Publishers Weekly
04/25/2016
Bestseller Meltzer (The Fifth Assassin) and Goldberg (Gangsterland) launch a series with a conspiracy-laden spy novel that’s at its best when it’s gleefully cutting the legs out from the genre’s tropes. After a car accident in Los Angeles, Hazel-Ann Nash wakes up to find that much of her memory—particularly around anything she had an emotional connection to—is lost, her father is dead, and an FBI agent is asking questions. Her father, Jack, was the host of a cult TV show investigating the unexplained, and he was personally obsessed with Benedict Arnold’s Bible. Meanwhile, a mysterious man known only as the Bear travels to Dubai to kill a man named Kennedy, and the body of another man named Nixon is found in Canada. The authors toss plenty of conspiracy novel zaniness into the mix, but they also temper things nicely, even as the tensions escalate. The result is slight, but it’s also highly satisfying. Agents: Jennifer Rudolph Walsh, WME (Meltzer); Jennie Dunham at Dunham Literary (Goldberg). (June)
From the Publisher
"Highly satisfying...a conspiracy-laden spy novel that's at its best when it's gleefully cutting the legs out from the genre's tropes."—Publishers Weekly
"Highly entertaining...Meltzer and Goldberg move "The House of Secrets" at a breakneck pace...what never wavers is Meltzer's meticulous historical research, drawing on little known facts to make the past come alive....An intriguing twist pulls together the tight story of THE HOUSE OF SECRETS."—South Florida Sun Sentinel
"Nobody does historical speculation better than Meltzer, to the point where the lines between fiction and fact become utterly blurred. And that helps make THE HOUSE OF SECRETS great fun, pure reading entertainment of the highest order."—Providence Sunday Journal
"A fast-paced and twisty thriller not to be missed."—Library Journal
"Meltzer's many fans should have a good time here, as will all conspiracy-minded readers, even those not familiar with the author's brand."—Booklist
"THE HOUSE OF SECRETS packs a brilliant mystery into a hair-raising conspiracy that will leave readers on the edge of their seats. Fast pacing, nonstop suspense, and a climactic final act make this one of the summer's best novels...Sure to leave you questioning everything-including the history books!"
—The Real Book Spy
"A game-changing female protagonist."
—The Big Thrill
PRAISE FOR THE CULPER RING SERIES:
"Clearly a history buff of the highest order, Meltzer knows his stuff, and he's included research from chats with none other than President George H.W. Bush....Beecher's got the mental acumen of Robert Langdon and the gumption of Indiana Jones, but unlike those globe-trotting types, Meltzer's protagonist is thrown into adventures made in the USA and acts as an awesome gateway into the deadlier aspects of American history."—USA Today on The Fifth Assassin
"History and suspense collide in shocking ways - and the intensity never lets up. Beecher carries the weight of the story. He's a great character who will resonate with readers since he's like the fun next-door neighbor or your best friend in college....One of his best books to date...The ending of The Fifth Assassin appears to announce that Beecher White will return, and that cannot come fast enough."—Washington Post on The Fifth Assassin
"A fascinating story that blends historical facts, secret codes, with an engrossing mystery...Meltzer is a master at writing his mysteries as puzzles where the pieces are hints dropped throughout the book..."—Military Press on The Fifth Assassin
"Because not since the Fletcher Knebel seminal Seven Days inMay or James Grady's scathing Days of the Condor, has there been a political thriller as relentlessly paced or blisteringly effective as The Fifth Assassin. An early contender for the best thriller of 2013."—The Providence Journal on The Fifth Assassin
"Full of surprises, action, twists and turns, it is a wild and entertaining (and yes, educational) romp, wonderful in every way...Read The Fifth Assassin and prepare to be entranced and enthralled."—BookReporter on The Fifth Assassin
"When you sit down to start reading, make sure the chair has a comfortable cushion because you'll find yourself unable to put the book down and get anything done. It's that good a read...As always Meltzer's character development and believable plot is spot on. Clearly Mr. Meltzer has done his homework. I think his attention to detail; using true facts combined with fiction to tell his story is what makes him a standalone author in the thriller genre and his fans coming back for more. "—Suspense Magazine on The Fifth Assassin
"Ratchets up the drama and human interest, and Meltzer's fans will enjoy the usual sprinkling of history factoids, fast-paced writing and the double-whiplash bombshell conclusion."—Kirkus Reviews on The Fifth Assassin
"All of Brad's books are a fascinating read. He is a great storyteller who keeps all of us on the edge of our seats."—President George H.W. Bush
"[Meltzer] is an architect. His structures are towering , intricate, elegant, and surprising — but always grounded in humanity and logic."—Joss Whedon
"Meltzer has mastered the art of baiting and hooking readers into a fast-moving plot."—USA Today
"Meltzer has earned the right to belly up to the bar with John Grisham, Scott Turow, and David Baldacci. "—People
AudioFile
A dual narration by Scott Brick and January LaVoy makes a great book even better in audio. LaVoy deserves special credit for her calm portrayal of a young woman who is left without memory or emotion after her father, the TV star, is murdered.”
Booklist
Meltzer’s many fans should have a good time here, as will all conspiracy-minded readers, even those not familiar with the author’s brand.”
Fort Lauderdale (FL) Sun-Sentinel
Highly entertaining…Meltzer and Goldberg move The House of Secrets at a breakneck pace…what never wavers is Meltzer’s meticulous historical research, drawing on little known facts to make the past come alive.”
JUNE 2016 - AudioFile
Author Brad Meltzer has written a mystery about the murder of a host of a TV show on conspiracies. Clearly, he didn’t need to go far for inspiration—as anyone who has ever caught “Brad Meltzer: Decoded” can attest. A dual narration by Scott Brick and January LaVoy makes a great book even better in audio. LaVoy deserves special credit for her calm portrayal of a young woman who is left without memory or emotion after her father, the TV star, is murdered. It all has to do with a book that may have belonged to Benedict Arnold. Meltzer, always one to provoke readers with tantalizing theories, asks a simple question: What if Arnold was really a double agent for George Washington? And what would certain people do to keep such knowledge secret? Murder would be the least of it. M.S. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2016-05-17
Meltzer (The President's Shadow, 2015, etc.) and Goldberg (Gangsterland, 2014, etc.) team up to uncover a vast international conspiracy tracing its roots back to everyone's favorite turncoat, Benedict Arnold.When she regains consciousness in a Los Angeles hospital eight days after her father died behind the wheel of a car she and her brother were riding in, there are a lot of things Hazel-Ann Nash doesn't remember. But she does remember that 30 years ago, when she was only 6, Jack Nash, host of the TV conspiracy-investigation series The House of Secrets, posed her a riddle: how did a Bible originally belonging to Benedict Arnold make its way into the chest cavity of a dead man nearly 200 years ago? Since Skip Nash, whom his father had featured on the show for years, is clearly planning to deal with Jack's death in his own way, Hazel responds to FBI agent Trevor Rabkin's news that her father was poisoned with the villainous toxin Polosis 5 a few days after meeting with Spokane maintenance engineer Darren Nixon, another victim of Polosis 5, by deciding to investigate on her own. Rabkin has his own ideas about that decision as well as the resources to back them up. Half a world away, an assassin called The Bear is making his own plans, which involve killing New Haven realtor Arthur Kennedy, dressing him in a Continental Army uniform, leaving him in a ditch in Dubai, and luring Skip to Kennedy's hotel. Things get more complicated, then more rational, but never remotely believable."When you've faced the impossible, it's usually because someone's lying," the traumatized heroine is assured. True enough. The apparently formidable premise behind this tale dissolves in a shower of lies, and the ambitious plot sags as the principals crisscross the globe pumping up their frequent flier miles.
