Two extremely high-profile authors, Hillary Rodham Clinton (What Happened) and Louise Penny (The Madness of Crowds), have teamed up to create a propulsive thriller in State of Terror. The story begins with Ellen Adams, former head of a news media conglomerate, now the newly appointed Secretary of State.
After Adams fails on a diplomatic trip to South Korea, the media begins to turn on her, until a series of bombs in London, Paris and Frankfurt rapidly change the focus of the administration. Anahita Dahir, a Lebanese-American woman serving in the Foreign Service Office, receives a mysterious message that seems to have to do with the bombings. Other government officials are convinced that Anahita's background means she might be involved, but Adams thinks there is more to the young FSO than meets the eye.
Adams drags Anahita and her best friend and adviser, Betsy, with her on a whirlwind tour--from Germany to Iran and back to the U.S.--in a desperate attempt to find the bombers before things escalate. When Adams and her allies learn that nuclear material is missing from Pakistan, the stakes get even higher.
Clever and fast-paced, State of Terror is a superb thriller. Clinton's political expertise and Penny's flair for fiction combine to create a chilling yet, unfortunately, all too believable scenario. Clearly inspired by current events, State of Terror is both fantastic fiction and a sly political takedown, sure to appeal to fans of both Penny and Clinton. --Jessica Howard, bookseller at Bookmans, Flagstaff, Ariz.