Fiction Addict

Genre: Thriller

Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

Publication Date: April 21, 2009

Reviewed by Frank Redman

David Baldacci is one of the more recognized writers today and known for his character driven stories and a lot of action. Yet First Family is the first Baldacci novel I’ve had the pleasure of reading. It took only a few pages to recognize why he’s so popular.

First Family is the fourth in a series involving characters Sean King and Michelle Maxwell, former Secret Service agents that now share a partnership as Washington D.C. private investigators. I’m sure there is some back story I missed by starting with book four, yet Baldacci provided enough insight into the characters to give me an understanding of who they are and their personal issues. The plot itself is stand alone and introduces an assortment of new characters.

The 12-year-old niece of First Lady Jane Cox is kidnapped following a birthday party at Camp David. King and Maxwell are hired to investigate, much to the obvious disapproval of the Secret Service and FBI. Meanwhile, we follow 62-year-old Sam Quarry, eventually discovering his involvement with the story from his compound in Alabama, called Atlee.

Baldacci throws in several plot twists as well as twisting our feelings and perceptions of characters. I enjoy novels in which things do not seem as they are, and First Family has that same form of attraction.

The story is full of scandals involving murder, high politics, and national security. The novel also creates believable scenarios depicting Secret Service and FBI procedures.

First Family is a long story, but it did not give me the feeling of hoping it ends soon. In contrast, it did give me the feeling of wanting to read the previous three novels in the series.