Freeze Frame

by B. David Warner

Could subliminal advertising corrupt a Presidential Election? "Freeze Frame" opens with a high-speed chase and doesn't slow down. The story races from the bright lights of Detroit to Northern Michigan. Returning to Adams & Benson Advertising from a five-year hiatus, Darcy James learns the account she is to head is in jeopardy. She'll need every ounce of her creative talent to save hundreds of jobs. Worse, the new agency team directing the advertising for third-party candidate Niles VanBuhler is a terrorist group fronting for an international drug cartel. Days before the election, Darcy and account executive Sean Higgins uncover their secret, but they're being hunted for a murder they didn't commit. With both police and terrorists on their trail, they must prove their innocence by exposing the real killers and the plot to overthrow the U.S. Executive Branch.

306 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2006

Reviews

[Jim Sargent · Rating 4 out of 5]

B. David Warner is a journalist who excels at writing a fast-paced, tightly-woven novel while highlighting many locations, sights, and experiences in Michigan. I enjoyed his Dead Lock (published in 2011), about a plot to destroy the new MacArthur Lock in Sault Ste. Marie Michigan, in 1943, so I read Freeze Frame (published in 2012). This second Warner novel centers on the use of subliminal advertising to win a present-time presidential election. The protagonist is a divorced female advertising executive, Darcy James, who returns to Adams & Benson Advertising in Detroit, after spending five years away from the Motor City working in Grand Rapids. Key executives in Adams & Benson chose her to direct advertising for a new car produced by the American Vehicle Corporation. This longtime B&A account was now up for grabs to the one of three agencies which could produce the most successful marketing campaign. In the beginning, Darcy and account executive Sean Higgins flee the police, and terrorists, because of a murder they didn’t commit. With the adventurous Darcy driving, the plot takes them to Gaylord in northern Michigan and back to downtown Detroit. She must use her prodigious skills win the battle for the account even as the presidential campaign moves forward, complete with a third-party candidate who is a front for terrorists. If you like Warner’s terse style as well as his familiarity with automobiles, advertising, and Michigan, you will like this ingenious drama.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book! I thoroughly enjoyed it. Since I was born, raised, and live in Michigan, I appreciate the settings! I also appreciate the detail.. I'll have to check out some of your other books