A Political Thriller in a Similar Universe – 5 stars
The country is suffering through a prolonged recession, and it seems that there are a lot of people who have lost confidence not only in the president and Congress, but also with the whole two party system. The federal government keeps expanding its power in ways that don’t mesh well with the limitations that are supposed to be guaranteed by the Constitution. Congressman Tyler Armistead sees what is going on around him and knows something must be done, but what? Can he hope to connect with and convince enough other honorable, like-minded politicians to push for a change back to the original intent of the framers of the Constitution?
This book liberally pulls plot points from today’s headlines and packages them around the concept of the limited powers and the checks and balances for the Republic that are outlined in the Constitution. Throw in a nice political conspiracy at high levels plus some terrorists headed for the US with some big trouble in tow, and you’ve got a plot line that offers both entertainment and dash of an educational reminder of the meaning of the term used as the title of the book and why it is important.
Armistead is someone you might wish were your own congressman, or at least hope that your representative has the same values and integrity as this character. The other supporting characters are sometimes a bit too good to be true or even too bad to be real, but are distinct and well described and don’t stray far from their assigned roles in the drama.
There is a lot going on in the book with intricate political dirty tricks and maneuvering, fanatic terrorist plotting, and the behind-the- scenes power lurking behind the throne, any one of which could have been fleshed out into a stand alone book.
Recommended for political thriller fans.