Reviewed by: BigAl
Genre: Political Thriller
Approximate word count: 110-115,000 words
Availability
Click
on a YES above to go to appropriate page in Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or
Smashwords store
Author:
“Brent
Wolfingbarger has been practicing law for almost two decades, representing both
Democrats and Republicans in closely contested, high-profile election law
battles. He spent five years as a prosecutor in West Virginia, handling the
full spectrum of cases including murder, sexual assault, and computer-related
crimes, and actively focusing on cutting-edge issues related to the
acquisition, analysis, and use of digital evidence in criminal cases.
Wolfingbarger
lives in Washington, DC where he continues to work as a prosecutor, handling
white collar financial crimes and violent crimes committed against elderly and
disabled victims.”
For more,
visit the author’s website.
Description:
“The
difference between victory and defeat in the Electoral College comes down to
259 votes in West Virginia.
A state
senator desperately fights back against a lawsuit that is pushing his family’s
company toward bankruptcy.
A vice
presidential candidate’s adulterous affair threatens to explode in his face and
burst into the world’s headlines with devastating consequences.
A ruthless
billionaire will stop at nothing to avoid facing justice for his crimes.
A small
town prosecutor stumbles upon a plot to win the election by any means
necessary: high-tech manipulation of electronic voting machines, creative
interpretation of arcane election laws, bribery, blackmail, and even murder.
And Rikki
Gudivada and Dave Anderson – two star-crossed former lovers from opposite sides
of the political fence – are drawn back together as the battle rages for West
Virginia’s 5 electoral votes, racing to solve a crime that imperils the very
heart of America’s constitutional system while each struggles over the same
question:
Is anything
more important than winning the White House?”
Appraisal:
The U.S.
Presidential election is over. Your preferred candidate either won or lost.
What at one point appeared to be a nail-biter turned out to not be so close in
the numbers that mattered, the electoral college votes. But what if it had been
closer and your candidate had lost by a relative handful of votes in one of the
swing states? Would you have been concerned?
The Dirty Secret is a tense political thriller that
has all the elements of a good story: conflict, a touch of romance, heroes and
villains. However, as the author points out in the introduction, it doesn’t
stray from the reality of the laws governing U.S. Presidential elections,
including some of the more obscure regulations. Fans of political thrillers
should eat this up. Those who are politically engaged and unaware of concerns
with the integrity of the voting process, especially as it pertains to the use
of electronic voting machines, should consider this a wake-up call. Without
meaningful election reform, Wolfinbarger’s fiction could easily become reality.
Possibly, it already has.
FYI:
Some adult
language and mild adult situations.
Format/Typo Issues:
No
significant issues.
Rating: ***** Five stars
No comments:
Post a Comment