What do you think?
Rate this book
The Vietnam War #2
Melody Hill
When Army sniper Duff Coleridge is recruited into a CIA advisor’s Special Operations Group in Vietnam, he little realizes how much of his soul he will be required to sacrifice. Vietnam is a world away from Melody Hill, his home in the mountains of east Tennessee, and Duff quickly finds the clear moral lines of life back home are blurred in the glare of an enigmatic war. His CIA boss, who seems more rogue than company man, is dealing arms on the black market, while delivering a seemingly arbitrary and ruthless justice to the local populace. When Duff meets and falls in love with a beautiful young South Vietnamese woman, Lynn Dai Bouchet, he is left to his own instincts to decide if her advances are based on true affection or are merely a means of exploitation. Is she a Vietcong spy, as his CIA boss claims, or is she someone like himself, trying to do her part while making the best of a bad situation? Duff soon realizes he must get out before it’s too late, but only then discovers he is already trapped in a lethal game of cat and mouse.
- GenresMilitary Fiction
356 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 15, 2015
289 people are currently reading
328 people want to read
About the author
Rick DeStefanis
20 books58 followersRick DeStefanis is an award-winning novelist.
Newspaper carrier, grocery store clerk, land surveyor, machinist (International Harvester), paratrooper (82nd Airborne Division), foundry worker, carpenter, brakeman and conductor (Illinois Central Railroad), deputy sheriff, business owner, house painter, dock worker, truck driver, airline ramp agent, operations manager (FedEx Express), Airline Flight Dispatcher, Area General Manager (General Electric), motorcyclist, skydiver, hunter, fisherman, wildlife photographer....Mississippi author Rick DeStefanis brings a lifetime of experiences to his writing. An avid outdoorsman and military veteran, DeStefanis brings several of these experiences to his books, both in his Vietnam War Series and his Southern Fiction Series. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, Rick has lived most of his adult life in Mississippi, where he resides with his wife Janet. For more information visit Rick at www.rickdestefanis.com and at www.facebook.com/rickdestefanisphoto.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
August 30, 2024
Aug 2024:
Was nowhere near as interesting as I found it nine years ago. There was a ton of lingo so I was grateful for the appendix with explanations but it was still tiresome trying to figure out what words meant.
Sep 2015:
Five stars
When I got this book I was pretty sure I would like it but I never thought it would end up being one of my favourites. War has always been an incorrect concept for me. I never understood why everyone was doing what they were or the politics involved. This book opened my eyes. It showed me how helpless soldiers are and how much everyone is after their own gain. It was a complicated and beautiful web. Everything was connected and the story never deviated. It wasn't all fighting either. It was funny and emotional. It also spoke about the horrors faced by civilians in a war-struck country. It made me feel like hugging some characters and punching some in the face. In short, I would give myself amnesia if it meant experiencing this book again. I think everyone should read it. I haven't cried this much over a book since ' The Fault in Our Stars '.
I received a free copy of this book from the author.
Was nowhere near as interesting as I found it nine years ago. There was a ton of lingo so I was grateful for the appendix with explanations but it was still tiresome trying to figure out what words meant.
Sep 2015:
Five stars
When I got this book I was pretty sure I would like it but I never thought it would end up being one of my favourites. War has always been an incorrect concept for me. I never understood why everyone was doing what they were or the politics involved. This book opened my eyes. It showed me how helpless soldiers are and how much everyone is after their own gain. It was a complicated and beautiful web. Everything was connected and the story never deviated. It wasn't all fighting either. It was funny and emotional. It also spoke about the horrors faced by civilians in a war-struck country. It made me feel like hugging some characters and punching some in the face. In short, I would give myself amnesia if it meant experiencing this book again. I think everyone should read it. I haven't cried this much over a book since ' The Fault in Our Stars '.
I received a free copy of this book from the author.
November 20, 2017
This guy can really write. I was impressed from the start at how realistic he made everything seem, even the combat scenes. He also seems to understand the mentality of the soldiers who were involved in small unit or individual reconnaissance. They really did say that they were not looking for a more dangerous job, but only that they wanted to be responsible for their own safety and not have to depend on whoever might be in a larger unit. As a Vietnam veteran, army artillery, I do have trouble relating to the mores and lifestyle attributed to the intelligence community. The tale is well told, however, and the book is hard to put down.
March 9, 2017
It is said war can bring out the best and the worst in men, and certainly that proved true in the Vietnam War. In Melody Hill, Rick DeStefanis shows us young American men serving alongside the South Vietnamese. Mainly draftees, these young men were still in their teens, and the first experience they had beyond high school was the horror of fighting in Vietnam.
DeStefanis’ character Duff Coleridge hasn’t had an easy life, growing up in the hills of East Tennessee without a father and in a way, acting as father as well as brother to his sister Lacey and a boy only a year younger than himself, Brady Nash, who is an orphan. Both these young men have hunted for food in their mountains since they were ten or so, and as a result Duff is a crack shot who quickly rises in the ranks and becomes a sniper, recognized for his skill.
Unfortunately, he eventually comes under the influence of a man we know only as “Spartan,” a member of a Special Operations Group … part of the CIA’s Phoenix Program … who is as ruthless and amoral as Duff is moral and ethical. Duff accepts his duties as a soldier but learns there are things he is asked to do that push him beyond what he can bear.
DeStefanis’ writing is engrossing and the scenes of the war were very real. More than once I found myself holding my breath watching Duff take skillful aim at a target, and pushing with his team to get to a PZ for extraction from a difficult situation. The author gives the reader a chance to leave the war occasionally with chapters about events back home in Melody Hill, Tennessee … the home Duff longs to return to someday with a young woman he has fallen in love with, Lynn Dai Bouchet, a French-Vietnamese woman who holds a government position.
DeStefanis’ characters are people we come to know and care about, especially Duff and Lynn Dai. Even Spartan we recognize as the kind of person we avoid at all costs in real life … yet here he is, in a position of authority, those under his command at his mercy.
Part war story, part love story, part thriller, DeStefanis has written a book that’s hard to put down. There are unanswered questions that I hope to find some resolution to when I read the next book in the series, The Gomorrah Principle. I would urge anyone who isn’t familiar with the Phoenix Program to do some supplementary reading. Not everyone who served in Vietnam was a hero. That war still haunts us.
DeStefanis’ character Duff Coleridge hasn’t had an easy life, growing up in the hills of East Tennessee without a father and in a way, acting as father as well as brother to his sister Lacey and a boy only a year younger than himself, Brady Nash, who is an orphan. Both these young men have hunted for food in their mountains since they were ten or so, and as a result Duff is a crack shot who quickly rises in the ranks and becomes a sniper, recognized for his skill.
Unfortunately, he eventually comes under the influence of a man we know only as “Spartan,” a member of a Special Operations Group … part of the CIA’s Phoenix Program … who is as ruthless and amoral as Duff is moral and ethical. Duff accepts his duties as a soldier but learns there are things he is asked to do that push him beyond what he can bear.
DeStefanis’ writing is engrossing and the scenes of the war were very real. More than once I found myself holding my breath watching Duff take skillful aim at a target, and pushing with his team to get to a PZ for extraction from a difficult situation. The author gives the reader a chance to leave the war occasionally with chapters about events back home in Melody Hill, Tennessee … the home Duff longs to return to someday with a young woman he has fallen in love with, Lynn Dai Bouchet, a French-Vietnamese woman who holds a government position.
DeStefanis’ characters are people we come to know and care about, especially Duff and Lynn Dai. Even Spartan we recognize as the kind of person we avoid at all costs in real life … yet here he is, in a position of authority, those under his command at his mercy.
Part war story, part love story, part thriller, DeStefanis has written a book that’s hard to put down. There are unanswered questions that I hope to find some resolution to when I read the next book in the series, The Gomorrah Principle. I would urge anyone who isn’t familiar with the Phoenix Program to do some supplementary reading. Not everyone who served in Vietnam was a hero. That war still haunts us.
July 22, 2022
When Army sniper Duff Coleridge is recruited into a CIA advisor’s Special Operations Group in Vietnam, he little realizes how much of his soul he will be required to sacrifice. Vietnam is a world away from Melody Hill, his home in the mountains of East Tennessee, and Duff quickly finds the clear moral lines of life back home are blurred in the glare of an enigmatic war. His CIA boss, who seems more rogue than company man, is dealing arms on the black market while delivering a seemingly arbitrary and ruthless justice to the local populace. When Duff meets and falls in love with a beautiful young South Vietnamese woman, Lynn Dai Bouchet, he is left to his own instincts to decide if her advances are based on true affection or are merely a means of exploitation. Is she as his CIA boss claims, a Vietcong spy, or is she someone like himself, trying to do her part while making the best of a bad situation? Duff soon realizes he must get out before it’s too late, but only then discovers he is already trapped in a lethal game of cat and mouse.
The CIA participated in both the political and military aspect of the wars in Indochina.The Phoenix Program was created in 1967,in an attempt to attack the Vietcong infrastructure (VCI) with a "rifle shot rather than a shotgun approach to target key political leaders, command/control elements and activists in the VCI.The creation of the Phoenix Program came as a result of a decade-long negligence on the part of the United States to track the activities of the Communist Party's political and administrative structure.The Phoenix Program was heavily criticized on various grounds, including the number of neutral civilians killed, the nature of the program (which critics have labelled as a "civilian assassination program") the use of torture and other coercive methods, and the program being exploited for personal politics. Nevertheless, the program was very successful at suppressing Viet Cong political and revolutionary activities.
The CIA participated in both the political and military aspect of the wars in Indochina.The Phoenix Program was created in 1967,in an attempt to attack the Vietcong infrastructure (VCI) with a "rifle shot rather than a shotgun approach to target key political leaders, command/control elements and activists in the VCI.The creation of the Phoenix Program came as a result of a decade-long negligence on the part of the United States to track the activities of the Communist Party's political and administrative structure.The Phoenix Program was heavily criticized on various grounds, including the number of neutral civilians killed, the nature of the program (which critics have labelled as a "civilian assassination program") the use of torture and other coercive methods, and the program being exploited for personal politics. Nevertheless, the program was very successful at suppressing Viet Cong political and revolutionary activities.
October 22, 2022
Great Book
It was over to soon though I believe (hope) it is continued in the next book. I was really shocked though suspected Duff would be killed. I had heard stories from my father that those things did happen. He also was given a bracelet Montagnards. I was and always will be proud was a Korean and Vietnam Viet, though I will always remember his nightmares waking up drenching in sweat. I was a nurse who worked for the Army and saw many Vietnam soldiers return and be stationed in Germany, where I worked for the 3rd Hospital in Heidelberg. I will never forget one particular medic who was stationed there after his tour in Vietnam. He unfortunately OD and jumped from a third story window saying he couldn't take it anymore, he saw the faces every night of those he couldn't save.
It was over to soon though I believe (hope) it is continued in the next book. I was really shocked though suspected Duff would be killed. I had heard stories from my father that those things did happen. He also was given a bracelet Montagnards. I was and always will be proud was a Korean and Vietnam Viet, though I will always remember his nightmares waking up drenching in sweat. I was a nurse who worked for the Army and saw many Vietnam soldiers return and be stationed in Germany, where I worked for the 3rd Hospital in Heidelberg. I will never forget one particular medic who was stationed there after his tour in Vietnam. He unfortunately OD and jumped from a third story window saying he couldn't take it anymore, he saw the faces every night of those he couldn't save.
February 28, 2018
Well written book
I enjoyed Mr. DeStefanis’ work. His writing is sincere and committed. While fiction, this book does justice to the realities of combat in Viet Nam. The cinematic overlay of the cloak and dagger plot is well done and drives the story well. I intend to read the sequel. That is five stars on its own.
I enjoyed Mr. DeStefanis’ work. His writing is sincere and committed. While fiction, this book does justice to the realities of combat in Viet Nam. The cinematic overlay of the cloak and dagger plot is well done and drives the story well. I intend to read the sequel. That is five stars on its own.
June 3, 2020
Great story and great storytelling!
I really liked this book. DeStefanis does a good job of weaving a compelling story with believable characters. The book has a solid plot and is well paced. It has a few points that strain the reader’s credibility but I found that I could overlook these fairly easily because of the overall quality of the writing. Nice job!
I really liked this book. DeStefanis does a good job of weaving a compelling story with believable characters. The book has a solid plot and is well paced. It has a few points that strain the reader’s credibility but I found that I could overlook these fairly easily because of the overall quality of the writing. Nice job!
August 19, 2015
Culturally speaking, if Oliver Wendell Holmes is the sun, fictional Duff Coleridge must surely be Pluto. However they share a common bond in as such that Holmes wrote of heaven and home in his poem, Homesick in Heaven, and in an earthly sense, Private Coleridge knows of one heaven—which is his home—Melody Hill, a small, scenic town in the Tennessee mountains. Holmes wrote:
For there we loved, and where we love is home,
Home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts,
Though o’re us shine the jasper-lighted dome—
The chain may lengthen, but it never parts!
Melody Hill, the prequel to Rick DeStefanis’s The Gomorrah Principle, is not a story about the coming of age of a young buck, bright-eyed, and full of heroic fantasies about war. In fact, it’s quite the counter. Duff, the eldest sibling, is clearly an old soul, and perhaps by proxy—his father, who’d perished years before his son was ripe for the duties of a grown man. Precocious Duff carries the cross for what his belated father left behind: a wife, three kids and a legacy of love and respect—friends and family of Melody Hill. And though DeStefanis romanticizes Melody Hill, he does not present Duff Coleridge as one prone for idealism. And in another universe (the war in Vietnam), DeStefanis’s main character remains consistent as such that he misses his home, yet he does not pine for it, even amongst mayhem, filth and rot. It’s as if he’s hidden it away—under lock and key in his mind. Maybe the plan was to never wallow in sentiment, which would make him vulnerable; maybe even weak.
Throughout the work, DeStefanis entices the reader’s curiosity with his constant underplay of what eventually surfaces as the centerpiece of the story: a subliminal, inherit need for safety and comfort, and perhaps subconsciously in Duff—a simpler time, when landmark moments are formed from bonfires and football games, and the fear of laps for running the wrong play and maybe losing the playoffs. Such is evident in how the writer occasionally bounces back and forth from corruption and death, to Brady and Lacey back home, fixing a flat and buying a used car. Again, in reverting to scenes where Duff’s loved ones are carrying on, DeStefanis only paints the background with what’s happening at home. There are no independent plot lines, nor are there scenes of such significance that the story would be lost without. It reminds us though that home is huddled there, in the heart and mind—sheltered from the carnage amok.
And though this is not a coming of age story, to some degree it is about the loss of innocence. Through Duff Coleridge, DeStefanis shows how home is really the essence of one’s spirit or soul, and in this case, it becomes a metaphor for Duff’s longing—his elemental core. In this story, the ideal of home is as essential as morphine.
Critically speaking, the writer jeopardizes suspension of disbelief in his rapid development of Duff Coleridge. However, those familiar with the tremendous military buildup during the Vietnam war realize many boys became men overnight, and Duff is about as mature as anyone can imagine for a kid that only a year before was playing high school football and wrestling with his brother in the creek. And though DeStefanis approaches the edge in this specific regard, he transforms what might be a distraction into a building block for his work’s masterful peak. DeStefanis employs methodology such that he makes his reader a bit wary along the way, but later rewards them with an epiphany.
However masterful the method, in the sense of higher art, Melody Hill is not a literary work—as likely was never the intent. But the writer clearly displays calculated skill in that he resists the urge to overdose the reader, unless of course he chooses to do so. From the beginning, to parts between, and the story’s most central scene, there are links of foreshadowing and contextual irony. These touches are both blatant and subtle, as with Duff’s mistake while hunting in the opening of the novel, to early upon his arrival to the war when his friend Private Jimmy Nobles remarks, “I really wish I had a good answer for you. It’s hard to explain. I mean it’s not like you can just turn it off when it’s time to go home.” It is in this way that the writer’s talent shines forth, revealing greater propensity for design. Such is the case in the apex scene when DeStefanis seems to have stepped away from the podium and just uses the words that make the most of what’s sensed. He seems to source this from the subconscious, evidenced by how he opens us to the essence of the words—linking them together in short sentences, so as to create lingering imagery. Very, very nice.
Melody Hill is much more than a story of Duff Coleridge going to war and becoming engulfed in a world of corruption, espionage and Special Ops. But only so because of the writer’s aptitude for his craft. It seems that he has built the work on a single concept which is not only widely relevant, but translatable to all, whether heaven is home or simply a sore spot we won’t discuss. Regardless, it is still, very much meaningful—personal and true. Melody Hill is not your average pulp fiction thriller, but a story that will stay with you long after you close the back cover.
June 16, 2017
Believable Fiction
The character development and environment descriptions are great as is the plot. As a writer myself, admittedly, however, sporadic, I appreciate the hard work that went into writing this excellent novel.
The character development and environment descriptions are great as is the plot. As a writer myself, admittedly, however, sporadic, I appreciate the hard work that went into writing this excellent novel.
January 11, 2019
Wow!! I loved this book it took me where I didn't think I was going from a High School football games to the CIA in Nam I can't wait to get started on the follow up book to see what happens to some special people I really like!!!
March 9, 2020
Terrible ending
Great story with rotten terrible ending. Don't read this. You will be terribly disappointed with this non-ending.____xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxcxxx bad bad nad
Great story with rotten terrible ending. Don't read this. You will be terribly disappointed with this non-ending.____xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxcxxx bad bad nad
October 7, 2017
Excellent
The tension of the action was palpable. Every situation made it impossible to out the novel down. I read all three books of the series and they were all great.
The tension of the action was palpable. Every situation made it impossible to out the novel down. I read all three books of the series and they were all great.
May 4, 2020
Duff
I enjoyed the book until Duff was murdered. I will read the next book as Brady gets the POS that had Duff killed.
I enjoyed the book until Duff was murdered. I will read the next book as Brady gets the POS that had Duff killed.
July 19, 2021
4.5 / 5
December 20, 2023
An interesting story
This story is a bit maudlin, a bit too sentimental but an interesting book.you try it and maybe you’ll like it.
This story is a bit maudlin, a bit too sentimental but an interesting book.you try it and maybe you’ll like it.
December 16, 2024
Excellent!
I read the second story first, by mistake. The Gomorrah principle, but this was very enjoyable just the same. Now I look forward to the next one.
I read the second story first, by mistake. The Gomorrah principle, but this was very enjoyable just the same. Now I look forward to the next one.
May 13, 2025
Melody Hill
A very enjoyable book, well written and researched. Showed,how mixed up the the war in Viet Jam was with corruption on,all sides.
A very enjoyable book, well written and researched. Showed,how mixed up the the war in Viet Jam was with corruption on,all sides.
August 19, 2015
Very solid piece of writing but could have been better
I don't know if this is an autobiographical piece of the author but in terms of authenticity, I believe that very few war books can compete with it. The 'drama' is limited, which is good; another good thing is that the narrative is quite fast paced and does not drag. On another note, I have not read a better description of the Vietnam War zone than I found in this one. This book is yet another grim reminder why there should not be another Vietnam War and why we all must make efforts to stall it if such a war is forthcoming in the near future. After all, we don't want another taste of the ugly war which killed many people, good and bad. The author has an eye for detail and while some readers may find it boring, I highly commend the author for going the extra mile:
"He had watched a buck threading its way along a distant wooded ridge that late afternoon. Visible one moment and hidden in the shadows the next, the buck reappeared far back in the trees as Duff steadied his rifle. This was his last opportunity to stock the family freezer with much-needed venison before leaving. Again the buck disappeared, but then it was there in his crosshairs. At nearly four hundred yards, Duff found only the deer’s front shoulder visible. That was all he needed. Holding fifteen inches high, he squeezed off the shot."
The atmosphere as well as the movements of the buck keep you in a totally tensed state. That does not however mean that the novel contains overly graphic violence; I appreciate the control the author has exercised in making sure that people of most ages can read it without cringing.
The dialogs are the typical stuff you would expect from these guys (very realistic):
“It’s bad over there, isn’t it,” Lacey said. “I mean, that’s what he wrote in the letter, right?”
Brady cranked the engine and pulled back onto the road.
“Yeah. He said I should join the National Guard or go to college.”
“What do you want?” Lacey asked.
“What do you mean?”
“What do you want to do with your life?”
“I don’t really know.”
Although it is mostly the character's actions and atmosphere they are in which keep the reader on the edge of his seat, rather than the dialogs:
"Her eyes changed from defiance to a plea—but for what? She tried to speak, but managed only a weak murmur. The blood gurgled in her one remaining lung.
“What?” Duff said, pulling her closer. “Tell me what it is. What did you say? What can I do?”
More blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and she grasped the waist of her pajamas with one hand, and looked at him with pleading eyes. He knew what it was. He heard someone behind him and turned. It was the interpreter. He turned back to the girl and looked into her eyes as he spoke."
On the negative: I found most of the characters to be one or two dimensional ones: they were either good or bad, rather than gray. I do believe that there is really no truly 'good' or 'bad' people on earth; we are all 'somewhere in between'. I'd have appreciated characters with a bit more depth; the only character I could connect to was that of Lacey. The romance is typical.
Overall, this book is worth buying just for getting a taste of the first class, flawless writing style of the author and enlightening oneself about the dark realism of the Vietnam War.
I don't know if this is an autobiographical piece of the author but in terms of authenticity, I believe that very few war books can compete with it. The 'drama' is limited, which is good; another good thing is that the narrative is quite fast paced and does not drag. On another note, I have not read a better description of the Vietnam War zone than I found in this one. This book is yet another grim reminder why there should not be another Vietnam War and why we all must make efforts to stall it if such a war is forthcoming in the near future. After all, we don't want another taste of the ugly war which killed many people, good and bad. The author has an eye for detail and while some readers may find it boring, I highly commend the author for going the extra mile:
"He had watched a buck threading its way along a distant wooded ridge that late afternoon. Visible one moment and hidden in the shadows the next, the buck reappeared far back in the trees as Duff steadied his rifle. This was his last opportunity to stock the family freezer with much-needed venison before leaving. Again the buck disappeared, but then it was there in his crosshairs. At nearly four hundred yards, Duff found only the deer’s front shoulder visible. That was all he needed. Holding fifteen inches high, he squeezed off the shot."
The atmosphere as well as the movements of the buck keep you in a totally tensed state. That does not however mean that the novel contains overly graphic violence; I appreciate the control the author has exercised in making sure that people of most ages can read it without cringing.
The dialogs are the typical stuff you would expect from these guys (very realistic):
“It’s bad over there, isn’t it,” Lacey said. “I mean, that’s what he wrote in the letter, right?”
Brady cranked the engine and pulled back onto the road.
“Yeah. He said I should join the National Guard or go to college.”
“What do you want?” Lacey asked.
“What do you mean?”
“What do you want to do with your life?”
“I don’t really know.”
Although it is mostly the character's actions and atmosphere they are in which keep the reader on the edge of his seat, rather than the dialogs:
"Her eyes changed from defiance to a plea—but for what? She tried to speak, but managed only a weak murmur. The blood gurgled in her one remaining lung.
“What?” Duff said, pulling her closer. “Tell me what it is. What did you say? What can I do?”
More blood trickled from the corner of her mouth, and she grasped the waist of her pajamas with one hand, and looked at him with pleading eyes. He knew what it was. He heard someone behind him and turned. It was the interpreter. He turned back to the girl and looked into her eyes as he spoke."
On the negative: I found most of the characters to be one or two dimensional ones: they were either good or bad, rather than gray. I do believe that there is really no truly 'good' or 'bad' people on earth; we are all 'somewhere in between'. I'd have appreciated characters with a bit more depth; the only character I could connect to was that of Lacey. The romance is typical.
Overall, this book is worth buying just for getting a taste of the first class, flawless writing style of the author and enlightening oneself about the dark realism of the Vietnam War.
May 7, 2015
Driving to work this past Monday, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had been away for a long time, like on an extended trip to some exotic place. I felt disconnected to everything around me. But I had not been anywhere. In fact, I'd spent the weekend at home reading Melody Hill. That's when I realized that it was Vietnam I was thinking about. I felt like I'd been there, and now needed to readjust to being home and going to work. All day my mind would drift, wondering what was happening to Duff, Roland, and the rest of the guys back in Vietnam.
Okay, perhaps I was losing my mind. But this is how realistic Rick DeStefanis’s writing feels. At the time, I was only halfway through the book, and it was difficult to pull myself out of the story and go about my normal life. I’d say that’s a rare kind of writing talent, since I’m not commonly known to confuse my suburban life with the sweltering jungles of Vietnam, circa 1967.
As the prequel to Rick’s first novel, The Gomorrah Principle, Melody Hill is the satisfying answer to all that was previously uncertain or unexplained, introducing the characters as they are just becoming the people we came to know in the original story. This is exactly the ‘back story’ a prequel should be. But this one is so much more. In its own right, Melody Hill is a war story (much more so than The Gomorrah Principle), it’s a love story – two love stories actually, it’s a coming of age, finding your way, good vs evil, who do you trust, band of brothers, family loyalty, searching for truth kind of story. It is compelling and completely captivating, with enough transitions between 18 yr old Army Specialist Duff Coleridge in Vietnam and his younger foster brother, Brady Nash, and his sister, Lacey Coleridge, back home in the East Tennessee mountains to appeal to a wide audience.
Perhaps a word of caution, however. This was the Vietnam War, and the realism of the book does not stray from the harsh realities of that time and place.
Today I was finally able to return to the book and having now finished the story, I think I can go back to work and get on with the reality of my everyday life without further confusion. But I do hope you’ll take your own journey to Vietnam by way of Melody Hill. I think you’ll enjoy the trip!
Okay, perhaps I was losing my mind. But this is how realistic Rick DeStefanis’s writing feels. At the time, I was only halfway through the book, and it was difficult to pull myself out of the story and go about my normal life. I’d say that’s a rare kind of writing talent, since I’m not commonly known to confuse my suburban life with the sweltering jungles of Vietnam, circa 1967.
As the prequel to Rick’s first novel, The Gomorrah Principle, Melody Hill is the satisfying answer to all that was previously uncertain or unexplained, introducing the characters as they are just becoming the people we came to know in the original story. This is exactly the ‘back story’ a prequel should be. But this one is so much more. In its own right, Melody Hill is a war story (much more so than The Gomorrah Principle), it’s a love story – two love stories actually, it’s a coming of age, finding your way, good vs evil, who do you trust, band of brothers, family loyalty, searching for truth kind of story. It is compelling and completely captivating, with enough transitions between 18 yr old Army Specialist Duff Coleridge in Vietnam and his younger foster brother, Brady Nash, and his sister, Lacey Coleridge, back home in the East Tennessee mountains to appeal to a wide audience.
Perhaps a word of caution, however. This was the Vietnam War, and the realism of the book does not stray from the harsh realities of that time and place.
Today I was finally able to return to the book and having now finished the story, I think I can go back to work and get on with the reality of my everyday life without further confusion. But I do hope you’ll take your own journey to Vietnam by way of Melody Hill. I think you’ll enjoy the trip!
October 8, 2017
Melody Hill is the first book I've read from Rick DeStefanis and I enjoyed it immensely. The story begins in Melody Hill, TN where readers are introduced to Duff Coleridge and his family - Mama, Lacey and step brother, Brady in the days before Duff leaves for Vietnam in early 1967. Duff and his friend, Jimmy, are placed with the same company which operates in the Central Highlands. The humping was never ending in the mountains, and when Duff hears of an opening in the LRRP's, he volunteers himself and Jimmy. Both are accepted and teamed up as snipers. During his second mission, Duff becomes a hero by saving the rest of the unit when he stays behind to cover the unit's withdrawal to safety. Duff's marksmanship was superb - a skill he honed while growing up in the mountains of TN - allowed him to take down several enemy fighters during the stand-off. The Army awarded him a Silver Star for a task that he didn't think was heroic. It was just the right thing to do.
It isn't long before the SOG unit hears about Duff and they convince him to join their ranks. The missions are top secret and usually include local militia and police forces. However, all is not like it appears...there's a spy in their midst and some of the American's are dabbing in the black market. Duff falls in love with a French/Vietnamese who works for the South Vietnamese Government. Duff agrees to go under cover and help to identify those responsible for the many atrocities occurring during the missions. Duff is soon found out and finds his life in danger. He'd uncovered documented proof to prosecute the guilty parties - and must do everything possible to expose them. However, his only friend and backer is the girl he wants to marry and take home. Things get dicey and Duff finds a big target on his back.
The suspense will keep readers busy well into the night. I have to say that I was disappointed with the ending as many questions were still unanswered. Discovering that Melody Hill is a prequel to one of Rick's earlier books, I didn't hesitate to purchase it and will begin reading it when I finish this review. I highly recommend this book as it is not only about the Vietnam War - it is also about good vs. evil and true love..
Kudos Mr. DeSteffanis!
John Podlaski, author
"Cherries - A Vietnam War Novel" and "When Can I Stop Running?"
It isn't long before the SOG unit hears about Duff and they convince him to join their ranks. The missions are top secret and usually include local militia and police forces. However, all is not like it appears...there's a spy in their midst and some of the American's are dabbing in the black market. Duff falls in love with a French/Vietnamese who works for the South Vietnamese Government. Duff agrees to go under cover and help to identify those responsible for the many atrocities occurring during the missions. Duff is soon found out and finds his life in danger. He'd uncovered documented proof to prosecute the guilty parties - and must do everything possible to expose them. However, his only friend and backer is the girl he wants to marry and take home. Things get dicey and Duff finds a big target on his back.
The suspense will keep readers busy well into the night. I have to say that I was disappointed with the ending as many questions were still unanswered. Discovering that Melody Hill is a prequel to one of Rick's earlier books, I didn't hesitate to purchase it and will begin reading it when I finish this review. I highly recommend this book as it is not only about the Vietnam War - it is also about good vs. evil and true love..
Kudos Mr. DeSteffanis!
John Podlaski, author
"Cherries - A Vietnam War Novel" and "When Can I Stop Running?"
August 13, 2015
I read Melody Hill by Rick DeStefanis and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a perfect lead-in to The Gomorrah Principle, which I enjoyed just as well. You can read them in either order although chronologically, Melody Hill occurs first. Although you can read them separately as they work fine independently of each other, I recommend reading them both.
The characters are well thought and are just good and decent people - well, except for the bad guys of course. You'll be pulling for Duff, Brady and Lacey from beginning to end.
Melody Hill is a story about war, the casualties we see as well as those we don't. In the history of good versus evil, the Vietnam War is a place and time where it became difficult for many to distinguish the slide to the point where the end no longer justifies the means. Many soldiers had tremendous moral dilemmas, as did the country as a whole. Melody Hill takes this experience down to an individual level, the slippery slope of right and wrong.
The author exercised great restraint and good taste in not selling his wares with extremely graphic situations, but leaves much to the reader's knowledge of the war, and imagination in the most unsavory details.
The story will probably always be timely since we seem to be perpetually in one war or another, but seems especially timely when we are at war for a cause we are no longer certain of or aren't always honest with ourselves about what the facts are that led us to be where we are. I recommend this for patriots, warriors, teens and adults.
The characters are well thought and are just good and decent people - well, except for the bad guys of course. You'll be pulling for Duff, Brady and Lacey from beginning to end.
Melody Hill is a story about war, the casualties we see as well as those we don't. In the history of good versus evil, the Vietnam War is a place and time where it became difficult for many to distinguish the slide to the point where the end no longer justifies the means. Many soldiers had tremendous moral dilemmas, as did the country as a whole. Melody Hill takes this experience down to an individual level, the slippery slope of right and wrong.
The author exercised great restraint and good taste in not selling his wares with extremely graphic situations, but leaves much to the reader's knowledge of the war, and imagination in the most unsavory details.
The story will probably always be timely since we seem to be perpetually in one war or another, but seems especially timely when we are at war for a cause we are no longer certain of or aren't always honest with ourselves about what the facts are that led us to be where we are. I recommend this for patriots, warriors, teens and adults.
June 29, 2015
The story of Melody Hill takes us back and tells us the prequel story to The Gomorrah Principle. The characters we loved from TGP are back in full, vivid detail. Duff, Brady and Lacey's lives are intertwined and woven with intricate detail by author, Rick DeStefanis. Duff takes on the horror and violence of the Vietnam War using practical application of the skills he learned growing up in the woods of Melody Hill, TN. Duff's ability to maneuver through deadly Vietnam combat are what drives the story of Melody Hill. His relatives back home are maneuvering through their teenage years and, while not deadly, have to come to terms with the perils of adulthood.
The pace of Melody Hill is quick, the writing is sharp and crisp. Once began, it is the kind of book you don't leave laying around. The plot development insures that readers will want to finish the book while the details are fresh. DeStefanis proves his knowledge and first hand experience with combat are a force to be reckoned with.
I highly recommend this book!
The pace of Melody Hill is quick, the writing is sharp and crisp. Once began, it is the kind of book you don't leave laying around. The plot development insures that readers will want to finish the book while the details are fresh. DeStefanis proves his knowledge and first hand experience with combat are a force to be reckoned with.
I highly recommend this book!
March 15, 2016
I have now read ALL of DeStafanis’ three novels. And I love them all. MELODY HILL and THE GOMORRAH PRINCIPLE both stand alone, so the reader can read either one first. DeStefanis has written now three Vietnam-era books of fiction that are on par with the best of James Webb, del Vecchio, Tim O’Brien, and Josiah Bunting. His descriptive writing is so realistic, the reader knows and feels that the author is a veteran “who has been there.” I myself was commissioned after the War in Vietnam was just over, but DeStefanis’ story rings true with the many stories I heard from friends and veterans just a little older than me, stories of corruption of Vietnam’s puppet government and the CIA and the US military often caught in the middle. The author’s description of combat are vivid, and his writing is so descriptive that the reader can feel and smell the muck at the bottom of the ever-present rice paddies. I am so glad that this author chose to become an author. The current group of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans will appreciate the honest and accurate story-telling of this author.
May 4, 2015
It Is always hard to write a sequel as good as the first and a prequel is even harder, but DeStefanis delivers a great read. Even though he had to write within the time constraints of The Gomorrah Principle, he delivers a great back story to Duff, one of the original characters and does so with believability and that is something I pick apart in most thrillers. If it is not believable then I lose interest, but this book really details the early days with multiple story lines and most of all, we find out just how Duff finds his way, for better or worse. His vivid descriptions make it easy for the reader to imagine the surroundings as if you are there and you can really connect with the characters. Even though this series is listed as military thrillers, the story is about more. It's about life, morals, devotion and love. You won't regret this book. I actually read it twice. Job well done...
July 30, 2015
This book has everything including action, suspense and love. The author has an exceptional writing talent and writes in a way that keeps you drawn into the story. This book is one that you will not want to put down. My compliments to the author.
December 31, 2015
Different from what I'm usually into reading, but I enjoyed it. I'll make sure to read the sequel soon. I'd say give it a read if you're into war-themed stories and drama.
March 25, 2017
When I first saw the title, I wasn’t that excited. Melody Hill. Sounds more like a love story doesn’t it? Let me assure, it’s anything but. It is the name of a town in Tennessee where Duff Coleridge grows up. It is a quiet little town like hundreds of others tucked away in the mountains of Tenn. Kentucky, Georgia, West Virginia, etc.
Duff joins up, becomes a Ranger and finds out Vietnam is not what he expected. The idea of waiting for the enemy attacks is not his forte. He wants to be the hunter. After a few months of successful missions, he is requested to join a LRRP team. This is his idea of war. He longer waits for Charlie to find his group they are now the ones looking for Charlie and taking them out. This is what he came to Vietnam for; kill the enemy where he hides. His valor and excellent sharp-shooting skills find him joining with a special unit run by the CIA. This is where the story takes off.
Throw in a beautiful Vietnamese girl, Lynn Dai who is a government agent who investigates civilians and has a close eye of the SOG group and its leader Spartan, the plot more than thickens, it’s become molasses and Duff is caught in the middle of it.
This is one of those books that to do an in-depth review would give away too much of the plot. I will say this, I am reading the next posthaste. This a fast paced, knock-down, drag-out plot to the last page. Finished it in less than two days.
I mentioned at the beginning how the title didn’t seem to fit the story, I was wrong. The last chapter let me know it was the best title!
A glowing five stars.
Duff joins up, becomes a Ranger and finds out Vietnam is not what he expected. The idea of waiting for the enemy attacks is not his forte. He wants to be the hunter. After a few months of successful missions, he is requested to join a LRRP team. This is his idea of war. He longer waits for Charlie to find his group they are now the ones looking for Charlie and taking them out. This is what he came to Vietnam for; kill the enemy where he hides. His valor and excellent sharp-shooting skills find him joining with a special unit run by the CIA. This is where the story takes off.
Throw in a beautiful Vietnamese girl, Lynn Dai who is a government agent who investigates civilians and has a close eye of the SOG group and its leader Spartan, the plot more than thickens, it’s become molasses and Duff is caught in the middle of it.
This is one of those books that to do an in-depth review would give away too much of the plot. I will say this, I am reading the next posthaste. This a fast paced, knock-down, drag-out plot to the last page. Finished it in less than two days.
I mentioned at the beginning how the title didn’t seem to fit the story, I was wrong. The last chapter let me know it was the best title!
A glowing five stars.
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews