The Solomon Scandals

How might a Washington scandal be remembered a century later? What if one of the leading black hats founded a think tank to launder history and even immortalize his S list?
The Solomon Scandals begins in the late 20th century and ends in an era of cyborgs. It is about about the conflict between friendship and duty and mixes tragedy, suspense and satire in an unblinking look at life in Washington and its Northern Virginia suburbs. The Seymour Solomon in the title is a massive ex-bricklayer with two fingertips missing. He leases acres and acres of office space to the federal government. Tens of thousands of bureaucrats work in his buildings. An immigrant's son, Solomon has managed to break into the highest reaches of Washington society, not so coincidentally befriending his share of politicians, judges and building inspectors.
Jonathan Stone, the reporter protagonist, discovers that Solomon has stinted on construction of the huge Vulture's Point complex on the Potomac River. In researching the story, Stone is aided by Margo Danialson, a spirited young medieval studies graduate trapped within the bureaucracy Solomon has bought off. During the investigation, Stone must struggle with resistance from his editors and even his own father, who works for a PR and lobbying firm representing a bank that has financed Solomon's projects.
If you're familiar at all with Washington and its ways, you'll nod at the observations in Scandals. This D.C. is not the mystical city--of white stone monuments and secret ceremonies--that one reviewer saw in The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown. Instead it is the city of lawyers and lobbyists, strategically targeted campaign gifts and other "practical" concerns.

At the same time, Scandals offers hope in a funny ending (written by Stone's great-great-niece) different from anything else you are likely to read in Washington fiction.