The Inside Ring

A Novel

By: Michael Lawson

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

From a bluff overlooking Georgia's untamed Chattooga River, an assassin fires three shots. The President of the United States is wounded; his best friend and a Secret Service agent are killed. Two days later, a man in Landover, Maryland, commits suicide, and in the man's home is overwhelming evidence that he was responsible for the assassination attempt.

General Andy Banks, the Secretary of Homeland Security, is nursing a guilty conscience. Only days before the assassination attempt on the President, Banks had received a note with a dire warning: "Eagle One is in danger. Cancel Chattooga River. The inside ring has been compromised. This is not a joke." The message, on Secret Service stationery, was signed "An agent in the wrong place". Banks immediately passed the note on to Secret Service Director Patrick Donnelly, who proceeded to ignore it.

Even after the assassin is found dead, Banks is determined to dig a little deeper. He turns to Speaker of the House John Fitzgerald Mahoney. The Speaker has a guy, an under-the-radar, go-to guy he uses for things like this, things he can't afford to have connected to his office. The guy is Joe DeMarco, an honest lawyer with a sordid family history.

After one meeting with Banks, DeMarco realizes he's in way over his head. But Mahoney finds the prospect of taking down Donnelly irresistible and sets DeMarco on a trail that twists through the Secret Service, the FBI, and the Department of Homeland Security and snakes all the way back to one of the more enduring mysteries of the 20th century.

Brimming with suspense, authenticity, and wit, The Inside Ring marks the debut of a major new talent and introduces a cast of intriguing characters with many more cases ahead.

©2005 Michael Lawson (P)2005 Books on Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This is high-level entertainment from a writer who could soon rise to the top of the thriller heap." (Publishers Weekly)

Wow!

Great book - and just who knew that Scott Brick could do such an amazing job of a southern accent? A couple of twists and turns that caught me by surprise , and I was real worried about how Demarco was going to extricate himself. Can't wait to read book two!

Graphic violence

Over all the book was very good until a woman was repeatedly abused. It was a bit graphic for me. I also found it unrealistic, as I think a woman that was being forced to do what she was being forced to do would simply bite the man’s you know what off. Scott Brick is an excellent narrator.

Great start to an awesome series

I actually read this installment after having read 5 or 6 others and it is probably the one that reads the best as a stand-alone. Exciting, suspenseful, and a very intriguing story line.

AWESOMENESS!

loved this audible! Good pace great narration. Can't wait to read all of the series!

WOW!!

I have to say this was an awesome book I thought I had it all figured out, in the end the twist was even better. I know one thing…I would love to be like Emma when I grow up..LOL

Something is missing !

The storyline was great, but it was the narrator who got me. I have listened to other book’s narrated by Scott Brick with no issues. This one, all his characters sounded the same. Like the other Joe DeMarco books, I look forward to John Mahoney’s sarcasm and quick witticisms toward Joe because they help to keep the listener entertained. They should have kept Joe Barrett as the narrator as in previous books.

Exciting storyline

I just stumbled on Lawson’s book, what a great find! As always Scott Brick makes it come alive! Really worth a shot.

Not 5 star for sure.

Hard to get excited about until deep into the book. I won’t be listening to it twice.

great but...

I loved the book. Would have 5 stars but for exceptionally unbelievable areas. I do give room for artistic license, etc, but segments of this novel are over the top eye-rollers.

expected a distraction…found an obsession

this book is something else. it has great characters, plausibility, and a great plot. what’s interesting is you see power portrayed in so many ways. You see a man controlling a young woman…until someone takes issue, a predator controlling an entire town…until the light shines on its actions and then bureaucratic power used on one hand to obscure while the other hand works to expose (but maybe not for the right reasons). I loved it. I would write more but one do not want to ruin your enjoyment of this book and two I am ready to listen to the next installment in the series!