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He is an excellent author and I intend to buy all his books. They are fast paced, exciting, and come alive not matter what subject he writes about.
In the thirty second TV spot for this book you see two men in shadow, obviously in Washington, DC. It took a guy like Hitler awhile to spread the Big Lie, in the online world, if done right, the lie moves like wildfire.Creel wants his war, or at least, the threat of one, because he wants to sell arms. World War III, is that a problem. He says, "I really need them to believe." And Richard Pender, a PMer or a perception management consultant, answers, "Mr. He says it's time the world knew, "The Whole Truth." Soon the mainstream media picks up the story, the whole world believes it, only problem is, it's not the whole truth and the super secret government agency Shaw (a super spy of the first order who only has the one name) works for wants him to investigate and Shaw, tough as he is, does what he's told, because his super secret government agency bosses have him on a short leash as Shaw has a bomb embedded in his arm.Anna Fischer, the girl Shaw wants to chuck it all for and go off and live happily ever after with, works for a London think tank and when she's killed, because she doesn't believe the lie, Shaw wants to get even. Creel, I can make them believe anything."Welcome to the world of Perception Management an art that takes spin to a whole 'nother level. Nicholas Creel, head of Ares Corp., America's largest defense contractor says, he needs a war. He'd love for Russia and China to be at each other's throats, for America to be afraid of the Red Menace once again, love for them all to be lining up and lining his pockets.
Spinning is spinning the truth. Perception Management is spinning lies and turning them into the truth or rather, what people believe is the truth. Well, maybe not for Creel.There's a clip going around on the internet of a Russian telling of how he had been tortured, about how his family had been killed. Nowk throw in a disgraced female reporter named Katie James, who'd love to make her bones all over again and team her up with super tough guy Shaw and give them larger than life enemies and you have a David Baldacci story that would make Robert Ludlum proud.
The billionaire's house is so big it could hold a dozen Monticellos. types and not privy to the real truth behind what we read. All descriptions are so extreme they are juvenile. You just don't care about them because they are not real. I have liked Baldacci in the past, but like many writers who succeed they quit writing and either have some C- high-schooler do their writing or just do it for the money. If this is the only book you can find and you are a on a desert island then read it for instruction on how not to write your next novel.I would have put it down but for some misguided belief I have to finish a book once started. The bad guys are caricatures, totally vile, and the conversations are from noir tv shows of the 50s: short, sarcastic, and silly.The premise would be good if not so overblown, that we sheep are manipulated by press and p.r. Five days of hard liquor consumption is still in her stomach.
(Dear Lee Child, Please don't go in this direction). The woman Shaw loves has long legs and so does the journalist - from this you know they are special. The characters in this book are so one-dimensional they are cartoons, but there are no illustrations to entertain you. Too bad it wasn't written by Lee Child who gives you an exciting lead character, believable action for starters. Gee golly gosh. When the alcoholic writer throws up 5 days of booze binging you are mystifed that this is even medically possible. Or by Lescroart who takes you inside the real world of courts and office politics and how the game of life is really played with believable good guys and bad guys. So word to the wise: don't pick it up.
He works for an ultra-secret top secret international law-enforcement agency involuntarily. I did not find this novel enjoyable. A. On the other side, a multi-billion dollar defense contractor company, Ares Corporation, headed by Nicolas Creel, is trying to start the next Cold War. Creel wasn't a well-developed antagonist, and although he is multi-faceted, his character just wasn't flushed out as well as I would have liked. He plans to retire from that line of business since he met his fiancé, Anna. After Shaw experiences a life-altering event, an unlikely friendship is forged between Shaw and James to expose the bad guys and set the truth free.I was skeptical to pick up this book because the past few from Baldacci weren't nearly as good as his earlier novels.
There wasn't enough suspense to hold my interest. Shaw is a mysterious man, with no history, and an uncertain future. Although I finished it, I could have stopped at any point and not resumed reading. Getting his boss to give him the go-ahead to retire is a whole different bag of worms, however. He enlists the firm of Pender and Associates and its founder, Dick Pender, to create "the truth." As a perception management firm, Pender is tasked with creating a truth through propaganda and false stories, blogs, and events between Russia and China.Katie James, famed journalist on the outs, gets caught up in the storm when she follows Shaw and watches him in action. Even though I empathized with Shaw, I did not find him compelling. I'd say save your time and unfortunately, just skip this book.
I've loved David Baldacci's novels and have read almost all of them. I found I was never able to get fully involved in this story. I have had trouble getting into some of his stories, but kept reading to find it was well worth my time to continue reading. I cannot say this for "The Whole Truth". I liked the characters who are likable, yet flawed by their own personal histories. The resolution seemed rushed and implausible.
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