From Publishers Weekly
With this sixth novel in as many years (following last year's Sphere of Influence), Mills departs from his usual suspense thriller format of mass murder, conspiracy and terrorist threat. What he presents instead is a timely and chilling tale hinging on the power of Big Tobacco to bring the American government and economy to a standstill. Trevor Barnett, 32, is heir to a giant tobacco conglomerate called Terra. He is also a lazy ne'er-do-well who works for the company only because his trust payments are tied to his employment in the tobacco industry. He knows cigarette smoking kills people, but doesn't really care, believing that smokers have the right to make their own decisions. The tobacco industry is about to lose a $250-billion class-action lawsuit, a judgment the industry cannot appeal. Such a ruling will permanently bankrupt all of the tobacco companies, and Terra's ruthless CEO, Paul Trainer, is not about to let that happen. After making some snappy and irreverent comments at a board meeting, Trevor suddenly and unwillingly finds himself spearheading a tobacco offensive that shakes the nation. Big Tobacco closes all its plants and recalls all its tobacco products in a clever game of chicken, facing down the courts, Congress, the White House and the antismoking lobby. The result is a catastrophic loss of tax revenue and political donations, and an angry population of smoking voters who want their cigarettes back. The novel's plot is carefully crafted and original, filled with corporate and political intrigue, treachery, betrayal and the complex backroom deals that keep big companies humming along. With a refreshing lack of sanctimony, Mills turns the tobacco wars into grist for an absorbing business thriller.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Trevor Barnett is the ne'er-do-well descendant of one of the original tobacco dynasties. He lives off a trust fund and has an insignificant position at the family's tobacco firm. But the free ride may soon be over. The industry is looking at a $250 billion judgment in a lawsuit funded by the antismoking industry. A decision is made to throw Trevor to the wolves in a national television appearance with the anti-smokers' pit bull, Angus Scalia. Although scared to death, Trevor acquits himself well through a combination of honesty and anger at Scalia's personal attacks. Voila! The smoking industry has a likable persona. Trevor then develops the industry's new strategy: give up. Pull all product off the shelves, close distribution centers, stop buying from tobacco farmers, and lay off all their workers. The ensuing economic chaos leads to smokers' riots, attempts on Trevor's life, and, finally, a compromise in which it's acknowledged that tobacco users bear the responsibility for their own choices. Mills, best known for thrillers such as
Sphere of Influence [BKL Ag 02], breaks away from the world-in-peril theme to explore a burning social issue. He does an exemplary job of presenting both sides of the issue--essentially, health versus choice--and presents a Swiftian solution designed to bring both warring factions to their knees. This may disappoint a few of the author's usual fans but will gain him many new ones.
Wes LukowskyCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
