Palace Council

Written by Stephen L. Carter

Narrated by Mirron Willis

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • FROM THE AUTHOR OF THE EMPEROR OF OCEAN PARK, INSPIRATION FOR THE UPCOMING MGM+ ORIGINAL SERIES • A gripping political thriller set against the backdrop of Watergate, Vietnam, and the Nixon White House.

Philmont Castle is a man who has it all: wealth, respect, and connections. He's the last person you'd expect to fall prey to a murderer, but then his body is found on the grounds of a Harlem mansion by the young writer Eddie Wesley, who along with the woman he loves, Aurelia Treene, is pulled into a twenty-year search for the truth. The disappearance of Eddie's sister June makes their investigation even more troubling. As Eddie and Aurelia uncover layer upon layer of intrigue, their odyssey takes them from the wealthy drawing rooms of New York through the shady corners of radical politics all the way to the Oval Office and President Nixon himself.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Jul 8, 2008
• ISBN: 9781415955970

Stephen L. Carter

Stephen L. Carter is the bestselling author of several novels—including The Emperor of Ocean Park and New England White—and over half a dozen works of non-fiction. Formerly a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, he is the William Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale University, where he has taught for more than thirty years. He and his wife live in Connecticut.

[pgchuis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was very similar to 'The Emperor of Ocean Park' which I have just read: someone dies and leaves mysterious clues for the main protagonist to puzzle out while they work at Elm Harbor University. Here Kellen leaves clues for his former girlfriend Julia. The clues were ridiculously obtuse, Julia and the ex-police officer also trying to get to the bottom of things made enormous deductive leaps, and at one point it seemed as if every inhabitant of Julia's small town was implicated in some way.The writing was as enjoyable as the first novel, but I found the conclusion to this one morally disgusting and I can't decide where the author wanted the reader to stand on the issues.

[marzia22_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Decent political thriller. Lots of twists and turns and unlikely events mixed in with real events spanning 1952-1976. Never really cared about any of the characters. I had the feeling that the book was written to be made into a movie rather than to be a good novel. Weak ending.

[pinkcrayon99 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Edward "Eddie" Wesley Jr. is an award winning author and journalist who is trying to uncover the inner workings of a secret society, locate his missing sister, and win the heart of the woman he loves. Eddie arrives in Harlem in May 1954. His roots are in Boston. He is the son of a minister who is involved in the civil rights movement of the day. Edward Wesley Sr. possesses the dreaded "voice" that Eddie and his sister Junie hates to hear. Junie and Eddie's girlfriend, Aurelia, both have an equal piece of his heart. The sudden disappearance of Junie sends Eddie's life into turmoil. Prior to Eddie arriving in Harlem or Junie's disappearance there was a meeting held on Martha's Vineyard that would affect all their lives forever.

Essentially there is a secret society whose ultimate goal is to set certain people in place and make events happen to change the country. They want control. This is an integrated group of twenty men. They are some of the richest and most influencial men in the country. Suddenly, they are turning up dead one by one. Due to Eddie's commitment issues, Aurelia married one of these men, Kevin Garland. The Garlands are known as one of the richest families in the country. Eddie and Aurelia both had ties to the Council that they never asked for. These ties haunted them and threaten their very lives.

Stephen Carter spared no celebrity in Palace Council. Eddie often takes counsel from Langston Hughes. They have a lasting friendship. Eddie’s father is a friend of the Kennedy’s. Eddie later works as speech writer for the JFK presidential campaign and continues as JFK enters the White House. Richard Nixon is weaved into the narrative right until the very end. How can one have the Kennedy’s and Nixon without the infamous J. Edgar Hoover. Carter makes them so casual that they don't overpower the storyline. The Vietnam war is also a backdrop.

This was one of the most concise, detail laden novels I have read in a while. You get the feel that Carter spares no detail because he wants the story to be as realistic as possible. Honestly, I can really see these events taking place if they haven't already. The story developed over the years. Carter was genius in the way that he allowed everyone's life to happen yet never losing the central theme of the narrative. This is a long novel but it had to be for all the details it incorporated. There was no shock value. The details just accumalated until the end. Upon arriving at the "jewel" of the story, I was not excited just simply tired. Palace Council was a suspenseful novel but not intense.

[sleahey_3 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Once again Stephen Carter has written a rich and complex intrigue, dealing with politics, race, romance, family, and history. The glimpse into Harlem in the mid-twentieth century is fascinating to this outsider.

[doondeck · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One of those books I couldn't put down. Intriguing look at black society in Harlem and beyond during the 50's, 60's and 70's. Conspiracies abound here and in the end it was difficult to sort them all out.

[norinrad10 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Mr Carter has never failed to deliver. Including a few characters from "The Emperor of Ocean Park" doubly makes this a treat. For an adventure that will have you thinking long after its finished, this can't be beat.

[blissread · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A love story, a missing sister, and a mysterious group planning to control the US government, all set against the history of the US in the mid to late 20th century. Eddie Wesley goes on an extended search for his missing sister and while doing so, uncovers a mysterious conspiracy. Good book - maybe a little too long.