title: Sons and Princes
author: James Lepore
genre: crime thriller
published: 2011
source: sent by publisher for review
pages: 330
first line: Joe Black Massi's funeral had been a singular experience.
rated: 3 1/2 stars out of 5
About:
Sons and Princes is a gritty novel about family, betrayal, revenge, drugs and the mob.
Chris Massi's father was a mafia assassin and his ex-father in law is a mob boss.
Chris himself was an successful attorney and has been trying to live the straight and narrow life with is wife and children. A series of events had him disbarred, but Chris wants nothing to do with the mafia.
A now divorced Chris wants to keep his children out of the mob scene more than ever. His fourteen year old son Matt however, seems to be going toward a life of crime, and with a powerful grandfather it will be easy for him to be part of the mob.
Chris makes a deal with his ex-father in law, Junior Boy DiGiglio. He will kill someone for him if Junior Boy leaves his grandson Matt alone.
Chris' younger brother Joseph is a heroin junkie. Joseph has survived by being the boy toy of lonely rich women, in turn they pay him an allowance and ask him no questions.
Ed Dolan was Chris' best friend growing up, but when Chris' father killed Ed's, Ed has grown to hate Chris with a vengeance.
Michele Mathias is a heroin addict who will stop at nothing to get her next fix. When her roomate turns up dead however, she finds herself to be the next target.
Michele and Chris' lives become intertwined as these two try to find a way to save themselves and the ones they love.
My thoughts:
I am a fan of James Lepore's, having read A World I Never Made and Blood of My Brother.
When I began reading Sons and Princes, I had good expectations. I'm happy to say this book didn't disappoint.
The storyline takes twists and turns as it takes the reader into the seedy underworld of the mob. You see a world that's not pretty. Drugs, sex, revenge and violence are all weaved within the storyline set in New York and New Jersey.
Two of the main characters are heroin addicts and as you read Lepore really drags you into a harsh world where nothing is sugar coated.
I liked how the story would take a twist here and there that I wasn't expecting. Joseph, Chris' brother, really impressed me with his courage and sheer determination.
Chris himself was a complex and likable character. He battled personal demons and did what he felt he had to do to keep his family safe. He has a good heart.
The relationship between Chris and Michele had me intrigued. I wanted to see what would become of these two.
LePore wraps the ending up really well and I was satisfied with the conclusion as well as surprised with a few reveals.
When he lay down on the sofa to sleep on Saturday night, Chris smiled as he stared up at the shadowy ceiling. He had forgotten completely about the things that had been so pressing on his mind and his heart in the lifetime prior to the one he had just begun: his disbarment and so-called public disgrace, the devil's bargain that Junior Boy had offered him, the anxiety about what to do for a living. After reading Joseph's letter at La Luna, he had stepped into a new world where there was no room for such mundane worries. Such are the blessings of big trouble: it puts little trouble in perspective.
p. 244
I recommend Sons and Princes for anyone looking to read a good crime thriller with memorable characters and a suspenseful, fast paced plot.
Special thanks to Lou Aronica for making this possible.
