Murder on K Street: A Capital Crimes Novel (Capital Crimes Series) [Audiobook, MP3 Audio, Unabridged] [MP3 CD]

Margaret Truman (Author), Phil Gigante (Reader)

Book Description

Series: Capital Crimes Series | Publication Date: October 30, 2007

Arriving home from a fund-raising dinner, senior Illinois senator Lyle Simmons discovers his wife’s brutally bludgeoned body. And like any savvy politician with presidential aspirations, his first move is to phone his attorney. In this case, it’s his old friend and college roommate, former DA Philip Rotondi, who gamely agrees to step out of quiet retirement and into the thick of a D.C.-style political, criminal, and public relations maelstrom from which no one will escape unscathed. The crime scene is barely cold when the senator’s estranged daughter arrives hurling shocking allegations of murder at her father, despite a roomful of well-heeled witnesses who can provide Simmons with an alibi. Meanwhile, D.C.’s rumor mills and spin machines shift into high gear as speculation swirls around a tabloid- and TV-ready prime suspect: Jonell Marbury, a dashing lawyer turned lobbyist at a powerful K Street firm - and the last person to see the victim alive. But Rotondi harbors his own unsettling suspicions. And after a second woman is killed, he discovers that a long-buried secret from his past may hold the key to cracking the case. Aided by sleuthing ex-attorneys Mac and Annabel Smith, Rotondi reawakens the prosecutorial skills that served him so well in his gang-busting days, following the stench of dirty money and dirtier tricks across the country and across the thresholds of back rooms and front offices alike - where doing the right thing is for fools and taking on the system is a dead man’s gambit.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Truman's 23rd Capital Crimes novel (after 2006's Murder at the Opera) offers little suspense and even less insight into the wheelings and dealings of contemporary Washington, D.C. One day, U.S. Senator Lyle Simmons, a presidential aspirant, arrives home to find his wife, Jeanette, murdered in their foyer. As the police investigate, fissures in the public facade of the Simmons's marriage appear, and Simmons's oldest friend, retired detective Phil Rotondi, who lost Jeanette to Simmons during college, wrestles with whether he should share all he knows about the politician with the authorities. Frequent flashbacks to those college days disrupt any narrative flow, and the florid and uninspired writing ("Washington! Was there any other place in the world with as much intrigue on a daily basis, and with so much at stake?") won't lead readers to confuse this mediocre thriller with the Machiavellian plotting of writers mining similar ground such as David Baldacci.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

Praise for Margaret Truman

“Truman ‘knows the forks’ in the nation’s capital and how to pitchfork her readers into a web of murder and detection.”
–The Christian Science Monitor

Murder at the Opera

“Bestseller Truman’s twenty-second D.C. mystery [is] one of her strongest. . . . [She] widens her scope to reveal a charming supporting cast. . . . Glimpses of intelligence gathering in the Middle East lend a timely feel.”
–Publishers Weekly

Murder at The Washington Tribune

“Hooks the reader immediately.”
–The Oklahoman

Murder at Union Station

“Truman has produced another knowing look at Washington politics. She, of all people, should know her characters well, and she draws them with style.”
–The Dallas Morning News

Murder at Ford’s Theatre

“Dead-on descriptions of Washington’s most crack-ridden streets and exclusionary shindigs . . . Readers who enjoy travelogue, gossip, and social commentary in their whodunits will enjoy Murder at Ford’s Theatre.”
–USA Today --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• MP3 CD
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio on MP3-CD Lib Ed; Library edition (October 30, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423340515
• ISBN-13: 978-1423340515
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "There's nothing pure about politics.", November 13, 2007

By 

E. Bukowsky "booklover10" (NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on K Street: A Capital Crimes Novel (Hardcover)

In "Murder on K Street," Margaret Truman explores the world of the power brokers in our nation's capital. She focuses, in particular, on the lobbyists who raise influence peddling to a fine art. Truman informs us that "there are more than thirty-five thousand registered lobbyists in Washington, and more than enough special interest cash for all." Lobbyists are known as "the fourth branch of government" because of their ability to affect legislative decisions.

One of the most charismatic men in Washington is Senator Lyle Simmons. He has good looks, charm, and plenty of money to help him in a possible run for the presidency. His plans are temporarily derailed, however, when he enters his lavish home only to find the body of his bludgeoned wife, Jeannette, sprawled on the floor. His reaction to this tragedy appears strangely cold-blooded. Is the senator merely in shock or does he no longer care about a wife who turned to alcohol for comfort when her marriage went sour?

Lyle's best friend from college is Phil Rotondi, a former United States Attorney who himself has been the victim of tragedy. Phil is a man of unquestioned integrity; he can always be relied upon to remain loyal and discreet. Although the police are doing everything they can to solve Jeannette's murder, Phil launches an informal inquiry of his own. As he digs deeper into the circumstances surrounding the crime, he discovers a tangled web of greed, deceit, and betrayal.

In the past, Mac and Annabel Smith have been front and center in Truman's Capital Crimes novels, but this time, they play a supporting role. Mac, an eminent criminal defense attorney, steps in to assist an acquaintance who is wrongly accused of killing Mrs. Simmons. In addition, Mac serves as a sounding board for Phil, who is conflicted about his relationship with Lyle. There are a number of intriguing secondary characters who add spice to the narrative. Marlene, Jeannette's unbalanced sister, is a jealous woman whose behavior is wildly unpredictable. Lyle's troubled and weak-willed son works for an unscrupulous lobbying firm and his rebellious daughter opposes everything her father stands for. Jonell Marbury, an African-American who works with Neil, loves the high salary and perks of lobbying but is extremely uncomfortable with the underhanded tactics that his boss employs to obtain important clients.

Truman, to her credit, avoids explicit gore, profanity, and histrionics in this morality tale about arrogant politicians and venal lobbyists who cut corners and skirt the boundaries of the law. The author skillfully combines a number of disparate elements that give the novel added resonance. She uses flashbacks to provide insight into the personalities of Phil and Lyle back when they were young men competing for the same woman. There is a touch of romance, intrigue, and a compelling murder mystery to hold the reader's attention as well as an involving subplot about the painful conflicts that divide dysfunctional families. "K Street" lacks the razzle-dazzle and fancy twists and turns that are de rigueur in contemporary thrillers. Instead, it is a timely look at the ways in which unscrupulous public officials betray the people whom they are sworn to serve.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth your time and money., November 4, 2007

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on K Street: A Capital Crimes Novel (Hardcover)

Illinois senator Lyle Simmons arrives home from a fund-raising dinner to find his wife dead. First he calls his son, Neil. Second he calls his friend, former DA Philip Rotondi. Third he calls 9-1-1.

Detective Chang has the senator at the top of the suspect list. Polly, the senator's estranged daughter, isn't helping one bit either. Polly is making her loud voice heard as she tells anyone who will listen that there's no need to look further than the senator for the killer.

Phil comes out of retirement to help Lyle out. He gets help with the case by Mac and Annabel Smith, a couple of former attorneys.

**** Mac Smith and his wife, Annebel Reed-Smith, have become pretty popular in the mystery genre. This political mystery shows why. I believe the character development of the senator, and a couple of others, could have been better. Yet, all-in-all, this story is well worth your time and money. ****

Reviewed by Detra Fitch of Huntress Reviews.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars SAVED BY THE VOICE PERFORMER, December 1, 2007

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Gail Cooke (TX, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Murder on K Street: A Capital Crimes Novel (Capital Crimes Series) (Audio CD)

This is Truman's 23rd Capital Crimes novel so one may perhaps forgive her for offering what seemed to this listener to be a retreaded material. There's little to surprise in the story line but pleasure to be found in the reading by actor/director/producer Phil Gigante. His voice is deep, resonant, falls easily upon ears as he moves easily between characters.

Our story opens with senior Senator Lyle Simmons returning home after a fundraiser. His homecoming is a shocking one as he finds his wife, Jeanette, brutally murdered. Does he call 911? Of course, not. He immediately contacts his friend and attorney, former District Attorney Philip Rotondi. After all, Simmons has presidential aspirations, and a murdered wife isn't an asset in most campaigns.

Rotondi lost Jeanette to Simmons during college years and also knows that the Simmons marriage, well, while it may have been made in heaven, it was hell on earth.

Now, toss in a daughter with no love for dear old dad Simmons and a passel of devious lobbyists at work, and there you have it.

Easy listening - fair to middlin' story line.

- Gail Cooke