First published 2017
The 1968 presidential election begins with Lyndon Johnson confident he can defeat Republican frontrunner Richard Nixon. Johnson fears only Robert Kennedy, but RFK hesitates to challenge a sitting president from his own party. Eugene McCarthy breaks ranks first, stunning the political establishment with his insurgent campaign. Johnson, humiliated by McCarthy's early success, begins to look vulnerable. RFK finally enters the race, unleashing chaos across the Democratic Party. Two assassinations rock the nation. Bloody riots engulf Chicago during the Democratic Convention. The old Democratic machine lies in ruins, leaving Hubert Humphrey to pick up the pieces. Nixon appears headed for easy victory, having skillfully managed his party's factions and neutralized challengers like George Romney, Nelson Rockefeller, and Ronald Reagan while fending off segregationist George Wallace's third-party threat. But Humphrey begins closing the gap in the final weeks. Facing potential defeat, Nixon executes a devastating political dirty trick that may constitute treason. This act sets the stage for Watergate and decades of political warfare to follow.
Genres: historical-fiction, 20th-century, political-thriller, american-history
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: political-intrigue, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Chicago, United States
Period: 1968
464 pages · Hardcover · Penguin Press