Brad Meltzer, The Book of Fate

The Book of Fate

Brad Meltzer

Warner, September 2006, $25.99

ISBN: 0446530999

Eight years ago, then presidential aide Wes Holloway permitted Deputy Chief of Staff Ron Boyle to ride in President Leland Manning's limousine. As they drove to a NASCAR event, Nico Hadrian fired shots at their vehicle. Secret Service, FBI and local law enforcement assumed Hadrian targeted POTUS when he killed Boyle and destroyed the right side of Wes's face.

Now that Manning is out of office, Wes, who still works for the former, finds his juggling assignments much easier to achieve. However, to his shock Wes sees Boyle attending a conference in Malaysia, as impossible as that seems. Unable to ignore this, as he feels guilt over Boyle's death, Wes investigates how a dead man is alive. As evidence surfaces that the Masons are involved and have been behind the scenes running the country since its foundation, several splinter groups have plans to increase their influence. The knowledge means death for Wes and his allies.

The Brownian legacy spins into the United States with this fun conspiratorial thriller. The storyline is action-packed though convoluted, and at times difficult to follow as readers and Wes struggle to understand what happened eight years ago; that camaraderie the audience shares with Wes makes him an empathetic protagonist. The use of unsolved real mysteries add to the feel of a super group in power behind the scenes and plotting to gain even more control. Brad Meltzer's fans will enjoy his latest tale focusing on the "truth" behind DC politics.