Book Description
ON THE SHATTERED world of Verghast, Commissar Gaunt and his Ghosts find themselves embroiled within an ancient and deadly civil war as a mighty hive-city is besieged by an unrelenting foe. When treachery from within brings Vervunhive's defences crashing down, rivalry and corruption threan to bring the Tanith Ghosts to the brink of defeat.Ibram Gaunt must find new allies and new Ghosts is he is to save the ancient city from the deadliest threat of all - the dread legions of Chaos.
Customer Reviews:
My 100-word book review.......2007-04-30
In Necropolis, the third novel in the Gaunt's Ghosts series, the Tanith First and Only are among a task force diverted to the planet Verghast, where a vast hive city is threatened by the forces of Chaos. Vervunhive is no mere arcology but virtually an entire city state enclosed in a single stupendous building, now under siege by hordes of foes. Dan Abnett depicts the horrors of future war with grim relish, and I found myself compulsively turning the pages, late at night, wanting to find out who survives and who doesn't. Another nightmarishly readable novel in an excellent series.
An enemy without number. An internal power struggle. A fantastic book........2007-01-06
There's no doubt about it, this is the best Gaunt's Ghosts book, though I've yet to read the Lost series and Sabbat Martyr. But I doubt they can top Necropolis.
In this book, because of the incredibly massive scale of the conflict, Abnett takes a "history text" perspective in a number of places, talking about the overall battle instead of individual soldiers. This is a good tactic, and it's made better by the fact that he's good at it. Not to say that there aren't some good third-person combat scenes, though, because there are plenty of those.
But while the Tanith and thier Guard brethren fight to hold the city of Vervunhive against the attack of the limitless enemy, Gaunt and the rest of the commanders fight an equally brutal war for control of the army. The hive politics rage and high-ranking officers like Commissar Kowle and Volpone General Sturm side with them. Also added are officers like Vervun Primary Captain Daur, General Grizmund, and Marshal Croe. And looming over the whole mess is the reclusive, useless Hive Master, Salvador.
Many of the critical supporting characters for the later books are brought in here, as well. Gol Kolea, Agun Soric, Tona Criid, and others make thier first appearances here.
This book contains some unbelievable combat sequences, foremost among them the attacks by the giant Zoican "death machines", the mass Narmenian armor charge of General Grizmund, and Gaunt's battle with a Chaos daemon-warlord. Gaunt is also given the power sword of Vervunhive hero Heironymo Sondar in this book, his signature weapon for the rest of the series.
Epic. Incredible concepts and vivid descriptions. Incredible new characters, murderous politics, rockets and commissars and spiders, oh my! Buy this book, is the bottom line.
Gaunts Greatest Hive Hits.......2006-12-13
Taken place on the Hive world of Necromunda, Gaunts Ghosts must again face the threat of Chaos on the front lines. I've recently purchased the entire Ghosts series and am reading them in order, this is debatably the best of the first three. Characters like Milo, Bragg, Larkin and a few others have "evolved" a bit since the founding. Additionally the ending is absolutely magnificent and shocking for the future of the Ghosts.
The seige of a hive city!.......2006-03-01
Once more Gaunt and his Ghosts find themselves fighting against impossible odds as they are sent the hive city of Vervunhive, which is under attack from what seems to be one of the hive's greedy rivals. As in all of the Warhammer 40K books I've so far read, this one is full of mind-numbing violence and cruelty. The desperate plight of the common people as their city is decimated around them and disease and panic spread is painful because of its realistic feel. The greed and brutality of the priveledged and powerful is disgusting. The heroism and bravery of the Ghosts and the Vervunhive military is inspiring.
Overall, this is a fun book to read that doesn't really do much as far as evolving the overall story of Gaunt's Ghosts. The story has a different feel than the previous books, with Abnett focusing in on a single major event and including a lot of side characters, each with their own desperate situations. As always, Gaunt ends up confronting and barely surviving an officer of Chaos, as well as navigating the convoluted inter-Imperial Guard politics.
Abnett's Gaunt's Ghost saga hits its stride.......2004-08-04
It is in Dan Abnett's third installment of his well-done Gaunt's Ghosts Saga that he finally hits his stride. In Necropolis, Colonel-Commissar Ibrahim Gaunt and his Tanith First and Only Regiment are thrown into the meat-grinder type of warfare seen when fought within a city. The hive city in question is Vervunhive and Gaunt and his men must help protect and save the city from a rival hive-city that has fallen under the sway of Chaos. This massive civil war takes a large toll on the men of Tanith. The political backstabbing seen in Ghostmaker is continued in Necropolis, some of the jealousy and scheming of rival Imperial Guard commanders having a detrimental and deadly effect on the outcome of certain battles for Vervunhive.
One reviewer has compared Necropolis as a fictional and scifi account of the Battle of Stalingrad. I must agree with this comparison, but I must also point out that it also share some similarities with the siege of Moscow during World War Two. In fact, any battle fought in the Eastern Front could substitute for what occurs within the pages of Necropolis.
Abnett's writing style has improved with this installment and part of this may be that he has become comfortable with the characters and their motivations. Abnett's becoming one of the premiere writers thats come out of the Black Library branch of Games Workshop. Here's to hoping he continues writing more books about Gaunt and his Ghosts.
Book Description
Necropolis is a luminous, oddly beguiling account of how London has treated its dead, ranging from Roman burial rites to the horrors of the plague, from the founding of the great Victorian cemeteries to the more recent trends of collective grief and the cult of mourning, such as that surrounding the death of Princess Diana. Leaving no headstone unturned, Catherine Arnold unearths one of the great untold histories of the nation's capitol. Skillfully blending history, architecture, archaeology, and anecdote, she also explores phenomena like bodysnatching, public executions, and the rise of the undertaking trade. Ghoulishly entertaining and full of fascinating nuggets of information,
Necropolis is destined to become a classic work on the city.
Customer Reviews:
Could have been more lively.......2007-07-20
A well researched presentation of burial rites in the city London since earliest known times to the very present, including medieval London facing the same problem that Catholic cities everywhere faced with the desire to preserve the body for Judgment Day and to bury the corpse in a churchyard, coupled with practically no common sense about health and hygiene, struggling to find room for the dead in the land of the living.
An interesting book without being too ghoulish or gory; there are plenty of anecdotes. One wishes that, instead of just giving the bare bones of some stories, the author had spent a little more time fleshing them out, such as she did with the affect of massive deaths in the World Wars and from the plaque. There is a very well done section on Victorian funeral attitudes and the creation of the undertaking business, including how attitudes on grief had changed coming up to the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales.
More drawings, lithos or photos would have been interesting.
Written by a Brit for Brits, there are some references to figures of the past that may be unknown to the American reader, but nothing that bogs the presentation.
Average customer rating:
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The Theban Necropolis: Past, Present and Future
Manufacturer: David Brown Book Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Egypt | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books
General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
General | Greece | Europe | History | Subjects | Books
Egypt | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books
General | World | History | Subjects | Books
General | Egypt | Africa | History | Subjects | Books
General | Archaeology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 0714122475 |
Book Description
Thebes is almost certainly the largest archaeological site in Egypt, and in recent years the tombs of the city's ancient inhabitants have been studied more intensively than ever before. This collection of essays reflects the current state of research on many aspects of the site, from the monuments of the Middle Kingdom (c. 2000 BC) to the people who live in the area in the present day. Together they present many new insights into the topography and history of the necropolis and the function and development of the various objects placed in the tombs, as well as offering valuable indications of the direction which future work might take. The majority of the papers were originally presented at an international conference held at the British Museum in July 2000.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful Book!!!.......2005-05-11
This volume was wonderful. The book represented a publication of several articles presented at an international conference on the Theban necropolis that took place at the British Museum, London in 2000. This book is not for those on the go. The articles were in no way light reading. However, anyone from Egyptologists to laymen could read and understand the articles. The various articles covered everything from the general to the specific, the ancient to the modern. The separate articles were written by different scholars and Egyptologists. They contained an almost complete history of the Theban Necropolis. Anyone with even the slightest interest in the Theban Necropolis would enjoy this volume. The articles ranged in focus from purely archaeological records to fascinating interpretive studies. The volume seemed to focus primarily on the tombs of the nobles and officials buried there and not so much on royal tombs. The tombs in Valley of the Kings did not appear often in this volume. The other areas in the necropolis, such as Dra Abu el-Naga, the Assasif, Sheikh Abdel Qurna, and Deir el Medina, were the main focus in most of the articles. Each article pertained to the development of Western Thebes as an archaeological site. The compilation of the various articles accurately captured the spirit of the site.
Average customer rating:
- Great book!
- Sympathy for the Undead
- Sympathy for the Undead
- A great conclusion to "King of the Dead"
- King Azalin's swansong is his greatest triumph!
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LORD OF NECROPOLIS (Ravenloft Books)
Gene DeWeese
Manufacturer: Wizards of the Coast
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
General | Puzzles & Games | Entertainment | Subjects | Books
General | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
DeWeese, Gene | ( D ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books | Alternate History | Anthologies | Arthurian | Contemporary | Epic | General | Historical | History & Criticism | Magic & Wizards | Series
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Ravenloft | Dungeons & Dragons | Gaming | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:
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Tower of Doom (Ravenloft Book)
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King of the Dead (Ravenloft Novel, No 13)
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Mordenheim (Ravenloft)
ASIN: 078690660X
Release Date: 1997-11-04 |
Customer Reviews:
Great book!.......2006-03-21
This is a great ravenloft book.
The characterization of the main character, Azalin, is excellent, and his tormenters are also suitably wicked enough that you can even sympathise with Azalin even after all the evil things he has done.
Buy this book if you are a ravenloft fan.
Sympathy for the Undead.......1999-11-08
Like other readers I was confused a bit by the ending -- on my first reading. By the third time it was much clearer and the utter demoniac cruelty of The Voices which had tormented Azalin for centuries became horribly poignant as they obliged him to sow the seeds of his own, his brother's, and his son's destruction.
DeWeese's comparison of Azalin's opinion of himself with other liches is telling -- evil though he is, Azalin still has that awful Lawful streak in him which causes him to rank himself above other liches who are greater wizards (or scientists) than he, merely because they seek knowledge and not power. One might say that all Azalin really needs is to get in touch with his inner child, but that is one experiment one hopes that he doesn't try undertaking again!
Paired with the first book of Azalin's story, King of the Dead, Lord of the Necropolis makes for a moving tale of sympathy for a monster. Together they are not exactly "Notre Dame de Paris," but who today has the time to read fifty pages of a book before coming to its anti-hero (besides which, the hunchback bell-ringer of Ravenloft is featured in "Tower of Doom"!). DeWeese's tales of Azalin's pathetic existence are quite acceptable to me.
Sympathy for the Undead.......1999-11-08
Like other readers I was confused a bit by the ending -- on my first reading. By the third time it was much clearer and the utter demoniac cruelty of The Voices which had tormented Azalin for centuries became horribly poignant as they obliged him to sow the seeds of his own, his brother's, and his son's destruction.
DeWeese's comparison of Azalin's opinion of himself with other liches is telling -- evil though he is, Azalin still has that awful Lawful streak in him which causes him to rank himself above other liches who are greater wizards (or scientists) than he, merely because they seek knowledge and not power. One might say that all Azalin really needs is to get in touch with his inner child, but that is one experiment one hopes that he doesn't try undertaking again!
Paired with the first book of Azalin's story, King of the Dead, Lord of the Necropolis makes for a moving tale of sympathy for a monster. Together they are not exactly "Notre Dame de Paris," but who today has the time to read fifty pages of a book before coming to its anti-hero (besides which, the hunchback bell-ringer of Ravenloft is featured in "Tower of Doom"!). DeWeese's tales of Azalin's pathetic existence are quite acceptable to me.
A great conclusion to "King of the Dead".......1998-05-14
I can ask for nothing more than this book gave me. The conclusion of the tale of Azalin, Lich Lord of Darkon, is truly done with great skill by Gene DeWeese. The book not only ties loose ends from "King of the Dead", it tells the ultimate truth, and reveals the true nature of the Dark Powers. A must read for fans of Ravenloft, or anyone who has read the first novel.
King Azalin's swansong is his greatest triumph!.......1998-04-03
This novel, though complete on its own, really requires the reader to be familiar with the character of Azalin. This will already be the case with those who play the AD&D game (in particular, the award-winning Ravenloft campaign setting), or those who have read the prequel, 'King of the Dead' (by the same author).
Following 'King of the Dead', the author has improved upon his style and delivery -- though it may be presumptuous of me to say so, I believe that 'Lord of the Necropolis' is far superior to its prequel, both in plot and description. This is in part thanks to the lack of limitations on the author's part (the story of 'King' was practically already written by the makers of AD&D) and also to the writer's commendable imagination.
The plot of 'Lord' is at first glance incredible (an undead wizard king goes back in time, with the intention of saving his son and killing a vampire), but the smooth form employed by the writer lends a strange credence to the novel. Not only does 'Lord' conveniently answer unresolved issues in 'King', it also flawlessly blends with the events described in another book by a P N Elrod (this being the thoroughly enjoyable 'I, Strahd'). Although the conventional reader may balk at the many references to magic and illusion, anybody even vaguely familiar with Dungeons & Dragons will find this book good entertainment. And, if the reader already is a fan of Darkon, Azalin, and the Kargat, 'Lord' is an unmissable addition to his Ravenloft library!
Book Description
Bright and ambitious, young Jim Stringer moves from the English countryside to London deter- mined to become a railway man. It is 1903, the dawn of the Edwardian age, when steam runs the nation and the railways drive progress. Jim can’t believe his luck to have gotten his foot in the door at South East Railway, run out of Waterloo Station. He finds, however, that his duties involve a graveyard shift, literally—a railway line that takes coffins from London morgues to the gigantic new cemeteries being dug in the city’s outskirts. He also learns that his predecessor had disappeared and that his coworkers seem to have formed an instant loathing for him. Forced to live by his wits and to arrive at his own deductions—assisted by his landlady, for whom he falls— he tries to figure out what is going on before he is issued a one-way ticket on the Necropolis Railway.
Customer Reviews:
Good God, Don't Bother!.......2007-09-20
Seldom have I read drivel of this magnitude. It was beyond bad; drunk lobotomy patients could have written something more believable & entertaining than this tripe. I spent 3 hours of my life reading this garbage I want to know who to write to to get those three hours back.
Let's start with the protagonist. He's a self-righteous, callow dullard who couldn't think his way out of a paper bag & we're supposed to like him because he spends his time quoting the Edwardian version of "Boy's Life" & using occasional foul epithets regarding women? For anyone who doesn't yet know, the c-word isn't funny or endearing, it's bad manners. Let's follow up with the plot. Oh, wait, there wasn't one! That's right, folks, people occasionally turn up dead for no apparent reason other than they work on the Necropolis Railway. Maybe they're unlucky or maybe it's Socialists but even by the conclusion, it's still a bit murky. Next, there's the incomprehensible railway jargon that the author NEVER BOTHERS TO DEFINE. Now, I'm an intelligent, college educated person but I spent most of the novel trying to figure out what a footplate was. I finally came to the educated guess that it was something you stand on but I have no idea what it's for; and the author never once took the time to explain it to us poor, 21st century morons. Lastly, there's the ending. I won't give anything away but I'll say this: it made no sense. Really. No sense at all. It was if the author painted himself into a corner & decided the only way out was an act of God. Don't waste your time. I've read "Archie Comics" with better character development & plots. I'm not kidding.
For railroad buffs only.......2007-06-05
I love authenticity in historical fiction and respect the research that authors do in order to achieve an atmosphere rich in accurate detail. Here, though, Martin's hard work actually gets in the way. This book is so chock full of ca. 1903 railroad terminology and minute details of who did what in an engine yards that it slows down character development and forward movement of the plot. I gave it 60 pages and bailed out. In today's popular fiction market, the author will be lucky if many readers wait that long. If you're a train buff, on the other hand, run (don't walk) and grab a copy of this book!
Really excellent...and odd that it isn't doing better........2007-05-23
I am neither an avid railway buff, nor a frequent mystery reader, but I thought the Necropolis Railway was terrific bit of historical fiction.
I picked this up because my four year old has somehow become a train buff, and I thought I might learn a bit more about the "steamies" beyond what the Rev. Awdry had to offer. I wasn't disappointed.
In a word, the novel is atmospheric; you get a real sense of the sooty blackness of the age of steam among these hulking engines. I also enjoyed the breathless enthusiasm that the protagonist has for the railways. It hadn't occurred to me that railway engineers were at one point the jet pilots of their day, but of course they must have been.
The mystery plot itself was a little flat: plenty of red herrings, but the villain wasn't particularly well developed, and his motivations seemed rather obscure. But like, say, Motherless Brooklyn (one of my favorites) the mystery itself is really just a frame; the interesting parts are the characters and the settings. And, of course, the trains.
I will be reading the sequel; I am sure that when Martin focuses on a more popular subject he will write a best seller.
Steams up!.......2007-03-26
Okay, the title of my review gives it away. I'm a railway fan. An American railway fan, but with a pretty narrow interest in UK railways (the LMS from the 1920s through 49). That having been noted, I bought The Necropolis Railway purely on speculation, because most current railway mysteries just don't seem to click.
Well, this is another case of receiving the book from Amazon Friday afternoon and finishing it by Saturday afternoon. I loved every minute of it (even through the British slang and railway jargon which left me clueless at times). It is well written, gets "the train stuff" right, seems to be spot on for the times (or a modern view of what life must have been like in 1903), and the characters enjoyable.
Especially notable is Jim Stringer's transformation from boyish enthisiasm for the railway, to near hatred for it, and his adult appreciation of it as being more than a job, but far less than a fairy tale. I'll fess up that near the end of the novel a co-worker gives him a gift - what the gift was almost made me cheer - especially the way he embraced the spirit of the gift.
I'll also confess that I cheated. After reading this book and seeing the upcoming publication schedule, I went to amazon UK and discovered that three are already in print and a fourth is due, so I ordered the second and third titles rather than wait!
Some of the terminology may be daunting for anyone not versed in railways or Edwardian British society, but Jim Stringer is a comfortable character and I look forward to reading more of his adventures!
I'm not worthy.......2006-02-18
This book has all the elements that should make it one of my favourites. A plucky boy in big grimy Edwardian London; trains; more trains; mysterious deaths etc. But I didn't get it. I couldn't even finish it. It was boring. I still say give it the benefit of the doubt. Buy this book and read it when you'rein a calm state of mind.
Customer Reviews:
Old School Dungeon for D&D 3.0.......2004-01-08
Necropolis is an epic, high-level adventure set in fantasy Egypt, detailing a journey to the tomb of an ancient undead evil. The structure is straightforward: it describes stops along the way to the dungeon, culminates in a lengthy dungeon exploration, and includes some supplementary information on side locations, Egyptian gods converted for use in D&D 3.0, and monsters and classes appropriate to the setting. I hesitate to call this a "campaign" as much as a lengthy, detailed single adventure. But what an adventure it is!
E. Gary Gygax writes in a style that can be justly described as 'unique.' This is a massive opus of Gygax in his purest form, filled with plenty of evidence that Gygax has a tremendous vocabulary. It is also one of the most brutal, well-thought-out dungeon crawls I've ever had the pleasure of reading. The actual Tomb is an epic sequence of nasty traps and horrific encounters that build, one upon another, into a tremendous climax. Reading through it, I thought, "Wow. Do people have gaming groups that enjoy this level of challenge?" As a source of adventure ideas and an example of a truly fiendish dungeon, the supplement is magnificent.
There are a few blemishes, however. Necropolis was not originally published for D&D 3. It's been converted from another game system (Dangerous Journeys, I believe), and there are some traces of the old setting scattered throughout the book. Also, this adventure is very clearly D&D 3.0, not the current D&D 3.5, and some adjustments will need to be made to run it under the 3.5 rules. That said, if you're a GM looking for an exotic campaign ending in an exceptionally grim dungeon, and you have players who will still love you even after the third Total Party Death, I doubt you can do much better than Necropolis.
Big and bad!.......2003-06-12
There is a lot to this book. some you won't like, some you will. Over all I am glad it is sitting on my shelf.
Good source for undead and Egyptian style adventuring........2002-11-16
This module has great new ideas as far as tomb raiding and undead are concerned. The undead have a fresh feel to them and will provide a good challenge to most adventurers. The setting seems to be in keeping with general Egyptian lore and will satisfy most seasoned adventurers. Newbies should beware as this dungeon will eat up lower level characters like popcorn on a movie night. I have the older Dangerous Journeys version also but it is good to see it adapted to the new DND 3rd edition rules setting.
Finally, a good d20 book.......2002-08-30
Finally a well written, well illustrated, and well designed book has come upon the scene. It looks fantastic...the interior design elements don't over shadow the illustrations or the text within (very different for most of these kind of books).
Book Description
In the suburbs of Washington a secret is lurking. Everyone notices that Sam Johanek, a weapons analyst with a top-secret clearance, is changing. He exhibits peculiar mood swings, weird food preferences and a bizarre case of amnesia. No one suspects that Sam is battling a recurring nightmare and a scary obsession with his Basenji dog. In fear for his well being, Sam's wife contacts an inexperienced psychologist. Series of events follow, that take the readers on a trip, from Egypt's Valley of the Kings to the jungles of Gabon, where hides the oldest secret of the ancient Egyptians. As time runs out for Sam, his fate rests in the hands of three people destined to uncover the 'The Basenji Revelation.' Find out why the Midwest Book Review calls this book "...an action packed thriller that will have readers white knuckled and holding their breath...try not to read it with the lights off," and why The Gothic Revue says "...it gave me the shivers."
Customer Reviews:
Compelling, Intriguing, and Well Worth the Time!.......2007-04-10
The Basenji Revelation is an exceptional book. The horror portion of the book is genuinely scary. The author uses a combination of heart-pumping
action scenes, mythological references, and rich vocabulary to make the reader feel each action of the protagonist. An example is the nightmare Maggie has right before her husband lapses into his first public display of madness. For me, this episode remains one of the rare, truly frightening pieces of literature I've personally read. However, horror was not the only thing that attracted me to this book. I've been toying with the idea of getting a basenji breed for about a year. I
wanted to learn more of this particular breed, especially about its origin. When I searched online, I found good information on Wikipedia and there I read about Simon Cleveland's book. The book is rich with historical and mythological details about the breed and its link to the Egyptian culture and religion. What's really fascinating is how the author links modern society with the ancient people. In the character of Sam he reveals more than just a burnt out workaholic with mental issues. Sam is a product of the impacts of modern technology and cultural values. The wife's character, Maggie, symbolizes the natural human response to mental illness, mainly the desire to help and the confusion or lack of knowledge on how to achieve that. The book never failed to entertain me. The end is probably what I found the most compelling. It suggests much greater symbolic meaning to the book than the dramatic conclusion and I think that any reader would be impressed with it.
I thought it was amazing.......2006-06-16
I can still hear the call of the Basenji. I have a basenji in fact. No wonder it's called the barkless dog, it sounds like a female crying. This book gives a new meaning to mythological horror. It's both a contemporary mystery and psychological thriller, except it has a fully developed historical research to tie it nicely to the overall story. Before I bought it I read one of the reviews below that said something like: Try not to read it with the lights off and something about giving you the shivers. Both are very true. In one of the scenes where the psychologist is alone with the Basenji in the middle of the night, boy it freaked me out. Does anyone know anything about the Rosetta stone? Are the creature's phrases really based on the Demotic and Coptic languages from the ancient Egypt? Wow, what a book.
Hungry for horror in the style of 'The Mummy'? Look out King.......2006-06-03
This is one of the best books I've read in a while. The story seizes you immediately from the start and before you know it, you're turning the last page. This author has a wild imagination, that's for sure. There's a fully developed horror story around a 6,000 year-old Egyptian deity and the final revelation made the heirs on the back of my neck stand.
The way he explains some of the scenes, I felt as if I was part of the action. Definitely gets a high score in my book.
reader from pa.......2006-04-14
I found this book an intruiging read. I disagree with another reader about giving the breed a bad name. I own a basenji myself, and anyone that owns or has been around them knows they're sweet, clever, silly little dogs. I don't think any less of St. Bernards because of "Cujo".
Powerful symbolism - frightful yet thought provoking.......2006-02-09
There are few books written in the horror genre that deserve special attention. These are the treasures that possess both the power to frighten and the capacity to compel by responding to the reader's expectations and fears. The Basenji Revelation is one of these rare treasures. Simon Cleveland had fashioned a powerful drama, which although supernatural in its core never escapes actual human reality. The story is quite interesting. It combines elements of both the mythical and the modern as it charms the readers with a rich history. In the end, the author's message goes beyond the unexplained. It leaps forward in search of the symbolic nature of the super human - the one who ultimately becomes aware of all life's mysteries. And it is this leap forward that transitions the Basenji Revelation out of the routine realm of horror and marries it with the one of magical realism. A very, very good read indeed.
Average customer rating:
- great read
- Move Over Don Corleone
- The Dons of Necropolis
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The Dons of Necropolis
Richard, Louis
Manufacturer: Infinity Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0741432250 |
Product Description
Ricky needs to unearth why his father committed suicide when he was a child on Christmas Eve. Consequently his father was battling the Mafia from controlling the funeral industry. That night the Mafia sent a friend, to deliver a letter. After reading it, he blew his brains out. Kneeling in a pool of blood, Ricky embraced his father as he died. Plagued by nightmares and hallucinations, Ricky returns to New York as a Funeral Director to investigate rumors that his fathers suicide was murder. There he gets caught in an intricate web of organized crime, secret cults and unspeakable atrocities.
Customer Reviews:
great read.......2006-11-22
This book was very smart and interesting.I love the way the author brought the characters together kept me on my chair waiting for the next move. This would make a great movie with all the different people A great story. Well all I can say the author out did himself. It's a wonderful book, I could not put it down. I can't wait for the sequel.The dons was cleverly written and should be considered to be a future clasic.
Move Over Don Corleone.......2006-10-04
I'm typing this review with one hand' the other is combing down the hairs on the back of my neck. Couldn't help liking Ricky. It made me feel as I were chased by the hearse. Powerful stuff. Awaiting the sequel.
The Dons of Necropolis.......2006-06-22
A friend of mine told me this book was a great read, so I decided to purchase it. I could not put the book down, I read it in two days. I kept wanting to know what was going to happen next, and before I knew it I completed the book. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone. If you enjoy suspenseful and exciting novels, then this is one that you must read. I am looking forward and cannot wait until the sequel comes out. Do yourself a favor, and buy this book immediately. You will not regret it. I promise.
Average customer rating:
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Corpus of Reliefs of the New Kingdom from the Memphite Necropolis and Lower Egyp (Chatham House Papers,)
Geoffrey Thorndike Martin
Manufacturer: Kegan Paul
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
Ancient & Classical | Schools, Periods & Styles | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Middle Eastern | Regional | History & Criticism | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Religious | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
Egypt | Ancient | History | Subjects | Books
Egypt | Middle East | History | Subjects | Books
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Egyptian | Archaeology | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0710301723 |
Average customer rating:
- English gaslight detective story with a gothic flair.
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Necropolis
Basil Copper
Manufacturer: Arkham House Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0870540882 |
Customer Reviews:
English gaslight detective story with a gothic flair........2004-05-31
Today I've decided to go back and review some older, less-known books with gothic touches that have really appealed to me. Earlier I reviewed "Carnacki the Ghost Finder" by William Hope Hodgson, and "The House of the Wolf" by Basil Copper. This book, "Necropolis" fits in well with those two, and like them, is similarly sadly overlooked today.
"Necropolis" is set in the Romantic setting of Victorian gaslit London, the remarkable setting of Sherlock Holmes, Jack the Ripper, and (a bit earlier) Charles Dickens. What keeps readers and writers alike coming back to Victorian London? The fantastic energy of an old world capital at the height of the British empire? The cobbled streets and enveloping fog that creates such a lush mood of otherworldy mystery? There are a lot of factors, I suspect.
"Necropolis" make good use of the setting, and in fact draws largely on what was at the time (of its early 80s publishing), a largely overlooked piece of history. The book stars a private detective, equally hard-boiled in the modern way, but also Holmesian as well, named Clyde Beatty. He gets involved with some mysterious happenings at a necropolis (city of the dead) outside of London called Brookwood Cemetery. Brookwood Cemetery actually exists, it was built in 1854 as a cemetery that would hold the dead of London for centuries to come, and it was the biggest in the world. This cemetery had its own train station, for trains of the dead carrying only corpses would run to Brookwood to be buried within its vast confines. The mystery revolves around both the train of the dead and the gigantic Brookwood Cemetery.
If you think such things are ripe grounds for writing a gaslight mystery, you couldn't be more right. Even though 3/4 of the way through the book it comes to a rather generic conclusion, the strength of the book is its remarkable use of the historic and fascinating settings, and the eerie, gothic air that pervades the unraveling of the mystery.
So, if you're a fan of Victorian detective stories with gothic touches, then I cannot recommend this book enough.
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