About the Book
Public defender Julia Geary moves through life in simmering resentment–at her husband, a soldier killed in Iraq, leaving her a single mother; at her low-paying job; and at her overbearing mother-in law, whose home she shares. She longs for a breakout case, and it arrives when members of the high school soccer team report seeing a teammate–Iraqi refugee Sami Mohammed–assaulting a girl in the locker room.
In a town where animosity against refugees has already reached a fever pitch, Julia throws all her energy into Sami’s defense. She finds an ally in high school principal Dom Parrish, who believes Sami is innocent, and the case suddenly turns red hot.
Then she begins receiving vicious threats against her family, and a senseless act of violence leaves Sami in a coma. And finally, a crop of new evidence emerges that points to the town’s most prominent citizens and pits Julia against powerful forces set on burying the truth once and for all.
If Sami survives and Julia can prove him innocent, it will be the case of a lifetime. But now it’s her life that’s on the line.
Book Reviews
"A story that leaps from the page like a battle cry ... Florio’s gift is that of creating strong, true-to-life characters who carve out their stories in ways that surprise us. They take on lives as incongruous, conflicted, and grievous — but also as wondrous, empathetic, and joyful — as our own." — Big Sky Journal
“Florio invests her characters with humanity, along with touches of humility.” – Kirkus Reviews
""Florio tackles Montana politics and social issues with confidence as her characters struggle to navigate one small town's explosion of rage." - Montana Quarterly
PRAISE
“Gwen Florio is the real deal, a terrific writer with a unique and powerful style of her own. The Truth of it All is a winner on every level—hot button issues, moral dilemmas, believable characters, everything that makes a legal thriller work. Highly recommended.” – John Lescroart, New York Times bestselling author of the Dismas Hardy series
“A page-turner from the opening sentence. Public Defender Julia Geary is a character to root for in a red-hot case that strikes a town at its very core. I couldn’t read fast enough.”
- Robert Dugoni, New York Times bestselling author of the Tracy Crosswhite series
“Gripping, timely, thoughtful . . . and a damn good read.”
—Michael Kaufman, author of The Last Exit