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Capitol Threat: A Novel of Suspense
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Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
Author: William Bernhardt
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Average Customer Rating:
Our Price: $7.99
You Save: $ ( % )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
Author: William Bernhardt
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Average Customer Rating:
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Capitol Threat: A Novel of Suspense Description
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780345470188
ISBN: 0345470184
Label: Ballantine Books
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 432
Publication Date: 2007-12-26
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Product Release Date: 2007-12-26
Studio: Ballantine Books
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780345470188
ISBN: 0345470184
Label: Ballantine Books
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 432
Publication Date: 2007-12-26
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Product Release Date: 2007-12-26
Studio: Ballantine Books
Editorial Review of Capitol Threat: A Novel of Suspense
When Oklahoma attorney Ben Kincaid came to Washington, D.C., to defend a senator caught in a red-hot sex scandal turned murder case, he never dreamed he’d end up trading the courtroom for the senate chamber. And after his not-so-distinguished client stepped down, Ben found himself appointed to complete the sullied senator’s term. Now, having barely gotten his political sea legs, he must rise to yet another challenge: advising the president’s next Supreme Court nominee during the sometimes thorny confirmation process. Luckily, Judge Thaddeus Roush’s popularity on both sides of the aisle looks to make him a shoo-in. Until he decides to out himself on national television–igniting a Beltway uproar and setting the stage for a bare-knuckle partisan brawl.
Forced to scramble for spin control, Ben hastily calls a press conference for the now controversial candidate. But the photo op becomes a tabloid nightmare when, on live TV, a brutally murdered woman is discovered in the judge’s backyard. For the political forces out to torpedo the nomination of a gay Supreme Court Justice, the shocking turn of events is pure gold.
With the secret backing of the president and a made-to-order new candidate waiting in the wings, the cagey senate majority leader and his most ruthless allies mount a smear campaign that would put Joe McCarthy to shame. But Team Kincaid isn’t about to let the best man for the job get derailed.
While Ben uses his best courtroom strategies to wage a war of words, his crack private eye, Loving, hits the capital streets to fight a much more hands-on battle–with hustlers, hit men, and homicidal hoods–as he digs for dirt in places even Deep Throat would avoid. It’s soon clear that this game is anything but politics as usual.
In Capitol Threat, William Bernhardt serves up a resounding one-two punch of political intrigue and legal suspense peppered with a volley of his trademark plot twists, sly wit, and persistent thrills.
From the Hardcover edition.
Forced to scramble for spin control, Ben hastily calls a press conference for the now controversial candidate. But the photo op becomes a tabloid nightmare when, on live TV, a brutally murdered woman is discovered in the judge’s backyard. For the political forces out to torpedo the nomination of a gay Supreme Court Justice, the shocking turn of events is pure gold.
With the secret backing of the president and a made-to-order new candidate waiting in the wings, the cagey senate majority leader and his most ruthless allies mount a smear campaign that would put Joe McCarthy to shame. But Team Kincaid isn’t about to let the best man for the job get derailed.
While Ben uses his best courtroom strategies to wage a war of words, his crack private eye, Loving, hits the capital streets to fight a much more hands-on battle–with hustlers, hit men, and homicidal hoods–as he digs for dirt in places even Deep Throat would avoid. It’s soon clear that this game is anything but politics as usual.
In Capitol Threat, William Bernhardt serves up a resounding one-two punch of political intrigue and legal suspense peppered with a volley of his trademark plot twists, sly wit, and persistent thrills.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews of Capitol Threat: A Novel of Suspense
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Big Disappointment
Review: As a reader of the entire Ben Kincaid series as well as most other William Bernhardt novels I found this book a big letdown. Bernhardt introduces way too much editorialization making large parts of the story seem more like an opinion piece than a novel. The book captures the wheeling and dealing of the political landscape but a few turns in the story are hard to fathom especially near the end of the book. I hope this series gets out of the political realm because it seems the author is unable to write about politics without forcing his personal beliefs down the readers throats. I also hope Lovings character does not go in the direction suggested as the story raps up. If you skip this one the only real thing you miss is at the very end where Ben finally pops the question.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: 'awful'
Review: Just awful,,,totally unrealistic plot (I do realize it's a novel!), plodding story, and absolutely zero research into the DC area ie, discussion of areas of the city are inaccurate at best.
Amazon wont let me put up zero stars that's why there is one. Save your money.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Some unlikely twists, but not bad
Review: I've read all of the Ben Kincaid series and enjoy the twists and turns, no matter how unlikely. There are a couple of factual issues to be addressed in future printings (i. e. the State of the Union address is delivered in the House chamber, not in the Senate). I still wonder about how Bill does his research for those grizzly torture scenes. Keep up the good work. It might be time to give Ben, Kristina, Loving, and the rest of the gang a rest.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Court Thriller
Review: Readers familiar with William Bernhardt's courtroom series featuring attorney Ben Kincaid; his offbeat partner cum fiancée, Christina McCall; his intrepid investigator, Loving; and his computer maven administrative assistant, Jones, will be riveted by their latest escapades in the complex plot of CAPITOL THREAT.
As a result of solving a tricky case some months prior, the governor of Oklahoma has appointed Ben to fulfill the rest of Senator Glancy's term. Ben is his usual socially inhibited self, fighting his sense of inadequacy, and the rest of his retinue also are not completely comfortable in their new venue, Washington, D.C. Nevertheless, they persevere and in the end prevail. The first important event they attend is held in the Rose Garden, where the President is to announce his nominee to the Supreme Court, Thaddeus (Tad) T. Roush, a well-respected and mostly liked jurist on the Court of Appeals.
The book begins 10 years in the past. The narrator is a thief and a murderer. Irony and fate will find her the "main attraction" at the celebration party held at the home of Roush. Who is she? How did she get there? Why did she suddenly reappear at this time? These questions form a thread that run through the fabric of the novel; albeit the main frame of the story is the uproar started by and about Roush himself.
The next section is titled "Three Weeks Before" and introduces another influential character: Judge Rupert Haskins, a well-respected Republican who expected to be the President's nominee to the Supreme Court. We meet him and his overly devoted wife at a dinner reception where a fire breaks out. The doors are jammed, and all routes of escape are closed off. But Haskins charges to the rescue; he shouts orders and his forcefulness breaks through the panic so that everyone starts moving and gets out --- or almost everyone. An infant can be heard crying in the midst of flames, smoke and heat. Of course the judge saves the tyke and becomes a national hero --- a feather in his cap that is sure to be the ticket that will put a lock on his chances of flying through the juggernauts on his way into a seat on the Supreme Court.
Fast forward to the event at the Rose Garden and the President's Supreme Court nomination announcement. Surprise! Surprise! Thaddeus T. Roush is his pick. The President's speech, Haskins's outrage, the appearance of the "narrator" and what follows is what propels CAPITOL THREAT into the realms of suspense, political drama and timeliness.
The Supreme Court remains a very honored yet elusive body, but William Bernhardt tweaks the curtain that shields the nomination process to discuss how and why a particular person is chosen. He takes us through the goings-on of committee, then hearings in Congress and the awesome task of voting (or not voting) for the nominee on the hot seat getting the third degree. And in Roush's case things are even hotter.
In the meantime Haskins is spinning a web of vitriol and revenge against the world. He wants that seat so badly he can taste it and will do anything to get it. Anything! He has a group of senators who are backing him; they plan to trash Judge Roush and do as much damage to anyone who gets in their way. This ramps up the suspense as the machinations of sore losers usually do.
The architecture of this novel is constructed with every detail fitting together like a lock and key. Bernhardt's keen eye for characterizations makes his players more than cardboard cutouts and more available to readers. The writer's sharp ear for dialogue produces conversations that are acoustically pitch perfect and believable. And he is gifted with a great sense of humor that makes its way into the story with exquisite timing.
The Kincaid novels all have a social issue at their heart. Bernhardt never preaches or proselytizes, but through Ben and his colleagues he certainly gets his point across. Each of his 15 novels is so different and fresh that one can read them in any order, which is a boon for readers new to these works. You can bet that you won't be disappointed.
--- Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "It isn't personal. It's politics."
Review: Ben Kincaid isn't in Oklahoma anymore. The self-deprecating criminal defense attorney is now a newly-minted junior senator, appointed by the governor to fill out the term of his predecessor. Among the decisions that Ben has to make: Will he run in the upcoming senatorial election? Will he finally set a date to marry his long-suffering and endlessly patient girlfriend, Christina McCall, who is also his chief of staff? These matters are soon relegated to the back burner when a series of explosive events suddenly place Ben in the national spotlight.
The conservative Republican president of the United States nominates Thaddeus T. Roush for an opening in the U. S. Supreme Court. The Commander-in-Chief and most everyone else is shocked when, in his acceptance speech, the nominee blurts out, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am a gay American. And I will not live in the closet any longer." The Republicans are unhappy, and they want Roush's nomination to fail in the Judiciary Committee. However, Roush has vowed to fight back, and Ben's mentor, Senate Minority Leader Robert Hammond from Texas, asks him to represent Roush during the committee hearings. Roush has confidence in Ben, who, he declares, does "what it takes to see that justice is served." When Ben reluctantly agrees to assist the nominee, he jeopardizes his career and places himself squarely in the line of fire.
Kincaid is extremely uncomfortable around the smoke-filled rooms of our nation's capitol, where secret deals, corruption, lies, and unbridled ambition trump the American ideals of truth and justice. However, Ben soon learns to play hardball with the best of them, and he does his utmost to boost Roush's chances with all of the oratorical tricks at his disposal. Unfortunately, further revelations about the candidate's past as well as the murder of a young woman in Roush's garden present seemingly insurmountable obstacles to his confirmation. How can any candidate survive so much bad publicity?
"Capitol Threat" is a strange amalgam of lighthearted banter, farce, torture, cold-blooded murder, and insider information about Washington politics. Unfortunately, Bernhardt gives in to the temptation to preach; too much of the almost four-hundred page novel is taken up with speechifying. The narrative is suspenseful enough, and Ben, Loving, and Christina are always good company. However, too many far-fetched twists and turns and a few unrealistic coincidences weaken the book. All in all, Bernhardt had a promising idea and he showed courage in addressing such controversial issues as abortion, homosexuality, and the death penalty. However, the author would have been more successful had he crafted a more coherent, plausible, and subtle story.
Review Summary: A Big Disappointment
Review: As a reader of the entire Ben Kincaid series as well as most other William Bernhardt novels I found this book a big letdown. Bernhardt introduces way too much editorialization making large parts of the story seem more like an opinion piece than a novel. The book captures the wheeling and dealing of the political landscape but a few turns in the story are hard to fathom especially near the end of the book. I hope this series gets out of the political realm because it seems the author is unable to write about politics without forcing his personal beliefs down the readers throats. I also hope Lovings character does not go in the direction suggested as the story raps up. If you skip this one the only real thing you miss is at the very end where Ben finally pops the question.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: 'awful'
Review: Just awful,,,totally unrealistic plot (I do realize it's a novel!), plodding story, and absolutely zero research into the DC area ie, discussion of areas of the city are inaccurate at best.
Amazon wont let me put up zero stars that's why there is one. Save your money.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Some unlikely twists, but not bad
Review: I've read all of the Ben Kincaid series and enjoy the twists and turns, no matter how unlikely. There are a couple of factual issues to be addressed in future printings (i. e. the State of the Union address is delivered in the House chamber, not in the Senate). I still wonder about how Bill does his research for those grizzly torture scenes. Keep up the good work. It might be time to give Ben, Kristina, Loving, and the rest of the gang a rest.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A Court Thriller
Review: Readers familiar with William Bernhardt's courtroom series featuring attorney Ben Kincaid; his offbeat partner cum fiancée, Christina McCall; his intrepid investigator, Loving; and his computer maven administrative assistant, Jones, will be riveted by their latest escapades in the complex plot of CAPITOL THREAT.
As a result of solving a tricky case some months prior, the governor of Oklahoma has appointed Ben to fulfill the rest of Senator Glancy's term. Ben is his usual socially inhibited self, fighting his sense of inadequacy, and the rest of his retinue also are not completely comfortable in their new venue, Washington, D.C. Nevertheless, they persevere and in the end prevail. The first important event they attend is held in the Rose Garden, where the President is to announce his nominee to the Supreme Court, Thaddeus (Tad) T. Roush, a well-respected and mostly liked jurist on the Court of Appeals.
The book begins 10 years in the past. The narrator is a thief and a murderer. Irony and fate will find her the "main attraction" at the celebration party held at the home of Roush. Who is she? How did she get there? Why did she suddenly reappear at this time? These questions form a thread that run through the fabric of the novel; albeit the main frame of the story is the uproar started by and about Roush himself.
The next section is titled "Three Weeks Before" and introduces another influential character: Judge Rupert Haskins, a well-respected Republican who expected to be the President's nominee to the Supreme Court. We meet him and his overly devoted wife at a dinner reception where a fire breaks out. The doors are jammed, and all routes of escape are closed off. But Haskins charges to the rescue; he shouts orders and his forcefulness breaks through the panic so that everyone starts moving and gets out --- or almost everyone. An infant can be heard crying in the midst of flames, smoke and heat. Of course the judge saves the tyke and becomes a national hero --- a feather in his cap that is sure to be the ticket that will put a lock on his chances of flying through the juggernauts on his way into a seat on the Supreme Court.
Fast forward to the event at the Rose Garden and the President's Supreme Court nomination announcement. Surprise! Surprise! Thaddeus T. Roush is his pick. The President's speech, Haskins's outrage, the appearance of the "narrator" and what follows is what propels CAPITOL THREAT into the realms of suspense, political drama and timeliness.
The Supreme Court remains a very honored yet elusive body, but William Bernhardt tweaks the curtain that shields the nomination process to discuss how and why a particular person is chosen. He takes us through the goings-on of committee, then hearings in Congress and the awesome task of voting (or not voting) for the nominee on the hot seat getting the third degree. And in Roush's case things are even hotter.
In the meantime Haskins is spinning a web of vitriol and revenge against the world. He wants that seat so badly he can taste it and will do anything to get it. Anything! He has a group of senators who are backing him; they plan to trash Judge Roush and do as much damage to anyone who gets in their way. This ramps up the suspense as the machinations of sore losers usually do.
The architecture of this novel is constructed with every detail fitting together like a lock and key. Bernhardt's keen eye for characterizations makes his players more than cardboard cutouts and more available to readers. The writer's sharp ear for dialogue produces conversations that are acoustically pitch perfect and believable. And he is gifted with a great sense of humor that makes its way into the story with exquisite timing.
The Kincaid novels all have a social issue at their heart. Bernhardt never preaches or proselytizes, but through Ben and his colleagues he certainly gets his point across. Each of his 15 novels is so different and fresh that one can read them in any order, which is a boon for readers new to these works. You can bet that you won't be disappointed.
--- Reviewed by Barbara Lipkien Gershenbaum
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "It isn't personal. It's politics."
Review: Ben Kincaid isn't in Oklahoma anymore. The self-deprecating criminal defense attorney is now a newly-minted junior senator, appointed by the governor to fill out the term of his predecessor. Among the decisions that Ben has to make: Will he run in the upcoming senatorial election? Will he finally set a date to marry his long-suffering and endlessly patient girlfriend, Christina McCall, who is also his chief of staff? These matters are soon relegated to the back burner when a series of explosive events suddenly place Ben in the national spotlight.
The conservative Republican president of the United States nominates Thaddeus T. Roush for an opening in the U. S. Supreme Court. The Commander-in-Chief and most everyone else is shocked when, in his acceptance speech, the nominee blurts out, "Ladies and gentlemen, I am a gay American. And I will not live in the closet any longer." The Republicans are unhappy, and they want Roush's nomination to fail in the Judiciary Committee. However, Roush has vowed to fight back, and Ben's mentor, Senate Minority Leader Robert Hammond from Texas, asks him to represent Roush during the committee hearings. Roush has confidence in Ben, who, he declares, does "what it takes to see that justice is served." When Ben reluctantly agrees to assist the nominee, he jeopardizes his career and places himself squarely in the line of fire.
Kincaid is extremely uncomfortable around the smoke-filled rooms of our nation's capitol, where secret deals, corruption, lies, and unbridled ambition trump the American ideals of truth and justice. However, Ben soon learns to play hardball with the best of them, and he does his utmost to boost Roush's chances with all of the oratorical tricks at his disposal. Unfortunately, further revelations about the candidate's past as well as the murder of a young woman in Roush's garden present seemingly insurmountable obstacles to his confirmation. How can any candidate survive so much bad publicity?
"Capitol Threat" is a strange amalgam of lighthearted banter, farce, torture, cold-blooded murder, and insider information about Washington politics. Unfortunately, Bernhardt gives in to the temptation to preach; too much of the almost four-hundred page novel is taken up with speechifying. The narrative is suspenseful enough, and Ben, Loving, and Christina are always good company. However, too many far-fetched twists and turns and a few unrealistic coincidences weaken the book. All in all, Bernhardt had a promising idea and he showed courage in addressing such controversial issues as abortion, homosexuality, and the death penalty. However, the author would have been more successful had he crafted a more coherent, plausible, and subtle story.