My King The President

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Review (Sun Journal, New Bern, NC June 1, 2008) Review by Ken Gruebel. TOM LEWIS DOES IT AGAIN WITH MY KING THE PRESIDENT. Tom Lewis, author of the groundbreaking series of stories about Pea Island with his opening novel, SUNDAY'S CHILD, has brought us a new and chilling novel from an entirely different perspective. Here are people born to wealth, born to power, and striving to hatch a cruel and vicious plan that looks on any power that is not absolute as not nearly enough power at all. The tale begins with a shocker. A Secret Service agent, one sworn to protect the President at all costs and in any situation, rises from a troubled sleep, reports to work at the White House, opens the door to the president's bedroom and fires several shots into Buck Tyndall, his father-in-law and the President of the United States. His mission accomplished, he turns the gun on himself and commits suicide. Enter Jeb Willard, a journalist. Not only is Jeb known worldwide for the depth of his reporting, but also he is a go anywhere, do anything kind of reporter when it comes to chasing a story down. And he knows there has to be a story. Thus he is not surprised when an editor for whom he formerly worked calls him and asks him to be the point man on the Presidential assassination story and the fallout from that event. But Willard, being rather famous for what he does, and before he can really get started, has another call. This one is from Helene Fordham, the Vice President, and now, as a result of the killing, the new President. She apparently wants him to do the same thing and find the reason for the killing and find out who is responsible. As Jeb starts his task, he becomes a lightning rod for danger for those who have contacted him. One person is found dead by hanging, a death not believed to really be a suicide. Another person is shot dead, almost right in front of him. As a final blow, Willard's father, editor and owner of a small newspaper, is apparently kidnapped by U.S. Army forces. It quickly becomes obvious that the killing of the President was not the result of one deranged Secret Service man, but the unraveling of a huge power grab by some people very high in the government. The story moves rapidly and while there are some revelations, each revelation is overtaken by yet new surprises and new events. Keeping pace with the action will keep the reader on his or her toes. Tom Lewis, the author, was at one time a symphony orchestra conductor, and thus his knowledge of classical music and classical music composers is legendary. Because my tastes in music range run more to the three Bs, barrelhouse, boogie-woogie, and the blues, I missed several clues that one more attuned to classical music would not have missed. The writing is crisp and the action, as befits the genre, is non-stop. Tom Lewis has a gift for the well-turned phrase. I'll give but one example, leaving the rest for you to discover for yourself. Describing a dramatic confrontation, our hero notes, ...the atmosphere was thicker than fog and heavier than lead. The story ranges from Washington, D.C. to the Florida Keys and off to the western states. In each area, there is a new twist to the plot. I enjoyed this book, and I imagine you will, too. Good story! --Sun Journal by Ken Gruebel About the Author A Tarhell native and son of amateur musicians and writers, Tom Lewis was born in Rocky Mount, NC, graduated from New Bern (NC) High School, and was further educated in the US and Europe. Before retiring to seriously write for publication, Tom spent 38 years as a symphony orchestra conductor in Europe as well as Charoltte, NC, Roswell, NM, Rochester, MN, Tulsa, OK, and Sioux City, IA.