the Deputy AG a year earlier. Many of the assistants and FBI agents she works with conveniently appeared in previous books in the series (which I have not read).

Nora’s first major case involves a rabble-rousing right-wing talk show and podcast host named Samuel Buchanan, who, just as conveniently, hosts his broadcasts from his plush New York City penthouse apartment, landing him in Nora’s jurisdiction. Buchanan isn’t just interested in promoting the standard right-wing agenda. Instead, he sometimes singles out relatively obscure individuals living in different parts of the country whom he identifies as “tyrants” out to destroy America. Soon after, some of Buchanan’s listeners attack those individuals (who are mostly low-level organizers and activists), resulting in death or severe injury.

Buchanan’s actions raise an interesting legal question. To what extent can someone who advocates taking unspecified “action” against named individuals be held criminally liable for any assaults that occur against those people? However, it’s the type of question that’s usually resolved in a Supreme Court opinion following extensive briefs and legal arguments. Instead, Comey resolves the issue in a jury trial. That presents additional difficulties for lay readers whose “knowledge” of such trials results from watching years of TV series and movies or reading John Grisham thrillers.

I won’t delve into the finer points of criminal and constitutional law that this case presents. However, Comey does so through the awkward device of having his characters serve as sounding boards for repeated information dumps. I doubt real-life strategy sessions among FBI agents and prosecuting attorneys have dialogue that sounds like content cut and pasted from a first-year law school textbook. I’ve also never heard various federal judges repeatedly talk in the same manner to the lawyers during a trial and explain procedural peculiarities to the world at large.

The most significant legal challenge the prosecutors in FDR Drive face is the admissibility of a damaging recording made by Buchanan’s cellmate at Riker’s Island, where he awaited trial. In another highly convenient coincidence, the cellmate is a career criminal who has turned informant many times in his career in exchange for leniency. The convolutions the prosecutors go through at trial to have the recording admitted resemble the gyrations of a novice tightrope walker. Comey does a decent, albeit time-consuming, job of explaining the exact legal issues involved, but the proceedings resemble federal motion practice—a necessary but boring aspect of trial work. I also found the circumstances of the recording highly incredible and doubt any court would actually admit it in the manner that occurs here.

After Buchanan’s trial concludes, FDR Drive shifts its focus from a discussion of legal fine points to a conventional thriller. Nora suspects there are sinister forces beyond Buchanan at work. The book becomes much more interesting at this point, leading to the suicide bombing depicted in the first few pages. Comey reveals some details of modern FBI practice many readers will find illuminating. Unfortunately, after the bombing, the book muddles to a close as Nora and her team attempt a completely incredible (and questionably legal) scheme to bring down those behind the bombing.

Many characters in FDR Drive appeared in earlier novels in this series, so it’s possible the author may have spent more time developing their characters. This book features several scenes involving Nora’s family, which includes her politically astute middle school daughter and her mother, who is dating her chief investigator. I never found these interactions or the characters very realistic. Instead, the supporting characters existed to expound and exemplify the plot points Comey makes in the book.

I enjoy political thrillers made from a specific point of view of the political spectrum, as long as they’re entertaining. Tom Clancy’s political views often showed up in the Jack Ryan novels, but readers accepted them as part of the storyline. James Comey attempts the same thing here, and when he stays close to the traditional political thriller storyline, FDR Drive is entertaining. However, he often gets bogged down in legal details and relies too heavily on overly convenient coincidences to keep the story moving forward. Ultimately, first-year law students may enjoy this book more than genre fans. Others will find better entertainment value in binge watching a few hours of Dick Wolf TV shows.

NOTE: The publisher graciously provided me with a copy of this book through NetGalley. However, the decision to review the book and the contents of this review are entirely my own.