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Brothers Hardcover – January 1, 1987

by William Goldman (Author)

3.9 26 ratings

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Print length

310 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Warner Books
Publication date

January 1, 1987
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00BL8POV0
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Warner Books; 1st edition (January 1, 1987)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 310 pages
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 13.6 ounces

Customer Reviews:
3.9 26 ratings

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William Goldman

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William Goldman (b. 1931) is an Academy Award–winning author of screenplays, plays, memoirs, and novels. His first novel, The Temple of Gold (1957), was followed by the script for the Broadway army comedy Blood, Sweat and Stanley Poole (1961). He went on to write the screenplays for many acclaimed films, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) and All the President’s Men (1976), for which he won two Academy Awards. He adapted his own novels for the hit movies Marathon Man (1976) and The Princess Bride (1987).

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E. Durr

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on September 2, 2014

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The sequel to "Marathon Man" is a good read and gave me satisfactory "closure".

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K. Karls

A Joy to Read, Complex, Fascinating and Tragic

Reviewed in the United States on August 8, 2011

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First off, I will say this: I could not put this book down. Well, I kind of forced myself to put it down...I could have easily devoured this thing in one night had I let myself, but I stretched it out over a week. It was, as I said before, an absolute joy to read. Fun, action-packed, and all about my favorite character from the original Marathon Man, Scylla aka "Doc" Levy. I was pretty devastated when Doc was killed in "Marathon Man"; I saw the movie before I read the book, and once I discovered that there was not only a sequel to Marathon Man but, wait holy crap, Doc comes back to life?! Sign me up! But I digress...

This is not something Goldman just whipped off because he wanted to exploit the success of "Marathon Man"; on the contrary, it must have taken an extraordinary amount of time, research and effort to write this story. It's a good deal longer than "Marathon Man." The characters are many, the plot twists are numerous, and the backdrops move from one elegant European setting to another (mostly England). A couple of times I found myself sitting back and going "Wow, how does he come up with some of this stuff??" Really, the depth and size of Goldman's imagination is extraordinary. Extraordinary enough that a seemingly ridiculous concept (Scylla didn't really die by being gutted by Szell; he was just really, really badly injured and his appearance was altered by surgery, and he was whisked away to a remote tropical island for six years until he is required back to save the world) becomes plausible. If you can set aside your disbelief (stranger things have happened after all), and just accept the fact that Goldman really wanted to bring back Scylla, and hey, it's an entire novel about Scylla and that's fantastic, then you're in for a fun and entertaining romp. The protagonist from the first novel, Scylla's younger brother Babe, also appears in several scenes, as a married and successful Ivy league professor.

Yes, as mentioned in other reviews, there are some interesting "James Bond" caliber weapon choices; mind-altering mist, liquid that induces thoughts of suicide, poisoned briefcase handles, and there are some truly loathsome enemies (The Blond and Cheetah for example) but what I liked most about this novel was the way it dives right into Scylla's character.

After recovering his physical health and rebuilding his strength on the island, Scylla returns to employment under a new identity with the morally ambiguous, shadowy government agency known simply as "The Division." We know that Scylla looks much different due to the plastic surgery he received as part of his identity wipeout; several characters comment on not recognizing him, but other than being "suntanned", we don't get much of a physical description. Scylla is described in the book as being very tan, very, very handsome, with the same big hands, muscular body, and broad shoulders from the first book. So it's obvious that the only thing altered was his face, but Doc was described as handsome in the first book as well, a guy who had a great smile (to quote Babe, "he was a fabulous-looking guy") and no problems with women. Thus, it's sort of left to your imagination as to what Scylla's new face looks like.

Scylla/Doc is, without doubt, a complex and fascinating man. He is a mixture of light and darkness, kindness and cold-calculation. He is the deadliest man in the world, yet he is nothing like the enemy "spy drones" that surround him; he is the best at what he does, yet he loathes any type of "spy game" quirks/behaviors/cliches that go with the territory. For example, Scylla hates passwords; there is a pretty funny scene where he is suppossed to say a simple password to a woman in order to establish contact, but he absolutely refuses to say it because he can't stand the cliche of it all. You get the feeling that Scylla looks at the entire espionage business, and yes, even at himself, with a certain amount of amusement. I got the impression that Goldman himself was poking fun at some of the more "007" aspects of typical secret agent stories. Also, unlike many of his counterparts, Scylla does not seem to particularly enjoy killing (unless it's someone he hates). Other characters, notably The Cheetah (a completely unlikeable Division drone) and The Blond (a superbly creepy hitman) not only enjoy killing, they REVEL in it. They live for it. Killing is a personal pleasure for them, and as soon as they have disposed of one person, they are already salivating at the prospect of the next kill. Scylla, however, kills only when necessary (self-defense or when ordered to) and he does so quickly. He never feels joy at the prospect of killing, and he even expresses regret over the necessity of a few victims. To put it simply, Scylla is not a sociopath. He shows compassion and tenderness, sorrow and regret, and because of this, you're constantly wondering what makes him tick. What keeps him going? Why does he even bother? Why doesn't he take his new face, his clean slate, and his new identity and leave Division? To a certain extent, some of these questions are answered; Scylla enjoys certain parts of the job. He loves the chase, the challenge(or lack thereof) of new opponents, and the travel from place to place. However, there is also a part of him that longs for a normal life, and a part of him that wishes he had died where he'd fallen.

As we already know from his scenes in "Marathon Man", Syclla is extraordinarily intelligent, perceptive, and posesses a razor-sharp wit. Goldman's signature humor comes into play several times through Scylla, and I definitely laughed out loud on more than one occasion. Brothers allows us to see something that Marathon Man did not; it allows us to see a vulnerable, unsure, and yes, even frightened side of Scylla. Having been out of action for six years, Scylla finds himself completely alone in a world that has moved on without him. There is a brilliant scene in an airport after Scylla has first arrived back on the mainland. He reads a newspaper to pass the time before his flight, and realizes that he doesn't know what many of the words mean. Words such as "AIDS," "VHS/VCR" etc., are totally foreign to him, and he is terrified. He even questions whether or not he wants to come back to Division at all, and for a while, you wonder if he still has it in him. After a few stumbles, you may wonder: Does Scylla still have the speed, smarts, power and agility to survive as a top agent? That answer is revealed with an awesome and completely gratifying scene that literally had me cheering.There are times when you think that surely, Scylla is done for, he's messed up, he's been caught, and his brilliance shines through again and again. Scylla is a master of disguises, of different accents, and of stealth. He is, to be very blunt, excellent at what he does. And why? As mentioned in the novel, Scylla is a man with absolutely nothing to lose, who cares little whether he lives or dies. And that makes him the perfect agent. His brother Babe is the only person in the world that he gives a damn about, and he knows that he would put Babe in great danger should he attempt to reestablish contact with him. Still, his longing to see his brother again is undeniable and equal only to Babe's mourning for Doc, and his desire to have his older brother back. It's the brothers' love for each other that is really at the heart of both novels, and it's their mutual love and respect for each other that made Doc's death all the more tragic, and their love is what, I think, made me so eager to accept that Doc was still alive. I enjoyed their interaction and relationship so much, I couldn't bear the thought of it ending so tragically.

I know that my first question, like many people I'm sure, upon reading this book was this: Do Scylla and Babe reunite? The answer is yes, they do. I'll leave it at that, don't want to spoil anything!

Much has been made about the apparent 180 degree turn taken by Scylla in terms of his sexuality, ie; he goes from homosexual to heterosexual without giving it a thought. However, I disagree that Scylla was ever a complete homosexual. Yes, he did have a male lover in Marathon Man ("Janey" or "Janeway,"), but Scylla never gave any indication that he went for men and only men. There aren't any scenes, in either book, of Scylla staring at another man and thinking how handsome he is, etc etc. From Babe's telling in the first book, Doc had been married and divorced a couple of times. And in "Brothers," Scylla sleeps with only women. Isn't it plausible that Scylla is bisexual? Or if not, that Janey was a one-time-only deal, the one and only man that Scylla would ever be attracted to, and now that he's gone, then that's it? I don't think that Goldman was trying to brush off Scylla's sexuality; he is not shy about having homosexual references, love scenes, and charcters in his books, nor should he be, but I think Goldman was trying to establish that Scylla's brush with same-sex love was a chapter in his life that is now closed. Perhaps Scylla's now-completely heterosexual tendencies are part of his new identity. Or perhaps he didn't see a guy good-looking enough to strike his fancy in "Brothers." Who knows. It's probably the least important aspect of the book to me.

My only problem with "Brothers" is the ending. I didn't like it. I was flying high until I got to the ending. Yes, it did feel a bit rushed, but mostly, it just confused me. I don't want to give anything away, but mostly I just wondered WHY Goldman chose to end the novel this way. The ending seemed to go against everything established in the first book, and everything that had built up for most of the second book. I didn't like the ending for one specific reason concerning Doc and Babe's relationship, and if you've read the book you'll know what I mean.

Besides the ending, this book is a joy. I truly, truly enjoyed it very much, and parts of it had me grinning from ear to ear. I love Goldman's work, and Scylla's character absolutely comes to life. Yes, parts of it are a bit nutty (you'll never look at cute kids the same way again), but Goldman makes up for it with plenty of wit, humor, wisdom, and action scenes as only Goldman can write them. Enjoy this one.

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Comedy Snob

I decided to re-read and I can't believe how bad it was

Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2018

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I read this as a teen and remember loving it. I decided to re-read and I can't believe how bad it was. I have read Marathon Man twice and loved it both times. I'm still a huge William Goldman fan!

Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2015

William Goldman’s brilliant 1986 sequel to his stunning 1974 book and movie hit “Marathon Man” (MM) is severely under reviewed. So is MM itself. MM was a shockingly thrilling novel rooted in reality combining the outcome of McCarthy-era witch hunts with ghosts from the Holocaust and 1970s Soviet plotting in the US. It also gave countless readers and viewers a severe trauma about seeking dental help. At the end of MM, hero Babe’s life is saved by his older brother Doc, a mysterious professional killer in the employ of the Division, a shady DC-based US security agency. But Doc was disemboweled in the process and died.
Not quite. His resurrection years later, is the outcome of untold rounds of hazardous, experimental surgery and lengthy, solitary survival training on a remote Caribbean islet. One day Doc, workname 'Scylla', hears a helicopter approach. The start of a new life, a comeback? Yes to both questions. In the first half of “Brothers”, readers witness the exploits of a pair of brilliant scientists in the field of chemistry (a subject Doc/Scylla detested in school) and the tests Doc/Scylla undergoes to assess his ‘fitness’. A third type of scholarship, reminiscent of Ira Levin’s “The Boys from Brazil” is unveiled later. I would be a spoiler if I said more.
Fantasy plot full of surprises, beautifully paced and -written and with a truly dramatic finish. Plenty of expertly-applied violence, exquisitely described, esp. a duel that left this reader with clammy hands. Also, great fun re Doc’s reactions to the world after years away and the power of the dialogues. And because much in the book is wonderfully politically incorrect and the author stridently opinionated, as for example about Heathrow airport. Few novels have a basketball addict as a villain. Goldman must be a sports fanatic too.
Other than William Goldman’s, more great writers from the 1970s and -80s (e.g. John D Macdonald, Trevanian, Ross McDonald, Ira Levin} are poorly reviewed today, despite some recent reprints. Why? Perhaps 1995- 6 was a watershed re internet and reviewing, giving readers the chance to vote for the books they best liked. Unfortunately, their reviews concerned new books, never looking back.
Was this sequel ever serious? Read the pair of books and Goldman’s many other masterpieces!

Reviewed in the United States on March 27, 2023

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No cover on one and glue,stickers,writing and a broken spine on the other

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2010