As a fan of the TV show "King & Maxwell" that's based on the book series by David Baldacci - who serves as a consultant - I realized I'd never read any of the books despite the fact that Baldacci is a favorite author. So, with nothing else on my Kindle calling my name, I started this one that started it all.Sean King (played by Jon Tenney on the TV series) is a former Secret Service agent who was disgraced several years earlier when a political candidate he was protecting was assassinated. His once-stellar career down the tubes, he finishes law school, sets up a thriving practice and is living the good life. Former Olympic sculler Michelle Maxwell, meantime, is a Secret Service agent who "lost" a different political candidate when he was kidnapped on her watch (on the TV show, she's played by the drop-dead gorgeous Rebecca Romijn). She's still in the Service, but she's been pulled from active duty and isn't happy about it.I'll take a semi-educated guess and say the female character is named for Baldacci's wife, Michelle; and the book title no doubt is based on the fact that it takes only a split second - the time it took for Sean to be distracted and his protectee killed (the unknown reason is something that haunts Sean and is an integral part of the plot, so I won't reveal it here).The two meet when Michelle begins to suspect the two cases are somehow related, and they - together with former Secret Service agent Joan Dillinger, who's now heading up a very successful private investigation firm and who once was involved romantically with Sean - begin trying to untangle clues and solve both cases. In the process, all three narrowly escape being murdered; but they finally get the job done. They work together so well that Michelle and Sean decide to set up their own PI firm - setting up a new series of books from Baldacci.It's interesting to see how much Baldacci's writing has improved since 2003. Granted, this is a bit of a diversion from his usual more serious novels and may even be intended to be a bit camp, but this book borders on sophomoric in quality; IMHO, the writing in the TV series is noticeably better. The characters are a bit too glib (oh we;;, it's only a million-dollar house and oh well, it's only another dead body). Despite being in top physical condition, they recover far too quickly from injuries that would sideline me for months on end if not permanently. Their "Aha" deductions strike way too fast, and the ending is too contrived to rank high on the believability scale. Still, it's rather a fun read, and I plan to tackle the others if only to see if the writing and plots get progressively better.
"Split Second" by David Baldacci is a murder mystery/thriller and my first read of the author. He gave me a good impression. I generally don't read murder mysteries unless they are Jewish murder mysteries but my mother-in-law raves about his books so I decided to try one. This is the first in the series of Sean King/Michelle Maxwell novels where two former secret service agents team up to solve a murder and in this case a kidnapping as well.The story: A Secret Service agent, Sean King, has his primary (protectee) assassinated while standing right next to him at a hotel reception. A video shows the agent looking away, distracted at the moment the gunman takes his shot. He does have the presence of mind to shoot the assassin though. Years later he is out of the Secret Service working as a lawyer in a rural Virginia town. Michelle Maxwell is currently a Secret Service agent and while her protectee is not assassinated, she is blamed for his kidnapping and she wants to get him back. Remembering Sean King, she seeks him out and together they discover there might be a connection between the two misfortunate events. As they investigate people start dying all around them.It's actually a reasonably good story once you get into it and a very good ending that ties up everything is a satisfying manner. It was a good read. (And one of the guys on my suspect list was the one who did it although he was low on my list and people not even on my radar were part of it. Very good misdirection by the author...you sneaky devil.) I'd read it again even knowing how it ends. That is the problem with mysteries. Often when you know how it ends, it spoils the reading, but I think this book can hold up under that. It's fun watching the investigation roll out even knowing how it will end. I'm sure of it.Any problems with the book? It is an adult book. I suppose if you let your kids watch Prime Time TV they've seen worse. The murders are not gruesome in the sense that the murderer is not chopping anyone's head off. I wouldn't exactly read it to my kids at bedtime, but really... this is for full-grown adults, folks. There are a few sexual situations in the book though not any outright sex. It's not prurient but let's not kid ourselves.I've already started on Baldacci's next book in the series, "Hour Game". This one is turning out to be gruesome....hunting down a serial killer who is copy-catting some of the famous serial killers of the recent past. If you are over 50 you will remember all of these serial killers and recall the shock and fear they created. So far it's a pretty good read. I'm about a fourth of the way through the book.
Do You like book Split Second (2004)?
This was my first David Baldacci book, and it reads like a mixture between your standard police procedural looking for a mastermind criminal and a political thriller. Within either genre it works, and I'll be reading Baldacci again. His writing is crisp, plot driven, with lots of dialog. The main characters are Sean King (ex-Secret Service) and Michelle Maxwell (current Secret Service). It deals with a past Presidential assassination, and a modern assassination plot reminiscent of the one in the past.Sean and Michelle must stop the new plot, and in the process they find they work well as a team. This is the first of a series of novels featuring Sean and Michelle, and I enjoyed it a lot. The story was plausible and suspenseful enough to keep me reading late into the night. It has great descriptions, and sets a fast pace throughout.After completing this book, I am excited about future books featuring Sean and Michelle, and I'm happy to have found a new author whose writing style I thoroughly enjoy.
—Scott Rachui
I loved this. I had read other Baldacci books but none about Sean King and Michelle Maxwell but now I have to read them all. Sean King is a former Secret Service agent whose split second lack of attention 8 years ago caused a tea party type presidential candidate to lose his life (before there even was a tea party)when a brilliant professor working at a third rate college (he was a UC Berkeley PhD who had fallen from grace after his activism over the Vietnam War and Watergate) stepped up and shot him while Sean was being flashed from an elevator by the female agent he was screwing (someone sent her a phony request from Sean). He now leads a quiet life after being dumped by the Service as a lawyer in a country town and has a nice home on the water. The quiet erupts into pandemonium when another agent- Michelle Maxwell- loses another presidential candidate and is disgraced. She shows up at Sean's door just as the dead bodies start arriving at his office and home. Soon they, along with the flasher agent from years before, all realize that the two cases are linked and someone intends revenge on Sean and others so the three link up with a crooked US Marshal and this leads to an explosive conclusion (literally).I enjoyed watching them try to unravel the tangle of past and present evidence and really liked the ending. If mystery, suspense, thrills, and action is your game, you'll like this. If you are like me and like to see intelligent, strong, and capable women you'll love this as Joan and Michelle (who both leave the Secret Service for better careers) are all that and more.
—Terri Lynn
Great travel, beach, bedside reading. Short, pithy chapters and action that seldom slows down. Two Secret Service agents who make little mistakes on the job with big consequences. The mistakes are related but the plot is pretty complicated and will keep you interested to the slightly hokey end. I might be a little generous at 4 Stars as there were flaws. But I want to see King and Maxwell carry on in future adventures. Maxwell is great, she kicks butt. King is more of the braniac and moody. Should be a great pairing.
—Mike
