Lee Strobel

Dear Readers,

I am always interested when an best selling non-fiction author decides to write fiction.  Some of them are pretty good at it and some are, well, not.  Lee Strobel in the latest non-fiction author to venture into the fiction market.  I am sure some of it has to do with his daughter writing and having success in the fiction market. 

Most of you are probably most familiar with Lee's books A Case for Christ, A Case for Faith and several more.  He wrote them to show what he discovered when he set out to prove that his wife's new found faith was just a crutch for her and he wanted her to go back to the life he had enjoyed with her before that.  That part of his story is somewhat in this book, but it is not a huge part that distracts from the storyline itself.  He actually weaves it into the story quite well.

The Ambition by Lee is set in Chicago and dives into the steamier side of politics and the justice system.   Lee is a former editor for the Chicago Tribune so he does know what he is writing about.  He writes a story about the corruption that is a problem in the justice system of Chicago. He writes how the Mob still is able to get whatever they want to happen in the courts.  Bribery, threats, and blackmail are all part of the normal everyday activities in the court system.   Throw in a soon to be vacant seat for the Senate and it actually sounds like something that we just heard about on the nightly news. 

Garry Strider is trying to do his job for the Chicago Examiner.  He is an investigative reporter and he can't wait to find out what Eric Snow and his mega church is hiding.  To sweeten the deal, Eric Snow is in the running for the Senate seat soon to vacated by a guy who was caught in tax evasion and several other crimes.  No one can be that clean without some sort of skeleton in the closet.  But is there anything to find?  Is there something else going on behind the scenes that no one else knows is connected?. 

Over all I enjoyed this book, but it wasn't a big secret as to what was going to happen.  Which in a crime book is not that fun for me to read.  I love to see if I can figure out the who-dun-it before all is revealed.  It does fit with the style of book Lee wrote and he actually happens to avoid a couple big pit falls for new authors and I liked that. 

If you have been looking for a book about cops and the mob or if you are a huge fan of Lee's then this book is for you.  I do recommend it, but I might wait until he has had a chance to perfect his craft a little bit.

Happy reading