Rating: 
Summary: Successful crossover from non-fiction to fiction.
Review: Previously known for his legal essays, Carter now proves he is one of those rare breed of storytellers who can write an intelligent mystery without resorting to gross-out details of autopsy reports or true-crime gore. The characters in this writer's first work of fiction are true to life, full of passion, cynicism and biting social commentary. When a conservative black judge is found dead, everyone assumes it was a heart attack. But when the judge's son, conservative law professor Misha Garland, receives strange messages and notices someone following him, he's not so sure. Carter ends each chapter with enough crumbs to keep you turning the pages for more clues, but keeps you guessing until the very end. Well done!
Rating: 
Summary: My Favorite Book This Year
Review: I absolutely loved this book! I couldn't put it down. Most mysteries or thrillers move quickly and directly to create action and build suspense, whereas this book takes its time. But the author uses this time to best advantage, having his lead character, Talcott Garland, pause to mull over his life as he searches for clues in his present and his past that would solve the puzzle he stumbles upon. This reflects the way a REAL person would respond to uncertainty and possible danger: by slowly beginning to realize that things don't add up, not sure what is important and what isn't, having something unexpected float to the surface of the memory while pondering something else. The character portraits of the family and other players pulled me right in. I couldn't wait to find out what happened to these people as the story progressed. Having Talcott notice and reflect on so many aspects of his life in order to solve the mystery allows the author to ask questions -- about (for example) racism, loyalty, justice, the nature of family, the purpose of education, the definition of a moral life. I loved having the author pose these queries in the context of this riveting story, probably because his questions are the same ones I've asked myself my whole life. And when I think I've nailed an answer to one, I see more of the world and human nature, and suddenly I realize I haven't answered anything, and might even have to start over. So I especially loved the way Talcott is redeemed by having the courage to struggle to look at his world honestly, even when his emotions are involved and complicate things. I really enjoyed being challenged to think while reading a good mystery populated with interesting people at the same time. I don't get too many opportunities like that!
Rating: 
Summary: Overwritten and Overrated
Review: At 650 pages, "The Emperor of Ocean Park" desperately needed the attention of an editor. The text could easily have been reduced by 20 percent without damaging the storyline. And while it's not mandatory that I like the protagonists of the books I read, it helps. I realize that he's a law school professor, not an action hero, but I tired of Talcott Garland's continued weakness, particularly the way he dealt with his wife's adultery and self-serving behavior. At 650 pages, the pay-off isn't worth the effort.
Rating:
Summary: Long and worth it
Review: My wife kept asking me, "Are you STILL reading that book?" The answer, happily, was yes for several days. My initial fears that The Emperor of Ocean Park was going to be a lugubrious polemic on racial issues soon subsided as I became engrossed in the main character. Actually, Carter takes on many issues, in addition to race, but he weaves them into his protagonist's musings and other professorial speeches in such a way that I felt rewarded with hearty morsels, not beaten down. To my way of thinking, this book has everything: many characters that you actually get to know and care about, a riveting plot, and a broad canvas for the depiction of law school follies and life on the east coast. I actually felt sad when I finished this weighty tome. It was like a long, terrific meal that you know you will remember.
Rating: 
Summary: Can you say paperback?
Review: Emperor of Ocean Park is really three books. One is quite interesting and good, the second is dull and the third is rushed and poorly done. When Carter is talking about upper class black life he's good. When he's preaching about race he's stiff. When he's trying to do the mystery elements he's terrible. Emperor cries out for a good editor and a ghost writer to fix the mystery. Instead it got one of the most impressive ad campaigns in recent history. Hype is powerful and can make a bestseller but it can't make a so-so book great. I'd say wait for the paperback to come out or go to library.
Rating:
Summary: Best book I've read this year!
Review: Despite the number of pages I recommend this book. Carter's commentary:social, marital,famial balanced with the mystery provide an enjoyable read. If you don't like predicatlbe plot twist and like to keep guessing this is the book to tread.
Rating:
Summary: Fiction For Chess Players
Review: Stephen L. Carter's The Emperor of Ocean Park has a lot going for it. His main character, Talcott Garland, is a professor of law and a second generation upper-middle class black man. As such, he is positioned to reflect on society from a point of view not often seen in literature. As the novel progresses, racism, classism, political viewpoint and a quest to live one's religious principles are explored as Garland seeks to resolve a chain of events brought about by the sudden death of The Judge, his father. Characters, while well-rounded and viable, are seen through Garland's miasma of depression and misanthropy, and are not very likable. Garland himself lacks some vital element that makes a main character sympathetic. Although I felt sorry for him, I never really identified with him, and thus couldn't bring myself to sustain my interest in his fate over the course of the entire book. Though this could be described as a murder mystery, at over 600 pages it is much more profound than that. At times, the profundity threatened the movement of the plot. Often Garland had figured things out way ahead of the reader, so that important plot elements were revealed only in retrospect. While it's evident that Carter is a brilliant strategist, for me, reading The Emperor of Ocean Park was like playing chess with a world-class player--I was too many moves behind and found the experience (while illuminating) more frustrating than entertaining.
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Summary: S L O W start
Review: The first 225 pages or so barely kept me interested. However, it picks up pretty well and has really kept my attention.
Rating: 
Summary: Boring !!!
Review: This book was a nightmare ! The first 100 pages are ok, then you have to force yourself to continue, I tried really hard to finish this book but I gave up at page 330. No comments about the definitions "paler nation" / "darker nation"....
Rating:
Summary: An Excellent Read
Review: Riveting story layering mystery on mystery. Greatly developed characters: believeable, multi-faceted. Second favorite book that I've read in the last decade.
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