The Jefferson Key

A Novel

By: Steve Berry

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 13 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Four United States presidents have been assassinated - in 1865, 1881, 1901, and 1963 - each murder seemingly unrelated and separated by time.

But what if those presidents were all killed for the same reason: a clause in the United States Constitution - contained within Article 1, Section 8 - that would shock Americans?

This question is what faces former Justice Department operative Cotton Malone in his latest adventure. When a bold assassination attempt is made against President Danny Daniels in the heart of Manhattan, Malone risks his life to foil the killing—only to find himself at dangerous odds with the Commonwealth, a secret society of pirates first assembled during the American Revolution. In their most perilous exploit yet, Malone and Cassiopeia Vitt race across the nation and take to the high seas. Along the way they break a secret cipher originally possessed by Thomas Jefferson, unravel a mystery concocted by Andrew Jackson, and unearth a centuries-old document forged by the Founding Fathers themselves, one powerful enough - thanks to that clause in the Constitution - to make the Commonwealth unstoppable.

©2011 Steve Berry (P)2011 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“One of the most spellbinding and ingenious openings in all of thrillerdom. The cast of characters is huge but every one of them is memorable. The action is intense and masterfully choreographed. As always with Steve Berry, you’re educated about significant things while your knuckles are turning white and the pages are flying. Easily Cotton Malone’s most epic, swashbuckling adventure.” (David Baldacci)

"The Constitution. . . secret codes . . . loads of history. . . AND pirates! What else does anyone need? The Jefferson Key won't just haunt your nights - it'll haunt your life. Cotton Malone is coming back to the scariest place of all: Home." (Brad Meltzer)

" The Jefferson Key starts with a bang and holds the reader in its grip until the last page. Fascinating American history, up-to-the-minute politics, pulse-pounding action. This is a story Mitch Rapp would love." (Vince Flynn)

Don't Do It! (spoiler alert)

I'm about half way through this one, and it's all I can do to keep listening to it. It is nothing more than a conglomeration of poorly disguised story lines lifted from everything from National Treasure to 24 (remember the whole story line with the secret service agent and the First Lady in 24 one season?).

Also, the way the story is told makes keeping up with the characters very difficult. I listen to lots of audiobooks, even several read by Scott Brick, and have never had this problem before. Perhaps it's because SB doesn't alter his voice between characters as much as some other readers, but I think the way it's written is the real problem.

I find myself at this point listening, not because the story is enjoyable, but because I'm determined not to waste the credit I used to purchase the darned book.

Maybe better as a regular book, not on tape

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Not as an audio book. Too hard to keep track of characters.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Not quite finished yet.

What three words best describe Scott Brick’s performance?

Nice voice.

Any additional comments?

As an audio book, it jumps back and forth between different characters too much. If you had an actual book to read, you would probably be able to see when they change to a different set of characters. For instance say you have dogs in New York and Cats in California. You think you are listening to a chapter on the dogs in New York and all of the sudden realize one or two sentences are about the dogs and then the next about what the cats are doing and then the next about the dogs again. Too much back and forth to keep track of.

dont waste the credit

absolutley boring and confusing, maybe 15 minutes in part 2 is interesting, dont waste valuable credits on this one.

A Major Disappointment

What a disappointment! This book does not work as an audible format. There is too much shifting between characters and dialogue with no awareness. I was expecting a cross between Dan Brown and Clive Cussler but instead got a disjointed narrative that made it hard to keep up. Even Scott Brick couldn't save this one.

Overdone!

What disappointed you about The Jefferson Key?

The story was good but the situations and the thought process of the characters is way overdone. I did not realize I was listening to book 7 of a series until a few chapters in so the back stories were hard to follow. It also jumps from one character's perspective to anothers too often.

Has The Jefferson Key turned you off from other books in this genre?

No

Would you listen to another book narrated by Scott Brick?

Yes.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Some good references to real events in American history.

hardly worth the money

Why did I come back to Steve Berry? One dimensional characters, boring story line and so-so narration.
This book goes no where

Too Much Literary License?

With apologies to the author - I know you wroked hard on this and all your novels, this one is just too far fetched. I found myself shaking my head numerous times over the books premise, the incredible luck the main characters have in finding extra ammunition, clothes, food, etc and the travelling from Nova Scotia to the Carolina's and back, as if they were going to lunch. The whole thing was just too much. Sorry, could not make the book believable. I was actually glad when it was over --

Worse book audible has ever recorded

This book is so fragmented that is impossible to follow.Steve Berry continues to jump his characters
around to the point being agitating to the reader.As in all his books ,you never know whats going on till the end but this is the worst.I could not finish it.

Contrived

I am a students of history - Presidential assassinations intrigue me and a good thriller helps make a long ride go quicker. On a recent trip to Florida from Virginia I downloaded The Jefferson Key expected to be thoroughly entertained. However, this is one of the most contrived novels I have ever experienced. Each time there was an apparent resolution of a problem a - not simply unexpected - but totally unrealistic event would occur. Someone once wrote that fiction is more difficult to write than non-fiction, since works of fiction need to make sense. This book does not.

I hope this review saves someone a credit

I really was looking forward to this book because it seemed like a cross between "The DaVinci Code" and the Mitch Rapp novels. However, it failed miserably to be like either, which was hugely disappointing. I had to stop listening (something I NEVER do because I can't stand "wasting my money"), but I had to put myself out of my misery. Besides the storyline being both confusing and dull, Scott Brick, the narrator, has a very bizarre way of overstressing the syllables and the content, so the parts that were supposed to be suspenseful weren't because the way he read it made all the parts suspenseful.
Seriously, save your credit and your time. This book was bad on all accounts.

PS. I ended up not waiting for my next credit and paid to download "The Help" and couldn't have been more thrilled with it.