Book Review: True Blue by David Baldacci (audiobook)

True Blue by David Baldacci (read by Ron McLarty)

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Publish Date: October 27, 2009

audiobook, 12 CDs

My Review:
I really liked the characters in this book.  Mace is very determined.  She wants to clear her name and knows that solving a big case could do that and help her to get back to her one true love, police work.  Mace is tough, but she has a soft spot for her sister and that makes her more human and real feeling.  Beth is the D.C. police chief so you know she is tough, but she will do anything for her sister.  Roy is a great character too, I like his crush on Mace that comes through in the book.  He is determined also, to keep Mace safe and to bring the bad guys to justice.  I have a feeling we will be seeing more of these characters in the future and I look forward to it.  All three of them really made the book for me.

As far as plot, in this one it was a little hit-or-miss for me.  There was a broad conspiracy, but I felt like it got a little muddled and confusing.  I lost track of which characters were which from time-to-time in the bad guys and the not-so-bad guys.  This may have been because I was listening to it.  It may have been easier to keep up with if I was actually read it.  But the truth is I have listened to more David Baldacci books than I have actually read and I haven't had this problem before.

So it's a good book, not great, it kept me interested but a little confused.  I felt the characters made up for a lot that was lacking in the plot and I wanted to know more about them, that is what kept me listening.  The reader was pretty good.  He did a good job with distinguishing the voices most of the time.  He's not Scott Brick (he's read a lot of Baldacci's books), but he is a good reader and I would listen to any books he reads in the future without a second thought.

If you like Baldacci or thrillers in general - give this one a try - it's not a stellar book, but it's definitely worth the time it takes to read it.  Hopefully there will be more books involving Mace, Beth and Roy in the future.

My Rating:  3.5/5.0

About the Book:
Mason "Mace" Perry was a firebrand cop on the D.C. police force until she was kidnapped and framed for a crime. She lost everything-her badge, her career, her freedom-and spent two years in prison. Now she's back on the outside and focused on one mission: to be a cop once more. Her only shot to be a true blue again is to solve a major case on her own, and prove she has the right to wear the uniform. But even with her police chief sister on her side, she has to work in the shadows: A vindictive U.S. attorney is looking for any reason to send Mace back behind bars. Then Roy Kingman enters her life.

Roy is a young lawyer who aided the poor until he took a high-paying job at a law firm in Washington. Mace and Roy meet after he discovers the dead body of a female partner at the firm. As they investigate the death, they start uncovering surprising secrets from both the private and public world of the nation's capital.
Soon, what began as a fairly routine homicide takes a terrifying and unexpected turn-into something complex, diabolical, and possibly lethal.

About the Author:
David Baldacci was born in Virginia, in 1960, where he currently resides. He received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Virginia Commonwealth University and a law degree from the University of Virginia. Mr. Baldacci practiced law for nine years in Washington, D.C., as both a trial and corporate attorney.

David Baldacci has published sixteen novels: Absolute Power, Total Control, The Winner, The Simple Truth, Saving Faith, Wish You Well, Last Man Standing, The Christmas Train, Split Second, Hour Game, The Camel Club, The Collectors, Simple Genius, and Stone Cold; and in his young adult series, Freddy and the French Fries: Fries Alive! and Freddy and the French Fries: The Adventures of Silas Finklebean. He has also published a novella for the Dutch entitled Office Hours, written for Holland's Year 2000 "Month of the Thriller." Baldacci authored a short story, "The Mighty Johns," as part of a mystery anthology published in 2002.  (From Goodreads.com)

FTC Information: I received this audiobook from Hachette for review.  I have Amazon links on my review pages but I do not make any money from these because of NC laws.  I put them solely for people to check out the books on a retail site.