Deep State

A Thriller

By: Chris Hauty

Narrated by: Marin Ireland

Length: 8 hrs and 51 mins

Publisher's Summary

The instant national best seller

“One of the more surprising double-reverse plot twists...in some time.” (The New York Times)

In this "propulsive, page-turning, compelling fragmentation grenade of a debut thriller” (C.J. Box, number one New York Times best-selling author), a deadly plot against the president’s life emerges from the shadows of the deep state.

Recently elected President Richard Monroe - populist, controversial, and divisive - is at the center of an increasingly polarized Washington, DC. Never has the partisan drama been so tense or the paranoia so rampant. In the midst of contentious political turf wars, the White House chief of staff is found dead in his house and West Wing intern and ex-Army grunt Hayley Chill is positive that it’s not from natural causes. Determined to find the truth, Hayley uncovers shocking evidence that a wide-ranging conspiracy is running beneath the surface of DC in an effort to undermine the rule of law - and democracy itself. Soon, Hayley is in a race against time to reveal the truth and save the life of the next victim: the president. 

“Deep State rings eerily true [and] will keep you turning pages well into the night.” (Jack Carr, former Navy SEAL and author of The Terminal List)

©2020 Chris Hauty (P)2020 Simon & Schuster Audio

A Great Debut Thriller

4.5 out of 5 stars

Deep State, the debut novel from Chris Hauty was an intense political thriller that revolved around a seemingly unlikely heroine. A former soldier (who is also an insanely talented boxer) interning in the White House. The entire political system has people fighting over everything – the President included. You either love him or hate him.

It all starts with one dead body. The White House chief of staff is found dead – from there the hushed talks and catty bickering of the other interns is no longer important. This sends our main character down an insane rabbit hole that is full of backdoor deals, threats, and so much more that I can’t talk about for fear of ruining the story.

I try my hardest to write spoiler-free reviews and I won’t officially spoil this but I have to admit that I did not see the ending coming at all. I wouldn’t have guessed it if you’d given me one hundred guesses. I love when a book can throw me for a loop like that. It makes for a refreshing reading experience.

The book itself was a great thriller, especially from a debut author. It was full of lots of real details and there were some fictional aspects sprinkled in to take Deep State up a notch. I thought this book was going to end about 3 times before it actually did. Hauty kept throwing more and more at me and taking me for an even deeper dive into the “deep state” than I expected.

What’s interesting to me is that I don’t believe that this book was written for or against any specific side of the political spectrum. I went into it expecting hours of cliche conspiracy-level drivel but I got a well written Thriller with conspiracies and political tensions weaved in without being so loud and distracting that they take away from the story. I was pleasantly surprised.

Enjoyable but disappointing

I was looking forward to this book very much, with all the hype by book reviewers etc . The beginning was very slow, and I kept on telling myself to just listen 10 more minutes, something should happen. It eventually did. The idea of the story was great, but it just seem to be lacking most of the times. I don't know if it is because I have read similar stories to often or what?
The narrator was VERY BAD! Listening on normal speed, sounded as if she was falling asleep, I listened at 2 x speed to get through it.
Not a great debut in my opinion

An amazing thriller

Well done for the first thriller I'd heard from both author and narrator. Would highly recommend it to fans of political thrillers. 10/10.

A plot twist I never saw coming

I was fortunate enough to receive an arc of DEEP STATE, and I feel terrible that I'm just getting this review out there the day before it hits shelves. That being said, get this book. It is amazing! I enjoyed it so much, I got the audiobook as well.

With all of the thriller books out there, it seems as if it would be very difficult to make waves in the thriller community with a debut novel. I've seen very few authors be able to do it over the past 5 years, with the exception of Jack Carr, Matthew Betley, and some others. Chris Hauty absolutely knocks this out of the park!

I expect this to be one of the top books of 2020, which is saying a lot as it comes out the first week of January. Hayley Chill is an incredibly dynamic, fresh, female character, who is so different from the your other thriller protagonists, and you get a taste of that from the first few pages.

The narrator does a great job voicing Hayley Chill and all of the other characters.

The writing is fantastic with a twist that will blow you away. Trust me, you'll know when you read it exactly what I'm talking about. Your jaw will drop. And this isn't a spoiler, because you'll never figure it out before you read it.

And actually, don't trust me, because as this book will show you, Trust No One!

Disappointing ...

Even though the book’s beginning was a bit slow, it picked up speed and was doing well, until, that is, the final plot ‘twist’. While many of the characters and ideas in this work of fiction are quite thinly disguised real life people and trends, the final twist (which was quite unnecessary) is a piece of gratuitous partisan propaganda that ruins it for the reader ...

Scary political thriller right on point

Very good political thriller with lots of twists and turns. Throughly modern and makes one think. Highly recommended.

Good, not great thriller

This is a decent thriller, short and concise. The big twist really wasn’t that big, but fairly predictable as thrillers today go. I really wish the majority of today's thrillers wouldn't follow the same script. But the character if Haley Chill is a good potential series character. The narrator really brought her to life.

Excellent and Enjoyable Thriller

I don't usually write reviews, I have over 500 book in my library but this was a great surprise. A fully developed character that you are engaged with from the beginning. The excitement makes you want to speed the book up so you can find out what is around the corner. For a first book in a series and I am truly hoping this is one of many for the Heroine it was very entertaining.

Great Narrator

A great thriller and narrated well. An enjoyable story of intrigue, hardly able to wait for the next chapter with each listen.

Really interesting book

loved it. Did not expect the ending. Also, seems really close to present day with Tony fictional modifications