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Capital Crimes #28
Internship in Murder
The captivating next installment in the New York Times bestselling Capital Crimes series
Laura is a young intern in Washington, D.C., working for handsome and likable Congressman Hal Gannon. Laura falls for the charming Gannon, but when she catches a stewardess at Gannon’s apartment, she vows to destroy him.
Private investigator Robert Brixton is a former cop who has also worked for the FBI. When Laura goes missing, Brixton is hired by Laura’s family to gain insight into the case that the police might have missed.
Brixton tracks down rumors about Gannon—a staunchly moral “family advocate” according to his political position, but a womanizer according to gossip—but the congressman vehemently denies having anything untoward to do with Laura. Then Laura is found dead in the congressional cemetery, and many more questions are raised. . . .
Laura is a young intern in Washington, D.C., working for handsome and likable Congressman Hal Gannon. Laura falls for the charming Gannon, but when she catches a stewardess at Gannon’s apartment, she vows to destroy him.
Private investigator Robert Brixton is a former cop who has also worked for the FBI. When Laura goes missing, Brixton is hired by Laura’s family to gain insight into the case that the police might have missed.
Brixton tracks down rumors about Gannon—a staunchly moral “family advocate” according to his political position, but a womanizer according to gossip—but the congressman vehemently denies having anything untoward to do with Laura. Then Laura is found dead in the congressional cemetery, and many more questions are raised. . . .
368 pages, Hardcover
First published August 25, 2015
107 people are currently reading
388 people want to read
About the author
Margaret Truman
87 books260 followersMary Margaret Truman Daniel was an American classical soprano, actress, journalist, radio and television personality, writer, and New York socialite. She was the only child of President Harry Truman and First Lady Bess Truman. While her father was president during the years 1945 to 1953, Margaret regularly accompanied him on campaign trips, such as the 1948 countrywide whistle-stop campaign lasting several weeks. She also appeared at important White House and political events during those years, being a favorite with the media.
After graduating from George Washington University in 1946, she embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano, beginning with a concert appearance with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1947. She appeared in concerts with orchestras throughout the United States and in recitals throughout the U.S. through 1956. She made recordings for RCA Victor, and made television appearances on programs like What's My Line? and The Bell Telephone Hour.
In 1957, one year after her marriage, Truman abandoned her singing career to pursue a career as a journalist and radio personality, when she became the co-host of the program Weekday with Mike Wallace. She also wrote articles as an independent journalist, for a variety of publications in the 1960s and 1970s. She later became the successful author of a series of murder mysteries, and a number of works on U.S. First Ladies and First Families, including well-received biographies of her father, President Harry S. Truman and mother Bess Truman.
She was married to journalist Clifton Daniel, managing editor of The New York Times. The couple had four sons, and were prominent New York socialites who often hosted events for the New York elite.
After graduating from George Washington University in 1946, she embarked on a career as a coloratura soprano, beginning with a concert appearance with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 1947. She appeared in concerts with orchestras throughout the United States and in recitals throughout the U.S. through 1956. She made recordings for RCA Victor, and made television appearances on programs like What's My Line? and The Bell Telephone Hour.
In 1957, one year after her marriage, Truman abandoned her singing career to pursue a career as a journalist and radio personality, when she became the co-host of the program Weekday with Mike Wallace. She also wrote articles as an independent journalist, for a variety of publications in the 1960s and 1970s. She later became the successful author of a series of murder mysteries, and a number of works on U.S. First Ladies and First Families, including well-received biographies of her father, President Harry S. Truman and mother Bess Truman.
She was married to journalist Clifton Daniel, managing editor of The New York Times. The couple had four sons, and were prominent New York socialites who often hosted events for the New York elite.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
September 24, 2015
In the twenty-eighth instalment of the Capital Crimes series Bain weaves a tale of distrust and murder, which pulls a number of people into the crosshairs and shows the true colours of a US Representative. After scoring a coveted congressional internship with family friend Congressman Hal Gannon, Laura Bennett is living her dream. Away from her family back in Tampa, Laura is soaking up the DC life, including an active nightlife. When Laura enters into an illicit affair with Gannnon, she seems convinced that it is headed for marriage and she will one day become the First Lady. After discovering Gannon's duplicitous ways, Laura vows to bring him down, along with all his hopes and dreams for political ascension. When Laura goes missing, her family hires Private Investigator Robert Brixton to look into the matter, trying to offset the investigative work of the Washington MPD. Brixton looks deeper into Gannon's background and finds a significant contrast between his family values stances and skirt-chasing ways. After Laura's body turns up, all eyes shift to Gannon and his motive for getting rid of the young intern. As more bodies turn up, Gannon's motive to silence his detractors seems even stronger, but could there be more behind the story, a piece even media outlets have not yet found? A wonderful addition to Margaret Truman's long-running series, which continues to keep Mackensie and Annabel Smith in the forefront of the storyline.
I am a long-time fan of Truman's series and have even come to enjoy the writing Bain has done to keep the series alive. While the premise of the novel, young woman falls for powerful man and is scorned, proves to be far from unique, Bain utilises some stellar characters and a wonderful plot progression to keep the reader interested until the very end. The illustration of power and politics has been a theme in the series from the get-go, on which Bain build since he took over the books. While no one can match Truman's style, Bain does a decent job and keeps the Smiths involved in the story, who have always brought a new and exciting dimensions to the series.
Kudos, Mr. Bain for keeping the stories alive and the Truman memory from fading.
Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
I am a long-time fan of Truman's series and have even come to enjoy the writing Bain has done to keep the series alive. While the premise of the novel, young woman falls for powerful man and is scorned, proves to be far from unique, Bain utilises some stellar characters and a wonderful plot progression to keep the reader interested until the very end. The illustration of power and politics has been a theme in the series from the get-go, on which Bain build since he took over the books. While no one can match Truman's style, Bain does a decent job and keeps the Smiths involved in the story, who have always brought a new and exciting dimensions to the series.
Kudos, Mr. Bain for keeping the stories alive and the Truman memory from fading.
Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/
August 31, 2015
I was quite excited when I found this newly released book online as I have most of the Margaret Truman books in her
Capital Crimes series
and was not expecting any more after her death in 2008. (Donald Bain explains his relationship with Truman and her books on his blog site; you have to scroll down quite a bit to find it.) As with the
Murder She Wrote
series, which is "co-authored" by Jessica Fletcher, Bain includes Truman's name in the title even though she is no longer with us. He has released three others prior to this novel, and is working on the next one in the series.
Internship in Murder is a fast-paced, sophisticated novel dealing with the political, social, and seamier sides of Washington, D.C. and environs. This adventure revolves around politically ambitious, philandering congressman Hal Gannon from Tampa, Fl., who is so morally bankrupt that he hardly hesitates before seducing the twenty-two-year-old intern, Laura Bennett, daughter of a good friend and supporter, Lucas Bennett. This complicates his Washington life in several ways: he has two other bedroom partners he's juggling, a wife and kids in Tampa, and Laura is naive enough to think there's a future with her hero politician who she sees as being in the White House one day, and not just as a visitor.
When Laura's contacts with her family and friends cease, Luke and Grace, get in touch with their good friend, lawyer Mackensie (Mac) Smith, and ask him to see if he can come up with some answers as to her disappearance. Sharing Mac's office space but with a separate entrance is P.I. Robert Brixton who knows what it's like to lose a daughter; his was killed in front of him by a terrorist bomb and he almost lost his life tracking down the people behind the attack. The more Brixton digs, the more Congressman Gannon looks good for what eventually proves to be Laura's murder. While there is no hard evidence, the motive to silence a partner with too many expectations becomes only too clear as more and more people come forward to confirm that the congressman and the intern had a sexual relationship, and Gannon and his chief of staff stonewall Brixton, the police, and the Bennetts under the thinly veiling guise of cooperation.
One by one, other players enter the plot on various planes to expose the very complicated and sinister ways in which politics and murder merge. Another murder from the congressman's staff and an attempt on Brixton's life bring the tension to a higher pitch and hardly anyone is who s/he seems to be.
This novel is full of highlights of well-known sites in D.C. — restaurants, hotels, cemeteries, places to meet a "deep throat", galleries, and art venues — and adds to the veracity of the story and the readers' enjoyment. (Did you know that the term "lobbyist" was coined at the Willard hotel, a block from the White House where people "wanting something from the government hung around the opulent rococo lobby hoping to catch the attention of government movers and shakers . . . to plead their cases"?) There are lots of interesting tidbits, complex characters, and hold-your-breath suspense moments in this gritty mystery story set in the U.S. capital. My only complaint is that I had it figured out quite a bit before the end. I'm like that though.
Internship in Murder is a fast-paced, sophisticated novel dealing with the political, social, and seamier sides of Washington, D.C. and environs. This adventure revolves around politically ambitious, philandering congressman Hal Gannon from Tampa, Fl., who is so morally bankrupt that he hardly hesitates before seducing the twenty-two-year-old intern, Laura Bennett, daughter of a good friend and supporter, Lucas Bennett. This complicates his Washington life in several ways: he has two other bedroom partners he's juggling, a wife and kids in Tampa, and Laura is naive enough to think there's a future with her hero politician who she sees as being in the White House one day, and not just as a visitor.
When Laura's contacts with her family and friends cease, Luke and Grace, get in touch with their good friend, lawyer Mackensie (Mac) Smith, and ask him to see if he can come up with some answers as to her disappearance. Sharing Mac's office space but with a separate entrance is P.I. Robert Brixton who knows what it's like to lose a daughter; his was killed in front of him by a terrorist bomb and he almost lost his life tracking down the people behind the attack. The more Brixton digs, the more Congressman Gannon looks good for what eventually proves to be Laura's murder. While there is no hard evidence, the motive to silence a partner with too many expectations becomes only too clear as more and more people come forward to confirm that the congressman and the intern had a sexual relationship, and Gannon and his chief of staff stonewall Brixton, the police, and the Bennetts under the thinly veiling guise of cooperation.
One by one, other players enter the plot on various planes to expose the very complicated and sinister ways in which politics and murder merge. Another murder from the congressman's staff and an attempt on Brixton's life bring the tension to a higher pitch and hardly anyone is who s/he seems to be.
This novel is full of highlights of well-known sites in D.C. — restaurants, hotels, cemeteries, places to meet a "deep throat", galleries, and art venues — and adds to the veracity of the story and the readers' enjoyment. (Did you know that the term "lobbyist" was coined at the Willard hotel, a block from the White House where people "wanting something from the government hung around the opulent rococo lobby hoping to catch the attention of government movers and shakers . . . to plead their cases"?) There are lots of interesting tidbits, complex characters, and hold-your-breath suspense moments in this gritty mystery story set in the U.S. capital. My only complaint is that I had it figured out quite a bit before the end. I'm like that though.
November 15, 2015
not the same tone as Truman's books. victim and suspect are both so unsympathetic difficult to care. and the mc is so fixated comes across as stupid. so no more of these bain books.
September 26, 2015
Laura is a young woman from Florida interning in DC for her local congressman and becomes involved in an affair with Congressman Gannon. His reputation as a womanizer is well known in DC , particularly since his wife spends the majority of her time in Florida raising their children. Laura goes missing and Robert Brixton, a private investigator is hired through his association with Mackensie Smith( a well known character from previous books in this series) to track her down. Laura is found murdered and Mr Brixton works furiously to uncover her murderer as it reminds him of the painful death of his young daughter. In the search for Laura's killer, additional murders occur and Mr Brixton becomes a target for murder. Am glad Mr Bain has continued the Capital Crimes series and look forward to the next book.
February 11, 2020
I really enjoyued this series. I'm going to miss it.
This one was a bit different in tone to those entirely written by Truman, but a good story none-the-less.
This one was a bit different in tone to those entirely written by Truman, but a good story none-the-less.
October 27, 2020
This is the first Capital Crimes novel I’ve read that was not actually written by Margaret Truman, and although it’s been awhile since I’ve one, I can’t say I noticed a difference, which is kudos to Mr Bain. I enjoyed the plot even though I did actually work it out before the end, finding my own opinions about politicians accurately articulated by Robert Brixton in the course of his investigations. Hal Gannon gets involved with his new intern, Laura, using the well-worn trope that his wife doesn’t understand him and they’re getting a divorce soon. Then Laura discovers that she isn’t exclusive, and that he’s doing any woman who’ll stand still long enough. Quickly following on that, she’s found dead, and Brixton is convinced Gannon is to blame. Following another death and attempt on Brixton’s own life, the focus narrows and narrows until we reach the climax, which is really well planned out by the author. As the pool of suspects narrows, we, the reader, also feel the rising tension as Brixton and Mac Smith are stalked by the killer. The book would benefit by including maps so those of us not familiar with DC and it’s environs could get a feeling about how spread out, or not, the area of action is.
January 2, 2026
This was the perfect book for me during the hectic Christmas week!
I was waffling between a 3 and a 4 and the following from the book made my decision. (Two characters were discussing an upcoming interview and the reelection chances of a married Congressman whose "appetites" took over his sense after 2 of his staffers were killed.)
Robert: "I hope he falls on his face. I can't image it will do him any good. He'll have to lie through his teeth and people will pick up on when somebody's lying."
Flo "And maybe people won't care. I remember when the mayor of Boston was reelected while he was in jail. And lots of people in Toronto loved that buffoon of a mayor no matter what he did."
The book was published in 2015, but this seems like a current analogy.
As an aside, the Boston mayor was James Michael Curley, who had a very colorful political history.
I was waffling between a 3 and a 4 and the following from the book made my decision. (Two characters were discussing an upcoming interview and the reelection chances of a married Congressman whose "appetites" took over his sense after 2 of his staffers were killed.)
Robert: "I hope he falls on his face. I can't image it will do him any good. He'll have to lie through his teeth and people will pick up on when somebody's lying."
Flo "And maybe people won't care. I remember when the mayor of Boston was reelected while he was in jail. And lots of people in Toronto loved that buffoon of a mayor no matter what he did."
The book was published in 2015, but this seems like a current analogy.
As an aside, the Boston mayor was James Michael Curley, who had a very colorful political history.
Read
June 15, 2025almost Chandra Levy/Gary Conduit remake. Young intern sleeps with older, married Congressman. She is sure he is going to divorce his wife & marry her. She disappears & is found murdered. No can prove they were having an affair. Mac & Brixton help the family hunt for clues. An aide tells Brixton he knows about the affair & is also murdered. Brixton & Flo are almost run down by hit & run driver. The murderer comes to the office to kill Brixton & almost kills Mac & Flo! He is shot by B. He is a hired killer & confesses to who hired him!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 11, 2023
As others have mentioned this had a different tone from those written by Margaret Truman. It didn't quite have that tension that was in Margaret's. I kept reading because I liked the characters. We've learned about them in prior editions of the Capital Crimes series. I was curious as to how they were going to find the guy who was committing the murders.
August 23, 2023
It was a good, mindless read. But it was pretty clear early on who probably did it. There wasn’t as much mystery as other books. It also seemed a little rushed toward the end. I don’t know if this was just the copy I read, but it had several grammatical errors and that was pretty frustrating.
January 10, 2026
This was a very good book. The writing and pacing was terrific, unfortunately not very believable. Actually the majority of the book was very well written and only some of it stretched being believable. Too bad because I really liked the book.
June 12, 2017
This book needed a good copy editor! Not an original plot but moves along well enough.
April 14, 2018
Enjoyable.
July 14, 2018
Really enjoyed this series.....will miss it now that both authors are deceased.
Read
March 15, 2020Good political mystery.
March 30, 2020
First book that I read by this author Donald Bain and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Can't wait to read other books he has published
March 3, 2021
Washington DC is really a swamp.
June 10, 2022
This is the first Margaret Truman book I have read that wasn't written by her. I enjoyed all of her work, so wasn't sure what to expect from this. I was not disappointed.
June 13, 2025
I loved the familiar Washington setting. The mystery was entertaining, but not all that thought-provoking. I enjoyed it.
July 17, 2025
heavy emphasis on Braxton
I really enjoy these Truman books, but I also liked it more when the emphasis was on Mac and Annabel
I really enjoy these Truman books, but I also liked it more when the emphasis was on Mac and Annabel
October 16, 2025
Chilling description of an intern's murdeer in D. C.
December 23, 2025
Love this author! Her mysteries are relatable and I get so immersed in them and love her characters!
January 1, 2026
a strong murder novel; although you know whom the murderer is before the end of the novel, the plot action is strong.
January 7, 2026
An intriguing story about how those in charge of our country live by different rules than we do.
June 7, 2016
Have read every book in this series and, though Ms Truman has been dead for a number of the later ones, Donald Bain continues to bring outstanding stories inside the Beltway to life. The mysteries are satisfying and not easily solved, the plot has a feeling of veracity and the characters are well drawn. It is not hard to insert real Washington insiders into the fictional skins. It is particularly pleasing that along with PI Robert Brixton and his gal, Flo, that Mac and Annabelle Smith have been brought back as leading players in the plot. I've missed them in several of the more recent outings. Looking forward to the next installments--this election cycle should give ample fodder for Bain's imaginative writings.
February 10, 2017
Another enjoyable novel. Donald Bain continues the "Capital Crimes" series fairly seamlessly from the original novels written by Margaret Truman.
May 6, 2016
Interesting to find out Bain probably wrote all the Margaret Truman books. This one involves an intern to a Congressman who becomes a suspect. Obviously modeled after the Chandra Levy case, including finding a female body in Rock Creek park at the beginning of the book. A few errors- like referring to the Smithsonian as something different than the Air and Space Museum (which is a Smithsonian museum) and saying that a 22 year old would have an address book. No, she'd have the addressed on her phone. Seemed long so it wasn't a page turner for me.
October 10, 2015
I really enjoyed this mystery. The firs half of the story went pretty quickly and was fast reading. The remainder of the story did drag out a bit. I had wished that they would solve the murders sooner, but finally at the end we discovered who the killer was. Really enjoy reading Donald Bain books and do hope to keep reading more of them.
May 4, 2016
5-2-2016 I decided to read some of my favorites from a few decades ago. I checked this out, not realizing this was a post 2008 death thing, like some of the Robert Parker stories. However, this one seemed true to the original author's intent. I want to read more from Donald Bain. As for this story, it seemed to be in the Truman formula and I was fine with it.
June 21, 2016
Great plot and I loved the series but this new author who is writing the series while an excellent writer did not provide the interplay and conversation between the main characters which had been a major factor of the previous authors and a great point in the book. However, I will still read and look forward to the next book in the series
Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews