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White House (Kirk McGarvey, #7)

David Hagberg

Why we're reading this: Act 2 of the series. Having destroyed the career of his main enemy, McGarvey gets the man's job on the co…more
[close] Act 2 of the series. Having destroyed the career of his main enemy, McGarvey gets the man's job on the condition that he solve a curious situation involving the PRC, DPRK, ROK and ROJ.

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Sep 04, 2013 Samuel rated it liked it

ON THE UP

3.8 STARS

Kirk McGarvey. Up to this point in the series, he was trapped in the same cycle of corpses, tragic love affairs and a vague hope that he could leave the espionage world behind. But for a man like him, a hunter, such things would never, ever come to pass. "White House" is where the McGarvey series began to mature. There's slightly less action (due to focusing on submarines and the intricacies of life at the company's Langley Virginia offices), and the main antagonists of the no ON THE UP

3.8 STARS

Kirk McGarvey. Up to this point in the series, he was trapped in the same cycle of corpses, tragic love affairs and a vague hope that he could leave the espionage world behind. But for a man like him, a hunter, such things would never, ever come to pass. "White House" is where the McGarvey series began to mature. There's slightly less action (due to focusing on submarines and the intricacies of life at the company's Langley Virginia offices), and the main antagonists of the novel are no longer relevant, along with their threat which could be countered in real life, but Kirk McGarvey has become much more likable protagonist compared to the previous books where I found him quite the arsehole. Now to the review. When the people who fired you offer you the job of a lifetime, how deadly is the cost of accepting?

The novel begins with McGarvey driving to the offices of the CIA. He plans to give the top brass a piece of his mind, then retire once and for all. However, when he gets there, the directors blindside him. First, they point out he managed to destroy the career of the DDO in the previous book and then offer him the job, no strings attached, on the condition that he help plan a response to an interesting problem in East Asia. McGarvey mulls it over and goes to lunch with his daughter and his current lover who he's decided to dump. Unfortunately, a group of killers deploy a bomb which obliterates his lover and injures his daughter. Killing them all, he notices that the assailants are East Asian and may be related to his job offer, which he decides to accept. Meanwhile in Taiwan and Japan, a billionaire who is helping finance the Japanese space program coordinates a mysterious addition which spikes the interest of some American NASA observers. And in the Sea Of Japan, a rouge submarine begins to prey on Chinese PLAN vessels, pushing Japan and China towards open warfare. All these threads come together in a great penultimate chapter for the McGarvey series Cold War era.

In terms of plot, "White House" is solid but ultimately uninspiring. I think it might be the pacing and focus on submarine warfare but even the previous book had a lot more killing despite being more shoddily laid out. It's the pacing which causes problems, the beginning great, the middle slower and the final quarter a rocket blast to the finish. From McGarvey's new fiefdom at Langley, to a suicidal, race against time at a missile site on the Eastern Japanese coast, the settings are decent enough and a great last hurrah to the muddled Cold War closing years which caused the spy fiction genre to have a mid life crisis. Research is decent enough in some parts but a minor bit of mislabeling .22LR was a bit annoying, but understandable. He's the poor mans Tom Clancy and writes "espionage pulp fiction", rather than quality technothrillers.

In terms of characters, three stand outs. Kirk is finally likable now that he doesn't have a sanctimonious top brass giving him contemptuous morality lectures every chapter like in the previous books. He's won their respect and has nothing left to prove. He's also adds a bit more cunning to his usual brute force, skillfully thwarting the enemies who have underestimated him in the climax with a bit of speed, misdirection and a move which they don't consider. Next, there's Otto Renecke. Plays less of a part in this book but is still one of the more likable characters in the series. Third on the list is Richad Yemn, McGarvey's bodyguard. Savvy and likable, he helps McGarvey ease into a job which he claims he doesn't want but is suitable. Now, the female characters are still not great. McGarvey's wife and daughter return. They're still annoying like there were in the last novels. Nothing more needs to be said about them.

Overall, "White House" is easy reading. As a period piece, it's also a great look at how the spy genre began to transition as the new century dawned, and how it neared the end of its mid-life crisis with the Islamic Terrorist threat on the horizon. ...more

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May 16, 2011 Mark rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: political-thriller, spy-thriller, tech-thriller

Hagberg is really a great story teller...McGarvey, now the CIA's DDO, must confront threats, both political and physical to himself and his family...Japan is again the antagonist, as is the administration...fun as always!!! ...more

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