Lessons in power by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

A gripping political thriller, Lessons in power follows The ruling class, the first in The Fixer series. Tess Kendrick is again helping students make problems disappear; this time she is determined to see her classmate Emilia win her campaign for student council, even though her friend Henry is also running. Power is important for the students at Hardwicke School, all  part of Washington’s political elite, and Tess faces some high stakes while running the campaign. Then she becomes embroiled in a game with even higher stakes, when there is an assassination attempt on the President. A series of dangerous events follow, with Tess trying to keep her classmates safe while unravelling events of national importance.

Lessons in Power is a suspenseful thriller that has many surprising twists and turns. Shocking betrayals, murder and unanticipated feats of courage had me gasping for breath with Barnes upping the thrills as the story progresses. Tess, and her friends Vivvie, Asher, Henry and Emilia find themselves in a believable. terrifying situation at school, and the reader doesn’t know if Tess will survive. Who can she trust? What is really going on?

Although first published in 2016 as The Long Game, Lessons in power is scary in how relevant the political machinations and power plays it features seems to be today. A must read for anyone interested in political thrillers or an exhilarating story.

Themes: Thriller, Murder, Politics, Washington D.C..

Pat Pledger