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Capital Crimes #23
Murder on K Street
Nobody knows the crooked turns, slippery slopes, and dark, dangerous stretches of the Beltway better than Margaret Truman, dean of the Washington, D.C., mystery scene. And no one is better equipped to lead a suspenseful tour into the treacherous territory of big-time political lobbying, where the right information and enough influence can buy power–the kind that corrupts . . . and sometimes kills.
Arriving home from a fund-raising dinner, senior Illinois senator Lyle Simmons discovers his wife’s brutally bludgeoned body. And like any savvy politician with presidential aspirations, his first move is to phone his attorney. In this case, it’s his old friend and college roommate, former DA Philip Rotondi, who gamely agrees to step out of quiet retirement and into the thick of a D.C.-style political, criminal, and public relations maelstrom from which no one will escape unscathed.
The crime scene is barely cold when the senator’s estranged daughter arrives hurling shocking allegations of murder at her father, despite a roomful of well-heeled witnesses who can provide Simmons with an alibi. Meanwhile, D.C.’s rumor mills and spin machines shift into high gear as speculation swirls around a tabloid- and TV-ready prime suspect: Jonell Marbury, a dashing lawyer turned lobbyist at a powerful K Street firm–and the last person to see the victim alive. But Rotondi harbors his own unsettling suspicions.
And after a second woman is killed, he discovers that a long-buried secret from his past may hold the key to cracking the case.
Aided by sleuthing ex-attorneys Mac and Annabel Smith, Rotondi reawakens the prosecutorial skills that served him so well in his gang-busting days, following the stench of dirty money and dirtier tricks across the country and across the thresholds of back rooms and front offices alike–where doing the right thing is for fools and taking on the system is a dead man’s gambit.
From the Hardcover edition.
Arriving home from a fund-raising dinner, senior Illinois senator Lyle Simmons discovers his wife’s brutally bludgeoned body. And like any savvy politician with presidential aspirations, his first move is to phone his attorney. In this case, it’s his old friend and college roommate, former DA Philip Rotondi, who gamely agrees to step out of quiet retirement and into the thick of a D.C.-style political, criminal, and public relations maelstrom from which no one will escape unscathed.
The crime scene is barely cold when the senator’s estranged daughter arrives hurling shocking allegations of murder at her father, despite a roomful of well-heeled witnesses who can provide Simmons with an alibi. Meanwhile, D.C.’s rumor mills and spin machines shift into high gear as speculation swirls around a tabloid- and TV-ready prime suspect: Jonell Marbury, a dashing lawyer turned lobbyist at a powerful K Street firm–and the last person to see the victim alive. But Rotondi harbors his own unsettling suspicions.
And after a second woman is killed, he discovers that a long-buried secret from his past may hold the key to cracking the case.
Aided by sleuthing ex-attorneys Mac and Annabel Smith, Rotondi reawakens the prosecutorial skills that served him so well in his gang-busting days, following the stench of dirty money and dirtier tricks across the country and across the thresholds of back rooms and front offices alike–where doing the right thing is for fools and taking on the system is a dead man’s gambit.
From the Hardcover edition.
318 pages, Hardcover
First published October 30, 2007
245 people are currently reading
603 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Truman
87 books262 followersMary Margaret Truman Daniel was an American classical soprano, actress, journalist, radio and television personality, writer, and New York socialite. She was the only child of President Harry Truman and First Lady Bess Truman. While her father was president during the years 1945 to 1953, Margaret regularly accompanied him on campaign trips, such as the 1948 countrywide whistle-stop campaign lasting several weeks. She also appeared at important White House and political events during those years, being a favorite with the media.
After graduating from George Washington University in 1946, she embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano, beginning with a concert appearance with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1947. She appeared in concerts with orchestras throughout the United States and in recitals throughout the U.S. through 1956. She made recordings for RCA Victor, and made television appearances on programs like What's My Line? and The Bell Telephone Hour.
In 1957, one year after her marriage, Truman abandoned her singing career to pursue a career as a journalist and radio personality, when she became the co-host of the program Weekday with Mike Wallace. She also wrote articles as an independent journalist, for a variety of publications in the 1960s and 1970s. She later became the successful author of a series of murder mysteries, and a number of works on U.S. First Ladies and First Families, including well-received biographies of her father, President Harry S. Truman and mother Bess Truman.
She was married to journalist Clifton Daniel, managing editor of The New York Times. The couple had four sons, and were prominent New York socialites who often hosted events for the New York elite.
After graduating from George Washington University in 1946, she embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano, beginning with a concert appearance with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1947. She appeared in concerts with orchestras throughout the United States and in recitals throughout the U.S. through 1956. She made recordings for RCA Victor, and made television appearances on programs like What's My Line? and The Bell Telephone Hour.
In 1957, one year after her marriage, Truman abandoned her singing career to pursue a career as a journalist and radio personality, when she became the co-host of the program Weekday with Mike Wallace. She also wrote articles as an independent journalist, for a variety of publications in the 1960s and 1970s. She later became the successful author of a series of murder mysteries, and a number of works on U.S. First Ladies and First Families, including well-received biographies of her father, President Harry S. Truman and mother Bess Truman.
She was married to journalist Clifton Daniel, managing editor of The New York Times. The couple had four sons, and were prominent New York socialites who often hosted events for the New York elite.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 121 reviews
April 23, 2024
I actually read this back in 2018, but this is my first chance to post it as a review on Goodreads.
The Senator returns home from a speaking engagement and discovers his wife murdered.
Who would do this and why?
And…
Is the Senator guilty or complicit?
These are the questions that we as readers must discover answers to in Margaret Truman’s Murder on K Street, a Capital Crimes Novel. (Yes, her father was President Harry S. Truman.)
There are 23 titles in her mystery series.
As readers we have been treated to a view of the Washington, D.C. areas in unusual ways.
Throughout the series, each locale is explored and used as a backdrop for the mystery.
Murder on K Street is no exception.
For many, the combination of politics and murder mysteries makes this series an enjoyable read.
Another wonderful thing about this series is that Ms. Truman has kept the violence low-key – it happens, we know about it, but there are not pages of gore, blood and/or guts. Instead, she trusts in the readers’ imaginations to envision the scene and keeps the unnecessary unsaid.
The same is true for her use of profanity – used discreetly, in character, as needed, without the need to use it as a conversational gambit.
The pacing of the story is brisk and clear, for the most part, and even with the less worthy machinations of racial tensions, it is a tale that keeps the reader’s interest.
As always, Ms. Truman keeps the political environment as part of the story as a whole.
Margaret Truman died in January of 2008, so this is the last book in the series. Her mystery writing will be missed.
The Senator returns home from a speaking engagement and discovers his wife murdered.
Who would do this and why?
And…
Is the Senator guilty or complicit?
These are the questions that we as readers must discover answers to in Margaret Truman’s Murder on K Street, a Capital Crimes Novel. (Yes, her father was President Harry S. Truman.)
There are 23 titles in her mystery series.
As readers we have been treated to a view of the Washington, D.C. areas in unusual ways.
Throughout the series, each locale is explored and used as a backdrop for the mystery.
Murder on K Street is no exception.
For many, the combination of politics and murder mysteries makes this series an enjoyable read.
Another wonderful thing about this series is that Ms. Truman has kept the violence low-key – it happens, we know about it, but there are not pages of gore, blood and/or guts. Instead, she trusts in the readers’ imaginations to envision the scene and keeps the unnecessary unsaid.
The same is true for her use of profanity – used discreetly, in character, as needed, without the need to use it as a conversational gambit.
The pacing of the story is brisk and clear, for the most part, and even with the less worthy machinations of racial tensions, it is a tale that keeps the reader’s interest.
As always, Ms. Truman keeps the political environment as part of the story as a whole.
Margaret Truman died in January of 2008, so this is the last book in the series. Her mystery writing will be missed.
September 3, 2019
My library recently added a couple of these DC crime books as published in the author's last year of life, 2008. I downloaded the two and quickly ran through this one. Years ago I did read her books, owned some and passed them along to others. One attraction for me was the fact that I lived there for a number of years, and actually started off living on K Street.
This story includes a senator who has made too many compromises, resulting in the death of his wife. Truman did draw a fairly robust group of supporting characters to carry this off.
Library Loan -Post Pub Note: Sliding through other reviews I learned Donald Bain, also deceased, was the unrecognized ghost writer of these Capital Crimes books "by Margaret Truman"
This story includes a senator who has made too many compromises, resulting in the death of his wife. Truman did draw a fairly robust group of supporting characters to carry this off.
Library Loan -Post Pub Note: Sliding through other reviews I learned Donald Bain, also deceased, was the unrecognized ghost writer of these Capital Crimes books "by Margaret Truman"
May 8, 2017
By the time I got through the first quarter of Murder on K Street, I suspected nearly everyone of being involved with the murder of the Senator’s wife!
Former DA Philip Rotondi was born to immigrant parents searching for a better life moved to America. Mom was a housewife and dad had a shoe repair shop. Dad was insistent that his children have a better financial life than he encouraged and supported them. While in college, Rotondi meets rich kid and soon to be senior Illinois senator Lyle Simmons who was his roommate throughout college. They became good friends. Simmons, always jealous of Rotondi for his integrity and ethics gets Rotondi’s girlfriend and the love of his life, Jeannette, pregnant then marries her but that doesn’t disrupt the friendship. Rotondi never thought he was worthy of Jeannette because she was from an affluent zip code in New England, Rotondi believed that Jeannette was better off with Simmons because he could provide her with those things she was accustomed to including someone who had grown-up with people of her stature.
Senator Simmons arrived home one night to find his wife lying on the floor dead. Simmons calls his friend Rotondi to help him cope with Jeannette’s death.
Murder on K Street was disturbing because we learn how lobbying on the “Hill” works and how easy it is for our politicians to be bought. We also learn how retiring politicians create contracting businesses and are awarded contracts to keep sitting and retired politicians hands in the till.
Phil Gigante, one of my favorite storytellers, makes us feel like we are members of Rotondi’s team.
Former DA Philip Rotondi was born to immigrant parents searching for a better life moved to America. Mom was a housewife and dad had a shoe repair shop. Dad was insistent that his children have a better financial life than he encouraged and supported them. While in college, Rotondi meets rich kid and soon to be senior Illinois senator Lyle Simmons who was his roommate throughout college. They became good friends. Simmons, always jealous of Rotondi for his integrity and ethics gets Rotondi’s girlfriend and the love of his life, Jeannette, pregnant then marries her but that doesn’t disrupt the friendship. Rotondi never thought he was worthy of Jeannette because she was from an affluent zip code in New England, Rotondi believed that Jeannette was better off with Simmons because he could provide her with those things she was accustomed to including someone who had grown-up with people of her stature.
Senator Simmons arrived home one night to find his wife lying on the floor dead. Simmons calls his friend Rotondi to help him cope with Jeannette’s death.
Murder on K Street was disturbing because we learn how lobbying on the “Hill” works and how easy it is for our politicians to be bought. We also learn how retiring politicians create contracting businesses and are awarded contracts to keep sitting and retired politicians hands in the till.
Phil Gigante, one of my favorite storytellers, makes us feel like we are members of Rotondi’s team.
August 15, 2013
I've always liked Margaret Truman's books, and when I saw that I had missed this one, I picked it up. You know that good will prevail and the bad guys will be thwarted, but Truman weaves a good story, and this one did have a twist at the end (believable twist I might add). Her characters are like old friends, but you do not need to be familiar with the series, which takes place in DC and revolves around politics, in order to understand and enjoy the book. This one involves lobbyists, murder, cover-up, and just a tad of insanity. Not the most gripping of mysteries, but a good easy read.
January 29, 2017
This was a well-written and engrossing mystery dealing with politicians and lobbyists and the murder of an influential senator's wife. The senator aspired to run for President. He called his old college roommate and best friend to come to Washington to be by his side during the crisis. Mac and Annabel Smith are mentioned briefly. The friend conducts his own investigation into the murder. There are numerous surprises revealed and relevant facts from the past.
September 22, 2017
I really enjoyed this one. It was set in the world of a senator and a big lobbyist firm. I was happy to see Mac and Annabel in the book although they were very much supporting characters not main ones. Good story.
May 24, 2018
I was just thinking "I think the best part about these books might be the page or three at the very beginning where the author kinda just says her piece." I'm still over the plucky protagonists, although they figure less prominently in this one, and she actually invokes the place I went to grad school but to me it rings more hollow; there's definitely less familiarity with C-U than say, DC; for true authenticity you need to describe the bar-closing time when people wander home in the freezing wind and snow on foot, yelling WOOOO and tipping over random trash bins.
November 7, 2017
In a recent obituary for Donald Bain, it was interesting to note that he was the ghost writer for Margaret Truman's Capital Crimes series, as well as many other books. Despite this news, it is still an engaging series featuring several reoccurring characters. In Murder on K Street, a corrupt congressman is juggling the death of his wife and his potential run for U.S. President. His college roommate along with ex-attorneys Mac and Annabel Smith, delve into the mystery of his wife's murder, only to uncover a web of deceit involving lobbyist and other Washington insiders. A good read!
May 12, 2011
This was my kind of mystery. All the Margaret Truman books I have read have been really good and this one was no exception. Highly recommended. Book is a little over 300 pages and I had a hard time putting it down.
October 13, 2020
Sad, but true: I haven't read many (or any?) of Margaret Truman's books. But I liked this one. Good characterization and an easily accessible style, coupled with an insider's view of D.C. I'll be reading more of her.
October 21, 2015
I am definitely going to read more Truman books. I loved this one!
May 27, 2025
A book that has been on my TBR shelf for a long time - well written murder mystery - understanding and dealing with politicians and lobbyists - the murder of a popular senator's wife starts an interesting mystery with many involved- old friends - family issues - past & present caught up with each other.
November 26, 2016
Review: Murder On K Street by Margaret Truman.
Margaret Truman is a great writer. She writes with clarity and packs her stories with prestige. This book places the reader right in the middle of politics. She focuses mainly on the lobbyists and explains that they are the fourth branch US Government because they have the ability to influence legislative decisions. Truman skillfully combines a number of disparate foundations that gives the story added significance. She uses flashbacks to provide insight into the personalities of the two main characters (who are best college buddies) and back when they were both in love with the same woman. This story shows the reader the ways in which unscrupulous public officials betray the people whom they are sworn to serve.
The story starts out introducing Senator Lyle Simmons of Illinois as a charismatic type of person who knows how to charm and manipulate a room full of powerful people (or just one person) that has him coming out on top and seducing the attention to get what and where he wants and he has the money to run for the Presidency. However, Senator Simmons plans are postponed temporarily because coming home from a fund raiser and entering his lavish home to find the body of his bludgeoned wife, Jeannette, curled up on the floor. Throughout the book Jeannette was described as a wonderful person but in the recent months before she was killed she was having an issue with alcohol.
When Senator Simmons found his wife he never even touched her or cried out, He first calls his son, Neil who is a Lobbyist for a large firm then next he calls his best friend former DA Philip Rotondi, who is willing to step out of retirement to go and help his friend through a grieving process. Plus, he wanted to look into the investigation and be just a sounding board for Lyle to talk too. Then Lyle finally calls 911. Philip is Lyle’s friend and a man with integrity and he can be very loyal and discreet. I loved his character and he really did put the past away and at this time he was there to find out who killed Jeannette. So, Philip was looking at the whole assessment from a different angle but he wasn’t assuming Lyle killed his wife but he had seen through Lyle years ago and knew he was conniving and charmed his way into Jeannette’s life even knowing she was Philip’s girl. Lyle always thought Philip was naïve but Philip was a good person and stepped away just to see Jeannette happy.
The Detective Chang did place Lyle at the top of the suspect list. Once Lyle’s estranged daughter, Polly got there she wasn’t very helpful for her father either or his case. Polly had already stated her father was behind the death of her mother. Plus, Neil and Polly didn’t have a sibling bond because she was some kind of advocate against what her brother and father stood for in the public eye. As the story unfolds Margaret Truman slips in some facts that go on behind close doors when it came to politics and lobbyists the fundamental issues put in place enhances the story as an adventure to the end.
Margaret Truman is a great writer. She writes with clarity and packs her stories with prestige. This book places the reader right in the middle of politics. She focuses mainly on the lobbyists and explains that they are the fourth branch US Government because they have the ability to influence legislative decisions. Truman skillfully combines a number of disparate foundations that gives the story added significance. She uses flashbacks to provide insight into the personalities of the two main characters (who are best college buddies) and back when they were both in love with the same woman. This story shows the reader the ways in which unscrupulous public officials betray the people whom they are sworn to serve.
The story starts out introducing Senator Lyle Simmons of Illinois as a charismatic type of person who knows how to charm and manipulate a room full of powerful people (or just one person) that has him coming out on top and seducing the attention to get what and where he wants and he has the money to run for the Presidency. However, Senator Simmons plans are postponed temporarily because coming home from a fund raiser and entering his lavish home to find the body of his bludgeoned wife, Jeannette, curled up on the floor. Throughout the book Jeannette was described as a wonderful person but in the recent months before she was killed she was having an issue with alcohol.
When Senator Simmons found his wife he never even touched her or cried out, He first calls his son, Neil who is a Lobbyist for a large firm then next he calls his best friend former DA Philip Rotondi, who is willing to step out of retirement to go and help his friend through a grieving process. Plus, he wanted to look into the investigation and be just a sounding board for Lyle to talk too. Then Lyle finally calls 911. Philip is Lyle’s friend and a man with integrity and he can be very loyal and discreet. I loved his character and he really did put the past away and at this time he was there to find out who killed Jeannette. So, Philip was looking at the whole assessment from a different angle but he wasn’t assuming Lyle killed his wife but he had seen through Lyle years ago and knew he was conniving and charmed his way into Jeannette’s life even knowing she was Philip’s girl. Lyle always thought Philip was naïve but Philip was a good person and stepped away just to see Jeannette happy.
The Detective Chang did place Lyle at the top of the suspect list. Once Lyle’s estranged daughter, Polly got there she wasn’t very helpful for her father either or his case. Polly had already stated her father was behind the death of her mother. Plus, Neil and Polly didn’t have a sibling bond because she was some kind of advocate against what her brother and father stood for in the public eye. As the story unfolds Margaret Truman slips in some facts that go on behind close doors when it came to politics and lobbyists the fundamental issues put in place enhances the story as an adventure to the end.
June 1, 2012
I didn't think I would enjoy a political novel but it was very interesting. It was almost comical how dirty the politicians were in this book and I kept wondering if that was the way it was in the real world.... The characters and the history between them was quite involved.
**********SPOILER ALERT***********************
Lyle is a senator who is using a lobbyist group to money launder out of to fund his campaign. His wife is suddenly murdered and he is the number one suspect. Enter Phil, his best friend from college and then you have a whole new dynamic. He has stayed friends with his college roommate all these years and then when he is cornered with the truth that he might go down, he wants to write him off. the victim receives a threatening package and then over the next couple of days she is murdered. The plot thickens when Phil comes up with the evidence to take the senator down and then he has to decide if the friendship is worth going to jail over.
Very good read!
**********SPOILER ALERT***********************
Lyle is a senator who is using a lobbyist group to money launder out of to fund his campaign. His wife is suddenly murdered and he is the number one suspect. Enter Phil, his best friend from college and then you have a whole new dynamic. He has stayed friends with his college roommate all these years and then when he is cornered with the truth that he might go down, he wants to write him off. the victim receives a threatening package and then over the next couple of days she is murdered. The plot thickens when Phil comes up with the evidence to take the senator down and then he has to decide if the friendship is worth going to jail over.
Very good read!
March 1, 2021
What a great murder mystery. This is the first book I've read by her, but it won't be the last. This is an intricate yet well-woven story of two men, Lyle and Philip, friends since college. Although the book starts with the murder of Lyle's wife Jeannette, it is not only a tale of solving her murder but also of a shared history and friendship that spans decades. Oh, and throw in politics and lobbying and plenty of intrigue and suspects with fast-paced writing, and you have a recipe for success and a book that sucks you in until the final page. I couldn't put it down and had to read it in one sitting. Looking forward to her next one in the series.
April 30, 2016
Margaret Truman's mysteries always take place in Washington, D.C. She has a remarkable insight to the way the city functions. This book is no exception. A Senator's wife is killed and it is up to a retired attorney general and a strong supporting characters to solve the mystery. The book is very good and enjoyable. The characters are easy to relate to. I am not a huge fan of the ending. It seems a bit abrupt and disconnected. This is the only weak spot in the book. I always recommend Margaret Truman books and I recommend this one.
March 13, 2018
I bought this book for my mother thinking she would like it, and she did.Then I read it. It is a good mystery set in D.C. The senator's wife has been murdered. Who did it? That is established in Chapter 1. Then the back stories of the characters are revealed, leaving many options for suspects. Is it the Senator's best friend? His son? His son's boss? His sister-in-law? The homeless dude? All this plus a look at the seedy side of ambitious D.C. and who must be placated if success is to be had.
April 30, 2020
My very first Margaret Truman book. This author wrote many, many books which, I understand, took place in around the Washington, DC area. A friend told me most of these books are old, which gives me some idea of how long some books have sat on my TBR shelf just waiting their turn.
This book was a quick read and had a good story line. Enjoyed it!
This book was a quick read and had a good story line. Enjoyed it!
December 26, 2017
Another great entry in Margaret Truman's Capital Crimes series - and very happy to see Mac and Annabel Smith back again to help solve the crime.
January 25, 2022
Sometimes you just want to get lost in a fun mystery and this fit the bill.
November 16, 2017
Margaret Truman’s Murder on K Street is a great book to see the “because of this, the next thing happens” chain of events. Truman also allows the story to unfold; answering questions for the reader, bit by bit. She uses her knowledge of politics and Washington, D.C., to immerse the reader in this mystery novel.
I feel that Murder on K Street is a mix of cozy and gritty police procedural in that the story focuses more on the mysterious happenings in Washington and Chicago rather than blood and guts. The characters are fully fleshed out with sufficient backstory to show the reader why they are who they are.
Like most mysteries, the story opens with a murder. Lyle Simmons’s wife Jeannette is found dead by him after he returns home from a political fundraiser. As the story unfolds, we meet Simmons’s weak son Neil, his headstrong daughter Polly, and a crazy sister-in-law. We learn of family secrets and political shenanigans. The reader finds out that lobbying is legal on Capitol Hill, although not all of it is aboveboard.
Murder on K Street is an intricately drawn murder mystery with no profanity. I like that part. The details that Truman offers are specific and give insight into characterization. Truman’s Murder on K Street is another great mystery for authors who write that genre to study.
I feel that Murder on K Street is a mix of cozy and gritty police procedural in that the story focuses more on the mysterious happenings in Washington and Chicago rather than blood and guts. The characters are fully fleshed out with sufficient backstory to show the reader why they are who they are.
Like most mysteries, the story opens with a murder. Lyle Simmons’s wife Jeannette is found dead by him after he returns home from a political fundraiser. As the story unfolds, we meet Simmons’s weak son Neil, his headstrong daughter Polly, and a crazy sister-in-law. We learn of family secrets and political shenanigans. The reader finds out that lobbying is legal on Capitol Hill, although not all of it is aboveboard.
Murder on K Street is an intricately drawn murder mystery with no profanity. I like that part. The details that Truman offers are specific and give insight into characterization. Truman’s Murder on K Street is another great mystery for authors who write that genre to study.
September 11, 2022
Margaret Truman knows how to write a twisty whodunnit to give one's brain a workout! All of her Capital Crimes mysteries are richly detailed. This author knows DC...the buildings, the history, the must see restaurants and hot spots, and interweaves all of them into the mysteries.
As this story opens, Senator Lyle Simmons from Illinois returns to his lavish home to find his wife Jeanette murdered. Before he even calls the police, he calls his long time friend Phil Rotundi, a retired prosecutor. The senator, charismatic and a potential presidential candidate, views his wifes death almost as an inconvenience, and tosses the memorial service to his reserved son, who somehow was recruited to be president of a high powered lobbying firm. You can start connecting the dots here....Parts of the story are told in flashback, looking back on Phil and Lyle's college days, when Jeanette first entered the picture, and the bond that ties the two men together. Add in some swarmy lobbyists, institutional racism, sizeable egos, and the never ending quest for power, and you 've got yourself a good page turner, if a touch cliched.
As this story opens, Senator Lyle Simmons from Illinois returns to his lavish home to find his wife Jeanette murdered. Before he even calls the police, he calls his long time friend Phil Rotundi, a retired prosecutor. The senator, charismatic and a potential presidential candidate, views his wifes death almost as an inconvenience, and tosses the memorial service to his reserved son, who somehow was recruited to be president of a high powered lobbying firm. You can start connecting the dots here....Parts of the story are told in flashback, looking back on Phil and Lyle's college days, when Jeanette first entered the picture, and the bond that ties the two men together. Add in some swarmy lobbyists, institutional racism, sizeable egos, and the never ending quest for power, and you 've got yourself a good page turner, if a touch cliched.
November 5, 2018
Senator Lyle Simmons comes home to find his wife’s body in the hall. Before calling the police he calls his son, his chief of staff, and his friend since college who was also a lawyer… then he calls the police. The senator always has his political instincts on high… he has to do so, he intends to run for president in the next election. He is a wheeler-dealer, but his friend, Phil Rotondi is strictly a straight arrow. These two men, college roommates have a long history together,… including the fact that the senator stole Phil’s girlfriend and married her. Now their son is president of a Lobby group that uses a number of unsavory ways of getting what it wants. As Phil uncovers the layers of corruption – and two more murders happen, will the friendship between the men survive? … A well-written mystery where politics, greed and loyalty all play a part.
May 30, 2018
I would give this book 2 1/2 stars. At the beginning to of the book I had an interest in "whodunit" but by midway I was just reading to finish the book. I felt the characters were predictable and the ending was hurried.
A senators wife is killed, but why? Did the senator do it to stop the divorce and continue his political career? Was it the lobbyist group he was in cahoots with? An old friend, exAG, comes to town to find out what happened to Jeannette, the murder victim. They have a history and Phil has an undying loyalty to her husband, despite the biggest backstabbing since Julius Caesar. Disappointed by time I reached the conclusion. Not sure I would want to look at any of the 22 offerings that came before this story by Ms. Truman.
A senators wife is killed, but why? Did the senator do it to stop the divorce and continue his political career? Was it the lobbyist group he was in cahoots with? An old friend, exAG, comes to town to find out what happened to Jeannette, the murder victim. They have a history and Phil has an undying loyalty to her husband, despite the biggest backstabbing since Julius Caesar. Disappointed by time I reached the conclusion. Not sure I would want to look at any of the 22 offerings that came before this story by Ms. Truman.
November 17, 2023
Someone said that Margaret Truman hated the politics in Washington DC, having grown up in the White House while her father was president. That same someone explained that was why Margaret Truman wrote murder mysteries, so she could kill everyone in the nasty business going on at the nation's capital.
She wrote 32 thoroughly entertaining books in her Capital Crimes series. Unbeknownst to her readers, until about five years after her passing, she used a ghost writer. Donald Bain filled that purpose in most cases.
But her knowledge of how Washington worked, inside out, makes for fascinating books.
Murder on K Street focuses on lobbyists working in the shadows of the capitol's corridors. Murder might seem justifiable with so much money at stake.
She wrote 32 thoroughly entertaining books in her Capital Crimes series. Unbeknownst to her readers, until about five years after her passing, she used a ghost writer. Donald Bain filled that purpose in most cases.
But her knowledge of how Washington worked, inside out, makes for fascinating books.
Murder on K Street focuses on lobbyists working in the shadows of the capitol's corridors. Murder might seem justifiable with so much money at stake.
September 19, 2023
Margaret Truman wasn't just the President's daughter, White House denizen,attacked from all sides growing up,. No matter what ventures she tried as a young adult, my mother assured me she was disparaged, when she tried out singing, and everything else. When she wrote novels, you can be sure she learned her craft honed it, made sure to tell more than her own story, and was willing to add multiple angles to the DC discussion. What was the psychology of the DC players of her times? Who won? Who looked like they would win? Who helped? Who took them down? Who could have taken them down? A true thriller from the inside.
July 21, 2017
2.5 And now we know how she felt about lobbyists, the addition of which to her List of Opinions being about all I really got out of this one. Usually I can at least enjoy D.C. as a character if the plotting's weak (it is), but the only thing on offer here was summer weather and ritzy air-conditioned escapes from it. By the time the moderately interesting backstory flashbacks (there are many... it's the primary mechanism here) arrived, the remarkably flat plot and cast had long since done too much damage to salvage.
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March 3, 2025A senator finds his wife dead! She was loved in college by her now husband & his best friend. That started the long road all three traveled until her death! The best friend is determined to find the killer, while the husband is back to work. Many theories are investigated when a young man is framed. Mac becomes involved to help follow the clues. Another woman is murdered that worked at the senator's son's firm. The best friend has evidence by keeps it to himself. The son commits suicide when he learns his firm was laundering mob money & ordered the murders.
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January 14, 2021
With this novel, Margaret Truman takes on the lobbyists who prey on members of Congress in Washington, D.C. Illinois Senator Lyle Simmons and former D.A. Philip Rotondi have been friends since college. When Simmons arrives home to find his wife Jeanette murdered, the first person he calls is Rotondi, who immediately heads to D.C. to help his friend. After many twists and turns, another murder, and a lot of back story, the culprit is found, with some help from Mackenzie and Annabel Smith.
May 4, 2017
Margaret Truman's books always take place in Washington D.C. , a place she certainly knows well! This book involves the shadowy slope between big time lobbyists and the political clout they have on Capital Hill.
I like Truman's Capital Crime Mysteries. Her writing keeps me engaged and always wanting more. Although I felt this book was a bit predictable, I still enjoyed reading it.
I like Truman's Capital Crime Mysteries. Her writing keeps me engaged and always wanting more. Although I felt this book was a bit predictable, I still enjoyed reading it.
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