Deep Background

Rating:
Summary: Best political novel of the year
Review: Combine the political acumen of Allen Drury with the plotmanship of John Grisham. Throw in some flashes of wit and plays on every political cliche of recent years (Governor-Presidential candidate personally oversees execution of retarded black man for campaign advantage; First Lady as co-President and ambitious candidate; Chappaquiddick-style drowning of appealing young woman; corrupt covert operations with high-level approval, etc.), and you have the flavor of David Corn's impressive debut novel, Deep Background. The President is killed, but not by a conspiracy. Even the cover-up isn't truly conspiratorial. But the killer's motive, and the lethal efforts of high officials to prevent its disclosure, drive this complex and (because it's so very plausible) frightening tale that will leave you hungry for real-world heroes like Corn's.

Rating:
Summary: Some Clever Plot Twists with some tired Washington Cliches
Review: Despite this novel starting out like another political thriller in which the Bad Guys are always the Right Wing and the heroes are the Liberals, Corn actually borrows much of his material from today's White House to paint some unflattering pictures of a Presidency far too similar to Clinton's (Obscure land deals, a political megalomaniac wife, etc. Only Monica was missing). As the plot unravelled, however, I ended up enjoying the story quite a bit. There were quite a number of characters to keep track of, and Corn wasn't able to make them interesting enough to remember consistently which probably caused me to miss some character or plot nuances. Overall, I give it 3.5 stars - But I rounded up on the review.

Rating:
Summary: It could have been a contender...
Review: This book has all the elements for a highly charged political tour de force -- a presidential assassination, White House intrigue, deep cover hit squad, conspiracy at the CIA, don't ask-don't tell Marines, etc. Unfortunately, the elements are handled in too rambling and disjointed a manner to work. Even the foray into the wonderful city of New Orleans is stiff and wooden and, ultimately, boring. The central character, White House aide Nick Addis, just can't seem to catch a break. Everyone he comes in contact with while searching for answers about the assassination of President Hanover -- and whether a shady land deal back in Hanover's home state of Louisiana where he was governor has any bearing -- ends up dead, maimed, or missing. All of this should have provided fodder for some super-charged action and complexity of plot, but it just doesn't happen. How deeply knowledgeable about or even involved in the assassination plot is the widowed First Lady, or the Vice President-cum-new president, or assorted other Cabinet members and government officials? By the end of the book, I was still in the dark about exactly what happened, why it happened, or "who done it" all. At 370 pages, this was a good length to read in 1 sitting; instead, it took me 5 days, with 2 other books read in between. The author obviously has a deep working knowledge of the inner workings of Washington but, alas, that is not enough to make the concept of this offering work -- which is too bad, because it SHOULD have worked.

Rating:
Summary: It could have been a contender...
Review: This book has all the elements for a highly charged political tour de force -- a presidential assassination, White House intrigue, deep cover hit squad, conspiracy at the CIA, don't ask-don't tell Marines, etc. Unfortunately, the elements are handled in too rambling and disjointed a manner to work. Even the foray into the wonderful city of New Orleans is stiff and wooden and, ultimately, boring. The central character, White House aide Nick Addis, just can't seem to catch a break. Everyone he comes in contact with while searching for answers about the assassination of President Hanover -- and whether a shady land deal back in Hanover's home state of Louisiana where he was governor has any bearing -- ends up dead, maimed, or missing. All of this should have provided fodder for some super-charged action and complexity of plot, but it just doesn't happen. How deeply knowledgeable about or even involved in the assassination plot is the widowed First Lady, or the Vice President-cum-new president, or assorted other Cabinet members and government officials? By the end of the book, I was still in the dark about exactly what happened, why it happened, or "who done it" all. At 370 pages, this was a good length to read in 1 sitting; instead, it took me 5 days, with 2 other books read in between. The author obviously has a deep working knowledge of the inner workings of Washington but, alas, that is not enough to make the concept of this offering work -- which is too bad, because it SHOULD have worked.

Rating:
Summary: Deep Backround
Review: This book is so full of tired "Washington thriller novel" cliches you feel like you have already seen the ABC miniseries while you are reading it. Frankly, it was so boring, cliched, and irrelevant I couldn't take it anymore and stopped reading it. Come to think of it, that is also why I stopped reading "The Nation." Is there a connection? A conspiracy perhaps?

Rating:
Summary: Terrific thriller of an accidental conspiracy gone awry.
Review: This is a good one! Corn, the Washington editor of The Nation, makes effective use of his insider perspective, not to mention the D.C. locale. You'll have fun deciphering the references to classic political literature (where DID he get the idea for the stuttering faithful retainer). The roman a clef aspects come at you like a Pedro Martinez change-up; for example, the Clintonesque president is a Vietnam hero, not a draft evader.

Well-paced, written with a reporter's eye, and sophisticated, Deep Background is an all too believable account of the aftermath of a political assassination. Hang on tight as presential aide Nick Addis, CIA analyst Julia Lancette, and discredit Secret Service chief Clarence follow paths that ultimately converge on the inevitable, disillusioning truth.

Rating:
Summary: very good
Review: very well written, i liked how it jumped back and forth from the different people involved. It was one those books that I started reading and I couldn't put down and that is my way of knowing that it is a very good book.