Book Review: "In His Wake" by Chad Zunker

This compulsively readable political thriller was one of the Amazon First Reads selections for this month. Thanks so much to Thomas & Mercer for the complimentary advance copy; this would make a great movie!

“Power makes you do foolish things. It clouds your head like a dangerous drug and warps your mind. Like a cancer, it changes you from the inside out. And it can quickly bring you to your knees.”

When a presidential candidate is assassinated in Austin, Texas two weeks before the election, it throws the country into turmoil. Dean Dawson is an investigative reporter covering the incident, although his older brother Eric, who is the FBI special agent in charge, keeps him in line.

Amidst all of the chaos, Dean gets contacted by his ex-girlfriend April. She saw a text thread on her boss’ phone that not only mentions the assassination, but also raises the possibility that Dean’s father—a former partner at April’s firm—might not have drowned a few months ago. Could his father still be alive? And could he have been involved in the candidate’s assassination?

The more that Dean and April try to uncover, the more leads that Eric and the FBI chase, the more people start ending up dead. They have no idea how tangled this web of lies and corruption is, and how much they might all be in danger.

From the minute I started reading, I was hooked. The sad thing is, thrillers like these seem much less far-fetched given what’s happening in the country. Chad Zunker kept the pacing going and the tension rising.

The book publishes 2/1.