Fiction

House of Cards

House of Cards

  • Downloads：1586
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2021-09-03 09:56:13
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Michael Dobbs
  • ISBN：1492606618
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Summary

Politics， intrigue， and passion reign in the corridors of power， no matter the country。

Francis Urquhart has his hand on every secret in politics – and is willing to betray them all to become prime minister。 Mattie Storin is a tenacious young reporter who has a knack for finding the real stories hidden behind the spin。 When she stumbles upon a scandalous web of intrigue and financial corruption at the very highest levels， she vows to reveal the truth。 But to do so she must battle her own demons and risk everything， even her life。

House of Cards is a classic political thriller reinvented for a new generation。

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Reviews

Peter Baker ，

Stunning story， well written and very captivating。 The characters are vivid and seem to fit with ‘expectations’ of political jousting。 I cannot recommend this highly enough

Stephen ，

I have to admit to being something of a fan of this series。 I first came to it though the Ian Richardson TV series， then I read the books。 In later years a cheap American knock off placed the story line across the Atlantic。 That was an inferior offering on so many levels。 And now I am back again to re-read the series for a further time。What brought me back？ First and foremost it is an incredibly well written book。 So much fiction today is poorly written - and badly edited - waffle。 This book is I have to admit to being something of a fan of this series。 I first came to it though the Ian Richardson TV series， then I read the books。 In later years a cheap American knock off placed the story line across the Atlantic。 That was an inferior offering on so many levels。 And now I am back again to re-read the series for a further time。What brought me back？ First and foremost it is an incredibly well written book。 So much fiction today is poorly written - and badly edited - waffle。 This book is carefully crafted， with each word honed for precision。 If Urquhart's method is the political stiletto， then the author's method is the verbal stiletto。 I love it！We also have an extremely engaging story。 It twists and turns。 Urquhart can never be quite sure of himself until he has achieved the actual prize。 In this sense of uncertainty， the book has the advantage over the TV show。 In this book Urquhart is less sure of himself， a bit more uncertain about events unfolding as he plans them to。 A little less sure that people will behave in the way he wants them to。 I found that to be quite compelling。The book is a political thriller。 It narrates a devious sequence of events that are orchestrated by a master player at underhand influence。 This is where the book and the UK TV series scores over the American TV show。 The story was written for British Parliamentary institutions and does not translate well in a North American setting。 The Chief Whip is the ideal location for Urquhart。 There is no corresponding American office because the role of the Party is different there。 The concentration of power into the Prime Ministerial hands has no equivalent in the US。 To my mind， the thriller aspect is ideal for the Palace of Westminster。 I didn't find it at all difficult to picture the setting， the plot， and the characters。Again， I am a great fan of this book。 I would recommend it very highly。 。。。more

Kasey Stewart ，

Awesome。 Difficult to catch the nuances in government and language。 Definitely dark， subtle， and smart。 More of a mental investment。 Unfortunately I never read the rest of the series but would recommend。

Bjarne Skjødt Hjaltalin ，

Super velskrevet og modbydelig bog。

Ajay Jangid ，

Set in 1991， shrewdness， plain corruptness and everlasting desire for power， are the three features of Francis Urquhart which carry the entire book。 The language is easy with intriguing dialogues。 What really draws this book down is its emphasis on just one character， except Francis， none other character is explored well。 The book at times feels like a story written to glorify the antagonist。 Francis is portrayed to be the smartest of all the politicians with all his plans falling perfectly into Set in 1991， shrewdness， plain corruptness and everlasting desire for power， are the three features of Francis Urquhart which carry the entire book。 The language is easy with intriguing dialogues。 What really draws this book down is its emphasis on just one character， except Francis， none other character is explored well。 The book at times feels like a story written to glorify the antagonist。 Francis is portrayed to be the smartest of all the politicians with all his plans falling perfectly into place any imperfection。 Francis actually controls all the cards of this house。 and all other candidates of the electorial run are shown as just mere puppets， not even trying their least to handle the situations they are put into。 The story may bore you with its linear pace and lack of twists but it is Michael Dobbs's portrayal of London that never fails to bring you back to the story。 Worth a read over your mundane weekends。 。。。more

Ankit Kulshrestha ，

An ardent peek into conspiratorial face of politics that often hides behind immaculate facade that keeps common masses engaged。 Netflix series is a lurid version of this story。 But no matter if it is Frank underwood or urquhart both are manipulative and bloody chameleon。 Is Underwood better than urquhart？ You might very well think that。 I couldn’t possibly comment。 （Read it and you’ll know it）

Gustavo Marques ，

What a thrill！！ Marvelous web of events， brilliant connected and with a plot that catch tour attention and don’t let it go。 For sure one of my favs！

Ivana Bojovic ，

Nije loše :）

Jack Lorraine ，

I can see how it is interesting to many people， however towards the younger generation it is not quite as thrilling。 The politics are a bit boring and unengaging， even for teenagers。 Overall not the best book I've read but would sure give it another go when I'm older。 I can see how it is interesting to many people， however towards the younger generation it is not quite as thrilling。 The politics are a bit boring and unengaging， even for teenagers。 Overall not the best book I've read but would sure give it another go when I'm older。 。。。more

Marco ，

Se avete già visto la serie forse qualche colpo di scena non vi sorprenderà troppo， ma resta comunque scritto molto bene。 Non saprei dire cosa è meglio ma vale la pena leggerlo lo stesso， anche perché l'ambientazione è diversa。 Alcune vicende all'inizio lasciano confusi， ma dopo un po' tutto torna e i dubbi vengono chiariti。 Se avete già visto la serie forse qualche colpo di scena non vi sorprenderà troppo， ma resta comunque scritto molto bene。 Non saprei dire cosa è meglio ma vale la pena leggerlo lo stesso， anche perché l'ambientazione è diversa。 Alcune vicende all'inizio lasciano confusi， ma dopo un po' tutto torna e i dubbi vengono chiariti。 。。。more

Lacey Bard ，

Could only get through a quarter of the book， dreaded picking it up， just aweful。 I have no idea how this got picked up for netflixs。。。。

Lynne Beavers ，

3。5 Interesting but ultimately predictable

Ravi Singh ，

Good and exciting political thriller however it was ruined for me because I watched the TV series on DVD and that was much better。 The ending of the book cannot match the spectacular climax of the TV series but a RIP roaring book anyway。

Benjamin Shaw ，

I'd seen both TV versions of House of Cards and， neither came close to capturing the rich tapestry of characters that Michael Dobbs begins to weave here。 Dobbs wastes few words describing places， simply dropping in short but perfect descriptions and allowing your familiarity with the battlegrounds of politics to do the rest。 Instead， he uncorks his characters and slowly allows them to breathe， before decanting and pouring。 Each one is a delight for the taste buds - if you do come across the odd I'd seen both TV versions of House of Cards and， neither came close to capturing the rich tapestry of characters that Michael Dobbs begins to weave here。 Dobbs wastes few words describing places， simply dropping in short but perfect descriptions and allowing your familiarity with the battlegrounds of politics to do the rest。 Instead， he uncorks his characters and slowly allows them to breathe， before decanting and pouring。 Each one is a delight for the taste buds - if you do come across the odd cliche， it's only because this book has been copied and borrowed from for political dramas for over 20 years。 Francis Urquhart is absolutely captivating。 He goes about tearing down anyone who wrongs him with such calm and cold detachment， there are few characters you can truly draw comparisons with - except perhaps Dracula or Jaws。 The key to a five star book for me， is the ability to pick it up after a busy two days away from reading to remember where you are， who is doing what and why。 This book proves that this is achievable， alongside a complex story， multiple characters and a plot that shifts and slithers like a long， fat snake。 I loved it。 。。。more

Srihari ，

Rating: 3。5/5To survive the house of cards， you need to love politics。 This seems to hold true， both for real politics as well as Michael Dobbs' thriller which inspired the critically acclaimed show of the same name。 Inspired by his own time working with the Margaret Thatcher government， this 'slow-burn' thriller shows politics at its worst。In place of Frank Underwood， we have Francis Urquhart， a scheming and conspiring politician seemingly at the twilight of his career， who is willing to play e Rating: 3。5/5To survive the house of cards， you need to love politics。 This seems to hold true， both for real politics as well as Michael Dobbs' thriller which inspired the critically acclaimed show of the same name。 Inspired by his own time working with the Margaret Thatcher government， this 'slow-burn' thriller shows politics at its worst。In place of Frank Underwood， we have Francis Urquhart， a scheming and conspiring politician seemingly at the twilight of his career， who is willing to play everyone and everything to reach the top。 In a typical David and Goliath fashion， the unexpected underdog pulls ‘dirty’ aces out of his sleeve， bringing down one enemy after the other。 Noone， except the strong headed journalist Mattie Storin seems to be feeling something's off。 Will he succeed before he's caught in the act？ This forms the rest of the story。The slow burning narrative is both the strength and the weakness of the book。 On the one side， Dobbs capitalizes on his real-life experience in Westminster and effectively incorporates it into Francis' 'games'。 Incidents which may not make any sense initially soon reveals itself to be a part of a larger master plan。 On the other， it gets a little predictable towards the latter half， when every shallow side character seems to have little more than one fact to their backgrounds， something that has been placed conveniently for Francis' huge plan。 While the author does give some time to character development initially， it soon loses steam。Another issue I had with the story was the suddenness in the change in narrative。 There were so many parts which had to be re-read because I kept feeling lost。 （Could also be because I am a dud 😊）Nonetheless， the book managed to keep me on the edge。 Even with the predictable narrative， I wanted to know what Francis would do next。But again， I am not sure of how much I would have enjoyed this book had I been a complete newbie to the politics genre。 Do give it a read though。 。。。more

Kieran McAndrew ，

Who could have foreseen the sudden fall of the Prime Minister， Henry Collingridge after a weak showing of the Conservative Party in a general election？ Step forward Chief Whip， Francis Urquhart， who is using all his manipulative skills to quietly engineer a coup from within the heart of the Party。Dobbs' ingenious novel may now be hidden in the shadows of the two television series based upon it， but the scheming in the highest echelons of Parliament makes this a must read。 Who could have foreseen the sudden fall of the Prime Minister， Henry Collingridge after a weak showing of the Conservative Party in a general election？ Step forward Chief Whip， Francis Urquhart， who is using all his manipulative skills to quietly engineer a coup from within the heart of the Party。Dobbs' ingenious novel may now be hidden in the shadows of the two television series based upon it， but the scheming in the highest echelons of Parliament makes this a must read。 。。。more

Matilde Gouveia ，

House of Cards by Michael Dobbs。I bought this book because it was at a really cheap price point and it seemed quite interesting。 And to be honest， this book was really good。 I don’t know why it is so underrated。 I was shook with the ending of this book and it just came to show that some people will really do anything they can to gain power。 I really liked to read about politics in this book because it’s a topic that really touches me and in which I have been involved unintentionally from a reall House of Cards by Michael Dobbs。I bought this book because it was at a really cheap price point and it seemed quite interesting。 And to be honest， this book was really good。 I don’t know why it is so underrated。 I was shook with the ending of this book and it just came to show that some people will really do anything they can to gain power。 I really liked to read about politics in this book because it’s a topic that really touches me and in which I have been involved unintentionally from a really young age。 Favorite quote: “。。。， ele sabia que são sempre os familiares quem mais sofre com as pressões exercidas sobre os políticos。”It’s in Portuguese because I read the book in EU Portuguese and didn’t want to translate incorrectly to English。 Overall this was a 4 star book。 I really liked it and I think it deserves more love and recognition。 。。。more

Sarah Sammis ，

In the original version （as I've read descriptions）， Urquhart jumps to his death。 The British mini series cast Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart。 He has such stage presence that he turned a rather weak but devious character into a cool， cunning， and deeply evil character。 Richard's Urquhart doesn't come across as someone who would die by suicide。 That said， he could have lost in some other fashion that would allow Maddie Storin， the reporter， to live。Instead， her life is swapped for his。 In tha In the original version （as I've read descriptions）， Urquhart jumps to his death。 The British mini series cast Ian Richardson as Francis Urquhart。 He has such stage presence that he turned a rather weak but devious character into a cool， cunning， and deeply evil character。 Richard's Urquhart doesn't come across as someone who would die by suicide。 That said， he could have lost in some other fashion that would allow Maddie Storin， the reporter， to live。Instead， her life is swapped for his。 In that final confrontation， rather than Maddie presumably talking him to the point of realizing and regretting all the evil he's done in the name of political power， she starts her confrontation and promptly loses。 While Ian Richardson pulled off an impressive presence in his characters， he was still only 5'9" and playing a man in his mid sixties。The life sized rag doll he picks up in place of Susannah Harker （the actress playing Maddie） and tosses over the wall of the garden completely breaks the tension of the moment。 It looks fake。 It looks ridiculous。 To then read Dobb's revision that essentially describes what he watched on the mini series makes for an equally ridiculous ending in print。http://pussreboots。com/blog/2021/comm。。。 。。。more

Enigmisty ，

Affascinante thriller politico ambientato subito dopo Margaret Thatcher。 Francis Urquhart è capo gruppo del partito conservatore， ma il primo ministro non gli concede il potere （politico） che si aspettava。 E' da qui che parte la sua cospirazione politica per eliminare politicamente il primo ministro e prendere il suo posto。 Francis è un uomo senza scrupoli， usa le persone per i suoi scopi ed è disposto ad uccidere pur di avere il potere。 Egocentrico ed egoista， agisce nell'ombra fingendosi innoc Affascinante thriller politico ambientato subito dopo Margaret Thatcher。 Francis Urquhart è capo gruppo del partito conservatore， ma il primo ministro non gli concede il potere （politico） che si aspettava。 E' da qui che parte la sua cospirazione politica per eliminare politicamente il primo ministro e prendere il suo posto。 Francis è un uomo senza scrupoli， usa le persone per i suoi scopi ed è disposto ad uccidere pur di avere il potere。 Egocentrico ed egoista， agisce nell'ombra fingendosi innocuo per per poi eliminare chiunque ostacoli la sua ascesa。La serie tv ha in comune con i libri solo la prima stagione， ma è ambientata in America e anche i personaggi （oltre ai nomi） sono un pò diversi （es。 la moglie è molto più presente）。 In generale mi è piaciuta la trama， il personaggio è ben fatto e l'ho trovato intrigante anche se è un uomo detestabile。 Questo è stato il primo thriller politico che ho letto， di solito evito il genere politico， e mi ha sorpresa。Fascinating political thriller set immediately after Margaret Thatcher。 Francis Urquhart is the group leader of the Conservative party， but the prime minister doesn't grant him the （political） power he expected。 This is where his political conspiracy to politically eliminate the prime minister and take his place begins。 Francis is an unscrupulous man， he uses people for his purposes and is willing to kill for power。 Egocentric and selfish， he acts in the shadows pretending to be harmless and then eliminates anyone who hinders his ascent。The TV series has in common with the books only the first season， but is set in America and also the characters （in addition to the names） are a little different （for example: his wife）。 In general I liked the plot， the character is well done and I found him intriguing even though he is a detestable man。 This was the first political thriller I read， I usually avoid the political genre， and it surprised me。 。。。more

Giulia ，

Plauso al merito。 Questo romanzo mi ha tenuta incollata alle pagine， nonostante il mio interesse per la politica sia davvero piuttosto scarso e le mie nozioni coincidano con il pacchetto base che il comune cittadino ha il dovere di conoscere。 Avvincente e spietato nel descrivere come nelle stanze del potere si affilino i coltelli per proprio tornaconto， distruggere le reputazioni altrui， e non solo le reputazioni。。。 Già ordinati i seguiti :）

Christos Magglaras ，

A brilliant Machiavellian novel。 The ending took me by surprise。 Truly chilling and unexpected。

Erika Willson ，

Intressant bok。 Jag har inte sett serien， så jag visste inte vad jag skulle förvänta mig。 Ingen supersuccé men helt okej läsning。

Milan ，

Dobra je。 Odlična。 Ali serija （ona sa Kevinom Spejsijem） je bolja。 Mnogo bolja！ Ovde mislim na prve dve， eventualno tri， sezone。

Ramón Calatayud ，

¿Serie o #libro？ Una pregunta que puede generar un largo debate cuando oyes hablar de #HouseOfCards， #novela escrita por #MichaelDobbs （ex-asesor de Margaret Thatcher）。📚📕Aquí puedes #leer la sinopsis y conseguirlo📖☕: https://amzn。to/2Ococ4U Mientras que la serie norteamericana gira entorno al mítico personaje interpretado por #KevinSpacey （#FrankUnderwood）， el personaje principal en la versión #libro es #FrancisUrquhat。Francis Urquhat es un viejo político inglés que anhela convertirse en primer ¿Serie o #libro？ Una pregunta que puede generar un largo debate cuando oyes hablar de #HouseOfCards， #novela escrita por #MichaelDobbs （ex-asesor de Margaret Thatcher）。📚📕Aquí puedes #leer la sinopsis y conseguirlo📖☕: https://amzn。to/2Ococ4U Mientras que la serie norteamericana gira entorno al mítico personaje interpretado por #KevinSpacey （#FrankUnderwood）， el personaje principal en la versión #libro es #FrancisUrquhat。Francis Urquhat es un viejo político inglés que anhela convertirse en primer ministro。 Para ello， será equidistante， mantendrá un perfil bajo para no llamar la atención hasta encontrar el momento oportuno para atacar a la presa。 Si eres político， el libro sirve de curso intensivo。 Si te gusta la novela de suspense política， esta novela es un clásico imprescindible。 Si sientes curiosidad por la política， aquí aprenderás cómo funcionan los políticos para alcanzar sus fines。La historia está escrita en un lenguaje común， de manera clara y sencilla （el estilo literario de Michael Dobbs no es el propio de un sabelotodo， con aires de grandeza， que escribe para que te eches una siesta。 。。。more

Marco Filippi ，

Ripetitivo e spesso esagerato。

Mike Glaser ，

This is interesting as this edition of the book has had the ending changed to match the ending that the BBC series used。 I was a little disappointed in that I wanted to read the original ending but to do that I will have to find an original printing。 In any case it is a good political yarn but not quite as good as the original series。

Sophie ，

On the face of it， this book doesn't sound that riveting。 However， it slowly draws you in to the world of political corruption。 I did enjoy it and the ending is fantastic。 I just found it difficult to follow with so many characters being introduced throughout the book。 While I could just about follow the overarching plot， at times I did feel lost due to this。 In this case， I prefer the TV series to the book。 On the face of it， this book doesn't sound that riveting。 However， it slowly draws you in to the world of political corruption。 I did enjoy it and the ending is fantastic。 I just found it difficult to follow with so many characters being introduced throughout the book。 While I could just about follow the overarching plot， at times I did feel lost due to this。 In this case， I prefer the TV series to the book。 。。。more

Alex Dalton ，

A fast paced and deeply entangling narrative that has some brilliant political play。 Everything within the book， with a slight nudge of imagination， could feasibly happen in real life， and that really brings the cobwebs of conspiracy to life easily when going through。 The characters are all great， with none representing political cliche or caricature - all purely living within 90s Conservative Britain。 Tension mounts well， and is a real page turner。

Cas ❦ ，

My brother said that Francis Urquhart is more conniving than Francis Underwood and considering he hasn't *properly* watched S1 of House of Cards I don't think his opinion is valid but at the same time， the literary genius of this book。。。 My brother said that Francis Urquhart is more conniving than Francis Underwood and considering he hasn't *properly* watched S1 of House of Cards I don't think his opinion is valid but at the same time， the literary genius of this book。。。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=House of Cards

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=House of Cards&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,House of Cards&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0