I was pretty disappointed in this book. I picked it up a year or so ago during a free day and then forgot all about it...

I loved the premise and it was super timely even though it's more than five years old. Unfortunately, I really disliked the way every law enforcement officer - regardless of agency or rank - except for Reeder came off like a moron. He was the only one who could catch anything and to make it worse, the other officers and agents would actively doubt him. That alone ruined the book for me. It was just too much.

There was one other issue that I can't seem to reconcile but it would be a spoiler so I won't mention it.
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Joseph Reeder was a Secret Service Agent when he took a bullet for President Gregory Bennett. He lasted a month on a desk job until he decided to retire on disability and lead his own command. As CEO of ABC Security headquartered in Georgetown Reeder’s agency has a high profile with law enforcement. It is no surprise when DC Homicide Detective Carl Bishop calls and asks Reeder for a favor as ABC handles the security for Verdict Chophouse. It is the same restaurant where ultraconservative Associate Justice Henry Venter was shot and killed during a robbery the prior evening. Beyond Reeder’s Secret Service training and experience he is an expert in the field of kinesics and has a different opinion about the shooting. It is essential that a multi-agency law enforcement investigation team determine the motive and arrest those responsible. It is an isolated event, isn’t it?

I was riveted from the 1st sentence! It quickly became eerie on page 2 to read the overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision had already occurred as I knew this was a 3-book series. Even then I had to immediately stop and check the copyright date that revealed ©2014. Adrenaline-pumping, compelling reading that in the polarized political arena of the current day is taut and relevant. The selection of the epigraphs, identification, and format style was thoughtful and meaningful not only to the theme of the story but helped to set the mood including the connection to where Reeder takes walks.

I didn’t recognize the author’s name until I began reading About the Author and realized his work has previously captured my attention. Regardless of the format, Collins selects he is a master storyteller. ( )

It is a story about ex-Secret Service agent Reeder who is paired with an FBI Agent Rogers and tasked with solving the most shocking series of murders ever to hit our nation's capital. Someone is killing off Supreme Court Justices and, in particular, conservative Supreme Court justices.

There are nine justices on the Supreme Court. Each is appointed by the current President with the advice and consent of the Senate when a vacancy develops through death or retirement. Article III judges such as Supreme Court Justices serve for a term of life. This means that they often outlast the presidents who appoint them and, if they are young enough when appointed, can serve for twenty or thirty years. Supreme Court justices can leave a lasting impact on the law and on society by virtue of how long they serve and the momentous issues they deal with. Presidents often try to anticipate how their Supreme Court nominees will vote, but that isn't always easy to predict as Eisenhower found with Justice Warren.

Former Secret Service Agent Joseph Reeder is a member of an "exclusive club" -- those that took a bullet for a president. He is brought into the case by an old colleague because of his special expertise in reading facial expressions and body language.

It is a well-written, fast moving thriller that is easy to read. It is not dense in the way some thrillers are packed, but makes for great, light entertainment. The protagonist is believable. The story flows well.

It feels a bit less dark and foreboding that other works by Collins. It also seems as if it is geared to more of a mainstream audience than say the Quarry series as, despite the murders, there isn't as much brutal violence or overt sexuality in this book. Nevertheless, It is certainly an action-packed story. The opening chapter has blood and brain matter splattered all over an exit and a pink mist swirling around.

I am not sure if it touched on too recent history as compared to Heller, for instance, exploring the JFK assassination, but I didn't like the fact that one of the Justices was too closely linked to a real person.

Overall, this book doesn't blow your mind as Ask Not or Bye Bye Baby does, but it is good old-fashioned entertainment. Enjoy.

The setting for this thriller is a polarized world of left and right politics in Washington. As such, the book is neither pro-left nor pro-right so much as it might be considered a warning about radicalism on either side of the political spectrum.
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Who is killing U.S. Supreme Court justices? And are they trying to change the balance on the Court by killing conservative justices appointed by a president who stacked the Court to overturn Roe v Wade and to increase police powers, taking huge chunks out of people’s individual freedoms?

Max Allan Collins, author of more than 100 books, joins with “collaborator” Matthew Clemens (who is acknowledged as preparing the story treatment) to create yet another tightly woven thriller that will keep you engaged to the very last chapter.

Supreme Court Justice Venter is shot and killed in what appears to be a botched restaurant robbery. DC homicide detective Carl Bishop asks retired Secret Service agent Joseph Reeder to look at a copy of the surveillance tape from the restaurant. Reeder, who is part of the exclusive club of men who took a bullet for the President, left government service because he couldn’t stand the politics of the man he was willing to die for. He now owns a private security firm. Known as “Peep” for his uncanny ability to read body language, Reeder views the film frame by frame, sees how the shooter is positioned and that the other robber is not surprised by the shooting. The killing was not just a robbery; it was an assassination.

A couple days later another Supreme Court justice is killed at his home. Reeder again quickly sees clues that suggest the two killings are part of a larger plot. The White House wants the plot to be foreign terrorism. Reeder finds himself again in conflict with the White House as he begins to believe the conspiracy is not so sinister. Instead, the shootings may be an attempt to let the ultra-liberal sitting President pack the court with like-minded justices. Because Supreme Court justices have a life-long appointment, the killings could swing the Court to a liberal bias for decades to come.

How do the killers know what Reeder is going to do, almost before he knows himself? Is it an inside job? If so, how deep ‘inside’ does the conspiracy go? Can Reeder solve the crimes – and prevent another killing – before he and his only daughter become victims as well?

Collins has created another great thriller that will keep you turning pages until well past bedtime. The characters, including FBI agent Patti Rogers with whom Reeder is paired, are well-developed and very believable. The premise is downright scary. Would it really be this easy to change the balance of the U.S. Supreme Court?

Note: This review is based on a pre-release edition from NetGalley.com. ( )

Supreme Justice by Max Allan Collins (like the last name), is a political thriller, cover-up for murder, with fast paced action. An ex-Secret Service agent Reeder is paired with FBI Agent Rogers to solve a shocking series of murders ever to hit our nation's capital. Someone is killing off conservative Supreme Court Justices.

Set a decade in the future, two masked gunmen invade the Verdict Chophouse, a Washington, D.C., restaurant, where Supreme Court Associate Justice Henry Venter, who led the successful effort to overturn Roe v. Wade under President Gregory Watson Bennett (Obama’s Republican successor), and other top government officials are eating unguarded.

One of the robbers shoots Venter, after the judge makes a sudden move. When former Secret Service agent Joseph Reeder, (nicknamed "Peep" for his unparalleled skills at reading body language) who took a bullet for Bennett, views a video of the murder, he concludes that Venter was the target all along in what was meant to look like a robbery gone wrong.

Reeder, now owns a private security company, is called in to help and joins a task force investigating the crime. FBI agent Patti Rogers finds herself paired with the unpopular former agent on a task force investigating the killing of Supreme Court Justice Henry Venter.

Reeder's murder theory is dismissed until another incident occurs, and now Reeder wonders if someone is targeting conservative justices, trying to change the direction of the Supreme Court after they have overturned Roe v Wade and made abortion illegal.

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Dan John Miller, with a pleasant performance voice-my first book by Collins. More in the category of light and engaging, not big on character development; and without the wow page-turner suspense factor.
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