The recent presidential election of the United States got me interested in this book. The First Family Detail is a mix of anecdotes about the Presidential families and their relationships with their protective details, and operational Secret Service specifics. The operational details of how the Secret Service does their job made me wonder how Kessler was able to divulge them so publicly. Isn't that dangerous?

The book contains salacious details about a certain president's alleged mistress, a cringe-worthy mental image of someone swimming naked, and so much gossip. While I did learn about the behind-the-scenes secret service and upper-level management specifics, the book mostly feels like reading a tabloid.

If you’re interested in how the Secret Service works and behind the scenes stories about high ranking politicians, then I do recommend you read this book. ( )

The excessive degree of imperial trappings the Secret Service provides to the Presidency, as well as the excessive cost and failure to protect against many threats, is something I’ve been interested in for a while. This book had some reasonable information about corner cutting and a defective management culture at the agency (particularly after it joined DHS), but the author is hyper partisan and it negatively colored most of the information about protectees and their behavior. “TMZ at the White House” is a fairly accurate description. Still interesting if you are interested in the USSS but overall not a great book. ( )

Ever buy a clearance book for $2 and still think you paid too much? Yeah, here it is.

It is rare to read a book so disorganized and so offensive. I actually couldn't believe that he was a journalist, as I would have expected better writing from a professional. This only exacerbated my initial skepticism with the content - I found it hard to believe that Secret Service agents would reveal this information because it harms them in the long run: if protected are afraid that their protectors will reveal information, they will try to ditch their protection for anything sensitive.

Now, I just think Kessler is a jerk. First off, all the other reviewers are right: this is an incredibly biased and political book (pro-Republican, anti-Democratic; and BTW Democrats don't hate military or law enforcement because they love public servants. The rest is individual). Second, he actually had great information and sources for the problem with their corporate culture, but he couldn't sell that so he wrote a book that is just trash. Third, his entire premise that we should be entitled to every aspect of certain people is disgusting, especially once they leave service.

I'm not saying I didn't enjoy it at all. I discussed his points with friends. I revelled in those finer points, like the use of pins as identification. However, the thing made me nauseous and want a shower. ( )

Ever buy a clearance book for $2 and still think you paid too much? Yeah, here it is.

It is rare to read a book so disorganized and so offensive. I actually couldn't believe that he was a journalist, as I would have expected better writing from a professional. This only exacerbated my initial skepticism with the content - I found it hard to believe that Secret Service agents would reveal this information because it harms them in the long run: if protected are afraid that their protectors will reveal information, they will try to ditch their protection for anything sensitive.

Now, I just think Kessler is a jerk. First off, all the other reviewers are right: this is an incredibly biased and political book (pro-Republican, anti-Democratic; and BTW Democrats don't hate military or law enforcement because they love public servants. The rest is individual). Second, he actually had great information and sources for the problem with their corporate culture, but he couldn't sell that so he wrote a book that is just trash. Third, his entire premise that we should be entitled to every aspect of certain people is disgusting, especially once they leave service.

I'm not saying I didn't enjoy it at all. I discussed his points with friends. I revelled in those finer points, like the use of pins as identification. However, the thing made me nauseous and want a shower. ( )

AKA: We hate Hillary (and almost every democrat that was ever in the White House) (and we're not afraid to repeat it - over and over again) . The GOP slant was so evident, it was a little ridiculous. Unfortunately that, and the kvetching (poor us, we had to work Christmas and spend time away from our families) detracted from some interesting facts about the inner workings of the Secret Service. ( )