Mark Gilleo

From the sweatshops of Saipan to the powerful offices of Washington DC, author Mark Gilleo weaves an intriguing international political thriller of corruption, greed, and the injustice and dismal working conditions in overseas sweatshops.

After Jake Patrick lost his mother to cancer, he reluctantly takes an internship at his estranged father's import/export company, Winthrop Enterprises, in order to try to get his life back on track. But his new position in the company is anything but cushy show more ... it will send him on a dangerous adventure that will put him right in the middle of an international scandal that could threaten his life!

Sweat is a riveting story full of scandal, conspiracy, corruption, greed and murder that takes the reader on a thrilling roller coaster ride of an adventure! Masterfully written in the third person person narrative, and rich in description and vivid details, this action-packed compelling story transports the reader around the globe with stops in Seattle, Washington, Saipan and Washington DC for behind the scene glimpses into international political and business corruption and injustice within the world of illegal import/export sweatshops. With enough corruption, greed, bribery, blackmail, kidnappings, assassination attempts, murder and even a bit of romance thrown into the mix, this fast-paced action thriller is a compelling page turner that will keep you guessing and wanting more.

From greedy and corrupt politicians and businessmen, to organized crime, to the downtrodden sweatshop workers, Sweat has a variety of cast of characters who are realistic and complex people, who will captivate you with their interweaving involvement and actions throughout the story. The character dialogues are realistic and intriguing, they grab your attention and make you feel like you are watching the interactions occur.

The author's description of the horrible working conditions and treatment of the workers in the sweatshops was a fascinating yet disturbing portrayal. The author engages the reader with some very thought provoking descriptions that will invoke a range of emotions from anger and disgust towards the corrupt politicians and businessmen, to horror and compassion for the oppressed sweatshop worker. Likewise, the author also provides some really great insightful descriptions into the behind the scenes political wheeling-dealing that goes on in the US Senate and in the offices of the big corporations.

Sweat is an international political thriller that will captivate you with its riveting behind the scenes glimpse into the greed, corruption and scandals that encompasses the illegal dealings within the political and business world.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review and participation in a virtual book tour event hosted by Partners In Crime Virtual Book Tours.

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When I saw a mystery/thriller set in Tupelo, Mississippi, I knew I must read it. I grew up in a town about a half hour's distance from Tupelo, and Tupelo was the large town where we did all our shopping. Even after I moved from north Mississippi to other parts of the country, I spent a great deal of time there on extended trips to visit my parents and other family. In other words, I was intimately acquainted with the book's setting.

Edward who works for a Japanese plant supplying parts to the show more Blue Springs Toyota plant distrusts the Lee County Sheriff's Department's investigation into his wife's murder. Circumstantial evidence points to a window contractor from a Verona window firm doing work on his home. The sheriff's department names Edward their chief suspect in a press conference. Edward takes his concerns to the FBI. When it seems even the FBI isn't seriously concerned with its investigation, Edward takes matters into his own hands by calling in a favor to a Japanese mafia leader.

From this point the book is action-packed but leaves the reader questioning the probability of things playing out the way they did. I enjoyed the many references to places mentioned. It is, however, sad one of those places, The Tupelo Automobile Museum, is closing at the end of the month. The author seems to not like the area very much and portrays cronyism in law enforcement. While I know this exists to some extent in some departments in the northeast Mississippi area particularly at the county level due to the politics of sheriff elections, the author overplayed its depth. After reading descriptions of the author's previous works, I wonder why he chose a Tupelo rather than District of Columbia setting. His biography mentions no connection to the Tupelo area. It seems authors decide to go to Mississippi when they want to portray cronyism or incompetence even though the same things occur everywhere. This Mississippi native thinks it is time for outsiders to quit giving the state a bad name. show less

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR by Mark Gilleo
Published by The Story Plant
ISBN-10: 1611880343
ISBN-13: 978-1611880342
At the request of The Story Plant, an ARC digital edition was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion.

Synopsis (from the publisher): Clark Hayden is a graduate student trying to help his mother navigate through the loss of his father while she continues to live in their house near Washington DC. With his mother’s diminishing mental capacity becoming the norm, Clark expects a show more certain amount of craziness as he heads home for the holidays. What he couldn’t possibly anticipate, though, is that he would find himself catapulted into the middle of a terrorist operation. As the holiday festivities reach a crescendo, a terrorist cell – which happens to be across the street – is activated. Suddenly Clark is discovering things he never knew about deadly chemicals, secret government operations, suspiciously missing neighbors, and the intentions of a gorgeous IRS auditor. Clark’s quiet suburban neighborhood is about to become one of the most deadly places on the planet, and it’s up to Clark to prevent the loss of hundreds of thousands of innocent lives in the nation’s capital.

Fast, acerbic, wise and endlessly exciting, LOVE THY NEIGHBOR marks the unforgettable debut of a startling new voice in suspense fiction.

My Thoughts and Opinion: Where do I begin? OK..let's start off by me proving myself wrong again with first impressions. I'm thinking this book is going to be another international espionage spy novel (not high up on my favorite read lists), 438 pages (great..... this will take me weeks to read.... will probably seem seem like a lot more because of what I just mentioned) and it's a debut novel!!! OK...Let's get this read.

The novel starts off with an Author's Note that states It's True. And I am hooked!! This debut author has me, but now comes the story, will he hold my attention for 438 pages? As I continue to read, his writing style is so graphic in detail that I actually had the ability to create a clear and vivid imagery in my mind, almost like I am watching a movie, which continues throughout the book. He has the same ability of bringing the cast of characters to life and the settings of the scenes as if I was present and a bystander. Throughout the book there were multiple twists and turns and chapters with mini cliff hangers that made this reader have to "read just one more chapter" but then realizing I was ten chapters later. The suspense was non stop, a definite page turner. There were also a couple of scenes (do not want to include spoilers) that I found myself laughing out loud. A brilliant and compelling read!!!

I found myself thinking several things when I finished this novel. Yes, I was wrong. I could not put this book down, all 438 pages of it. What I thought was going to take me weeks to read, took me a matter of a couple of days because it was so engrossing. A masterful written work of fiction, but could it become a reality? I also thought that this novel would make for a great movie. And most importantly, this is an author to put on your radar. His writing is that of a seasoned author. I say Bravo Mr. Gilleo!!!

My Rating: 5 show less

Love Thy Neighbour follows the lives of two neighbours. One is Clark Hayden who has returned from university to look after his mother who is rapidly sucumbing to dementia in the wake of her husbands recent death. The other is the polite subserviant Pakistani wife, Ariana Amin.

Maria Hayden throws the neighbourly trust into disarray when she informs the authorities that she believes three terrorists turned up on her doorstep.Police officers make a half-hearted enquiry and infer that Maria’s show more mental capacity renders the information unreliable. Clark’s curiosity is piqued however and inadvertently begins his own private investigation of the quiet neighbours over the road. Clark is dragged into international terrorism, CIA cover-ups and a deadly plan that no one else seems wise to.

Mark Gilleo builds the story through layers of interweaving narratives giving every possible perspective in a short time frame. Although the pace is slow to begin with each scene is key to the finale. Even the characters that join the plot at a late stage are as well formed and memorable as those that dominated the beginning.

Gilleo gives the reader both the terrorists’ perspective and those against them without leading the reader to empathise with either party. Each individual’s arc through the novel seems as worthy and dramatic as the next.

Due to the thriller-nature of the novel the slow set up may put off some readers. However the more patient reader will be rewarded with a tense, climatic finish neatly rounding up all of the loose ends.

Gilleo is an exciting new voice in the market bringing together intelligent plots and memorable characters. His next novel Sweat is due to be published this year. show less