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The Rules of the Game: A novel
 
 
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The Rules of the Game: A novel [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Leonard Downie Jr. (Author)
3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

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This Book Is Bound with "Deckle Edge" Paper
You may have noticed that some of our books are identified as "deckle edge" in the title. Deckle edge books are bound with pages that are made to resemble handmade paper by applying a frayed texture to the edges. Deckle edge is an ornamental feature designed to set certain titles apart from books with machine-cut pages. See a larger image.

Book Description

January 13, 2009
From Leonard Downie Jr., longtime editor of The Washington Post, an eye-opening novel of corruption, deception, and intrigue in our nation’s capital.

Sarah Page, a rising star at the Washington Capital, has been assigned to cover the dark world of politics and money in Washington. But when she begins to investigate an influential lobbyist and his clients, she realizes that little is what it seems. As Sarah digs deeper, one of her sources is murdered and others disappear. She herself is the target of a car bomb, and a late-night caller warns that she is jeopardizing national security. And while she is determined to pursue the story wherever it leads, her own romantic indiscretions leave her vulnerable.

Sarah is helped by Pat Scully, an evasive, cryptic source in hiding; Kit Morgan, a ubiquitous presence in the national security community whose employer remains a mystery; and Chris Collins, a cooperative congressman whose motives are obscure. When President Susan Cameron—suddenly thrust into the job when her predecessor dies in the White House—is confronted with what Sarah has found, the scheming of her top aides and her own political survival come into conflict with her duty to the country.

No one knows more about Washington, its inner workings and secrets than Leonard Downie Jr. And no novel has better captured the tensions among business interests, politicians, and the press, or the morally ambiguous ways in which all three really work. The Rules of the Game is a riveting and searing debut.

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Downie, from 1991 until early 2008 the Washington Post's executive editor, delivers a nicely executed newsroom procedural in his fiction debut. Sarah Page, a Washington Capital investigative reporter who's been assigned to the national politics staff after being chastised for a romantic involvement with a colleague, is covering the presidential race between Democrat Monroe Capehart, an elderly Pennsylvania senator, and Republican Warner Wylie, the U.S. vice president. The race escalates after Susan Cameron, California's popular junior senator, becomes Capehart's running mate. Those looking for similarities between Cameron and Sarah Palin will be disappointed, but the same dramatic possibility that haunts the real campaign occurs shortly after the election is decided. Downie (Justice Denied) exposes corruption at the highest levels and shows how national security trumps pretty much everything, including justice, in an entertaining if familiar tale of murder, cover-ups and personal courage. (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Bookmarks Magazine

Let's be clear: newspaper critics like books written by newspaper editors about newspaper reporting. With that filter in place, critics agreed that this smart debut novel provides an engrossing take on Washington politics; Downie's years of experience at the Washington Post and as a Washington insider give the novel an authenticity -- from the setting to the characters, all of whom seem to play by their own rules -- rarely found in the genre. But it is Downie's first work of fiction, and a few reviewers noted the contrivances, unsophisticated prose, and somewhat predictable story lines. Still, they were more than willing to overlook these minor flaws and praise the book as more substantive and entertaining than most, "a gripping political thriller" that "will make one hell of a movie" (Philadelphia Inquirer).
Copyright 2009 Bookmarks Publishing LLC

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 336 pages
  • Publisher: Knopf; First Edition edition (January 13, 2009)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0307269612
  • ISBN-13: 978-0307269614
  • Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 1.1 x 9.6 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,134,116 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

11 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
3.5 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Workmanlike investigative thriller, February 2, 2009
By 
Bryan (Ellicott City, MD) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rules of the Game: A novel (Hardcover)
The characters in this novel are mostly drawn from Central Casting- the spunky young female reporter, the sociopathic General, even a gruff but fair managing editor named Lou. The Terrible Secret that is hinted at throughout the book will not be a surprise to readers who are cognizant of current events. Where the book shines is in its descriptions of the many legal or quasi-legal ways in which lobbyists and politicians in Washington enrich themselves. No wonder they oppose term limits.
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Heinously bad, May 19, 2009
By 
Crepuscular (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Rules of the Game: A novel (Hardcover)
This political thriller by former Washington Post editor Len Downie is absolutely Exhibit A if you want to show how book publishing is all about who you are and who you know, not what kind of book you can write. The book is wretched - the prose so wooden you could build bookcases from it. Cliches swim on the page like schools of fish. Every character is made of cardboard. The only similarity to real life is that the main character, an investigative reporter for the Washington Post-esque newspaper, is allowed to remain in her job despite repeated ethical lapses. I can't believe Downie is willing to show his face in public after publishing a book this bad.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting but Wooden, April 7, 2009
By 
Gerald Swimmer "manursing" (Rye, New York United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Rules of the Game: A novel (Hardcover)
Leonard Downie is certainly a Washington insider who has a point of view. He sees the danger of the Bush policies and has decided to write a novel. On the whole the story is interesting with many twists and turns. It was fun to read. The problem is that the characters are all wooden. Yes not all are what you think but everyone is a stereotype. I admit I love these types of novels and when you read this one appreciates the expertise of writers who make each character interesting.

The story is more compelling than my prior review of Old City Hall but the latter effort has so many more interesting characters..
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