The Patriot Threat

Cotton Malone is back in Steve Berry's latest, The Patriot Threat (#486).  This time he's been asked by his former boss at the Magellan Billet, Stephanie Nelle, to observe the transfer of $20 million from a vault in Venice to a courier due to deliver the money to North Korea.  Hanging from the struts of a helicopter as it tries to ditch him over the waters of Venice isn't exactly what Cotton had in mind when he signed on for the assignment.  It also turns out that the North Koreans are after documents copied and stolen from the U.S. Treasury Department and one original document stolen from their files that could ultimately bring down the U.S. Government.  The stakes are impossibly high in a game set in motion by Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his nemesis, Andrew Mellon back in 1936 which could destroy the world economy.

There's lots of action in The Patriot Threat, but I found the "What ifs?" posed by Steve Berry in this book even more interesting.  What if the Sixteenth Amendment (which imposes the federal income tax) wasn't legal?  What if a debt the United States owed for so long the interest would cripple and bankrupt the country was proved to be legitimate and repayment was demanded by the heirs?  What if our enemies could bring about either situation, or better, could prove both?  Instant re-balancing of power on a global scale... 

Lots of the most fascinating tidbits of American history in this one about unsung American heroes, the Constitution and our currency.  I guarantee it will have you raiding your wallet for $1 and $20 bills to check on details you've probably never noticed on the money you carry around with you every day.  It's always a good day when what you read entertains and educates you!