The Siege: A Thriller

by Stephen White

Book Overview

Disgraced detective Sam Boulder, FBI counter-terrorism specialist Christopher Poe and CIA analyst Deirdre Drake are drawn to Yale University to investigate the disappearances of several students - including the sons of both the secretary of the army and the newest Supreme Court Justice. All suspect terrorism, but the trail they are following is like no other. An unseen enemy is playing by no known rules, making no demands, somehow anticipating every...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451228480
• ISBN13: 9780451228482
• Release Date: August 2010
• Publisher: Berkley Books
• Length: 512 Pages
• Weight: 0.68 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 4.3" x 7.5"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Complex Thriller

Complex Thriller The Siege by Stephen White is a well written complex thriller that requires the reader to pay attention. It has A panoply of colorful, interesting characters rich in eccentricities woven into a intricate story of hostage taking and human frailty. What is happening on Yale's idyllic campus at one of its famous "secret" societies, the Book and Snake? At first it is not clear, then the story break wide open with a thunder clap. The story starts slow and gradually builds momentum through character interaction. Mr. White uses an interesting literary technique of 3 simultaneous timeline to slowly bring the 3 major protagonists together on the Yale campus. At times this can be confusing so beware and pay close attention to the chapter timeline designation. A clinical psychologist by profession, Mr. White uses his professional skills to weave interesting psychoanalysis into the storyline. This enriches both the complex novel's thesis and numerous colorful characters. Centering on an expanding and confusing hostage situation, Mr. White slowly develops the story that eventually grabs the reader and simply won't let go until the climatic ending. Superb psychological character development. Although the novel starts slowly, and uses complex simultaneous timelines, the intense character development is worthy of a 5 star rating. The reader will become immersed in the various characters who drive this intense novel, and this is the strength of Mr. White's wonderful new novel The Siege. No gratuitous language, violence or sex. A taunt psychological thriller that rewards the reader with colorful characters and a story with great depth and complexity. Strong recommend. Worth the price of a hardback book. This is my first Stephen White novel and most assuredly will not be my last. God job Stephen White. Looking forward to reading the rest of your works.

A Real Page Turner

This book is about a terrorist plot on the Yale campus. The first few pages set the tone for the book and got my attention. Then I just kept turning pages. "The Siege" is a novel but reads like a newspaper story. I enjoyed it a lot. I connected with the characters and cared what happened to them.

A what if book that will send chills down your spine!

This is Sam Purdy's book and it's a good one. Sam is now engaged to the mother to be of his baby, Carmon Reynosa and she is on bed rest in California. Carmon's daughter, Dulce is engaged to Andrew Calderon and the engagement party is being held in Miami Florida. Carmon sends Sam in her place, since at the moment he is on suspension from the Bolder Police Department and free to travel. Sam thinks he is just going to do a little getting to know you and shake hands, show support for Dulce and then go home. Boy is he wrong. Ann Summers Claderon, Geophysicist and mother of the groom asks for Sam's help. He must keep quiet and not tell anyone not even Ronaldo Angel Calderon the father of the groom what is going on. It seems Jane Claderon was "Tapped" for a secret society at Yale and then kidnapped along with several others that were also "Tapped". They are all high profile kids, with parents that range from Sectary of Army, Supreme Court Judge to a woman that is a manager of a coffee shop. If they breath a word to the police, one of the hostages will die. In the note he has sent the parents of these young people he tells them if they see Blue he is content if they see Orange he is disappointed and bad things will happen. For the first time the terrorists are smarter than or at least as smart as the people trying to stop them. They have covered all bases, they have chosen victims that will cause the most publicity and they aren't asking for any thing. This is the worst case scenario that FBI Agent Christopher Poe and CIA analyst Deirdre Drake have feared and now it is coming true. This is a book rich in back story and rich in plot. It will keep the reader guessing and it will send chills up your spine when you think about the "What Ifs" that are presented in this book. Stephen White has out done himself with this one and if you have never read a Stephen White book then this is the one that will make you a fan.

I've got good news and better news

Stephen White is an excellent writer. (For what it's worth, I say this as a professor of English.) He never writes "a person . . . they" and always uses the subjunctive correctly. His descriptions are vivid, sometimes lyrical, but never over-wrought. But White's a genius at character. In less than a half-page, we get a sense of Ann Summers Calderón that carries us through the entirety of the novel. We get the history, the aesthetics, and the dietary quirks of the hostage negotiator, even though she turns out to be a minor player. White switches his reader among three separate set of protagonists, but there's no confusion, no impulse to flip back to identify. Once he gives us a character, the person is real. This isn't an Alan Gregory novel, but Sam Purdy steps onto center court with the aplomb of a Wimbledon champ. Sam could carry a series in his own right. The sliding chronology is a little irritating and really unnecessary, but it untangles about halfway through. The primary tension derives from what's not there: any info about the bad guys. We are as in the dark as all of the law enforcement players and this works wonderfully well. We get enough background about Yale to make the place come to life, but White spares us the massive down-loads of data that some writers substitute for plot and character development. The book comes as a surprise to long-time White fans, but it's a great surprise.

His best yet!

I've long been a fan of White's, enjoying his books as better-than-average diversions...not my #1 favorite author, but at least one whose books generally keep me entertained from start to finish. 'The Siege', however... Wow. He must have been taking mega-doses of creativity supplements, because this book is magnitudes better than anything he's ever done before, in my humble opinion. The suspense starts immediately and doesn't let up. The premise of the book is absolutely unique, unexpected and intelligently addressed. The characters ring true in both words and actions; dynamic personal sub-plots abound but don't confuse the primary plot...and they're crafted without a lot of the boring old "can't work because we're just too sexually attracted to each other" syndrome that gets used when a mediocre author can't think of anything else to write. Good, albeit just a tiny bit anticlimactic, ending as well. This could be adapted to a GREAT summer action movie! Well worth reading as one of the summer's best, if not "the" best. Kudos, White. Extremely well done.