Nelson DeMille: Up Country

[brk_3]

A U.S. Army officer’s name found on the Vietnam War memorial in DC may not have been a casualty of war but instead may have been a murder victim. Paul Brenner (former U.S. Army Intelligence officer) is brought back from forced retirement to investigate this possible crime that took place some 30 years in the past. Brenner who is a Vietnam Vet takes the assignment with very little optimism on solving the case since the only potential evidence is an eye witness who just happened to be a North Vietnamese soldier. Returning to Vietnam, Brenner faces his own painful memories of his two tours during the war, at the same time discovering the truth of the mysterious death of the Army officer as well as a conspiracy to cover up the crime.

Have you ever read a book and as you were reading it you weren’t sure if you liked it or not? That’s kind of how I felt about this one. This was the first Nelson DeMille book I have read and the book is over 700 pages. So, at times I felt like shelving the book and moving on to something else. The storyline shifted back and forth between the solving of a mystery and the main characters return to post war Vietnam. If the author concentrated on the fictional mystery storyline this book could have been cut down to 350 pages and have been a high paced page turner. It was that good. The storyline involving the characters return to a place he served in combat and the many emotional struggles that come with it, seemed to take over a good portion of the book and at times really slowed things down by getting away from the murder mystery. It wasn’t until I was half way through with the book that I read a profile on Nelson DeMille and found out that he is Vietnam War Veteran who saw action as a platoon leader in the First Cavalry Division. It turns out that this book was derived from when DeMille returned to Vietnam to visit the places where he served and saw action. Knowing this gave me more of an appreciation of the storyline involving Paul Brenner’s return to Vietnam and that country’s post war culture.

 

[753C]

Felt almost the exact same way about this book when I read it. It was good enough to finish and the author's personal connection to the story added an emotional depth to it. Not DeMille's best but decent. Try the Gold Coast if you want to give him another shot. That one is excellent.

 

[brk_3]

I have other DeMille books that I picked up at library book sales, so I will be reading more from this author. By no means have I given up on him. Up Country wasn't great but decent. I will look into The Gold Coast. Thanks for the recommendation.

 

[Peder]

Great review, brk_3! Sounds like an absorbing book. One more for the pile.
Many thanks.
:flowers:

 

[spywannabe]

I have not read Up Country, but have read Gold Coast and am currently reading the sequel to that, The Gatehouse, and have enjoyed both so far.

 

[753C]

I have not read Up Country, but have read Gold Coast and am currently reading the sequel to that, The Gatehouse, and have enjoyed both so far.

I think Demille is at his best when he is injecting humor into his stories and I laughed out loud at several parts of the Gold Coast. The main character is such a wise ass. I loved it.

 

[spywannabe]

Then you will love The Gatehouse...his character has gotten even better and his comments about his in-laws are hysterical!

 

[753C]

I actually read that one right when it came out. I saw it at the library and picked it up. At the time I didn't have any idea he was writing a sequel so it was a real nice surprise. I agree it was really entertaining, not as great as the first one but still a really fun read.

 

[BookManEd]

Great review, brk_3! Sounds like an absorbing book. One more for the pile.
Many thanks.
:flowers:

Agreed, might have to check this out. GCP just put out a new mystery/thriller also I might have to snag.. will post it tomorrow after I get done reading it

 

[CatsNBooks]

I saw the movie The General's Daughter, then read Up Country... so I pictured Travolta as the character & I did like the book. I've not read the other books mentioned; but his series of John Corey are great! Starting with Plum Island.... read them all!