Randle Marks returns to Georgia and his dysfunctional family when his mother ends up in the hospital with a medical emergency that she may not recover from. He's tried to make a new life for himself in Florida but recently was released from jail where he served time for a crime he didn't commit and has been working towards re-marrying his college sweetheart. He fights the doctors and hospital system to get his mother the care he knows she deserves while also piecing together the truth about his father and solve the mystery of his mother's will.

I went into this expecting the typical "dysfunctional family pulls together when the mother is on her deathbed" type story. There was some of that, but there was also more to it than that, which was pleasantly surprising. The various mysteries were actually very interesting and I was definitely wanting to find out what happened. Randle is the most likable person in his family (although that's not saying much and he definitely was no pearl), except maybe his daughter who was awesome, so he was a good protagonist to move the story along. However, many of the other characters were very unlikable, which wasn't exactly fun to read. Sometimes I found myself flying through the pages to find out what happened next, and other times it was just to get through the book. There was a mild amount of moderate level language, which was again pleasantly surprising since these types of stories can often be full of very foul language. It was better than expected, but also not something I'd mention to others or want to read again. Thanks to NetGalley for the free ebook.

Overall good story line and most conflicts seemed to be believable. Some aspects were more of a stretch for me, however, I did enjoy reading this book. Author provided enough detail to the characters and the plot.

If there was ever a family to dislike - this would be it. Randle has just gotten out of prison only to find that his mother is in the hospital and she's dying. Why does no one want to tell him exactly what is going on? Why does his mother have prescriptions from several different doctors? Why does she have bedsores when his brother and his family have been taking care of her? Where is her money and why did she tell him she needed to talk to him, and only him, before she ended up in the hospital? This is the quintessential dysfunctional family with lots of extra craziness thrown in. I did enjoy the book, although it was slow going for me in some places. Thanks for the opportunity to read it!

A truly wonderful surprise - this book was great! John, or Randle as he wants to be called, must deal with his mother's impending death, the secrets she's held all her life and truly screwed up family dynamics between Randle, his "sister", his "brother", ex-wives, daughter, niece and nephew.

This book is not what I expected. From the description, I expected more of a mystery/thriller story. Instead, I found a story of a man trying to figure out his family history and how he fit into it. I read the book in one day, the story kept you reading and I enjoyed seeing where each twist took them. There was a side story about a second ex wife that was not needed and didn't really lead anywhere. The ending was good and sewed everything up.

I love novels about families, relationships, and secrets. This one had all of the elements. Randle Marks had a very dysfunctional family.. he becomes an advocate for his ailing mother and starts to discover family secrets. This novel was well written and held my interest. Thank you NetGalley for an ebook to review. For my honest opinion.

This story is everything it claims to be and more. It is a well written tale of deceit, questionable values, and a good hard look at what carries more weight.... the love of family or the love of money? The Undiscovered Country may make you take a long look at yourself and will certainly make you wonder what's really going on in your own neighborhood, and maybe your own family. This was my first book by Mike Nemeth and I'm glad I decided to give it a try.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is highly entertaining and very emotional. I thoroughly enjoyed it and will read more from Mike Nemeth

The Undiscovered Country by Mike Nemeth

Randle Marks is an interesting hero. He holds his feelings close, quickly steps in when he feels he is needed and is fairly sure he is always right. He has done a stint in prison, has had a couple of wives, has a daughter and as the story is told his backstory tells of a very dysfunctional family.

When the book begins he is dealing with his mother in hospital assumed to be dying. As her advocate he makes sure he has all the facts and is relentless in making sure she gets the best care possible. And, as a nurse in the past, I was totally intent on this portion of the story. His half siblings appear and what a pair they are! The third generation has problems of its own.

I wasn’t sure about this story at first but it drew me in. The threads of the story were woven in to create a rich complex pattern that left me realizing that sometimes those we love are more and less than we think they are. It also made me realize that most people, at least in this family, are out for the money…and will do some crazy evil things to get it.

As I read I wondered about mentions of his prison and what he was in for and by the end of the book I looked the author up and realized that there is a previous story that no doubt would have made this story more complete – though I had no trouble enjoying it without that first book.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read other books by this author? Yes
Did it make me think? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Morgan James Publishing for the ARC – This is my honest review.

4-5 Stars

Dysfunctional does not cover this family. The Marks family is and they are all pulling in different directions all with different motives when it comes to their mother who is now ill, needs permanent care.

The power of money and greed seem to overcome all human emotions and feelings and we have three children in a squabble over their mother's assets even before she is gone. She just wants to go peacefully but she also knows that she has left behind secrets and a can of worms that is just going to erupt. She is not at peace.

Randle the eldest just out of prison finds the path to handling his mother's illness fraught with obstacles. Billy his brother just wants it over and done with. No hospice, no aftercare just done and dusted. Katy his sister is strangely absent, later discovered with a drug addict which has led to her and his brother in law robbing everything they could lay their hands on just to feed her drug habit. How does he fresh out of prison walk a tightrope between them and his fiancee who wants him to return home in time for a wedding in a weeks time!

Family ties, family secrets and family enmities erupt in this book. Very well written. Holds your interest throughout.

This is an interesting thriller with so many twists and turns it will make your head spin. The gathering of the estranged members of a dysfunctional family caused by the mother's illness leads to disputes, action, intrigue and the uncovering of long-hidden family secrets. The characters are realistic in their presentation and understandable in their motivations. It is difficult to put the book down as secrets keep coming to light and dissention grows. The twists at the end came out of the blue and caused real concern. I can't imagine any more problems for this family.

The plot was promising and I was interested enough to find out how it would unfold. However Nemeth's style of writing does not appeal to me - although I assume his intention is to underline the lack of emotion his main character possesses, It meant I couldn't really connect with the characters or events. The ultimate family confrontation neatly solves Randle's problems but was a bit too melodramatic and unbelievable for me. This might appeal to those wanting a more matter-of-fact approach.

I received a free copy from NetGalley. Just out of jail, mom falls sick, and he returns home to his dysfunctional family. The rest of the book is him being paranoid about his mother's care and trying to find out what secrets everyone is keeping, mostly regarding money. I feel like there is some back story missing, as if I came in on book two of a series, to explain his extreme distrust of nearly everyone. There was enough action to keep the story moving but it isn't a very happy book.

I had a hard time connecting with the main character. I didn’t understand some of the decisions he made about his family. He didn’t seem very likable at times. I wasn’t sure how he could marry someone that he kept lying to. I kept reading because I wanted to know how it ended with the will, but it didn’t seem realistic.

Got about 1/3 of the way done, just couldn’t finish, didn’t like any of the characters, but the mystery of what was going on with the mothers money, and the back in forth between siblings, did keep you wondering how it ends.

I think that this book doesn't fit the classification of a thriller and is instead, a dysfunctional family drama. Randle Marks has made a lot of mistakes in his life, which seems to fit with the rest of his family. He had a lousy relationship with his late "father", husband to his mom, and with his brother and sister. He's newly released from prison and rushes to his childhood home, due that failing health of his mother. There he finds that his mother has been terribly neglected and possibly even criminally abused, both by family and the medical community.

Randle has only a short time to figure out what has happened and who has been abusing his mother and her finances. As he searches for answers, he learns very surprising things about his mother, his "real" father, his brother, sister, niece and nephew. Randle can't fix the past but he tries, in his own dysfunctional way, to fix the future. This family seems to be a hopeless mess but in the end, I found hope in the future of the children of the family and in Randle's eventual letting go of his past. The novel is interesting in watching how Randle works to take a mess that he tries to turn into something that he sees as fair and just for all involved.

Thanks to Morgan James Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC.

Although I feel this book was misrepresented as a thriller I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. It was full of twist and turns and secrets down to the last page. Talk about a disfunctional family, this one takes the cake. I would definitely read more from Mike Nemeth.

This thriller is full of twists and turns right up to the end. Randle Marks, known as Jackie by family members, has recently been released from prison. When he gets a call that his mother, Elaine, is in the hospital in Augusta, Ga., in very poor condition. And she is in poor condition, such that he is sure she didyjust get that way overnight. Much to the dismay of his brother,Billy, Randle becomes his mothers medical advocate, also making the doctors angry.
This dysfunctional family has more issues than you can shake a stick at, and secrets galore. Great read!

Just when you think the problem in the family is taken care, you find a whole new level of trouble.
Secrets, theft, betrayal and weird behavior by the main guy are confusing, but eventually all is revealed.
This was a little tough for me, as I wasn't sure I was a fan of some of these people.

One of the reasons I enjoy Net Galley is that I get to read novels that I may not have heard about. This is the case with The Undiscovered Country. I really enjoyed trying to figure everything out, like John (nee Jackie). Up until the last few pages, it all remained a "mystery" I would definitely enjoy reading more of Mike Nemeth's work.