Years ago, I picked up a book by Brad Meltzer called The Book of Fate and it opened up a part of me I didn't know was there.

Ha! Ok, so that's a little overdramatic, but seriously---political thrillers are not at all my genre. However, there's something about Meltzer's books that I absolutely love. Maybe it's the DC setting, the history involved, the conspiracies theorized---whatever it is, The President's Shadow was just as great as all the others by Meltzer that I've read.

I found myself going back to Google, repeatedly, to see who and what were real in the story. This is one of those books that plants a seed of interest and leads the reader to all kinds of interesting and educational rabbit trails. I've already put four more Meltzers on reserve to pick up at the library this afternoon. ( )

Beecher White works in the National Archives. He is privy to documents and secrets of the history of the United States. He is also a member of a secret society that has been charged with protecting the Presidency since George Washington’s time.

The current First Lady enjoys working in the Rose Garden in the early morning hours. This time that allows her freedom and relaxation from an otherwise demanding job. Gardening is a passion she found long before she became involved in politics.

On a particular morning her world is shattered when she tries to pull up a tree root while gardening and discovers it is a human arm. Whose arm is it? How did whoever buried it get pass security? What is the meaning of the note found clutched in the arm’s fist? Is there a significance between this and a threat to the President?

Beecher finds himself on his own as his mentor, Aristotal “Tot” Westman, is laid up in hospital due to a serious head wound. It is up to Beecher finding the pieces and putting them together to solve the connections.

The plot bounces back and forth between the current time and the historical periods where previous secret groups started. Are there people still living from these groups or are they mimicking previous events? Is there a serious attempt to kill the President or just frighten him?

Characters from the previous book are also in this volume, which gives it continuity. Another fast paced read. ( )

The President's Shadow is the 3rd book in the Culper Ring Series. It is a book about deceit, criminal activity, politics, desire for power. It is a difficult book to plow through because of the devastating lives that the lead characters live and not knowing if there is anyone that can be trusted. Four stars were given in this review. ( )

OK. 3 stars for getting me to hang on until the end. But nothing more than that. This is that book or television episode that is supposed to wrap everything up. The author assumes you've read and invested in the first two books. He assumes you already know and care about these people. I did. Yet I still felt at sea. Not the good kind, like I-don't-know-what-is-happening-but-I-know-it-will-turn-out-amazing. More like what-are-you-doing-with-all-this-please-tell-me-an-amazing-story-instead. And then it was finally over. I'm glad Mr. Meltzer got that all out of his system. I will have a look at the next book in the series. ( )

Beecher White works at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. But he is also a member of the Culper Ring, a 200-year old secret society founded by George Washington and charged with protecting the Presidency. Now a buried arm is found at the White House by the President's wife and it seems that President Wallace, never a friend of the Culper Ring or Beecher need help find out who the arm belongs to and who put it there?

Beecher and President Orson Wallace isn't on any good terms since Beecher knows of an incident in Wallace past that could destroy Wallace presidency so them “working” together isn't something that runs smoothly. But Beecher is after information of what happened to his father that died almost 30 years ago and now it seems that the man behind placing the arm could be the one that has the knowledge. But it seems that the Knight of the Golden Circle, a group that supposedly John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald had belonged to is after Beecher and the Culper Ring.

This is the first book I have read by Brad Meltzer and since this is the third book in the Culper Ring series is there a lot of history between the characters, but I never had any problems getting into the story or anything. The book is written in a way that makes it easy to read, just like I did, the third book in the series without having to read the previous books and I liked it so much that I want to read the previous two books in the series.

I love reading books with secret societies and this one I liked very much. I was a bit surprised at the ending and also a bit saddened because of my favorite characters didn't survive, but it also showed the true color of a very powerful man.

I received this copy from the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review! Thank you! ( )