Rating: 
Summary: COULDN'T PUT IT DOWN!!!
Review: At first I was slightly confused about the prison connection but then of course I got it towards the end. I finished the book in 2 days because I kept wanting to know what happened next and read most of it on the LIRR!!!! I gave it to a co-worker who finished it in 3 days.
Rating: 
Summary: Off track ....
Review: The book moves swiftly, but it is predictable and formulaic. It is trying for the reader to understand the stupidity of the central character, Charles Schine. It lacks the "Hitchcockian psychological twists" which the book offers up to the reader in the back flap. The characters and situations are stale, mechanical, boring and unmoving. You have your femme fatale, the dutiful wife, the disinterested teenager, the ex-con, annoying co-workers, and the laughable villian, Vasquez. You have your comfortable Long Island suburban setting thrown against the sordid backdrop of NYC. (...)You read on, because you actually feel sorry for Charles - the same way you feel sorry for a lost puppy and hope he makes his way home. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
Rating: 
Summary: Betrayal, blackmail and vengeance - 4 1/2 stars
Review: James Siegel's Derailed has the unusual format of being a story within a story. An unnamed teacher is instructing convicts in Attica state penitentiary. An assignment in creative writing yields an anonymously written tale which becomes the backbone of the mesmerizing and gripping thriller. Succeessful Long Island advertising executive Charles Schine, while travelling into Manhattan on the railroad gets lured into an adulterous relationship with a fetching raven haired stockbroker. Schine's life by his own admission had become stale. (...)Without revealing anymore, Siegel leads us through an elaborate, labrynthine plot with unexpected twists and turns. The conclusion nicely ties the plot together into well conceived and satisfying ending. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition
Rating:
Summary: Too much hype, not enough delivery!
Review: While I did finish the book, I found it too predictable and too far fetched. Also, too many typos, and too many facts not thoroughly checked.
Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: It's always such a great feeling to read a book that is as awesome as this one. This will make one terrific movie.
Just when you think you have it all figured out, there comes yet another twist.
I have never read this author, but I certainly will make a point of reading him in the future.
What a GREAT book!
Rating:
Summary: Deranged
Review: 'Derailed' starts with a high school teacher from Bennington, Vt. who spends two nights a week teaching English to inmates at Attica offering some poignant insights into the insensitivity and realities of our criminal justice system. Soon he is reading a story submitted by an inmate that starts with a flirtation on a commuter train and progresses to the complete collapse of ad man Charles Schine's life. The jump from Attica to the LIRR makes no sense, even less so when the narrator tells us that it is his story. The linear progression of Charles' story, the brutality of it and his spineless stupidity made me uncomfortable, to the point where I put 'Derailed' down in disgust more than once. I confess to picking it up again to see when Charles was going to snap out of it and how the teacher in Attica, the ad man from Long Island and the criminal characters in what started as a prisoner's writings were all going to tie together. Very weakly, it turns out. As he does with the character of Charles, Siegel successfully forced me to look at things I really didn't want to see. That earns him a few stars for writing technique, but he loses them with the end result. It really is a ridiculous story.
Rating: 
Summary: Engaging but, been there...done that
Review: I was hooked by the first chapter and read the book in two nights. Although I enjoyed the story, I felt like some of the plot twists were predictable and have been done before. James Siegel's writing style did keep me engaged and I could not put the book down; however, I can't help but think that some of the plot twists were reminiscent of a few recent movies (Unfaithful, One Hour Photo) that I have seen. That said, I would still recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a roller coaster ride... with a dose of "soap opera" reality.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing thriller by James Siegel!
Review: This book was an amazing read! After seeing the television ads for this novel, I knew that I wanted to read it. It was an immediate page-turner that I could not put down! It was a fairly quick read as well. At the climax of the story, Siegel puts you in a place where you can't even imagine what's going to happen next, and he holds you there until the very last page. Great read! Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: HOLY MOLY!! WHAT A BOOK!!
Review: By far and away one of the best books I have read in years!! I could not put it down. I kept telling myself "OK, just one more chapter, OK, just one MORE chapter." The next thing I knew it was 5:00 in the morning. Please Hollywood, take a look at this book and make a movie...what a thriller it would be. I cannot wait for James Siegel's next novel, I hope he hurries!!
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've come across
Review: I'm a huge fan of Sidney Sheldon yet this book caught my eye and boy am I glad it did. I finished the book in two days, not being able to put it down for a second! The twists in this book keep the pages turning. Suspense starts from page one, something hard to find in most books.
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