I was shocked when I saw all the negative reviews for this. Did these negative reviewers even read the book, or did they just see Glen Beck's name and then go online to slam it? Because I don't especially even like Glen Beck, and I was skeptical about Overton Window but I couldn't put it down. I found it to be well written with an exciting believable story, peopled with fully developed interesting characters. So, for those of you on the fence looking for a fun read, check this one out. I'm certainly glad I did.

If I were to offer a comparable novel with a conspiracy theme that was similarly enjoyable I'd also recommend Six Days of the Condor by James Grady. ( )

After the first paragraph, this review contains spoilers. Glenn Beck has definitely earned the title King of All Media (if he wants it) with this foray into the popular thriller genre. While it is true that he had a lot of help from experienced thriller writer Jack Henderson, the ideas are pure Beck. (Beck also produces a daily radio program, a magazine, an on-line video network, documentaries, an internet radio network, and has produced about a dozen books many of which have been bestsellers.)

But enough of that. As a thriller The Overton Window does work. Beck and his contributors/co-authors came up with twists and turns enough to entertain and amuse. If you want to believe that none of it could really happen, do not read the Afterward which explains how some of the things that happen in the book are based on things that have actually occurred. The characters, however, are rather two dimensional, which I think works in a popular thriller. The main character, Noah Gardner, is the son of the head of a powerful public relations firm in New York. His conflict is ultimately summarized as that between his late mother's heart and his father's calculating brain. After falling for a radical TEA partier, Molly, Noah helps her break into his father's conference room where they discover that Gardner senior is up to his eyeballs in helping to plan the cynical takeover of the United States (and the rest of the world) using a technique for shaping public opinion called the Overton Window. Molly and Noah notice that while some aspects of the plan have been going on for more than a century, there is one case, called EXIGENT ("exigent" means "urgent"), that hasn't started yet, and its timeline is only three days long.

The rest of the novel is about various characters coming to terms with whether or not Operation EXIGENT is about to begin and how to stop it if it is. Much of the twisting and turning that makes the novel a true thriller surprise because the characters who turn out to be duplicitous do not have the depth to be so. Because they turn out to be tricksters, we can only conclude at the end of the novel that we never really knew who they were and can hardly muster real sympathy for them as persons because of it.

My favorite chapters are 36 and 37 in which the two main characters have to board an airplane without going through too rigorous a security check. The idea of impersonating a not too famous celebrity is a brilliant solution, and the pitfalls that threaten to expose the ruse are also plausible. ( )

Wow! I went into this book with low expectations. Really would you expect ANYTHING good from a Fiction book written by Glenn Beck? I only picked it up because I like the title as I had read other items on the concept of the Overton Window.

This story follows Noah Gardner, the heir apparent of a super powerful "Marketing firm" used by the global elite to swing thing in their direction and his short lived love affair with the new mail girl, a "patriot" in some sort of Tea Party movement.

Molly the patriot girl has an elaborate story, and a family, and a love interest who appears to be this universe's Alex Jones. They convenience Noah to break into his father's business to get more data on a coming false flag.

Or did they? Was it all a trick, are these patriot wack jobs trying to frame him?

While from a guy who invited the idea of a "9/12" group about "how we all loved America right after 9/11" I had heard Beck had been trying to steal some of the audience of Alex Jones, but I didn't realize how far down the rabbit hole he had gone.

But the deception in this book is on all sides. The sexual tension is much more than I would expect from a Mormon, and all in all I cannot recommend this enough, regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, but certainly if you have had any ongoing with the "patriot" movement in your life, you'll get a kick out of this, and I suspect the lefty hippies will too. ( )

This was better than I thought it would be. It was a little heavy-handed at times, and there were a few things I was confused about. But overall a good thriller. I especially loved the concept of the Overton Window, which is basically ( I hope I don't slaughter this too bad) the window of truths the general population are willing to accept at any given time. Depending on who you are and your motivations, the goal is to push the boundaries of this window. I liked how the book itself (as with most any other) is a type of Overton Window in that it pushes us a little further to expand this window. I know this is a thriller, but I think that's why I love the Dystopian genre so much. If we can (in at least part of our minds) accept a fictional, crazy future, we will be better prepared to handle a reality that will probably be far less extreme. ( )

Uma conspiração contra os EUA vem sendo preparada há cem anos, e agora está prestes a ser colocada em prática. Alguém será capaz de impedi-la? E se as pessoas descobrissem que tudo em que elas acreditam não passa de uma grande farsa? Que as roupas que vestem todos os dias pela manhã, assim como os carros que dirigem não são escolhas suas? Que o governante eleito na última eleição para comandar a cidade e o país também não depende delas? ( )