Tag Archives: absolute power

Absolute Power

Absolute Power: I was reasonably entertained when I read the book, but what really got me interested in seeing the movie was how they managed to cut the main character, Jack Graham. And you know, it worked. I didn’t miss him at all. Most of his bits went to Luther, meaning that he talked directly to his daughter and the lead detective rather than using Jack as a go-between. It made Luther a lot more likable and tightened the story up considerably. Clint Eastwood was delightful as Luther and Gene Hackman was, well, Gene Hackman as the president (and he was good, of course, what with being Gene Hackman and all). Certainly not a movie I feel the need to see again, but it’s a decent popcorn flick.

Absolute Power by David Baldacci

Absolute Power by David Baldacci: The set-up of the story is simple: Luther Whitney, an aging thief, witnesses the lady of the house he is robbing in a tryst with Allen Richmond, the President of the United States. Things get out of hand and she is killed by secret service agents. Luther gets his hands on a key piece of evidence and is suddenly on the run for his life. Seth Frank is the detective on the murder case; Walter Sullivan is the millionaire husband of the deceased and good friend to the President; Jack Graham is Luther’s defense lawyer, the ex-boyfriend of Luther’s estranged daughter Kate, and the target of the President’s men for much of the book. It’s a decent cat-and-mouse tale, with a high body count and reasonably likeable characters. There were a surprising number of first-names-as-last-names in this book: Frank, Collin, Simon, Graham, Russell, Whitney. Usually I don’t notice things like that, but it got a little confusing at times. I don’t see myself picking up any more Baldacci titles, but it was decently engaging.

I am now very interested to see the movie made from this book, as apparently they cut out Jack Graham entirely.

I listened to this on audiobook read by Scott Brick, whom I thoroughly enjoyed as a narrator of Card’s Ender series. He was no disappointment here. Included in this version was the short story “No Time Left”. It was, in a word, terrible. The second the client said his name I knew exactly where it was going, and I was exactly right. Don’t bother with it.

Also posted on BookCrossing.
Read as part of the Books Won Challenge

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