From the beloved internet humorist, a debut novel that introduces an unforgettable investigator to the drowned streets of L.A. in a hugely imaginative and heartfelt blend of noir and cyberpunk.
In a mostly underwater near-future Los Angeles, aging combat-drone veteran Orr Vue now lives a simple and small life, trading snippets of what's become the most valuable currency: information. So when the cops show up at his door looking for data on a murder he’s not even aware has happened, things get interesting for the first time in 25 years.
At first, Orr is happy to exchange whatever he knows about the demise of InfoDrip’s top exec to buy booze and pay rent on his memory storage, but that plan goes to hell when Orr’s old boyfriend, Auggie Wolf, shows up as the number one suspect. Forced to stretch his atrophied spy skills and take his illegal horde of drones out of retirement alongside his busted knees, Orr finds himself in the crosshairs of the militarized police, a family of megarich corporate heirs, a clan of emancipated AIs, and a cult. Barely avoiding getting killed with every clue he collects, Orr realizes he's uncovered not just a murder, but a conspiracy that threatens Auggie’s very existence. Ahh, the things we do for love...
But in a world where memories can be bought and sold, how can you truly know who anyone is—or what you yourself are capable of? Fast paced, funny, and shockingly romantic, Two Truths and a Lie is Raymond Chandler reinvented for the 22nd century.
"Boldly inventive, peppered with breakneck action and a blend of speculative wonder and humor, Cory O’Brien’s Two Truths and a Lie packs an unforgettable punch. Utilizing the vehicle of a thrilling, emotional, often hilarious cyberpunk detective story, it pokes at the delicate line between memory and truth, ultimately wondering whether there is even a difference. The result is ambitious, masterful, and hugely entertaining." —Jinwoo Chong, author of Flux and I Leave it Up to You
“Two Truths and a Lie hit me square in the sweet spot: a propulsive story and crazy cool tech mixed with healthy doses of noir, humor, and romance. But it's more than that, too: a meditation on the amorphous and delicate nature of memory. Don't sleep on this knockout of a debut.” —Rob Hart, author of Assassins Anonymous
"Two Truths and a Lie is a compulsively readable debut novel, an intricately plotted cyberpunk-noir mystery that takes the idea that information is currency to hilarious and shocking extremes." —Dexter Palmer, author of Version Control
"A stunning achievement, Two Truths and a Lie is many things at once: a hilarious satire, a gripping thriller, a meditation on memory and identity, and a love story that will have you wiping tears from your eyes, all set in a carnivalesque future where the darkest dreams of capitalism have come true. Like other great comic novelists—Thomas Pynchon, Rachel Yoder, Charles Yu—Cory O'Brien balances humor and pathos to marvelous effect, a literary magician who can do almost anything on the page." —Scott Guild, author of Plastic
“O’Brien’s imagination has the raw power to go toe-to-toe with Neal Stephenson and Philip K. Dick. This hardboiled cyberpunk gem is packed with dark wonders at every turn." —Daniel Hornsby, author of Sucker
Cory O'Brien is the author of Zeus Grants Stupid Wishes and George Washington Is Cash Money. He has written for numerous award-winning video games, including Monster Prom and Holovista, and designed multiple tabletop games, including Inhuman Conditions and Hand to Hand Wombat. He lives in Chicago.
View titles by Cory O'Brien
From the beloved internet humorist, a debut novel that introduces an unforgettable investigator to the drowned streets of L.A. in a hugely imaginative and heartfelt blend of noir and cyberpunk.
In a mostly underwater near-future Los Angeles, aging combat-drone veteran Orr Vue now lives a simple and small life, trading snippets of what's become the most valuable currency: information. So when the cops show up at his door looking for data on a murder he’s not even aware has happened, things get interesting for the first time in 25 years.
At first, Orr is happy to exchange whatever he knows about the demise of InfoDrip’s top exec to buy booze and pay rent on his memory storage, but that plan goes to hell when Orr’s old boyfriend, Auggie Wolf, shows up as the number one suspect. Forced to stretch his atrophied spy skills and take his illegal horde of drones out of retirement alongside his busted knees, Orr finds himself in the crosshairs of the militarized police, a family of megarich corporate heirs, a clan of emancipated AIs, and a cult. Barely avoiding getting killed with every clue he collects, Orr realizes he's uncovered not just a murder, but a conspiracy that threatens Auggie’s very existence. Ahh, the things we do for love...
But in a world where memories can be bought and sold, how can you truly know who anyone is—or what you yourself are capable of? Fast paced, funny, and shockingly romantic, Two Truths and a Lie is Raymond Chandler reinvented for the 22nd century.
Praise
"Boldly inventive, peppered with breakneck action and a blend of speculative wonder and humor, Cory O’Brien’s Two Truths and a Lie packs an unforgettable punch. Utilizing the vehicle of a thrilling, emotional, often hilarious cyberpunk detective story, it pokes at the delicate line between memory and truth, ultimately wondering whether there is even a difference. The result is ambitious, masterful, and hugely entertaining." —Jinwoo Chong, author of Flux and I Leave it Up to You
“Two Truths and a Lie hit me square in the sweet spot: a propulsive story and crazy cool tech mixed with healthy doses of noir, humor, and romance. But it's more than that, too: a meditation on the amorphous and delicate nature of memory. Don't sleep on this knockout of a debut.” —Rob Hart, author of Assassins Anonymous
"Two Truths and a Lie is a compulsively readable debut novel, an intricately plotted cyberpunk-noir mystery that takes the idea that information is currency to hilarious and shocking extremes." —Dexter Palmer, author of Version Control
"A stunning achievement, Two Truths and a Lie is many things at once: a hilarious satire, a gripping thriller, a meditation on memory and identity, and a love story that will have you wiping tears from your eyes, all set in a carnivalesque future where the darkest dreams of capitalism have come true. Like other great comic novelists—Thomas Pynchon, Rachel Yoder, Charles Yu—Cory O'Brien balances humor and pathos to marvelous effect, a literary magician who can do almost anything on the page." —Scott Guild, author of Plastic
“O’Brien’s imagination has the raw power to go toe-to-toe with Neal Stephenson and Philip K. Dick. This hardboiled cyberpunk gem is packed with dark wonders at every turn." —Daniel Hornsby, author of Sucker
Cory O'Brien is the author of Zeus Grants Stupid Wishes and George Washington Is Cash Money. He has written for numerous award-winning video games, including Monster Prom and Holovista, and designed multiple tabletop games, including Inhuman Conditions and Hand to Hand Wombat. He lives in Chicago.
View titles by Cory O'Brien
