Chain of Command Paperback – January 8, 2013

I was going to give this story a 3-star rating until I got to Chapter 45 and beyond, and then it dropped to 2-stars. The author demanded far too much suspension of disbelief and relied too heavily on coincidence in order to make the plot work.This is not a thriller, it's really a murder mystery. The story is about finding an assassin and the people who hired the assassin, after the assassin has already done his job. It was not about stopping a bad thing from happening, which is the difference between a thriller and a mystery.This novel had me off kilter right from the beginning. The book's promotional copy likened it to famous political thrillers like Six Days of the Condor, Seven Days in May, and Advise and Consent, but in reality the thriller portion of this story is just a backdrop for a romance blooming while trying to hunt down the assassin. This story is not even close to the quality of those political thrillers.I was immediately put off by the character, Elaine Covington, who was not believable to me. The author deliberately tries to throw the reader off by presenting this character as being overwhelmed by the circumstances and her new-found situation (becoming the president). It appears other readers were successfully fooled by the misdirection. However, any person who knows just a little about our government and the real life Speakers of the House, would know that the Speaker is a highly-seasoned and well-connected politician. The last seven Speakers of the House had an average of 23.9 years of political experience before they became the Speaker (Nancy Pelosi, the only female in the last seven, had 20 years political experience before becoming Speaker). They were all experienced and seasoned politicians, yet the character in this story acts (until the final chapter) as if she has just arrived in Washington and doesn't know anybody. It was so unbelievable and author manipulated, that it was an obvious giveaway to the plot. Authenticity is usually a mark of a great thriller (or crime story), so this error greatly detracted from my enjoyment of the story.The information on the SEALS is also way out of whack. First off, SEALS do not have partners per se. They are organized into platoons of 12-16 men. The typical SEAL platoon has only one officer (a lieutenant), and that officer is never the team's sniper. Having two lieutenants as "partners" - let alone "sniper partners" - is just not believable. Again, it appears the author had not done her homework, even though she claims to have done her homework and even lists the military people she interviewed. The author needs better sources for her military research.The lack of realism and authenticity significantly lessened my engagement with the story.I also had a significant logic problem with the assassin's behavior. The job is done, the money already paid, but the assassin flies to Los Angeles and then just hangs around with no other reason than to try and kill a guy (Noah) who poses no real threat to him. This is, in my opinion, plot manipulation which greatly reduced my suspension of disbelief, making the story unauthentic.Starting at Chapter 42, the whole story progressively became more and more preposterous as coincidence began to drive the plot. Computer hacks suddenly found, the villain on a killing rampage for no reason other than to keep him in L.A. while the heroes search for him, the white house chief of staff having an unknown son, etc. The Pakistani military claiming responsibility for attacking the U.S. embassy. Etc. There was so much unbelievable twists and turns that the story became a joke.The writing also left a great deal to be desired. There was an excessive amount of internal monologue and all of the characters seemed to have the exact same internal monologue voice. There was far too much expository dialogue and much of the key information in solving the mystery was delivered in exposition rather than scenes.

Colby Marshall's debut turned my four-hour flight into minutes. The plane landed too soon because I had not finished. I read on as I waited for our baggage.A double assassination in the opening chapter sucked the air out of me, but the surprises did not let up. Interesting story lines are skillfully woven together so the reader never loses any of the many threads. The spare writing suits the pace and the action, and yet the many characters come alive--even those who appear and die in short order. Point of view shifts at just the right time add to the intensity. Specific and interesting details are folded in to engage the reader in every scene.The plotting, right up to the big surprise ending and one more surprise after that big one, is layered and intelligent. Many times when I thought, "Ok, now I've got it," a new, but credible, twist changed everything."Chain of Command" deserves a sequel. But even if there is none, I'll look forward to Ms. Marshall's next novel.

This story starts with a bang... two bangs, actually... as the President and Vice-President of the United States are simultaneously assassinated while on opposite sides of the country. What a shocking way to grab a reader's attention right from the get-go, huh? But the question is... can Marshall maintain that level of attention once the smell of gunpowder fades? Yep, she sure can. She holds onto it tightly as she leads readers through every high-speed, sometimes chilling, twist and turn of this thrilling tale.The consensus of opinion is that a murdered ex-SEAL killed the VP, but that's a belief his former SEAL partner refuses to accept. He and a female reporter work together... following a path in and out of danger... to get to the truth behind the assassinations. Their biggest challenge is to discover that truth without becoming part of the mounting body count the assassin is leaving in his wake.This is a fast-moving, thoroughly enjoyable read. It even has a little bit of romance. (What? A hot ex-SEAL and a female reporter... what did you expect?) I highly recommend it. Four and a half stars, rounded up to five.

I absolutely loved McKenzie and Noah, the sparks flew. And the story kept me riveted to my bus seat. There wasn't a moment I wanted to put it down. In fact, I couldn't put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen next. It's been a long time since I've found an author I've wanted to read their next book as soon as I could get my hands on it! Ms Marshall will definitely be on my Auto Buy list from now on! So, when is the next book coming out?