The President's Shadow by Brad Meltzer, Book Review

Seeing as the American Presidential Election has been dominating the news pretty much everywhere, I thought that a review of a Crime Thriller involving the US president would be timely. From the outset, the early days of George Washington, the Americans have succeeded in creating a myth of power and influence surrounding the presidency. They knew, whether consciously or instinctively, that if they were to build a nation with a leader who would be followed, someone with enough gravitas to compensate for the loss of a king, then they would have to create a powerful aura around the position. Brad Meltzer cleverly brings out the tension between the idealised office of the president and the failings of the individual who holds the position
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In ‘The President’s Shadow’ there are sinister forces at work who want to destroy Warren, the president in question. Are these forces out to destroy the position or the man? And who better to protect the president than a secret society, The Culper Ring, created by none less than George Washington himself to protect the presidency down the generations. I have always had a fondness for archivists, as some of the happiest hours of my life have involved poking around dusty archives looking for historical documents. So when the man of the hour turns out to be an archivist, that’s just fine by me. What’s up with the secret service though, and will Beecher, said archivist, be able to save the president?

The only thing that detracted from the enjoyment of reading this engaging thriller, were the very short chapters told from the perspective of a variety of characters. I found it difficult to get into a rhythm, a sustained train of thought, as I was forced to jump around between past and present and different locations and sub plots. The flashbacks, which held the seeds of motivation for the murderous plot and conspiracy, contain an interesting story in itself, and the characters are fascinating, each in their own way. I feel that the structure detracts from the flow, although of course it could be my short attention span that’s at fault here. All in all though, well worth a go!

Brad Meltzer is a man of many parts: political thriller writer, tv show creator, TED Talk speaker, award winning comic book writer, non fiction and children’s book author. Among his fans are Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush, both of whom have helped Meltzer with his research.

‘The President’s Shadow’ is the third of the ‘Culper Ring’ novels. Published by Hodder in paperback in 2016. 

Indiana Brown