false 92958 16 Richard North Patterson, whose legal thrillers have won him legions of devoted mystery fans, shows off his superb pacing and narrative gifts as well as his ability to create vividly realized characters in this compelling novel of late-term abortion, parental consent, and the battle over a nominee for chief justice of the Supreme Court. Unlike Patterson's typical courtroom dramas, the name of this game isn't murder; it's the body politic that's bleeding. When newly elected Democratic president Kerry Kilcannon nominates appeals court judge Caroline Masters to the top spot on the court, he knows he'll have a fight on his hands. Leading the opposition is his political rival, MacDonald Gage, the GOP majority leader who owes his soul and career to the Christian right wing. They're suspicious of Masters even before a politically charged case involving a teenager whose parents refuse to allow her to terminate a disastrous pregnancy ends up in her court. More principled than Gage, but equally adamant, is Republican senator Chad Palmer, who, like Masters, harbors his own potentially career-destroying secret. <p> Masters is an intriguing character, a woman whose judicial integrity, personal privacy, and political ambitions collide when she casts a tie-breaking vote on the constitutionality of the recently enacted Protection of Life bill. Not only young Mary Anne Tierney's future is at stake: so are the reproductive rights of all women, the resilience of the judicial system, and the personal lives of innocent bystanders who will be sacrificed on the altar of the First Amendment--the public's right to know, and the media's right to tell. Moving swiftly between the courts of public opinion and the federal judiciary, from San Francisco to the nation's capital, Patterson tells a mesmerizing story that's been praised by political and legal luminaries such as Mario Cuomo, Barbara Boxer, and Alan Dershowitz. But don't let that stop you. This up-to-date version of <I>Advise and Consent</I> is a provocative read that will resonate with political junkies as well as those who've made bestsellers out of Patterson's more typical genre thrillers. <I>--Jane Adams</I> 1360437 1000 Protect and Defend total:451|5:111|4:195|3:132|2:11|1:2| 451 1755 572 34 4 0 false false Sun Jan 04 15:36:26 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 04 15:43:37 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Fri Aug 07 12:35:27 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 07 12:36:12 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Jun 21 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Wed Feb 04 08:14:43 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 04 08:24:09 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 19 08:21:47 -0800 2007 Sat Jan 05 20:13:51 -0800 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Sep 15 15:50:42 -0700 2008 Mon Sep 15 15:54:32 -0700 2008
A great page-turner and thriller. Can of course see where things are headed in the end, but still wort...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Mar 08 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 09 20:58:42 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 09 21:02:09 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2003 Thu Jul 02 12:19:08 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 02 12:20:51 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sun Sep 27 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Sep 25 14:01:33 -0700 2009 Sun Sep 27 18:19:39 -0700 2009 1 4 0 false false Fri Sep 18 15:55:51 -0700 2009 Fri Sep 18 15:57:01 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sun Feb 01 11:26:25 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 01 11:26:25 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Thu Jun 18 17:50:04 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 18 17:52:17 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Fri Jan 09 16:38:34 -0800 2009 Fri Jan 09 16:39:59 -0800 2009 As always, he presents us with the shades of grey, and stirs the emotions. ]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2001 Tue Jan 08 13:21:05 -0800 2008 Tue Jan 08 13:21:21 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Dec 30 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 21 16:04:09 -0800 2008 Sat Jan 03 12:38:21 -0800 2009
and the rest of the book makes for a compelling political thriller.

this was a good Christmas holiday book :-)]]> 5 0 false false Sun Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 03:52:48 -0800 2009 Tue Mar 03 17:35:55 -0800 2009
Update: The book was terrific, as I expected. ]]> 5 0 false false Tue Oct 10 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Tue Feb 10 14:47:22 -0800 2009 Tue Feb 10 14:48:20 -0800 2009 5 0 true false Wed Apr 01 17:32:49 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 01 17:33:26 -0700 2009 1 4 0 false false Tue Jul 22 00:43:37 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 22 00:53:41 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Jan 28 17:13:16 -0800 2008 Mon Jan 28 17:17:18 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Mar 27 21:13:07 -0700 2008 Thu Mar 27 21:15:12 -0700 2008