It was an interesting read. It wasn't my favorite but it wasn't a bad book, just maybe not for me and I wouldn't fault the author because I couldn't connect with the book.

I had high hopes for this but unfortunately I just couldn't get into it like I would've liked in terms of enjoyment level or interest.

For me, this novel was a struggle, even a battle. I wanted to finish it just to see where the author would go with it, but that meant some of the most monstrously boring pages that I have read since high school. The author seems to want to write a political thriller, but he keeps interrupting it with long lessons in ancient history as well as modern US history. His wonder boy president seems only president for the white people, although he may have dated a black woman when younger. There seem to be no blacks in the novel, and other minorities are also absent, except when this forward thinking president agrees that gays should not be allowed to marry the person they love.
Ultimately, in my opinion, the book is huge failure, a colossal waste of effort If the last line had happened at the beginning things would have much better.
Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC.

A new candidate that turns politics as usual on it's ear. That premise attracted me. I can not say that The 45th was a bad read, I was entertained and actually informed. I think the storyline became lost at times in the side journeys where characters espoused the theories of famous philosophers and touted the glory of past politicians and orators. As I stated, the premise drew me in, I thought the set up to the story was great. I thought the overall pacing was off. I might suggest this book as a discussion selection for those interested in political commentary or theory. As a political thriller it was a bit too predictable and meandering.
I received my copy through NetGalley under no obligation.

When I read this book's blurb, I was immediately fascinated by it and the promise it held. Sadly, it couldn't live up to it, which is mostly due to the portrayal of the main character, whose holier-than-thou appearance started to get on my nerves about a third into the novel.

It started out well enough, lounging into an alternative (recent) history starting some time before the 2016 US presidential election. Louis Matson, an old political veteran, is fed up with the current state of politics, especially with those of the Republican party. Neither of their two top candidates - Ted Cruz and Donald Trump, who both appear for some short, most unflattering cameos - is fit to be president, so Matson more or less pulls a rabbit out of his hat: Enter Julian Drake, former political superstar on the rise to true greatness until private circumstances made him leave the political circus. Now, having lived the last twelve years as some kind of reclusive eremite, he's back to save everybody: the Republican party, the people of the United States and the way people think in general.

Sounds like a lot, and indeed, it is. Drake's rise from nowhere to the top of the free world happens almost automatically, neither the accompying circumstances (what happens to his family, the ones he was so eager to protect all these years ago - they changed his whole life, yet they don't even make an appearance as characters) nor the reactions after the elections and his first months in office are explored any futher than within the closest boundaries of his immediate friends & foes (we get no reaction from the outside world, from the people, let alone other states).

Instead, everything here is focused on Julian Drake and that became too much very fast, due to the fact that with Julian, everything is over the top. He's the cleverest, smartest, most intelligent, well read and what not person you can think of; a person so good and pure and full of good intentions, his halo must weight a ton. And he's always been that way. Once a journalist - one of the two female characters here who get more than one line of dialogue and a hint of a backstory - tries to uncover Julian's history, she meets up with old teachers and coaches from his high school and university years, who all sing the same song: Julian was always special, and actually, he was the one teaching them, even back then. This glorification of the holyness of Julian Drake makes up about a third of the novel, another third is Julian and his (male) sparring partner of choice philosophing on and on about the teachings of Plato, Aristotle, Al-Farabi, Averroes, Nietzsche and what other important men such as Lincoln, Churchill and Kennedy made of those. Which could be super interesting, but not for pages and pages in such a book marketed as (political) thriller.

I know this is mainly my frustration speaking here, but this novel could've been so much more to my liking. I mean, I can totally see what Buffa tried to do here, the message he was trying to drive home. He touches a lot of good, valid points, be it the critique of the educational system, the drifting apart of societies due to financial unjustice, the general concentration of personal wealth as the only true means of succes and what not. Those are good, interesting points to ponder on, as are some of the historical ties and philosophocal ideas he presents. I also was very interested in his critiqual view of the western (especially US) involvement in the Middle East.

However, though many themes presented here resonated with me, the feeling of all of this, especially the character of Julian Drake, was way, way too much for me. I couldn't get over my constant annoyance with Drake, and eventually, the ending (which was coming from a mile away) only added to that. Some of Julian's political views added to my dislike of him, plus, this book had a lot of typos which also added to my level of annoyance (I know this is an ARC and I hope they'll get fixed for the first edition)

Sorry, but this was, for me, a rather frustrating and disappointing read. Barely two stars - an "okay" rating - for an intriguing idea and some interesting ideas.

First and foremost, a large thank you to NetGalley, D.W. Buffa, and Polis Books for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

At a time when presidential politics suffers an indelible stain comes a book by D.W. Buffa that will shake the core of American political leadership. In the midst of a divisive campaign for the Republicans to choose their next presidential candidate comes a dramatic turn of events that few could have predicted. Majority Leader of the Senate, Louis Matson, leads the Michigan delegation to the Republican National Convention with the power to serve as kingmaker. When Matson is chosen to chair the convention and offer its keynote address, both candidates—Trump and Cruz, no less—seek to pander to him, in hopes that he will offer them the needed delegates to win. Matson is unsure what he ought to do, but knows that it is time to make a big splash with his speech. Knowing his limits, Matson turns to a long-time friend and current political recluse, Julian Drake. A visit to Drake’s California home leads to long-winded and deep political discussions with Matson, helping to shape what will be the speech of a lifetime. When Matson returns with the speech Drake penned for him, he refuses to let anyone see it ahead of its delivery, knowing that it has the ability to blow the field wide open. On speech night, a set of events begin that sees the speech delivered and minds opened. The content of this speech not only puts everything Republicans have held in jeopardy, but also seeks to reexamine how politicians interact with the electorate and Americans on a larger scale. Drake leaves the convention a new man with a mission, leaving traditional politics behind him. With the role of 45th President of the United States on the line, it is anyone’s game, though the rules have changed dramatically. A thought-provoking novel for any who have an understanding of the US political system and its hypocritical nature, Buffa leaves the writer with much to process. Recommended for those who wish to read and think outside the box with a political thriller of sorts that is as diametrically opposed to the current Administration.

Political thrillers tend to focus on the machine and how it is manipulated in order to churn out the most conniving and ruthless winner. Buffa seeks to suspend this norm as he posits what might happen if someone had the knowledge and ability to buck the trend and offer some insightful thoughts on the US political system. Pushing views long held in philosophy and in ages past, Buffa challenges much of what the reader understands of the current political system and what it chooses to label as important. With much of the book’s focus on Julian Drake and his return from obscurity, the reader is able to learn a little of what drove the man to disappear in the middle of a congressional campaign and how he used a decade out of the limelight to develop thoughts and skills that many would say are from a bygone era. With a determination to speak the truth rather than spin, Drake comes across as somewhat idealistic, perhaps what Buffa prefers at a time when many are jaded. His desire to look to the past to shape a future for America is likely the most refreshing aspect of the novel, though it may be lost in the need for mudslinging. There are others who make their mark in the novel—thankfully, Trump and Cruz make only brief cameos—and help to push this alternative mentality forward throughout. Buffa uses his cast as vessels to show all that is wrong and could be changed with the system at a time when it seems the rule of law is but a phrase sewn on a throw pillow. The story was surely not what I expected, particular with the title and early mention of the GOP’s two Neanderthals from 2016, but shaped up into something that resonates with me as I look forward to 2020 and all that is to come. Refreshing and quite controversial at the same time, Buffa delivers something that will have readers talking well past the book’s publication.

Kudos, Mr. Buffa, for keeping me thinking throughout and wanting to get my hands on more of your work. Well done, indeed!

D.W. Buffa"s new book, The 45th, is one of the most interesting books I have read in a long time.. Its a book about politics and where are country should go next. The two parties are trying to nominate a new candidate but are undecided whom to choose. The Majority whip is scheduled to give a speech but before he does he asks an old colleague to write one for him. He is ready to address Congress when he collapses and he turns to the speech's to author to replace him.. Julian Drake wrote the speech expressing all his ideas which he delivered so forcefully. The politicians are tricked into choosing Julian who is a brilliant unknown that most of them are meeting for the for first time. Most of them had never ever heard of Julian Drake who had left government many years ago to take care of his niece and nephew whose parents had been murdered.Julian becomes president and does everything he can to change the government and move his country into a stronger position. He is met with resistance from those in his own party who are afraid of his changes. At the books ending everything is still up in the air.

The Democrats put up a candidate no one likes or trusts. The Republicans can’t get out of their own way. And the American people don’t really matter to either party. When a relative unknown mesmerizes the delegates at the national convention with a speech for the ages, the story is off and running. This novel does much more than entertain. It forces the reader to think and react to lessons in history and philosophy from Ancient Greece and Rome, Renaissance Europe, The UK, and the founding fathers of America. The book demands a response as the new president raises issues that force us to examine our values.

Through manipulation by his former mentor, a brilliant former Republican Congressman who had withdrawn suddenly from public life 12 years previously, is thrust into the US Presidency. Although the story line is simple (but with lots of big gaps) and there are the usual twists and turns of a political thriller, this book is much more, or less, than a story. Filled with long quotes from ancient Western political philosophers, as well as interpretive analyses and admiring comments from the new President about those as well as about his heroes Lincoln, Churchill, and Kennedy, the book focuses on the meaning of conservatism and the President’s attempts to return the country to its philosophical roots. In many ways this book is infuriating. Its dense philosophical passages dominate the book, and likely will be skimmed by most readers who stick with it. Those who read it carefully will be rewarded intellectually. Most will not agree with all or even most of what is presented but it will spur them to do their own readings of the works and to consider the applicability of their themes to our contemporary divided society. Although it was appropriate to choose mostly Western political philosophers (two Islamic philosophers are presented briefly), I found myself wondering about the perspectives of philosophers from other traditions. In sum, The 45th is a thin story with a fascinating premise and deep philosophical roots. It’s doubtful that many readers will have the inclination to stick with it.