26 Reviews (Including 4 Editorial Reviews)
Goodreads 4.15 out of 5
(46 ratings - 3 reviews)
Ratings Details:
20—★★★★★
14—★★★★
11—★★★
1—★★
0—★
Amazon 4 out 5 stars
(92 global ratings)
Editorial Reviews are listed first.
Reader reviews follow in chronological order, beginning with the most recent.
Reviews are also listed by star rating.
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Editorial Reviews:
May 3, 2021 by Manasi Patil
Creative Writing
INTRODUCTION:
Beleaguered Truth is the second book in the series Shattered Triangle.
This novel speaks from the point of view of Giuseppe Lozano, and progresses with the plots of the other protagonists of the series, Lt. Tom Moran, Giovanni Lozano, and Giuseppe himself.
Lt. Tom Moran knows the identity of the murderer of Giuseppe Lozano's family. But there's no evidence by which he can prove it. And he's frustrated.
Fr. Giovanni Lozano also shares the fate of Tom, when the murderer successfully silences him by confessing his sins in a sacred confession in church.
Giuseppe Lozano, in order to fulfill his ambitions, stops at no extent. For him, everyone is expendable. Even his family. And the fact that he orders his family to be killed proves him to be not only an ambitious person, but also ruthless and cruel.
ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:
The identity is known, the murderer is present right in the front seat, but no way to be captured.
After the identity of the murderer of Giovanni Lozano's family is revealed in Shattered Triangle: A Consequential Murder, the story left me speechless. It was so unexpected, and yet seemed so real the world situation today. Beleaguered Truth adds more to the story, through Giuseppe's point of view, and how he feels about the consequences he created. William Messenger has done very well in writing this book. Especially in regards to the point of view. It certainly made the story more intriguing, as I felt a need to know how Giuseppe feels after murdering his own wile and three children.
THE BARE BONES:
Beleaguered Truth is a great political thriller and very captivating, to say the least. It deals withe the impact the truth on Tom and Giovanni. The book delves deeper into the story that is Shattered Triangle. Tom Moran also reunites with his wife, the brilliant Emily Cartwright.
The relationship between Giuseppe and Jackson, Giuseppe's closest friend from college days, whose friendship was strained after an event, is clarified and developed. Giuseppe is, basically, trying to get closer to achieving his ambition: the become the President, either clearing his hindrances, or wiping them out. And he's not being punished for it, owing to his calculated moves.
THE CHARACTERS:
Giuseppe Lozano, a member of the U.S. Senate, is now set to become the President of the United States. Gaining sympathy votes for the loss of his family, which he himself initiated, he is a step closer in his pursuit of power. He silenced the only two people who know his secret, and it has consequences for them.
Fr. Giovanni Lozano, a Catholic priest, finds his faith wavering after learning the sinful truth of his twin brother. He tries to believe that there is still some good left in Giuseppe. But fails.
Lt. Tom Moran, a talented and accomplished detective, finds his career at risk, due to the "lack" of development in the Lozano case. Apart from that, the burden of truth takes its toll on Tom, but he must remain strong, and try to bring justice.
The question for this book is: The Triangle is being shattered. Will it be broken into pieces, or is it possible to mend them together and reconstruct the once beautiful triangle?
5/5 stars
***
—by Authors Reading on May 30, 2018
Fictionalizing political legends that are still alive is risky business in more ways than one. In this case Beleaguered Truth - Book II: The Shattered Triangle Trilogy is the continuation of the stories surrounding twin brothers, Giuseppe and Giovanni Lozano, and Detective Tom Moran. It's a book about family loyalty, political aspirations, secrets, passion, and bloodshed. The first book was Tom Moran's story of the beginning of their friendship and the horrible murder of Giuseppe's wife and children. Beleaguered Truth is told my Giuseppe Lozano a driven politician who has been elected to the Senate. The camaraderie that once existed between him and his brother Giovanni has soured. Giovanni, who is a priest, had accepted hearing a very unsettling confession from his brother Giuseppe. The contents of the confession sickened him It was hard for him to reconcile that brother, his twin, was so unconscionable and devious. Also, in this book Author Messenger writes himself into the story as his former self, Fr. Bill Messenger, a priest. He is the director of the Catholic Center at USC and a close friend of Fr. Giovanni Lozano.
This book mirrors the events of the Bush Administration, and Senator Giuseppe becomes a major player in the Washington scene. He meets with President Bush and realizes his political value to Bush and decides to capitalize on it.
The 9/11 attacks occur and "Beleaguered Truth" weaves the three main characters into the chaos that ensued. Each one will have his own part in combatting terrorists, America's new insidious enemy.
Junior Senator Lozano is invited into a secretive political clique operating at the highest level that included Vice President Cheney, Paul Wolfowitz, Elliott Abrams, John Bolton, Michael Ledeen, Scooter Libby, Donald Rumsfeld, Richard Perle, Paul Bremer and more of the elite. Giuseppe was thrilled with his inclusion in this group even if some of them appeared to not really trust him.
The attacks on 9/11 gave Det. Tom Moran a new start with his stagnated career. He was offered a job with the newly created Counter Terrorism Criminal Intelligence Bureau (CTCIB).
In another parallel thread, Senator Lozano struggles with the loss and emptiness he feels since the murder of his wife and children. He is also concerned that he might be gay. He realizes the depth of these feelings when he encounters an old friend of his who is in a gay relationship. Soon thereafter, a new murder is introduced into the story which bears a lot of similarities to the murders of the Senator's family. The new murder provides clues that just might help solve the first murder more completely. Suddenly a lot of events take place in the lives of Giuseppe and Giovanni Lozano, and Detective Tom Moran. Will the new murder really help solve the Lozano family massacre? Will justice finally be served? Will Senator Lozano come to terms with his sexual proclivities? William P. Messenger pens another medley of fiction and reality blending them together so tightly that it is often hard to know what is real and what is taken from his imaginary world. "Beleaguered Truth" is a page-turning, complex, disturbingly readable book of incredible ambition and scope.
***
—by Maxy Awards
"Book two in an intense thriller series with strong political characters and an underlying impact."
***
—Beleaguered Truth, a Political Thriller by William P. Messenger
September 13, 2016 by Bella Wright
in Crime Book Thrillers, New Book Releases, Police Procedural Books,
Thriller Book Reviews, Thriller Reviews
The Bottom Line: The second entry in William P. Messenger's Shattered Triangle Series is a hard-hitting political thriller that deftly blends fact and fiction.
Beleaguered Truth begins where Messenger's Shattered Triangle leaves off, with an expanded first-person confession of the crime that was the focus of the first book in the series. Core characters Senator Giuseppe Lozano, Father Giovanni Lozano and Lieutenant Tom Moran are back, but this time they area also joined by larger than life historical figures. It's the year 200, and members of President George W. Bush's administration are present in full force, including chief of staff Andrew Card and Vice President Dick Cheney. Even controversial southern senator Robert Byrd makes an appearance.
Fictionalizing political legends that are still alive is risky business in more ways than one. In this case, they serve as foil for the political ambitions of Giuseppe Lozano, which appear to go far beyond being one of 100 members of the Unites States Senate. If Shattered Triangle is Tom's story, then Beleaguered Truth is the senator's. Much like TV's House of Cards, Messenger's second book is less about the strains of friendship than Lozano's sociopathic thirst for power.
Lozano's aggressive political style is highly entertaining, featuring blow after blow of backroom maneuvering. However, because readers are likely to bring a lifetime worth of biases about the real-life political figures Messenger includes among his cast, he risks the dilution of his original character, Giuseppe Lozano. For readers, the net effect will depend completely on how closely they followed politics in the 1990s and 2000s. Hardcore political addicts may have themselves dissecting every nuance of his historical portrayals, while those that followed the news of that era only casually may find themselves more fully immersed in the book's ambitious plot.
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Reader Reviews:
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