Customer Reviews

Blood of My Brother

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As a mother of two busy little ones, my patience for slow-to-start novels is not what it used to be. So when I first cracked into Blood of My Brother, I found myself wishing that the pace was a little faster.
But fear not, James LePore is just setting the stage in the early pages for what turns out to be a unique thriller, filled with exciting plot twists up to the very end.
I enjoyed James' matter-of-fact style that somehow, magically, depicts the story in real-life color. The characters still live on in my mind; a true test of great book for me.
Blood of My Brother is a wonderful read that's not to be missed.

This is a novel that deals with important issues, friendship, loyalty, integrity and justice.

Attorney Jay Cassio's best friend, Dan Del Colliano, is murdered, apparently by professionals. Jay feels that he owes it to his friend's memory, to find out why Dan was killed and then punish those responsible.

Dan had told Jay that a woman named Donna Kelly was holding money for one of Dan's clients, Bryce Powers. Now Bryce and Bryce's wife, Kate, were dead in what police claim is a murder-suicide. Donna told Dan that she would pay him to bring the $500,000 to her in Florida.

Jay and Dan had grown up in the mean streets of Newark, New Jersey at the time of the race riots of 1967. A time when much of Newark's downtown was burned out and the area began to die out.

There is a parallel story taking place in Mexico City when a girl named Isabel is placed in a convent in 1977 and then removed in 1991 as she grew into a lovely woman. She had been visited by a man named Herman who she thought of as an uncle. However, when Herman removed her from the convent, his goal was to get Isabel to work for him in the worst manner.

Jay is warned by the FBI to stop looking into Bryce Powers' death and any connection to Donna Kelly. Then he looks into the papers he had from Bryce and sees that Powers had illegal activities with a man named Herman Santaria and that Santaria's brother, Lazaro is the attorney general in Mexico.

As Jay arrives in Florida and searches for Donna, the tension mounts. Two gunman are searching for both Jay and Donna and are out to elliminate them for their Mexican superiors.

There is plenty of action and the characters are realistically described and very sympathetic. It is as if Jay and Isable are two innocents and the reader is turning the pages to see if they will be devoured by the hunters.

Well done and recommended.

Jay Casio's childhood friend Dan Del Colliano is murdered execution style. Since Dan is Jay's best friend he vows vengeance. In another part of the world, Isabel Perez is trained to be a prostitute for Mexico's' elite. Somehow these two chacaters are connected and as we read the story we found out why. Told in flashbacks and present tense, we learn about the individuals and what makes them who there are. This suspenseful novel has corruption, some action and some character development; a little slow at first but picks up.

I am a big fan of James LePore's debut novel, A WORLD I NEVER MADE, and read BLOOD OF MY BROTHER thinking the first couldn't be topped. I have to say that the supporting character, Isabel, does top the daughter and even the French policewoman in Mr. LePore's first book. She is real, compelling, flawed, and dazzling--and makes for a book whose outcome you will be tied up in. I hope more people discover this talented author.

1.) Reasons you chose this book

I read 'A World I Never Made,' by the author back in 2009, loved it and when James contacted me about reading this one I immediately said yes.

2.) Reasons you liked or disliked this book

* I liked the characters that James brought to life. I could picture having a friend much like Jay and Dan. I understood their relationship and the bond that they forged.
* I had a hard time getting into the pace of the story. I found myself getting lost and at times not really feeling vested in the story.
* I feel bad that I didn't enjoy it because I loved LePore's earlier work. I think I just had a tough time trying to connect to a character. This may boil down to something as simple as, "just not the right time for this book."

3. Reasons for recommending:

* I would like to advise you to read the following reviews for this book. What might not work for me could possibly be the best book you've read this year!

I found this book on the "free Kindle Top 100" list and downloaded it after reading the description and some of the reviews. I Just give the book 2 stars, as in "just OK". I will not go into the story-line, many other reviews have already done this so I will just rate the book on its elements (0 to 5 being highest):

Protagonist Development: 3
Antagonist Development: 2
Minor Character Development: 1
Storyline: 2
Setting: 2
Theme: 2
Writing Style: 2
Overall Rating: 2

I read about 4 books a week and for the first time EVER I put down a book 50% through and don't plan on ever finishing it. There were too many characters and names introduced and it became hard to follow. Too many stories within a story for me and in the middle I realized that I liked the main character but just really didn't care who did it or why. I enjoyed the last Lepore book I read very much and will give him another chance in the future.

I selected this book a week ago because it was free. I started reading it this morning and can't stop reading it. I keep saying one more page and then ten pages have gone by. Love the relationship between the Blood Brothers...it's heartfelt and I can read how much they cared for each other. I'm already sad that one of the characters has been murdered. Like I said I just started reading it however I say Get it Now before it's no longer free--you won't be sorry. Going back to reading it because it really is a well written page turner....Did I say get this book...what are you waiting for?

This is so well-written, that I had to write the review at the halfway point. Started it yesterday and could have easily finished it. Instead, I saved the last half to look forward to today. Enjoying everything about it, even the slow start, I feel the writer's style has brought me along with Jay in unraveling the well-constructed plot. Characters are engaging and I'm thrilled to have found a book I can get absorbed in, as I find that I have to go through several stinkeroos before finding a topnotch writer. I'm looking forward to finishing this book today.

The bonds created in Jay and Dan's youth forge who they become and set distant wheels in motion for what is to follow. Few do what they must to stay true to their friends regardless of the consequences. This is a unique and special kind of loyalty which runs deep and is difficult to explain.

Blood Of My Brother is an engrossing story about an harrowing journey one friend must take to be true to himself and his "brother". At the conclusion of this journey you get the sense that somehow through this journey Jay and Dan have re-connected on the streets of Newark.

No fluff here, just a great story about friendship, loss, discovery and things in life that money can't buy.