The Camel Club Author: | Language: English | ISBN:
B000BVGTX0 | Format: EPUB
The Camel Club Description
It exists at the fringes of Washington, D.C., has no power, and consists solely of four eccentric and downtrodden members whom society has forgotten. Their simple goal is to find the "truth" behind their country's actions.
One man leads this aging, ragtag crew. He has no known past and has taken the name "Oliver Stone". Day and night, Stone and his friends study wild conspiracy theories, current events, and the machinations of government, hoping to discover some truth that will hold America's leaders accountable to its citizens. Yet never in Stone's wildest nightmares could he imagine the conspiracy the Camel Club is about to uncover.
After witnessing a shocking murder, the Club is slammed headfirst into a plot that threatens the very security of the nation, full of stunning twists, high-stakes intrigue, and global gamesmanship rocketing to the Oval Office and beyond. Soon the Club must join forces with veteran Secret Service agent Alex Ford, who becomes an unwilling participant in one of the most chilling spectacles to ever take place on American soil. It's an event that may well be the catalyst for the long-threatened Armageddon between two different worlds, and all that stands in the way of this apocalypse are five unexpected heroes.
In The Camel Club, best-selling author David Baldacci paints a frighteningly vivid portrait of a world that could be our own very soon, and the few people who have a chance to stop the chaos.
- Audible Audio Edition
- Listening Length: 16 hours and 10 minutes
- Program Type: Audiobook
- Version: Unabridged
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Audible.com Release Date: October 20, 2005
- Whispersync for Voice: Ready
- Language: English
- ASIN: B000BVGTX0
Nobody writes a conspiracy thriller like David Baldacci, and The Camel Club will keep you turning pages at breakneck speed. Unfortunately, his latest is not without some flaws and while many of his books defy belief, this one is even more of a stretch.
The Camel Club consists of four misfits (nearing senior citizen status) who form a secret conspiracy watchdog organization. The ringleader is "Oliver Stone," a man with a very secret and mysterious past. While meeting in a park during off-hours, the four witness the murder of a Secret Service agent, Patrick Johnson. Unfortunately, the two killers realize they have witnesses. Because of their checkered backgrounds, the Camel Club decides not to report this to the police. Instead, they go on the offensive, trying to discover not only the identity of the killers but also their motivation. At the same time, Secret Service agent Alex Ford is assigned to investigate the death of Johnson, but runs into trouble with the various agencies also looking into the murder (FBI, Metro Police, NIC, etc.).
As if this isn't enough going on, a group of Islamic extremists is plotting a terrorist act involving the US president. But not all of the plotters are Islamic or Middle Eastern. In fact, some are working from the inside.
Much of The Camel Club is very relevant to post 9/11 America. The FBI, CIA, NSA and other intelligence agencies are being forced to combine information, but infighting, jealousy and guarded secrets are still common. Government agencies are involved in illegal activities. The war is still raging in Iraq with Americans split on the issue. The issues are very similar to today.
But The Camel Club has just too many flaws.
It's late. I should be in bed by now, but I couldn't wait to get a review started for this book. It's my first Baldacci, but it won't be my last. I was hooked on page one.
The Camel Club is a political thriller that opens in Washington, D.C. (well, not quite. The opening chapter is not in D.C.), where we meet four eccentric, once-upon-a-time effective fellows who make up a group they call The Camel Club. Each has some kind of experience and/or brilliance that makes him essential to the small assembly; and each has been successful at one time or another in his life. Now, they are only reflections of what they once were. There's Oliver Stone (his assumed name), Caleb Shaw, Reuben Rhodes, and Milton Farb, conspiracy theorists all. They meet once a month in the middle of the night to discuss recent conspiracy theories and reflect/update those they've held for years. There are other interesting characters introduced in the early pages, including Secret Service agent Alex Ford who's on the downside of his career, and Kate Adams, a Department of Justice lawyer who works as a bartender at night. Go figure that one out! We are also briefly introduced to U.S. President, James H. Brennan, and to National Intelligence Center Director, Carter Gray, among others.
Stone has a tent near the White House where he watches what goes on there. His goal is to find out the "truth" of things. He believes the American people have been denied that most desirous of tenets. On the evening of the beginning of this story, the Camel Club meets as arranged, but in the course of their meeting they unwittingly see a terrible crime committed on Theodore Roosevelt Island. Now, they must decide what to do about it...and I'm only on page 70! More later.
October 29, 2005: It's later.
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