Insurrection at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave

At the start of Tenery’s clunky first novel, a near-future political thriller, emergency room doctor Dan Russell is on duty at Dallas’s Irving Central hospital when he receives word to prepare for the arrival of a woman in her 50s who has apparently suffered a heart attack. At first, Russell doesn’t recognize the patient, but then: “A sudden gasp of air clogged his throat. He had seen that face before...” It’s Vice President Rosalyn Delstrotto, whose life he’s unable to save. Meanwhile, the musings of an unidentified man and an unnamed U.S. senator make it clear that something sinister is underway. President Raymond Winslet and Chad Madden, his chief of staff, are slow to realize what’s going on as a number of strategically placed conspirators proceed with a scheme that involves hacking into FBI databases and changing the political profiles of prominent people. The stakes are high in this conspiracy lover’s dream of a novel, but readers should be prepared for wooden characters and an over-the-top plot. (May)

This review has been updated to reflect a new release date for the book/