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House Divided
Leonard and Alison Robbins disagree about how big a mistake their college student daughter is making by joining the radical Students for Palestinian Justice (SPJ).
Alison believes Courtney needs to be allowed to make her own decisions, but retired CIA agent Leonard, who heads up a counterterrorism task force, fears she’s in over her head. Neither, however, foresees the real danger their daughter faces. Anti-Israeli terrorists are recruiting SPJ members to bomb Jewish organizations and they have their sights on Courtney.
If Courtney Robbins doesn’t see the truth in time, it will be up to her parents to stop the terrorists before their daughter becomes their latest victim.
House Divided is the story of a war no family should have to fight.
Alison believes Courtney needs to be allowed to make her own decisions, but retired CIA agent Leonard, who heads up a counterterrorism task force, fears she’s in over her head. Neither, however, foresees the real danger their daughter faces. Anti-Israeli terrorists are recruiting SPJ members to bomb Jewish organizations and they have their sights on Courtney.
If Courtney Robbins doesn’t see the truth in time, it will be up to her parents to stop the terrorists before their daughter becomes their latest victim.
House Divided is the story of a war no family should have to fight.
400 pages, Paperback
First published February 2, 2015
4 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
About the author
Peter G. Pollak
11 books82 followersI'm passionate about writing stories that readers don't want to put down.
Missing--my 7th novel, a mystery featuring a female private detective is now available on Amazon in print and digital versins.
My prior novels are:
* The Expendable Man (2011)--a thriller
* Making the Grade (2012)--a police procedural
* Last Stop on Desolation Ridge (2013)--a suspense
* In the Game (2013)--another procedural
* House Divided (2015)--a political thriller
* Inauguration Day (2017)--a political thriller
The summer of 2020 I published a memoir entitled "Left to Right." It's the story of my transition from a student leftist in the 1960s to a conservative in the 21st century.
To learn more about my future projects, sign up for my newsletter on my website @ petergpollak.com.
Missing--my 7th novel, a mystery featuring a female private detective is now available on Amazon in print and digital versins.
My prior novels are:
* The Expendable Man (2011)--a thriller
* Making the Grade (2012)--a police procedural
* Last Stop on Desolation Ridge (2013)--a suspense
* In the Game (2013)--another procedural
* House Divided (2015)--a political thriller
* Inauguration Day (2017)--a political thriller
The summer of 2020 I published a memoir entitled "Left to Right." It's the story of my transition from a student leftist in the 1960s to a conservative in the 21st century.
To learn more about my future projects, sign up for my newsletter on my website @ petergpollak.com.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
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December 18, 2014Unlike some authors I won't rate my own book. I'll let you the reading public decide where this novel stands in the pantheon of thriller fiction. Now that it is done, it must stand on its own while I move on to the next story on my list.
February 20, 2015
This was my first exposure to author Peter G. Pollak and based on this experience I look forward to reading more of his work.
Based on the bookflap description I expected this novel to be more of a family drama than the legal thriller it ultimately was. Leonard is a retired government agent, who is now a professor at a local university. When an unknown terrorist group begins recruiting students to deliver bombs to Jewish organizations in order to raise awareness for the Palestinians, Leonard is drawn back into the world of politics when the president asks him to head a team responsible for locating and stopping the terrorists before they can harm anyone else. In addition to the expected government drama, Leonard also has to deal with complications on the homefront when his college aged daughter joins the Palestinian student group at school.
The plot moves along quickly, and at times it's like reading a movie script (that's a compliment). The good guys don't always win, and the ending will have you on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen. Some of my favorite things about this book besides the dialogue are the fact that Leonard is also disabled. I haven't read too many thrillers that have cast someone with a disability and it was an intriguing addition to the novel. My only complaint is that while a lot of this book is set in a fictional but not to far off future, the author expressed his own opinion about President Obama in a couple places and it was offputting. I think it would have been better to just say "the former administration" so that book will stay relevant in a few years.
Based on the bookflap description I expected this novel to be more of a family drama than the legal thriller it ultimately was. Leonard is a retired government agent, who is now a professor at a local university. When an unknown terrorist group begins recruiting students to deliver bombs to Jewish organizations in order to raise awareness for the Palestinians, Leonard is drawn back into the world of politics when the president asks him to head a team responsible for locating and stopping the terrorists before they can harm anyone else. In addition to the expected government drama, Leonard also has to deal with complications on the homefront when his college aged daughter joins the Palestinian student group at school.
The plot moves along quickly, and at times it's like reading a movie script (that's a compliment). The good guys don't always win, and the ending will have you on the edge of your seat wondering what will happen. Some of my favorite things about this book besides the dialogue are the fact that Leonard is also disabled. I haven't read too many thrillers that have cast someone with a disability and it was an intriguing addition to the novel. My only complaint is that while a lot of this book is set in a fictional but not to far off future, the author expressed his own opinion about President Obama in a couple places and it was offputting. I think it would have been better to just say "the former administration" so that book will stay relevant in a few years.
January 13, 2015
Peter G. Pollak gives us a thriller that hits close to home in House Divided. Writing from an obvious depth of knowledge on the political forces involved in the Israel-Palestine conflict, he presents us with a plausible and terrifying glimpse of what could happen when the fallout of Middle East tension lands on American shores.
Leonard Robbins is a seasoned former CIA agent, adept at searching out terrorists, but when terror comes knocking at American Universities, the president asks him to root out the villains behind it before more innocent civilians die. Calling into play his considerable knowledge and political connections, he’ll use every skill at his disposal to hunt down the terrorists; but when the enemy is using college co-eds as assassins, how do you know who to hunt? As he gets closer to finding his target, they also get closer to his family, even inside his own home.
A scary look at an all too possible future, House Divided questions the way America deals with the ongoing conflict in Israel and presents a thought-provoking perspective of how terror could be bred in our own backyards. Pollak’s easy style and heavy research into the reality of modern day terrorism make for compelling reading.
Leonard Robbins is a seasoned former CIA agent, adept at searching out terrorists, but when terror comes knocking at American Universities, the president asks him to root out the villains behind it before more innocent civilians die. Calling into play his considerable knowledge and political connections, he’ll use every skill at his disposal to hunt down the terrorists; but when the enemy is using college co-eds as assassins, how do you know who to hunt? As he gets closer to finding his target, they also get closer to his family, even inside his own home.
A scary look at an all too possible future, House Divided questions the way America deals with the ongoing conflict in Israel and presents a thought-provoking perspective of how terror could be bred in our own backyards. Pollak’s easy style and heavy research into the reality of modern day terrorism make for compelling reading.
February 19, 2015
This book is very well written. The characters are great, the plot is perfectly paced and is very written in the "edge of your seat" kind of style.
It made me pretty anxious to be honest. There were some times I had to read ahead just to give myself a heads up on what was going to happen. I felt bad watching the gap between father and daughter grow wider and wider and I wanted to smack Courtney upside the head.
But definitely if you like political intrigue books, this should be on your to read list.
It made me pretty anxious to be honest. There were some times I had to read ahead just to give myself a heads up on what was going to happen. I felt bad watching the gap between father and daughter grow wider and wider and I wanted to smack Courtney upside the head.
But definitely if you like political intrigue books, this should be on your to read list.
March 5, 2015
This book would make a great movie or episode on a TV show. So much drama and action! I loved House Divided because it was a fast read without a lot of repetition and got me interested in the lives of the main characters. It was interesting in the subject matter, terrorism and the Palestinian/Israeli conflict without sounding biased. It was actually informative. In the end I would have like to know if the daughter learned her lesson and whether the parents get involved in another situation where the stakes are so high.
March 7, 2015
For me, this book was very different than what I had first thought when I read the summary. I don’t pay too much attention to the news because most of the time it is very sad. I know nothing about the Israel-Palestine conflict.....it is obvious that the author did a great deal of research. I was intrigued by the unique flow of the story. It was a well-written plot. The characters seem to come alive for me. This book was very good and I’m glad I gave it a shot. * I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest review*
August 22, 2015
This book is very timely and accurately depicts how a family can have differing views about a topic as complex as Arab/Israeli politics. Very well done!
February 8, 2015
Following the explosion of a bomb placed in the headquarters of the American Israel Alliance in Washington DC, Professor and retired CIA agent Leonard Robbins was asked by US President Wheatfield to head a government counterterrorism task force to stop terrorism in the United States. Its mission was to find out who planned the attack and prevent future ones.
The group quickly learned the package was brought to the building by a college student in a messenger service uniform. She was among those killed but they weren’t sure if she actually planned to be a suicide bomber or if she was a tool whose involvement in nonviolent protests against Israel’s treatment of Palestinians lead her to be selected to carry the bomb.
Leonard’s task hits closer to home when his twenty year old daughter, Courtney, joins the radical Students for Palestinian Justice group at her university. Leonard tries to alert her to the history behind the Israel/Palestine dispute and the underlying philosophy of the group but she doesn’t want to hear him.
HOUSE DIVIDED explores the role of the US in counterterrorism, the mistakes made by our leaders and government organizations and why some people are attracted to radical organizations, sometimes unwittingly: “In general, women care more deeply about issues than men, which makes them susceptible to appeals to drastic action. Men care more about accomplishments–trophies. Women care about ordinary people.”
It notes that academic associations don’t always recognize when they cross the line dividing academia to politics, a process that began during the Vietnam War.
Among my favorite passages are: “People get hurt when not everyone is playing by the same set of rules.” and “Religions have the advantage over secular ideologies because even when the real world fails to conform to the world their leaders paint, people are reluctant to break with the religion. This is all part of God’s plan, they tell themselves. He’s testing us, they say.”
HOUSE DIVIDED presents a lot of information in a very readable format that most people can recognize. Its main emphasis is the way our government does and could respond to terror threats. Unfortunately, it included too many unnecessarily short chapters which could easily have been combined to save paper and give more credit to the reader’s intelligence. I always subtract one star for that.
I received this book through Goodreads First Reads.
The group quickly learned the package was brought to the building by a college student in a messenger service uniform. She was among those killed but they weren’t sure if she actually planned to be a suicide bomber or if she was a tool whose involvement in nonviolent protests against Israel’s treatment of Palestinians lead her to be selected to carry the bomb.
Leonard’s task hits closer to home when his twenty year old daughter, Courtney, joins the radical Students for Palestinian Justice group at her university. Leonard tries to alert her to the history behind the Israel/Palestine dispute and the underlying philosophy of the group but she doesn’t want to hear him.
HOUSE DIVIDED explores the role of the US in counterterrorism, the mistakes made by our leaders and government organizations and why some people are attracted to radical organizations, sometimes unwittingly: “In general, women care more deeply about issues than men, which makes them susceptible to appeals to drastic action. Men care more about accomplishments–trophies. Women care about ordinary people.”
It notes that academic associations don’t always recognize when they cross the line dividing academia to politics, a process that began during the Vietnam War.
Among my favorite passages are: “People get hurt when not everyone is playing by the same set of rules.” and “Religions have the advantage over secular ideologies because even when the real world fails to conform to the world their leaders paint, people are reluctant to break with the religion. This is all part of God’s plan, they tell themselves. He’s testing us, they say.”
HOUSE DIVIDED presents a lot of information in a very readable format that most people can recognize. Its main emphasis is the way our government does and could respond to terror threats. Unfortunately, it included too many unnecessarily short chapters which could easily have been combined to save paper and give more credit to the reader’s intelligence. I always subtract one star for that.
I received this book through Goodreads First Reads.
April 16, 2015
A fast moving, intriguing spy mystery
Leonard Robbins was a retired CIA agent, now confined to a wheelchair from injuries suffered from an auto wreck. His wife was a retired FBI agent. They were living a fairly quiet life now except for the ups and downs of their collegiate daughter, Courtney, whom they just learned had become a member of an anti-Israeli group “Students for Palestine Justice.” Courtney was more gung-ho to help what she believed to be a fight for the right than researching the actual facts of the continual conflict between Israel and Palestine over their adjoining lands. As with parents and young adult children, there was no talking to her.
A building owned by Israel had been blown up in Washington D.C., in which a young girl was killed along with others and it was believed that the girl never knew it was a bomb. President Wheatfield, our female U.S. President then, called on Leonard to head a counterterrorism task force to track down and destroy any Palestinian sympathizers who were terrorists. Because of Leonard’s incapacity, he would work from his office and the President ordered that all government departments, which acted as the country’s safeguards, would send one or more agents to help Leonard and respond to his orders. This would move their ability to work together much more efficiently than was usual when the various departments preferred to do their own thing. Once the first bomb was detonated, it pointed towards an organized terrorist group, and especially after a second bomb was shortly detonated at another Jewish establishment.
This story moved right along as Leonard and the various department heads attempted to find these individuals, who at the moment were unidentified. One of the interesting characters in the book was a Russian woman who could work wonders in searching out other computers, like ones which were in the hands of the terrorists and reading their messages.
Although this story was written as fiction, it contained much factual information and was extremely interesting where it showed how these various departments used their skills to seek and destroy. Naturally in order to include some human interest, Courtney became trapped in the middle of delivering a bomb, her life was at stake and her parents became frantic.
I enjoyed this story immensely and I would recommend it for not only its entertainment, but it was extremely educational. A complimentary copy of it was given to me for an honest review.
Leonard Robbins was a retired CIA agent, now confined to a wheelchair from injuries suffered from an auto wreck. His wife was a retired FBI agent. They were living a fairly quiet life now except for the ups and downs of their collegiate daughter, Courtney, whom they just learned had become a member of an anti-Israeli group “Students for Palestine Justice.” Courtney was more gung-ho to help what she believed to be a fight for the right than researching the actual facts of the continual conflict between Israel and Palestine over their adjoining lands. As with parents and young adult children, there was no talking to her.
A building owned by Israel had been blown up in Washington D.C., in which a young girl was killed along with others and it was believed that the girl never knew it was a bomb. President Wheatfield, our female U.S. President then, called on Leonard to head a counterterrorism task force to track down and destroy any Palestinian sympathizers who were terrorists. Because of Leonard’s incapacity, he would work from his office and the President ordered that all government departments, which acted as the country’s safeguards, would send one or more agents to help Leonard and respond to his orders. This would move their ability to work together much more efficiently than was usual when the various departments preferred to do their own thing. Once the first bomb was detonated, it pointed towards an organized terrorist group, and especially after a second bomb was shortly detonated at another Jewish establishment.
This story moved right along as Leonard and the various department heads attempted to find these individuals, who at the moment were unidentified. One of the interesting characters in the book was a Russian woman who could work wonders in searching out other computers, like ones which were in the hands of the terrorists and reading their messages.
Although this story was written as fiction, it contained much factual information and was extremely interesting where it showed how these various departments used their skills to seek and destroy. Naturally in order to include some human interest, Courtney became trapped in the middle of delivering a bomb, her life was at stake and her parents became frantic.
I enjoyed this story immensely and I would recommend it for not only its entertainment, but it was extremely educational. A complimentary copy of it was given to me for an honest review.
August 28, 2015
House Divided is a story of home-grown terrorism. Someone is recruiting American college students to carry bombs to Jewish organizations. The main suspects have to do with a pro-Palestine protest group which claims its methods are purely peaceful. This larger plot is brought down to earth in the Robbins family, where Leonard (a former CIA agent) is recruited to head a task force to investigate the bombings while his daughter Courtney actually belongs to the pro-Palestine group under suspicion.
A weakness of the book is that most of the action takes place at arm’s length, seen through the workings of the taskforce Leonard Robbins is heading. This means there are many briefings, phone calls, and reports for the reader to sift through, as opposed to directly thrilling action. At about 80% we finally get into the direct action as a sub-plot involving the daughter comes to a (predictable) head. I would also say that there are too many starched shirts around, as only a couple of the task force members aside from Leonard are memorable. Yet, in spite of these weaknesses, this book warrants an overall good grade. The writing is smooth with very few errors. The philosophical discussions of the Palestine/Israel conflict alone are worth the read, and as someone not highly versed in the conflict, I appreciated Pollak’s balanced and nuanced views. Overall four stars, a book I recommend reading for its (considerable) strengths.
A weakness of the book is that most of the action takes place at arm’s length, seen through the workings of the taskforce Leonard Robbins is heading. This means there are many briefings, phone calls, and reports for the reader to sift through, as opposed to directly thrilling action. At about 80% we finally get into the direct action as a sub-plot involving the daughter comes to a (predictable) head. I would also say that there are too many starched shirts around, as only a couple of the task force members aside from Leonard are memorable. Yet, in spite of these weaknesses, this book warrants an overall good grade. The writing is smooth with very few errors. The philosophical discussions of the Palestine/Israel conflict alone are worth the read, and as someone not highly versed in the conflict, I appreciated Pollak’s balanced and nuanced views. Overall four stars, a book I recommend reading for its (considerable) strengths.
June 24, 2015
Novel received courtesy of Goodreads.com giveaway
While this is a novel dealing with the complex subject of Israel and Palestine, it was engaging right from the beginning. The main character's daughter becomes mixed up with a "Justice for Palestine" group on her college campus. Her father is asked by the President to head a task force to find out who is bombing buildings of Jewish museums/organizations. The author uses timely references to President Obama, ISIS and the Tsarnaov brothers. I was interested in the character's differing opinions on the subject of Israel and Palestine. I was also happy that at the end of the novel, the author suggested a book for the reader on the background of the conflict.
While this is a novel dealing with the complex subject of Israel and Palestine, it was engaging right from the beginning. The main character's daughter becomes mixed up with a "Justice for Palestine" group on her college campus. Her father is asked by the President to head a task force to find out who is bombing buildings of Jewish museums/organizations. The author uses timely references to President Obama, ISIS and the Tsarnaov brothers. I was interested in the character's differing opinions on the subject of Israel and Palestine. I was also happy that at the end of the novel, the author suggested a book for the reader on the background of the conflict.
June 12, 2015
Professor Robbins' daughter, Courtney announced her involvement with the Students for Palestinian Justice (SPJ) at dinner on her twentieth birthday. After a bombing at a Jewish organization in D.C., the president asked Robbins to head a task force (DEFEAT) to investigate. As the wheels of DEFEAT turned, there was another bombing, this time in Chicago. The bomber was discovered in San Francisco where he committed suicide to avoid capture. The investigation continued as DEFEAT gathered evidence that pointed to radicals within the SPJ. The radicals in Courtney's group suspected she was leaking information back to her father and decided to test her loyalty. The test was to carry a bomb to a Senator's office in New York.
April 23, 2015
Easy to read but predictable and contrived.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews