24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU [Paperback]

Marc Cerasini (Author), Alice Alfonsi (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 21, 2003

Last season, CIA agent Jack Bauer, played by Golden Globe award-winning actor Keifer Sutherland, had us glued to our TVs and cursing the time clock as he uncovered a plot to assassinate presidential nominee, David Palmer. With just 24 hours to identify the killer, Bauer also had to deal with the kidnapping of his wife and daughter and the existence of a mole at the agency.

This season he's at it again, helping President David Palmer save Los Angeles from nuclear ravage.

Lest you think Jack had some down time between life-altering experiences, check out 24: The House Special Subcommittees Findings at CTU. It's a new book providing a riveting account of Jack's grueling appearance before our government's most inquiring minds during their probe into alleged wrongdoings at CTU that first fateful 24 hour period. The testimony from these closed hearings was leaked to investigative journalist Marc Cerasini, who then ran with it to publisher HarperCollins.

With some of the finest reporting seen since Woodward's coverage of the Pentagon Papers, this book contains:

• Jack Bauer's complete Grand Jury Testimony
• Press statements from President-elect David Palmer
• Transcribed debriefings with other key CTU agents
• Previously sealed files on Bauer's related undercover act6ivities
• The arrest, detainment and transport records for Victor Drazen
• Teri Bauer's medical records
• Autopsy reports
• Campaign finance records
• Commentary from the Beltway's most celebrated political pundits
• Theories as to how and why key players within CTU turned.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Marc Cerasini's writing credits include The Complete Idiot's Guide to U.S. Special Ops Forces and Heroes: U.S. Marine Corps Medal of Honor Winners and several projects for Tom Clancy, including creating the bible for the Clancy Power Play series, writing the YA action/adventure thriller The Ultimate Escape for Clancy's NetForce series, and writing a major essay on Clancy's contribution to the technothriller genre for the national bestseller The Tom Clancy Companion. Among the movie tie-in novelizations Marc has written are Wolverine: Weapon X, based on the popular X-Men series, the USA Today bestseller AVP: Alien Vs. Predator, based on the motion picture from 20th Century Fox, as well as five original novels based on the Toho Studios classic "Godzilla," and co-authored (with J.D. Lees) a nonfiction look at the film series, The Official Godzilla Compendium. Marc's other credits include the book 24: The House Special Subcommittee Investigation of CTU, which he co-authored with his wife, Alice Alfonsi, and the previous 24 Declassified novels Operation Hell Gate, Trojan Horse, and Vanishing Point.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: It Books; 1 edition (January 21, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060535504
• ISBN-13: 978-0060535506
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,228,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Plot Runs Deep, June 28, 2003

By 

Mr. JKW "jkw" (Honolulu, Hawai'i) - See all my reviews

This review is from: 24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU (Paperback)

"24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU," is a fictional work-based upon Fox's critically-acclaimed drama series "24."

BACKGROUND:

For those unfamiliar with 24 (shame on you!!!), the plot is basically about a government agent named Jack Bauer who is assigned to a mission to protect a Presidential candidate, Senator David Palmer, from an assassination attempt. In the midst of his assignment, Bauer finds himself drawn into a very deep, and very personal plot that traces its roots to a failed mission he was assigned to a few years previous. The men he was sent to take out are out to exact revenge on both he and David Palmer, the man who authorized the mission.

ABOUT THE BOOK:

"24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU," basically picks up where the 1st Season leaves off as Jack and his CTU comrades testify before a special House sub-committee assigned to ascertain the truth about the events that took place on the day of the California Presidential-primary. The book recounts in great detail the events the took place that day (as seen on the show). Beyond that though, the book also goes even deeper into the story chronicling the events of Operation Nightfall (Jack's failed mission that led to the Drazen assassination plot) as well as the events that took place immediately in the aftermath of Season One. Aside from testimony from Jack and Tony Almeida the book also includes numerous character profiles (many taken from the 24 website and many seen for the first time in the book) plus other records such as autopsy reports, news statements, police statements and other official records.

THE COMPLETE PICTURE (?????)

This book is definitely the perfect companion to the first season. It definitely answers many of the lingering questions that viewers may have had after watching the first season (such as why did Gaines try to kill Nina if they were on the same side?). The books also stands alone from Season Two. Reading this book will not give you any particular insight into the events of Season 2. However, I can say this though, after reading this book you do come to realize one thing. Well two things actually:

1. The plot in 24 against Jack and Palmer runs VERY deep, more than you'll ever know from watching BOTH Seasons 1 and 2.

2. The writers of the show are probably the best writing team there is on television today

I'm very much looking forward to seeing how the plot thread lines connect even more in Season 3.

Tick, tick, tick, tick...

Total Read Time: 8 hours, spread across three evenings

Must Read (for fans of the show)

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The story behind the story, September 3, 2003

By 

Patrick L. Randall (Silver Spring, MD) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: 24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU (Paperback)

The first season of "24" was a ground-breaking achievement. Not only did define a whole new storytelling theme (the real time plot developments of the day each hour in each episode), but it also provided some of the most compelling action and drama to make network television. The story of Counter-Terrorist Unit (CTU) agent Jack Bauer and his day-long quest to prevent the assassination of presidential candidate David Palmer (and protect the lives of his wife and daughter) are well known. The effects and consequences of the events that came from this day are also relatively well known to fans of the series. One can't help but think that there was more to the story of the first season than just what was shown on screen. Thanks to Marc Cerasini, "24: Findings at CTU" provides the `rest of the story'.

While it has become commonplace to provide sourcebooks for various popular TV shows, Cerasini departs from the regular canned diet of character bios and episode guides and provides and unique look at the events of "24". "Findings at CTU" provides the `declassified' documents of the Congressional investigation into the events the day of the California presidential primary. Personal backgrounds of the main characters come to the forefront, but so do the personal histories of the smallest bit players. We find out more about Ira Gaines and Jamey Farrell. We find out how Palmer's own staffer became intimately involved with one of his assassins. Greater background is given to the mission that Jack went on and Palmer authorized to kill Victor Drazen, which led to Drazen seeking revenge against the two.

The wealth of information available in "Findings at CTU" is considerable. Admittedly, if one breaks it down to its basest elements, this is still an episode guide with character biographies. Yet, the format and depth of the information provided takes it well beyond the conventional sourcebook.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Plot holes? This book explain plot holes., August 27, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: 24: The House Special Subcommittee's Findings at CTU (Paperback)

I had a lot of questions when I saw the season finale of 24 (first season). I thought that a lot of things didn't make sense, but this book helps you understand. The book is written as if it were real. Jack Bauer is being interrogated by the Congress and they ask details of the events of season one. Each chapter starts with something similar to the show: "The following testimony by federal agent Jack Bauer covers the events that ocurred between 12:00am and 1:00am on the day of the California presidential primary". EAch chapter covers the same events of season one, told by Jack Bauer himself.

The book has articles from (fake) newspapers that covered the events of season one. You find out more about Sherry and David Palmer divorce, you find out more about details of "Operation Nightfall", you find out more about Nina Myer's actions, etc. Buy this book only if you are a big, big fan of the show.