Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This was a very disappointing and overly long read for me. It tells the story of the USA's descent into a police state following the assassination of the President's wife and unborn child. Firstly, the story could have felt prescient and cautionary if it was better told. Instead, it just struck me as ridiculous, given the speed at which everything happened. Secondly, the dialogue and characterisation were just awful. I know that this is a translated work, which sometimes has the knock-on effect of making the prose seem stilted, however, that doesn't explain the utterly one-dimensional characters with unbelievable motivations and actions. Overall, I just really didn't connect with this story and felt that it was entirely too long.
I received a free copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is the type of book that resonates and links to present scenarios. Definitely recommended to those readers who enjoy reading this type of book and can link it to modern times.

Even if it's well written I think it somehow fails to deliver and it fell flat.
It well written and the characters are fleshed out but it's not my cup of tea.
Many thanks to Quercus Books and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

My thanks to Quercus Books for an eARC via NetGalley of Jussi Adler-Olsen’s ‘The Washington Decree’ in exchange for an honest review.

This stand-alone political thriller was originally published in Denmark in 2006 just before the first of his acclaimed Dept. Q series. The English translation is by Steve Schein.

In his Foreword Alder-Olson reflects upon world history and how on occasion events can effect radical change. Of this novel he writes: “In The Washington Decree, unfortunate circumstances cause the president of the United States to lose his good judgment and, despite his best intentions, unwittingly set a chain of events in motion that rapidly lead to a situation where the DHS, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the military are vulnerable to misuse, and all constitutional guarantees are revoked.”

I feel that this serves as an effective summary as when it comes to thrillers I prefer not to say too much about the plot in order to avoid spoilers.

It is a fairly long novel, my copy was 569 pages, though I found that given the pacing the pages flew by as events unfolded over a relatively short period. There are also quite a large cast of characters that came alive on the page. I feel that it would make a good limited television series.

While I didn’t feel that this was his best work, it is a cautionary tale even more so today given the political events of the past few years than when it was initially published. Perhaps this is why his English language publishers decided to have it translated now.

It concludes with an appendix giving more details of FEMA’s role and powers and a partial list of existing executive orders available to them in case of a national emergency.

A chilling tale of how fragile democracy can be.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.

Relevant and current, with an exciting plot, the Washinton Decree is an excellent political thriller, however, the lengthy explanation and too many details slow down the pace to a point where the plot dragged. The characters, however, are interesting and tridimensional and the premises the one of a bestseller.

The Washington Decree by Jussi Adler-Olsen had an excellent sypnosis however the book did not deliver on its promise and I found it tedious and boring.

I understand that this is an early novel which has only recently been translated into English and I know, from the author's later works, that The Washington Decree is not a true reflection.

Not one for me

Being a devoted fan of Jussi Adler-Olsen's Department Q series, I was zealously expecting reading this book, though unfortunately, just like it happened with The Alphabet House -another early novel by the Danish crime fiction master-, it did not manage to live to my high expectations. It is obvious that Adler-Olsen had not yet perfected his writing style -the original publication date is 2006- and, as a result, the book seems to be a bit long (around 600 pages) and in some parts rather tedious.

The plotline is really absorbing, a first-rate political thriller story which delves into the lives of the powerful White House politicians and we are constantly witnessing the over-ambitiousness, the conspiracies and the stabbings-in-the-back which occur. If this novel could be 200 pages shorter, then perhaps it would be worthy of a really high rating but the verbosity of some parts of the book downsize its quality.

Some reviewers seem to believe that there is a connection between the publication of The Washington Decree in English translation and the presidency of D. Trump in the U.S. I think that the reader should get rid of those notions and read the book as a purely fictional product, even though some parts of the plot are reminiscent of Trump's statements and policies. In my opinion, this is a better book than The Alphabet House which I believe to be the worst, in terms of both quality and entertainment level, novel by Adler-Olsen. Nevertheless, the loyal fans of the Danish writer should add The Washington Decree in their to-read list and the same goes for every reader who enjoys a decent political thriller.