Rating: 
Summary: The Last Don
Review: This is the first Mario Puzo book I've read - and I know I'll read more of his! I thought it a great read every step of the way. Although long, every page/chapter moves nicely and it doesn't slow down. This book reminded me of a Sidney Shelton book (or maybe Jackie Collins' Lucky series.) Mario does a great job of detailing the hierarchy in the mafia and the powerplays that go on. Also, this is an epic in the sense it covers many years and many locations (NY, Las Vegas, LA). He intermingles the gambling establishment with Hollywood and the mafia - which makes for an interesting combination of corruption. A fascinating book!
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent writing, entertaining, and a ripping good read.
Review: This is an extraordinarily good read by master author Mario Puzo. It is the story of the fictional Clericuzio Family--the last great Mafia family in the United States. The Clericuzios at the height of the powers are dominant in gambling, drugs, and other related rackets. But the family patriarch, Don Clericuzio, sees organized crime for the dead end that it is, and devises a plan for his progeny to eventually transition to, and enter into the "legitimate world." But his plan envisions this transition to occur on his own terms, so that when the Family indeed abandons crime, it will do so from a position of strength, entering the ordinary world with wealth and prestige.There are problems. Some members of the family are less than enthusiastic about abandoning the underworld, and this is the nexus of the story. Nephew Cross De Lena and Grandson Dante Clericuzio fight what amounts to a secret civil war within the Family, even as the legacy of earlier terrible deeds by the great Don himself finally come home to roost. This is an entertaining and insightful story, well-written. It is equally good with beer and chips, or for a more introspective reader. The book is not without faults. As an attorney, I can only say that Puzo's depiction of "California juries" as regards the insanity defense, is simply asinine, and shows either a contempt for the way things really are, or a simple disregard for facts in order to entertain. OK, I guess, authors are entitled to take liberties with the truth in order to entertain us, I just thought that this particular liberty was unnecessary, since the book seems authentic in so many other ways. Whatever. The novel's treatment of Hollywood is hilarious. Basically, Puzo depicts the struggles of competing studios, actors, and actresses in the entertainment world as essentially a legalized mob conflict, without the guns. I don't know much about Hollywood, so I have no comment about this except to say that here Puzo was pretty entertaining. Overall, this was an outstanding book that makes for an excellent read.
Rating: 
Summary: 3 1/2 stars - not bad but not great either
Review: In The Last Don, Puzo again delves into the realm of organized crime families. He spins a tale of the aging Don of a powerful New York crime family who yearns-and plans-for a day when future generations of his family can transition from the world organized crime to that of legitimate enterprise. As the story unfolds, the Don, who is at the same time a strategic thinker and a ruthless tactician, attempts to influence people and events in order to realize his long-term vision. Along the way, Puzo lays out a wide range of colorful, although stereotypical, characters in a story that brings a variety of disparate storylines together as the book progresses. Puzo effectively moved back and forth from the present to the past to provide depth and understanding. In the end though, the book never really grabbed me or prompted any sleep deprivation due to late nights spent reading. The Last Don was definitely not great, but not bad either.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as The Godfather, but it has a similar feel
Review: After reading The Godfather, which I loved, I was eager to read this as well. While it isn't quite as good as The Godfather, which would be pretty hard, it is still very good, and has a similar feel. The story didn't seem as intense as the tale told in The Godfather, but it was engrossing nonetheless. I thought the characters were very well written and I really felt like I knew where they were coming from. After reading this book, I watched the miniseries, which did not nearly live up to the book. If you liked The Godfather, I would recommend reading this as well, but don't expect it to be quite that good.
Rating:
Summary: The Mafia in American Society
Review: The Last Don is the finest Mafia novel that I have read and is comparable to great novels such as The Godfather. The Last Don is Domenico Clericuzio, a wise and ruthless old man who is determined to see his heirs become established in society. The prologue to the story is at the christening of his nephews, Cross De Lena and Dante Clericuzio. Now, thirty years later, the Clericuzio's have become the dominant mafia family in America after costly wars with other families. They have gained a hand in politics, gambling, drugs, and even Hollywood.
The setting of The Last Don is Las Vegas in 1995. The author did a very skillful job of describing Las Vegas. He pays very close attention to details. In the book, Las Vegas symbolizes the chaos and corruption in the world. The plot of The Last Don is that two cousins, Cross De Lena and Dante Clericuzio, hate each other because of a past war and must decide what to do about one another. There are also several sub-plots, such as the love between Cross and Athena and the relationship between Pippi De Lena and his daughter Claudia. Even minor characters play major roles in the story.
I enjoyed The Last Don tremendously. It was the best mafia-themed book that I have ever read. It was full of non-stop action and a twist around every corner. It also entwines love and romance into the bloody plot. I would recommend The Last Don to people who are interested in books about Mafia in America. It should, however, be read by mature audiences. The book has numerous bloody battles as well as various sexual scenes. The only bad part about the story is that the plot is not revealed until around 150 pages from the end. Definitely a great book to read on a rainy day.
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