Ends of Empire (Wraith the Oblivion)

Customer Reviews:

This is it..........2002-03-05

This is how the world ends...sort of. For those that say White Wolf is in it only for money and not for the fans, let me say this: the material in Ends Of Empire could be sold as 4 seperate books, yet the company has decided to put all these loose ends in one place.

Ends of Empire is a bittersweet end to a really creative and unique game line. Name one other role-playing game where your character's death is only the beginning of his adventures. Although Richard Dansky is quite thankful to all those that worked on this book and the ones preceeding it, you can sense a bitter overtone in Afterward.

Still, despite the fact that the book is a testament to a good game being tossed out the window for business reasons, this is a good way to wrap up the world of Wraith: The Oblivion.

The end of a game line as we know it.......2000-05-16

I really liked Wraith: The Oblivion, i liked it because it wasa game of real introspection and of not many ways to detour the gameinto a munchkin dream, i liked it because you had to really understand yourself in order to be saved and because your worst enemy was you, i liked it because no other game has scared me silly with something so simple as the "Bang! you are dead" concept. But i also understand that of all the games in the White Wolf line it was the hardest to play. You could not fool your friends posing as a Vampire elder from Slovakia or a raging Werewolf howling for blood, you were alone on the other side surrounded by people who did not like the place a lot and their only pastime was to make your existence more miserable than theirs, you were raw material for coins, chains or armor. To conclude it was a nasty, gut wrenching game that you easilly abandoned playing because it was easier to say that it was boring than recognizing that you were afraidbecause it touched too many nerves to be comfortable. So the line ended in an apocalyptic climax; Charon, ruler of the underworld returns just when Stygia is about to fall to the forces of Oblivion. The Story begins in London where your Wraiths reap (help a poor sod who happens to be Charon reborn to die) the soul of Charon and have to take him to his kingdom all the way besieged by enemies who just want to end you all, when the characters arrive to the Capital, they have to fight against the thoughest badie i have ever seen in a White Wolf supplement, there is no misterious stranger to help you out of this, it is just your party against him and on that fight rests the future of the Underworld. After that comes an ending you would not believe. Is is worth the price? Yes, of course. On a single supplement you can see the direction the whole line of products was directed, and it was a great direction, i don't think any other game line had such a clear path made and at the same time so full of possibilities...Besides the adventure you get for the same price two guildbooks, they are like the Tradition, Clan, Kith, Tribe books that plague the White Wolf system. They are the Mnenoi and Ferrymen Guildbooks, they just wanted to wrap tight the whole thing and not leave a thing upturned I really liked the adventure though it had the feeling of being made in a hurry, they had too many things to say and too few space...Word of advise there, you really need experienced characters in order to survive, so if it is not the ending to your Wraith chronicle then you need to create ancient ghosts to play it safe.

Great end to a great game........1999-10-05

This may be the last Wriath book and if it is then the series is ending with one of the best sourcebooks ever written. Keep up the great work Bruce!

Average customer rating:

A fantastic book
Not Your Average Who Dunnit
Unique lead character
A Good Psychological Thriller!
Suspense with a twist

Oblivion: A Novel
Peter Abrahams
Manufacturer: William Morrow
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0060726571
Release Date: 2005-04-12

Download Description

Nick Petrov was a world-famous private investigator -- until a brain trauma destroyed part of his memory and changed who he is forever.

Now a killer is on the loose, looming up from a past that Nick can no longer remember.

Customer Reviews:

A fantastic book.......2007-09-13

I stumbled upon this book at the bargain priced hardcover section of a bookstore. It was the best $4.98 I've ever spent. The book is fast paced and the narrative is often hilarious.

Not Your Average Who Dunnit.......2007-04-19

This was a really fun read; great for the beach. Abrahams takes the who dunnit and turns it on its head. The protagonist, Nick Petrov is a real good PI, smart, experienced, logical and plodding, who manages to just about solve the mystery given to him early on in the book. Your thinking wait a minute, is this going to be a book with vignettes of the best of Nick Petrov's cases because there's still 300 pages to go. But no, Petrov suffers some kind of brain cancer/anurism and winds up in the hospital. A big chunk of his memory gets cut out when they patched him up and so he has to go through the entire investigation from the start without the aid of any of those great smarts, experiences or logic that he used to count on. Petrov turns from cocky jerk to humble human and you like him all the better for it. Take this book to the beach this summer and then wait for Abraham's next book.

Unique lead character.......2006-11-09

OBLIVION starts as a rather ordinary mystery, but picks up steam when private eye Nick Petrov suffers a brain hemorrhage resulting from a tumor. Another unique element is that the reader knows more about what's going on than Nick does when he wakes up in the hospital.

The early part of the book deals with a woman hiring Nick to find her daughter. He accumulates clues, painstakingly entering them in code in his notebook. After his operation he no longer remembers the code and must recompile the evidence.

Nick's main claim to fame was his role in the capture of serial killer Gerald Reasoner. Armand Assante even played him in a movie about the case. As he reaccumulates evidence, he begins to find similarities between the new case and the Reasoner murders. Someone is also trying to thwart his efforts, as he loses a key piece of evidence when an intruder breaks into his house.

A subplot involves Nick's love life. His former lover is now the LA chief of police. Their affair ruined his marriage. In his new world, Nick begins to fall for Billie, a black nurse who cares for him while he's in the hospital.

Another rather unique element is the presence of Nick's dead father, a former KGB investigator, as Nick pursues the missing girl. We're never quite sure if this is a consequence of his brain tumor, or if he really thinks he's talking to his father. The father also goads Nick for his ineptitude

One drawback of the book is that Abrahams telegraphs the culprit about midway through the book; we even recognize his/her accomplice when he arrives on the scene.

I've read one other Abrahams novel, END OF STORY, and one element they both have in common is originality. If you're tired of formulaic writing, give Abrahams a try.

A Good Psychological Thriller!.......2006-10-25

Interesting tale of a prior investigator (Nick Petrov) who had gained fame for cracking a serial murder case. He is hired by a woman to track down her daughter. What seems like a typical missing persons case then starts to turn weird and strange people seem to be attacking Nick. When it looks like he made some headway in the case, Nick has a severe medical problem that causes him to have amnesia including not being able to remember anything about the missing girl case.

Nick comes across some of the items he had collected from the missing girl case and realizes they must mean something. Little by little he starts to piece things together and get up to speed to the point he was before amnesia. The more Nick learns, he seems to realize that maybe this was more than a missing girl case and maybe it is related somehow to the serial killer case that he had worked on.

Some parts of the book are slow and others are a little difficult to understand but the reader wants to learn everything they can along with Nick. So many clues need to be pieced together to figure out and tie all the loose ends.

Nick is an extremely interesting character because he was a smug, domineering individual before his illness and after his illness he tries with difficulty to be the same way but is stifled by his new physical shortcomings.

A good read!

Suspense with a twist.......2006-10-09

Peter Abrahams is known for his suspenseful thrillers that capture readers within moments of beginning one of his books. Oblivion is no different. We are introduced to Nick Petrov, a Russian-born private investigator made somewhat famous by a high-profile serial killer years ago, who takes on what seems to be a simple missing person case. However, as his investigation lengthens, it becomes obvious that this particular case runs much deeper than anyone would have imagined. Just as he nears a breakthrough, the story is thrown into disarray as he suddenly develops amnesia and loses his memory of the entire investigation. He then has to piece the case together from scratch, without knowing why he was involved in the case in the first place. The events that follow are well-crafted with several unanticipated twists that would keep any reader turning the page for more.
While the amnesia scenario is somewhat of a cliché, it was done in a way that did not detract from the "reality" factor of the book. It was also an interesting way to add flavor to a missing person's story that could arguably stand on its own as an intriguing read. The story seemed to drag a bit in the middle, but very few novels are able to maintain the fast pace that Abrahams uses in the first hundred or so pages, and slowing things down was hardly a negative thing. Instead, I felt it brought maturity into the narrative. He also used flashback at timely moments to answer questions that tend to linger in your mind, and he has a way of using one or two word descriptions that many people would need several paragraphs to illustrate.

If someone is a fan of the detective thriller sub-genre, this is a "can't miss." Before I even realized it, I was a quarter of the way through the book, which means that if you are too busy to sit down for a while you may find yourself frustrated with having to put the book away. This is what has made Peter Abrahams the successful writer that he is and what keeps his fans coming back for more. Not only that, but it's also what makes reading enjoyable and relaxing. Thumbs up for Oblivion.

Reviewed on behalf of MyShelf.com

Average customer rating:

A Must read for Cherokees
Historical Fiction at its Best
Educational and entertaining
Pretty slow
The Start Of White Euopeans Lies ?

Oblivion's Altar:: A Novel of Courage
David Marion Wilkinson
Manufacturer: NAL Trade
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Historical | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0451205464

Book Description

Based on historical events, Oblivion's Altar is the newest novel from the acclaimed author of The Empty Quarter and Not Between Brothers.

When the white man arrived, it was the visionary leadership of the great Cherokee chieftain known as The Ridge that led his nation into the future-with a culture at once unique and adaptable to the Americans. But as the white tide continued to flood the plains, The Ridge's judgment would be questioned, tested, and ultimately flung aside in favor of war-and his contribution to the survival of the Cherokee Nation forgotten on the infamous Trail of Tears. Until now.

Customer Reviews:

A Must read for Cherokees.......2007-02-13

-A wonderful novel based on historical fact. We were taught in school that Major Ridge was a traitor; a man who deserved to be hated by the Cherokee people. Wilkinson's historical novel gives us a close up view of the events and tragic occurences that led up to the Trail of Tears. The only people who would find this novel boring are most likely the people who don't care about this great injustice to the Cherokees. I believe it is a must read for all Ani yun wiya.

I wept from deep within as I followed Kan-nung-da-tla-geh through the later days of his life. It made an indelible imprint on my heart.

Historical Fiction at its Best.......2006-10-09

As a historian, I appreciate appropriate use of historical information, and especially of pertinent documents, as a part of historical fiction. Therefore, it is a pleasure for me to enthusiastically recommend David Marion Wilkinson's Oblivion's Alter, a story of the circumstances leading up to the historically important Cherokee Trail of Tears.

The story is told mainly from the perspective of one Cherokee Chief, Kah-numg-da-tla-geb, whose name is anglicized as The Man who walked the Mountaintops or Ridge Walker. Ridge was known and respected as one of the most eloquent and persuasive chiefs. He was selected to lead several missions to Washington D.C. seeking enforcement of a treaty signed by George Washington ceding a large tract of land to the Cherokee Nation. That original treaty covered lands in parts of Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. Ridge negotiated with several U. S. Presidents including Thomas Jefferson and finally Andrew Jackson.

When the Principle Cherokee Chief John Ross refused to see, as Ridge did, that the U. S. Government under President Jackson would force the Cherokee to migrate west, Ridge signed the New Echota Treaty, selling Cherokee lands to the U. S. Government for five million dollars. This was a treasonous act in the view of many full-blooded tribe members. Setting a brilliant hook in the first chapter of Oblivion's Alter, Wilkinson sets the stage for the score settling that Ridge knows he must ultimately endure, and then carefully steps the reader through Ridge's life and the events leading up to the tragic ending thus foretold. It is good history as well as wonderful fiction, a marvelous page turner.

Educational and entertaining.......2004-07-23

This is historical fiction at its best, educating while entertaining. "Oblivion's Altar" is set in the early to mid 1800's and focuses on the great Cherokee chieftain whose anglocized name as Ridge. Like many Native American of his time he straddled the worlds and cultures of his ancestors and the burgeoning white world. It was inevitably a no-win situation but the courage and wisdom of Ridge (symbolic of many other Natives) are inspirational.
Wilkinson's accomplishments are the blending of historical research with his own fertile imagination.
Historical events are thus rendered in an excellent narrative rather than as dry scholarship. Characters are fused with realism, rather than seeming contrivances.
History is often the story of how ordinary people deal with extraordinary circumstances. "Oblivion's Altar" is an excellent example of this.

Pretty slow.......2004-05-29

Wilkinson can write a very entertaining novel. "Not Between Brothers" was really good, right in there with "Lonesome Dove". Oblivions Alter is really ponderous. I kept thinking it would get better but never happened. Now, if you are interested in this period's history, I would recommend it. It is well written for what it is. Entertainment it is not.

The Start Of White Euopeans Lies ?.......2003-12-21

I have been a student of Native American history for over forty years, mainly the period from the middle to end of the nineteenth century.

David Wilkinsons book, which I have just finished reading, has made me expand my interests to cover a much wider period.

Although a novel, I found it full of interesting points which aroused my interest in the broader spectrum of the Native Americans and their history, and I can pay David no higher praise when I say that, in my opinion, he has done for the Cherokee Nation what Mari Sandoz did for the Cheyenne Nation in her book "Cheyenne Autumn", made our generation aware of the lies and deceit and the inhuman treatment of the Native Americans by the White Europeans using the excuse of civilising the west.

Customer Reviews:

interesting.......1999-08-13

The LARP rules for Wraith, I thought would be more again to the LARP rules for mage.. Impossible to make believable in a Live Action Setting. Although, Some of the Wraith powers are a hard to pull off live, MET does it very well. I am EXTREMELY impressed. Also, the condensed approach to the rules and setting includes more than the original base tabletop book did for about half the price. A great buy for any LARPer.

DARP - Dead Action Role Playing.......1999-02-12

Oblivion, the pocket sized LARP rulebook for Wraith: The Oblivion is right on par with Laws of the Wild as a fantastic, well compiled book. Oblivion contains information on all Guilds (including the especially illegal 3), a habit I wish White-Wolf would take toward it's tabletop books instead of relying on infinite sourcebooks.

The system is the same one as in all the other books, which is good, because it's a well thought out system. Shadowguiding remains a concern of mine, however. In Live Action, having a player also play someone elses Shadow just isn't always practical. If you have six or so people, it's definately worth having half of them play Shadows, pure and simple.

In short, it's as good a book as Laws of the Night and Laws of the Wild. If you enjoyed them (especially Wild, to which it enjoys more similarities) you should like this.

Customer Reviews:

Depends on your viewpoints.......1999-08-06

If you are looking for a rock em sock em....this is not the book for you. If you are looking for an emotionally taut peice of work, this is right up there in quality. I disagree wholeheartedly with the person from from Kirkus. David IS an intersting hero who continually strives to save his daughter and become a better stronger man in himself. There is character development on both sides of life as well as action scattered like garnish. When I met Rick Hautala he said that there were supposed to be stories for all three knives, but white wolf dropped the idea. I personally am upset by this, I want to see the story conclude!!! Write white wolf and let them know that it should be given the ability to FINISH!

Dark and heavy and awesome . . .Wagnerian!.......1998-09-16

If Wagner were alive, he might write an opera about this one!

David is in the underworld with all its terror and mystery. But he can still see the world of the living, where he discovers his widow (ex-wife, actually) is in danger. Their daughter, also in the land of the dead, has dangers of her own which her father must overcome.

I was drawn in by the characters and challenges and the mystery of "the other side."

Average customer rating:

A Good Buy

The Greatest WOD Table Top Book

The Greatest WOD Table Top Book

Useful, but not essential
Buried Secrets: Screen and Book (Wraith - the Oblivion)
Lawrence Snelly
Manufacturer: White Wolf Pub
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Graphic Novels | Comics & Graphic Novels | Subjects | Books
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Guildbook: Sandmen (The Sandmen Sourcebook for Wraith: The Oblivion, Guildbook Two)

Guildbook: Masquers (Wraith - The Oblivion Guildbook Series, Number 4)

Wraith: The Oblivion, Second Edition

ASIN: 156504603X

Customer Reviews:

A Good Buy.......2000-06-21

I consider this screen to be the best White Wolf has made. It has the normal wraith/chains artwork, and spans an extra page from the other Stroyteller's Screens (4 pages total). Beyond that, it has similar information. I just feel it looks much better than the others, and I use it most of the time when I run my games. The book, Buried Secrets, has many little-known facts that are quite interesting. It has the most secrets about what's really going on in Wraith excluding, of course, Ends of Empire. While it is not incredibly useful from a gaming aspect, the book is a great tool to help design role-playing scenarios, as it gives enough information to better flesh out certain adventures that the main rulebook is vague on. I would recommend this book at least for storytellers, and for anyone who wishes to know more about the secrets of Wraith.

The Greatest WOD Table Top Book.......2000-06-06

Wraith - The Oblivion is a great book. I just read it and I couldn't stop reading it. It adds a whole new dimension to WOD. I use to love playing Vampire the Masquerade but now my frineds and I play wraith. Charon plays a role similar to Caine, but he has his own accomplishments. Try to figure out who is Able (he is not under that name in the book). The Hierarchy is what I believe the Camarilla should have been created like. There is the Rebels for the rebels out there and theres the Heritics for you True Faith Players. The Shadowlands is a whole new world to roleplay.

The Greatest WOD Table Top Book.......2000-06-06

Useful, but not essential.......2000-02-06

This storyteller's screen is suitably moody, and the "Buried Secrets" book is useful, but neither is 100% essential for a good game of Wraith: The Oblivion. If you have a few bucks to spare, the elegantly dark screen will definitely contribute to the mood of the atmosphere (it looks great by candlelight), the nicely organized reference tables will be a great convenience, and the "Buried Secrets" book will give you a few good ideas.

At an Uncertain Hour: Primo Levi's War Against Oblivion

Average customer rating:

At an Uncertain Hour: Primo Levi's War Against Oblivion
Anthony Rudolf
Manufacturer: Menard Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Average customer rating:

Dona Ines VS Oblivion
I'm proud of this book
fabulous

Dona Ines vs. Oblivion: A Novel
Ana Teresa Torres
Manufacturer: Grove Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0802137261

Book Description

Described by The Washington Post Book World as "classic Latin American magical realism . . . [from] a remarkable voice," Dona Ines vs. Oblivion is a rich saga melding national history with the story of one bitter family dispute. Dona Ines, matriarch of a wealthy family in eighteenth-century Caracas, is suing to regain the land her late husband bequeathed to his illegitimate mulatto son. Searching in vain for the original deed, she vows not to quit until the dust from the ancient documents rises up and chokes her. In 1780 she dies -- but the spirit of Dona Ines continues her quest through another two centuries of revolution, natural disaster, change, and social turmoil, riding the passionate tide of Venezuelan history to an ultimate conclusion. Beautiful, trenchant, and wickedly funny, it establishes Ana Teresa Torres as an important voice in world literature. "A fascinating, exuberant exploration of race and class in Venezuela." -- Cristina Garcia; "Exquisitely conceived and executed . . . Dona Ines will haunt serious readers of world literature for decades to come." -- Jay Parini; "Torres represents an important new generation of Venezuelan women writers." -- Isabel Allende; "Moves with languid dignity . . . Dona Ines's cranky, engaging, importuning, resentful, obsessed and relentless voice guides us through a family history that is also mired in Venezuelan history." -- John Vernon, The New York Times Book Review.

Customer Reviews:

Dona Ines VS Oblivion.......2001-04-28

Looking forward to a family chronicle which would give the history of Venezuela in its pages, I was deeply disappointed. The first several chapters ramble on and on with the voice of Dona Ines talking to her husband and his illegimate son while mentioning the names of others unknown to this reader. It is confusing, disorienting and portrays her as crazily consumed with all the negative things in her past. Many pages had no paragraphs which provided no relief to the stream of disjointed memories. I did not find any saving grace to this work.

I'm proud of this book.......2000-01-24

Once, I read this book at school (Valencia, Venezuela). Now I'm studying college (NM, USA) and I decided to write my outside reading report for Social Anthropology on this book. It's amazing the way Ana Teresa Torres describes 300 years of venezuelan history. I loved it!

fabulous.......2000-01-14

Im ana's nephue i just want to say that this book is great it was used in my school for the 11th graders and it was just fabulous

DONA INES VS. OBLIVION: A NOVEL. Translated by Gregory Rabassa

Average customer rating:

DONA INES VS. OBLIVION: A NOVEL. Translated by Gregory Rabassa
Ana Teresa. Torres
Manufacturer: Louisiana State Univ. Press,
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000N7422C

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