The Perfect Candidate

Peter Stone

Oct 2018 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

“The perfect YA thriller for right now—think John Grisham meets John Green.” —Margaret Stohl, New York Times bestselling author of Beautiful Creatures
“Gripping and twisty, but also filled with heart. A fun must-read.” —Melissa de la Cruz, New York Times bestselling author of Alex and Eliza
“An enthralling plot of power, greed, and murder.” —Kirkus Reviews
“A YA version of the TV show Scandal, and it is just as addictive.” —Publishers Weekly

From debut author Peter Stone comes a heart-stopping, pulse-pounding political thriller that’s perfect for fans of Ally Carter and House of Cards.

When recent high school graduate Cameron Carter lands an internship with Congressman Billy Beck in Washington, DC, he thinks it is his ticket out of small town captivity. What he lacks in connections and Beltway polish he makes up in smarts, and he soon finds a friend and mentor in fellow staffer Ariel Lancaster.

That is, until she winds up dead.

As rumors and accusations about her death fly around Capitol Hill, Cameron’s low profile makes him the perfect candidate for an FBI investigation that he wants no part of. Before he knows it—and with his family’s future at stake—he discovers DC’s darkest secrets as he races to expose a deadly conspiracy.

If it doesn’t get him killed first.

Ratings and reviews

The Perfect Candidate is a murder mystery set against the backdrop of politics of Washington D.C., and has a newcomer to the city, Cameron Carter, as the protagonist. Cameron becomes a congressional intern, following the footsteps of his mother, and is eager to soak in the vibe of a busy city, so different from his small town, and for the chance to make a difference. On his first week there, Alice takes him under her wing; she turns up dead next week, and then he is lured into an investigation for her murder and the conspiracy behind it. Seeking to get justice for her, as well as the carrot dangled in front of him by the agent who recruits him, he starts to help out the investigation. The book has a good plot, and some interesting set of characters, but overall, I would say it doesn’t do justice to both. The writing fails to build the atmosphere of intrigue, mystery and threat that you would expect from a thriller, nor does it sufficiently emphasize the political nature of this particular conspiracy. For the most part, Cameron is not really under any threat, so it doesn’t even have great stakes to begin with; there is perhaps only one part towards the end that really gets your pulse racing with anxiety. The identity of the murderer was predictable, if you follow mystery novel tropes, so it wasn’t entirely a surprise, but I found it weird that they were being sort of redeemed in one letter in the end? And the other secondary characters don’t make much of dent, despite being interesting personalities, because they are tragically underused and only occasionally flit into Cameron’s sphere, and I include his love interest in this. Cameron himself feels like a passive protagonist, and I questioned why him – spoiler, it isn’t until the epilogue that it truly makes sense! Overall, it is an okay story, but could have done with better writing. Received an advance reader copy in exchange for a fair review from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, via Netgalley.

Very well written and engaging. The pages turn themselves as you want to find out what will happen next to Cameron.

About the author

Peter Stone is a lifelong fan of thrillers on the big screen, small screen, and page. Prior to his career in TV and film marketing, he worked in Washington, DC, first as an intern on Capitol Hill and later as a Spanish tutor for a former Speaker of the House. The Perfect Candidate is his debut novel. He lives in Tokyo, Japan, with his wife and two sons.