Book Review – The Summer House – James Patterson & Brendan DuBois – Fast Paced Thriller
Table of Contents
My Rating – 4 out of 5
Plot Summary – The Summer House
The host of co-writers who publish books in collaboration with the prolific James Patterson are so numerous that the list alone can populate one whole A4 page! But this is undoubtedly one of the best for 2020, and I don’t say that lightly. It is also safe to proclaim that Brendan DuBois has a significant contribution to the superlative nature of this book, because, in all his collaborations, James Patterson plays second fiddle. It also helps that Brendan is a prolific writer in his own right.
This novel is set in Sullivan County in rural Georgia, where a gorgeous mansion was once built as the summer retreat of a wealthy family, known as the Summer House. Over the decades, however, it has fallen upon bad times and is in a bad state of disrepair. The once-wealthy family has sold it and the current owners started off by renting it out as a holiday rental. Then disregard and lack of maintenance have left it as a place of disrepute and the hub of local drug dealers and other shady characters. All that changes dramatically, when one night, seven people are murdered in cold blood!
Local Sheriff, Emma Williams, surprisingly solves the heinous crime in quick time as eyewitnesses, CCTV footage, and Forensics immediately point out the involvement of an elite Army Unit, the Night Ninjas, recently returned from Afghanistan. Known for their lethal capabilities in neutralizing enemy positions, it seems to be a crime committed to satisfy a personal vendetta and out of unwavering allegiance to their leader. But, is it too good to be true??
The Army, though, sends its own investigating team, led by Major Jeremiah Cook, himself an NYPD veteran. But he faces resentment, non-cooperation, and outright hostility from both the local Cops as well as the Military base. It seems, that the case is not as crystal clear as it is being presented and there is something far more sinister that is being hidden. His team members are also threatened and prevented from doing their jobs. All that makes Major Cook all the more determined to get to the root of the conspiracy and solve this complex mystery!
The Army unit at the heart of it all are known for their ruthlessness and have come back from Afghanistan with a cloud of impropriety hanging over their heads. They anyway had few friends at the base and after their recent rumored transgression, they have even fewer left. But….there’s a big but!
Conclusion – Book Review of The Summer House
With its utterly unexpected twists and turns, this sets a searing pace and you would be forgiven if you forgot all else and finished this book at one go! From the beginning it is presented not as a mystery but as a solved murder spree which doesn’t exactly feel right, if you were willing to look at it with some amount of scepticism. There are enough surprises, plot twists and action packed moments to keep the reader guessing all the time.
An overwhelming suggestion for this to be added to your to be read list, as this is, as I mentioned at the beginning of this review, one of the best collaborations of 2020 from the James Patterson stable. So just go for it!
Brendan DuBois 
James Patterson
