Washington Decree by Jussi Adler-Olsen

This stand-alone book starts several years ago with a group of individuals who have won a trip to China, where something tragic happens. Then the action moves to many years later, when 3 of China trippers are working in the White House, one is a sheriff, and one is a single mother barely keeping her head above water. I don't want to give a way too much of the plot, but basically, a president is elected who decides to radically change life in America "for its own good," which causes much chaos. At the same time, there is a behind-the-scenes plot involving someone the president trusts, who is trying to amass power on his own. And there's a possibly innocent man on death row, whose time is running out. So the elements for a gripping novel are there. It's just way too long. Though I read it on my Kindle, I think I saw that the printed version was 600 pages long. It would have worked better if the author had lost about 150 pages.

If you're new to this author, I would highly recommend the Department Q series. Though I have to say, in the crazy times we're living in now, what happens in this book (originally written about 10 years ago) seems a lot more possible today than it would have 5 years ago.