[.ca] Breakheart Hill (ISBN 1847241239)

incredibly bad book--so much potential:
I was enthraled by this book. This was the first of this author that I had read. I could hardly put it down, the writing was incredible. And then the ending came and it was as if all the air went out of the balloon. Lame, weak, stupid, words fail me. This guy writes well but someone needs to supply him with a plot that works. What a sad waste of time to read this book.

Reason I love Cook:
This book is another reason I love Thomas H. Cook. He has a way of telling a story that keeps you on edge. You are dying to know how it ends, but the journey is long and often dark. When I first started reading this book, I wanted to rush to the end, but his story kept me hooked. He is not like most authors that write the same story with a different character everytime. For someone like me that reads lots of mysteries, it is nice to be challenged in a book. His writing style makes you slow down and enjoy the ride making it a great read.

Lives up to expectations.:
I've come to expect great things from Thomas H. Cook, and he always delivers. "Breakheart Hill" is no exception. It's hard to review any of Mr. Cook's stories without giving away too much of the plot. Even though the story jumps back and forth between past and present, it was simple enough to follow along. The power of the story comes from the resentment and unrest surrounding the first attempts at integration. Kelli Troy, having come to the South from Baltimore, is naturally more sensitive to such issues than the local youth who have been exposed to racial prejudice from birth and see nothing unusual about it. Indeed it would be impossible for them to view the situation with an unbiased eye. One sunny day Kelli is attacked on Breakheart Hill, and the reader fears learning the truth, for the list of suspects is wide-ranging. Although Lyle Gates is tried and convicted for the crime, the reader can't be sure he was the one . . . .

A Transcendent Suspense Thriller:
This is a wonderful novel. The format is repeated in several of Cook's novels (e.g. The Chatham School Affair, Instruments of Night), but only in Breakheart is Cook able to pull off the past and present juxtaposition. What really makes this story work is the depth and complexity of the narrator--and his relationship to the charismatic teenage girl with whom he is in love. I do not want to give any of the plot away, but, suffice it to say, it should enthrall and even consume you. I have read approximately 500 suspense/mysteries in the past few years and have read only two of them twice: Breakheart and Andrew Taylor's Four Last Things, both of which are significantly underrated. This novel should not only change your attitude towards life, but also, more importantly, alter the way you live. Thoroughly intoxicating, this book must be read.

A Compelling, Intriguing Suspense Triumph:
Many of the reviews already posted convey, at least partially,my thoughts and feelings about Breakheart Hill ("Breakheart"). I find it inappropriate to summarize the plot or give away anything crucial in the novel, but I still would like to offer a few comments on this very special novel. Most of Cook's recent novels have juxtaposed the present with the past. The vehicle for this movement between present and past is the narrator, who is often the main character or the co-main character. Personally, I liked Mortal Memory and Breakheart Hill, with Breakheart far surpassing anything else that Cook has written. The two main characters,one being the narrator, give us a profound entry into the human soul. The book is incredibly well-written (not over-written like Instruments of Night or the Chatham School Affair) Breakheart creates suspense that flows inevitably from the characters and their actions (and thoughts). Unlike most so-called psychological thrillers (e.g. Ruth Rendell, P.D. James) this novel intelligently explores the psyche of man/woman AND, if read carefully, the reader can enlarge his knowledge of this fragile creature called man/woman. This is a mesmerizing book which entertains and teaches. A work of literature. Essential reading. Along with Andrew Taylor's Four Last Things, Breakheart Hill is the finest suspense novel ever written.