The Family

Very Highly Recommended!

A wonderful, thrilling story which captivates from the very beginning right thru to the end - and especially fascinating when read while viewing the Showtime series "The Borgias." All the characters come to life and the story flows smoothly. A great reading pleasure that makes me want to find more books about Renaissance Italy.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

I WANT THIS!!!

Would anyone mind lending it to me. Im at my book budget for the next three months lol!!!

1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Horribly Disappointing

This book had the makings of something special. The Borgias are an original mob family. Instead of owning a territory or even a city...they owned nations and religions. In the hands of Puzo? WOW!

I don't know at which point Puzo stopped writing and Carol Gino picked up. I can only guess that Puzo didn't get very far and/or the editors made a terrible mess of what was left. The story has absolutely no depth, and the characters have even less. The story, if one can call this narrative a 'story', is more of an outline than anything else I can describe. One can almost imagine the bullet points preceding each paragraph. I desperately wanted the early overview chapters to be a foundation upon which a masterful "Godfather"-like story would rest.

Instead, I became desperate to put the book down. And so I did.

Quite simply, this book is unreadable.

Very interesting book, has its highs and lows

Overall I enjoyed the book although there were many slow spots loaded with proper names of characters that were never developed that after a while I just skimmed because they didnt add to the story. However, the lives of the main characters were very interesting. It was even more fasinating when you find out its based on true events and historical figures.

The book has elements of the Star Wars saga, mixed with the Godfather, see if you can point them out as you read.

Warning very uncomfortable incest subplot that may give you the chills. Also if you are a devote Catholic, this book does not represent the office of the Pope in a favorable light.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Great read.

Borgia and Corleon. Same people 500 year apart.

Fun Read

Excellent reading, Mr. Puzo does not disappoint!

brother and sister lovin'

i like how mario puzo captured the corruption of the vatican. hard to get past the incest though....

A Borgia Biography

The sad truth is that this book is more biographical than fiction. The Borgia family, though corrupt, still has the power to mesmerize the ages and lure us into their wicked tale, and Puzo masterfully travels us back in time to the Renaissance age in which they lived. I thoroughly enjoyed his version of events.

Gimme a break!

Sheech! Popes, cardinals, bastards. C'mon, this thing could have been wrapped up in 200 (or less!) pages. Puzo was a better writer than this. Just goes to show you: A talented writer can crank out some really bad stuff. Maybe he (Puzo) was bored with writing when he got to this one.

0 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Have you ever read a book and never wanted to put it down?

Well, The Family was such a thoroughly entertaining novel. When I first looked at the cover page I thought this book was going to be so boring. However, the first chapter alone sparked my interest. The story began with Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia and the papal elections. Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia became the new Pope Alexander. Throughout the book there were times where incest between his children Cesare and Lucrezia occurred. This began to eliminate rivals and leading his children to marry into alliances with the children of the noble families of France and Spain. Cesare wanted to be a soldier, and Lucrezia was more on the loving side with other dukes. Their differences stirred up conflict between the two siblings created chaos between their love lives. Also the history of the Renaissance is very much explained throughout the book. Mario Puzo does an excellent job teaching Renaissance Italy in an entertaining and interesting way. If you want to learn about Renaissance Italy and be entertain at the same time, I advise you to read The Family by Mario Puzo.

The Family is by far the best book

And I thought the Godfather was written brilliantly. The Family is an amazing book. It completely pulls you in from the first chapter and intrigues you to the point where you can't put the book down at all. Mario's imagination is one of a kind. I only wish there were more of his books to dive into. Mario is missed !

One of the best books ever written!

Its one of the best books I have ever read. Mario Puzo gave his all on the last book he ever wrote and I was mexmerized by the second chapter. The story of The borgia family has been told many times, but I think Mario puzo told it the best.

Simply great

This book is one of those you read in one go, one day, hardly able to put it down. I just loved the way it goes through almost 3 years of history in merely 300 pages.

Brilliant

This intelligently written story is thick with surprises and twists of all sorts. I found myself having a hard time reading for only an hour or two. I was lost in the world of the Borgias. This is definitely one of Mr. Puzo's best!

wonderful

loved the story, got lost in their world. A wonderfully visual look into the history of the Borgia family and early Italy. When completd, was saddened as I wanted more.

Better than sleeping pills

Puzo's novels in the past were ones that I coul'dnt put down. The family is such a snoozer, it had me falling asleep before the end of the first chapter.

Good Read

A sort of way to put historical facts into a non-history book. I enjoyed reading it because I could gain much knowledge on one of the first great families of crime. The book revolves around Alexander VI and his children. Very factual, though: no in-depth analysis. I was also disapointed to see they did not mention certain interesting characters who surrounded the real borgias's existence. Still, I recommend the book. Good ending.

Highly entertaining historical novel

The Family transports the reader to the 15th Century when intrigue, sin, and the interplay between religion and politics were rampant. The authors ingeniously use the tone of language of the times in this well-constructed and well-developed historical novel. It is not for those readers who expect a 20th-Century Mafia-type book as in Puzo's previous styles. It is, however, for people who want to have an entertaining and better understanding of the infamous Borgia family, its connection with the Florentine strategist Macchiavelli, and how the Catholic Church developed during the Italian Renaissance. Very appealing and extremely well written with details of the religious extremism of the 15th Century that could easily be applied to certain religious groups today. Well worth the read and one of the best novels I have read in a long time.

Not like his other books

I could not get past page 85. The book is written like a history book. I found it boring unlike his other novels.

Huge Disappointment

As a Mario Puzzo fan, I couldn't have been more disappointed by this last effort. The prose was sophomoric with much repetition of phrases and adjectives. I thought I was losing track and reading the same paragraphs over and over. I didn't see much of the Puzo that we formerly enjoyed. I finished it but would really like to return it and get my money back!