- Hardcover: 624 pages
- Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1 edition (Oct 14 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0345450175
- ISBN-13: 978-0345450173
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14 x 3.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 771 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,103,524 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Amazon
Balance of Power, the third of Richard North Patterson's political thrillers about the election and Presidency of Kerry Kilcannon, is as gripping and savvy as its predecessors. Kilcannon's second marriage, to his long-term fiancée Lara, is marred by the shooting of most of her family by her deranged and abusive brother-in-law who bought an automatic weapon and gut-shredding bullets from an anonymous dealer at a gun fair. Kilcannon had always intended to take on the gun lobby--and this high-profile massacre of his wife's relations gives him an opportunity. What follows is a nightmare of political chicanery, as his opponents are persuaded to ever lower tactics by their gun lobby contributors.
The personal injury suit his surviving sister-in-law brings against manufacturers and lobbyists runs aground on perjury and a politically ambitious judge. His opponents are even prepared to use blackmail--a document surfaces proving that the relationship between Kilcannon and Lara preceded his divorce. This is a terrifying novel, which pictures the currency of American political life as bribery, threats and the grossest of intrusions into private life; it is a vision of how vilely things can perhaps sometimes work, and how intelligence, will and the application of sound legal principles might make them otherwise. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
Gun control and tort reform are the thorny issues tackled in this political drama, with Patterson hero Kerry Kilcannon ensconced in the White House and planning his marriage to former television journalist Lara Costello. Kilcannon (last glimpsed in Protect and Defend) has been president for less than a year when he is caught up in a potentially disastrous domestic crisis. Lara's sister, Joan, is brutally beaten by her husband, John Bowden, and Kerry, who rescued his own mother from his violent father, lets emotion get the better of him, asking the California DA to intervene. Meanwhile, in the political arena, Kerry is battling an NRA-type group called Sons of the Second Amendment (SSA). When the fuse Kerry lit under John Bowden explodes predictably (Bowden goes on a killing spree in an airport while the Kilcannons are away on their honeymoon), Kerry sees red and goes after the manufacturer of the gun Bowden used. The gun lobby circles wagons around the SSA and pushes a tort-reform bill called the Civil Justice Reform Act, which protects the manufacturers of any "products" from litigation by victims of criminals. Congress kowtows to America's captains of industry, with guns as the focal point: "gun immunity hung in the balance of power between the President and the senator who intended to displace him." This is a Democratic nightmare scenario, and the novel paints a grim picture of the challenges facing gun-control advocates. Patterson is known for his intricate law-and-politics-laced crime fiction, but lawmaking trumps suspense in this novel and may leave his fans wanting for more. Patterson is a strong supporter of gun control-as he notes in an afterword-and his passion is evident here. Readers seeking pure entertainment may be disappointed, but those with the patience to follow the involved plot will learn much about gun policy debate.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
FEELING THE GUN AGAINST THE NAPE OF HER NECK, Joan Bowden froze. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt
FEELING THE GUN AGAINST THE NAPE OF HER NECK, Joan Bowden froze. Read the first page
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Concordance
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
I hate this book,
By georgewbush (Crawford, Texas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Balance of Power (Mass Market Paperback)
These libruls have no idea what their talking about. I don't read much anyway, so imagine my constellation when one of Amurca's better writers of psychological thrillers goes all pinko. Why does Richard North Patterson hate Amurca? Since I'm preznit, I just might have to make him sorry. Get Ashcroft to investigate his ash! He he, jes kiddin', folks!
1.0 out of 5 stars
Worst book I never finished.,
By Mickey Hankins (Pleasant Grove, Alabama) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Balance of Power (Hardcover)
I normally enjoy Mr. Patterson's books and am not a gun dealer, collector, or advocate. I may go buy one now. Other than the improvement Mr. Patterson has made in his overuse of the words SARDONIC, and PENNSIVE, he has written a book clearly with an idealogical agenda replacing good fiction. Once one of favorite authors, I will think twice before reading him again.
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not Exactly a Novel,
By A Customer
This review is from: Balance of Power (Hardcover)
I have never before read a novel by a popular author that was so totally dependent on the reader's commitment to the same political and social agenda as its' author. I have enjoyed earlier works by Patterson, but had read not the 2 prior books of this apparent trilogy; if I had, I would probably have skipped this one. It would have been more honest to present it as a clearly political tome, to warn away those who prefer not to be bludgeoned on every page by an author's attempt to "educate" the reader as to the "correct" political and social views. This made the book somewhat tedious, and far from a truly original and entertaining read. No doubt this is my own fault, in that I rarely read book blurbs. Had I been aware of its' 2 big fans, I would not have purchased it. For those who do not share the agenda of Senator Ted Kennedy, or the Clintons, I would advise that you not waste time or money on this offering.
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