The Lincoln Myth

March 24, 2014
Bestseller Berry’s 10th Cotton Malone thriller (after 2013’s e-book novella The Tudor Plot) provides startling new perspectives on the Constitutional Convention of 1787 and Abraham Lincoln’s decision to fight the Civil War. At play is a secret document passed from George Washington to each new president, until Lincoln used it to seal a bargain with Brigham Young in 1861. Now U.S. Sen. Thaddeus Rowan of Utah, an apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints, and wealthy Spanish businessman Josepe Salazar, also a Mormon, have joined forces to recover that document, which they believe will provide a legal basis for states to secede from the union. Stephanie Nelle, Malone’s old boss, enlists retired Justice Department agent Malone in the effort to thwart Rowan and Salazar’s scheme. Cassiopeia Vitt, Malone’s love interest, plays a surprising role. The action builds to an overly neat resolution in the wilds of Utah, but Berry’s skillful blend of history and supposition will intrigue his many fans. Agent: Simon Lipskar, Writers House.

May 1, 2014
In Berry's (The King's Deception, 2013, etc.) latest, retired secret agent Cotton Malone is drafted from his Copenhagen bookstore to battle a conspiracy, one threatening the U.S. Constitution.Malone was the go-to guy for tough-minded Stephanie Nelle, chief of the Magellan Billet-the U.S. Justice Department's secret action group. Now she needs his help again: Rescue a man from Sweden who has information about a missing Magellan operative. That ends in gunplay, with Luke Daniels, newbie Magellan agent and the president's estranged nephew, and Cassiopeia Vitt, Malone's current flame, soon involved. The same way Dan Brown's books feature Catholic conspiracies, Berry employs rogue members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints-Mormons-as foils. The plot pivots on a vitally important historical document, written after the Constitutional Convention and secretly handed down from president to president until Abraham Lincoln loaned it to Brigham Young in a bid to keep the Mormons pro-Union during the Civil War. With Lincoln's assassination, the document was never returned and was eventually lost among Young's personal papers. Now the legendary document is being sought by a U.S. senator from Utah, Thaddeus Rowan, who's also one of 12 LDS apostles. In a speed-chess plot moving from Copenhagen to Salzburg-both described with familiarity-then Washington, Iowa and Salt Lake City, Malone disrupts a prestigious antiques auction, Rowan steals from the Library of Congress, and everyone ends up at Wasatch Mountain cave, where Ute Indians secreted conquistador gold. Berry employs Mormon history while offering Magellan new-guy Luke a chance to meet cute with a beautiful historian and reconcile with his uncle-president while leaving Malone and Cassiopeia to rethink love and loyalties. All action all the time as Malone once again yanks civilization back from the precipice.

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March 15, 2014
Cotton Malone's old boss at the Justice Department asks a favor: go into Sweden and pull out a man, Barry Kirk, who could have key information about the disappearance of an agent. Almost immediately after Cotton gets Kirk out of the country, someone tries to kill them. As it turns out, Kirk is connected to a high-profile international businessman who's the target of a Justice Department investigation (and who might be behind the disappearance of the missing agent). The latest Malone novel sticks closely to the series format: Cotton gets mixed up in a historical mystery that has dire implications in the present day (in this case, a U.S. senator who is a high-ranking Mormon elder has ambitious plans that trace their origins to Abraham Lincoln). Berry keeps the story moving at a steady pace, giving us enough time to get to know the characters but not enough time to pay close attention to the more implausible elements of the plot. Fans of the series and of historically based conspiracies will enjoy the book, even if it breaks no new ground. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Berry has 15 million books in print; he has been translated into 40 languages; and his titles have sold in 51 countries. That's called reach.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)