Richard North Patterson - Protect and Defend

The story is as intricate and balanced as a grandmaster chess game, with each move demanding and receiving an equally clever counter move. Like Advise and Consent in its time, this book is a gripping read that raises questions vital to our democracy.

The San Diego Union-Tribune

This mesmerizing account of the confirmation battle over our first female Chief Justice will change the way you think about the lives, the politics, and the psyches of those who govern.A riveting read.

A LAN M. D ERSHOWITZ

Compelling Well-written Wholly believable An enlightening look into the powers that be.

Associated Press

Riveting courtroom scenes Crackling political drama.

People

Patterson [draws his] two central players
with masterful depth.
Entertainment Weekly

Enthralling Epic, compelling reading A novel youre not soon to forget Patterson has made a stellar career and attracted legions of fans by writing taut, character-driven courtroom dramas. [Now he] has ratcheted up the stakes, taking on some of our societys hot-button emotional issues, mentally chewing them up and spitting them out in an engaging, thought-provoking novel of political and judicial machinations.

Denver Post

Gripping Pattersons characters of all political stripes are convincingly and memorably drawn. Through their public actions and backstage maneuvers, Protect and Defend builds to a powerful catharsis.

The Wall Street Journal

A joy to behold Compelling and enlightening Very important Envelops the reader with rich details, anxious moments, and the need to know.

New York Law Journal

Powerful Intelligent, fast-paced.

The Washington Post

An exhaustive and gripping discussion of the powerful human realities of late-term abortion and parental consent. Through his brilliantly conceived and expertly wrought narrative of the trial, Richard North Patterson has described those issues with unequaled lucidity and vividness.

M ARIO M. C UOMO

Absorbing A particularly robust hatching of an endangered species of literaturethe novel of ideas.

Newsday

This gripping story will arouse and hold the readers emotions while also presenting for the readers intellect, in a very human context, difficult moral and constitutional questions.

A RCHIBALD C OX

Resonates and reverberates well beyond the narrow confines of popular fiction, just as Allen Drurys Advise and Consent did nearly a half-century ago.

Raleigh News and Observer

Patterson keeps getting better. Protect and Defend gets
a big recommendation.
St. Petersburg Times

Protect and Defend is an important novel on passion and politics. Richly rewarding in both story and character, this is a tale that appeals to both the intellect and the heart. This book is sure to spark heated dialogue in book clubs throughout the nation. Oh, how I hope it will.

A MY T AN

A whopping political novel that is at once suspenseful and informative, gripping and touching. Without taking sides, he dramatizes the passions on both sides of the abortion argument, producing both a compelling story and an accessible dissertation on the complexities of our most troubling social issue.

Booklist (starred review)

A blissfully large-scale political [novel] thats also an unsparing examination of tough questions about abortion, by an author shrewd and generous enough to give spokespeople of every persuasion their day in court.

Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Timely, authenticthe plot adds voltage to the word spellbinding. Richard North Patterson moves to the head of the class.

The Dallas Morning News

Excelling as both a political novel and a tale of suspense, Pattersons latest takes a provocative look at the ethics of abortion and the power plays endemic to American politics. Were talking major bestseller here.

Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Engrossing A spellbinding tale that moves the reader Even an experienced lawyer will be riveted and impressed by Protect and Defend. It is the best discussion, bar none, I have ever read of the pros and cons of abortion. It is not possible to read Protect and Defend with indifference.

The Baltimore Sun

In an intimate and personal way, Protect and Defend brings the reader into the toughest and most divisive issue of our timeabortion. The brilliantly interwoven stories demonstrate how even the most powerful can be destroyed by it. A masterful work.

S ENATOR B ARBARA B OXER

The books fictional president, Kerry Kilcannon, is a splendid exemplar for any actual head of state. This gripping novel thoughtfully examines the issues with which a principled president must grapple in honoring his oath to protect and defend our Constitution.

N ADINE S TROSSEN
President of the ACLU