The House of Special Purpose

Rating:
Summary: Good But Not Up To Par For Hyde!
Review: The House Of Special Purpose by Christopher Hyde is an entertaining historical thriller but it is not as good as some of this author's previous works (eg., Wisdom Of The Bones, The Second Assassin, A Gathering Of Saints, etc.). The plot involves the search by various international spies (Russia, Germany, England and the U.S.) for a film rumored to exist from the bloody days of the Bolshevik Revolution. This film could have a major impact on the balance of power in the war that is sure to involve the U.S. In typical Hyde fashion, his story is filled with real events, historical figures and true-to-life atmosphere that allowed this reader's interest to be held throughout the book. However, The House Of Special Purpose does not provide the level of sustained suspense that I found to exist in Hyde's other books. To me, Hyde made the book longer than it needed to be to be truly suspenseful in order for him to incorporate as many of the research findings as possible he uncovered about the people and events surrounding this period. It's not that these historical facts aren't interesting. They are, but at the same time they tended to detract from the excitement of the plot. As a consequence, while this book started off as if it would warrant a rating between 4-5 stars, by the time I finished it, I felt it did not deserve more than a 3 (possibly 3 1/2) star rating. Overall, The House Of Special Purpose is a good book and one that you'll probably enjoy if you like historical thrillers. It just does not live up to the high expectations I've come to expect from this author.

Rating:
Summary: Great book! Read it NOW!
Review: The House of Special Purpose is a fun and exciting novel set in the days before World War 2. Hyde cleverly weaves real life people into the story, such as Wild Bill Donovan, and, most enjoyably, Ian Fleming, the man who would later write the James Bond novels, but here looks over the two spys who are out to find a film reel that supposedly captured the murders of the Russian royal family more than twenty years before. The story is told at a non-stop, page turning pace. Don't read Dan Brown--read Christopher Hyde!