Book Review: First Daughter by Eric Van Lustbader

Title: First Daughter
Author: Eric Van Lustbader
Publisher: Forge Books
Publication Date: September 1, 2009
Paperback: 464 pages
ISBN: 978-0765361424
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

From the Publisher:

Sometimes the weakness we fear most can become our greatest strength . . .

Jack McClure has had a troubled life. His dyslexia always made him feel like an outsider. He escaped from an abusive home as a teenager and lived by his wits on the streets of Washington D.C. It wasn’t until he realized that dyslexia gave him the ability to see the world in unique ways that he found success, using this newfound strength to become a top ATF agent.

When a terrible accident takes the life of his only daughter, Emma, and his marriage falls apart, Jack blames himself, numbing the pain by submerging himself in work. Then he receives a call from his old friend Edward Carson. Carson is just weeks from taking the reins as President of the United States when his daughter, Alli, is kidnapped. Because Emma McClure was once Alli’s best friend, Carson turns to Jack, the one man he can trust to go to any lengths to find his daughter and bring her home safely.

The search for Alli leads Jack on a road toward reconciliation . . . and into the path of a dangerous and calculating man. Someone whose actions are as cold as they are brilliant. Whose power and reach are seemingly infinite.

Faith, redemption, and political intrigue play off one another as McClure uses his unique abilities to journey into the twisted mind of a stone cold genius who is constantly one step ahead of him. Jack will soon discover that this man has affected his life and his country in more ways than he could ever imagine.

My Review:

First Daughter by Eric Van Lustbader is a political thriller featuring Special Agent Jack McClure of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, who is asked by the President-Elect to head up the investigation of the disappearance of his daughter. McClure proves his mastery of thriller writing in First Daughter with plenty of plot twists that will feed the hungry thrill-seeking reader, yet there were some attributes of the story that made it a little less real or believable for me. For example, possessing the ability to see McClure’s daughter’s ghost took the story from the plausible to the implausible and I am not a fan of supernatural events or powers. I think the book had some strong points and provided an interesting commentary on the role of extremist views in society. Although First Daughter was engaging, it contained a little too much in the way of politics and religious preaching for what I seek. Nevertheless, I look forward to picking up other novels by Van Lustbader as he completes more in this particular series.

To learn more about Eric Van Lustbader and his books, please visit his website.

I received a complimentary copy of First Daughter by Eric Van Lustbader from Zeitghost Media. Receiving a complimentary copy in no way reflected my review of aforementioned novel.

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