In a Perfect State

by Joseph R. Garber

A novel of intrigue and suspense by the author of "Vertical Run". Red-eyed and travel-weary, an American businessman arrives in Singapore from Manhattan, unaware that he has been marked out for assassination - twice.

Genres: Fiction

Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Joseph R. Garber was an American author, best known for his 1995 thriller Vertical Run and for the articles he wrote on technology for Forbes magazine.

Garber was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, moving often as an army brat. He attended the University of Virginia, but quit to join the U.S. Army himself, eventually graduating from East Tennessee State University in 1968 with a philosophy degree.

Garber worked for AT&T as a business long-distance consultant and a writer for the AT&T in-house magazine. He then worked as a consultant for Booz Allen Hamilton for a decade, writing fiction and non-fiction freelance in his spare time. After a prolonged flu, he quit his job and moved to Woodside, California, where he wrote for Forbes magazine and as a consultant in Redwood City, California until he was laid off.

Garber had written a manuscript, In Search of Shabbiness, as a response to the Tom Peters best-seller, In Search of Excellence. On the advice of literary agents, he rewrote it as the novel Rascal Money.

In 1995, his second novel Vertical Run, a corporate thriller, became an international best-seller. The book's setting is 200 Park Avenue, the address of Booz Allen. It was bought by a Hollywood studio in the 1990s only to be shelved in pre-production. His third novel, In a Perfect State, was published in 1999. His fourth novel, Whirlwind, with a retired CIA agent as protagonist, was published in 2004.

Garber died of a heart attack on May 27, 2005

Reviews

[David Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was quite a change of pace, artistically and in terms of the story’s speed of movement from other books I have recommended. I had read Vertical Run by Joseph Garber and enjoyed it immensely despite some strong similarities I thought it had with Die Hard, so when I saw In a Perfect State by Garber I decided to give a go. What I found was one of the most original premise for a thriller I have come across, up there with Ludlum using the amnesiac Bourne wondering if he is an amoral killer. A mild-mannered extremely jet-lagged businessman, Jack Taft, arrives in Singapore and is targeted for assassination for no reason known to him, somehow the combination of sleep deprivation, external stimuli and ingestion of substances causes him to access his primitive self in an sub-conscious state. Through this he attains a surprising level of ruthlessness and proficiency for violence. His thwarting of the villains is entertaining and his clashes with the other main character, a type of Asian Dirty Harry who is disgusted that Taft manages to disarm him at the beginning of the story is very funny. I would not say In a Perfect State is anywhere near as meaty in contemplating the human condition as some cerebral thrillers but I found it extremely enjoyable to read.

[CJ Dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

In A Perfect State is similar to Rascal Money. Some of the same characters are in both books. Both books are humorous, scary and well thought out. Both are extremely well written, and not easily forgotten, and very thought provoking. It’s a thinking person’s book!

[Tricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack Taft has arrived in Singapore on business. He doesn't know that someone has planted drugs on him (a capital offence in Singapore) and he now has the police and the local drug cartels after him. A helpful air hostess (who just dropped off his computer) is caught up in the mess. On the other side of the globe Jack's journalist girlfriend is trying to unravel what happened and uncovers a drug smuggling ring.

While I did like the book and it was fairly fast paced, I found some of the characterisations of the females a bit cliché (ie. smart sassy journalist, the jilted lover out for revenge, the innocent girl who hopes to help in exchange for a better life). I found this a bit detracting.

The novel is also a bit dated but it is still a good read.

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

American businessman Jack Taft arrives in Singapore to find himself both hunted by the police and with a price on his head, with absolutely no clue as to how and why.
The fastpaced action keeps this vaguely more entertaining than blankly staring at the wall, but that's about it. I might have been somewhat more interested in the plot had the protagonist been the slightest bit likable (or at the very least interesting), but as it is, I just didn't care.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun.

[John (JC) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome!!!!