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Most of Nelson DeMille's novels are action-packed thrillers involving some sort of political or military cover-up that could threaten the free world. His heroes are bullheaded and they crack wise, but they know what the stakes are and will do what they can to stop a greater catastrophe. However, every once in a while he comes up with a more serious type of book, a drama. This is the category that THE GATE HOUSE falls into. It reads a bit like a Pat Conroy with a bit of Tennessee Williams mixed in, but all in all it is still a Nelson DeMille work. John Sutter escaped the Gold Coast of Long Island about ten years ago after his now ex-wife killed her Mafia don lover and was acquitted. Once he left, he never looked back. Now he has come back in part to straighten out his legal residency, since he is about to lose his interest in the gatehouse once its present occupant, an old family retainer, dies. Sutter is at a crossroads in his life and he has landed I a mess. Anthony, the son of Frank Bellarosa, Susan's victim, wants to avenge his father's death while on the other hand, Susan Stanhope Sutter wants to reconnect with the father of her children. Regardless of how it all turns out, blood will be spilled and heartbreak abound. It could go either way in this novel. THE GATE HOUSE is a bit heavy on the melodrama and John Sutter's first-person, almost stream-of-consciousness, narrative is a somewhat grating at times. Sutter is sarcastic, constantly angry, and a bit standoffish, but he does get his point across throughout the book. The story also takes place a year after the tragic events of September 11, 2001 and the author has a lot to say about the subject. But since that event has little to do with the story, these observations are largely a distraction. THE GATE HOUSE is overly long and overly done. If you like heavy drama, this book might work for you. Just go with your eyes wide open and know that this is not the usual Nelson DeMille fare.
Reviewed by Angel L. Soto, October 2008
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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)
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