House of Lords [Hardcover]

Philip Rosenberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 7, 2002

The corruption of Jeffrey Blaine begins on the night of his daughter's eighteenth birthday party.That so many of the city's elite have gathered to pay tribute to this man's teenage daughter is testament to his stature as one of New York's most powerful financiers. Yet Blaine himself is bored, chafing, hungry for a fresh new challenge.

While the party is in full swing, an underage woman gets drunk and then is raped by one of Blaine's guests. In the confusion that follows, Blaine agrees not to call the police. His complicity is witnessed by a notorious gossip columnist -- making him vulnerable to a scandal that could destroy him.

Enter Chet Fiore, a young man of shadowy provenance who arrives at the party and immediately sets things in order. Where did he come from? Why is he there? Blaine doesn't know. But Fiore's grace under pressure commands Blaine's attention; and what he eventually learns about Fiore -- that he is a rising figure in organized crime -- both terrifies and energizes him. Fiore reappears early the next morning at Blaine's country house and assures him there won't be a scandal. The gossip columnist "has been taken care of." It won't be long before Blaine learns what Fiore wants in exchange for making the problem go away.

Jeffrey Blaine's straight-arrow life will never be the same. In one sense, he is being blackmailed; in another, Chet Fiore is exactly what Jeffrey Blaine has been looking for. The tempestuous relationship between these two powerful men will take several unexpected detours in what turns out to be a deadly dance of money and corruption that pits organized crime against the glittering world of high society and Wall Street finance.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

An overstuffed thriller that groans "film version" on every page, this is a plodding story of corruption, greed, family disintegration and the Mob. Jeffrey Blaine is an investment banker who's so absurdly successful he can rent out New York's most exclusive restaurant for his spoiled daughter Jessica's 18th birthday party. That Jessica and her friends have also invited a bunch of Sopranos-type thugs does not go unnoticed by Sharon Lamm, a Wall Street reporter sulking over her boring party assignment; by Schliester and Gogarty, organized crime investigators working for the U.S. Attorney's office; or by an aggressive AG wannabe named Elaine Lester. The date rape of a society girl at the party by one of the young thugs brings in Chet Fiore, heir to the organization of Gaetano Falcone and a mobster with a mission, who "handles" the situation. Fiore exploits this opportunity to get his hooks into Jeffrey, intending to use him to launch a massive, unprecedented money-laundering operation. There follow roughly 400 pages of tit-for-tat maneuvers political, economic, sexual among various members of the bloated cast, which comprises mainly familiar faces, from Mafiosos to flashy investors and a bitchy gossip columnist. Rosenberg, a screenwriter and novelist whose solo credits include Contract on Cherry Street and who has written with Robert Tanenbaum, is aiming for a chess match between the gangster and the banker, the outcome of which is visible long before the end.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Wall Street meets the Mob in this dull and uninspired effort from author and screenwriter Rosenberg (To Sir with Love II, etc.). Gangster Chet Fiore needs help in laundering millions in dirty money, so he uses the threat of blackmail to enlist Jeffrey Blaine, a successful investment banker with the requisite know-how. To retain his hold over Blaine, Fiore uses Blaine's daughter as a bargaining chip, knowing that Blaine will do anything to protect her. There's a side story involving federal investigators, and Blaine's wife is also thrown into the mix. Rosenberg draws obvious parallels between Fiore and Blaine in an attempt perhaps to show that, despite their difference in profession, the two men are similar. The point would have been better made if the characters had any level of complexity or invoked sympathy from the reader, or if the action were somewhat more believable. There are many well-written suspense novels out there, but this is not one of them. Not recommended. Craig L. Shufelt, Lane P.L., Fairfield, OH
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: Harper; 1st edition (May 7, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060194154
• ISBN-13: 978-0060194154
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,441,271 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Couldn't put it down!, May 20, 2002

By 

Taube (Boston, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: House of Lords (Hardcover)

"House Of Lords" by Philip Rosenberg is a must read for poeple who enjoy a VERY well written, fast moving story that twists and turns with MANY surprises. Great characters! I usually can figure out where the author is going but not "House of Lords". A great surprise ending. I didn't want the book to end.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A well-told story with good characters, August 29, 2002

By 

James Selth "jselth" (Redondo Beach, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: House of Lords (Hardcover)

This was a fun read from start to finish, with great characters and a compelling story. This was one of the two best novels I have read all year.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sputtered at the end......., June 28, 2002

By 

Timothy J. Haraden "(My $0.02)" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: House of Lords (Hardcover)

Despite its predictability, the story was compelling and kept me interested throughout. Most of the characters were fairly stereotypical: Spoiled Rich Girl, Spoiled Rich Girl's Spoiled Rich Freinds, Bad Boy from Other Side of the Tracks, Ivy League Educated Bored Financial Guy, Bored and Unsatisfied Wife, Mob Underboss Aspiring to be the Boss, Two Bit Mob Soldier/Capo, Exhibtionist Sexy Foreign Wife of Super Rich Guy, Mediocre Career Detective. But the story did take a twist or two that kept it entertaining, but the end was a disappointment. After spending many pages developing characters and plots, the whole thing got tied together neatly at the end rather quickly. Too neat and too quickly--it reminded me of a Brady Bunch episode. It all worked out at the end. Not that many novels regarding the mob are steeped in reality, but the ending here was too neat and clean for a Wall Street meets Godfather story.