Second Term

After driving the country far to the political right, a lame-duck U.S. president desperately hangs onto power in Adams’s arresting but over-the-top debut. It’s Jan. 6, 2029, and President Terrence Locke has rallied his MAGA-style supporters to march on Washington, D.C. Chanting “Locke and Load,” their intention is to storm the Capitol, create chaos, and prevent the certification of a nationwide vote that soundly favored Locke’s rival. Enter Cora Walker, a former military commando who has been working for the past few years as the press secretary of house speaker Sarah Vazquez, public enemy number one to Locke’s supporters. Stunned that the FBI and the National Guard are following the president’s orders by refusing to stop the mob from swarming the Capitol, Walker gets her boss to a safe house outside the beltway and then draws on her military training to thwart the mob. Adams effectively harnesses the headlines to create suspense, but he strikes an uneasy balance between realism and pulp, elevating Walker’s abilities to near-superhero heights and saddling her with drippy, uncomplicated patriotism. Though occasionally exciting, the results are muddled. Agent: Doug Grad, Doug Grad Literary. (Oct.)