Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
Description
Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. HTML:Two Secret Service agents sworn to guard their protectees lost them in a single moment . . . and in this #1 New York Times bestseller, they're about to learn that the violence has just begun. Michelle Maxwell has just wrecked her promising career at the Secret Service. Against her instincts, she let a presidential candidate out of her sight for the briefest moment and the man whose safety was her responsibility vanished into thin air. �??Sean King knows how the younger agent feels. Eight years earlier, the hard-charging Secret Service agent allowed his attention to be diverted for a split second. And the candidate he was protecting was gunned down before his eyes. Now Michelle and Sean are about to see their destinies converge. Drawn into a maze of lies, secrets, and deadly coincidences, the two discredited agents uncover a shocking truth: that the separate acts of violence that shattered their lives were really a long time in the making�??and are a long way from… (more)
User reviews
The opening few chapters were gripping as the two lead characters with seemingly nothing in common, other than the fact that they were both in disgrace with the Secret Service,
Well frankly the ending was just too far-fetched and finished just too neatly for my taste. The last 100 pages just not up to the standard of what had gone before IMHO. On top of which there was the fact that the two events, and in particular the second the kidnapping of a Presidential candidate, which brought the two lead characters together in the first place almost became to feel like an after-thought. I mean where was the rest of the Secret Service and FBI when Sean and Michelle were running about all over the country? Would they really been allowed out and about without some serious surveillance?
A good opening to a series of books with an interesting insight into the two lead characters, for which I give the author credit, but not much more than that.
Not really worth the time or money.
I admit it. I am surprised by the hostile nature of so many of this book’s reviews. I think it is a great thriller.
David Baldacci has created an intricate plot that sees the lives of two discredited Secret Service Agents converge. The story
Baldacci loves to tell you that the protagonist has clues that he isn't yet ready to share with his partner or the reader. The mystery isn't so much "who done it" as "what does he know".
Too many of the solutions were things the reader couldn't have known about, and the bad guy was an unbelievable character.
Unfortunately, the plot itself is highly improbable. So much so that at times it made me laugh rather than draw me into some kind of suspense or tension. However, those pages did keep on turning because whether or not the plot is credible, I had to find out how all the loose ends would resolve. While the ending did stay true to the over-the-top plot basics, it was a satisfying finish and tied everything together in a better conclusion than I expected.
As thrillers go, I think Baldacci is adequate, and would definitely read more of his books in this series.
The story focus upon two Secret Service agents. One whose reputation has been tarnished and disgraced when unsuccessful guarding of presidential candidate forced him to move to the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Baldacci is a wonderful writer and I recommend his books.
The two main characters were
Former secret service agent is caught up in a case that is similiar to the one that ended his career. While protecting a presidential candidate at fundraiser the man killed disgracing
The motive of the villain is the achilles heel in this brew of a thriller. Very comic book villainy. The journey to the ending was fun. Not so the drowning parts. More so the bleedingly patient investigation. I do love me some mystery. I blazed through the pages in that section. Enjoyed reading the detailed questioning like it was vintage Agatha Christie.
King and Maxwell were different enough from the Camel Club - my favorite series of Baldacci. King is a more ordinary person compared to Oliver Stone. Sean King was downright insulting to Maxwell at many times. And it was not justified. Not even finding a body in your office justifies it of one wants you to believe in the righteousness of the hero. But that was never Baldacci's aim. He wanted to tweak his stock hero and add foibles to the design of the latter. Maxwell is a very likable character. She has enough wits about her to guess the right thing at the right time. A few of her moments are the best parts of the book. King and Maxwell team up for the second book. Can't wait.
Language
Original publication date
DDC/MDS
813.54 |