First Lady [Paperback]

Michael Dobbs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 31, 2007

Michael Dobbs returns to the subject that made him a household name -- the high drama and scandal of the political world. This time the kingmaker is a woman, Virginia Edge, mid-thirties, attractive, self-sufficient, ambitious. This is the story of her transformation from dutiful political wife to masterful manipulator of the entire political process at Westminster. She is a woman who is driven by the failings of men and the greed of others to take over their system and undermine. In this battle she has two great allies -- the intuition and determination of a wronged wife, and the blind ineptitude of Westminster men.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Dobbs' writing is highly polished and divertingly sophisticated. This is a great romp' -- Sandra Howard, Spectator 'It's barbed and breakneck, often very funny and hugely entertaining' -- The Times 'Some of the scenes in the Chamber are electrifying, none better than the big set-piece debate in which the Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition savages the Prime Minister over his Iraq policy. It is brutal, coruscating stuff' -- Sunday Telegraph

About the Author

Michael Dobbs has been a senior adviser to both Margaret Thatcher and John Major, a Deputy Chairman of Saatchi & Saatchi, a regular presenter of BBC TV's Despatch Box and a columnist for The Mail on Sunday. His books include the best-selling HOUSE OF CARDS trilogy that became a hugely popular TV series to his recent brilliant series of historical novels about the life of Winston Churchill.

Product Details

• Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Headline (May 31, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0755326853
• ISBN-13: 978-0755326853
• ASIN: 0755326857
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,863,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Back stabbing and eye gouging in the rear alleys of Whitehall, December 19, 2008

By 

Joseph Haschka (Glendale, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: First Lady (Paperback)

"I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky." - President Bill Clinton, January 1998

Author Michael Dobbs has written several absorbing novels based on Winston Churchill's career immediately before and during World War Two (Winston's War: A novel of deception, Never Surrender: A Novel of Winston Churchill, Churchill's Hour: A Novel of Defiance and Churchill's Triumph: A Novel of Betrayal). A trilogy of books based on the fictional, Machiavellian Prime Minister, Francis Urquhart, was turned into an award winning TV miniseries by the Beeb (House of Cards Trilogy (House of Cards / To Play the King / The Final Cut)) starring Ian Richardson. Expecting excellence, I acquired FIRST LADY, a novel of contemporary British politics during the time of the nation's involvement in the Second Gulf War and its aftermath.

Here, Dominic Edge is the chairman of the Her Majesty's loyal Opposition Party. Intelligent and articulate, but not terribly clever, Dominic has a weakness common to most men and many famous politicians; he can't keep his fly zipped. Discovering an infidelity, his intelligent, beautiful AND clever wife Ginny forges a path of revenge, which, oddly, involves spurring Dominic on to become Opposition Leader and then Prime Minister. (You're right; I don't understand the logic of it either. Perhaps Hillary can enlighten.)

The subtitle of the book is A NOVEL ABOUT POWER, SEDUCTION AND REVENGE. Seduction and revenge are certainly parts of it, but the core of the plot revolves around power and the art of political treachery and manipulation required to grasp it. Ginny proves to be a master at both - the power behind the throne, so to speak.

Though Ginny never became an endearing protagonist, the pleasure of the read came from watching her deal with each of her husband's rivals in turn. That said, I enjoyed FIRST LADY but never reached the point where I couldn't put it down. Dominic's ascent up the political ladder engendered no suspense, only an academic curiosity as to how the story would evolve. True enough, the conclusion involved a plot twist, but one that caused me to only raise perhaps half an eyebrow.

FIRST LADY is a solid but not exceptional novel of political infighting. In this instance, I suspect, true life, if we knew all the facts, would prove to be more startling.