Title: The Big Lie by James Grippando
Jack Swyteck Series Book Sixteen
Publisher: Harper
Genre: Contemporary, Legal Thriller
Length: 368 pages
Book Rating: B+
Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through Edelweiss
Summary:
As the Electoral College battle for the White House lands in a Florida courtroom, Miami attorney Jack Swyteck has never felt farther from the truth, fighting for a “faithless elector,” caught between a corrupt president and his manipulative opponent—with each revelation more explosive than the next.
The country is reeling. For the sixth time in American history, the winner of the popular vote will not occupy the Oval Office. President Malcolm MacLeod, the Machiavellian incumbent, was spared from impeachment only because his political foes were certain they would oust him at the ballot box. Now, he appears to have secured a second term, thanks to a narrow victory in the Electoral College.
His opponent, Florida Senator Evan Stahl, saw his campaign rocked by allegations of an extramarital affair—with another man. Despite the salacious headline-making scandal and the surrounding media frenzy, most Americans chose Stahl to lead the politically polarized nation. But Stahl is refusing to concede. Backed by millions of supporters, he looks to individual members of the Electoral College to cross party lines.
Gun lobbyist Charlotte Holmes is one of Floridas twenty-nine electors who is bound by law and by oath to cast her vote for MacLeod, who won Florida by the thinnest of margins. When Charlotte announces that she intends to vote her conscience and throw the Electoral College to Stahl, the president and his Florida machine haul her into court on felony charges—which, for some, isn’t nearly punishment enough.
Miami attorney Jack Swyteck is going to use every legal maneuver he can to keep his new client free—and alive. MacLeod’s hand-picked prosecutor is determined to prove Charlotte is unfit to cast a vote. Dredging through her past, he’s looking for skeletons to humiliate and discredit her, while others with far deadlier intentions have begun acting on their threats.
As the pressure mounts, Charlotte and Jack must decide how far they’ll go to stand their ground in the stand-your-ground state.
Review:
The Big Lie by James Grippando is a tense legal thriller with an incredibly topical storyline. Although this sixteenth installment in the Jack Swyteck series can be read as standalone, I HIGHLY recommend the previous novels as well.
Opening on election night with current President Malcolm MacLeod winning the electoral college but not the popular vote, the election soon takes a surprising turn. Democratic candidate, FL Senator Evan Stahl Jr., decides not to concede defeat in hopes of finding enough faithless electors to hand him the victory. Florida pro-gun lobbyist Charlotte Holmes is the first elector who goes public with her decision to vote for Stahl. Her decision sets up a legal battle with FL State Attorney General Paulette Barrow trying to prove her an unfit elector. But luckily for Charlotte, she hires lawyer Jack Swyteck to defend her. But with just a few scant weeks until the electors cast their votes, will Jack defeat Barrows’ efforts to replace Charlotte with an elector who will cast their vote for MacLeod?
Despite his father’s political history, Jack stays firmly out of politics. But with his stepmother not feeling up to attending the election night festivities, he and his father Harry are with Stahl as they await the election results. Although Jack manages to escape attempts to embroil him in political maneuvering, he is surprised when Charlotte hires him to prove she can, in fact, legally cast a vote as a faithless elector.
Paulette Barrow wastes no time coordinating her efforts with MacLeod to eject Charlotte and replace her with a loyal alternate. She does not hesitate to resort to dirty tricks and barely legal arguments. Swyteck thwarts many of her efforts but when a situation turns deadly, does Paulette finally have what she needs to prove her case against Charlotte?
The Big Lie is a riveting legal thriller that has a ripped from the political headline feel that will send chills up voters’ spines. The storyline is suspenseful and covers a wide range of relevant topics. Jack is determined to protect Charlotte but with a stubborn client who does not always follow his advice, whether or not he will succeed remains to be seen. With a series of breathtaking twists and turns, James Grippando brings this compelling thriller to an unanticipated shocking conclusion. I absolutely loved and highly recommend this clever addition to the Jack Swyteck series.
