Review: An Excellent, Finely Crafted Political Thriller
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 7, 2013
In this novel of a near future time, the United States has fragmented into five regions, divided roughly along ethnic lines, each led by its own governmental structure and each with its own internal problems and dissident groups. Toss an even bigger problem into the mix with the threat of a nuclear attack on ten targeted cities that spares no part of the partitioned New America.Caught in the middle of this is an former nationally syndicated columnist from Chicago, Marcel Crisp, who lost his job due to his opposition to Partition. One of the presidents of a New America region, Anton Stark, decides to use Crisp's expertise and political insights and appoints him as an ambassador. Crisp accepts the job without knowing that Stark has his own agenda to reunite the country through blackmail. What unfolds is a complex story of political intrigue, double-dealing, secret back door negotiations, and plotting all under the threat of the coming nuclear mayhem.During all of the action of the story, through the self-analysis of the character Marcel Crisp, is the questioning of politics, political motivations and manipulations, and the question of the value of diversity versus unity in a multicultural society. There are depths to this novel that go beyond a potboiler action thriller.The story is crisply told, extremely well-plotted, and well written and can hold its own against novels by Tom Clancy, Frederick Forsyth, and other top political thriller authors. All of the characters are well developed, and there's not a caricature or cardboard cutout in sight.This author is new to me, and he's going on my personal watch-list for future novels.Highly recommended.