Customer Reviews

Master of the Game

5 star:		(103)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Sidney Sheldon's story of big business, lust, greed, and revenge spans four generations, starting with Jamie McGregor, who leaves Scotland in 1850 to strike it rich in the diamond fields of South Africa. He overcomes many hardships, becomes a millionaire, and starts the Kruger-Brent company. His daughter, Kate, pushes the company until it becomes a world-wide conglomerate, and moves her headquarters to America. To her chagrin, her son Tony wants to be a painter, not a businessman. His twin daughters, Alexandra and Eve, are as different as can be. One of them may be a killer...

The book is absolutely riveting, with Jamie's adventures putting him in a new danger on every page. Kate, the so-called Master of the Game, spends most of her ninety years buying and manipulating everyone in her path, in her relentless search for a worthy corporate successor. As in all of Sheldon's books, there is action, suspense, romance, and memorable characters that his fans are sure to enjoy.

Kona

Sheldon was at the top of his game when he wrote Master of the Game. It is a classic Family Saga/Epic that spans decades. Many writers tried to duplicate Sheldon's success with the same formula but so many fell short because Sheldon was one of, if not the best when came to writing family drama. This is an excellent read, one I can guarantee will not only hold your attention anc capture your imagination, it will not allow you to put it down, until you're finished.

This is the first Sydney Sheldon novel I've read. You don't often find stories this enticing. I was hooked from the first page, a vivid scene of the 90-year old heroine surveying her life, her family, and ghosts of old mistakes come back to haunt her. Despite its hefty length, this book kept me coming back for more, daydreaming at work about what would happen next, and staying up late at night to get to the next chapter. I read it in just a few days even though with my schedule it usually takes me at least a week to finish a book.

However, despite the story's addictive sway, Sheldon's writing style did not meet my expectations. After reading all the glowing reviews at Amazon.com, I expected this to be a terrific epic that would leave me awed and inspired, something in the vein of Gone With the Wind or Lonesome Dove. Instead, "Master of the Game" is more akin to John Jake's "North and South" -- yes, it is a multigenerational saga full of adventure, betrayal, and suspense, but it resembles a television screenplay more than a novel. The author moves from scene to scene, from tragedies to triumphs and back again, at a breakneck pace with only the barest attention paid to character development and plausibility. While I enjoyed the twists and turns of the story, it started to seem a bit melodramatic and predictable. You didn't have to be a brain surgeon to realize that [spoiler alert!] Salomon van der Mewre was going to cheat Jamie McGregor out of the money. Or that Tony would fall in love with Marianne rather than Lucy - and that it was Kate's plan all along. [end spoiler].

This book is pure brain candy, all fun with no substance. Similar to a night-time TV soap like Dallas -- you can predict what is going to happen, you know it is wildly improbable, but yet it has just the right mixture of intelligence, ruthlessness, and intrigue to keep you coming back.

This was the first Sidney Sheldon book I have read & what an entertainer! I was utterly surprised at how hooked I was! I'm one of those readers that like to read books one or two chapters a day. With 'Master of the Game', that was an impossible habit to keep.

Overall, this book was excellent! The intensity at which Sheldon has the reader addicted compares to the likes of CRACK! (I'm assuming of course, hehe). Sheldon has a wicked ability to create suspense & hits it with incredible timing throughout. It was difficult to put down this book.

The greatest section is the beginning. The character of Jamie McGregor is forever etched in my memory. What this man endured in order to improve his standard of living a million folds is simply unbelievable! This is one of the best intro's from a novel EVER! 'Sensational' doesn't even describe it.

However, there were a few things throughout the book that Sheldon could have easily improved upon with a few strokes of a pencil. **For those who have NOT read this book, you may want to read the remainder of this review at a later time.**

The way Eve Blackwell 'wacked' George Mellis on the boat did not match the way one expected from her character. After what George did to her, I can't imagine that all she did was stab him! When Eve was 5 years old, she set her sister on FIRE for God's sake, & George the murderer/rapist only gets a stab? That was weak.

Also the last few chapters were a little disappointing... The proper ending would have finished off this incredible book with a 'BANG!', rather than a 'blah.'

This book was recommended to me from Indian film actress Kareena Kapoor after I read a profile about her. 'Master of the Game' happens to be one of her all-time favourites, so I thought I'd see what the hype was about. Anyway, apart from my opinons regarding the story, I fully recommend this book to anyone looking for an entertaining, solid read. Sheldon's talent for storytelling is simply sensational & I'm definitely looking forward to reading more from him. Thanks!

Enzo

This is undoubtedly the best book of Sidney Sheldon's, and probably one of the best novels I have read. The story itself begins in such an enticing manner, with all-time heroine Kate Blackwell, head of Kruger-Brent Ltd. reminisces about the ghosts of her past.The book covers the 100 year-long saga of the Blackwell family. It has incredible twists and turns,(although they seem a bit abrupt at times) and I finished it in one whole sitting.(despite its hefty length) The characters are well-developed and thoroughly enticing. Its not often you can find such a detailed and marvelous book as Master of the Game.

Every time I buy his book I just know I can't go wrong!

And there he did it again - wonderful story, it is about diamond rush, strong & wise people, mad people, love & all the crazy things some people do for love. You must get this book, read it and then agree with me. There is no other way, because you will see - Sidney Sheldon is The Master of The Game :)

I first discovered Sidney Sheldon back in the mid-80s and subsequently went on a reading binge, reading six of his books in as many months, including "Rage of Angels" and "The Sands of Time." But the one book I remember the most, I remember turning the pages furiously with undeniable fervor, was "Master of the Game." This book is far and away Sidney Sheldon's masterpiece. While "The Other Side of Midnight" had its moments, after so many readings the more mediocre novels wear their formulaic plotting on their proverbial sleeves. If I were to recommend any single Sidney Sheldon novel to read, as I did to a co-worker recently who consumed this book in less than a week raving all the while, it would be "Master of the Game." This has all the best trappings of Sidney Sheldon novels: exotic locales, travel, intrigue, lovemaking, adventure, the rich, the ambitious, and all the possible seedy characters in between. This is a page turner without a shadow of a doubt. A solid second purchase recommendation for Sidney Sheldon is "The Sands of Time" which is also epic in its plotting and grand storytelling, but at no point before or since has Sidney Sheldon matched "Master of the Game." I heartily recommend buying this book as soon as possible. "Master of the Game" is a splendid representation of all that is appealing about popular fiction.

'Master of the game' is a novel that has everything a reader looks for in a general fiction book. Love, betrayal, hate, jealousy, poverty, fame, wealth, courage. The book is divided into three parts revolving around three main characters yeilding a beautifully written, well thought out storyline consisting of four generations of a single family. Below is a brief description of the the novel without giving anything away and a justification of why this book is such a good read.

The novel starts out with Jamie McGregor heading to South Africa in search of diamonds. His path to South Africa, his betrayal revenge together his building his empire, his rise to great fame after finding diamonds really appeals to the reader.

Kate Blackwell, Jamie's daughter takes over Jamie's empire. She is that kind of a character whose self-drive, ambitions, power etc.. are vicarously worth loving.She is the master of her game. Her son Tony grows to dislike her and the mind games between mother and son is just too good and keeps the pages turning like no other.

The final part of the book is my favourite. It is for this part alone the book is worth reading. Tony gets two daughters(twins) Eve and Alexandria, one good and one bad and here is where the jealousy starts. One twin is jealous of the other and look to destroy the other. Her plans to destroy the other twin all through her infancy, teenage life is a work of pure genius on the part of Mr. Sheldon.

Trust me, this is a real show-stopper among Sidney Sheldon novels, easily his best(among the ones I've read atleast) and worth the purchase. The plot is superb, the character are the ones you really get the feel off and care about. Worth the buy.

I read the hard cover book several years ago when it very first came out. My Grandfather had gotten it for a birthday present. I am now 30 years old and am finally going to buy it for myself. When asked what my favorite book to read is, I always answer "Master of The Game, by Sidney Sheldon". This book had me from beginning to end. And when the movie made for television was on, I had the book in my hands and my eyes on the television. I would highly recommend this book to anyone. I have yet to read a book better than this. :-)

Sidney Sheldon is brilliant. This novel is one of the best I have ever read. I am also interested in purchasing the miniseries that was shown on television. If anyone knows how I can get a copy, please let me know.