Customer Reviews

The Inner Circle

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At first glance, I thought I was onto a promising story. Unfortunately, it read more like a plot line aimed at early teens (no offense intended). I'm glad I only paid $1.99.

"For I have no one like-minded, who will sincerely care for your state." -- Philippians 2:20 (NKJV)

Brad Meltzer's big success with this book is in creating the endearing character, Beecher White, a young archivist at the United States National Archives who just cannot do enough for others. He's the epitome of sweet innocence of the sort that is sometimes found in adolescence among sheltered family settings. His charm is quickly enhanced by the tender feelings he has for a youthful friend, Clementine (Clemmie) Kaye, who seeks Beecher's help. It will be a rare reader who won't identify with this situation, being transported back into remembering some teenage crush on a classmate. What a nice way to begin a story!

The plot quickly turns not so nice as Beecher uncovers a secret that's not intended for him. With dogged persistence, he doggedly stays on the path of uncovering what's going on while making good use of his researcher's skills. Unfortunately, he's soon over his head and out of his league. Will he have the courage to continue?

Be careful how much you read about the plot. It's easy to get the wrong impression of this story. Even the jacket copy goes into too much detail for the reader's best interests to be served.

But I must comment generally on the plot . . . or not provide you with the proper information. This plot is complex and it shifts the ground under the reader's feet quite often. As a result, the ending probably won't be what you thought it was going to be when you were 50 pages into the novel.

I didn't care for the plot or the way it developed. If Beecher weren't such a nice character creation, this would definitely be a below-average book. And I would encourage you to stay away from it. If you like typical thriller plots, this one may not be your cup of tea. If you like engaging protagonists, you will probably enjoy the book to a reasonable extent. Some of its appeal is similar to that of the first Camel Club books.

I also note that the Kindle version is priced just a hair under the hardcover price as of today. Why do publishers discriminate against Kindle readers? Who knows?