novel philosophy

Author: Kaira Rouda
Genre: Thriller
Published: 2022
Rating: 3/5 stars

Summary

A sociopath seeks power at all costs. Yup, that pretty much sums it up.

Jody Asher belongs in Washington, DC, the epicenter of US political power. She’s spent years helping her husband through fifteen congressional terms keeping her close to key decision-makers and granting her the influence she desires. Her husband, Martin, makes the mistake of getting too close to an intern while also receiving some questionable funding. His mistakes put everything at risk. Jody commits to doing whatever it takes to hold her family’s position in power.

Unfortunately, Martin’s untimely, although not unexpected death, changes Jody’s plans. Determined to return to their small town, Jody decides to enact the widow’s succession and take control of her husband’s congressional seat. She convinces the Democratic party to back her and quickly finds herself in a true position of power, or so she thinks.

Jody quickly realizes the obligations of her position. Her party expects her to vote one way while Martin’s old questionable supports highly suggest she votes another. There’s no real power in this seat, so Jody sets her eyes on the next big prize. She not so subtly threatens the Vice President into giving a seat on the cabinet convinced that she’ll have more freedom and less pressure to conform. When the Vice President ultimately fails, Jody feels like she’s out of options.

In one final desperate move, Jody works to take down her greatest challenger while also finding the next step on her path toward power.

Key Themes

Trust no one.

Everyone can be bought for a price, even those closest to you. Jody has a very limited number of people she trusts in DC, her husband and his campaign manager. Martin fails her early on and ultimately dies leaving her to fend for herself. His campaign manager, Mimi, seems trustworthy until Jody discovers the depths of her deceptions.

Play the long game.

Throughout Jody’s ascension to power, she has to take a few losses. Those bitter moments are hard to withstand, but Jody keeps her focus on her ultimate goal.

Everyone has a secret.

This theme is evident in every character in the book. They each have a secret or two to hide. Martin would’ve succumbed to his if it wasn’t for his untimely death. Jody uses the secrets she knows to manipulate others and bring about her own success.

Quotes

“Trusting makes you weak. I prefer to pretend to trust while verifying everything. Verifying everything requires perfecting certain incognito sleuthing abilities, of course.”

“When the winds of change blow, some build walls, while others build windmills.”

“The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.”

Final Thoughts

To sum it up in one thought, I would call this book your average thriller.

While thrillers are not my favorite genre, I do think I well-written thriller can keep a reader engaged from beginning to end, or at least until the final reveal. This book left me wondering: why does this matter? Is any of this even important? I didn’t have that strong impulse to get to the end of the book so I could find out what happened.

It was more like watching a trainwreck, or as some might call it, a series of unfortunate events (another popular series I never really connected with). One terrible decision after another causes chaos in the lives of those involved.

Jody feels nothing for anyone, so it’s easy for her to make the tough decisions to get her where she wants to go, the same way everyone else in DC does. She uses every tool within her reach to grasp the power she so desperately wants.

I originally rated this book as 2 stars, but the piece that pushes it up to 3 stars revolves around Jody’s battle with Mimi. It’s clear from the beginning that someone has it out for Martin, we just don’t expect it to be his own campaign manager. The ensuing war between these two women added intrigue to the book. The whole saga with Martin almost became insignificant to these two power-hungry women bent on destroying the other.

Overall, it’s an average read. If you have the time and appreciate a little DC deception, then give it a read and let me know what you think.