Rating: 
Summary: The Gold Coast
Review: What an incredible book! I laughed out loud as I "recognized" the places and people of Oyster Bay and Glen Cove. Could NOT put it down and read for 2 days straight! Bought 3 copies for kids and will read it again!
Rating: 
Summary: The Gold Coast
Review: I'm an avid reader of both fiction and historical works. The Gold Coast by Nelson Demille is a 700+ page novel that was a 400 page work at best. Never have I read such a conglomeration of inane prattle that offered so little to the story line (such as it was). The main character developed by Demille is an immature reverse snob that never achieves adulthood. One reads on in the hope that the "hero" arrives -- he does not. Unless you are adevotee of sarcasm for sarcasm"s sake; this tome is a waste of time. I expected far better from an author of his high caliber.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring, unconvincing and meaningless.
Review: I posted a anonymous review of this book last year that no one found helpful. So, I'll put my name to it and post the same review again. After about 50 pages, I started to wonder if John Sutter was going to quit making sarcastic asides. As someone once said, cynics are a dime a dozen. After awhile this incessant sarcasm becomes very tedious. I didn't find Frank Bellarosa to be a seductive man, so I don't understand why John and Susan found him seductive. This is why I call the book unconvinving. If the main conceit fails -- that dangerous, criminal Bellarosa is charming and attractive -- how are we to belive that John and Susan can be seduced? And if they're that easy to fall for a creep like Bellarosa, then why should we care for them? John and Susan, for all their kinky trysts, are boring. Ultimately, what is the book about? Is there any redemption or even any growth in the characters? It is offensive to compare this book with the Great Gatsby which is a work of great literature. The plight of Jay Gatsby is universal -- how do we handle loss? To what length do we go to prove ourselves as worthwhile human beings? The Gold Coast shouldn't be compared with Fitzgerald's masterwork.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing and boring
Review: I must agree with C. Wickert's review. I, too, am a great fan of DeMille's novels. In fact, "The Gold Coast" was the only novel I hadn't read. I was very disappointed with it. The plot was thin, the characters two dimensional and tedious, and the pace was so excruciatingly slow, I had to force myself to finish the book. The so-called "climax" was so predictable that I had figured out what would happen 100 pages earlier. This book was WAY below the standards set by Mr. DeMille's other novels. But I suppose good writers can sometimes write bad books.
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Summary: Four hundred pages could have been edited out
Review: I am a true DeMille fan, but Gold Coast was a real disappointment. Character Susan Sutter added little to the book, in fact, was very annoying.I found the story slow and meandering. I would catch myself thinking how the book could be rewritten to tighten the story to keep it interesting. It was a little story that took forever to get to the end. At least Frank (Mafia guy) was interesting. But, I didn't care for the Great Gadbsy, either.
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Summary: How Could You NOT Love It?
Review: With out a doubt my all time favorite. This book has everything a reader longs for and more, humor,honesty,lust,suspense,food orgies. I first read this 7 years ago,have gone through numerous copies,and have recommended it to everyone I know, and not once did someone not love it. I was very disappoined when I saw that others gave bad reviews.PLEASE IGNORE THEM! You do need a sense of humor to enjoy, after 7 years I still laugh out loud. Thank you Mr. Demille,and you new forward is wonderful.
Rating:
Summary: I laughed, I cried...
Review: I am a recent convert to DeMille. My first book was The Charm School which I liked a great deal. It was a little predictable, but it held my attention throughout, actually getting better as I read. By the end I was eager to try another DeMille book, which is pretty high praise. I picked up The Gold Coast based on the positive reviews I read here on Amazon.com and I'm writing to add my strong recommendation for this very entertaining and poignant novel. DeMille's description of the WASP community and mindset is hilarious and affecting. The Mafia component is less successful - solid, interesting, but not especially ground-breaking. However, the transformation of John Sutter is amazing. I found myself constantly surprised by the depth of this book. Nothing in the Charm School prepared me for the last hundred pages of the Gold Coast. The last sentence of the novel will make you gasp.
Rating: 
Summary: my review
Review: This story is about a man who discovers his new neighbor is a mafia man. As it happens, he is not completely happy with his life, so he lets himself be dragged by his new neighbor's life. The story is very well presented and the characters are very real and become very familiar right away. Even though the story seems to be a little far fetched at times, it is very entertaining. What makes this story so special is the cadre it is set on: the Gold Coast on Long Island, where mansions of an era gone by are the testimony of a life we could not even imagine....
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: I'm ashamed that I didn't pick up this book several years ago when it was first recommended because it was such an enjoyable read. The characters were particularly well developed, and the setting, Long Island's Gold Coast, was perfectly described. By matching the blueblood lawyer, John Sutter, against the mafioso, Bellarosa, Demille creates an incredibly entertaining conflict...supported in a tragically, but often humorous, way by the characters' respective families, friends, and associates.
Rating: 
Summary: Disturbing
Review: After reading Plumb Island and Cathedral I was expecting a different type of ending. I was waiting for the 'showdown' between Sutter and Bellarosa. This was a psychological showdown and not one of action. Very different. I really related to the character of John Sutter and his wife. It was very scary in fact, and as the last 150-200 pages of the story unfolded I became quite disturbed how things were turning out between Sutter and Susan. This book gave me a 'wallop' on the heart strings and will take a while to get over it. This book was absolutely hilarious up until then but I couldn't laugh anymore. I can't see a sequel here. I am very glad I read it though.
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