First Family (King & Maxwell) - Hardcover

Baldacci, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0446539759 ISBN 13: 9780446539753

Publisher: Grand Central Pub, 2009

Synopsis

Following the instant #1 New York Times bestseller Simple Genius, Sean King and Michelle Maxwell return in David Baldacci's most heart-pounding thriller to date . . .
FIRST FAMILY
It began with what seemed like an ordinary children's birthday party. Friends and family gathered to celebrate. There were balloons and cake, games and gifts.
This party, however, was far from ordinary. It was held at Camp David, the presidential retreat. And it ended with a daring kidnapping . . . which immediately turned into a national security nightmare.
Sean King and Michelle Maxwell were not looking to become involved. As former Secret Service agents turned private investigators, they had no reason to be. The FBI doesn't want them interfering. But years ago, Sean King saved the First Lady's husband, then a senator, from political disaster. Now, Sean is the one person the First Lady trusts, and she presses Sean and Michelle into the desperate search to rescue the abducted child.
With Michelle still battling her own demons, and forces aligned on all sides against her and Sean, the two are pushed to the absolute limit. In the race to save an innocent victim, the line between friend and foe will become impossible to define . . . or defend.

About this title

Review:

In adroitly written novels such as Absolute Power and Saving Faith, David Baldacci has long established himself as one of the most accomplished and imaginative crime writers at work today – and it’s a particularly fecund field at present. With his latest novel, First Family, he adds even more lustre to his reputation -- and tackles surprising new areas of characterisation and plot. The setting is the haunts of the powerful: the upper echelons of the political class.

A birthday party at the presidential retreat Camp David takes a nasty turn when a child is abducted after the party has finished. The First Lady needs the very best to help in this dangerous situation – and who better than top operatives Sean King and Michelle Maxwell to track down the child? (Baldacci enthusiasts will know his reliable protagonists from earlier novels). However, the First Lady and Sean King have had dealings before: he was instrumental in saving her husband (then a senator) from a very unhappy situation... and perhaps their involvement was more than political. Michelle Maxwell, as we know from earlier books by this author, is a woman with her own major problems, and everyone involved in the events of First Family will emerge chastened and changed from an incendiary situation.

As in his earlier books, David Baldacci is notably sharp at the cross-currents of tension within a family (while never forgetting pressing external threats). In the new book, he has the reader caught up in a spectacular and disturbing narrative, with the involvement of the most important family in America adding piquancy to an already gripping piece of writing. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

"Plenty of action drives Baldacci's stellar fourth novel to feature Maxwell and King."--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"Mr. Baldacci's books are jigsaw puzzles of intersecting events, not simple whodunits. FIRST FAMILY is no exception."--Washington Times

"What Baldacci does best is provide thrills, chills, and suspense. This novel is a total surprise from beginning to end."--Columbus Telegram

"The story unfolds wonderfully. It's another top-flight thriller from this bestselling author, and it's good to see King and Maxwell again."--Oklahoman

About this edition

• Publisher: Grand Central Pub
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 0446539759
• ISBN 13: 9780446539753
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 452