Hell's Corner by David Baldacci (2011)

The Camel Club books are my favorites from David Baldacci - I am not sure why, maybe because one of the characters works in the Library of Congress. Actually it is more because of Oliver Stone, the well worn agent, who has been in Nam and the Cold War, who still solves major problems for our country, even if he has not been treated well half the time. He is good at what he does, deduces things, bends rules when needed, and attracts strong women. This was my favorite of the series, with plenty of twists and turns in the plot.

Oliver Stone is present, when a bomb goes off at Lafayette Park, across the street from the White House. (I had to look it up on the map, and will try to go visit it next time I am in DC. Never have been to the White House, but there are still a lot of things on my to-do list in Washington.) There are four people in the park around that time, and the British Prime Minister across the street. Stone is asked to officially get involved and is given a powerful side kick in MI6 agent Mary Chapman. They follow leads that often turn out to be red herrings. Stone does not want to involve his Camel Club friends, but they get involved themselves and help him run down some leads, and are with him at the last stand. The plot is complex with Russians, Mexicans, British, nanobots, the CIA training mountain and more.

I also enjoyed the interview with the author at the end of the audio book. He reiterated one of the things I learned from the book - that after the Cold War was over, a lot of spies were retired or laid off, and when there was again need for them after 911, they hired a lot of young and inexperienced agents. This is why Stone was brought into the story.

The name Hell's Corner comes from the fact that Lafayette Park is under the jurisdiction of three different government agencies - the Secret Service cover the sidewalks (because it is so close to the White House), the Park Service covers the park itself and DC Police cover the street. From the other Camel Club books I know that Stone had a protest tent at the park and at least according to the Wikipedia it has really been a protest spot over the years.