Rating: 
Summary: An Extra Star For Honesty
Review: "The Family", is a three star read, however a fourth star for honesty is valid. This book was not finished prior to Mario Puzo's death, and so was finished by Carol Gino. This fact is stated on the front of the dust jacket. The reason I make such an issue of this is that other authors who have left uncompleted work still have books published after their death that they did not finish, and no mention is made. Carol Gino also includes an Afterword that explains the origins of the novel, the reason it was not written prior to other of his works, and her own trepidation in regard to completing the book.Mr. Puzo was evidently fascinated by the time period covered in this book, and specifically with the Borgia Family. He had traveled to The Vatican prior to his death, which continued to keep this novel alive, if not a first priority. The reason for the book not being his most urgent task is also explained, and I believe readers will find the causes interesting. Carl Gino was with Mario Puzo for 20 years, so it is reasonable to accept she knew him and his work very well. She is also an author in her own right, so again she was qualified as anyone to attempt to complete what Mr. Puzo left undone. I always have thought that completing another author's work is basically an impossible task. "The Family", will not rank as the best work ever to carry Mr. Puzo's name, however the book clearly was his creation. The issue I had was that the book went on longer than the story required, so it read as though Carol Gino was trying not to leave anything out, as opposed to editing the tale so that it had a brisk cadence, a nice sharp pace that would have been consistent with all the intrigue of the story and the style of Mr. Puzo's other work. The book contains 4 main story lines and several secondary tales as well. The Borgia Pope and his 4 children take center stage, and the quest to unite Italy is the book's theme. The battles that span most of Italy and even the Island of Elba should read at the pace of military battles and the campaign they entail. The cadence is just not there, and this is most evident when Cesare conquers Elba in a matter of a few hours and a handful of pages in the book. Mr. Puzo clearly loved this topic as he had feelings about all the Borgia Family members, "Lucrezia was a good girl, Cesare was a patriot, and Alexander a doting father". Mr. Puzo felt the Renaissance Popes were the first, "Dons", and that Pope Alexander Borgia was the greatest Don of all. The time period is a fascinating one, and if you adjust your expectations, the read is still very worthwhile and better than many offered at local bookstores. Carol Gino clearly gave a valiant effort to complete this work and she should be commended for the result. Trying to follow in the path of a writer of Mr. Puzo's stature has got to be a daunting task, I am glad she accepted the challenge.
Rating: 
Summary: A Puzo novel that wasn't about the Mafia? Cool!
Review:
I'll never forget the night I saw this book for the first time at my local bookstore. "The man just couldn't stop writing Mafia novels," I snickered to myself as I picked it up and began to peruse it. Well, I was only half-right. The book was about the notorious Italian Renaissance family, the Borgias. Since I've always been interested in that part of history, and wanting to know more about the Borgias (having read about them before, but not having come across a book dedicated to them), I promptly bought it. Until I'd read _The Family_, I'd always thought Puzo modelled the Corleones, at least in part, after Joe Bonanno and his son Bill. Again, I was only partially correct. Although there are some parallels between the Corleones and the Bonanos, Puzo's real inspiration was _la famiglia Borgia_. Like Vito Corleone, Rodrigo Borgia, who became Pope Alexander VI, was a ruthless, powerful man with three sons and a daughter. None of them had any qualms about murdering their enemies "to protect the family." Michael Corleone and Cesare Borgia, whom Rodrigo elevated to cardinal, were both successful in the military. Like Michael and Fredo, Jofre Borgia had his own brother Juan (aka Giovanni) murdered. Cesare died in a hail of arrows, just as Sonny Corleone died in a hail of gunfire. Lucrezia Borgia reportedly preferred to poison her enemies, reminiscent of the way Connie Corleone killed Don Altobello with a lethal canoli in _The Godfather Part III_. And, like Michael and Connie, Cesare and Lucrezia were very, very close. Only Michael and Connie didn't have an affair with each other, let alone begin it under their father's approving eyes. Finally, if it looks like Puzo is glorifying people who do not deserve admiration, it's because, like in _The Godfather_, he's telling the story from the protagonist's viewpoint. _The Family_ is a wonderful book for anyone, and a "must-have" for historical fiction fans.
Rating:
Summary: A FAMILY WITH A QUIRK OR TWO
Review: According to Carol Gino's afterword, prior to Puzo's death, she and Puzo had discussed his unfinished manuscript of this book, and she, with his blessings, was able to fulfill his wishes and complete it. In my opinion, her efforts were successful, as I detect no stylistic differences or breaks in the continuity of the book. I feel that we, as readers, owe her our thanks for bringing his last dream to fruition. Before going into the body of the review, it should be noted that THE FAMILY is based on extensive research by Puzo, and the facts of the following are either historically accurate, or can be reasonably assumed from the facts available. In THE FAMILY, Puzo has gotten away from his usual theme of 20th century Mafia families and, instead, has built this narrative around an ordinary Renaissance era family who resided in Rome. Well, maybe not exactly ordinary. They did have a quirk or two, and, after all, daddy was the Pope. That's right, daddy was the Pope, so maybe they're not exactly an ordinary family after all. Daddy, Pope Alexander VI, was Rodrigo Borgia, the father of the Borgia clan. You know the Borgias, those playful youngsters; Cesare, Lucrezia, Juan, and Jofre. In those far off days, the Catholic clergy couldn't marry, but a great many of them had mistresses and openly acknowledged their offspring. Alexander was a truly kind-hearted man. An example of this kind-heartedness was in the way he handled a politically necessary assassination of someone he truly liked. He made sure that the assassination was carried out in the most humane, pain free way possible. A true humanitarian! Alexander might well have been called the "Education Pope." He strongly believed in education. As an example, he made sure that an enemy or traitor was tortured and maimed before being allowed to die a slow and painful death. The mutilated body was publicly displayed as an act of public education. The lesson to be learned here was that you shouldn't make Pope Alexander angry. A truly effective educational display by a believer in the power of education. Alexander also loved his children and did everything in his power to assure their future happiness. To show this concern, he would arrange marriages for them with appropriate mates who just happened to come from rich and powerful families. That these marriages usually served to enhance his power base was merely a fortunate by-product. Out of love, he also did his best to insure the success of these marriages. For instance, to make sure that his 13 year old daughter, Lucrezia, was properly prepared for her wedding night, he arranged for her older, and sexually experienced brother, Cesare, to "bed" her in advance of her marriage -- supervised by himself, or course. What greater love and concern could a father have for his children? And of his four children, it could be said that a more loving group couldn't be found. First of all, there was Cesare who fell in love with his sister, Lucrezia, when he "bedded" her, and who could never bear the thought of her in some stranger's arms. (This love was not unrequited.) This feeling of brotherly love led to the violent death of Lucrezia's 2nd husband, Alphonso, who was the only man she ever loved more than her brother. Then there were the other two brothers, the cruel and arrogant Juan, and the rather simple Jofre. Juan made a habit of sleeping with Jofre's wife and flaunting it. Jofre was less than thrilled about this and, one day, Juan was mysteriously murdered. The perpetrator was never found. Ah, yes, fraternal love. Did I mention that Lucretia's first child was Cesares? The pregnancy couldn't have come at a worse time. It seems that just at that time the Pope was having Lucrezia's first marriage annulled on the basis that the groom was impotent. The supposed impotency made any rational excuse for the pregnancy a bit of a problem. Things were worked out, and only one innocent man lost his life. Just one more example of Alexander's love for his children. When a political alliance changed, as they often did, Jofre's wife, whom Jofre had come to truly love, became a problem to the Pope, as she was now associated with a potential ex-alliance. Alexander, without consulting Jofre, had Jofre's wife imprisoned in a dungeon where she was repeatedly raped by the guards, subsequently losing her sanity and eventually dying. Needless to say, Jofre, once again, was less than pleased about this new development. Soon thereafter, Pope Alexander contracted a strange malaria-like illness and died. As I stated in the opening, THE FAMILY is about an ordinary, loving Renaissance family with a quirk or two.
Rating:
Summary: Not by any means the equal to "The Godfather."
Review: Although "The Family" is worth reading for its depiction of historical events that took place during the late 15th century, with cameos by esteemed philosopher Machiavelli, Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci, and painter Michelangelo, it is poorly written. Which comes as an unexpected shock since the late Mario Puzo has gained a reputation for penning some of the greatest literature that has ever been written. The characters lack personality, are one-dimensional, and wooden. The dialogue seems contrived and without much emotion. "The Family" fails to invoke feelings for each character and seems to place historical accuracy above the author's propensity for sketching memorable characters that the reader can identify with. This flaw in most cases could be overlooked, but not in an author who has contributed so much to the world's literature.
A must read for anyone who have found the Borgia and Medici families, as well as the Renaissance of interest.
Rating: 
Summary: Thank you, other reviewer
Review: for pointing out that this is an historical NOVEL, not a biography. And in that context, it's an excellent read. Not The Godfather, of course, but then, what is? If you like Puzo, you'll like this. Worth the bucks for sure.
And if it gets you interested enough to read a biography of the Borgias, there are lots of 'em out there
Rating:
Summary: Until now I never enjoyed history!
Review: I am a Mario Puzo fan, I must admit, but I wasn't sure I would like this book because it was different from most of his others. Still, once I read the first chapter, I could see it was just another one of his Family stories. I enjoyed it so much I read it in one day. I thought the Pope was like the Godfather in a different time! And this time his son was a soldier. Some of the scenes were very exciting. The only reason I didn't give it a 5, is because it wasn't the Godfather!
Rating: 
Summary: This should not have been published.
Review: I am honestly shocked that Puzo wrote this book. Though not finished by any means, this book is completely below his standards. This is a book about a renascence pope during the and his three most beloved children. For a book in a different time and place, it does little to provide a general feel for the scenery and situation. For a book with interesting characters, it does little to make us feel sympathy or hatred towards them. For a book about war, sex, betrayal, deceit, it's very tame and very boring. The book starts of badly. It basically describes the Rodrigo Borgias family in a sort of adult "See spot run" way. He doesn't delve into stories or personal insights, but just blandly describes facts as is. The middle is even worse, where Puzo seems almost infatuated with an incestual relationship that unfortunately lasts for the entire book. The book gets better in the latter half. Finally, a plot of some sorts starts to develop, and character development comes to fruition. Unfortunately, it still falls very short from being interesting. The "battles" are really not anything, the family deceit is really just grazed upon, and the setting is passed by as if it was nothing. Couple this with the fact that he added characters or reference to people like Michaeveli, Michaelangelo, and Da Vinci made it seem like he was reaching for something that wasn't there. I'd pass on this book. I prefer to remember Puzo for the Godfather or The Fortunate Pilgrim.
Rating:
Summary: Well written, that's about it...
Review: I didn't like this book mainly because he glorifies one of the sickest families I have ever heard of. It is well written, of course, Puzo is one of my favorite authors, but he makes people that watch their sons use humans as target practice look like the good guys. It's well written with a decent story (the story itself is fiction, but the characters and the general history is true), so for that I give it three stars.
Rating:
Summary: I don't believe it
Review: I don't know how much of this book was written by Mr. Puzo and how much by Carol Gino, but definitely was not the style of Mr. Puzo, the book tells us the story of the Borgia family, but consider that family as a mafia family like Omerta or the Last Don, I really don't think so, if you read it as as history book may be you will like it (if is true what is written in the book, because it is impossible to know what a person thinks, you will understand this if you read the book), but is not a thriller, it won't invite you to read it unless you want to know the end of the story.
At the end of the book, is just that, but of course if it is a true story and that is his end you can't do anything.
Rating:
Summary: THE BANALITY OF CHURCH CORRUPTION
Review: I don't know how much value to place on a negative review written by someone who couldn't write a book a tenth this good in an entire lifetime. What I do know is that Puzo wrote a historical FICTION. This is not to be confused with a history or even a biography. IT IS FICTION! As fiction Puzo has left us with another gift that can be enjoyed by those who like good storytelling because that is what THE FAMILY is. Puzo tells a story of what it MAY have been like for Pope Alexander and his family during a time when the church was clearly seen first as a political power and only secondarily as a spiritual institution. He takes us back to the 15th century with its church corruption that was so commonly known that the people didn't even care if their popes and cardinals had children just as long as they protected them from invasion. The selling of indulgences and other religious corruption is told of in a matter of fact manner. This is precisely the manner in which it was indulged in during this particularly transparent time of the church's corruption. Luther came about in part due to the excesses of this most corrupt example of papal power.
Puzo paints the Borgia as no better but no worse than others of their time. He seems to remind us that most if not all of the church was corrupt. As an ex-Catholic it simply confirms the foundation for today's still corrupt church with it practice of hiding child molesters. No wonder! If Pope Alexander had several mistresses and bastard children and, as history seems to indicate, probably had sex with his own daughter, (we are almost certain that his son, Cesare had sex with his sister, Lucrezia), is it any wonder that the church today hid their child molesting monsters for decades until the evidence became overwhelming? History will be hard pressed to downplay this page in the Catholic Church's protection of perverts. THE FAMILY's greatest value is in offering an explanation by example of church corruption. Puzo's portrayal of his Borgias is kind simply because they were only products of a more visibly corrupt age where everyone plotted against everyone else and it was UNDERSTOOD EVEN BY THE COMMON PEOPLE. And in demonstrating this with his usual great storytelling expertise Puzo has left the world with a final gift and a way to understand the continuing nonchalant corruption of the church even if our dumbed down sheep can't see past the papal bull. Thank you, Mario and Carol
Joseph Francione, author, HOW TO SAVE AMERICA AND THE WORLD
| 
