Joel C. Rosenberg, 2007
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In the latest Jon Bennett and Erin McCoy thriller—billed as the finale of the series—terrorists attack the U.S., vaporizing a large chunk of Washington, D.C.; destroying CIA headquarters; and turning Times Square into rubble. The president is presumed dead, and the shaken vice president is trying to restore order. Naturally, he calls on one man: Jon Bennett, the presidential advisor who’s already seen more than his fair share of life-threatening danger. Only Jon can stop the terrorists before things get even worse, but Jon’s a little preoccupied right now: his wife of only eight months, Erin, is in a refugee camp in Jordan, stricken with a potentially fatal illness. As usual, Rosenberg piles on the action and political commentary, and, also as usual, his right-wing politics are perhaps too overtly evident, threatening to interfere with the story. On the other hand, the story itself is exciting, the characters are more than cardboard, and the pace is frenetic (except for the times when a neon sign flashing author’s message interrupts the flow). --David Pitt
2009 Retailer's Choice Award winner!
For Jon and Erin Bennett, the world seems to be spinning dangerously out of control. A new dictator is rising in Iraq. China is making threatening new moves toward Taiwan. North Korean forces appear ready to strike south. Israel is feverishly trying to complete the Third Temple. Oil prices are surging. And in the wake of an horrific war in the Middle East, President James MacPherson's second term is coming to an end. Now the battle to succeed him is heating up into one of the most fiercely contested presidential elections in American history, and the Bennetts realize the stakes could not be higher. Who will lead a bitterly divided country over the next four years? What can the U.S. do to shape the new world order? And just what role—if any—does the U.S. play in the last days? As the presidential campaign narrows into a dead heat, the Secret Service learns of a catastrophic plot to assassinate one of the candidates—but which one, and can the terrorists be stopped in time?