Act of Treason [Paperback]

At the end of Vince Flynn's previous novel, Consent to Kill, his hero Mitch Rapp had paid the ultimate price for his service to his country; the loss of the person he loved most in the world. Having spent all his previous Rapp novels slowly humanising his lead character Flynn had, in one fell swoop, sent him back to where he started as a lone wolf killer with few personal ties to the 'real' world.

Act of Treason, the new Mitch Rapp novel, takes advantage of this situation to effectively restart and refresh the franchise. This is definitely a book that is about new beginnings and laying down new plot threads. Beginning with a terrorist attack on a US presidential candidate's motorcade and then jumping forward to the week prior to the same candidate's inaugaration as the new President of the USA, it is all about starting again. Mitch Rapp is back in the field and struggling to deal with his recent bereavement (mostly by bottling up his emotions in a typical Rapp fashion). The old Presidential administration is on the way out and so, as it appears likely when the book starts, is the head of the CIA and Rapp's ally and ultimate boss Eileen Kennedy. A new President and VP are on their way; and they are not big fans of either Kennedy or Rapp.

And lurking behind all this change is a conspiracy that reaches into the highest reaches of the American political world, and unless Rapp & Kennedy can uncover the truth and bring those behind it to justice the US is will be in danger of a threat from within.

So far, so business as usual for Mitch Rapp. Except that in this case the conspiracy is really nothing more than a device used by Flynn. The motivations of those involved are comparatively banal and once he's on the trail Rapp uncovers the plot and the identities of those behind it with comparative ease. Yes, there is a ticking clock element to the story that gives Rapp's work a sense of urgency, but this is not a plot about the end of the world or an immediate threat to Western security. Its about political power, corruption and the desires of rich, venal men. As such it is a slight affair compared to some of the threats Flynn's characters have faced in the past. Events move on at a fair pace as they always do in Flynn's novels, and there is some well written, pulse pounding action, but you never really get the feeling that the stakes are really that high.

No, the real focus of Act of Treason is to start Mitch Rapp on what will be the long road back from his personal tragedy and (I'm surmising here) to introduce some new characters into his world. There's a new President for a start, who although he is a peripheral character here, will no doubt feature more heavily in future Flynn novels. Due to events at the beginning of the book he is given an emotional experience that closely mirrors Rapp's own and will no doubt affect their future relationship. Then there's a female Secret Service agent who is close to being Rapp's equal in the tough as nails stakes and has 'potential future love interest' stamped all over her. Add in a young female CIA agent who could also fill a similar role in future and isn't afraid to stand up to Rapp or question his mental state, and you can see Flynn setting up threads to be picked up in future.

All this means that Act of Treason has the feel of book that is intended to serve a specific purpose rather than be a stand-alone self contained story in its own right. As such it is less satisfying than some of Flynn's previous novels. That's not to say that it isn't enjoyable. It rattles on at a rapid pace, is as exciting as readers have come to expect from Flynn's work and hits all the right buttons. You can't help but feel though, that having taken his hero down the cul de sac of domestic bliss before yanking him back out in Consent to Kill, Flynn is primarily using Act of Treason to start him on a new path that will become far clearer in the books that follow, rather than crafting his usual complex, satisfying brand of thriller.

Can a terrorist attack change the course of history? An anarchist assassinated William McKinley, the 25th U.S. president, in 1901. His replacement? Theodore Roosevelt, who launched the beginnings of the big presidencies we have now, and our more activist role in attacking other countries. More recently, you know the history of September 11, 2001 and subsequent events.

Let's look into the future. Could false terrorist attacks also change the course of history? Many historians believe that Adolf Hitler showed that it could by helping stage an attack on the Reichstag (the German parliamentary building) in 1933. The Nazis used that event to sweep away the rest of the opposition to their upcoming dictatorship over Germany.

Vince Flynn takes on this topic by looking at what a desperate U.S. presidential campaign might do in the waning weeks before an election that looks unwinable. You'll be chilled and fascinated by what he develops. Let's hope this isn't a vision of 2008.

The book opens as a deadly attack on the presidential campaign is launched. We quickly get a sense that not all is right . . . and are soon pulled into the story of how this event occurred . . . and for what reasons.

There's also a cliffhanger element here. Mitch Rapp once again leads a "take no unnecessary prisoners" investigation on behalf of the CIA and his faithful leader, Irene Kennedy, knowing that the new administration will probably dismiss both Kennedy and Rapp. But Mitch is his usual self-guided missile and operates on Mitch Rapp time while the politicians dance around looking for advantages.

The book's highest moments are, as usual, those where Mitch goes into action. Vince Flynn has a wonderful ability to stage and elaborate on high action sequences. It makes you wish the whole book could just be one fight after another. But, alas, you have to listen to talk some of the time. The book is quite flat there.

Mitch seems to be on the verge of undergoing some kind of significant meltdown . . . but the action in this story pulls him out of his funk on a temporary basis. The next book in the series will probably feature Mitch in a bigger funk . . . which could be interesting.

As usual in this series, the characters aren't really developed all that well. It's hard to remember any of them other than Mitch, Irene, and a Secret Service agent, Maria Rivera. But those three are quite distinctive and interesting.

Without going into matters further, the book's ending will be controversial for many. It will leave you wondering "what else could happen next?" That's a powerful thing to do as a novelist and I commend Mr. Flynn for giving us something important to think about.

If you are worried that this book unduly favors Republicans or Democrats, be assured that the story line draws heavily on the major embarrassments of both parties in recent years.

I just couldn't put it down the action moves along at such a great pace I just couldn't wait to find out what happened on the next page. If you enjoyed any of Vince Flynns previous books you will love this.

Based again around the CIA operative Mitch Rapp the future presidents wife is assasinated in washington in what was thought to be a botch attempt at possible future president & vice president, but as Mitch Rapp closes in on the trigger man is everthing as it seems will Mitch Rapp & director of CIA Kennedy find out the truth before its too late???? I guess you will have to buy the book to find out !!!! its worth it. Brillant fiction which could so easily be true.