The Fifth Vote

by David Pepper

It’s a perfect Wednesday evening on the banks of the Ohio River, and Councilman Dylan Webb is riding high. Recently elected, both powerful and popular, Webb's gearing up for a rare dinner date amid his busy schedule.In a matter of minutes, it all turns upside down. Two muggers corner Webb outside his home and force him into his own car at gunpoint. For the next hour, he drives the streets of Cincinnati trying to convince his abductors not to kill him.He’s ultimately freed, but the moment of relief quickly explodes into a new firestorm, as the police and media doubt his story. As Dylan and a local reporter dig into evidence that something deeper is lurking, bodies start to pile up. And the closer they get to the truth, the more they fear they may be next.

486 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 2, 2023

Reviews

[John Bunyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pepper took the kidnapping that happened to him and played “What if”. What if there was more behind the crime, some larger thing going on that could get people killed?
This spins out for 480 pages. It’s not a big slog to get through but still seems over long. But on the whole still a very good read.
I would give it 4 stars but for a couple things. I don’t see how the two teenage kidnappers got involved in the larger thing behind the crime. Employing them to set the plan in motion was way too risky.
Second, part of the plot, necessary to cast further doubt on Councilman Dylan, involves the discovery of PayPal “receipts” showing he bought pot several times in the past. Come on. He more likely would have used Venmo and ,either way, would not have identified the transaction with “payment for illegal marijuana purchase” and would not have saved the email confirmations to be discovered by some hacker later.

[Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Politically Less Thrilling.

I loved his first two books so much that this was disappointing. This seemed a little contrived to me. I think the author may have wanted to explore the political intrigues at the grassroots level of local city halls, but it comes off as an amateurish detective novel. I believe his own political experience and knowledge could have given us better in sight to the backroom deals of the lobbyists and self serving politicians who, sadly run out towns, stated and unfortunately, this country.
In the meantime, I'm reading his two non-fiction books with great interest.
Thank you Mr. Pepper!

[John Pepper · Rating 5 out of 5]

A page turner, from start to finish, this is David Pepper's finest novel. Like his four earlier novels, "The Fifth Vote" weaves a tight, tense adventure and evolving mystery with a burning contemporary issue, in this case government corruption. While clearly a work of fiction, Pepper's book is informed and enlivened by his personal experience, including at the outset being kidnaped at gun point. "The Fifth Vote" draws particular strength from the nuanced development of an array of characters, some good and some bad, and from an intimate, visceral sense of place as the mystery unfolds.

[Britty · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the onset, I couldn't put this book down. David's recount of his personal abduction was so vivid that it grabbed my attention from the beginning. The characters were very relatable and the plot twists bewildering. A must read!!!