Another hit by this author! I appreciate how FitzSimmoms developed Agatha's character. She is a woman who did anything to meet her goals in the past, and she is trying to be a better person. This book will be enjoyable to those who like a little politics with their crime drama.

Hits the ground running—check.
Tight, flowing, readable prose—check.
A super-engaging, original-feeling, lead character that you are very willing to invest in—check.
Great use of close third-person POV, bringing you very close to the main characters—check.
A believable and organic-feeling inciting event to get the plot rolling—check.
Very well-paced, page-turning, character-driven arcs dropped organically into the main plot—check.

Ah, now I know why I finished this in three days, in just two main sittings! I used to read more thrillers than I do now, the reason being that when you binge on one kind of book, it becomes too easy to compare them all to the very best you’ve read. Do not look for too many twists in this tale, and don’t expect jaw-dropping revelations. What you can expect are all those elements I consider the essential things on my checklist above in order to create a very engaging and enjoyable mystery-thriller. And if you enjoy a female protagonist of a certain age (the *excellently* written Agatha is 52 in the main part of the story), then I urge you to read Slate.

I enjoyed this a lot and am very much hoping for a possible sequel. It’s a standalone story with a resolution, but Agatha is most certainly an interesting enough and sympathetic character to hang a whole series on. Until then, I’ll be checking out Matthew FitzSimmons’s other publications.

Thank you to the author and publisher and to NetGalley for the chance to read this really fun story.

Best book I’ve read this year. As a long-time Washingtonian, the author gets Washington exactly right with his description of Eastern Market, and many of my old haunts like Tracks and the 9:30 club. This thriller is the first of what I hope is a new series. Protagonist Agatha Cardiff is living a quiet life after a handling what could have been a scandal for a congressman. She gets involved in helping her neighbor who’s part of a new scandal twenty years after we first meet Agatha. Lots of thrills, smart dialogue, a murder or two make this a must read from one of my favorite authors!

The Slate by new to me author M. FitzSimmons, published by Thomas & Mercer, is a thrilling, suspenseful, unputdownable pageturner.
Blurb: In another life, Agatha Cardiff was Congressman Paul Paxton’s chief of staff, a fixer who made all his problems disappear. At Paxton’s behest, she covered up a shocking scandal that would have ruined a powerful senator’s career. It was one moral compromise too far and Agatha vowed, Never again.
After twenty years in exile, Agatha’s life in the margins of Washington, DC, is about to become much more difficult. The rules have changed in her absence—that senator is now president, and Paxton, number three in the House, expects a nomination to the Supreme Court.
At the same time, Agatha’s quiet life on Capitol Hill shatters when her tenant vanishes. She is drawn back into a mire of corruption, blackmail, and deception precisely when she can least afford it. Any hope of redemption won’t come easy, because the true cost of Agatha’s deeds is finally coming to light, and it is not certain who will pay.

I've really enjoyed Matthew FitzSimmon's "Gibson Vaughn" series so I was very excited to receive an advance copy of his new standalone, "The Slate".

Once again, the writing is tight and engaging and spins a story of conspiracy and lies that is almost too outrageous to be true.

Agatha Cross was at the top of her game two decades ago as a young chief of staff to a rising Congressman, Paul Paxton. But when she was ordered to do some extracurriculars to cover up a potential scandal for another Congressman she decided enough was enough and she left the game entirely.

Now that Congressman is President of the United States and her former boss is his shocking nominee for an open Supreme Court seat. Agatha thinks she knows exactly how that nomination was secured and she wants absolutely nothing to do with it -- until her young and ambitious tenant stumbles into a situation she needs help getting out of and pulls Agatha right back into the game and into the media spotlight.

This story spanning twenty years is told from perspectives of Agatha, a WH political op, and a rising young journalist who are all on a collision course -- they just don't know it yet.

Filled with lots of shady men in power but told through the lens of the people who have the ability to take them down I loved the characters we got so much -- especially Agatha. Her growth and acknowledgement of her past mistakes as she re-entered the fray made the whole thing SO good. The actions of the power players were never surprising but always disappointing -- I only wish we had gotten a little bit more at the end!