Synopsis
Here, from the author of such monumental bestsellers as Kane and Abel and As the Crow flies, is an ingeniously plotted thriller that is as up-to-the-minute as today's headlines.
In Washington, D.C., in the spring of 1993, it is the dawn of a new political era - but six thousand miles away in the impoverished streets of Baghdad, there is a growing disillusionment with the unelected president. Sensing the mood of the people, Saddam Hussein moves boldly to settle scores with the United States.
Using $100 million as bait, Saddam gathers into his web three key players: a powerful American Mafia boss; the world's greatest forger; and, most crucially a special assistant to the President of the United States, Bill Clinton.
Saddam's goal is to embarrass the U.S. by stealing part of its history - then destroying that symbol in front of the world's media. With the help of a sophisticated criminal underworld that exhibits Swiss-watch timing, and a skilled actor who is transformed through plastic surgery into a stand-in for Bill Clinton, he sets about his brilliant scheme.
As the countdown begins to July 1993 - potentially the most humiliating day in U.S. history - two lovers, a beautiful Mossad agent and a dashing American professor who advises the CIA, turn out to be a far more formidable weapon than any Patriot missile.
In what is sure to be hailed as the suspense novel of the year, master storyteller Jeffrey Archer reminds us that the things worth dying for are sometimes to be found in the words that define our historic values.
Reviews
YA-It is spring, 1993. Saddam Hussein, in his ongoing desire to humiliate the U.S., arranges for the theft of the Declaration of Independence from the National Archives. His aim is to destroy the document in front of CNN cameras on July 4th for all the world to see, and so destroy the credibility of his arch-enemy. This is the basis of Archer's fast-paced novel. His cast of characters is right out of today's headlines: President Bill Clinton and Saddam Hussein; American CIA agents and agents from Israel's Mossad; the Mafia; and an Irish expert forger. The setting of the novel is equally broad, practically encompassing the globe. The highly improbable plot may strain credibility, but the author more than makes up for this by creating an entertaining adventure.
Pamela B. Rearden, Centreville Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Newly minted CIA and Mossad agents work to undo damage wrought by a Mafia/Iraqi conspiracy in English author Archer's ( As the Crow Flies ; Kane and Abel ) witty, action-filled--if improbable--thriller. Some readers, we suppose, might find quite plausible the idea that the mob has arranged for a ringer to impersonate President Clinton during his first months in office. But here the actor who plays Clinton assumes the role only long enough to swipe the Declaration of Independence. The chase is on as mobsters spirit the manuscript-turned-macguffin off to Iraq, where Saddam has plans to barbeque it for the Fourth of July, live on CNN. Meanwhile, Yale Law professor Scott Bradley goes undercover for the CIA, tracking lovely young Mossad operative Hannah Kopec, likewise on assignment in Paris. It's only a matter of time before the two agents are caught up in each other's arms and, of course, in the race to recapture the Declaration. Beyond the thrills and surprises that Archer's masterful narrative provides, readers will remain aware of the extreme unlikelihood that a scam such as Saddam's could succeed, and that two such neophytes would be thrown in to stop it. This deficit in verisimilitude doesn't detract too much from the novel's entertainment value, however, and some will be amused that Archer himself good-naturedly joins in the criticism by ironically making the accuracy of the spelling of "Brittish" (sic) in the Declaration and its copies central to his plot. 50,000 first printing; major ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
It's Amateur Night on the international intrigue stage, as perennial bestseller Archer (As the Crow Flies, etc.) shows Saddam Hussein's henchmen grooming an actor to take the place of the President so that they can--push the button that starts WW III? Plant a bomb that will destroy both chambers of Congress? No, steal the Declaration of Independence! Actually, the actor, one Lloyd Adams, is much less important than his support staff: Tony Cavalli, the unscrupulous, well-connected lawyer whose off-the-books ``Skills'' department takes on the assignment of switching the Declaration for a copy that will remain in the Archives until Saddam publicly burns the original on July 4, bringing Bill Clinton to his knees; T. Hamilton McKenzie, the Nobelist in plastic surgery (!) whose daughter is kidnapped to encourage him to rearrange Adams's face; William O'Reilly (``Dollar Bill''), nonpareil forger who copies the Declaration exactly and throws in a few near- copies for good measure; Johnny Sciasatore, distinguished director whose fake movie motorcade of the President helps get the imposter into the Archives; and a contract killer in Laura Ashley dresses who goes around mopping up the rest of the staff. The Skills crew gets the goods, of course, and then the ``Mission: Impossible'' scenario is reversed, as Scott Bradley, a Yale Law prof and CIA hanger-on, joins rookie Mossad agent Hannah Kopec (who already thinks she's killed Scott when his earlier cover as Mossad contact ``Simon Rosenthal'' was blown: don't ask) and a giant, custom-made safe named Madame Bertha to sneak the Declaration back out of Baghdad. With all those copies and all those agents plotting at cross-purposes, you just know there are going to be multiple switches and surprises, but instead of generating suspense, they just add to the general air of genial preposterousness. Undeniably entertaining, if you can get into the spirit of farcical and inconsequential melodrama. Maps of the Washington motorcade route and the Mideast--just in case you have any questions. (First printing of 500,000) -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
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