This morning, Glenn had author Brad Meltzer on to discuss his new book, The President’s Shadow. As what normally happens when you put two history lovers together in one room, Meltzer and Glenn geeked out. Meltzer took the opportunity to discuss some of the more historically interesting aspects of his book, including a secret island where Abraham Lincoln’s killers were dragged to in the middle of the night that is a four hour boat ride from the southern tip of Florida.
Meltzer's new book The President's Shadow is a fictional, historical thriller that begins when the First Lady discovers a severed arm in the Rose Garden. In this morning's discussion with Glenn, Metlzer revealed that he consulted with real Secret Service agents to help ensure he was accurately portraying the investigation of his thriller. Meltzer's real conversation with agents might just be scarier than the fictional storyline he wrote.
Meltzer told Glenn this morning, "And the Secret Service said to me, here's what I'd do, the first thing I do is do a home renovation. I'd renovate a room. I said, what are you talking about? They said, if I renovate a room, if I take some wallpaper off or put some paint a wall, then I have an excuse. I get the First Family out of the White House. The press will never know what I'm really doing. Then I can do the investigation all I want.
And I said, that sounds like you know what you're doing. And he said to me, Brad, think of it this way, Clinton, Bush, and Obama have all renovated rooms while they were in the White House. You wouldn't believe what's been done here in the name of home renovation. I'm like, thank you for chapter two and chapter three and chapter four. And that's where the book starts. That's where The President's Shadow really -- I was like, okay, now I got it. Now I can go. But it's always based on taking that fiction and putting some facts around it."
Listen to the full audio from the interview below and see what else Brad Metlzer and Glenn discussed!
