During a presidential assassination attempt, one man dies and twenty-three year old Wes Holloway, personal aide to the President, has his face is scarred for life.  Eight years later, still in the service of the former president, Wes spots the man who supposedly died, and his world’s turned upside-down.  Searching for a man everyone says is a ghost, Wes uncovers a plot reaching from the FBI and the CIA right into the White House.  The plot scarred his face eight years ago and now if he’s not careful, it may take his life.

THE BOOK OF FATE  is a fast-paced, engaging thriller.  Brad Meltzer creates interesting, complicated characters.  With every page, the characters reveal a different layer of themselves.  This peeling of layers reveals not only the heroic nature of Wes, but how far some people will go for power. 

Meltzer weaves together this intriguing, complicated plot with a deft hand although he stumbles a bit in the opening.  The assassination of a president should be gripping.  Unfortunately, that point of the story is told with foreshadowing and narrative that distances the reader from the action.  Also, the use of the Masons as a feature of the cover might make some readers expect a controversial story line.  This is not the case.  Still, the story does pick up the pace and the use of the Masons does not detract from the story as it races to the end. 

Reviewed by Joelle Charbonneau-Blanco
Posted 12/20/2006

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