*NOTE* review not finishedWhile this book reads like a *stand-alone, it is actually the latest in the Sean Drummond series by Brian Haig. Sean Drummond is simultaneously intrigued and disinterested when the CIA sends him to "consult" on a bizarre, uber secure FBI crime scene. If that sounds convoluted, it is, and Sean makes note of that with a perfect amount of wit and sarcasm. This is the most honestly-funny book I've ever read. It is also the best thriller I've read, in like, forever. I would almost classify this as a psychological thriller. The basic plot goes thus: some genius intelligence is on a two-day horror killing spree. At the end of the two days, they plan to assassinate the president. As the different government agencies bumble around, try to avoid getting blamed for the lighting-fast attacks, and struggle to be the one who cracks the case, Sean teams up with an FBI behavioral specialist, Jennifer Marigold. Together they struggle to the case-within-the-case, while saving their own buts from their fickle bosses, and trying to stay ahead of the blitzkrieg attacks. With an explosive finale to the killer's plans, Jenny and Sean save the day, case solved.Or is it?You will never, ever see the surprise ending coming, yet it remains perfectly reasonable and satisfying. Amazing book. I plan to read everything else in the Sean Drummond series.*The only caveat is a few paragraphs in two different chapters about Sean's sortof girlfriend, Jenny, and why they are sortof dating/not dating. The author seems to feel a need to explain Jenny and Sean's last mission together, which had no relation to the present story. But it's brief, and it flows well, and it's no real bother. Other than that the book does well as a stand-alone. When seeing other backstory, you don't even realize it has to do with previous books.
Sean Drummond did not seem to have much of his arrogant smart-ass attitude in tact this time around which made for a more serious read. This one was a great and complexed mystery crime to read about and quite plausible in some ways but not in others. Specifically with regard to the stealing of military weapons and the FBI profiling and testing before hired for the Bureau. I was also shocked that Drummond didn't figure it out sooner as I had a hunch and it proved dead on in the end. I'm beginning to think Drummond is actually quite incompetent, even stupid sometimes while I read these books. This Sean Drummond series is not what I was expecting or hoping now that I've read several of them. I thought they would be more JAG courtroom, court martial type reads and they aren't. They are very entertaining though and with lots of clues to get your brain working itself into a frenzy trying to solve the crimes. Love the type of crimes created but solving them is getting a little easier. For the life of me I can't figure out why Drummond is carted off to civilian crimes and away from military crimes most of the time. He has a job and they keep sending him off to do some other job other than his 'real' job.
What do You think about The President's Assassin (2006)?
This is a very interesting read. It may even be fairly correct about the relationship of the Military, CIA, FBI and the White House. It seems quite plausible and is mixed in nicely with the plot. I did not find this as good as Haig's latest novel, The Private Sector, because the protagonist, Sean Drummond is a true wisenheimer of the highest order. It can range from funny to over the line and about 1/4 of the book is his supercilious wise cracks. The comings and goings of new ideas and unexpected outcomes, however, is quite well done. No wonder he has some insight...being the son of Alexander Haig who was in place to run the country for us when Kennedy was shot.
—Gary Stewart
I love the Sean Drummond character series by Brian Haig. I think there are six of them. Sean is a JAG lawyer for "special circumstances" so he only handles special cases. His character is funny and stubborn, but usually does the right thing. He also has a way of making everybody he works with mad and is a major headache for his boss. His boss tends to lend him out to other agencies as much as possible just to get rid of him. If you love books about lawyers and their cases you will love these books.
—Kay Miller
I nearly had to flip a coin to decide whether to rate this book as "liked it" or "really liked it." This was the first of Brian Haig's novels that I have read and it took me a while to get used to his technique of having so much of the story line being created in Sean Drummond's mind, while significantly less of the story was developed using discourse and author-described interactions among the various characters. For me, an avid reader of fiction, it was a little difficult, albeit not particularly disquieting, to follow at first, but once I became comfortable with the technique, it became much easier to follow the actions and enjoy the story. I also thought that the ending was a bit anti-climatic and did not bring closure to the story. Perhaps Haig has intentionally "left the door open," so to speak, so as to extend the character interaction among some of the main players in a follow-on novel. Since I don't prefer my review to be 'hidden,' I'll just leave those comments at that.It was really a fun read, and though I am not particularly fond of the term, this book really was a 'page turner.'
—Burt
