A Book Review
By Jonathan Herbert
Jonathan Herbert is an award-winning
writer who grew up in Englewood. His
novels, Banyan Street and Silver King,
have won multiple literary awards,
including recognition from the Paris
Book Festival. You can follow him on
Twitter @herbertnovels or on the
web at herbertnovels.com.
Built to Fail is a promising debut novel with concise prose
and true-to-form characters immersed in real life political
conflict. Author David Sparks was once a teenage
volunteer firefighter from a small Massachusetts town. His
polished career in politics and government spans three
presidential campaigns. These experiences undoubtedly forged
his efforts in creating an authentic and gripping storyline set in
a place he knows well.
The truth was, Chavez was far from confident. He peered upward.
The tower loomed what looked like miles overhead. It was white at
the bottom, but the higher it rose, the blacker it got from the fire.
The nacelle was canted at a weird angle, and the blades were so
black, streaked with a film of red oil.
This is a story of political corruption and wind energy fraud
on a grand scale. Sparks pulls from his own experiences inside
the political spectrum as well as his early years as a volunteer
firefighter. His research for such well developed characters must
have come from his own mind’s eye. Sharp and vivid
descriptions of time and place make this a fast paced read, each
chapter pushing the reader further inside the lives of superbly
developed characters. Chavez Simons is a young firefighter with
the willingness to pursue the truth about decades of crime and
cover-up by a Congressman. He is aided by Richard Lawson, a
BOOK
REVIEW
“Lawson told about the decline of his television
career, the move to Capitol Hill, drinking more,
more, more.
The hangovers.
The isolation.
Finally getting fired.
The self-righteous anger.
The realization that it was his own
damn fault ... ”
/herbertnovels.com