Review & Excerpt – The Blockchain Syndicate by Robbie Bach
Synopsis
A dead man blackmails a United States senator.
A Russian assassin leaves a trail of bodies.
A cryptic criminal syndicate unleashes financial chaos.
A courageous war hero races to save her family—and her country.
Set amid the turbulence of today’s headlines, this gripping techno-thriller—the second in Bach’s series to feature Tamika Smith—pulses with high-stakes intrigue and razor-edged political drama.
Senator Tamika Smith’s new year begins in shambles. First she receives an email threatening to expose her past—a threat from someone she knows is dead. Then her boyfriend, Johnny Humboldt, is kidnapped in broad daylight after his daughter is wounded in a California school shooting. Someone is desperate to take Tamika down and damage the country she loves. The attacks are professional, the delivery is flawless, and the message America is broken, and someone is determined to fix it their way.
Standing in the eye of the storm, Tamika must navigate a political landscape riddled with betrayal, misinformation, and moral decay to rescue Johnny and uncover the group behind the web of conspiracy. As the country spirals toward financial Armageddon and democracy itself begins to unravel, Tamika must decide what she is willing to sacrifice to save her family and pull the nation back from the brink. With its sharp blend of shadowy villains and morally torn heroes, The Blockchain Syndicate dares you to question everything—right up to the final, breathless moment.
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Review
The action-packed novel shares details you never knew you needed to know.
This is the second in a series, but you do not need to read the first book to understand what is happening. It would be beneficial to understand the characters, but the author does a good job of providing the background and history that would have been covered in the first book.
The book is very political in nature. While I know we cannot escape politics, I felt like this was an overload on specific situations, and it seems obvious which way the author leans. While some of those facts are pertinent to the storyline, others could have been left out. I was more invested in the impact events had on Tamika and Phoenix. Phoenix looks up to Tamika and emulates her actions, or what she thinks Tamika would do. Is this wise? Probably not, but she is 17, so she might not be thinking things through.
I was intrigued by the computer skills, and what information could be found online for almost anything. Is the photo doctored? Read other people’s email. So much more. It is scary to think that someone has the capabilities to do that, and are they doing it for good or evil?
The story is also told from multiple POV, which was well done. I didn’t find it hard to keep up with the storyline.
This is a heavier book than what I usually read, or at least it felt that way. We give it 3 paws up.
Excerpt
PROLOGUE A SPECIAL DELIVERY
In the end, the actual job was easy. When he’d first read the instructions, his reaction had been, “No way in hell I can do that.” And now he was doing it. Without a hitch.
What had begun as a simple act of defiance, the proverbial “stick it to the man” moment, had become a mission. An opportunity to change what was wrong in America.
His America.
The nondescript black van was unlocked with the keys in the visor, per the instructions. He followed the directions to the loading dock, carefully adhering to the timing of his trip. 3:45 a.m. wasn’t an easy hour for him, but perhaps that was the point. He checked the security cameras as he parked, satisfied they were turned off. As were the exterior floodlights, leaving the parking area inky black in darkness.
Promises kept.
Pulling the metal cart out of the van, popping up its legs, loading the goods, and then rolling the cart up the ramp was really a job for two people. The damn thing was heavy—like moving a football blocking dummy uphill. He almost dumped the cargo as it came over the lip of the shipping ramp but managed to wrestle it back into position. He laughed quietly to himself. “No harm, no foul, huh.”
But better to keep things clean and neat. There was important evidence to preserve, after all.
He checked the luminous dial on his fitness watch to make sure he was still on schedule. Although he didn’t know all the details, he assumed there were one or more guards on duty, and the timing was designed to miss them on their rounds. He was worried about darkness, but once his eyes adjusted, there was plenty of ambient light seeping through exterior windows and doors.
Thirty seconds to the elevator. Up two levels.
Down the hall to the right. Wait two minutes before proceeding.
Two more lefts, and he was in position.
Then came the only part of the mission that had scared him. He’d worn special shoes to reduce noise on the polished marble floor, and oiled the wheels and joints on the cart to make sure they didn’t rattle or squeak. Out of the darkness to the right, he saw a flashlight sweeping across the room, a circle of yellow reflecting off the walls, creating echoes of illumination. He held his breath and subconsciously sucked in his stomach, as if that would make him harder to see. The light moved away down an adjacent hallway.
More promises kept.
After a few deep breaths, he began the walk out into the cavernous rotunda, wide open and exposed, and put the package on display.
But this wasn’t just a Federal Express drop-and-run delivery.
There were very specific requirements for the presentation. A flag draped in a particular manner. Flowers and plants arranged just so. Battery-powered lights deployed to create just the right atmosphere. And a typed note placed so that nobody could miss it.
The moon shone down through the upper windows of the rotunda, creating shadows and shimmering light as it bounced off the beams he’d just arranged. He had no idea who had come up with this macabre display and didn’t really care. He just wanted to get in, get the job done, and get out undetected.
He checked his watch again to verify the timing. Spot-on.
He pulled a photo from his pocket that showed how the scene should look. He checked everything to make sure he’d done it right. Then he realized he’d almost forgotten the most important item.
He pulled back a white sheet, tucked it in on either side of the box, and then lifted open the top half of the container.
All he got in return was a blank stare.
He wasn’t the squeamish type, but shivers ran up and down his spine as her bronze skin reflected in the light and her beautiful eyes bored through him accusingly. The deed had been done by someone else, but he was the delivery boy.
And now a United States senator was on display in a state capitol rotunda.
He didn’t have any insight into the grand plan, but he was sure of one thing. There were other rotundas just like this one. And they each had a special delivery.
Reprinted from The Blockchain Syndicate with the permission of Greenleaf Book Group Press. Copyright © 2025 by Robbie Bach.
About the Author
Robbie Bach joined Microsoft in 1988. Over the next twenty-two years, he worked in various marketing, general management, and business leadership roles, including supporting the successful launch and expansion of Microsoft Office. As Chief Xbox Officer, he led the creation and development of the Xbox business, including the launch of the Xbox and its highly popular successor, the Xbox 360. He retired from Microsoft as the president of the Entertainment and Devices Division in 2010.
In his new role as a civic engineer, Robbie works with corporate, philanthropic, and civic organizations that are driving positive change in our communities. He guest lectures extensively at various colleges and universities and speaks to corporate, civic, and trade association audiences across the country. In 2015, he published his first book, Xbox Revisited: A Game Plan for Corporate and Civic Renewal. His debut novel featuring Tamika Smith, The Wilkes Insurrection, was published in 2021.
He is the former chairman and current board member at the Bipartisan Policy Center. He serves on the national board of governors for Boys and Girls Clubs of America and was the chairman of that board from 2009 to 2011. He is also a board member for Habitat for Humanity International and Genius Sports. He previously served as a board member of the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, Sonos Inc., Brooks Running Company, the Space Needle Inc., Magic Leap, and Year Up Puget Sound. He is the co-owner of Manini’s Inc., a company specializing in gluten-free foods.
He was an Arjay Miller Scholar at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where he earned his MBA, and a Morehead Scholar at the University of North Carolina, where he earned his degree in economics. He and his wife, Pauline, reside in Washington State, with their yellow lab, Roscoe. They have three grown children and two grandchildren.
