City of Shadows [Mass Market Paperback]

James Dalton (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 19, 2002

Washington, D.C., where our true history is made in the shadows. The corrupt and violent presidency of Richard Nixon. A country at war with itself. An era that crystallized around a third-rate burglary called Watergate.

An era that slams into three good men: Police Officer John Quinn-obsessed by the murder of one woman, seeking redemption through the love of another. Marine officer Nathan Holloway-haunted by the honor and horrors of the war grinding through Vietnam. Senate aide Vaughn Conner-an idealist prosecuting the sins of a president only to have his own sins make him a target of evils he never imagined.

These men collide with a swirl of history so fantastic that its truths read like fiction; and there, in that netherworld between flesh and fantasy, City of Shadows blasts a .45 slug of what-if with its pulse-pounding, action-driven saga of good and evil, tragedy and triumph.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Three fast-paced plotlines converge in Dalton's complex, survival-of-the-fittest debut political thriller, set in a seething Washington, D.C., on the eve of Watergate. In the first, rookie cop John Quinn, a softie when it comes to the ladies, gets himself in trouble early on by mixing it up with local mobster Joe Nezneck, who murders a young call girl. But it's another womanALorri Larson, part-time stewardess and sometime party girl for an escort agencyAwho leads him into serious jeopardy. When the FBI links Lorri's agency to the Nixon re-election committee, Quinn scouts the Watergate "date" apartment to remove damaging photos and runs into some D.C. cops on a break-in tip: together, they stumble onto the plumbers' break-in at Democratic Committee HQ. Story two follows Vietnam vet Nathan Holloway, a marine working as a Pentagon mole under Henry Kissinger. When Holloway surprises a CIA exec with ties to the Mafia breaking into Howard Hunt's White House safe, he becomes a CIA target. Meanwhile, two Senate staffers look into the presidential pardon of Jimmy Hoffa and mafioso friends of Nezneck, winding up on yet another hit list. Dalton smoothly merges these three story lines as the protagonists join forces against heavyweight adversaries, trying to stay alive and gain a measure of justice. The terrifying tale he weaves of corruption, abuse of power and secret deals made and broken in the political shadows is geared toward political thriller junkies who can keep a multitude of characters straight and will enjoy weeding out the facts from the fiction. (Nov.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"City of Shadows is a tour de force. The cutting edge of political thrillers. A non-stop read for anyone interested in one of the most chaotic periods in recent American history."--James Ellroy

"City of Shadows offers a fast-paced read about a part of our history that remains as bitterly controversial now as in its own time."--James Rosen, The Washington City Paper

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; First Edition edition (May 19, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812589572
• ISBN-13: 978-0812589573
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.2 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,000,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Freshman's Thesis on Watergate, October 15, 2000

By 

Joe Bonilla (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: City of Shadows (Hardcover)

Watergate demonstrated that old maxim about the results of absolute power, and it is probably the one point in American political history we would best wish to deny. However, in James Dalton's City of Shadows, the story of Watergate is retold from the viewpoint of what happens when you don't have the power. The lives of three well-meaning men are brought together at the crossroads of the infamous Washington hotel: a rookie D.C. cop trying to be the white knight, but held back by a corrupt system; an ex-Vietnam marine trying to uphold honor and duty, but borne down by the cliched sins of war; and the idealist senate aide placed in the position of ultimate information access, but incapable of dealing with the reality of early 70's D.C. These characters are not sure if they are on the stage or behind the curtain of Watergate, and oftentimes, neither is the reader. Dalton brings his personal experiences of D.C. to provide the rich detail of the systems, plots, counterplots, and politics in our nation's capital. However, he takes the concept of "conspiracy theory" to new heights of melodrama. Short on narrative, with occassionally intriguing dialogue - and the also occassional speech (this is Washington, D.C., after all!) - Dalton develops his three main characters as ideals. Flawed ideals, but ideals nonetheless. This freshman outing in fiction does maintain interest, with enough character development and action to make the reader care about the people and events portrayed. Unfortunately, cliches in the main and other characters and scenarios lead to a story that does not provide much new to the reader's perceptions and opinions about the events leading to the resignation of an American president.

4.0 out of 5 stars Who Is Dalton?, April 20, 2010

By 

James D. Stubbs - See all my reviews
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This review is from: City of Shadows (Hardcover)

It's an interesting book. Also, interesting is trying to figure out who Dalton is. His story has a bit of the feel of an Ellroy novel. But his knowledge of some of the less well known aspects of Watergate reminded me of Jim Hougan (SECRET AGENDA)- Neznik=Nesline, Reiker=Reikan, Penzler=Paisley; the idea that the burglars may well have had different missions among themselves, unknown to the others in their own team. And then there's Jud. He is almost a clone for a man of the same name in James Grady's RIVER OF DARKNESS. In fact, the two Juds are so close that it makes me think that Grady may well be Dalton. Or not. Good book.

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Read!, January 17, 2001

By 

William (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: City of Shadows (Hardcover)

Let there be no mistake -- this is a fabulous book, one you won't be able to put down. Dalton captures the Watergate Era in all its shabby sleazy glory, while populating his narrative with deeply etched characters and a richly imagined story. The best fictional treatment of Watergate I have read. And a stunning debut!