Book Review - The Boomerang by Robert Bailey

I remember the first time I read a book that made me forget how to breathe. It was 3 AM, my coffee had gone cold, and I was stuck in the New Mexico desert with Eli James, watching shadows crawl across the walls like predators closing in. The Boomerang by Robert Bailey wasn’t just a story—it was a fever dream of desperation, power, and moral decay wrapped in a father’s love so raw it felt like a knife to the ribs.

(Now you have the opportunity to listen to the audiobook for free by clicking HERE.)

Plot: A Bullet Train Wrapped in Lies

Imagine you’re the Chief of Staff to the President of the United States. You’ve played the game, bent the rules, and manipulated the narrative for years. Then, your daughter gets diagnosed with terminal cancer. And just when you think the world can’t get darker, you discover the cure has existed all along—hidden not out of ignorance, but greed.

That’s where The Boomerang kicks off. Eli James isn't some idealistic hero—he's a man who’s mastered the art of political chess. But when his seventeen-year-old Bella is given months to live, everything he thought he knew about loyalty, truth, and sacrifice begins to unravel.

A high-octane chase follows from Washington, D.C., to the scorched plains of New Mexico. Eli goes rogue, blackmails the president, steals the experimental drug (code-named "The Boomerang"), and flees with his family. The government? They don’t take kindly to traitors. Big Pharma? They’ll kill to protect their empire.

Bailey doesn’t waste time with fluff. His prose is lean, sharp, and loaded like a sniper rifle. Each chapter ends on a cliffhanger that feels less like a literary device and more like someone yanking the floor out from under you. There’s no pause, no mercy. Just a relentless plot that moves like a caged animal trying to break free.

And then there’s the showdown—the kind of finale that makes your chest tighten. Military drones, mercenaries, betrayal, fire, blood. It’s not just a battle for survival—it’s a reckoning. A desperate citizen versus an entire system built on silence.

Characters: Flawed, Feral, Fascinating

Eli James is not your typical protagonist. He’s manipulative, morally flexible, and yes—he cheats on his wife. Some readers call him a “piece of shit,” others root for him because they know what it means to love someone so much you’d burn the world down for them.

He’s not noble. He’s not pure. He’s real. Like most parents, he’s capable of both monstrous acts and unimaginable tenderness. Watching him shift from a calculating political operator to a broken man fighting for his child is the emotional core of the novel. You might not like him, but you won’t look away.

Then there’s Nester “the Beast” Sanchez—a land baron carved from vengeance and grit. He’s part Michael Corleone, part John Dutton, and entirely his own beast. Ruthless, violent, yet deeply loyal to Dale (Eli’s wife and his former lover), Nester walks the line between monster and protector. He’s a paradox: a man whose hands are stained with blood but whose heart beats loudest when protecting those he loves.

Dale James, meanwhile, is the glue holding the shattered pieces together. A brilliant attorney specializing in medical malpractice, she’s as smart as she is fierce. Her arc is quieter than Eli’s, but no less powerful. She’s not just reacting—she’s strategizing, surviving, choosing love even when it hurts.

President Lionel Cantrell is more symbol than man—a figurehead trapped in a gilded cage of his own making. Once cured of terminal cancer by the very treatment being hidden from the public, he chooses self-preservation over truth. He represents the corruption of power, the idea that even at the top, you’re still just a pawn.

Bella… poor Bella. She’s the spark that ignites the whole inferno. At seventeen, vibrant, full of life—until cancer hits like a truck. Her presence is a constant heartbeat beneath the chaos. Every decision Eli makes, every risk, every lie—it all circles back to her.

And the villains? Faceless. Nameless. A machine of pharmaceutical lobbyists, military contractors, and politicians who see lives as numbers on a balance sheet. They’re terrifying precisely because they feel real.

Themes: Truth, Power, and the Cost of Everything

At its core, The Boomerang is a moral grenade. Pull the pin, and it explodes into questions that linger long after the last page:

• What would you do to save your child?
• Who owns the right to life?
• Is the truth worth destroying the world?

This isn’t just a thriller—it’s a mirror held up to our reality. It asks whether we trust the institutions that claim to protect us. Whether science is truly neutral or just another currency. Whether a miracle should be patented or shared.

The title itself is a metaphor—what goes around comes around. Secrets buried too deep have a way of returning, sharper and hungrier than before. The Boomerang isn’t just a drug—it’s a reckoning.

One of the most striking aspects of the novel is how it redefines masculinity. Eli isn’t tough because he’s fearless. He’s tough because he’s vulnerable. Because he cries. Because he fails. Because he keeps going anyway. Nester, too, embodies a different kind of strength—not just through violence, but through loyalty, through sacrifice.

The setting plays a crucial role in reinforcing these themes. From the polished marble halls of D.C. to the sun-scorched wastelands of New Mexico, the shift mirrors Eli’s internal journey—from control to chaos, from illusion to truth. The desert isn’t just a backdrop—it’s alive. Hostile. Healing. Beautiful. Like the characters themselves.

And let’s talk about genre-blending. This isn’t just a political thriller. It’s a Western. A noir. A family drama. A dystopian nightmare. Bailey mixes these elements like a master DJ, creating something fresh and electrifying. Imagine No Country for Old Men meets House of Cards, with a dash of John Q thrown in for emotional gut punches.

Conclusion: For Those Who Want a Hurricane of Emotion Bound in Pages

If you like fiction that shakes you, makes you question every institution, and reminds you why some parents would tear the world apart for their kids… this is your book.

The Boomerang isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for curious minds, jaded souls, readers who want to feel the weight of silence like a lead blanket or fear like electricity under your skin.

It’s a novel that digs under your nails and won’t let go. That asks questions you don’t want to answer. That makes the words “justice” and “truth” sound almost dangerous.

Know that feeling when you're driving down a dark highway, not sure if someone’s chasing you or if you're just losing your mind? That’s reading The Boomerang.

And there, between the pages singed by truth, you’ll understand why some secrets are buried—and why some fathers are willing to dig until they find them.

Book Info:

Author: Robert Bailey

Genre: Political Thriller / Neo-Western

Published: May 1, 2025

Approximate Pages: 400

Recommended For: Fans of John Grisham, Yellowstone, and anyone who’s ever asked: what if I could change everything… but no one believed me?

Ready to dive into the storm?

The Boomerang isn’t just a thriller—it’s a bullet train fueled by a father’s love and a secret big enough to bring down the government.

You’ve heard the story. You know what’s at stake. Now it’s time to listen to the audiobook for free, and let the conspiracy unfold in your ears.

🎧 Hit play and join the fight.

Because when the truth is this dangerous… someone has to throw the first punch.