Gun control and tort reform are the thorny issues tackled in this political drama, with Patterson hero Kerry Kilcannon ensconced in the White House and planning his marriage to former television journalist Lara Costello. Kilcannon (last glimpsed in Protect and Defend) has been president for less than a year when he is caught up in a potentially disastrous domestic crisis. Lara's sister, Joan, is brutally beaten by her husband, John Bowden, and Kerry, who rescued his own mother from his violent father, lets emotion get the better of him, asking the California DA to intervene. Meanwhile, in the political arena, Kerry is battling an NRA-type group called Sons of the Second Amendment (SSA). When the fuse Kerry lit under John Bowden explodes predictably (Bowden goes on a killing spree in an airport while the Kilcannons are away on their honeymoon), Kerry sees red and goes after the manufacturer of the gun Bowden used. The gun lobby circles wagons around the SSA and pushes a tort-reform bill called the Civil Justice Reform Act, which protects the manufacturers of any "products" from litigation by victims of criminals. Congress kowtows to America's captains of industry, with guns as the focal point: "gun immunity hung in the balance of power between the President and the senator who intended to displace him." This is a Democratic nightmare scenario, and the novel paints a grim picture of the challenges facing gun-control advocates. Patterson is known for his intricate law-and-politics-laced crime fiction, but lawmaking trumps suspense in this novel and may leave his fans wanting for more. Agent, Fred Hill. (Oct.) Forecast: Patterson is a strong supporter of gun control-as he notes in an afterword-and his passion is evident here. Readers seeking pure entertainment may be disappointed, but those with the patience to follow the involved plot will learn much about gun policy debate. Major ad/promo; author tour. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Patterson completes his Kerry Kilcannon trilogy (Protect and Defend, 2000; No Safe Place, 1998) with a harsh, persuasive indictment of the politics that breeds gun violence in America. Newly elected President Kilcannon gets a phone call one night from a woman he's promised to help: Joan Bowden, the First Lady's sister. She's sufficiently frightened to make a call she hates to make. Her husband, who's beaten her repeatedly, has now actually held a gun to her head, convincing her at last that her life and her six-year-old daughter's are at risk. Kilcannon, a former prosecutor, knows about battered wife syndrome, how swiftly and terribly it can escalate, and he attempts to intervene. Tragedy results, setting the stage for the epic struggle--fought in the courtroom, on the floor of the US Senate and, in whispers, behind the closed doors of backrooms--that drives the rest of the story. The antagonists: the gun lobbyists plus certain senators in thrall to them, and Kilcannon, plus certain senators as sickened as he is by the ever-mounting death toll, children and other innocents so often the victims. The SSA (Sons of the Second Amendment: read NRA, because the author means you to) labels these as "gun-grabbers," viewing them with alarm and detestation. The bitter division is basically along party lines, the majority Republicans pitted against the minority Democrats over two pending pieces of legislation whose fate will lastingly affect the role of guns in America. In the meantime, back at the White House, the beleaguered President and his brave and estimable First Lady face a struggle to hold their marriage together--this one rather less than epic. Longer than it need be and occasionally repetitious, but redeemed, scene after scene, by bare-knuckle, page-turning, political infighting. For ordinary folk, it's good enough stuff. For political junkies, think Harry Potter. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Newly elected Democratic president Kerry Kilcannon faced the abortion issue in Protect and Defend (2000), and now he has to tackle the Second Amendment. While preparing for his wedding to Lara Costello, a beautiful journalist, Kerry has been helping her sister, Joan, escape from her abusive husband, John. Just after Kerry and Lara's wedding, John shoots and kills Joan, her young daughter Marie, and Joan and Lara's mother, Inez. Kerry and Lara, along with the nation, are stunned by the tragedy, and Kerry decides that something must be done about the gun industry. His opponent is the Sons of the Second Amendment (SSA), a powerful gun lobby that wields an incredible amount of influence over the Republican Party. The war is waged on two fronts: Lara's sister, Mary, sues a gun company and the SSA, while Kerry must fight a bill the SSA is trying to push through the Senate and the House immunizing gun companies from lawsuits such as Mary's. This complex novel has a fascinating debate at its heart. To his credit, Patterson has done his research, and though it's clear which side he's on, he does a good job of presenting all the arguments. --Kristine Huntley Copyright 2003 Booklist