Peter G Pollak

This story is very much plot-driven. The conspiracy feels complex, and we go along with Tucker Daniels in his attempt to find the truth within a political quagmire.

For me, the characters lack depth and personality. Tucker does come to life more as the story goes on, but his relationship with his fiancee feels shallow. The female characters feel one-dimensional, like their only job is to fill a roll in the story. I didn't find them interesting or all that believable, perhaps because I never really got to know them.

The pace, particularly through the first half of the book, tends to be slow. We spend a lot of time on leads that go nowhere, pondering possibilities, and, along with the main character, feeling like we'll never get answers. This is, in part, a necessity because of the way the story unfolds. The content does make you think about corruption in politics and all the behind-the-scenes secrets.

*I received an advance ebook copy in exchange for my honest review.*… (mere)

Following the explosion of a bomb placed in the headquarters of the American Israel Alliance in Washington DC, Professor and retired CIA agent Leonard Robbins was asked by US President Wheatfield to head a government counterterrorism task force to stop terrorism in the United States. Its mission was to find out who planned the attack and prevent future ones.
The group quickly learned the package was brought to the building by a college student in a messenger service uniform. She was among those killed but they weren’t sure if she actually planned to be a suicide bomber or if she was a tool whose involvement in nonviolent protests against Israel’s treatment of Palestinians lead her to be selected to carry the bomb.
Leonard’s task hits closer to home when his twenty year old daughter, Courtney, joins the radical Students for Palestinian Justice group at her university. Leonard tries to alert her to the history behind the Israel/Palestine dispute and the underlying philosophy of the group but she doesn’t want to hear him.
HOUSE DIVIDED explores the role of the US in counterterrorism, the mistakes made by our leaders and government organizations and why some people are attracted to radical organizations, sometimes unwittingly: “In general, women care more deeply about issues than men, which makes them susceptible to appeals to drastic action. Men care more about accomplishments–trophies. Women care about ordinary people.”
It notes that academic associations don’t always recognize when they cross the line dividing academia to politics, a process that began during the Vietnam War.
Among my favorite passages are: “People get hurt when not everyone is playing by the same set of rules.” and “Religions have the advantage over secular ideologies because even when the real world fails to conform to the world their leaders paint, people are reluctant to break with the religion. This is all part of God’s plan, they tell themselves. He’s testing us, they say.”
HOUSE DIVIDED presents a lot of information in a very readable format that most people can recognize. Its main emphasis is the way our government does and could respond to terror threats. Unfortunately, it included too many unnecessarily short chapters which could easily have been combined to save paper and give more credit to the reader’s intelligence. I always subtract one star for that.
I received this book through Goodreads First Reads.… (mere)

Tough Police And Serious Criminals

Ever wondered what it is like to be a rooky police detective? What if you were the first woman detective on staff? What if your first case was a no breaks murder by a bona fide psychopath? Shannon Lynch is on her first day of duty as a detective and she immediately feels that her new workmates don’t really trust her and won't until she proves herself. She knows this is a serious job and she is determined to meet the standards. Her new boss, Lieutenant Keller, says he at first will not appoint Shannon to a partner, but attach her to two other detectives, Al Joiner and Chuck Miles, to basically just observe. Shannon is not impressed and Joiner and Miles’ reception of her leaves her even more peeved. Peter Pollak has written a novel that grips the reader right from the start guiding them through the working of a case that takes the police to standard and not so standard territory.

This is a ‘hard boiled’ police yarn ideal for any reader wanting to be entertained. While Pollak’s approach to police work is standard, giving us some idea of the routine of a police job, the events are hardly standard and are narrated in an exciting style. Pollak surprises us, shocks us and keeps us on tenterhooks. Most of the book is written from Shannon’s point of view, however, at key points we also see into the lives and thoughts of other characters. This gives variety and depth.

From the start we gain a liking for Shannon and in time we come to understand Joiner and Miles. These characters ring true and are well crafted. While the style is ‘hard boiled’ we still feel that Shannon and her partners, and even the perpetrator are real. They are not in any way larger than life. Shannon slowly evolves over time developing into a more complex view of her work and life. Joiner and Miles also change, though to a lesser extent.

Making The Grade is chiefly about success. What is success? How do we get there? What should be our mental attitude to both success and failure? So much of modern society revolves around this issue and the topic arises early, when we are young. We may consider ourselves beyond that but we all have to take tests, keep our jobs, be accountable to our friends and family.

Indeed a second issue is friends in trouble. Some people are pure users and others are not. How do we decide who to help and who not? Pollak does not give us any pat answers, but instead chooses to raise questions in our mind. Life is never easy to navigate.

Closely connected to friendship is the issue of loyalty. Once again it is recognised that life is complex and there are no easy answers.

As I have indicated the book has a lot to do with a woman trying to make it in a man’s world. Feminists will not be offended by the novel, but Pollak is not issuing standard polemics. Pollak recognises that there certainly IS a male power system, but once again life is seen to be complex. This is definitely not a cut out detective story with cut out opinion. Shannon is a feisty capable woman, but she does shed a few tears (though she certainly struggles for control with fortitude). She never was and never will be a stay at home with the kiddies ‘little woman’.

Pollak has got the psychology of his novel right. Most of all this is not your standard out there over the top psycho. The killer could easily pass for any man in the street, except of course when he is in the act of actually killing someone. Martha Stout is a psychologist who is successful both as an academic and in a flourishing clinical practice and her book The Sociopath Next Door makes it clear that these people are very good at appearing normal and even helpful. Indeed a psychopath could be living next door to you and you wouldn’t even know it. Pollak’s killer certainly fits this picture. The details I have mentioned and others make it clear that the author has certainly done his research on this one.

The law is of course an institution of society and Pollak invites some contemplation of the matter. What is the purpose of the law? The philosopher Michel Foucault has challenged the law, saying it is another power system used to manipulate the masses in such a way that ruling elites are reinforced. Would we, however, survive without it? Once we step out of our comfortable lounge room into the hustle of everyday living we may learn that life can be unpleasant, dangerous. Even the ‘safety’ of our homes is not an assured fact.

Close to the discussion of the law and society is that of bureaucracy. Organizations certainly can put ridiculous restraints on people, but then again some order is needed to make systems work.

At 255 pages this book is excellent for a weekend read on the patio. It is interesting and entertaining, with some excitement and characters that are believable. Making The Grade can be read purely as light entertainment, but also has some depth if you care to look for it. Don’t get me wrong: it is not a boring philosophic tome. All in all the book is a great read, especially for those interested in police yarns.… (mere)