by Michael O’Connor
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was not assassinated on the South Portico of the White House in 1941.
That is a historical fact and this is not a mystery.
But, it can be read as a mystery if you go along with William Martin and willingly suspend your disbelief. What if? What if, indeed? That is Martin’s premise to a masterful tale of suspense in December ’41!
He weaves the story together from disparate elements: a cabal of Nazis in LA who race across America on the legendary Super Chief to realize the dream of “der Tag,” THE day when they strike a deadly blow on the Reich’s number one enemy: FDR. The body count mounts as our intrepid FBI fights the Nazis right here in America. The good guys vs. the bad guys!
The story is enriched by its setting in LA — Hollywood references drawn with much affection and self-assurance by Martin — from Leslie Howard of Gone With the Wind fame, to the Battling Bogarts, to the development of the script of Hollywood’s unintended and accidental cinematic masterpiece: Casablanca. If you are a Connelly fan, you will be delighted by his use of the Bradbury Building and Musso and Franks. And as you read Martin’s story you cannot get the number one hit on the charts in December ’41, “Chattanooga Choo-Choo,” out of your mind.
Martin sets his finale in America’s most beautiful city and the world’s most beautiful capital city: Washington, D.C. He gets it all right: the new Greyhound terminal really was on New York Avenue, the appealing “feel” of Georgetown, as well as famous landmarks such as the Hay-Adams and the Willard.
It is December 1941–one of the bleakest months in our country’s history. So FDR wants to bring cheer and normality to the country by lighting the Christmas tree on the White House grounds, an event well-advertised that draws the Nazi conspirators. Will Christmas Eve of ’41 become “der Tag”? Will the surprise appearance of Winston Churchill provide the Nazis with a knock-out blow?
I recommend suspending your disbelief to savor this tale of good vs. evil, to race across the country on board the Super Chief, to feel your blood run cold at the horror of FDR and Churchill in the cross-hairs of a Nazi rifle, all the while humming “Chattanooga Choo-Choo!”
A List of all William Martin’s Books
Generally ~ I like William Martin’s books and by your review it sounds like a great book to read for December ~ fascinating characters, for sure, and an intriguing plot/s ~ Thanks, ~ Carol