Rating: 
Summary: Good Book - Could Have Been Shorter
Review: I thought the book overall was very good. I would recommend it and have recommended it to my friends. It's intriguing and the characters are interesting. However, the writer just went into too much detail on history of each and every relationships and the main character's feelings of inadequacy and paranoia. I think we got this aspect of the character very early on, but the writer wanted to remind us of it every time the character doubted his wife, etc. The mystery is okay and the insight into the class issue was very accurate. He knows what he's talking about. I was excited to hear it is being made into a movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Angst Ridden
Review: I was surprised by this book's similarity to those of similar angst ridden novels by Jewish writers such as Philip Roth. Although the central figure had not been emasculated by his mother he still seemed to have been. He is weak, self-centered and as decidedly unattractive as a man as Portnoy. He is just like Woody Allen wringing his hands and talking, talking, talking. I kept at it because I thought it had to get better. It didn't.
Rating: 
Summary: Read this before you invest your time...
Review: The first few chapters of this book are riveting, but it seems to me that even Mr. Stephen Carter got tired of reading his own superfluously written words by the time the end finally rolled around. The ending of this book is the absolute worst - I have never felt so completely cheated in my entire reading life. By the time I had gotten to page 600 or so, I had the knawing sensation to put this down but, by that time, I had invested so much time and energy that I felt compelled to keep going. So sorry am I that I did. To be blunt, the conclusion of this book is not worth the time you'll spend reading, nor the paper on which it's printed.
Rating:
Summary: Good story, but a little confusing...
Review: I really liked this book, but I had a hard time following how he came to understand his father's "message". You have to make "quite a leap" sometimes with the author. Good read though.
Rating: 
Summary: I loved this book!
Review: I felt compelled to write a review of the Emperor of Ocean Park simply because I thought it was a great book. It is intelligent with diverse characters and a wierd enough to be believable story line. I highly recommend it! It is one of the best books I have read in a long time.
Rating:
Summary: Ponderous
Review: "The Emperor of Ocean Park" is slightly longer than the phone book but not nearly as compelling. In the manner of bores, throughout the ages, Mr. Carter drones on and on with no concern about whether his audience is engaged or even awake. The language is awkward and stiff. Almost 700 pages and not one believable 3 dimensional character. Characters described as brilliant behave in an incredibly dense fashion, others described as evil, turn out to be just kinda' unpleasant. And every couple of pages Mr. Carter brings everything to a grinding halt to give us a lecture on traditional family values. The purported hero, a pudgy, charm less, sanctimonious slug is entirely unlikable. I think this was supposed to be a suspense novel but there is no tension. Most of the plot lines, such as they are, are tied up about 3/4 through, but Mr. Carter can't bring himself to end his opus. Worst of all, after slogging all the way to the end of this very long mess, the reader finds that the central mystery is never revealed. A real waste of time.
Rating:
Summary: Another Good Thriller
Review: Stephen Carter enters the world of fiction with a bang. The Emporer of Ocean Park comes highly recommended, and does not disappoint. It's full of twists and turns, of familial discord and of mysteries unsolved. Seen through the eyes of Talcott Garland (husband, father and now reluctant adventurer), this story will engage you from beginning to end. Tal's marital difficulties, strange siblings, chillingly dangerous "Uncle Jack" and the mystery woman who keeps popping up just when his life gets dangerously close to becoming normal again will keep you on the edge of your seat. My only complaint is that this book is TOO LONG! 650 pages is about 200 too many, even for a book this compelling. And, while I enjoyed the way the author wove his love of chess into the storyline, after awhile, the more arcane game references began to wear on me. Nevertheless, I recommend The Emperor of Ocean Park to anyone who enjoys a good mystery- and has a little time on his or her hands to read :-)
Rating:
Summary: Not Your Everyday Mindless Read
Review: Usually my vacation reading require little thought as I use my books of the dog days of summer as pure entertainment. I am not suggesting that The Emperor of Ocean Park will enlighten the reader of the life of noted persons, or rewrite a historical moment, instead Mr. Carter speaks to you with vivid description and a respectful appreciation of one's ability to think along with the main character as he unravels the mysteries of his father's life and death. Often it is assumed that a black author writing about a black family makes it a black book. Not the case. Instead it is a suspensfull drama that any avid reader can relate to.
Rating:
Summary: Checkmate: Intricate Plot Moves This Game of Life
Review: The Emperor of Ocean Park is a well-written story that gives insight to many aspects of segments of a life most people know very little about. The politics in an ivy league law school, the intricacies of judgeship appointments, the intimacies of familial and marital relationships, the insular world of the black elite, as well as suspense and intrigue are intersected and dissected in this thriller by a professor of law who has written several books of nonfiction. Most readers have debated whether he needed 650 pages in which to tell it, however this was my recent local book club selection and the consensus was that while the book was long, we were at a loss as to what to cut. Every which way he turns, Talcott AKA Misha is being asked, "What are the arrangements?" His father's death brings out a myriad of characters including Jack Ziegler, the man who caused the Judge's fall from grace, a mysterious woman on roller skates, and some mysterious guys who follow his every move. What is the secret that has his sister Mariah looking for conspiracy theories, that causes his brother to be further estranged, and his cousin Sally in constant mental disorder? How do the black and white chess pawns factor into all of this? Talcott seems to have the world on his shoulders. His law school colleagues think he has lost it, his philandering wife is up for a federal judgeship appointment, all the while he is being pursued by people who appear to want to harm him. From a small town in Connecticut to Martha's Vineyard to Washington, D.C., readers are regaled with a whirlwind story of mystery. The characterizations are the crux of the book. Race and politics, love and dishonor, mystery and the game of life and chess make for not only a great summer time read but an all-time favorite. Dera
Apooo Bookclub
Marcus Book Club (Oakland)
Rating:
Summary: This guy won't use 1 word where 25 will do.
Review: I wish I'd taken this book out of the library so I could have returned it after the first chapter. I bought it because the NY Times Book Review was favorable- the last time I'll trust that source. One does wonder if Mr. Carter even had an editor- or why the editor was reluctant to do his/her job. I did buy the book, so I was determined to finish it, and you know what?- it was not worth it. I got hopeful around chapter 44 that it was going somewhere exciting or at least interesting, but the ending was a disappointment. All in all, a waste of time.
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