Sunday, January 17, 2010

Stranglehold

Coming in November from St. Martin's
The Second Dev Conrad Suspense Novel

We always hear about political dynasties in this country. The large ones, the Kennedys, the Cabot Lodges etc., are well-known. Back in the late Sixties while I was writing speeches for a Democratic congressman I started having beers with a GOP op and his wife who worked for our competitor. None of us felt we were working for mental giants. Amazing what you hear getting bombed in a bar. One of their best series of stories (they'd been in the field for a quarter century) dealt with this minor but very successful Midwestern dynasty. I never forgot their tales of a family dynasty so dysfunctional it would make Al Bundy and his tribe look like Ozzie and Harriet. I had to do a lot of disguising--these were prominent, wealthy people--but I managed to do it. It's much darker than the first Dev Conrad Sleeping Dogs and less concerned with process as such. I think it's a true portrait of how familial politics works and if anybody says I'm exaggerating all I have to do is point to the new book Game Change. You want to read about egotism, betrayal, bribery, adultery, blackmail, deceit, insanity and terror this is your book. And from everything I've seen, heard and read about over the years this is pretty standard for the big leagues and all too often these days for the minor leagues as well. I'm half way through it and every other page curls my thinning hair.

2 comments:

Vince said...

I read a Game Change excerpt about John Edwards 2008 campaign and was flabbergasted. Great to hear Dev will be coming back.

Ed Gorman said...

My favorite part of the Edwards chapter is when--after being tabloid fodder for weeks--he still sends his op to Obama's op (Obama having already cinched the nomination) to say that he, Edwards, will back O if O will name him to his cabinet. Can you spell damaged goods? Oh yeah--and the $1000+ he spent with some Beverly Hills hairdresser. What is it with these dems and their hair? Remember when Clinton sat on that runway insidd Air Force One while Cristof of Beverly Hills (or something like that) coiffed him. Never mind the planes circling and wanting to land.