66 pages 2 hours read

James Patterson

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Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2023

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Prologue 1-Part 1

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Prologue 1 Summary

Content Warning: This section of the guide describes the novel’s treatment of terrorist attacks, which includes the graphic deaths of civilians. The novel also features some racist and sexist language.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Wayne Grissom, sits before the president in the Oval Office where they discuss the deaths of more than 300 Americans in domestic terror attacks. The attacks range from poisoned water to shootings to pipe bombs. The unrelated, home-grown terror attacks are part of a larger, organized terror scheme meant to disrupt the economy and American sense of security.

Prologue 2 Summary

General Grissom explains that what seemed like random fury amid a wasp-like swarm of discontent is coordinated terrorism funded by America’s enemies: “Iran, China, Russia, and some Mexican cartels” (8). Web chatter suggests an attack in DC is imminent. The president makes Grissom the chair of a task force to address the attacks. Grissom suggests that the president temporarily suspend Posse Comitatus, the rule banning the military from participating in civilian law. He further suggests the “[r]estriction of civilian movement, control and oversight of the internet to prevent the spread of misinformation and fake news” and the declaration of martial law (9).

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1st to Die

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1st to Die

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Alex Cross

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Alex Cross

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Ali Cross

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Ali Cross

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Along Came a Spider

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Along Came a Spider

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Ambush

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Ambush

James O. Born, James Patterson

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Eruption

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Eruption

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Four Blind Mice

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Four Blind Mice

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Holmes, Marple & Poe

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Holmes, Marple & Poe: The Greatest Crime-Solving Team of the Twenty-First Century

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I Funny

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I Funny: A Middle School Story

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Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

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Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment

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Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life

Chris Tebbetts, James Patterson, Illustr. Laura Park

Middle School, The Worst Years of My Life

Chris Tebbetts, James Patterson, Illustr. Laura Park

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Nevermore

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Nevermore

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Roses Are Red

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Roses Are Red

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Sam's Letters to Jennifer

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Sam's Letters to Jennifer

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Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas

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Suzanne's Diary for Nicholas

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The Big Bad Wolf

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The Big Bad Wolf

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The House of Wolves

James Patterson, Mike Lupica

The House of Wolves

James Patterson, Mike Lupica

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The President is Missing

Bill Clinton, James Patterson

The President is Missing

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