Customer Reviews

The Foursome: A Novel

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Last year, I read McCallister's other Eddie Caminetti book, The Green, which detailed his participation in the Ryder Cup. Because The Green was so good, I really looked forward to reading The Foursome. Now, I'm a bit disappointed.

Don't get me wrong . . . The Foursome is still a pretty good book with an interesting premise - that people can confront their shortcomings and make positive changes in their lives. The problem with the book, however, is that it focuses upon the least interesting characters, the flawed golfers who travel to Swithen Bairn, and less upon Eddie Caminetti.

Ultimately, I liked The Green better than The Foursome because The Green allowed the reader to benefit from Eddie's wisdom after having experienced it firsthand. In The Foursome, the action focuses upon Eddie's opponents and left me with the feeling that I would have enjoyed the book more if it was told from the perspective of Eddie's teammates who were playing against them.

I loved "The Green", as you will note if you look at my review and I was really looking forward to reconnecting to some of the characters from that book and enjoying the writing of another humorous golf adventure. Unfortunately, just like no one "owns" a golf game, Troon McAllister demonstrates that no one "owns" the formula to writing a successful sequel. The story starts out promisingly enough as you learn some of the foibles and fables of those that make up this particular foresome who are about to take their annual golfing vacation. This year they are off to Swithen Bairn, the most exclusive golf resort in the world where if you don't think you have had the vacation of a lifetime, you don't pay. The cost for the week is on the order of $18,000, so the promotional come on is not given lightly. As the intrepid four begin their vacation they are drawn into a match with "the owners", one of whom is Eddie Camminetti of recent Ryder Cup fame from "The Green". As the week plays out the struggle between The Foursome against The Owners and with each other takes some twists and turns that are less than pleasant until you feel you are trapped in some horrendous Twi-Light Zone and that all is missing is the soothing voice of Rod Serling. What was fun and funny turns ugly and mean and the story, to my thinking rather loses its way until it is tied up at the end with an Epilogue that is not worthy of the author. The story had possibilities, but they got lost somewhere on the back nine of the second match and never recovered.

I love the way McAllister takes us right down to the characters' level instead of looking at them from on high; great ability to dive inside people's heads. Profound, yet still an exciting and very funny page turner. I don't know the first thing about golf but that sport is just a metaphor here - could have been lawn darts or cricket.

What do you think would happen if you and three of your best golfing and gambling buddies were set down in the middle of a lush tropical isle where you had nothing to do but eat and drink and play golf on the world's most beautiful course? Would it turn out to be the experience of a lifetime -- or Lord of the Flies? That in a nutshell is the premise of Troon McAllister's The Foursome, a follow-up to The Green. But to call this a book about golf would be like saying Moby Dick is about a whale. Troon McAllister, almost alone among today's novelists, has a true moral vision, and he wants to engage us with that vision as we watch these four friends move from callousness and cynicism (and far worse) to redemption as they interact with each other and the staff at the luxurious resort they've been mysteriously spirited off to. Along the way the author mixes in a dollop of social commentary (though never in a manner that gets in the way of the story), as well as a good deal of information about how certain sectors of the business world operate (or more correctly, mis-operate). McAllister also is able to combine humor and human pathos in a single sentence in a way that few authors can. All in all, this is one of the most entertaining books of the year, doing what novels are supposed to do: show us interesting people doing interesting things, and with more suspense than a dozen thrillers. I recommend it (and The Green) without reservation to anyone interested in golf ... or people.

The Foursome, along with The Green, are extremely fun and entertaining reads. For golfing fans, these books are written so well and the images crafted so vividly that you can not help but be drawn into the competition on the pages. Main character, Eddie Caminetti will keep you rivited to every word he says,and you should listen and learn from them. I can't wait for more from Mr. Mcallister.

Not a bad follow-up to "The Green," but certainly not on par with it either. Troon McAllister takes the reader down a path of testing human nature over friendship and how the foursome deal with life after a memorable golf experience.

Not quite as entertaining (retorically) as "The Green." I kept reading and reading in hopes of getting the same kind of humor from the characters as in Troon's first book, but ended up settling for a life-enduring lesson (or at least something to think about).

You will come out of it saying to yourself "... there are some things that I can change in my life ..."

A good read by all means.

Another great one from Troon! Eddie Caminetti is a true hero in this novel about golf and, more importantly, character. The foursome in the book are recognizable folks we see every day - pompous, sneaky, timid, verbose, ... and their respective flaws are drawn out and exposed on the golf course. Whether or not you love golf, you'll thoroughly enjoy this tale. I've read both of McAllister's golf novels and recently bought the third (Scratch). I have found his writing to be so engrossing that it is almost a disappointment when you reach that last page. Read and enjoy!

Troon McAllister strikes again. So does Eddie Caminetti of course. This is episode two for McAllister's wonderful character, a broader and less spotlighted episode (in the first Caminetti plays in the Ryder Cup), but still a wonderfully funny story filled with instantly recognizable characters.

A more subtle and intricately constructed book than The Green, this is the story of 4 wealthy friends who go off in search of a memorable golf vacation. They certainly find one and along the way we are treated to a most memorable golf novel. Golf, human nature and comedy are baked in liberal quantities in this fantastic yarn about hustling, greed and character flaws. So much is packed into these pages it's difficult to imagine the author has much scope left for a third episode for Eddie Caminetti. Lovers of Golf novels can only hope . . .

What a mistake to think this one is only for golfers! A beautiful morality tale wrapped in a thriller inside a masterfully written piece of literature. I can hardly wait for the movie...

There are a lot of reviews comparing this book to its predecessor, THE GREEN, which is reasonable. However, in rating it, it should be rated on its own, not relative to one other book. THE FOURSOME may not be quite the rare gem THE GREEN was, but it is still one of the best books of its kind you'll ever read, and is terrific on its own, and fully merits five stars. I'd hate to think that readers of these reviews will get a misimpression that THE FOURSOME is anything but a superb story brilliantly told.