Department Thirty

Rating:
Summary: A very good start on a promising career
Review: "These are not my parents," Ryan Elder thinks as he looks on the couple who greet him at Will Rogers airport when he returns from UCLA for Thanksgiving Break. Both his Mom and Dad act strangly as they drive him to their suburban home in Edmond. They send him out on an errand and while he's in the spice aisle of the supermarket, they commit suicide.

Seven years later, a certified letter catches up to Ryan in Pensacola, FL. The day before he flew out to Oklahoma, his Mom had sent him a clipping of a symphony review and a piece of paper with the name "Department Thirty" and an Oklahoma City phone number.

Ryan's calling the number starts him on a wild chase to find the true identity of his parents and himself. For a first novel, the story is well-written. Characters are interesting and believable.

I can attest to the fact that Kent's writing does improve with further books. By accident, I read "Black Mesa Conspiracy" first and could scarcely put it down. While "Department Thirty" is not quite as suspenseful, I also recommend it and look forward to reading more of Kent's work.

Rating:
Summary: It's LOUSY!!!!
Review: I met David Kent at a book signing. He's a nice guy, but he can't write. This book has so many laborious descriptions from the buttons on Kelly's jacket to the hysterical and ludricous sex scene. Honestly, I can't imagine who Kent is sleeping with that gives him these strange ideas on how women derive pleasure.

The laborious descriptions obviously tripped Kent up because I found two glaring contradictions in the text. I'm reminded of the Wendy's commercial, "Where's the beef?" And the melodrama, it goes on and on and...

Rating:
Summary: This guy can plot!
Review: I never read this type of book, but since the author is a friend, I thought I'd check it out. What a pleasant surprise! I didn't get anything else done for a day and a half; I had to keep reading to find out what would happen next! There were so many twists and turns that I was constantly surprised. The plot is complicated but well written and easy to follow, with non-stop action. The characters are complex and interesting. Since I live in Oklahoma City, the setting for the book, I especially appreciated the accurate descriptions of my city and enjoyed visualizing the action in a familiar setting.

As a writer, I have great appreciation for the skill that Kent demonstrated. It's hard to believe this is a first book. I will eagerly read anything else he writes. (And now I know who to call when I get stuck plotting my own books!)

Rating:
Summary: It's LOUSY!!!!
Review: I read alot of books and I just happened to pick this one up off the shelf. When I read the back cover and saw that this was his debut book, I was intrigued when I couldn't put it down. Not too many writers grab my attention like that. I normally get bored with books after about 60-90 pages. This book, I read in two days. There was so much suspence and twists and turns, I couldn't wait to turn the page to find out what would happen next. I would recommend this book to everyone. I can't wait to read his next book.

Rating:
Summary: So-so debut, but could be worse
Review: I thought that this book was just okay and that there were a few problems with it that prevented this book from being great. For one, department 30 itself. Its a secret organization, but with offices in the Oklahoma justice department with many of the characters knowing of it. Quite a contradiction i think. I thought the characters were as some had said, too spontaneously confrontational with each other, and their dialog lacked realistic banter. It is hard not to be able to follow the plot as it is repeated many many times throughout the book. However, some authors try to twist and turn the plot so much in order to create suspense that the "rollercoaster" takes an unrealistic turn. I love the idea of government conspiracies, but it is hard to find many good fiction books that accurately and suspensefully weave that into a great mystery/suspense story. Most just are just comical attempts. So, with that, im not going to say this book is terrible or horrible, but i have read better ones. I will probably read the Mesa Conspiracy to see if the author can weave a good tail and save the series. Otherwise, dont expect to be blown away.

Rating:
Summary: Best political thriller in years
Review: This is a good book and an enjoyable read. It's paced well and I personally thought the characters were interesting, especially Kelly and the old snitch, Cyrus. I'm glad to see political thrillers making a comeback--they just about got swept away by the techno-babble of Clancy and his ilk. This is a story about people in extreme circumstances. Ryan Elder finds lies everywhere he goes--nothing he knows is what he thinks it is. If that's too melodramatic for you, then go buy some Joyce Carol Oates or something "literary" where nothing really happens to the characters!

Oh, I like the Midwest setting too. It's fresh and different from DC, NY, Boston, Florida, etc.

I recommend this book and look forward to the next by Mr. Kent.

Rating:
Summary: Best political thriller in years
Review: This is a good book and an enjoyable read. It's paced well and I personally thought the characters were interesting, especially Kelly and the old snitch, Cyrus. I'm glad to see political thrillers making a comeback--they just about got swept away by the techno-babble of Clancy and his ilk. This is a story about people in extreme circumstances. Ryan Elder finds lies everywhere he goes--nothing he knows is what he thinks it is. If that's too melodramatic for you, then go buy some Joyce Carol Oates or something "literary" where nothing really happens to the characters!

Oh, I like the Midwest setting too. It's fresh and different from DC, NY, Boston, Florida, etc.

I recommend this book and look forward to the next by Mr. Kent.

Rating:
Summary: Solid Debut!
Review: This thriller by David Kent (Kent Anderson) has all the components of a good espionage thriller. Ryan Elder's parents commit suicide and he goes on a seven year binge of drugs, failed jobs and acting out in anger. When a package comes from his Mother, sent just days prior to the suicide, he is instructed to call a mysterious number. What ensues is a trail that leads him back to Oklahoma and one that leads him to realize that his parents were not all they seemed. Though the plots drags in places, this in an excellent first novel.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it !!!
Review: What if everything you thought you knew about your background, your heritage and your parents was wrong? How would you feel? And what would you do to discover the truth? This is ultimately the premise of DEPARTMENT THIRTY, David Kent's debut novel. And if DEPARTMENT THIRTY suffers at times from minor flaws, it is nonetheless a compelling and ultimately satisfying read.

DEPARTMENT THIRTY is primarily the story of Ryan Elder, a radio journalist who has been bouncing from job to job for seven years. His inability to remain at one station for very long is the result of a combination of bad luck, uncompromising journalistic principles, and personality flaws. Elder tends to get a bit explosive at times. This is somewhat understandable --- I mean, if your parents committed suicide, practically in front of you, you'd probably go a bit off the rails yourself. Elder, as DEPARTMENT THIRTY begins, is investigating the story of his career when his day suddenly and inexplicably. It turns out that the target of Elder's investigation is related to the owner of the radio station that employs him, and all it takes is a phone call down the chain of command to get him fired.

When Elder returns home, he finds a mysterious letter waiting for him, an envelope that was mailed to him from his mother --- the day before she and his father committed suicide, seven years previously. The envelope contains newspaper clippings and a piece of paper with the words "Department Thirty" along with a telephone number. Elder dials the number, an act that sets him on a trail back to the home that he shared with his parents in Oklahoma City and that within 24 hours will cause him to be running for his life from an unknown assassin and an agency hidden deep within the Federal government. With the assistance of an enigmatic young woman dealing with tragic circumstances of her own, Elder discovers the truth about his parents and the secret life they left behind over a quarter-century before that now threatens not only their son, but also the entire nation.

There are problems with DEPARTMENT THIRTY. It is easy to sympathize with Elder, but it is extremely difficult to like him. There are additionally some aspects of the plot that stretch the possibility of suspending disbelief to the breaking point, particularly a surprise occurrence that takes place near the end of the book.

Kent does an excellent job though of keeping Elder in dire straits throughout most of the novel and accordingly keeping the level of suspense high and, most importantly, the reader turning pages. DEPARTMENT THIRTY is ultimately a promising debut.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub