The Singles Game
Lauren Weisberger, 2016
Simon & Schuster
352 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781476778211
Summary
The new novel from the New York Times bestselling author of The Devil Wears Prada —a dishy tell-all about a beautiful tennis prodigy who, after changing coaches, suddenly makes headlines on and off the court.
How far would you go to reach the top?
When America’s sweetheart, Charlotte “Charlie” Silver, makes a pact with the devil—the infamously brutal tennis coach Todd Feltner—she finds herself catapulted into a world of celebrity stylists, private parties, charity matches aboard mega-yachts, and secret dates with Hollywood royalty.
Under Todd’s new ruthless regime, Charlie the good girl is out. Todd wants “Warrior Princess” Charlie all the way. After all, no one ever wins big by playing nice.
Celebrity mags and gossip blogs go wild for Charlie as she jets around the globe chasing Grand Slam titles and Page Six headlines. But as the Warrior Princess’s star rises on and off the court, it comes at a cost. In a world obsessed with good looks and hot shots, is Charlie Silver willing to lose herself to win it all?
Sweeping from Wimbledon to the Caribbean, from the US Open to the Mediterranean, The Singles Game is a sexy and wickedly entertaining romp through a world where the stakes are high—and no one plays by the rules. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—March 28, 1977
• Raised—Scranton and Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA
• Education—B.A., Cornell University
• Currently—lives in New York City
Lauren Weisberger is the American author of six novels. She is best known for her 2003 bestseller The Devil Wears Prada, a speculated roman a clef of her real life experience as a put-upon assistant to Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour.
Early life and education
Weisberger was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, to a school teacher mother and a department-store-president turned mortgage-broker father. Weisberger was raised in Conservative Judaism and later Reform Judaism. She spent her early youth in Clarks Summit, Pennsylvania, a small town outside Scranton. At 11, her parents divorced and she and her younger sister, Dana, moved to Allentown, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state, with their mother.
At Parkland High School, in South Whitehall Township near Allentown, Weisberger was involved in intramural sports, some competitive sports, extra projects, and organizations. She graduated in 1995. She attended Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where she was an English major, graduating in 1999.
After college, she traveled as a backpacker through Europe, Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Thailand, India, Nepal, and Hong Kong. Returning home, she moved to Manhattan and was hired as Wintour's assistant at Vogue. She was there for ten months before leaving along with features editor Richard Story. While Weisberger said she felt out of place at the magazine, managing editor Laurie Jones later said, "She seemed to be a perfectly happy, lovely woman".
Weisberger and Story began working for Departures Magazine, an American Express publication, where she wrote 100-word reviews and became an assistant editor. She also published a 2004 article in Playboy magazine.
After mentioning her interest in writing classes to her boss, Richard Story, he referred her to his friend Charles Salzberg. She started writing a story about her time at Vogue, and completed it by trying to write 15 pages every couple of weeks. After repeated urgings, she showed the finished work to agents; it sold within two weeks.
Novels
In 2003, Weisberger's first book, The Devil Wears Prada, was released and spent six months on the New York Times Best Seller List. The book is a semi-fictional but highly critical view of the Manhattan elite. As of July 2006, The Devil Wears Prada was the best-selling mass-market softcover book in the nation, according to Publishers Weekly. The book is largely based on Weisberger's experience at Vogue. There is much speculation that the character of Miranda Priestly represents aspects of Anna Wintour. The fictional Elias-Clark publishing company is said to be modeled after Condé Nast.
The book calls into light the many aspects of one's first job. It also highlights the presumed insanity of the fashion world and the difficulty and pressure a person goes through when trying to balance a demanding job with an adequate social life. The book provides a comical insight into the fashion world. While this book was met with stunning success, one former employee of Anna Wintour, Kate Betts, criticized Weisberger and the book in The New York Times, saying that Weisberger and Wintour are the direct counterparts of their fictional characters and that "Andrea ... is just as much a snob as the snobs she is thrown in with." In 2013 Weisberger published a sequel of the book: Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns.
Weisberger's second novel, Everyone Worth Knowing, was published in fall of 2005 and is based upon the trials and tribulations of the New York City public relations world. It received generally unfavorable reviews. Despite debuting on the New York Times Best Sellers List at No. 10, it dropped off the list in two weeks and was noted for its disappointing sales.
Chasing Harry Winston is Weisberger's third novel, released in 2008. The main characters are three best friend New Yorkers facing the horror of turning 30. The book was panned by critics and was voted "#1 Worst Book of 2008" by Entertainment Weekly.
Last Night at Chateau Marmont was released in 2010 and debuted at No. 9 on the New York Times Bestseller List on September 5, 2010
Revenge Wears Prada, a sequel to The Devil Wears Prada, was released in 2013. It debuted at No. 3 on the New York Times Bestseller List. Weisbeger's sixth book came out in 2016: The Singles Game, a look at the highstakes world of professional tennis.
Short Stories
Her short story "The Bamboo Confessions" is included in the anthology American Girls About Town. It is about a New York City backpacker who travels around the world and begins to view her love life back home in a different light. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 7/11/2013.)
Book Reviews
A sparkling novel about a tennis pro who stages a big comeback with the help of her shark-like new coach…the book zooms along in the great tradition of summer reads…If you’re looking for a fast-paced romance with believable characters, Weisberger serves it up right.
Washington Post
Lauren Weisberger, author of the best-selling The Devil Wears Prada, trades fashion magazine politics for the drama that often follows the elite world of competitive tennis in her new book…Weisberger is able to weave interesting aspects of Charlie's celebrity life and work ethic into the fabric of a sizzling love story.
Readers will rally along with Charlie's entourage.
Associated Press
[The Singles Game is] brilliantly written, fun and so stuffed full with interesting characters you won’t be able to put it down.
Daily Mail (UK)
The Devil Wears Prada scribe turns her biting wit to the high stakes world of women’s pro tennis. Look out for cameos from David Beckham and Princes Will and Harry, not to mention lots of sizzling locker-room antics.
Cosmopolitan
A good-girl tennis star is pushed by her tough-genius coach into intense training—and even more intense celebrity status. Lauren Weisberger does the high life like nobody else.
Glamour.com
Tennis fans will love the spot-on descriptions of life on the tour. Weisberger fans will welcome a protagonist who learns to control her life even while living the dream. And women’s-fiction fans will cheer that they’ve found the perfect beach read.
Booklist
Weisberger follows her formula of launching a naïve young woman into uncharted territory....While it lacks the bite of Weisberger's beloved The Devil Wears Prada, this is still a fun, fast-paced read filled with well-crafted and memorable characters.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add specific questions if and when they're made available by the publisher. In the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion for The Singles Game...then take off on your own:
1. What do you learn from The Singles Game about the professional tennis circuit? Does any of it surprise you? How realistic a portrait do you think Lauren Weisberger has drawn? Do you feel the detail enhanced the book or bogged down the pace?
2. How would you describe the people who inhabit the world of tennis—the players, coaches, and celebrities who hover around its edges or at its very center?
3. How good a tennis player is Charlie? Why do so many of the characters—her father, brother and former coach—want her to retire at 25?
4. Talk about what happens to Charlie's moral compass as she pursues higher rankings under new coach. How do the trappings of success entice young people...or people of any age? What are the dangers of succeeding at any cost?
5. If you've read The Devil Wears Prada (or seen the film), what are the similarities between that book's heroine, Andy, and this book's heroine, Charlie?
6. Talk about life on the road—not only for Charlie, but also for any sports or performance artist or, say, for politicians and business people? What are the hardships? What are the perks? How much time have you spent on the road in your life or career? Does the traveling life appeal to you?
7. The Singles Game is a coming of age story. What does Charlie come to understand about herself by the end of the novel?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Falling
Jane Green, 2016
Penguin Publishing
384 pp.
ISBN-13: 9780399583285
Summary
A novel about the pleasure and meaning of finding a home—and family—where you least expect them...
When Emma Montague left the strict confines of upper-crust British life for New York, she felt sure it would make her happy. Away from her parents and expectations, she felt liberated, throwing herself into Manhattan life replete with a high-paying job, a gorgeous apartment, and a string of successful boyfriends.
But the cutthroat world of finance and relentless pursuit of more began to take its toll. This wasn’t the life she wanted either.
On the move again, Emma settles in the picturesque waterfront town of Westport, Connecticut, a world apart from both England and Manhattan. It is here that she begins to confront what it is she really wants from her life. With no job, and knowing only one person in town, she channels her passion for creating beautiful spaces into remaking the dilapidated cottage she rents from Dominic, a local handyman who lives next door with his six-year-old son.
Unlike any man Emma has ever known, Dominic is confident, grounded, and committed to being present for his son whose mother fled shortly after he was born. They become friends, and slowly much more, as Emma finds herself feeling at home in a way she never has before.
But just as they start to imagine a life together as a family, fate intervenes in the most shocking of ways. For the first time, Emma has to stay and fight for what she loves, for the truth she has discovered about herself, or risk losing it all.
In a novel of changing seasons, shifting lives, and selfless love, a story unfolds—of one woman’s far-reaching journey to discover who she is truly meant to be. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—May 31, 1968
• Where—London, England, UK
• Education—University of Wales
• Currently—lives in Westport, Connecticut, USA
Jane Green is the pen name of Jane Green Warburg, an English author of women's novels. Together with Helen Fielding she is considered a founder of the genre known as chick lit.
Green was born in London, England. She attended the University of Wales, Aberystwyth and worked as a journalist throughout her twenties, writing women's features for the Daily Express, Daily Mail, Cosmopolitan and others. At 27 she published her first book, Straight Talking, which went straight on to the Bestseller lists, and launched her career as "the queen of chick lit".
Frequent themes in her most recent books, include cooking, class wars, children, infidelity, and female friendships. She says she does not write about her life, but is inspired by the themes of her life.
She is the author of more than 15 novels, several (The Beach House, Second Chance, and Dune Road) having been listed on the New York Times bestseller list. Her other novels Another Piece of My Heart (2012), Family Pictures (2013), and Tempting Fate (2014) received wide acclaim.
In addition to novels, she has taught at writers conferences, and writes for various publications including the Sunday Times, Parade magazine, Wowowow.com, and Huffington Post.
Green now lives in Connecticut with her second husband, Ian Warburg, six children, two dogs and three cats. Actively philanthropic, her foremost charities are The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp (Paul Newman's camp for children with life-threatening illnesses), Bethel Recovery Center, and various breast cancer charities. She is also a supporter of the Westport Public Library, and the Westport Country Playhouse. (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 4/20/2014.)
Book Reviews
[A]lthough Emma could certainly be a more compelling heroine (most of the main events of the plot happen to her without requiring much action or decision on her part), her community is full of nuanced characters that elevate the story above its cookie-cutter beats and add extra impact to the tearjerker ending.
Publishers Weekly
Emma Montague, an English expat, has just moved from her high-powered, stressful banking job in Manhattan to the small suburb of Westport, CT.... [T]those who enjoy a love story with heart will adore this tale of homecoming and transformation from Green .—Kristen Stewart, Pearland Lib., Brazoria Cty. Lib. Syst., TX
Library Journal
When Emma Montague left England behind, she embarked on a fast-paced and stressful financial career in Manhattan..... Though Emma's life changes drastically, the reliance on cliches and all-too-familiar tropes makes it difficult to reach an emotional payoff.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
We'll add specific questions if and when they're made available by the publisher. In the meantime, use our LitLovers talking points to help start a discussion...then take off on your own:
1. Why did Emma leave England for the U.S.? What did she want to escape from, and what did she hope to find across the pond?
2. Emma achieves success in the financial world. What, however, is lacking in her life? Why does she want a change?
3. Once she begins to build her new business in Westport, Emma comes to know her clients quite well, perhaps better than they know themselves. How might a designer come to learn about a person's inner life? What do our homes reflect about any of us? About you, for instance?
4. Is the relationship between Emma and Dominic realistic? Do you feel the chemistry between the two? Talk about the numerous obstacles the couple has to overcome.
5. What about Jesse? Does Jane Gre.en do a good job of portraying a six-year-old boy? Talk about his complicated feelings regarding Emma...and hers regarding him.
6. How do the two sets of parents differ from one another, especially in their responses to Emma and Dominic?
7. Talk about the different kinds of love found in Falling. What exactly is the meaning of the "love is kindness" mantra (it comes up three times in the course of the book)? What about family—what makes a family?
8. Does this book engage you? Which characters do you find more compelling than others? If you've read other books by Green, does this live up to, fall short of, or surpass her other novels?
9. How does socioeconomic class come into play in this novel?
10. Were you expecting the final twist? How did you feel by the ending?
(Questions by LitLovers. Please feel free to use them, online or off, with attribution. Thanks.)
Lily and the Octopus
Steven Rowley, 2016
Simon & Schuster
370 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781501126222
Summary
An epic adventure of the heart. When you sit down with Lily and the Octopus, you will be taken on an unforgettable ride.
The magic of this novel is in the read, and we don’t want to spoil it by giving away too many details.
We can tell you that this is a story about that special someone: the one you trust, the one you can’t live without.
For Ted Flask, that someone special is his aging companion Lily, who happens to be a dog.
Lily and the Octopus reminds us how it feels to love fiercely, how difficult it can be to let go, and how the fight for those we love is the greatest fight of all.
Remember the last book you told someone they had to read?
Lily and the Octopus is the next one.. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1971-72
• Raised—Portland, Maine, USA
• Education—B.A., Emerson College
• Currently—lives in Los Angeles, California
Steven Rowley is an American author with two bestselling books to his name: his debut, Lily and the Octupus, published in 2016, and his second novel, The Editor, which was released in 2019.
Rowley, at the time, a 43-year-old paralegal and screenwriter, had sold several unproduced screenplays before writing a short story about the death of his dachshund, Lily, to cope with his grief. Rowley's boyfriend encouraged him to expand it into an novel.
Rowley wrote Lily and the Octopus in 100 days and submitted it to approximately 30 literary agents, who all declined to represent him. Rowley said of the manuscript, "I was proud of it as a piece of writing, but I never thought that this was going to change my life."
Intending to self-publish, Rowley hired freelance editor Molly Pisani, who later pitched the novel to her former colleague, Karyn Marcus of Simon & Schuster. Impressed by the quality of the book, Marcus forwarded it to Simon & Schuster editor-in-chief Marysue Rucci. According to Marcus:
I woke up to an email that [Ms. Rucci] had sent me at 3 in the morning, saying "this book is incredible, I wept real tears, you must buy it." … We knew immediately it was going to be a big book for us, and the advance certainly reflected that.
In April 2015, Publishers Weekly reported that Marcus had acquired the novel for Simon & Schuster in a "nearly seven-figure" book deal. The Hollywood Reporter noted that the offer "was made with unusual speed," with The New York Observer calling it "a timeline unheard of in the slow-paced publishing industry." (Adapted from Wikipedia. Retrieved 7/17/2016.)
Book Reviews
If you’re a dog lover, or better yet a Dachshund owner, you will instantly recognize the staccato language of Lily’s yips: “LOOK! AT! THIS! IT! IS! THE! MOST! AMAZING! THING! I’VE! EVER! SEEN! IT’S! A! GREAT! TIME! TO! BE! ALIVE!” A promising start: we hope Lily is right, that it is indeed a "great time to be alive." But then again, we also know where animal stories usually end up—and in Steven Rowley’s book, the end, embodied by an ever-growing octopus, shows up on page 2. So how, we wonder, is this possibly a great time to be alive? READ MORE.
Fiona Lawrence - LitLovers
Lily and the Octopus is the dog book you must read this summer…. Reading this heart-wrenching but ultimately breathtaking novel was a very profound experience…. As Lily might say, ‘YOU! MUST! READ! THIS! BOOK!"
Washington Post
Startlingly imaginative… Lily and the Octopus is a love story sure to assert its place in the canine lit pack...Be prepared for outright laughs and searing or silly moments of canine and human recognition. And grab a tissue: THERE! WILL! BE! EYE! RAIN!
Newsday.
The connection between man and dog is loud and clear in this sweet novel.
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Author Steven Rowley uses humor and pop-culture references to tell a whimsical story of courage in the face of heartbreaking reality. Philosophical and introspective, "Lily and the Octopus" also looks at the transformative power of love, the importance of forgiveness and the beauty of really living, letting ourselves be seen instead of hiding in plain sight…I laughed, I sobbed, and at the end, I felt as if I’d caught up with a friend over coffee.
Free Lance-Star
You don’t need to be a dog lover to enjoy Steven Rowley’s new book, ‘Lily and the Octopus,’ but if you’ve realized you like your dog more than most humans you encounter, this is one you won’t want to miss."
Newport Beach Independent
A whimsical, touching tale.
People
[A] sensitive, hilarious, and emotionally rewarding debut novel explores the effect that pets can have on human lives.... In generous helpings of bittersweet humanity, Rowley has written an immensely poignant and touchingly relatable tale that readers (particularly animal lovers) will love.
Publishers Weekly
This funny and heartbreaking first novel will appeal to dog lovers, especially those who have had to face the harder aspects of giving their love to a creature who will return that adoration perfectly but for a far too brief time. —Dan Forrest, Western Kentucky Univ. Libs., Bowling Green
Library Journal
(Starred review.) An exceedingly authentic, keenly insightful, and heartbreakingly poignant tribute to the purity of love between a pet and its human.
Booklist
A lonely writer and his aging dachshund confront a mythic enemy.... In his funny, ardent, and staunchly kooky way, Rowley expresses exactly what it's like to love a dog.
Kirkus Reviews
Discussion Questions
1. Ted agonizes over the fact that Lily’s octopus has gone unnoticed by both of them for so long. Discuss how he internalizes his grief, transforming it into guilt. How would you react in his shoes?
2. The book is divided into eight sections, each with an octopus-related theme. What other octopus imagery and symbolism did you find in the book?
3. Ted hates "living in the not knowing" (p. 31). How does this aversion to uncertainty affect his personal relationships? Do you think this attitude changes over the course of the novel?
4. There is a level of trust shared between Ted and Lily that does not seem to extend to the humans in his life. Discuss how trust requires a kind of courage that humans find difficult to muster. Is it possible to replicate the unconditional love of a dog? Why or why not?
5. Ted notes that Lily has been the closest witness to his life. Discuss why this is clarifying for him. How can new perspectives become powerful?
6. Throughout the novel, we learn that omens can be just as bad as they are good. What happens when Ted goes looking for more omens? Where do they lead him?
7. What role does forgiveness play in this novel? Who does Ted ultimately make peace with, and at what point?
8. Lily admits that she has not held onto a single bad memory. In fact, she does not have many memories at all. Still, she adores Ted’s stories. Discuss how memories can become their own forms of storytelling. What does Ted learn from distilling their shared history?
9. The vet has warned Ted that as she gets older, Lily may start to encounter Enclosed World Syndrome. How is this syndrome mirrored in Ted’s own life? Do you recognize the phenomenon?
10. Ted catches a glimpse of himself in the glass door by the pool and recognizes the octopus. Discuss the meaning of this scene. Why do you think this conflation of identity occurs in his mind’s eye?
11. The tattoo artist, Kal, claims to enjoy the permanence of his work. Ted is skeptical that permanence even exists. Did you see anything in the novel that you felt to be permanent? If so, what was it?
12. One idea that Ted is partial to is karma. Karma implies a sense of causality and order to the universe. Do you think that his opinion evolves as Lily gets sicker?
13. Discuss the scene in which Ted finally acknowledges that the octopus is, in fact, a tumor. What has changed? Did he kill the octopus? What is the significance of this semantic twist?
14. Lily loves her red ball. Ted even goes so far as to suggest that hers is not a life without it. Discuss the symbolism of the ball, especially in Ted’s dream when he loses Lily in a storm of them.
15. What does Ted see in Byron? Do you see a happy future for the two of them?
(Questions issued by the publisher.)
FATA! The Act of the Avengeance (The de'Conte Series, 4)
Nicholas Borelli, 2012
CreateSpace
360 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781463654115
Summary
The virtually continuous abuse of females in our society compels some to debate and impels others to act. Every father must protect his daughter—and all of our daughters need protection.
Niccolo Cervantes de’Conti began his career as a New York City Prosecutor and rose to become the United States Attorney in New York. He then entered private practice at a prominent, New York law firm, The Union and Metropolitan.
Years before, Nick de’Conti’s college-age daughter, Elspeth, was kidnapped, raped, tortured and murdered. The system he trusted failed him. He reverted to the base instincts of his youth in inner-city East Harlem and murdered his daughter’s killers.
As a result, de’Conti is recruited into FATA!, a secret society of wealthy, middle-age men (The Protectors) and admiring young women (The Communicators), that avenges the deaths of females lost to violence (The Lost Ones). FATA! stands for Fathers Against the Abuse; de’Conti becomes prominent in this cult of grieving fathers and the sisters of young women murdered by predatory men.
De’Conti and his cult accomplish in the darkness of the night what law enforcement cannot achieve in the bright light of day.
Author Bio
• Birth—1951
• Where—New York City, New York, USA
• Education—B.M.E., Pratt Institute; M.B.A., Fordham University
• Currently—lives in Wilton, Connecticut
When Emma Montague left the strict confines of upper-crust British life for New York, she felt sure it would make her happy. Away from her parents and expectations, she felt liberated, throwing herself into Manhattan life replete with a high-paying job, a gorgeous apartment, and a string of successful boyfriends. But the cutthroat world of finance and relentless pursuit of more began to take its toll. This wasn’t the life she wanted either.
On the move again, Emma settles in the picturesque waterfront town of Westport, Connecticut, a world apart from both England and Manhattan. It is here that she begins to confront what it is she really wants from her life. With no job, and knowing only one person in town, she channels her passion for creating beautiful spaces into remaking the dilapidated cottage she rents from Dominic, a local handyman who lives next door with his six-year-old son.
Unlike any man Emma has ever known, Dominic is confident, grounded, and committed to being present for his son whose mother fled shortly after he was born. They become friends, and slowly much more, as Emma finds herself feeling at home in a way she never has before.
But just as they start to imagine a life together as a family, fate intervenes in the most shocking of ways. For the first time, Emma has to stay and fight for what she loves, for the truth she has discovered about herself, or risk losing it all.
In a novel of changing seasons, shifting lives, and selfless love, a story unfolds—of one woman’s far-reaching journey to discover who she is truly meant to beM.B.A., Fordham University
• Currently—Wilton, Connecticut
Nicholas Borelli, a New England based author, has and continues to write the de'Conti series.
The novels currently include Let No Man Be My Albatross, A Convoluted Defense, The Machiavelli Imperative, FATA! The Act of the Vengeance, At Last Reconciled and IRAN. Mr. Borelli is writing two more novels: Dahij and A Special Prosecution.
These works feature the protagonist Niccolo Cervantes de'Conti. Mr. Borelli has conceived and developed a central character based on his knowledge of and first-hand experience with the gritty New York inner city of his youth. Nick de'Conti is an ethnic mixture of Basque and Southern Italian. He has a penchant for independent thought and action, and a passion with which he approaches everything in his life. He is a prominent lawyer, an aristocrat. The arc of his life is developed from the depths of his childhood poverty in East Harlem in the cruel, inner city streets of New York City to his unimagined success—albeit troubled, conflicted and, at times, ethically bereft.
These novels are edgy, raw, graphic and thought-provoking.
Although de'Conti is a former New York City prosecutor and United States Attorney, his hard life as a child in the inner city of East Harlem sometimes causes him to mete out as much street justice as he does the legal kind. He abhors the abuse of women, his own college-age daughter having been murdered at the hands of male predators. He will revert to instincts he developed as an inner city kid, even though he lives in a Fifth-Avenue penthouse on a high floor across from New York's Central Park. (From the author.)
Visit borellibooks.com.
Follow Nicholas on Instagram.
Book Reviews
Mr. Borelli does not hesitate to satisfy in remarkably imaginative ways....This story has a dollop of everything.... I can't wait to read more of Nick Borelli.
Stephanie Rogers, Amazon Customer Review
This novel combines emotion, rage and suspense with a...balance of sensual words and descriptions. I just love it.
Vicky3, Amazon Customer Review
[T]ruly a great read.... I loved all 4 books, can not wait to read the other ones.
Joy, Amazon Customer Review
[A] fast-moving, exciting and unorthodox read.... [E]xtremely relevant to the current problems women are facing and the author does an excellent job offering a male perspective.
Zeynep Doga Arican, Amazon Customer Review
Discussion Questions
1. Would you consider de’Conti a serial killer?
2. Is he cruel and, if so, is he justified in being so?
3. What do you think of his technique? Are his assumptions about the technique and its effect obtaining the desired result?
4. What is your psychological assessment of Nick de’Conti?
5. Discuss his myriad romantic entanglements.
6. What do you think of Henrietta, his transgender guardian at Rikers Island? What do you think of his evolving reaction toward her?
7. Were you shocked by the ending twist?
8. Do you think, if you’re a woman, that de'Conti is at once, simultaneously, alluring and revolting?
9. What do you think of The Pig and Gabriella Desjardins?
10. What do you think of the book’s cover? Does the mask evoke a cult and would this novel make for a good feature film?
(Questions courtesy of the author.)
A Convoluted Defense (The de'Conte Series, 2)
Nicholas Borelli, 2012
CreateSpace
220 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781478119722
Summary
The former United States Attorney had become the most prominent defense counsel in New York City. His law firm, The Union and Metropolitan, had carefully cultivated their superstar. He moved from United States Attorney to the other side to defend high profile corporate executives from federal prosecution at exorbitant hourly rates.
But the biggest case in world history was foisted upon him in a high velocity whirlwind of events. Nick de‘Conti is defending the President of the United States for the highest of high crimes: Treason!
Shuttling between New York and Washington D.C., the case, the politics, the culture clash, the impromptu love affair with the opposing federal prosecutor and the trial of the millennium provide a backdrop for a once in a lifetime test of conscience.
Author Bio
• Birth—1951
• Where—New York City, New York, USA
• Education—B.M.E., Pratt Institute; M.B.A., Fordham University
• Currently—Wilton, Connecticut
Nicholas Borelli, a New England based author, has and continues to write the de'Conti series.
The novels currently include Let No Man Be My Albatross, A Convoluted Defense, The Machiavelli Imperative, FATA! The Act of the Vengeance, At Last Reconciled and IRAN. Mr. Borelli is writing two more novels: Dahij and A Special Prosecution.
These works feature the protagonist Niccolo Cervantes de'Conti. Mr. Borelli has conceived and developed a central character based on his knowledge of and first-hand experience with the gritty New York inner city of his youth. Nick de'Conti is an ethnic mixture of Basque and Southern Italian. He has a penchant for independent thought and action, and a passion with which he approaches everything in his life. He is a prominent lawyer, an aristocrat. The arc of his life is developed from the depths of his childhood poverty in East Harlem in the cruel, inner city streets of New York City to his unimagined success—albeit troubled, conflicted and, at times, ethically bereft.
These novels are edgy, raw, graphic and thought-provoking.
Although de'Conti is a former New York City prosecutor and United States Attorney, his hard life as a child in the inner city of East Harlem sometimes causes him to mete out as much street justice as he does the legal kind. He abhors the abuse of women, his own college-age daughter having been murdered at the hands of male predators. He will revert to instincts he developed as an inner city kid, even though he lives in a Fifth-Avenue penthouse on a high floor across from New York's Central Park. (From the author.)
Visit borellibooks.com.
Follow Nicholas on Instagram.
Book Reviews
[E]ven more exciting as the story continues.... I could not put the book down.
Joy, Amazon Cstomer Review
[N]othing short of excellent. The many twists and turns of the plot grab you and don't let go.
Paul H., Amazon Customer Review
[G]reat read!... [A] beautiful, vivid, yet effortless writing style. The book reads like a movie....you’ll absolutely love this book!
JC, Amazon Customer Review
Discussion Questions
1. Were you shocked by the ending?
2. Was de’Conti’s relationship with Rebecca Pallard ethical? Did it affect his judgment?
3. What do you think of the president?
4. Was de’Conti’s behavior as an attorney vis a vis his client ethical? Did he do the right thing?
5. Would you have done what Nick de'Conti did, if you were in his position?
7. What did you think of de’Conti’s courtroom performance?
8. What do you think of the book’s cover?
9. Would this novel make for a good feature film?
10. Would you invest time to read the sequel: The Machiavelli Imperative? It begins the day after the president’s trial.
(Questions courtesy of the author.)