The Whole Truth
by David Baldacci
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Book Reviews of The Whole Truth
Book Review: Great Story - get rid of the cliche
Summary: 4 Stars
David Baldacci's newest novel is the Whole Truth. The plot keeps moving and the story line is interesting. The world is on the brink of war. All major super powers are rearming. Armageddon is about to happen, or is it. The truth makers or masters of control are feeding the world with lies as truths. What is really scary about this book is how much I agree with the precepts of the world peoples being led like sheep. If it is on the news, the net, or the paper, it must be the truth, right? It was frightening for me to read this book because I usually am on the other side of the road when news breaks. I don't believe a word of breaking news. I trust the news as much as I trust a hooded cobra staring me in the face.
I suggest that every person that reads this novel take a good look at the reality of the manipulations. We have been led sheep for far too long. We buy into the enemy, weapons of mass destruction, the hatred, the lust, the wars, the politics, the fashions, the youth, and the list goes on.
The only failure of this book is the cliché of a bad boy black OPS falling in love. As soon as the book begins you know the love of his life is going to die. The wife gets killed, the kids die with her, and the fiancé dies. The bad boy goes nuts with revenge. The meat of this story is so strong I don't think Baldacci needed to bring the dead fiancé into the story at all. The cold bad boy hooking up with strong bad women is getting a bit old. The story is great; you don't need the ice-cold revenge.
Maui H.S.
Book Review: Pulse-pounding thriller with great characters, plot, etc.
Summary: 5 Stars
The Whole Truth is my second Baldacci book, the first being The Collectors. Although the two are stylistically similar, if I did not know beforehand, I would have never suspected they were written by the same author -- The Whole Truth is much, MUCH better.
The Collectors was good "fluff." Well this is EXCELLENT fluff! Where The Collectors was corny, tongue-in-cheek, and unbelievable, this book was much more realistic (though still enjoyably cinematic). The protagonist, Shaw, is so hard-boiled, he reminds me of Micky Rourke's character in the Sin City movie, but he's an entirely likable figure, and you can't help but root for him.
This book is also quite timely. Although the device used to stir up anti-Russian sentiment in the book was not at all believable, in real life, the neocons have put into action a much better plan. My only beef with the novel's version of of events is that the U.S. government was blissfully ignorant, and it was all defense-contractor doing. Like The Collectors, and, I presume, Baldacci's other books, The Whole Truth is very skeptical of Big Government and the military-industrial complex. Baldacci is not a hardcore libertarian, but he's a thriller author that hardcore libertarians can more than stomach -- they can enjoy.
This is not great literature, of course, but it was a thoroughly entertaining read. I literally could not put the book down, and for that, it more than merits five stars. Hooray for Baldacci! I hope he keeps this up and lets the corny Camel Club recede into oblivion.
Book Review: Baldacci as Ian Flemming
Summary: 3 Stars
I agree with a lot of the criticisms leveled at this book. One dimensional figures, Perils of Pauline situations, sometimes laughable dialogue...but, you know what? I really liked this book. Sometimes, you gotta just go with the James Bond type thing and enjoy it. This was one of them.
The arms business is slowing down because of the lack of cold war confrontations and concerns, so one of the major world dealers, Richard Creel decides it is time to bring back the "good old days." Crell is a Fleming character in the Goldfinger mode. His fourth wife, whom he refers to as Miss Hottie, has an aversion to clothes which will make this a fun film, if it ever goes that route.
In order to turn back the hands of time Creel hires a "perception manager." These are guys that make us think that "change' is good without ever defining it.
He also has a large gang of thugs and cut throats at his disposal to help with the acceptance of the perception his manager is trying to create.
The Bond character is named Shaw. No first name. He is wedded to a gang of international secret intellegence agency types instead of the Brits and run by a guy named Frank, instead of "M". Shaw is in love and wants out from the life he is tied to. The love object is Anna and she unwittingly gets caught up in the perception management scheme and gets killed which, as you might imagine gets Shaw's attention.
It all goes along swimmingly and ends as you might imagine, but it is still a good read for the summer and beats some of the recent efforts from this author.
Book Review: Suspend disbelief and enjoy the ride
Summary: 3 Stars
The Whole Truth is a thriller about the head of a weapons manufacturing company (Nicolas Creel) who hires a perception management company to plant false information about Russian atrocities, with the aim of creating a Cold War between Russia and China that will cause all the world's superpowers to increase defense spending. At the same time, we are introduced to our hero Shaw, who works for an unnamed and mysterious international law enforcement agency. Shaw's fiancee, Anna, has suspicions about the false media reports and this will eventually lead to Shaw being pulled into a vendetta against Creel.
I read The Whole Truth while on holiday recently and after a slightly slow start, I thought it made an ideal fast-paced and mindless holiday read. Yes, the plot is fairly silly, but if you decide to just go with it, it's entertaining enough. I did get irritated by the cardboard characters throughout (one of whom never gets referred to as anything but "Miss Hottie") and the romance between Shaw and Anna never feels even remotely realistic.
My husband read this book after me, devoured it in a day and rated it more highly than I did. He also had far less problem with the characters than I did and was entirely comfortable with Shaw's mysterious occupation. While it sounds sexist, I do think this is a book than men will enjoy more than women. You can decide for yourself if that means that women are more discerning or perhaps that we are more innately critical. Having said that, the way that the book ends implies that there may be a sequel and if there is, I'd read it.
Book Review: exciting thriller
Summary: 4 Stars
CEO of Ares Corporation, a major Defense Department contractor, Nicholas Creel wants to drum up business so he needs a new crisis as Iraq only goes so far, but is nothing like the glory days of Reagan's Cold War. He hires "perception management" guru Dick Pender to create a Cold War. Soon false news stories and supporting disinformation surface on the Internet with news bloggers and hounds having a feeding frenzy over "documented" Russian atrocities. Nicholas is ecstatic.
However, when the London based think tank, the Phoenix Group, is allegedly slaughtered by Russians, Nicholas hopes Pender can connect the murders to a Beijing government sponsored hit; hoping that leads to the immense profits to be made from a Russian- Chinese war. However, undercover operative Shaw is outraged as his fiancée died in the Phoenix Group mass murder and with the help of a defrocked reporter begins to uncover THE WHOLE TRUTH behind the perception management driven crisis.
This is an exciting thriller due more to the PM concept than to the Ares vs. Shaw contest. The PM crowd makes up truths using the Internet and other mass communication techniques to tell a Big Lie and not as David Baldacci says afterward "spin the facts". In fact some in Congress claim this technique was used by the Administration leading to the Iraq invasion. Although the prime plot is entertaining, it is the perception management big lie that makes the difference of what otherwise would be another well written thriller.
Harriet Klausner