Labeling a book a political thriller can be something of a misnomer these days. The political side of things sometimes seems little more than an afterthought, and when politics rears its head the action often is centered in Washington DC and its environs. Political intrigue extends beyond the Beltway, however. Anyone who does not believe that should ask Kentucky lawyer Rick Robinson. A self-professed political junkie, Robinson is the author of three thrillers featuring Kentucky Congressman Richard Thompson.
The first two books, The Maximum Contribution (which introduced freshman Congressman Thompson) and Sniper Bid (which addressed the steroid scandal in baseball), won numerous awards. Manifest Destiny, the third entry in the series, is due out in May from Headline Books.
Politics is more than window dressing in Robinson's novels. The "game," as he calls it, takes on the role of a character all its own. And like any good character, it has to be believable. To get the details right, Robinson can draw on his own considerable experience as a political insider. He worked on Capitol Hill as Legislative Director/Chief Counsel for Sen. Jim Bunning when the Major League star was a Congressman, he has advised other prominent national and state politicians, and he even ran for Congress himself in the late 1990s. Congress Thompson may work in Washington, but his political roots, and Robinson's, are grounded firmly in Kentucky.
"You have to really know the game to write the kind of books I write," Robinson explained. "You have to understand the details to make the politics believable and to tie in with what's happening in the story. They say 'write what you know.' Well, I know baseball (the subject of Sniper Bid) and I know politics.
"People who read my books get a sense of 'real' politics, how it feels to be the new guy on the Hill, or the feeling you get when you stand in the 'well' in the House chambers for the first time." Those readers will also get a feel for Southern politics in general and the vagaries of Kentucky politics in particular, from the Fancy Farm picnic that for years has served as a soapbox for local officials to the endless stream of women's club speeches that every candidate must endure.
"If you like politics, you'll like my books," Robinson promised. "But if you don't like politics, I kill politicians."
In Manifest Destiny, Robinson weaves a complex plot around a framework of fact. The historical centerpiece of the story is the Mace of the United States House of Representatives, a symbol of legislative power that most people probably do not even know about. Almost four feet tall, the Mace is a staff of silver and ebony with an elaborate, eagle motif headpiece. The Mace is carried into the House chambers by the Sergeant at Arms to start each session, and carried out when the session concludes.
The theft of the Mace and the kidnapping of a member of Thompson's staff while monitoring an election in Romania appear unrelated, until Richardson brings the parallel plots together at the conclusion of Manifest Destiny.
Using Romania as a principal setting for the book was not Robinson's first choice.
"I knew from the start that I wanted to use the symbol of the Mace as a central element of the plot," Robinson said, "but to get the story to work I needed to find a country that was very superstitious. I asked a number of people who had worked in foreign countries for advice, and everyone said 'Romania.' I was surprised by that. I expected them to pick somewhere in Africa. I was planning on putting my characters on a flight to Africa, but the plane just turned around."
Although Manifest Destiny has an "official" release date in May 2010, the book has been available at select stores for a few weeks. Robinson managed a marketing coup when he made a deal with the owner of the Paradies Shops chain that operates in airports across the country.
"We agreed to give Paradies a 30-day exclusive for the book," Robinson said, "if they agreed to stock it in their stores." The plan apparently worked. Robinson found himself doing multiple book signings in airports and a second printing already is planned for Manifest Destiny.
The Paradies deal is an example of a calculated business strategy that Robinson put into place well before his first book had been accepted by a publisher.
"I made a comprehensive marketing plan a major part of my query," Robinson said. "Publishers want to know that an author is willing to work just as hard as they do to sell books, and I laid out exactly how I would do that. A marketing plan won't get a contract, the writing does that. But a sound marketing plan might get your submission to the top of the slush pile.
"An author has to do the work after the book is published. When I tell that to people at writing conferences, some are energized and some are appalled. The ones who are energized are the ones who will find publishers."
Robinson has several books in the works. Writ of Mandamus, which takes place three years after Manifest Destiny, is next in line for Congressman Thompson. Robinson also is collaborating with another author on a stand alone sports thriller that has the Chicago Cubs in the World Series and he is working on a coming-of-age novel, Alligator Alley.
Milton Toby is an author and attorney who writes from his home in Georgetown, Kentucky. His long-standing involvement with Thoroughbred racing and the horse business, his representation of Death Row inmates, and years spent in the Third World combine to produce fiction crammed with unique twists and turns. His short stories have won national awards and he recently completed his first novel. Milton's essay on Lionel Davidson's THE ROSE OF TIBET will appear in the upcoming THRILLERS: 100 MUST READS.
