James LePore

The novel, A World I Never Made, opens with Patrick Nolan sitting across from a French Inspector. He holds his daughter's suicide note in his hands. He had never been close to his daughter, Megan. After his wife died while giving birth to their only child, Pat held onto his guilt and kept his distance from her. Megan's death brings his regrets to the surface. Only, as Pat will soon discover, it is not Megan's body which lies in the coroner's office. Under the impression that Megan was trying show more to fake her own death, Pat remains silent, going along with the ruse that his daughter is, in fact, dead.

Officer Catherine Laurence of the judiciary police is assigned to keep an eye on Pat Nolan. He is not the only one who knows his daughter is not truly dead, and there are those in power who hope he will lead them to her. Megan's name has turned up on a terrorist watch list, the Saudi police claiming she was involved with the planning of several suicide bombings in Morocco.

Catherine and Pat are thrown together in the search for Megan when they realize someone else is stalking Pat as well--someone who is much more dangerous, and those under his order will not hesitate to kill everyone in their wake. Pat and Catherine must get to Megan before those she is hiding from find her first.

Woven between the chapters of the race to find Megan, is the story of why Megan has gone into hiding, of why she felt the need to lie about her death. Megan, a freelance journalist, has always been an independent spirit, headstrong and motivated. She goes after what she wants, be it a man or a news story. And, in this case, she goes after both. There is much more to her current lover, Abdel al-Lahani, than she at first realizes. She soon finds her very life on the line, and she must flee before it is too late.

The two storylines eventually intersect, the pieces of the puzzle falling into place. Author James LePore has crafted an exciting and heart pounding novel. A father and daughter lost to each other for most of their lives rediscover each other as death chases right on their heels. The death of his wife Lorrie had devastated Pat. He blamed himself. He closed himself off from not only his daughter, but also from letting anyone into his heart. Believing his daughter was dead, even if for a short while, changed all that, as did his meeting of Catherine Laurence, the beautiful detective who carried her own baggage. She, too, had a well guarded heart. At first I wondered at their falling for each other so quickly given their defenses, but taking into account the high emotions, their current circumstances and the common bond they felt for one another, it does fall in the realm of believability.

I was not sure I would like Megan at first. She uses men and in the beginning came across as cold and calculating. She grew on me though. Like her father, she is a complex character with many layers. Her father's absence in her life wounded her and has influenced her life choices. She is intelligent and has a confidence and strength about her, which has seen her come out on top more often than not. It is easy to see why she was drawn to Lahani. He is charming and mysterious. They are very similar in that they hold parts of themselves back from one another. Neither wanting to let the other in, at least not completely. This in juxtaposition to Pat and Catherine whose hearts are just beginning to thaw.

The novel takes the reader all over Europe and North Africa, including France, Germany, the Czech Republic and Morocco. James LePore puts the reader right there in the midst of it all. His descriptions of the locales and people are rich and detailed, which is balanced out by the crisp dialogue.

I was most fascinated by the gypsies. They played a significant part in both Megan and Pat's stories. Their own history and mysticism is touched on ever so slightly in the novel. Having just read Precious by Sandra Novack, in which the mother was born to a gypsies during the Second World War, my interest was particularly heightened as I came across mention of that again in A World I Never Made.

Another aspect of the book that interested me is related to Megan's journalistic work: the culture and influence of Islam, particularly that of fundamental Muslims, in European countries, such as France and Spain. It is not something I have given much thought to but is worth looking into further for a better understanding of world events.

It was easy to get swept up in James LePore's novel. His writing is beautiful and the story is captivating. I really grew to care about the characters, especially Pat. It is a shame it ended so soon. show less

Jay Cassio and Dan Del Colliano have been best friends since the first awful day of the Newark race riots of 1967. Bound together as tightly as brothers throughout their lives, Jay and Dan remain close, though they live very different lives. When Dan, a private Investigator, takes on a dangerous assignment and winds up dead, Jay goes looking for revenge. But the situation isn’t as easy as that because Dan and Jay have been involved in a serious situation that includes extortion, money show more laundering, and murder. It’s only when Jay goes rogue to find Dan’s killers that he discovers a crime syndicate based out of Mexico that wants to erase not only him, but anyone else who might be able to implicate them in their crimes. Now Jay is not only fighting them, but also the devious Agent Markey, who has plans of his own to stop the crime bosses using Jay as bait. When Jay discovers that all his hopes rest on the beautiful and elusive Isabel Sanchez, a woman also on the run, the stakes of the game get higher and higher. In this captivating story of one man’s quest for revenge, LePore brilliantly creates a narrative of high action and even higher tension.

A couple of years ago, I reviewed A World I Never Made by James LePore. Though it wasn’t my normal fare, I found the story to be utterly compelling and wound up having a really positive reaction to LePore’s ability to craft an enticing story around characters I truly cared for. It was one of the only books in the crime/thriller genre I was able to fully appreciate, so when I was offered the chance to review Blood of My Brother, I quickly decided I needed to read this latest installment. I knew very little about the book going in, which for me was actually better because it made the story all the more exciting and interesting, and it enabled me to come at the book with no preconceived notions.

One of the first things I noticed was the way LePore shifted his narrative among different times and places. Normally this gets confusing and irritating, but something about the way it was handled in this particular book made me better appreciate the scope of what was being done with the story. In its past and present reflections and its encompassing several characters and places, the story became energized for me, making the narrative seem much more fluid and cohesive than I think it would have been had the story been told from a static and linear perspective.

The characters were greatly nuanced and fully three dimensional, which is also something that really worked for me in terms of this narrative. Though Jay was rather serious, it wasn’t hard to see why Dan’s murder affected him so deeply and why he wanted to take revenge. There were a host of minor characters as well, most of them some type of law enforcement agents, and each one was distinct and carried a weight all their own. I grew to really dislike Agent Markey and came to think of him as a villain in himself, which gave the book a solid feel, for there was more than one perpetrator of evil here. I liked Isabel’s resourcefulness and ingenuity and felt that there was much more to her than your typical damsel in distress. There was a lot going on with her in terms of her importance to Jay, the crime bosses and the law enforcement agents. Everyone seemed to want something different from her that she was loathe to part with. I felt that she was really the crux of the action in the story and all the other pieces really moved around her.

The action was also quite well done, with tensions and dangers mounting with each successive chapter. It wasn’t the type of story that was predictable or laborious to read; rather it was enthralling to try to figure out just what Jay was going to do next, and a few times I wondered if he was going to make it out alive. There wasn’t a lot of plot contrivance and coincidence in this tale to make things turn out nicely for everyone; instead, LePore takes the time to write carefully and inventively to twist the tale to a natural and believable conclusion that readers will appreciate. Each character played their role perfectly, leading to a harmonious and credible conclusion.

I really enjoyed this second foray into LePore’s work. I like that he writes with confidence and skill and that he’s not afraid to take on some daring plot constructions and sophisticated characters. The fact that this isn’t my genre of preference, yet I enjoyed it so much, should tell you a lot about the book itself, and for those who are looking for a really diverting read, I would recommend this one to you. LePore also has a new book that will be released soon called Sons and Princes, and I’m eager to give that one a read as well. show less

About:
Gods and Fathers is the gritty, fast paced story about Matt DeMarco and the plight he goes on to prove his sons innocence.
Matt is an ex-marine turned successful lawyer. His ex-wife is now married to a rich Syrian businessman. Matt has been estranged from his teenage son Michael, and the two have a strained relationship. Michael is spoiled rotten, due to his step-fathers funds and now finds himself in deep trouble. He is accused of raping and murdering his girlfriend.

Matt is trying to show more prove that his son has been framed. As he tries to prove his son's innocence, he finds this all goes deeper than he first could have imagined.
Crooked politics, terrorism and long kept secrets are all a part of a twisted ploy for revenge.

My thoughts:
Gods and Fathers had me hooked from the start. I really like the way I was swept into this gritty, complex story, where good versus evil and where a father is giving his everything to bring the truth to light and save his estranged son.

The character development was nicely done, the writing was intriguing and fast paced, and this is just what I enjoy about author James LePore's books. He gives you action, suspense, characters you care about and a storyline to immerse yourself in.
I liked that Matt was the good guy but with issues that he needed to resolve.
His ex wife went on to marry a millionaire who lavished gifts on Michael and Matt felt that he could not compete with that. As the story flowed, I got to feel the anguish he feels over not having a good relationship with his son.

Matt's ex-wife Debra, has skeletons in her closet but she only wants to see her son proved innocent, at any cost.
Also in the story is Matt's old flame, a woman named Jade Lee, who has a son of her own and a tainted past that she struggles with.

The story takes on plenty of twists and turns as this becomes a cat and mouse chase with Matt at the lead trying to save his son. Terrorist involvement, crooked politics and revenge are all woven in nicely into a plot that mainly takes place in New York City. There were plenty of 'omg' moments and I found myself in shock as certain truths came to light. The ending was stunning as Matt finds out the truth behind his son's girlfriend's murder.

My one qualm with the book was that I had a hard time keeping all the secondary characters straight. There's plenty going on in the story, and I did find myself flipping back to see who was who, but that didn't deter me from enjoying this book.

James LePore's books tend to remind me of something from Law and Order, and I enjoy that. I recommend this author to fans of thrilling crime stories or for anyone just looking to get swept up into a fast paced, suspenseful read. show less

It has been a while since I have read anything from Mr. LePore. Yet, I can tell you that he still has it. Not that I doubted that he ever lost it. Mr. LePore infuses such life into his stories and characters. This short story was no different.

Instantly, I shared a connection to Zev as well as Carol and Eva. The women were strong. Eva was the wild card in this story. A sexy siren with brains and a strong personality. She and Zev worked well together. The bond that Zev was talking about with show more Carol was evident as he went on his rescue mission to save her.

The Eyes of a Wolf reads like a motion picture movie. One that I would pay to go see. If you have not read a book from Mr. LePore than you are missing out. I hope to not let long periods of time lapse again between books. show less