a good mix of the interesting, entertaining and believable and support the flow of the plot without unnecessary distraction. Carver is a complex character whose battles with his inner demons and former role as a police officer add colour and texture to the plot.
This futuristic noir offers the feel of pieces like Chinatown in a Scanner Darkly. The descriptions of technology and societal changes flow readily and seamlessly with the development of the story.
The book is easy to read, not too heavy and not too light. It is reminiscent of sci-fi stories by Philip K Dick with the wit and tempo of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett detective offerings.
An excellent choice for lovers of Science Fiction and Hard-Boiled Noir.
I received an ARC copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
About the Author:
Greg Hickey is a former international professional baseball player and current forensic scientist, endurance athlete and author. His previous works include the novels The Friar’s Lantern and Our Dried Voices, the latter of which was a finalist for Foreword Reviews’ INDIES Science Fiction Book of the Year Award. He lives in Chicago with his wife, Lindsay.
Check out the author’s other books: Greg Hickey
