Amazon.com
If you imagine most writer's bathrooms (and this is probably a mistake) you'd picture damp towels in a clump on the floor, hair in the soap, a few mildewed paperbacks stacked on the counter. But it's impossible to picture Chris Bohjalian's bathroom as anything but an Architectural Digest centerfold: polished counters, not a stray thread on the plush towels, the modulated colors sparked to life by fresh flowers from a neighbor's garden.
Bohjalian's eighth novel, Before You Know Kindness, is a beautifully observed, delicately balanced portrait of a family that could only come from the hands of a tireless craftsman who keeps reaching into his story to straighten the tulips or tuck in a shirttail. It begins with two EMTs leaning over animal rights' activist Spencer McCullough's gushing shotgun wound and winds back through the ordinary days leading up to the extraordinary accident, and then forward again as Spencer and his family come to terms with what has happened. As ambitious as other Bohjalian novels, Before You Know Kindness spirals out to encompass the larger issues of Spencer's political loyalties and the heartless, passionate world of political spin. Some readers may find Bohjalian's style too smooth. Others will relish the completeness of his vision and his obvious tenderness for even the most difficult of his characters. --Regina Marler
Book Description
Chris Bohjalian, bestselling author of
Midwives, presents his most ambitious and multi-layered novel to date--examining wildly divisive issues in today’s America with his trademark emotional heft and spellbinding storytelling skill.
On a balmy July night in New Hampshire a shot rings out in a garden, and a man falls to the ground, terribly wounded. The wounded man is Spencer McCullough, the shot that hit him was fired–accidentally?–by his adolescent daughter Charlotte. With this shattering moment of violence, Chris Bohjalian launches the best kind of literate page-turner: suspenseful, wryly funny, and humane.
Download Description
For ten summers, the Seton family—all three generations—met at their country home in New England to spend a week together playing tennis, badminton, and golf, and savoring gin and tonics on the wraparound porch to celebrate the end of the season. In the eleventh summer, everything changed. A hunting rifle with a single cartridge left in the chamber wound up in exactly the wrong hands at exactly the wrong time, and led to a nightmarish accident that put to the test the values that unite the family—and the convictions that just may pull it apart.
Before You Know Kindness is a family saga that is timely in its examination of some of the most important issues of our era, and timeless in its exploration of the strange and unexpected places where we find love.
As he did with his earlier masterpiece, Midwives, Chris Bohjalian has written a novel that is rich with unforgettable characters—and absolutely riveting in its page-turning intensity.
“Few writers can manipulate a plot with Bohjalian's grace and power.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Chris Bohjalian's many fans will be glad to know he's back on the high wire, expertly balancing topical issues with the more timeless concerns of the human heart. His well-drawn, sympathetic characters deepen and intensify the novel's gripping plot rather than simply serving it. Before You Know Kindness is smart, first-rate storytelling.”—Richard Russo, winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Empire Falls
“Once again, Chris Bohjalian dares to tackle the complexities—and complacencies—of modern society at its most vulnerable spot, where the personal clashes with the political, where the private is forced to go public. And once again, he forges a drama that will keep his readers on the edge of their seats…perhaps their conscience as well.”—Julia Glass, winner of the National Book Award for Three Junes
“Chris Bohjalian's magnificent new novel, Before You Know Kindness, is the best work of fiction I've read about an American family since Amy Tan's The Joy Luck Club. It is one of the funniest, best-written, most compassionate, most engaging, and flat-out most enjoyable novels I've ever read.”—Howard Frank Mosher, winner of the New England Book Award for A Stranger in the Kingdom
“Elegant, refined…a triumph.”—Booklist (starred review)
Customer Reviews:
a great book club choice.......2007-10-06
A great book club choice! This book sparked a terrific discussion for our group. From the first pages you are grabbed and pulled into the story.
Brilliant.......2007-09-16
I truly can't say enough about this finely crafted brilliant novel, and I will explain in a minute why I gave it four instead of five stars; really it should be 4.5 stars.
The beginning certaiinly gets the reader's attention: It's a nauseatingly graphic description of a near-fatal gunshot wound to Spencer McCullough's shoulder; complete with gushing blood, pulverized muscle, and so forth. So we know right away that something catasrophic has happened to this man, and I, at least, was not quite sure he lived.
Then we get into the story. Here we have a quite unusual upper-class extended family. The mother, a seventy-something sports fanatic (and I mean PLAYING, not watching!) divides her time between Manhattan and her summer house in New Hampshire. Her two grown children, spouses and families live in Vermont and Manhattan, respectively. The son John, a lawyer, and his wife, a therapist, have two children: 10-year-old Willow and infant Patrick. Daughter Katherine teaches at an exclusive private school that her daughter attends. Her husband Spencer, the wounde-ee, if you will, is a fanatic animal-rights activist in the upper echelons of FERAL, a group so rigid and righteous that it puts PETA to shame. And don't get me wrong; I am passionate about animal rights, but the descriptions of FERAL often had me laughing.
The accident, horrific in its pain and terror, happens about a third into the book. Let's just say it involves a HUNTING RIFLE, of all things ironic, and that Spencer's own cocky pre-teen daughter Charlotte, high from forbidden marijuana and beer stolen at a country club party, pulls the trigger. The rest of the book is the finely drawn description of the changes, marital and otherwise, that affect each member of the extended family, from the very patrician grandmother down to 10-year-old Willow, un unwitting accomplice and a child far beyond her years in wisdom.
And that fact, and one other, are the only two things that prevented me from giving five stars. The first is that, as endearing as she is, I found Willow to be beyond anything I know a 10-year-old girl to be, and I have been a mother, an aunt, and a friend to many a precocious child. My second involved confusion as the author switched from scathing satire about FERAL to his own version of animal activism, describing in horrible detail the way live lobsters are killed (I don't think I can eat another one) and how deer suffer in the hunt, and on and on. It was disconcerting to go from laughing at FERAL to crying over the animals, and it didn't really make sense to me in the larger arena of the novel.
However, I truly found this a brillint book, and recommend it highly.
Disappointing!.......2007-07-18
I am a fan of Chris Bohjalian, having read several of his previous books. I have especially always liked the thoughtful treatment he gives complex and delicate issues. This book, unfortunately, was a big disappointment. It's over 400 pages long, and easily could have been half this if it was pared down to the essential issues. For some reason, he found it necessary to examine even the smallest details from each character's point of view, which got very tedious, particularly when each person had a similar take on the situation. Additionally, he found it important to go over and over and over the same issues - there is a big secret that the girl who shot her father is hiding and she and her cousin discuss it ad nauseum. Again, I found this very tedious. I ended up skimming the last 100 pages and still feel like I didn't miss anything. My final criticism is that he didn't follow that writer's axiom - write what you know. He clearly knows very little about adolescent girls - other than that they are *boy crazy*!!! - and it showed.
A good read.......2007-06-06
I won't go into great detail, as other reviewers have already provided thorough summations. I found this to be a well-crafted novel with excellently portrayed characters that develop and transform as the events unfold. I was pleasantly surprised at the crow's involvement near the end as I anticipated the evidence was just lost, never to be recovered by the police (as it often is in real life.) It was a lovely way to weave in the grandmother's earlier attempt to have the girls do the experiment with the crow and the dime - I love subtle foreshadowing. I will definitely have to check out other books by Mr. Bohjalian.
Boring.......2007-05-20
I found this book to be very boring...not like Midwives at all!! Good auther, just got off on this book; described things in way too much detail, sentances ran FOREVER!! Reading Buffalo Soldier right now....hopefully it will prove to be more like Midwives.
Average customer rating:
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Before You Know Kindness.(Brief Article)(Young Adult Review)(Audiobook Review): An article from: Kliatt
Jean Palmer
Manufacturer: Kliatt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
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ASIN: B0009762UG
Release Date: 2005-04-19 |
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Kliatt, published by Kliatt on March 1, 2005. The length of the article is 325 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Before You Know Kindness.(Brief Article)(Young Adult Review)(Audiobook Review)
Author: Jean Palmer
Publication:
Kliatt (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 1, 2005
Publisher: Kliatt
Volume: 39
Issue: 2
Page: 46(1)
Article Type: Audiobook Review, Brief Article, Young Adult Review
Distributed by Thompson Gale
Book Description
Flame-haired Mairin of Aelfeah was a ravishing beauty who caught the attention of three extraordinary men-Basil, Prince of Byzantium, who taught her love's mysterious secrets; Josselin of Combourg, a gallant knight of William the Conquerer; and Eric Longsword, the powerful Viking whose tragic love for Mairin would mark her forever. To these men, Mairin was the Enchantress- and in a world gone mad with savage war and fierce desire, only their love could save her.
Customer Reviews:
A recipe for disaster!.......2006-12-26
I think when the author cooked up this book, her recipe was this: Take a huge pile of schmaltz. Add way too much sugar, till it's sickly-sweet in places, and a handful of nuts. Stir unevenly. Leave it half-baked, and serve barely lukewarm, never hot.
Forgive me if I find the result of this recipe too hard to swallow!
Where do I start in explaining why I detest this book so much? Okay, let's begin with the heroine, Mairin. She is constantly vaunted as being perfect, incredibly beautiful, intelligent and good -- and I mean CONSTANTLY, like on every page. EVERYONE she meets fawns on her and praises her. She herself even thinks about how beautiful she is, and mentions her beauty to others. Okay, I'll admit it, I'm not fond of vain women. But more to the point, I hate praise that isn't deserved. I didn't think she was the least bit perfect. In fact, I thought her as far from perfect as Pluto is from the sun, at least in the brains and personality departments. She came off as dumb and dull, sometimes to the extreme. Getting back to her alleged beauty, though, I was REALLY revolted by the fact that so many men were said to have coveted her in the first hundred pages of the book, during which time she was aged between five and thirteen years old. The way her beauty is described in those pages is in an adult way, in terms of sensuality...I mean, ick, she's just a little kid! She was sold into slavery with lewd intentions at age five, married at thirteen and first made love to, more or less, at fourteen...am I the only one who thinks it's wrong in a romance book to have a child doing these sorts of things, especially with much older men? Also, at age five Mairin made very long speeches full of very long words...she did not at any point sound like a five year old. In fact, she sounded like a grown-up at every age...her character was very unrealistically written. Still, in spite of her apparent maturity, she shouldn't have been doing so many grown up things with men. That's just wrong!
If you want more grossness, try these other plot twists from the book: Mairin's husband kisses the blood stains (along with the other bodily fluids mixed with them, assumedly) from her body when she loses her maidenhead. Or try this excerpt: 'her hands smoothing down his back, tangling within his tawny hair.' Ew! Back hair! Or her second husband Josselin threatening to beat her (on more than one occasion), and both of them, and her mother, treating it as a funny joke (strange -- personally, I don't think wife bashing is amusing), or when, on the second last page, Josselin nastily berates his infant son because of jealousy, and his wife smilingly goes along with it (not exactly the happy ending I was after.) I also thought it in bad taste that practically every time Mairin and Josselin canoodled, Mairin talked about her lovemaking experiences with her previous husband. And furthermore, when she did that, Josselin didn't seem to mind or get in the least bit jealous. That didn't make sense to me. What man wants to hear a woman talking about how good her ex was in bed, least of all while she and her current beau are getting intimate? But in the book, Josselin didn't take offence...he just went on telling Mairin how perfect she was, like everyone always did. And there were other things in the book that I didn't understand, like how Mairin was supposed to have been the first redheaded woman the Byzantine empire had ever seen, and people were amazed by her, and flocked to see her. Firstly, I doubt they had never seen a redhead before in such a cosmopolitan place. Secondly, she was there with her redheaded mother...why did no one ever notice her mother, or make a fuss of her? And I don't get why Mairin's home of Aelfleah is described in the first half of the book as a worthless, unimportant, usually forgotten, out-of-the-way holding, then in the rest of the book as an important, strategic, valuable holding. I mean, huh? There were other contradictions, too, like when Mairin is described one minute as an innocent, then the next as someone who has learnt all about the facts of life from her parents. Or like when Mairin is said to be oblivious to how beautiful she is, then the next minute is described as fully understanding just how great her own beauty is.
There were a lot of other faults with the writing of this book. And I don't just say that because it was like an overly-melodramatic soap opera, complete with laughably bad, wooden dialogue and a nonsensical storyline full of predictability and improbability and illogicality and typical soap opera props like a girly heroine who faints and loses her memory. I mean, the author made a LOT of mistakes. Like when Mairin is said to be 14 years old, then ten months later she is supposed to be 16. Or when the author says that Mairin is given a two year old stallion (there's no such thing...it's called a colt until it's four.) Or when Basil kisses Mairin in the garden, then is said to have 'walked from the room'. Also, there is a lot of 'narrative within dialogue', a sin in writing if used to excess, when the characters make long winded speeches to fill the reader in with the plot details, ie. like when Mairin's father gives a speech to his family about their house and family history. Clearly this is done so that the reader will know all about it...problem is, the things he talks about are things his family would surely already know, like the fact that there is a birdcoop right next to the house they've lived in for decades. If they already know stuff like that then why would he be telling them? It's annoying, giving readers the facts this way. Leave all the lengthy narrative out of character dialogue, I say. The author also commits another crime...everytime a character is asked by someone else what has happened to them, the author doesn't gloss over it and just say something like 'she explained her situation', the author lets them explain EVERYTHING in dialogue, rehashing their every action and experience, all of which we've already read about previously. This probably happened about twenty times or more. Even though I already knew what had happened to the characters, I was forced to read about their exploits yet again, over and over. I must have heard Mairin's life story at least a dozen times over! Ugh! Boring! Also, the author felt the need to overuse words. Mairin's husband called her 'enchantress' so many times I wanted to scream! Could he not remember her name, or call her something else for a change? Also, the word celtic was overused...a cross couldn't just be a cross, it had to be a celtic cross. And then there was a celtic heart, and a celtic temper, whatever those are, and all the other celtic things. Ugh! Also, the writer seemed afraid to use commas, and many sentences were made difficult to understand at first glance due to the fact that all the words ran together without any breaks between them. I found it maddening. And don't get me started on what a ridiculous 2-D stereotypical villain the character of Eric Longsword is. Actually, the only really interesting character in the book is Basil...I found it unusual to see a bisexual character in a romance book. But his potential is short lived as unfortunately his character is killed off quickly, after basically admitting that his interest in men was a brief and passing phase -- what a cliche! I almost felt as if he was being punished for his 'deviancy' by the writer when he was killed off.
I hated this book. I'm glad it's over. I will never read it again. And I won't be reading any more of this author's books. Given how juvenile the writing in this book seemed to me, I was surprised to discover that the author is in fact old enough to be a grandmother. (Although, given the frequency with which lavender and lilac scents are described in this book, I should have realised that she was old! Grandmas always love and smell of these scents.) I bear the author no ill will -- she is probably a lovely person. But I really can't stand her writing! And it worries me that someone her age, with grandkids, could write some of the disturbing things she wrote in this about a character who is really only a little girl, but is treated like a sensuous women.
Very good historical romance..........2004-05-03
This is the first Bertrice Small's book I read and I really have to say it is one of her best.
Fascinating plot, lovely characters (Mairin is a wonderful heroine and the other characters are pleasant and -very important thing- believable), historic accuracy, love scenes wonderfully described and never coarse.... who could ask for more?
Good book for the most part butalso irritating.......2004-05-01
I like the way Bertrice Small injects her romance with a lot of historical background, unlike many romance authors. I REALLY REALLY REALLY could have used without the word enchantress being used every other page or more often ... I KNOW the title, use the phrase once or twice but it was so overused it was irritating and detracted from an otherwise good book
A Different kind of Fairytale.......2004-01-21
I have always enjoyed Bertrice Small's book. They are written with such flare and feeling. She pulls the reader right along with her heroines in the story. We not only read, but feel the story along with the characters. This story is no different. The lives of Small's characters never follow the normal path, but go along different paths, that one would normally not think of. This story is not any different. You begin to think that it is a fairy tale about a child with a wicked stepmother. Who is sold to a slaver. That would be the end of a life, but no. Her life gets better, not worse and things happen that you would never imagine. There is love scenes, but they are part of the story, not put in because the writer needs to fill space. If you like a different romanic story that you can not put down, you will not be disappointed with this or any other of Bertrice Small's books.
A fairy tale for adults..........2004-01-07
Mairin lost her mother when she was born, but soon her father came and took her from Ireland to England where she lived as the apple of his eye until the wicked stepmother came along. Nothing limited Blanche's hatred of her stepchild, and when Mairin's father died, Blanche immediately sold her to a slaver, thinking the little girl will soon be lost in far away Turkey; and she would have been, if a kindly Englishman had not seen her and bought her as a replacement for his own dead child.
Mairin and her servant, Dagda, truly are at home with her new family. Her adoptive parents and brother love her immediately, and when she is of marriageable age, a wedding to a Byzantine prince is planned. Before she can truly become Basil's wife, he is killed by a past lover. Sent home, Mairin manages the estate left to her when her father and brother die in the wars until Josselin, a knight of the Conquerer's, comes and to claim both her home and heart. However, Mairin's beauty of body and soul has won another man's heart, a dangerous Viking who will stop at nothing to have her.
*** Once more, Ms Small has penned a fairy tale for adults. Though both hailed and critisized for her use of sensuality, I would not term her books erotic. Passion is kept within appropriate bounds, as a symbol of love, not pure lust. Mairin, like all of her heroines, has a gallantry that would shame one of the knights, yet is feminine in every way. ***
Amanda Killgore
Average customer rating:
- Great Story!
- Enchantress Mine
- Bertrice Small sweeps you away
- Great Book! Must Read!
- A Cracking Good Read!
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Enchantress Mine
Bertrice Small
Manufacturer: Signet
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Small, Bertrice | ( S ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
General | Romance | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0451158326 |
Customer Reviews:
Great Story!.......2001-07-12
From the golden pleasure domes of Constantinople to the barbaric pomp of Malcolm of Scotland's court, this is the magical tale of ravishingly beautiful Mairin of Aelfleah, called Enchantress by the three men who loved her: Basil, Prince of Byzantium, who taught her passion's tender secrets...Josselin de Combourg, gallant knight of William the Conqueror...and Eric Longsword, the Viking whose tragic love for Mairin would never be fulfilled. And in their wild world gone mad with savage war, only love could truimph over all. This was a great Bertrice book. Up to her usual standard. Love her novels!
Enchantress Mine.......2001-06-07
I don't know...I guess I must have been reading a different book. Yes, the history in Enchantress Mine is rich and detailed, and some of the characters in the book are rather amusing. But poor Mairin! Of the three love interests she has in this book, one lacks a manhood, another's manhood is questionable, and the other is just plain boring! C'mon Ms. Small, you can do much better! Read Skye O'Malley, Love, Wild and Fair or Wild Jasmine instead.
Bertrice Small sweeps you away.......2000-07-07
Bertrice Small takes us from 11th century England to Constantinople and back. Mrs. Small describes for us 2 different cultures and how young Mairin survives love, hate, and death in both worlds. From the beginning of Mairin and Basil's relationship, I felt that theirs wouldn't be the most desirable relationship. Mairin, very much a spirit of Nature, just didn't seem to fit in the bustle of Constantinople. She returns to England and soon finds tragedy. Help comes in the form of Josslin, a likable hero that falls for her. Standing in the wings is Eric Longsword, who is the perfect definition of a stalker and a man who refuses to understand Mairin's dislike of him. Although not as powerful as some of her other books, Enchantress Mine is a good read and will easily transport you to another place and time.
Great Book! Must Read!.......2000-06-11
I absoultly LOVE this book! It's funny in some places and very sexy in others
If you haven't read it... please do!
A Cracking Good Read!.......2000-03-11
This is a really great read! Mairin of Aelfleah, the book's heroine, kicks major booty, is feisty and smart and takes nonsense from no one. She is actually more typical of a real medieval woman than the passive, submissive type so often depicted. This book is set in the time of William the Conqueror and Ms. Small has done her research well. She shouldn't be giving any characters middle names - no one in this time had them, but this is a trifling detail. I'd definitely recommend this book to romance and history lovers.
Average customer rating:
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Enchantress Mine
Manufacturer: New American Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
General | Historical | Romance | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000FHEG58 |
Product Description
Hardcover edition of this tale which sweeps from 11th century England to Byzantium and back. Wonderful romance by a favorite author famed for her exquisite historical detail and sizzling interpersonal fireworks. Has been reprinted several times.
Average customer rating:
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ENCHANTRESS MINE
BERTRICE SMALL
Manufacturer: SIGNET NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Small, Bertrice | ( S ) | Authors, A-Z | Romance | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B000L17WA4 |
Product Description
ROMANCE NOVEL
Product Description
Romance Novels
Average customer rating:
- WORST book I've ever read!!!
- HAMBLYS A HACK!
- PLEASE READ ME.
- O.K.
- Realistic opinion.
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Planet of Twilight (Star Wars.)
Barbara Hambly
Manufacturer: Spectra
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Hambly, Barbara
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Children of the Jedi (Star Wars)
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ASIN: 0553575171
Release Date: 1998-05-04 |
Amazon.com
Prepare yourself for a nonstop Leia-fest. The New Republic's new leader is back in bondage again, but at least this time she doesn't have Jabba the Hut slobbering all over her. Kidnapped after a clandestine mission to the former prison-planet Nam Chorios goes awry, Leia relies on her wits, her ever-developing Jedi powers (including some mean saber-swinging), and her pals to escape, survive, and resolve the conflict on the desolate planet. Han, Chewie, and Lando may get short shrift in Planet of Twilight, but Luke gets in some good scenes on the trail of Force-sensitive babe Callista, and the droids provide more than their share of laughs. While veteran writer Hambly doesn't subscribe to the admittedly entertaining shut-up-and-start-blasting school of Star Wars writing, her skilled characterizations and more literary stylings are a welcome addition to the fold. --Paul Hughes
Book Description
New York Times bestselling author Barbara Hambly returns to the Star Wars(r) universe to tell a breathtaking tale of a mysterious world where the battle between the New Republic and the Empire takes a shocking new twist....
Nam Chorios is a barren backwater world--once a dreaded prison colony, now home to a fanatic religious cult. It is here that Princess Leia has been taken captive by a ruthless and charismatic warlord bent on destroying the New Republic. Meanwhile, Luke lands on a mysterious planet in search of his lost love, Callista, only to discover the Force is his own worst enemy. But worst of all, as Han, Chewie, and Lando leave Coruscant on a desperate rescue mission, a strange life-form, unlike any the galaxy has ever seen, awakens...a life-form so malevolent it will destroy everything--both Empire and New Republic--on its path to domination.
Customer Reviews:
WORST book I've ever read!!!.......2007-08-30
I love the Star Wars saga. The three original films rank as my all-time favorite movies. I've also read several Star Wars novels; The Truce at Bakura, X-Wing: Wraith Squadron, Jedi Search, Dark Apprentice, Champions of the Force, Ambush at Corellia, Assault on Selonia, Showdown at Centerpoint, etc. and LOVED them all (very well-written). Then I was given Planet of Twilight as a Christmas gift a few years back. Let me say, I got more satisfaction from watching paint dry than reading this pile. I made it a quarter of the way through the book I had to ask myself, "What the hell is going on here?!?". I know what makes a great read and, frankly, this isn't it. I've never been so disappointed in an author. I buried the book under my bed for a few years and found it again just recently. I said to myself "You know, I could give this another try. I might just understand Barbara's stream of consciousness this time." So I started over......and guess what? I had no idea what was going on. HEY BARBARA! WRITE A STORY THAT PEOPLE CAN FOLLOW! Seriously, Tolken couldn't follow this very poorly written story. I ended up throwing the book away.....the first and only time I've ever gotten rid of a book.
Avoid this title. Read the others I mentioned instead.
HAMBLYS A HACK!.......2007-04-17
These books(Children of the Jedi and Planet of Twilight)prove that Hambly has no business writing Star Wars novels. Hambly has a weak grasp on the characters of Star Wars. In a genre and series whose readers are keen to every small detail in a characters life small changes on the part of the author make a huge unwanted difference. I would not consider these books to be Star Wars novels. The characters were Hamblys own, not the characters that we all know. The only things that remained were the names. Hambly wrote her own stories with weak fluffy pages that had nothing to do with Star wars. The stories are slow,overly descriptive, and extremely choppy. In these books Hambly failed miserably.
PLEASE READ ME........2007-03-06
Who will live? Who will die? Who will be separated from his long lost love and who will reunite with his? And what is the origination of the mysterious Death Seed plague? You will have to read STAR WARS, PLANET of TWILIGHT, by Barbara Hambly.
The Death Seed plague has poisened a large portion of the galaxy. Many will die, a woman will be kidnapped, and a familiar face (Luke) will set out on a quest to find both the kidnapped woman (Liea) and his long lost love (Calista).
Will the Death Seed plague be stopped? Will Luke find Callista? You will figure out after you read this fantasic story of death, romance, and confusion.
If you truly love something, set it free, as the saying goes. The same goes for Luke in this epic tale.
I sincerely loved reading this book, even though I got a bit confused at times. Anyone who likes STAR WARS will adore reading this book. There is a Hutt (a species, similar to Jabba the Hutt) that can manipulate the force, which you might find interesting. The force is strong on the planet Nam Chorios, as it is in this book, so enjoy.
O.K........2006-11-12
Evil Hutts, super weapons, a mad imperial dictator, and a princess held captive? This may sound like the novelization of episode IV but it's not. This is the book Planet of Twilight by Barbara Hambly. It starts of with a plauge, and then goes onto an adventure with B-wings, droids, hyperspace, and mutated misquitos. this book shows us that even admidst our differences we can all help each other(Awwwwwwww).
Realistic opinion........2006-08-06
Hhhmmmm..... lets see. A million people writing in their reviews that this book sucks? That must mean its incredibly good! BUY IT!!!! BUY IT!!!!! BUY IT!!!!! READ IT AND MAKE YOUR OWN REVIEW! STOP READING THIS!!! SCROLL THE PAGE BACK UP!!! DONT BOTHER WITH THESE PEOPLES OPINIONS (WHICH BY MY EXPERIENCE ARE WRONG IN EVERY REVIEW OF EVERYTHING IN AMAZON)!!!! GO UP, UP, UP!!! BACK TO YOUR MAGICAL CART AND BUY IT!!!!
Thank you.
Average customer rating:
|
Beyond the Twilight
B. Briar Colleton
Manufacturer: Trafford Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Dreams
| Mental Health
| Health, Mind & Body
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Self-Help
| Health, Mind & Body
| Subjects
| Books
General
| Poetry
| Literature & Fiction
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1412028868
Release Date: 2006-07-06 |
Average customer rating:
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STAR WARS: PLANET OF TWILIGHT.
Manufacturer: Transworld Publishers Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
| Adventure
| Alternate History
| Anthologies
| General
| Graphic Novels
| High Tech
| History & Criticism
| Series
| Short Stories
| Space Opera
ASIN: 059304133X |
Average customer rating:
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Twilight: Planet Fall
John Heemeyer
Manufacturer: Authorhouse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General
| Science Fiction
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: 1418411922 |
Book Description
Why did the Jews reject Jesus? Was he really the son of God? Were the Jews culpable in his death? These ancient questions have been debated for almost two thousand years, most recently with the release of Mel Gibson’s explosive The Passion of the Christ. The controversy was never merely academic. The legal status and security of Jews—often their very lives—depended on the answer.
In WHY THE JEWS REJECTED JESUS, David Klinghoffer reveals that the Jews since ancient times accepted not only the historical existence of Jesus but the role of certain Jews in bringing about his crucifixion and death. But he also argues that they had every reason to be skeptical of claims for his divinity.
For one thing, Palestine under Roman occupation had numerous charismatic would-be messiahs, so Jesus would not have been unique, nor was his following the largest of its kind. For another, the biblical prophecies about the coming of the Messiah were never fulfilled by Jesus, including an ingathering of exiles, the rise of a Davidic king who would defeat Israel’s enemies, the building of a new Temple, and recognition of God by the gentiles. Above all, the Jews understood their biblically commanded way of life, from which Jesus’s followers sought to “free” them, as precious, immutable, and eternal.
Jews have long been blamed for Jesus’s death and stigmatized for rejecting him. But Jesus lived and died a relatively obscure figure at the margins of Jewish society. Indeed, it is difficult to argue that “the Jews” of his day rejected Jesus at all, since most Jews had never heard of him. The figure they really rejected, often violently, was Paul, who convinced the Jerusalem church led by Jesus’s brother to jettison the observance of Jewish law. Paul thus founded a new religion. If not for him, Christianity would likely have remained a Jewish movement, and the course of history itself would have been changed. Had the Jews accepted Jesus, Klinghoffer speculates, Christianity would not have conquered Europe, and there would be no Western civilization as we know it.
WHY THE JEWS REJECTED JESUS tells the story of this long, acrimonious, and occasionally deadly debate between Christians and Jews. It is thoroughly engaging, lucidly written, and in many ways highly original. Though written from a Jewish point of view, it is also profoundly respectful of Christian sensibilities. Coming at a time when Christians and Jews are in some ways moving closer than ever before, this thoughtful and provocative book represents a genuine effort to heal the ancient rift between these two great faith traditions.
Customer Reviews:
Why have Christians persecuted Jews...read book to find out.......2007-06-08
The book certainly delivers on the title. But it is as biased against Christianity as some Christian thinking is and was biased against Jewish ideas. The author is certainly well read in scripture and the Jewish Talmud, but he can "spin" a verse just like Christianity does to prove his point of view, which he has already decided is the absolute truth. And the author does again and again, sometimes repeating his point numerous times in different ways. This book is okay but somehow I expected much more.
Heavily Researched.......2007-05-26
I found this book very heavily researched and presenting a lot of history and detail.I find it a rather interesting and worthy work. I personally feel V'da Mah SheTashiv .V'Da Mah SheTashiv: Know What To Answer (To Missionaries) A Thorough Jewish response To Missionaries , also on Amazon, to be a lot shorter and quicker to the point. The issue simply being if Judaism believes its idolatry to believe a man killed 2000 years ago can be a deity or Messiah, while rejecting more than an "iota" of the Law
a Good Book history.......2007-05-21
Very well written book with a lot of information about Jewish history, in addition to the relationship of Jews to Jesus and Christianity. I recommend the book.
He proves the subtitle. .......2007-03-30
Klinghoffer's thesis that the emergence of Christianity allowed for the west to develop is correct. But the majority of the book deals with numerous points a Jewish person might object to when it comes to Jesus as Messiah.
As with most serious religious debates, "authority" is usually the key element to the disagreement. The book appears to be a response to Mel Gibson's recent movie, "The Passion" and while his arguement might be plausible to Roman Catholics, those in reformed, ie, orthodox Christian denominations, would see otherwise. The Roaman Catholics hold Scripture, Church tradition and Papal infallibility as co-equals when it comes to authority. Similarily, it appears Torah, Mishnah, and Talmud also hold authority, but since Klinghoffer notes the Torah is "coded" and Mishnah and Talmud reveal the hidden meanings, then Talmud must be the prim authority. Orthodox Christians would bristle at that contention, as they do the Roman Catholic's view of authority, in that the Orthodox Christians believe Scripture interprets Scripture.
Numerous other presumptions Klinghoffer makes are essentially incorrect. These are too many to expound upon, but one is that there were many would-be Messiahs around in Jesus' time who were discredited. He implies that Jesus was one, but the size of the Christian church belies that proposition.
One interesting point Klinghoffer makes is that the new-founded spirit of cooperation between Jews and Christians is necessary. The real enemy of both faiths is the emerging secularization of society.
I have great respect for the Jewish faith. They have preserved G-d's mantle for thousands of years in the face of horrific persecutions. Whether there is covenantal pluralism as one rabbi opined, G-d has chosen to preserve the Jews. That must be comprehended and remembered.
A Worthwhile Read.......2007-02-14
David Klinghoffer's book is both thoughtful and thought provoking. His basic thesis, that had the Jews accepted Jesus Christianity would have retained its earliest, most Jewish form and Europe would have remained pagan until the coming of the Muslims, is an interesting one. However, others have theorized that the Roman world was gradually finding the old polytheistic religion essentially meaningless and had Christianity not come along when it did the Roman Empire would have become majority Jewish. As it was, quite a few Romans did convert to Judaism, which had been made an (not the) officially recognized religion of the empire by Julius Caesar.
I did learn quite a bit I never knew before about why the Jews rejected Jesus.
Still, I feel the author left out two basic reasons that come straight from the Torah. IN DEUTERONOMY 13 THE JEWS ARE ABSOLUTELY FORBIDDEN BY GOD TO FOLLOW A NEW RELIGION. Even if God manifested Himself as flesh and blood and taught a different religion (which by the very act of becoming a human He would have been doing, since it is no longer absolute monotheism) then the Jews would only have been doing what they were commanded by God to do if they killed him.
Deuteronomy 18:22 declares: When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass . . . the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously, thou shalt not be afraid of him." In Matthew 24 Jesus describes events he predicted would occur at the end of the world as we know it. He concluded those prophecies by stating "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." (Verse 34.) Of course that generation, to whom Jesus spoke, did pass from the scene long ago but those events that he prophesied have yet to be fulfilled.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from First Things: A Monthly Journal of Religion and Public Life, published by Institute on Religion and Public Life on February 1, 2005. The length of the article is 2087 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Why the Jews did or did not reject Jesus.(The public square: a continuing survey of religion, culture, and public life)(Book Review)
Author: Richard John Neuhaus
Publication:
First Things: A Monthly Journal of Religion and Public Life (Refereed)
Date: February 1, 2005
Publisher: Institute on Religion and Public Life
Issue: 150
Page: 58(3)
Article Type: Book Review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
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