Retribution

Average customer rating:

Wonderful Second Book in an Endearing Trilogy

Excellent book

Retribution
Susanne M. Beck
Manufacturer: Renaissance Alliance Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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Redemption

Life's Little Edge

Behind the Pine Curtain

Talon Talon

The Flip Side of Desire

ASIN: 1930928246

Book Description

Ice and Angel cross into Canada and try to make a new life in a small vacation town.

Customer Reviews:

Wonderful Second Book in an Endearing Trilogy.......2007-10-05

START OF BACK COVER TEXT - Retribution is a story with action, drama, suspense and too many emotions to list. Told by Angel herself, it will let you see into her very soul.

This sequel to Redemption details the lives of Ice and Angel as they cross over the border and try to make new lives in a small vacation town in Canada. They meet both friends and enemies along the way and their love for one another grows and deepens. But obviously, as a fugitive from justice, danger is always only one step away for Ice. The man who fixed it so that she was sent to jail for a crime he committed is out to get her again. Several of his cronies manage to find her and she trades her life for Angel's and is dragged away. Can she save herself and find her way back to Angel and happiness? - END OF BACK COVER TEXT

The second in the Ice and Angel trilogy, `Retribution' (which follows `Redemption') is the second book of an endearing story of two tragic characters brought to us by Suzanne Beck.

Angel and Ice escape to Canada and head to Angel's family's old cabin. The cabin has been burned down, but they find refuge with Ruby, an old family friend, while they rebuild. Pop, the local garage owner, hires Ice as a part-time mechanic and Angel becomes the town tutor.

Beck is also the author of `The Growing.' Unfortunately for her fans, she hasn't published much else.

Excellent book.......2002-04-06

Retribution is the second volume in a trilogy by Susanne Beck about Ice and Angel, two women who meet in prison and have to face unbelieveable odds to make a life for themselves. As Retribution opens, they are crossing the border into Canada, fleeing from both the law and the Mafia. Angel has been granted a pardon from prison, but Ice has escaped to join her and she is the target everyone is after. This book deals with them building a home in Canada and establishing themselves as valued members of their small community. Always hanging in the background though is the threat of Ice's past catching up to them. As this book ends, everything seems to come crashing down around them, but you're left with the hint that even that may not be so. Beck creates amazing characters in her books. I find myself thinking at various times that these, and the supporting characters, are fantastic women, the kind you would like to know, then have to remind myself that they are characters in a book. You can read any one of the three books by itself, but you won't get the full picture unless you read all three, which I strongly recommend. Beck also knows how to write wonderfully erotic love scenes without becoming trite or crude. If you like to read about strong women who overcome great odds, these are the books for you.

To Love a Vampire: Book 2 in the Guardian of the Night Vampire Series

Average customer rating:

Great Follow Up
Great!!!!!
A very good follow up to Garden of Stones
To Love A Vampire

To Love a Vampire: Book 2 in the Guardian of the Night Vampire Series
Jody Offen
Manufacturer: PublishAmerica
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Fantasy, Futuristic & Ghost | Romance | Subjects | Books

General | Romance | Subjects | Books

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Vampires | Romance | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 141376293X

Book Description

Kayla backed up for every step he advanced. Her heart pounded painfully against her chest. She swore she saw flames flickering behind the vibrant colors in his eyes. She had never felt so afraid, so...alive? When she realized she couldn't escape him, she stood her ground, lifting her head defiantly in challenge. Tray didn't move, standing over her like a warlord about to pass judgment. He had read her thoughts as if she had shouted them at him. He looked over the perfection of her body, missing nothing, not one line, not one curve, not one freckle. He then stared into her eyes till she met and held his gaze. He saw many emotions in their blue depths; there it was, fear. Good, she should be afraid of him.

Customer Reviews:

Great Follow Up.......2007-08-14

I loved the first book and was not disappointed with its follow up...strong men, sassy women...it's a good read.

Great!!!!!.......2006-05-03

I loved it!!!!!!!!! Both in this series are great!!!!!! When's the next one due out?

A very good follow up to Garden of Stones.......2006-01-18

This is the second exciting installment in Jody Offen's Guardian of the Night series about vampires who rid humanity of the low lifes who destroy it.

In this installment, Tray meets Kayla while hunting a criminial to find that she is seeking revenge for the death of her father by the very same man. He is instantly captivated by Kayla and the sparks fly despite the danger that surrounds them.

This second book was edited for a lot of the spelling and gramatical errors found in the first installment. There were still a few in there, but overall, these do not affect the story and are much fewer this time.

The book is thrilling and I am anxiously awaiting a third installment - hopefully with Dare and Tiannia's story!

Thank you and keep them coming!

To Love A Vampire.......2005-06-26

Jody Offen did an awesome job on this, her second book in the Guardian Of The Night series. Her first book, Garden Of Stones, from the same publisher is exciting and a fresh way of viewing vampire romance. My suggestion is read them both and then wait anxiously for the next one, which I am sure will be a hit as well! Keep up the great work Jody!

Average customer rating:

Disappointing from start to finish

Retribution (Warhammer Novels)
Steven Savile
Manufacturer: Games Workshop
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Action & Adventure | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Epic | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

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All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
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ASIN: 1844162931

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing from start to finish.......2007-04-10

If you liked the first two Vampire Count novels, you'll love this one. If, like me, you were disappointed with the first two and bought this book to complete the set; take my advice and don't bother reading it. The entire novel is full of extraneous and disjointed story threads that do absolutely nothing to advance the plotline. Not that a plot line consisting of Manfred comes back, raises an army, gets stymied by an outside deus ex machina, and finally manages to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory much of a plot.

Between Vengeance and Forgiveness: Facing History after Genocide and Mass Violence

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Here is a lady who is not afraid to tackle the big issues.
An exercise in the problems of mass violence

Between Vengeance and Forgiveness: Facing History after Genocide and Mass Violence
Martha Minow
Manufacturer: Beacon Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Military | History | Subjects | Books

Military Science | History | Subjects | Books

Criminology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0807045071

Amazon.com

Although mass atrocities are not unique to the 20th century, organized response to such violence has taken new forms, some of which offer hope of some small redress to the victims of war and genocide. In the groundbreaking and timely Between Vengeance and Forgiveness, Harvard Law School professor Martha Minow explores the benefits and drawbacks of a variety of forms of settlement.

For those who have recoiled in horror and outrage at collective violence in Rwanda, Bosnia, Cambodia, and elsewhere, this book--with chapters titled "Trials," "Truth Commissions," "Reparations," and "Facing History"--is a primer on how the world, and individuals, might respond to such acts once the shock subsides. Minow resists the idea that compensatory measures such as war-crimes tribunals and financial payback can ever bring true closure for those who have suffered. "Legal responses," she writes, "are inevitably frail and insufficient." Nevertheless, Minow advocates addressing these atrocities in a formal way: "The victimized deserve the acknowledgment of their humanity," she asserts, "and the reaffirmation of the utter wrongness of its violation." --Maria Dolan

Book Description

The rise of collective violence and genocide is the twentieth century's most terrible legacy. Martha Minow, a Harvard law professor and one of our most brilliant and humane legal minds, offers a landmark book on our attempts to heal after such large-scale tragedy. Writing with informed, searching prose of the extraordinary drama of the truth commissions in Argentina, East Germany, and most notably South Africa; war-crime prosecutions in Nuremberg and Bosnia; and reparations in America, Minow looks at the strategies and results of these riveting national experiments in justice and healing.

Customer Reviews:

Here is a lady who is not afraid to tackle the big issues........2000-10-17

For anyone interested in international law or human rights, this is a must-read. I am assigning this book to my undergraduates this semester because, although the subject matter is complex, Minow's prose is clean and spare. Minow does a terrific job of summarizing the episodes of mass violence of the 20th century AND the literature in legal and political studies on war crimes, human rights violations, and justice. I don't always share her optimism that solutions can be found, but I cannot think of another author who grapples with this difficult subject matter quite as gracefully or comprehensively.

An exercise in the problems of mass violence.......2000-07-03

Martha Minow has done her research. She carefully explored the different approaches to mass violence without over-moralizing or answering any of the unanswerable questions. Drawing on history, she charts a course for the human rights community today. This is a readable book for people who are new to the concept of human rights and those who have phD's in the field. Best of all, it does not leave you with a feeling of a weight upon your shoulders. Instead, it is some-how optimistic about a future that addresses the mass violence. I underlined about half of this book, and would recommend it to anyone.

My Neighbor, My Enemy: Justice and Community in the Aftermath of Mass Atrocity

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My Neighbor, My Enemy: Justice and Community in the Aftermath of Mass Atrocity

Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Criminal Law | Law | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0521542642

Book Description

Tackling the crucial issue of our day--the rebuilding of countries following ethnic cleansing and genocide, this book evaluates the role of trials and tribunals with regard to social reconstruction and reconciliation. The voices of the people of Rwanda and Yugoslavia are heard through the results of extensive surveys and recorded conversations. Their thoughts of past and future controversially conclude that international and local trials have little relevance to reconciliation. The contributors find that communities interpret justice far more broadly than defined by the international community and the relationship of trauma to a desire for trials is not clear-cut. An ecological model of social reconstruction is proposed, suggesting that coordinated multi-systematic strategies must be implemented if social repair is to occur. Finally, the contributors suggest that, while trials are essential to combat impunity and punish the guilty, their strengths and limitations must be acknowledged. Eric Stover is Director of the Human Rights Center and Adjunct Professor of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley. He was the Executive Director of Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) until December 1995. He has served on several investigations as an "Expert on Mission" to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in the Hague. He is author of (with photographer Gilles Peress) The Graves: Srebrenica and Vukovar (Scalo Verlag Ac, 1998), War Crimes in the Balkans: Medicine Under Siege in the former Yugoslavia 1991-1995 (Physicians for Human Rights, 1996), Landmines: A Deadly Legacy (Physicians for Human Rights, 1993) and co-author (with Christopher Joyce) of Witnesses from the Grave (Little Brown, 1992) and The Breaking of Bodies and Minds: Torture, Psychiatric Abuse, and the Health Professions (W.H. Freeman & Co., 1985) Harvey M. Weinstein is Clinical Professor in the Joint Medical Program at the University of California, Berkeley. He has done research in and taught health and human rights, refugee health and mass violence and social reconstruction. Weinstein is a member of the Advisory Council of the State Refugee Health Program, and the International Human Rights Committee and the Caucus on Refugees and Immigrants of the American Public Health Association.

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Combines Facts and Gross Mischaracterizations
Intriguing Exploration Of European Retribution After WW II!

The Politics of Retribution in Europe

Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

20th Century | World | History | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0691009546

Book Description

The presentation of Europe's immediate historical past has quite dramatically changed. Conventional depictions of occupation and collaboration in World War II, of wartime resistance and post-war renewal, provided the familiar backdrop against which the chronicle of post-war Europe has mostly been told. Within these often ritualistic presentations, it was possible to conceal the fact that not only were the majority of people in Hitler's Europe not resistance fighters but millions actively co-operated with and many millions more rather easily accommodated to Nazi rule. Moreover, after the war, those who judged former collaborators were sometimes themselves former collaborators. Many people became innocent victims of retribution, while others--among them notorious war criminals--escaped punishment. Nonetheless, the process of retribution was not useless but rather a historically unique effort to purify the continent of the many sins Europeans had committed. This book sheds light on the collective amnesia that overtook European governments and peoples regarding their own responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity--an amnesia that has only recently begun to dissipate as a result of often painful searching across the continent.

In inspiring essays, a group of internationally renowned scholars unravels the moral and political choices facing European governments in the war's aftermath: how to punish the guilty, how to decide who was guilty of what, how to convert often unspeakable and conflicted war experiences and memories into serviceable, even uplifting accounts of national history. In short, these scholars explore how the drama of the immediate past was (and was not) successfully "overcome." Through their comparative and transnational emphasis, they also illuminate the division between eastern and western Europe, locating its origins both in the war and in post-war domestic and international affairs. Here, as in their discussion of collaborators' trials, the authors lay bare the roots of the many unresolved and painful memories clouding present-day Europe.

Contributors are Brad Abrams, Martin Conway, Sarah Farmer, Luc Huyse, László Karsai, Mark Mazower, and Peter Romijn, as well as the editors. Taken separately, their essays are significant contributions to the contemporary history of several European countries. Taken together, they represent an original and pathbreaking account of a formative moment in the shaping of Europe at the dawn of a new millennium.

Customer Reviews:

Combines Facts and Gross Mischaracterizations.......2004-04-27

Mention of the killings of Jews in postwar Hungary (Judt, p. 321) needs further elaboration, as it refutes the common claim that this happened only in postwar Poland. The two articles by Jan Thomas Gross detract considerably from the remaining ones. The title of this review has an intentional double meaning, as Gross shows us the depths of convoluted reasoning that Polonophobes willingly go through to unfairly blame Poles for not aiding more Jews. More Poles are honored at Yad Vashem for saving Jews than any other nationality. Paulsson (SECRET CITY) has shown that, at least for Warsaw's Jews, the limiting factor in Jewish survival was the infrequency of Jews fleeing the ghettoes. It was NOT Polish "inaction". Nor was it the rate of Polish betrayal of fugitive Jews. Had more Jews sought Polish help, more Jews would have been saved.

Gross cites some indicators of the "diffuse hostility of Poles to Jews' and then, without any evidence, jumps to the conclusion that this made Poles disinclined to help Jews. In fact, the acknowledged anti-Semitic beliefs of many Polish rescuers of Jews argue for the opposite. The long history of considerable Jewish disloyalty to Poland, the most recent instance of which was the large-scale Jewish-Soviet collaboration against Poles (Gross' attempts to minimize it notwithstanding) was a major cause of Polish hostility to Jews.

Gross would have us believe that, since Poles already defied the German-imposed death penalty in numerous ways, they could just as easily have defied it by saving many more Jews--had they only wanted to. But his equating of various risky behaviors carrying the death penalty is transparently ridiculous, and he, being from Poland, should know better (unless, of course, he has discarded all semblance of objectivity). Gross disingenuously cites Polish incurrence of the death penalty through considerable "black marketeering". Common sense teaches that it is incomparably easier to hide contraband food than to hide (and feed) a living fugitive Jewish human being. The same holds for livestock slaughtered without German authorization, firearms, radios, and other verboten objects. Assuredly, the Germans directed far greater attention to fugitive Jews than to Polish "black marketers". Also, Gross overlooks the fact that German officials could often be bribed to spare from death a Pole who was caught "black marketeering", etc., but seldom for helping a Jew.

Gross also falsely conflates the risk of Polish participation in the Underground with that of hiding Jews. In actuality, successful participation in the Underground required one to live an inconspicuous double life that was in some ways the opposite of the overt risky behaviors necessary to save Jews. Numerous Polish guerillas nevertheless fell into German hands. Gross also exaggerates the significance of Poles covering up for each other. Contrary to Gross' selectively quoted anecdotes, membership in the Underground was a closely-guarded secret. Even close neighbors often had no inkling of each other's involvement in the Underground until they both came out in open warfare during Operation Burza (Tempest) during the closing months of the German occupation.

Despite significant efforts by the Underground to hide them, some 50% of all educated Poles were found and murdered by the Germans. Hiding a fugitive Jew from the Germans was far harder than hiding a fugitive Pole, as most Polish Jews had easily recognizable characteristics, and didn't blend readily into Polish society. Gross also ignores the fact that all Polish Underground activity was carefully weighed for maximum military benefit for the cost in terms of German reprisals. More extensive assistance to Jews would have triggered commensurate German action against Poles, and excessive incitement of German terror, resulting from any Underground action(s), would have discredited the Underground in the eyes of the Polish population.

Gross engages in blatant circular reasoning when he (selectively) cites some Polish rescuers of Jews who claim not to have been intimidated by the death penalty in order to "prove" its unimportance in the rescue of Jews. That's like going to a convention of blue-car owners, and, examining the cars parked there, arguing that all US cars are blue. Most absurd of all is Gross' mention of the Warsaw Uprising as evidence of the irrelevance of the death penalty in informing Polish conduct. In actuality, the Uprising was planned to eject the Germans within a few days, with minimal casualties, just prior to the arrival of the Red Army. No one could have foreseen the Soviet betrayal and ensuing 63-day agony, the deaths by combat and murder of a quarter million Poles, and subsequent destruction of Warsaw by vindictive Germans.

Gross takes a cheap shot at Polish heroism by falsely asserting that the absence of a collaborationist government in Poland was only due to Germans unwillingness. In actuality, Prince Janusz Radziwill and several other semi-prominent Poles were approached by the Germans as prospective Quislings for a (...) Polish puppet state, but they all refused (Lukas. 1986. THE FORGOTTEN HOLOCAUST, pp. 111-113). (Nor is it correct that Poles eschewed organized collaboration because of the brutality of German conduct against them. Other Slavic untermenschen were treated little better, yet some of them formed organized collaborationist units).

Ironically and unwittingly, Gross undermines two canons of conventional Holocaust thinking: The one that belittles Polish suffering (e. g. "collateral damage"), and the one that insinuates that Poles implicitly led quasi-normal lives ("spectators" of the Jewish catastrophe). According to Gross, Poles could never have survived on the meager food rations allowed by the Germans (pp. 118-119; whence the Polish "black marketeering"). Moreover, German killing of Poles was so indiscriminate and widespread that Poles obedient to German dictates were little safer than violators. Sounds like Polish and Jewish victimization, on a per capita basis, was much less different than commonly portrayed! In any case, how can Poles be blamed for not saving more Jews when Poles themselves faced a desperate shortage of food, and were otherwise necessarily preoccupied with their OWN physical survival under the German occupation?

Intriguing Exploration Of European Retribution After WW II!.......2002-10-16

It's an old and acknowledged saw that "to the victors go the spoils". What should be added to this splendidly commonplace bit of street lore is the similarly well-acknowledged fact that it is indeed the victors who get to write and thereby promulgate the official version of history, interpreting it to their advantage, giving it such spin, direction, and body language as needed to serve the perceived needs and political purposes of the present. In this sense the historical treatment of the past, especially the recent past, tells us volumes about what forces exist to warp into particular forms and modes today. This is especially true in this absorbing and well-edited series of essays by a number of noted historians and critics relating to the subject of the relative merits of the retribution process in Europe following the conclusion of the Second World War.

As is likely true for all conflicts, the punishment delivered in the aftermath of the war was by no means fair, equitable, or necessarily deserved by those it was haphazardly visited upon, and some who deserved to be punished walked away unblemished, while others who did nothing wrong were falsely accused and punished. Indeed, one of the consistent themes in these essays is the degree to which the captive people of Europe engaged in what has to be recognized as being a widespread accommodation and cooperation with the Nazi authorities and their lackeys. Yet although their were obvious many who escaped getting their just desserts, and many more who were unfairly castigated and punished, by and large the effort at social retribution after the war appears to have served a wider and more useful role in expiating the collective guilt and anxiety that literally permeated the continent in the wake of the war's end.

This is a fine collection of essays that seek to address the complex welter of needs, drives, and issues that had to be settled in the postwar period, and among the competing strands of thoughts and arguments one finds that the historical interpretation of the past was indeed manipulated and bastardized, often at the expense of specific groups and individuals, who had to suffer the continuing social indifference to the injuries they had suffered, or worse, the accusation and punishment for deeds they either did not commit, or that they had committed in such a strange and sordid set of constraining circumstances that to make an issue our of it was existentially absurd. It is in this sense that a kind of selective amnesia overtook many of the survivors, such that they repressed the ugly truth in favor of more palatable and pleasing fictions.

Of course, many of the issues discussed here are neither fully resolved nor completely played out. Just as many of the events of the war itself found their genesis in attitudes and cultural predispositions formed long before the war, so too, do many of the issues and dilemmas of the present find their antecedents in facts and circumstances located in postwar activities, and these may never be resolved. Whether talking about ethnic differences within a specific country or cultural predispositions existing between reviving cultures, many of the complex issues and concerns threading through these essays may never be resolved. This is a fascinating and quite worthwhile book, and one I am sure you would benefit from. Enjoy!

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Case for Impeachment Has Been Made

How did we get into Iraqmire

Oh, Give Me A Break, Evans

John Conyers is a scam artist

George W. Bush Versus the U.S. Constitution: The Downing Street Memos and Deception, Manipulation, Torture, Retribution, Coverups in the Iraq War and Illegal Domestic Spying

Manufacturer: Academy Chicago Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Conspiracy Theories | Current Events | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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Executive Branch | United States | Political Science | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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The Impeachment of George W. Bush: A Practical Guide for Concerned Citizens

Articles of Impeachment Against George W. Bush

Impeach the President: The Case Against Bush And Cheney

The Case for Impeachment: The Legal Argument for Removing President George W. Bush from Office

United States V. George W. Bush et al.

ASIN: 0897335503

Customer Reviews:

Case for Impeachment Has Been Made.......2007-05-12

For those to argue that impeaching Pres. George W. Bush would take too long or would tie up Congress in endless investigation, look no further! The case and the supporting evidence has already been assembled by the minority staff of the House Judiciary Committee of the previous Congress. All that is needed is a little updating. U.S. citizens should read this book to become informed about its charges.

How did we get into Iraqmire.......2006-12-16

The staff of Representative Coyers have done a great job. They detail with 1395 footnotes most of the lies and deceptions used by the current administration on a select number of topics. The downing street memo, aluminum tubes, the niger yellow cake uranium hoax and retribution taken by the administration. This book will make you wonder why he has not been impeached already.

Oh, Give Me A Break, Evans.......2006-11-30

If you're only complaint about Conyers' book is that he has taken the text of House Resolution 635 down from his website, do a search on Library of Congress THOMAS for it - it's there. Geeezzzz... what a non-sequitur.

John Conyers is a scam artist.......2006-11-18

John Conyers wrote House Resolution 635 which called for investigations into impeachable offenses of the Bush administration. Then he wrote a document called the Constitution in Crisis which listed the impeachable offenses of the Bush admininstration, and this document was free on Conyers' website. Now Conyers has taken the free document off his website and published it here, but if you search his website for the word "impeachment" or "house resolution 635," it's nowhere to be found. He was standing on impeachment as a political ploy and as a way to sell books. What a pig!

Average customer rating:

Suspenseful, but with a weak ending
Great book
Compelling though graphic story is worth a listen
Very scary - nightmare scary!
Great great great!

Retribution
Jilliane Hoffman
Manufacturer: Berkley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

Legal | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0425200612

Book Description

Prosecutor C.J. Townsend's new case involves a depraved serial killer. But there's a twist--years ago, she was the victim that got away. Now, she's walking the fine line between justice and revenge. Even C.J. isn't prepared for where it will take her.

Download Description

"When an elite prosecutor faces the most lethal predator she's ever encountered, it all comes down to a choice between justice . . .and retribution Prosecutor C.J. Townsend is a talented state attorney in Miami, well-known in her law enforcement and judicial circles for her abililty to handle even the most horrific cases-without losing her cool. For the past year, she's been deeply involved in the investigation of a series of brutal murders. When a speeding motorist is pulled over and the cops discover the mutilated body of the young woman in the trunk, the case is finally cracked. Caught up in a maelstrom of publicity, C.J. begins to build her court case, piece by careful piece. But C.J. has personal demons that she's never shown the world. Now, when she needs to be at the top of her game, she finds events from her past resurfacing. As she battles the evil incarnate in court, she will be fighting the devil inside. On top of everything else, the lead detective on the case is one who has hinted that he has begun to care for her as much as more than just a colleague. And everything is riding on her ability to put this killer behind bars. . ."

Customer Reviews:

Suspenseful, but with a weak ending.......2007-08-03

I thought the first half of this book was great, especially the part set in New York. Hoffman did an excellent job with the emotions associated with being raped and how it turns your life upside down. A little over half way through the book, however, I found that it degenerated. It was still better than many suspense thrillers, but I had hoped for a better ending. Having said that, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes graphic thrillers.

One more thing, I get bored by the constant turf wars between police departments and the FBI that seem to make their way into every thriller. It's such a tired story, almost as tired as the relentless media and the obnoxious reporter. To me, it's just wasted space - the testosterone filled men who fight for jurisdiction - and I usually skip those parts of the story, because they are so predictable.

Great book.......2007-06-30

I'm not going to write a huge synopsis of the book and spoil it for those of you who haven't read it yet. I say buy it. It's this gal's first book and it's very good. I'm very funny about what I read, but this book is very good....it has a great story and is very descriptive without being completely gory. I think she did a great job on it. I'll read whatever she writes next.

Compelling though graphic story is worth a listen.......2007-05-21

It is hard to imagine a serial killer more sadistic than Hannibal Lector. Florida State Prosecutor C.J. Townsend, however, is not only brutally raped by such a monster, but is assigned some ten years later to prosecute him for the highly publicized "valentine" murders (named such due to the removal of the victims' hearts). Embroiled in not only a viscous crime drama, but one of moral compromises, C.J. struggles to maintain her legal ethics while investigating the crimes of her former assailant.

First time author Jilliane Hoffman is a former Attorney and Legal Advisor for the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. Her attention to forensic and investigative detail makes her story a compelling one. However, her attention to details of sexual violence makes this compulsion much like gawking at the scene of a car wreck - leaving the listener intrigued, and at the same time slightly sick in the stomach. Hoffman describes in excruciating detail not one, but many rapes - so violent that they leave their victims sterile due to uterus damage caused by penetration with knives and other sharp objects. That being said, the reader becomes easily invested in the psychological journey of protagonist C.J. Townsend who struggles to overcome her symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, especially when finding herself face to face with her former assailant. The effect of the rape on C.J.'s personal and professional relationships is clinically accurate, and much of the novel's appeal stems from the listener's true desire to see C.J. heal psychologically. The listener is equally intrigued by whether or not C.J. will succeed in putting this serial rapist and killer behind bars when legal technicalities and botched police procedures threaten her case. When discrepancies begin to arise in the case, C.J. races against the clock to recover the missing victims' hearts, and the further evidence she needs, before the trial date.

Being familiar with reader Martha Plimpton's screen work (Parenthood, I Shot Andy Warhol, Mosquito Coast) I was a bit worried about her nasal voice with a heavy valley-girl lilt. However, she does an excellent and balanced job, switching naturally between genders and accents in a way that distinguishes the characters from one another without distracting the listener with over delineations between voices.

The plot is enhanced by the burgeoning romance between Townsend and the police detective assigned to the case. Their relationship develops naturally and as a believable sideline to the crime drama, and isn't forced, or tagged on as in so many popular suspense novels [read as every Girsham or Crighton novel]. If you enjoy suspenseful court-room novels, and spine tingling detective stories, check out Retribution - a skillful combination of both genres featuring an appealing and believable female heroine.

Very scary - nightmare scary!.......2007-04-29

This book is powerfully written - an amazing book for a debut! I won't go into the synopsis since so many others have already done so. Let's just say that this book gave me nightmares. Stephen King, Dean Koontz and Thomas Harris didn't manage to accomplish that.

Great great great!.......2007-04-04

If you enjoy Dean Koontz or James Patterson you'll love this book! Its a fantastic murder mystery with lots of suspenseful twists

The Balkan Wars: Conquest, Revolution and Retribution from the Ottoman Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond

Average customer rating:

Uneven and Biased
Not sufficiently anti-Serb to suit the Ministry of Truth
The Balkan Wars
An impressive contribution to European History Studies
Entertaining but tragic history

The Balkan Wars: Conquest, Revolution and Retribution from the Ottoman Era to the Twentieth Century and Beyond
Andre Gerolymatos , and André Gerolymatos
Manufacturer: Basic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0465027318
Release Date: 2002-03-05

Amazon.com

Bosnia, Kosovo, Macedonia. Today's headlines could have been written in the 1800s or in the 1400s. Conflict has raged unabated in the Balkans for hundreds of years and always, writes historian André Gerolymatos, over the same tired issues: nationalism and religion.

"Post-Cold War Europe and North America are at a complete loss to understand why these small countries are hostages to the past and seem so willing to fight the same battles all over again," writes Gerolymatos. This book attempts to offer answers, as Gerolymatos explores the ethnic and religious tensions that plague the peninsula--and that have been used by foreign powers (whether Ottomans, Hapsburgs, or NATO) to extend their hold on the Balkans. Along the way he examines events that have little meaning for outsiders, but that have signal importance for the region: the Battle of Kosovo and the strategically more significant Battle of Marica, the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand of Austria in 1914, the collapse of Yugoslavia. Gerolymatos offers a useful essay for anyone who would seek to understand contemporary events in southeastern Europe, events with deep and bitter roots. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

A sweeping history of the Balkans that probes the ancient roots of genocidal passions in modern Europe's most volatile region.

When it comes to the Balkans, most people quickly become lost in the quagmire of struggle and intractable hatred that consumes that ancient land today. Many assume that the genesis of the past ten years of atrocity in the region might have had something to do with Tito and his repressive Yugoslav regime, or perhaps with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand in 1914. The seeds were really planted much, much earlier, on a desolate plain in Kosovo in 1389, when the Serbian Prince Lazar and his army clashed with and were defeated by the Ottoman forces of Sultan Murad I.

In this riveting new history of the Balkan peoples, André Gerolymatos explores how ancient events engendered cultural myths that evolved over time, gaining psychic strength in the collective consciousnesses of Orthodox Christians and Muslims alike. In colorful detail, we meet the key figures that instigated and perpetuated these myths--including the assassin/heroes Milos Obolic and Gavrilo Princip and the warlord Ali Pasha. This lively survey of centuries of strife finally puts the modern conflicts in Bosnia and Kosovo into historical context, and provides a long overdue account of the origins of ethnic hatred and warmongering in this turbulent land.

Customer Reviews:

Uneven and Biased.......2007-05-09

This is a book with strong opinions, unfortunately, most of them are anti- Turk and pro-Greek. As one can tell from his name Gerolymatos is of Greek heritage and he seldom misses a chance to make the Greeks look like the oppressed as opposed to the oppressors. He also makes everyone around the Greeks appear to be bloodthirsty savages committing rape and pillage on a grand scale. He also takes liberties, such a always referring to Salonika as Thessaloniki, making it sound like a greek town. In fact Salonika was never more than 10% Greek prior to the two world wars (see Mark Mazower's book "Salonika").

He especially skips over the later history of the Balkans by not mention- ing the Greek-Turkish War at the end of the First World War. Could it be because the Greeks were the instigators of this war, which cost them control of the traditional Greek Orthodox areas of Asia Minor? And that after the war, almost a million greeks and turks were exchanged; thereby ethnically cleansing both countries, not to mention the number of Bulgars that were forced out of Thessaly.

This does not mean that the rest of the Balkan peoples, Serbs, Croats, Muslims (Bosniaks and Albanians), Montenegrins, Bulgars, Romanians, etc. were innocent victims. Most of these groups at one time or another spent a considerable time, killing and torturing each other as a way of clearing an area for themselves. Macedonia, which is at the confluence of four different ethnic groups (Albanians, Serbs, Greeks and Bulgars) has only been saved by the intervention of the UN and NATO, and is forced (by the Greek Government) to go by the ridiculous acronym of FYROM (former yugoslav republic of macedonia) because they claim the name as part of their heritage.

Though Gerolymatos spends a good amount of time trying to explain the reasoning behind all of this ethnic hatred, what it comes down to in the end is the same problem that there is in the middle east. There are too many groups claiming the same land as their 'historical' heritage. In truth, most of the groups that are now there, are interlopers and came in and killed most of the indigenous people as they fled from the Mongols and Huns. The Bulgars especially are documented to have had a kingdom in the area around the Caspian Sea before they migrated to the Balkans. The Serbs claim Kossovo because they lost a battle there over six hundred years ago; even though even before the wars of the 1990s, they represented less than 15% of the population (the rest is mostly muslim Albanians).

So what we have here is a good deep background which for some reason ends at the beginning of WWI, hardly mentions the rest of the twentieth century until we get to the 1990s. It's reasonably good for what it does, but not for what it doesn't do.

Lastly, the true major failure of this book is its' lack of maps. The only one included is the boundaries of 1913 just after the two Balkan Wars, and then many of the towns mentioned are not included. It makes no sense to be discussing movements of armies when you don't understand what it means in the way of geography. I know that Gerolymatos teaches in Vancouver, BC, Canada, but I can't believe that Canadians are any better at geography than the average American. It's always helpful to see what you are reading about without having to find an atlas first.

Not sufficiently anti-Serb to suit the Ministry of Truth.......2005-08-13

The inclusion of several pages of photographs of the civilian victims of the 1999 NATO attack on Serbia in a book that otherwise barely mentions the Kosovo war betrays the author's pro-Serbia bias, implying that Serbs are human beings too. This is doubleplusungood, comrades, and smacks of thoughtcrime. All ranting aside, this is an informative but not very well organized survey of Balkan history. There are interesting accounts of various episodes such as the Battle of Kosovo and the death of Ali Pasha, but it never really hangs together. The account of the 1912-13 Balkan Wars themselves is merely a chapter of dull military history. However, I read it all the way through, which I never do with a truly bad book. Read it and then look in the bibliography for more comprehensive Balkan histories.

The Balkan Wars.......2003-11-04

Certain populations seem destined for greatness. Others seemed forever cursed by their very existence. Unfortunately for residents of Southeast Europe, the latter is much more the case than the former. In his important work The Balkan Wars, Andre Gerolymatos illustrates how war and brutality have made life for Balkan residents as bleak as their geographical landscape.

Gerolymatos randomly moves between the recent past and distant history to show how little has changed in the psyche of Balkan soldiers. Brutal murder and rape are not new concepts to the region. Ethnic cleansing is not a new concept, and has been around since Christian and Muslim first fought over disputed territory. Political upheaval through assassination, and suppression of nationalism through dehumanizing acts of violence, span the centuries in this war-torn region. The Great Powers are in part responsible as their only interests in this part of Europe seem to be when geopolitics suits their needs.

Gerolymatos covers his subject well, though he may give too much credit to Austria-Hungary as a true world power, and he rarely fails to mention the role sex played in the material he covers. He offers solid evidence of the role the Eastern Orthodox Church played in its unique position of dominance within a Muslim imperial capitol city. Maps would have made the book more easily understood, but careful reading reveals the deep knowledge the author has of the subject.

This book is ready to take a prominent role in works on this subject, and offers some of the better details of the 1912-3 Balkan Wars that set the stage for World War One.

An impressive contribution to European History Studies.......2003-09-15

The Balkan Wars: Conquest, Revolution, And Retributions From The Ottoman Era To The Twentieth Century And Beyond by Andre Gerolymatos (Chair of Hellenic Studies, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia, Canada) is an intensely detailed chronology of bloodshed and territorial strife in the Balkans, ranging from the excesses and outrages of Ottoman era to the genocides of the twentieth century including the recent brutalities of "ethnic cleansing". Focusing primarily on the clashes between different ethnic groups over land (sea battles, according to the author, deserve separate and more detailed treatment), The Balkan Wars strives not only to present a straightforward account of a history free from exaggeration or myth making, and also answers core questions about the roots of the wars and ethnic violence that have habitually plagued the people of this land. The Balkan Wars is very highly recommended reading and an impressive contribution to European History Studies.

Entertaining but tragic history.......2003-03-26

The violence in this book is so appalling that it becomes almost amusing after a while.There is far more emphasis on violence than on culture. Some of the anecdotes are interesting, and nearly mythical in their dimensions, particularly the ones occurring in the 14th century--but also the stories surrounding at least two 20th Century political assassinations, stories surrounding the figure of Ali Pasha(and of the legendary Albanians who would not submit to his rule), the incredible brutality of the Turks against the Greek Orthodox Church in Constantinople during the Greek Independence Rebellion,and also against the Armenians, the story of the occupation of Constantinople during the 4th Crusade, and the like. One regularly encounters decapitations, genocide, highway banditry, and irregular armies in this book. There is also some extensive discussion of the role of Europe (and Russia) in diplomatically resolving the conflicts in the region.

Lady Snowblood Volume 4: Retribution Part 2 (Lady Snowblood)

Average customer rating:

Honorable retribution for Lady Snowblood at the end of this manga series

Lady Snowblood Volume 4: Retribution Part 2 (Lady Snowblood)
Kazuo Koike , and Kazuo Kamimura
Manufacturer: Dark Horse
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1593075324

Book Description

As samurai were losing their bearings in a time of change, Yuki brought back the demonic spirit of vengeance. And the good part about this last volume of Lady Snowblood is that she saved her most hated targets for last. Yet, in the midst of a maelstrom of sex and violence, the reader will still catch a few glimpses of warmth and human compassion. That's because Kazuo Koike, the creator of the popular Lone Wolf and Cub manga, knows how to build around good characters, and Lady Snowblood is certainly no exception. See how it all ends in Volume 4, the second part of "Retribution."

Customer Reviews:

Honorable retribution for Lady Snowblood at the end of this manga series.......2006-07-16

This is the fourth and final volume in the "Lady Snowblood" magna written by Kazuo Koike ("Lone Wolf & Cub") and illustrated by Kazu Kamimura. This is the story of Syura Yuki (which roughly translates as "snow of hell"), who is a demonic spirit of vengeance sent forth into the world by the mother who died giving her birth. Set during the early years of the Meiji Restoration, Lady Snowblood has already brought down one of her intended victims but she has saved her two most hated targets for last in "Retribution, Part 2." This is not the epic of "Lone Wolf & Cub," but it is a memorable tale of blood and sex from one of the greatest manga writers:

Episode 12, "Bloom of Youth, White Uniform, and Song of Tears," is a strange little story in which Yuki has to take refuge at a hospital, posing as a nurse, after an assassination. There was a witness to the murders, a young boy named Ryochi, but he is clearly touched in the head and Lady Snowblood decides she does not have to kill him. But the boy is captivated by the "twinkle" of the hidden sword in Lady Snowblood's special umbrella, as well as by the handgun that goes ba-boom. To stop a tragedy from happening, Yuki will have to reveal herself.

Episode 13, "Indecent Photographer's Confession," has Yuki on the trail of Seiki Nishiomi, a photographer who lures women from rich homes into posing for photographs and then taking pictures of her being assaulted to blackmail the husbands. However, this one becomes a question of who is trying to trap who as the photograph has a secret that might change everything. Then again, with Lady Snowblood death is not always punishment enough for the wicked.

Episode 14, "An Account of How Gishiro Strikls Back," finds that the "Syura Yuki" stories being written by Gaikotsu Miyahara to lure the remaining two targets out into the open finally bears fruit. Only it appears these best laid plans might backfire and now the old writer is a trap for the woman he considers his daughter. Fortunately there are traps within traps with this one and Lady Snowblood takes another step along her path of vengeance.

Final Episode, "Bamboo's Tears," is a title inspired by the bamboo ladies, or embracing baskets, that were made in Japan at that time. Lady Snowbird has one person left to kill to complete her quest for vengeance and he is a maker of bamboo ladies. However, there is a complication to this last kill in that he has a daughter, and Yuki must do something to end the cycle of violence. Just remember, "The woman on her path of vengeance has thrown away her heart long ago."

Once you finish the four volumes of "Lady Snowblood" the magna, you can check out the two cinematic efforts, which actually came first. "Shurayukihime" ("Lady Snowblood," a.k.a. "Lady Snowblood: Blizzard from the Netherworld") was released in 1973 with Meiko Kaji as the title character. It focuses on Yuki's efforts to avenge her parents and to kill the three people who mother did not get. The script is by Koike and Kazuo Uemura and you will find scenes that are both familiar and different from the manga. A second film, "Shurayukihime: Urami Renga" ("Lady Snowblood 2: Love Song of Vengeance") came out in 1974 and finds the government offering Yuki a reprieve from execution if she will assassinate an anarchist for them. The movies are decent enough, and you will recognize a song from Quentin Tarantino's "Kill Bill" in the the first one, but of course the magna provide more depth and detail (not to mention sex and violence).

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