Omerta

Rating:
Summary: Can never be another "Godfather"
Review: Its again the same old story of dons where the successor takes over and reigns. In omerta the successor is the nephew instead of the sons. I think if you are fed up reading the mafia stories then this book is definitely not for you

Don Raymonde Aprile gets murdered and he leaves the biggest junk of his property - The Bank, to the nephew Astorre viola instead of his own children. Astorre now takes the responsibility to find out the killers of his uncle and in the process tumbles over a huge conspiracy over the bank. And also in the process protects the children of the Don from the bad underworld, The Mafia.

Nothing interesting, one could tell the story after the first few chapters.

Rating:
Summary: Good Mafia book
Review: I will always use The Godfather as my guide. This was good especially if you like Mafia books. The book does have a strange opening but probably typical for the Mafia. Lots of corruption....and lots of shoot'm up. I've read some books that are better...I've read some not as good.

Rating:
Summary: Altogether too snappy
Review: Did Puzo write this? Most of its chapters read like summaries of action, not like stories. I felt like it was on fast forward most of the time.

Rating:
Summary: Omerta
Review: A disaster for a Puzo novel. I read this book in under three days, but I was disappointed with it. The characters were too one-dimensional and the romance sub-plot was terrible along with the climax and ending which I thought came out of a cheap action film. What was Puzo thinking?? This book does not possess character depth necessary to make the story compelling. Its merely a shallow story that is predictable and not worthy of a premier writer. Its as if this was written to be a tv show with no character development. I had no trouble putting this book down. I could hardly believe I was reading a Puzo novel, it read more like a first attempt e-book. This book does not even compare to The Godfather or The Last Don. I must say I was very disappointed. It seemed like I was watching a cheap mob movie. As a big Puzo fan, I could tell that there was something lacking when he wrote this. I'm not saying I'm an expert, granted, I'm only sixteen, but really, he could have done better.

Rating:
Summary: Nothing new under the sun.
Review: This book again explores the mafia imaginated by Mr. Puzo. Mr Puzo describes the "capos" as inteligent and smart people who has strange bussines but people loves them and are delighted to live in such world. Those things only happen in Mr Puzo's head, actually capos are rude, cruel men who doesn't have any of the cualities explained by the Author.

As he wrote in Godfather III, the story has again exagerations about the power of mafia (In god. III "we have to save the pope") and here making suggestions about corruption in Italy. IMHO he should be more careful telling such things.

Finally the name of one of the bad guys : Marriano Rubio. Marriano isn't an Spanish name. Maybe he wanted to write Mariano Rubio a former Bank of Spain president accused of corruption in mid 90's.

Rating:
Summary: A Final Success for Mario Puzo
Review: For the last three years of his life Mario Puzo wrote Omerta, the final novel in his Mafia trilogy about power and honor in America. In Omerta, Puzo describes the affairs of the Apriles, a family on the verge of legitimacy in a world of criminals.

Don Raymonde Aprile is an old man with enough success in his life to retire peacefully from organized crime after a lifetime of merciless conquest. During his life, he kept his three children at a distance from the Mafia world. Now, he's ensured that they are respectable members of the community; his oldest son, Valerius is an army colonel who teaches at West Point, Marcantonio is a widely admired elevision network executive, and Nicole is a corporate lawyer who mainly takes on pro bono cases to fight the death penalty. To protect them from harm, and to guarantee his entry into the legitimate world of international banking, Don Aprile passes on the Mafia legacy to his "nephew" from Sicily, Astorre Viola. An unlikely heir, Astorre is a macaroni importer with a fondness for riding stallions and recording Italian ballads with his band.

Don Aprile's retirement is seen as a business opportunity by his last Mafia rival, Timmona Portella, but with suspicion by Kurt Cilke, the FBI's special agent in charge of investigating organized crime. Cilke has achieved great success in breaking down the bonds between families, creating high-ranking relations with Mafia sources. In return for protection from the law, they have violated "omerta", which is Sicilian for "code of silence." As Cilke and the FBI mount their campaign to completely destroy the Mafia, Astorre and the Apriles find themselves in the midst of one last war - a conflict in which it is hard to know who, if anyone, is on the right side of the law, and whether mercy or vengeance is the best course of action. Full of suspense, dark humor, and believable characters, Omerta is a powerful remembrance of the Mafia at the turn of the century, and a successful conclusion to Mario Puzo's Mafia trilogy.

Rating:
Summary: Average Mafioso story in the tradition of The Godfather
Review: With "Omerta", Mario Puzo again assembles dozens of intense and colorful characters (Mafiosos and family members, police officials, and FBI agents) and skillfully choreographs all storylines to converge in a single shattering climax. Having only seen the Godfather films and having not read any of Puzo's books, I found "Omerta" to be at times a somewhat compelling and at other times an overly familiar storyline. It certainly would appeal more perhaps to those interested in the Mafioso world.

Puzo draws on characterizations and situations which are tried and true. For example, the central character in "Omerta", Astorre Viola, is certainly reminiscent of youthful Michael Corleone in the first Godfather film, and one can immediately imagine a young Al Pacino in the role.

I actually listened to the audio version of the book read by Godfather III star Joe Mantegna. Mantegna brings life and legitimacy to the tale (although he creates some chuckles along the way at a few of his characterizations.)

Rating:
Summary: Just like a movie.
Review: This book is definitely one of the best books i have ever read. Even though this book may not be as great as "The Godfather", it has similar themes as to which The Godfather is based, a great and wise Sicilian Don, a protege, and enemies from the opposing Mafia families. I think it s funny how when you read Puzo's mafia stories, the main Family is the strongest, and the way Mario Puzo connects the Corleone,Clericuzio and Aprile families is quite interesting. This book does have some problems, but the conent does not. People complain about the size of the book, the size of the type in the book and its length, but i think they should be paying for the content of the book and not its dimensions. The book is could be a quick read , and not only will you be immersed in the story itself, but also by the feeling that this book is a movie on its own ,with the characters looking like whoever you imagine them to be from their descriptions. Overall this book is a great read provided you are more interested in the story itself than what the book looks like.

Rating:
Summary: Puzo strikes again!
Review: I recall the first time I read the Godfather and the resounding feelings of honor and the undercurrent of love and commitment that I was struck with. Sure there are the scenes everyone remembers (horse heads in your bed) but the love of family was the theme that stood out to me in the first Godfather book.

Puzo has done it again. With the third and final installment of the Godfather trilogy we are introduced to the inner workings of the Aprile family. Puzo's magical ability to enrapture the reader into the underworld does not hit short in his final book. Here is a conflict between the Family and the legitimate business world... a world not known for it's overwhelming display of honor where everyone is a sell out. As with Puzos other Godfather books the lines between good and evil are blurred. Family honor, Omerta, justice all intermingles with each characters sense of right and wrong and plays with the readers own beliefs of the two. A more developed characterization of the other Aprile clan would have made for an even richer tale... however, Mario Puzo will be well remembered with this final work.

Rating:
Summary: On top with Puzo's best
Review: I don't understand why they are giving such a low rating to this wonderful book (less then 5 stars when this review was written!!!). I give it a five stars best! Puzo is a master and this book shows all of his skills. The hook is on the reader as he turns page 1. It is Puzo's last book and the end of the great Sicilian stories of the century. Omerta (which by the way is the Sicilian code of silence) is as breath taking as the Godfather and it even goes deeper into the Mafia world of terminology and its culture. It stands right beside the Godfather and The Last Don. On top, with Puzo's best.