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The next twenty-four hours will be crucial to America's survival. A determined band of terrorists holds the key to bringing down the government by plunging the country into darkness, fear, and chaos -- a nightmare born not in a distant enemy land . . . but rather in the heart of America itself.

After a mission gone bad, Counter Terrorist Unit operative Jack Bauer is relegated to infiltrating a dangerous homegrown militia group -- and stumbles upon information about an activated sleeper cell of Middle Eastern terrorists on American soil. But the roots of the insidious threat may go deeper than he suspects, firmly planted in the lies and treacheries of powerful government agencies. And without the trust and support of his CTU superiors, Jack may have to rely on the very fanatics he's sworn to destroy . . . or face an earth-shattering catastrophe at the end of the day.

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published October 1, 2005

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John Whitman

216 books49 followers

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5 stars
52 (16%)
4 stars
115 (36%)
3 stars
113 (36%)
2 stars
28 (8%)
1 star
4 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
Profile Image for Lukas Veil.
6 reviews
October 30, 2025
A little too torture-y and a little too twisty… still can’t tell you exactly what happened.
Profile Image for Aljen.
8 reviews
May 24, 2022
Eventhough this is the second book in the series, it was the first for me to read. Loved the book. I loved how Jack Bauer and all of his action gets explained in the most detailed form. The character describtions and the very in depth way of telling this story sucked me into the book. There’s a few things I missed which are the lack of content in the characters names as tony almeida and nina myers. Would love to read more of them. Also I was a bit dissapointing in the end game, happend so fast and well .. just a quick end while the rest of the book was so detailed. All with all I think the storyline was very good, and eventhough I started with this book in the series, I felt like I did not miss anything from the first in line. 4 out of 5 stars for me!
Profile Image for MARK..
42 reviews9 followers
June 18, 2019
Is there one book in this series without traitors, moles, or self serving /corrupt government officals? If CTU is so rife with corruption, it should probably dissolved, wouldn't you think?
And the Attorney general of the US basically arranges the assassination of the President by disabling Air Force One, making an excuse NOT to be on board, but in the final chapter, hes on board the plane he was planning to have shot down. Continuity error, or just idiocy(?)
Profile Image for Donald Peschken.
340 reviews3 followers
February 17, 2024
This is the first book I read in this series, and I wasn't sure it would hold my attention. But I was wrong. It had some of the same characters and read just like the 24 TV show that I was addicted to. 24 chapters for 24 hours with plenty of suspense and action.
Profile Image for Colin Oaten.
369 reviews1 follower
June 29, 2025
Another in the series of 24 prequels sees Bauer dealing with a seeming terrorist threat on US soil that isn't all it appears to be. Nicely paced and full of the action and intrigue you expect and some nice foreshadowing of events that we know will come in Jacks personal life.
Profile Image for Joe.
430 reviews
August 13, 2022
Absolutely amazing. Had trouble putting it down. Gripping from start to finish
Profile Image for Liam Coyne.
159 reviews1 follower
January 17, 2023
The Excitement and the never ending perseverance of Jack Bauer is never ending .
Profile Image for Perry Van Wesel.
122 reviews
February 3, 2025
Fun book, reads like a season of 24 with enough twists and turns. Don't expect any deep dives into characters, but get a lot of action
1,253 reviews23 followers
October 2, 2016
So often, books based on television shows such as 24 fail to capture the tone and texture of the television program. This one succeeds about 80% of the, which puts it a bit above the average TV adaptive work. Whitman successfully captures the tone and tenure of the series, even if the characters are often very much little more than a cliche cutout of a season of the TV show. In fact, Whitman breaks little, if any, new ground here, with a plot that was probably leftover from the TV series itself. There's blackmailing politicians (see a pattern) Jack's usual gruff manner, Terrorist plot twists, tricks, and schemes, bureaucratic blindness, and old relationships--- all such part and parcel of that which we saw in the program-- that this could almost, but not quite, have been a script...

Not that it is bad for there are some clever plot twists along the way and some decent action... however, there is a such a nagging feeling of deja vu that keeps the novel from being anything more than a fairly decent rehash and rising to a higher level.

A decent, and laudable effort that accomplishes what a TV tie-in book should do.. replicates the experience of viewing a season... however, nothing overly special...
Profile Image for Randall Christopher.
Author 2 books10 followers
May 13, 2015
I am a big fan of the show 24 and the character of Jack Bauer. These books are the next best thing to the show itself. The plots follow the same format with the same kinds of twists and turns, and even a bit more back story and detail than the show. Veto Power held my interest throughout. The new additional characters were refreshing and I found myself picturing them in the 24 universe as well. The author told a good story and kept the intrigue level on high alert. Jack has been reprimanded recently for making a mistake on a mission and he is trying to rectify it by doing what he does best, saving the day. He must figure out the validity of a terrorist attack threat that was given to him by someone he has just arrested. This is a very quick read and I definitely recommend this series for any 24 fan who likes to read. These are just as addicting as the show, and this was one of the better stories I have read in the series.
Author 4 books
January 30, 2022
Veto Power is the second novel in the 24 Declassified series. The story is a prequel to the first season of 24. Worthy of a full season, it follows the same formula as the show.

The novel is captivating and exiting with a fast pace. In addition to being realistic, many details outside the real time facilitate the development of new characters.

If you are a fan of 24, I highly recommend reading Veto Power.
696 reviews3 followers
July 28, 2016
Wasn't all that great. The writing was a bit over serious, and yes I know this is '24' we're talking about. The main problem is there was way too many POVs and storylines that the book never did justice to the majority and made the book quite jumbled and unnecessarily complicated when it could've easy been streamlined.
Profile Image for Devin.
11 reviews
April 15, 2008
It actually was pretty good, if i didnt think of it as a tv show. A very easy read, i finished it in a day and a half.
Profile Image for Susan.
72 reviews2 followers
June 6, 2009
I was disappointed with the language in this book. Enough that I won't be reading anymore of the "24" books....which is sad, because it was certainly a page turner.
Profile Image for Andrew.
117 reviews9 followers
March 27, 2019
A must read for any 24 or Tom Clancy fan
2 reviews
Read
January 14, 2013
second book in the series and they still want to make me keep reading.
Profile Image for Nick Sotos.
93 reviews
May 20, 2013
24 is back and this was a great way to get back into the characters. Can't wait for the show to start back up. Guns don't kill terrorists, Jack Bauer does.
Profile Image for Kevin Harber.
248 reviews
April 11, 2022
Entertaining, twisty, fast-paced story that is true to the tv series.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews

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