Book Description
In Nalenyr, the family of the Royal Cartographer stands in a unique position. They not only draw the maps, but also explore uncharted territories, expanding and updating the existing knowledge of the world. Their talent has yielded them enormous power and wealth–and it can also cost them their lives.
Now the Royal Cartographer’s two grandsons, Keles and Jorim, have been sent on a dangerous mission to explore the darkest corner of the unknown. As one charts the seas, looking for new lands, the other braves a region torn apart by ancient magics. Meanwhile, back home, their sister, Nirati, tries to protect her brothers from the intrigues, passions, and jealousies that constantly endanger their family. But what Keles and Jorim discover this time is bigger and more terrifying than any new land or sea. It will threaten the fragile peace maintained since the near-apocalyptic Cataclysm years earlier. And provoke a murderous act against the Cartographers that will set off a chain of events shaking the world–both discovered and undiscovered–to its core.…
Download Description
"[A] sweeping novel of grand schemes, imperial machinations and brave heroes who seek new lands."
--Publishers Weekly
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews:
a good begining. . .(shrug).......2007-09-11
i started out really hopefull about this book, even though it blatently stole from ancient Chinese culture without the mention of a single epcanthic eye, i was pretty cool. as i read further into the story i was pleasantly suprised by the little details stackpole through in there that made the world come alive. while i was a bit bemused by some of the characters and their truncated story arcs i was willing to forgive and forget, seeing as how the vast majority was quite original and entertaining.
it wasn't until the very last few chapters that stackpole pissed me off. he took his main female character and killed her for no reason at all! not only that but the plot that lead up to the murder was so moronic and so out off left field that i was totally turned off by the book. unfortunately by that time i had already purchased the sequel and couldn't take it back. so i started reading it. . . i doubt i will ever make it beyond chapter five. stackpole gives no explaination about his bizarr ending and quite frankly i no longer care.
I'm 150 pages into it and still waiting for something to happen.......2007-08-19
There's a lot of build-up in this book, meaning events happen in a baby-step fashion. Some intrigue here, a new relationship there, some backstabbing over there. Unfortunately, that's what's killing the book for me--not the events themselves but the pace at which things are happening. The basic premise is that two brothers will be venturing out on a mapmaking voyage, a high adventure of discovery. But the pacing is so slow I'm wondering if they're going to even set sail before the end of this first book. As the title of this review suggests, I'm only 150 pages into it; I've put down books after 50 pages if they just don't click with me. But I want this one to work, so I'm giving it some more time. Maybe another 50 pages. If nothing significant happens then, I guess I'm on to the next book on the pile.
Great stuff.......2007-08-08
I truly enjoyed this book and look forward to the next. It's a gripping read and thoroughly enjoyable. I stopped short of giving 5 stars only because I think it should have been longer, by which I mean that the world could have been enriched a bit more and that some of the plot elements were just shy of 100 percent 'suspension of disbelieveable'.
Other elements, which would be spoilers to mention, could have been a touch smoother. I didn't get much of a sense of the weight of history that would have benefited the story. Part of that was the age of some characters, who could remember antiquity, but didn't really show their age, and the world didn't seem to arise from its history. The buildings, customs, and traditions all lacked a historicity that could have enriched the world more satisfactorily. None of the ancestral homes and palaces seemed to be very old, for example.
None of this detracts from how enjoyable the book was, however. I merely feel it could have been even more enjoyable with more depth and weight to the world and its history.
Amazing.......2007-08-04
This guy knows how to write! This series takes fantasy to a whole new level and is so awesome. I really recommend his other series that starts with Dark Glory War.
Welcome to a fantastic world of adventure.......2006-11-29
I'm familiar with Michael Stackpole from his early Battletech universe novels. I enjoyed his writing then and I continue to enjoy it today.
A Secret Atlas is written in a similar style to his "Dragoncrown War" books. This style spends a good portion of the book setting up the world and its inhabitants. Rather than front-load all of the world's history and establish "deep" relationships without written support early in the book, he instead inserts this information slowly - in all the right places - throughout the book. The politics and personality dynamics he writes this way fairly leap off the page, but come at the cost of overall story pacing, especially in the first half of the book.
I'm a big fan of complex worlds that are internally consistent and well developed. I'm a bigger fan of unique ways of writing the epic fantasy series. I'm still a bigger fan of characters that I can cheer for and villians who, while villians, have three dimensional personalities that include some admirable qualities.
Michael Stackpole delivers on all counts and this goes on the short list of books that I'd recommend to a friend and I just bought the sequel yesterday.
Average customer rating:
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Atlas of the Constellations: Discover the Secrets of the Night Sky
Giles Sparrow
Manufacturer: Gramercy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
 Science & Nature | Bargain Books | Stores | Books
Reference | Outdoors & Nature | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Star-Gazing | Astronomy | Science | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Rocks & Minerals | Nature & Ecology | Science | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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Earth: An Intimate History
ASIN: 0517229196
Release Date: 2007-04-03 |
Book Description
For aspiring astronomers or anyone who has ever been captivated by the
beauty of the stars,
ATLAS OF THE CONSTELLATIONS is a wonderfully accessible and comprehensive guide to the night sky.
This beautiful volume features accurate and clear star charts and diagrams of all
88 recognized constellations in the northern and southern hemispheres, including all twelve constellations of the zodiac. Beginning with a brief introduction to the stars,
ATLAS OF THE CONSTELLATIONS features one full page on each constellation, detailing its naming and mythology, location in the sky, the best times of year to view it,
and its key stars and nebulae.
Included are constellations such as:
• Andromeda
• Cassiopeia
• Corona Borealis
• Draco
• Hydra
• Orion
• Pyxis
• Ursa Major
• Vulpecula
Comprehensive and informative,
ATLAS OF THE CONSTELLATIONS will enable every reader to unlock the secrets of the night sky.
Book Description
In a world where strong enough talent can engender magic, the family of the Royal Cartographer stands in a unique position. For these bold relations not only draw the maps, but also explore uncharted territories, expanding and updating the existing knowledge about the world. Only sometimes, drawing a new land can be enough to bring it into being. And when tragedy strikes the family, the tormented dreams of one young woman feed back to the Royal Cartographer himself, sending him slowly mad. And maybe also creating a new land where those dreams have become a tangible reality...
Customer Reviews:
Great book!.......2007-03-08
I loved this book! I thought the charactorization was amazing and more improtant the history provided creates a rich and incredible world that left me hanging on for more. I loved the twists and turns in the plot and I expect those who love a complex story line will get much injoyment from reading this book. I must confess though the first few chapters where a little difficult to follow with maybe a few too many charactors introduced very quickly.
Same flaws.......2007-02-14
All of Stackpole's books suffer the same flaws: uneven, weak, unbalanced character development. He tells a great story but be prepared to have your loyalties and sympathies toyed with. I'm uncertain as to whether he does this by intent or whether it's just a flawed writing style, but all too frequently, Stackpole introduces a character in an intense and well-crafted scenario only to discard that character later on by killing him off or by relegating him to a minor position. All this, as I say, in spite of having written in such a way as to lead you to think the character was important and worthy of identifying with.
Lest I spoil this story, I will choose two characters from another series of his, the one beginning with the Dark Glory War. In that particular novel, he builds sympathy and identification for the key and central character even up to the very end only to make him quite secondary in the later novels. The reader's loyalty, a key feature that makes a book worth reading (that is, winning loyalty -- even negative loyalty -- is central to keeping the reader's interest) gets fragmented. He does the same thing with the villain's child: a huge and intriguing build-up with only the weakest, tangential resolution, creating loyalty and sympathy only to take that reader-commitment ... nowhere!
Bad style: it ends up fragmenting the reader's interest in the story line as a whole.
Average customer rating:
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Secrets of the Giant Tomes Revealed : Adventures in Your Dictionary, Thesaurus, Atlas, and Almanac, Middle School Edition
Chris Kensler
Manufacturer: Kaplan Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
General | Reference & Nonfiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Study Aids | Reference & Nonfiction | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
General | Ages 4-8 | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 074323524X
Release Date: 2002-10-01 |
Book Description
Get ready for an adventure!
MEET Tennessee Toledo, a daring young explorer, searching for fame and fortune in the Egyptian desert!
UNCOVER the legendary Mia Pharaoh, a mummified Egyptian queen buried deep beneath the desert sands for thousands of years!
DISCOVER Mia Pharaoh's Gauntlet of Giant Tomes, a series of challenges standing between Tennessee and the greatest archaeological discovery of all time all -- giant, jewel-encrusted statues of the queen's husbands, Phrank the Large and Woodrow the Small!
LEARN how to use a dictionary, an
atlas, an
almanac, and a thesaurus while helping Tennessee solve Mia Pharaoh's Dangerous Puzzles of Pain!
This book is equipped with a special transmitter so that you can help Tennessee as he tackles each new brain-defying challenge from deep inside Mia Pharaoh's tomb. While transmitting answers to Tennessee, you will learn how to:
• Find information using a table of contents, index, and other research aids
• Interpret tables of statistics in an almanac
• Use latitude and longitude to identify locations on a map
• Trace a word's origins and explore word roots, prefixes, and suffixes
• Find synonyms using the index in a thesaurus
And everything else you need to know to get the most out of your reference books!
Dictionaries, almanacs, thesauri, and atlases often seem overwhelming, even to the best students. But after you discover the secret of the giant tomes, you'll have a world of knowledge at your fingertips -- and the thanks of a grateful treasure hunter.
Customer Reviews:
Great Teaching Tool!.......2004-04-18
This book presents the "how-to's" of reasearch into a fun, adventure-filled activity for kids age 9-14. How many times have you heard, "If I don't know how to spell it, how can I look it up in the dictionary?" Take your middle school kids on a library research adventure, following the adventures of Tennessee Toledo, using the world almanac, world atlas, dictionary, and thesaurus. Your students will be inspired and challenged, as they uncover the clues and unravel the mystery. They won't even know they're learning!
Average customer rating:
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Atlas of secret Europe: A guide to sites of magic and mystery
Charles Walker
Manufacturer: Dorset Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Witchcraft | Earth-Based Religions | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
General | Astrology | New Age | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Rosicrucianism | Occult | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
Rocks & Minerals | Nature & Ecology | Science | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0880295244 |
Average customer rating:
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A Secret Atlas
Manufacturer: Bantam Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0739450581 |
Book Description
THE BEGINNING IS NEAR...
From a ruined chemical weapons bunker in Iraq to a shallow grave in California's San Andreas Fault, the lines are drawn for a shadow war that will decide who, or what, will inherit the earth and reign as the next dominant species.
The escalating conflict engulfs the lives of three born survivors: a broken veteran of the Gulf War; a fiercely independent young nurse dying of cancer; and a brilliant novice FBI agent. Plunged into an arena where the stakes are survival or extinction, each must choose a side: between a militia of rogue government scientists and an enigmatic messiah who holds the cure for death itself, and the key to a new form of life.
Trapped in a genocidal war the government will do anything to conceal, where top-secret military technologies vie with the primal power of evolution unleashed, they will struggle to understand and stay alive...and stay human.
Customer Reviews:
An Excellent Novel.......2007-03-15
Radiant Dawn is an excellent Lovecraftian tale in modern-day America (though you'll only get hints of this until the sequel). Goodfellow's prose is sometimes startlingly good at description, and the tale itself is extremely creative. You DO NOT need to be a Lovecraft fan to enjoy these works- action, horror, military intrigue, mystery, all of these play into the plot. High recommended.
Radiant Dawn is well.......Radiant!.......2007-01-15
From start to finish Cody Goodfellow has produced a masterpiece, combining action, intrigue, sci-fi (or fact?) and horror in a scintillating combination.
Man no longer needs to evolve as we invent everything that we would have needed to evolve to achieve. But at a cellular level our bodies are still trying to evolve and at Radiant Dawn this is happening - leading to inevitable conflict between humans and those who are becoming more than human. Sinister government projects, seedy underworld characters, CIA, FBI and special forces interact to make this book a delight and with three perfectly realised and believable (but far from the normal hero type) lead characters the switch of focus from chapter to chapter prevents boredom ever setting in. The plot twists like a snake in the sands of Death Valley where much of the book is set, and the explosive ending sets up perfectly for the sequel, Ravenous Dusk, which I'm off to read NOW! I've read hundreds of sci-fi and horror novels: this is absolutely in my top 10 ever! Miss it at your own loss!
Amazing first novel!.......2006-04-14
Radiant Dawn by Cody Goodfellow
Last year when SAW hit theaters across America there was massive overhype that in my humble opinion hurt the movie. Let's face it, SAW was a low budget horror movie, who expected good acting? A lot of horror fans were let down because the hype surrounding the movie was so great that even though it was a pretty damn good horror film most were disappointed. While John Skipp(Bestselling co-author of The Scream) meant well devoting two pages of cemetery dance to Cody Goodfellow as being as cool as the invention of the wheel, sliced bread and fire, I was nervous when I opened up to the first page of Radiant Dawn which is Goodfellow's 1st novel.
I was nervous because I wanted to the local guy(he is here San Diego) to live up to the incredible hype. I won't say the hype is a disservice because it was the reason I spent months trying to track it down before breaking down and getting it on amazon (I believe in bookstores damnit!). The important thing is do Cody a favor and try to clear your mind of the hype before you open the book.
The reality is it is the most powerful 1st novels your likely to ever read. Damn it I am adding the hype. Crackling and inventive prose that slips in descriptions that are laugh out loud funny at times, Cringe inducing at other times, descriptions where you will shake your head at his genius. Plotting that is so good it's your going back to check facts, paranoia, gore and lets not forget radiation induced cancer mutated monsters.
I found myself marveling at the originality of the story which involves cults of scientists and militias fighting an underground war which involves a mutant apocalypse and the hints and connection to the Lovecraft Mythos (to be explored fully in the sequel Ravenous Dusk). The fact is I can't do the plot justice.
So Cody Goodfellow is all that and a bag chips. It's true, is radiant dawn perfect? No but again I think the hype made me hypercritical at times, I couldn't help it. There were a few experiments like a battle told all in radio dialogue between soldiers that didn't work for me. Perhaps the greatest weakness in the novel is it is a set-up. Half way through I pretty sure that radiant dawn was a tease for the monsters onslaught of it's sequel. The bulk of the word count is given to the conspiracy and not the horror.
According to reviews of Ravenous Dusk that feeling was correct that the sequel is more than a pay-off.
The bottom-line is this... get both books! You'll be happy you did. Just try to clear your mind of the hype and remember it was written by a 1st time novelist. Wow. Now pardon me cause I just bought Ravenous Dusk yesterday at Dark delicacies and I have some reading to do.
Compelling!.......2005-10-24
Cody Goodfellow is one of those rare powerhouse writers that bursts onto the scene with talent and a real story to tell... and then for some reason is completely ignored. Nobody I know has read this book, and I found it to be an excellent, compelling read. Conspiracy theories, mutants and a little bit of Lovecraft thrown in for good measure. I would definitely recommend it.
Excellent.......2005-09-14
This man can WRITE!!! Exciting, spellbinding, so many other great adjectives. This is great horror. The characters are well drawn, the story moves quickly, the plots (yes, plots, lots of them) are wonderful separated so that you wonder how he's going to get them all to come together. A great read. I just started "Ravenous Dusk". If it is as good as "Radiant Dawn" it will be wonderful. Who is this Cody Goodfellow, and why isn't his name as well known as Stephen King?
Book Description
This book responds with passion and skill to the growing concerns of spiritual seekers and teachers of the Catholic faith.
Customer Reviews:
Scattered, Reflective, Relevant.......2006-11-03
This is my 2nd Andrew Greeley book (The Catholic Imagination was the first) and I found this one highly meaningful for a few reasons. He tackles the mysteries of Catholicism, and explains them in a way that is both reflective and relevant to any human being today. This book is especially meaningful for any Catholic who has forgotten the WHY's of what we do, such as the importance of the Eucharist and Mary. He does a beautiful job explaining the history of these rituals and traditions, along with the relevance to today. This would also be meaningful to any person who is trying to understand Catholicism, and the rituals that are sometimes hard to comprehend. What is also nice is at the end of each chapter, the author has theological and scriptural notes. This is always important in opening your mind to a religious book in any form.
A Message of Hope and Salvation.......2005-06-02
Fr. Andrew Greeley, noted sociologist, novelist, and Catholic priest, originally wrote and published "The Great Mysteries: Experiencing Catholic Faith from the Inside Out" over twenty years ago. This new revised edition features a forward by Rev. Robert Barron. Barron states that "The Great Mysteries" is an attempt by Greeley to "re-attach faith and life, doctrine and experience." Greeley relies on the teaching method used by Jesus and the apostles. They depended on story-telling rooted in the experience of their listeners to make their point. In his introduction, Greeley states that he "begins in human experience, in the story of our lives, and puts these stories and experiences in dialogue with the richness of the Catholic faith tradition."
Each chapter begins with a question based on a query from the traditional "Baltimore Catechism" which generations of Catholics learned by rote. Greeley then describes the human experience that relates to the question and then offers insight into how the Catholic faith helps to provide an answer.
For example, Chapter One "The Mystery of God" asks, "Is there any purpose in my life?" which restates the previous question of "Why did God make me?" Greeley describes the feeling of discouragement that we all get when life loses its newness, our plans fail, and our sense of purpose eludes us. He then acknowledges that despite that sense of disillusionment, there are those "occasional flashes that shake us out of the dull routine, the ordered chaos, the noisy desperation of every day - and they make us wonder."
What, then, does Catholicism offer in response to the basic human yearning for purpose? It answers that the reason for our existence is that God is "hopelessly in love with us" and that we exist in order to respond to that love.
Other chapters in "The Great Mysteries" focus on Jesus, the Holy Spirit, evil, salvation, forgiveness, the Holy Eucharist, what it means to be Church, baptism, the role of Mary, heaven, and the last judgment. While obviously all the nuances of Catholicism could not be addressed in this relatively slim volume, Greeley does a wonderful job of addressing all the big questions. This is a catechism for a humanity trying to make the best of life and its relationship with God. It acknowledges a world that includes many shades of gray and does not pretend to offer black and white answers. "The Great Mysteries" is essentially a message of hope and salvation. It is well-worth reading.
Patrice Fagnant-MacArthur is editor of www.spiritualwoman.net and author of "Letters to Mary from a Young Mother" (iUniverse 2004).
We want the original publishing date!!.......2004-07-17
I want to know when the content of any book was previously published. When you don't do that, I believe you are being deceitful, dishonest and /or lazy. These are not good attributes when posting a book by such a delightful author who lives his religious beliefs. Shame on you.
Keep on writing those great books, Father!!
Deja Vue.......2004-04-09
Why isn't anyone telling us that this version is simply a reprint of the brilliant book published in 1976 ? There is no indication at the Amazon site nor in the book itself that what we will be buying and reading is merely a copy of what was printed a quarter of a century ago.
Back then the material was brilliant but it has become dated. I'm disapponted that Fr. Greeley did not chose to update even some of this material before he issued this reprint.
If you haven't read the original, this survey of the credal beliefs are very well done. If you already own the original, this book is redundant.
Books:
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- The Warrior's Apprentice (Vorkosigan)
- To Swim Across the World
- Toward the End of Time
- Ultimas noticias del paraiso (Premio Alfaguara)
- Vintage Cisneros
- What is Mine
- What She Saw...: A Novel
- Where Trouble Sleeps (Ballantine Reader's Circle)
- Winterkill (Joe Pickett Novels)
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