Death of a Garage Sale Newbie (Bargain Hunters Mystery Series #1)

Book Description

Solving a murder mystery is much more than the BHN bargained for!

What could Ginger the baby boomer, Kindra the college student, Suzanne the pregnant mother of three, and Mary Margret the silver-haired real-estate agent possibly have in common? Who would’ve guessed…a passion for garage sales!

This motley crew forms the Bargain Hunters Network–bonding while clipping coupons, attending half-price sales, and scouting clearance racks in their hometown of Three Horses, Montana. But when one of the four turns up missing, these shop-till-you-drop women must set their bargain hunting aside to take up an entirely new venture altogether–solving a crime.

As the three amateur sleuths retrace their friend’s fateful steps, they discover clues that lead them to suspect her murder is linked to an unusual garage sale purchase made on the morning of her death. But when their search unearths a disturbing secret that’s been carefully concealed for over twenty years, the women are drawn into a dark underworld filled with bribery, greed, and deception. With determined criminals who will stop at nothing to keep their secret safe, will these fiscally conscious females end up paying the ultimate price?

Customer Reviews:

Garage Sales Can Be Dangerous.......2007-09-27

Death of a Garage Sale Newbie
By; Sharon Dunn
Who would think a passion for garage sale bargains could be dangerous? In Death of a Garage Sale Newbie, Sharon Dunn gives yard sales and clearance shopping an entirely new perspective.
Ginger, Kindra, Suzanne and Mary Margret make up the eclectic group of shoppers called the Bargain Hunters Network. But when Mary Margret disappears after a solo shopping trip, Ginger is left with a confusing cell answering machine message. After Mary Margret's body is discovered and the police close the case as an accident, the Network takes it into their own hands to solve the mystery. Each new clue points towards an twenty-year old secret in their quaint community and a coverup that included murder. Follow the humorous and tragic escapades of these three women determined to solve their friend's murder and find the best bargains. Along the journey they also learn a bit about themselves and the bold faith God calls them to.
You will laugh, cry and be sure you know the solution only to find yourself befuddled on the next page. And as you close the book on the mystery and the story you will want to befriend these women yourself. Sharon Dunn did an excellent job crafting a mystery in the most unlikely of places. Readers will enjoy this excursion from the opening page and will eagerly await the next mystery.
Chandra Lynn Smith

Fun Read.......2007-07-17

A good book to read at the beach or pool. I enjoyed the book and the idea was new and creative. Will read more books in the series. The pace of the book was good, I didn't want to put it down, wanted to keep reading and reading to find out who-done-it! See my blog for giveaway [...].

Could have been good.......2007-07-14

I have recently discovered garage sale shopping and love cosies so I thought what's better than a combination of the two?? I knew from reviews that there was a "Christian" element to the story and I thoroughly enjoyed the first few chapters with all the references to prayer, good christian church-going people etc etc (a little sanctimonious but OK).
I even coped with the bizarre change of tack when, from the wife saying she had been followed and attacked on her way home, the husband points out she doesn't support his inventions (what!!!).
What I didn't like was snide little elements like a description of a policewoman as built "like one of those big German women who threw the shot put at the Olympics" but who "had a pretty face" though.
Yuck! Not very "Christian" either.
Oh well, I should get 20 cents at a garage sale for "Death of a garage sale newbie".

Death be not Funny.......2007-06-18

I loved the characters in this story. It's hard when someone dies in real life--we cry, we mourn, we say things we don't mean. Sharon Dunn truly handles this well in her book. These women--Ginger, Kindra, and Suzanne--lost a friend. Worse, she died in a violent manner. There's nothing funny about that. Yet life goes on. People move on, remembering their friends; sometimes with tears, sometimes with laughter.

Sharon Dunn wisely allows Ginger to grieve, even as she investigates to discover the truth about Mary Margret's death. That, to me, is the kind of detail that adds enough realism to make the story plausible. To allow that "suspension of disbelief" we all face inside a novel, that invites us to enter the world of the story, live in it for awhile, and finish it knowing it was a good journey through its pages.

Bargains and Murder.......2007-06-12

Sharon Dunn, author of the Ruby Taylor mystery series, is back and frankly better than ever. The Ruby Taylor series had a sassy, first person voice that was enjoyable, but I LOVED Death of a Garage Sale Newbie. I honestly wasn't sure when I started the book, because what could someone find at a garage sale that would be worth killing over. Little did I know...

The characters were real and fresh. By the end of the book I truly cared about them, and I cannot wait to read the sequel and spend more time with them. The plot kept me engaged. And I was challenged by the spiritual lesson that Ginger had to learn - frugality can become a prison when it prevents us from accepting the good gifts that God has for us.

And the plot had enough layers to keep me intrigued and thinking about the book in between reading it. Pick up this book for a clean mystery, and you'll enjoy it.

Ghost Hunters: William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death

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Ghost Hunters
When Geniuses Confronted the Paranormal
Disappointingly Subjective and Boring, Considering the Nature of the Subject Matter
A Picture Would Be Worth a Thousand Words
Our Conflicted Affections

Ghost Hunters: William James and the Search for Scientific Proof of Life After Death
Deborah Blum
Manufacturer: Penguin Press HC, The
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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William James: In the Maelstrom of American Modernism
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Will Storr vs. The Supernatural: One Man's Search for the Truth About Ghosts
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Is There An Afterlife?: A Comprehensive Overview of the Evidence

ASIN: 1594200904

Book Description

What if a world-renowned professor of psychology at Harvard University, a doctor and scientist acclaimed as one of the leading intellects of the time, suddenly announced that he believed in ghosts? At the close of the nineteenth century, to great public and professional astonishment, William James-the great philosopher, a founder of the American Psychological Association and brother of Henry James-did just that and embarked on a determined, lifelong pursuit of scientific evidence to prove it.

James came together with two other brilliant and charismatic thinkers of the day-Richard Hodgson, a converted skeptic, and James Hyslop, a natural grandstander who would often visit mediums unannounced, a hooded mask covering his face-to form the core of the American Society for Psychical Research. They eventually merged with the British Society for Psychical Research, adding to the group the Cambridge philosopher Henry Sidgwick and his tiny, ferociously smart wife Eleanor, as well as the mythically handsome Edmund Gurney and others. While studies of ESP and ghostly visitations have occurred since the days of the society, at no other time have scientists of the caliber of James and his colleagues devoted themselves in such an ambitious and driven way for evidence of a life beyond. James and his band of brothers staked their reputations, their careers, even their sanity, on one of the most extraordinary (and entertaining) psychological quests ever undertaken, a quest that brought its followers right up against the limits of science.

This riveting book is about the investigation of the ghost stories-the instances of supernatural phenomena that could not be explained away-and it is about the courage and conviction of William James and his colleagues to study science with an open mind. At the heart of the story is the ongoing tension between empiricism and spiritualism-between a way of explaining the world that is grounded in the purely tangible and a way that is grounded in a mixture of the evident and the hidden. Pulitzer Prize-winning author Deborah Blum uses her extraordinary storytelling skills and scientific insight to explore nothing less than the nexus of science and religion. It is a territory as fascinating to us now as it was to William James and his colleagues then.

Customer Reviews:

Ghost Hunters.......2007-09-25

This is an engrossing account of the history of psychic research in Europe (particularly the U.K.) and the U.S. The cast of characters includes some of the greatest minds of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including William James, considered to be one of the most brilliant psychologists the U.S. has ever produced. Two important facts derived from reading this book are (1) that there is much and well-documented evidence for the existence of telepathic and possibly spiritual phenomena, and (2) that mainstream scientists could not care less. The most depressing conclusion, in my opinion, is that there is simply no evidence, no experience, and no scientific data, that will convince your typical scientist to even consider the possibility of such paranormal events, or at least to be open-minded about it. Of course, as the book points out, the ample abundance of frauds and quacks in the "psychic" world is a huge obstacle to the acceptance of the available empirical data on these phenomena. James and his colleagues presented the best case they could for the existence of the paranormal, only to be met with rejection, denial, and sheer hostility from the scientific world. At least they tried!

When Geniuses Confronted the Paranormal.......2007-09-11

Give a legion of thrill-seekers emf meters, digital cameras, lap-top computers, and set them loose on the nearest park, or cemetery, or historical property, and what do you have? Websites full of pictures of "orbs," evp "voices" and notices about when and where and how often the "cops" patrol a certain area side by side with badly-written anecdotes lacking any kind of documentation, and vandalism. What new technology renders up is lots of so-called "evidence" but of what? The current situation in paranormal "investigation" reminds me of the decades-old dichotomy between "pot hunters" and archaeologists. One might end up with a box full of pretty Clovis points, or a website full of twinkling "orbs" but the next step--that of attempting to make sense of what one has so assiduously collected, is not forthcoming. This was not always the case. Back in the 1880's a group of gifted men and women--many of them real geniuses--attempted to rationally investigate haunted houses, mediumistic phenomena, death-bed apparitions, telepathy, precognition, second-sight, and other subjects associated with the paranormal. William James, the great pioneering psychologist, was one of them, and this book centers on his ideas and experiences as well as his interactions with the philosopher Edmund Gurney, the Nobel Prize winners William Crookes and Sir Oliver Lodge, and other leading thinkers of those times. Of course, just as today, representatives of the Scientific Establishment attacked these people with varying degrees of success (to this day, for instance, Crooks' name is associated with a yen for young girls disguised as ghosts.) The great thing that Deborah Blum does in Ghost Hunters is to reintroduce us to this cast of characters and the context of their times and to clear away some of the innuendos and down-right lies that have been associated with these people for the past 120 years or so, so that we can again see them for the gifted people that they really were. Far from being slack observers and dupes of the duplicitous, these were real scientists and humanists of note. However, the problem they faced remains that which is inherent in so-called anecdotal evidence. It doesn't matter what your I.Q. is, if an apparition walks up to you on some dark and stormy night, and shakes your hand, and you write it up in a reasoned manner and publish it in some journal, skeptics could still find ample reason to call your character and your abilities into question. And even if five or six or a hundred of your associates see the same thing at the same time, collusion or shared hallucination, or any number of explanations could be trotted out. This also holds true for photographing what's out there (photo-shop, right?), recording it, or videotaping it. And if none of that works, skeptics can still point to misinterpretation of natural phenomena or just plain wishful thinking. In other words, one must first trust the intention and respect the character and the intelligence of the witness in order for anecdotal evidence to work. I, for one, am a fan of William James' Varieties of Religious Experience, so I am inclined to give much of what he says a more-than-sympathetic ear. Similarly, when the mathematician Nora Sidgwick reports her findings concerning haunted houses, I am interested. When Edmund Gurney tells us his speculations on the nature of ghosts, I am fascinated. Of course, the soft underbelly of anecdotal evidence drove parapsychology in the direction of the laboratory and the reproducible results championed by Dr Rhine and his Duke statistical studies, effectively stripping the paranormal of its most fascinating elements in order to comply with the demands of science. It is as if one were attempting to study birds by examining a statistical break-down of the incidence of blue plumage versus red in ring-necked pheasants. What Deborah Blum does well with this book is to bring up interesting examples of the value of non-reproducible (anecdotal) results. One of the most fascinating examples of this is the so-called Cross-Correspondence case of c. 1906--1907 in which Leonora Piper and two other mediums unknown to each other, and separated by great distances, reported bits and pieces of codes and messages communicated through the purportedly active participation of the discarnate intelligences of Gurney, Hodgson, Myers, Sidgwick--all members of the SPR who had passed on. Still, even though this particular series of events was rigorously over-seen by the SPR, one could yet, from this remove in time, posit fraud. Indeed, Deborah Bloom gives the reader of Ghost Hunters a great deal to think about. She herself, though a noted science writer, seems to suggest a middle way. After examining the letters, diaries and published writings of this extraordinary group, she is no longer sure that she can dismiss their investigations so easily. Would to God that such a level of intelligence could again be brought to the table in paranormal investigations. Then perhaps, given our current state of quantum understanding and technological expertise, something new might be forthcoming. (Though from the slippery nature of the subject, I somehow doubt it.) But typically, just a week or so ago, I was informed by a member of a so-called investigations group that investigating the paranormal was merely "a gut feeling," which had little or nothing to do with the ability to articulate findings or to analyze results. My suggestion to him and to the proliferation of other "ghost hunters" of this ilk is to do us all a favor: throw away the emf meters and the digital equipment and reach for the stomach medicine.

Disappointingly Subjective and Boring, Considering the Nature of the Subject Matter.......2007-08-12

The author had an agenda to declare spiritualism fraudulent, I noticed. Chapter 8 is titled "The Invention of Ectoplasm", but it appears she made no effort at all to examine any evidence as to whether it might be an objective phenomenon. Also, I noticed this entry on page 99: "With a good distraction, most mediums also showed a flair for opening envelope flaps in time to avoid detection. But Mrs. Piper kept things simple that day." The author implies that Mrs Piper was a fraud despite nothing in this book to support this smear. There's no mention of W. Stainton Moses, somewhat surprisingly, considering that he had the same "spirit controls", Rector and Imperator, as Mrs. Piper. In vol. 2 of his Human Personality book, Myers states that when he and Gurney first visited Moses the evening was "epoch making".

I found the book to be irritatingly written, like a fiction novel, with frequent scene changes and unnecessary irrelevancies such as William James's hair being rimmed with gray and his body being wiry and compact. According to the author, in the late 1800s, the 20th century did not approach, it "drew closer, gleaming with all the bright sheen of well-polished metal." Somewhat controversially, she devotes space to "the great Charles Darwin", of whom one can look up the "genius of" in the index. Never mind that there is not a scrap of evidence to support the theory of macro-evolution and that his questionable "genius" did not extend to the matter of "ghost hunting". I wanted to throw this book across the other side of the room on occasion, in the direction of the trash. (I didn't because I'd borrowed it from a library.)

I would recommend The Encyclopaedia of Psychic Science by Nandor Fodor for more objective details on the people and events and phenomenon observed back then.

A Picture Would Be Worth a Thousand Words.......2007-07-10

Another reviewer stated that most people who come to this book have already made up their minds about the possibility of survival after death, certainly that the subject is worth serious investigation. Ms. Blum makes the latter argument very well. The time and effort she put into researching this book is evident and Herculean and reinforced by her solid reputation as a science writer. It is obvious that she believes there is some evidence for the survival of the human spirit after death; she admits that at the end of the book. I would like to know WHY as a sceptic she came to this conclusion. I believe that would be an interesting story in itself. As it is, GHOST HUNTERS is a very good history of William James's and his colleagues' efforts to use scientific methods in the investigtion of spiritualism's claims and to prove to the scientific world of the day that the subject was worthy of serious inquiry. This book has no illustrations, a serious deficiency. At the very least photos of the principal characters involved would be most intriguing but of particular value would be photocopies of the transcripts made during the hundreds of hours of "automatic writing" sessions that makes up a significant part of this book. I know, for instance, that photographs were taken by serious researchers of phenomena observed at seances, "ectoplasmic" extrusions, levitated objects, etc., and published in books printed back in the 1920s; I owned one but that was more than 50 years ago now. But I for one would like to see a page or two of this automatic writing from the spirit world Ms. Blum quotes so frequently and judge for myself if it is even readable which I suspect most of it is not. As it is, Ms. Blum has one more book in her on this subject and I will withhold judgment on the possibility of Life After Death until it is written -- or until I find out for myself what lies over there.

Our Conflicted Affections.......2007-06-26

Psychical energy, even in its subtle form, is felt directly when our affections are found conflicted. Deborah Blum's "Ghost Hunters" provides many examples of conflicted affection, both in the positive and in the negative.

In the positive form, a dominant science is found expressing an outward arrogance; while concealing this very act of deception imposed to their own person (a self deception). For example, Charles Darwin discovered his theory of evolution by natural selection, and he found himself arrogantly extending his theory into areas of mind thereby replacing spirituality. Blum tells us that Alfred Russel Wallace co-founded this same theory, but Wallace expressed a more balanced sensibility. Eventually Wallace turned from dogmatic science, and became interested in spiritualism. Blum (page 40) writes: "As Charles Darwin promptly warned him, Wallace was sending the wrong message to their critics and lending unwarranted credibility to the concept of spirit powers. Darwin feared that Wallace now gave the impression that one of evolution theory's founders had abandoned science in favor of superstition."

The arrogance coming from the most vocal scientists was widespread in this day. Blum (page 54) quotes the gifted scientists John Tyndall saying: "the impregnable position of science may be described in a few words. We claim, and we shall wrest from theology, the entire domain of cosmological theory. All schemes and systems which thus infringe upon the domain of science must, in so far as they do this, submit to its control, and relinquish all thought of controlling it." Nevertheless, more free minded scientists, like Wallace, became interested in study of the paranormal.

In its negative form, conflicted affection may express an outward deception; while concealing an inside self arrogance. Most of the mediums that touted their powers of the paranormal were discovered to be frauds. And the free-minded scientists, such as Wallace and William Crookes, were most vulnerable to this deception. Crookes was taken by the beauty of Anna Eva Fay, concluding a successful test of her presumed skills. But Henry Sidgwick, Fred Myers and others, saw through the deceit. Blum (page 61) writes: "the Sidgwick group was reaching a new awareness -- that in their smug sense of superior intelligence and capabilities, trained scientists did not always see what was obvious to others. " Meyers was quoted (Blum, page 119): "There are natures ... which stand so far removed from the meaner temptations of humanity that those gifted at birth can no more enter into the true mind of a cheat than I can enter into the true mind of a chimpanzee."

Our conflicted affections in the positive and negative are sense-certain, and these temptations must be outgrown to reach a genuine psychical awareness. Psychical energy as a power must be met with a brutal honesty. Otherwise, we will be confused by our own affections, seeing only what we want to see. Daniel Dunglas Home was thought to be such an honest medium, presumably he transcended above the temptations offered by his affections (which might explain his talent). Blum tells us that Home's "Lights and Shadows of Spiritualism" exposed the treachery of deception coming from supposed mediums. But this enlightened view could not be accepted by Crookes who became involved with yet another female medium. Ironically, it was Home that first impressed Crookes with spiritualism, yet the subtleness offered by psychical energy found its escape.

Blum tells us that the psychic researcher, Edmund Gurney, interacted closely with the famous philosopher and professor of psychiatry, William James. Gurney was to write "Phantasms of the Living". James had a first encounter (among many more) with the famed medium, Leonore Evelina Piper. Piper seemed to communicate the details of a tragedy that fell on James, the death of his own son Herman.

Blum (pages 158-159) writes: "In the debate over whether the scientific worldview should replace religion, [Darwinist] Huxley considered the answer already given. It had. William James, Henry Sidgwick, and their fellows, although they also counted themselves as rationalists, could not go nearly so far. To exclude from reality anything not demonstrated through the scientific method was to accept on faith, they would argue, that there is no reality beyond what a select group of people (on an insignificant planet) say is so. To deny the existence of the spirit--without thoroughly exhausting the subject through dogged research--to accept such arbitrary limits, was to them a prejudicial view, closed-minded and unscientific."

Blum (page 169) writes: " In this landmark psychology text [Principles of Psychology], James discussed trance personalities, telepathy, spirit possession, even Leonora Piper. He didn't, as Alfred Russel Wallace had done, declare psychic phenomena to be proven laws of nature. But he did emphasize that if one wished to understand the human mind, it was necessary also to understand why such phenomena were seen and experienced by so many people."

Blum (page 223) writes about spirit utterances coming from Piper: "If Mrs. Piper didn't cheat--and no evidence yet existed that she did--then it was still unclear to James how she accessed the information revealed in her trances. He continued to believe that she possessed some exceptional power; he continued to have no idea exactly what that power might be."

James was exceedingly fair-minded, and Piper was principled and honest as she was never exposed as a fraud. And therefore, it is not surprising that the James-Piper interacting led to the greatest expression of psychical energy. Much of what Blum writes is about this unique interaction between two very rare talents. But what springs between them was meant to escape among the many (including the returning spirit of Richard Hodgson), leaving a feeling as it goes. Otherwise, the caricatures will confuse even the strongest mind.

Trinity: The Scientific Basis of Vitalism and Transcendentalism

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A MUST-READ for anyone interested in the HIV / AIDS crisis

Black Death: AIDS in Africa
Susan Hunter
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

AIDS | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

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Health Care Delivery | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Letting Them Die: Why HIV/Aids Prevention Programmes Fail (African Issues)
The Invisible People: How the U.S. Has Slept Through the Global AIDS Pandemic, the Greatest Humanitarian Catastrophe of Our Time
AIDS in the Twenty-First Century: Disease and Globalization Fully Revised and Updated Edition
Global AIDS: Myths and Facts, Tools for Fighting the AIDS Pandemic
AIDS in Asia: A Continent in Peril

ASIN: 1403967172
Release Date: 2004-09-09

Book Description

To the surprise of many, George W. Bush pledged $10 billion to combat AIDS in developing nations. Noted specialist Susan Hunter tells the untold story of AIDS in Africa, home to 80 percent of the 40 million people in the world currently infected with HIV. She weaves together the history of colonialism in Africa, an insider's take on the reluctance of drug companies to provide cheap medication and vaccines in poor countries, and personal anecdotes from the 20 years she spent in Africa working on the AIDS crisis. Taken together, these strands make it unmistakably clear that a history of the exploitation of developing nations by the West is directly responsible for the spread of disease in developing nations and the AIDS pandemic in Africa. Hunter looks at what Africans are already doing on the ground level to combat AIDS, and what the world can and must do to help. Accessibly written and hard-hitting, Black Death brings the staggering statistics to life and paints for the first time a stunning picture of the most important political issue today.

Customer Reviews:

A MUST-READ for anyone interested in the HIV / AIDS crisis.......2004-02-20

In the first few pages of her book, Susan Hunter explains that HIV / AIDS is the first new disease on our planet since the 1400s; it is the leading infectious disease threat in the world today, outpacing tuberculosis and malaria by 2:1. It is the first disease to be considered a global threat to both national and international security. By 2010, the global human death toll from this disease will be higher than the COMBINED casualties of WWI, WWII, the Civil War, the Bolshevik Revolution, the first Chinese Communist War, the Spanish Civil War, the Taiping Rebellion, the Great War in La Plata and the partition of India. Every 18 months, more people die from HIV / AIDS than during the Holocaust. In some parts of Africa, they literally are running out of land to bury the bodies.

Ms. Hunter, with her years of experience working with the UN on Africa, is in a unique position to offer an assessment of the effects of this disease on that continent as well as predictions of its spread globally.

In the United States, many have become complacent about HIV / AIDS, believing that this is a disease which can be controlled with a few pills -- and as a result, HIV / AIDS infection is on the rise in the U.S. once again. Ms. Hunter's descriptions bring the realities of HIV / AIDS back into sharp, painful focus. This remains a terminal illness: in the U.S., HIV / AIDS mortality is back on the rise, as many develop complications with / from their medication treatments.

Ms. Hunter's book reminds us that if we do not take action in the areas of disease prevention, education, and access to basic health care, we will face a Holocaust each year as a result of HIV / AIDS. Even in the U.S. where many have access to the medications, HIV / AID has become the leading cause of death among 18-34 year olds, as well as the third leading cause of death AMONG ALL AGE GROUPS in the U.S.

READ THIS BOOK!

Julius Winsome: A Novel
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Sympathy for a killer?

Superb writing and subdued tone make for an awesome combination...

Julius Winsome : A Novel

a very good read

For Dog's Sake
Julius Winsome: A Novel
Gerard Donovan
Manufacturer: Overlook Hardcover
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | British | World Literature | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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A Three Dog Life

ASIN: 158567849X
Release Date: 2006-10-19

Book Description

Living alone with his dog in the remote cabin in the woods, Julius Winsome is not unlike the barren winter lands that he inhabits: remote, vacant, inscrutable. But when his dog Hobbes is killed by hunters, their carelessness—or is it cruelty?—sets Julius's precarious mindset on end.

He is at once more alone than he has ever been; he was at first with his father, until he died; then with Claire, until she disappeared with another man into a more normal life in town; and then with Hobbes, who eased the sorrow of Claire's departure. Now Hobbes is gone.

Julius is left with what his father left behind: the cabin that he was raised in; a lifetime of books, lining every wall of his home, which have been Julius's lifelong friends and confidantes; and his great-grandfather's rifle from World War I, which Julius had been trained to shoot with uncanny skill and with the utmost reluctance. But with the death of his dog, Julius's reluctance has reached its end. More and more, simply and furtively, it is revenge that is creeping into his mind.

Fresh snow is on the ground as the hunters lumber into his sights. They're well within the old gun's range. They pause, and they're locked into the crosshairs. Julius's finger traces the trigger. Will he pull it? And what will that accomplish? What if he simply has nothing left to lose?

Customer Reviews:

Sympathy for a killer?.......2007-05-18

This book is confusing, I'm not sure about the message he's trying to send. Very well written, it draws you in immediately and keeps you there unitl the end. However, the story itself is a bit flawed. I'm not sure if the writer is a peta activist, an anti-gunner, or a criminal sympathizer. But I shouldn't try to pigeonhole the writer, it would just be nice to know the message he's trying to convey. So this guys dog was killed without reason. Does this means he should kill every hunter he sees for revenge? He almost appears to be a member of a fundraising group and he wrote this book, so the proceeds would support peta, the anti-gun activists, and criminal sympathizers, because they seem to have the same logic! I must add though, oddly enough, I still liked this book. I just wish he would have conveyed his message better, it's so well written that you want to like it, despite it's shortcomings.

Superb writing and subdued tone make for an awesome combination..........2007-04-30

Julius Winsome is a soft-spoken, methodical character study that never accelerates beyond a gentle gait but is able to keep you turning pages nonetheless.

From a distance Julius would appear to be no different than one might expect of man who lives alone in a remote cabin in the woods of Northern Maine. Quiet, pensive and perhaps a bit odd. But you certainly wouldn't suppose him to be the type to bring fear and panic to your small town - or would you?

Julius' father, a man scarred by war and incapable of providing guidance beyond cryptic philosophies handed down by his equally blemished father, long ago set Julius's moral compass. As you get to know Julius you learn that his father's guidance, and years of living alone after his death, have done little to prepare him to deal with the loves and losses each adult ultimately faces. Consequently, when Julius experiences the loss of his dog he seeks retribution in the calm, matter-of-fact way one approaches an arithmetic problem. Though emotion plays a minor role in his actions, it is not enough to stem the gruesome tide. For Julius, 1 + 2 must always equal 3.

The writing is sparse yet superb. The characters are heavy yet approachable. The story is quick yet involved. The result is an enthralling expose on the fall of an ostensibly normal man who is doomed by his inability to allow emotions or morality to impact fundamental decisions.

Julius Winsome : A Novel.......2007-03-27

I have no idea what review i read that compelled me to buy this book. It starts off rather sad and lonely and spirals downward from there.
I am pretty sure the storyline is disfunctional enough to make Oprahs List

a very good read.......2007-03-18

...with an improbable ending. The author puts you in the mostly lonely world of a cabin in the Main woods, but does not even try to put you in the mind of the person who grew up and lives there, a device which stretches any empathy for his crimes, but still gives appreciation of our most important values.

For Dog's Sake.......2007-03-17

Okay, guy's dog is killed by somebody, and this flips out the protaganist, who becomes a serial killer, shooting hapless hunters in the woods around his secluded cabin. That is the plot. Granted, Donovan is a gifted writer, and the intermixing of Shakespeare, instilled in him by a emotionally dry father, is at times brilliant. Yet, one keeps coming back to the dry plot which, in the end, is unfulfilling. Five stars is way too much for this thin book without a satisfying or satisfactory ending more fit for a short story perhaps than a novel.

Songs of the Doomed : More Notes on the Death of the American Dream

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The Search for the Brown Buffalo
Excellent Sampler

Songs of the Doomed : More Notes on the Death of the American Dream
Hunter S. Thompson
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Popular Culture | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

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Generation of Swine: Tales of Shame and Degradation in the '80's
Better Than Sex (Gonzo Papers, Vol 4)
The Great Shark Hunt: Strange Tales from a Strange Time
Fear and Loathing in America : The Brutal Odyssey of an Outlaw Journalist
Kingdom of Fear: Loathsome Secrets of a Star-Crossed Child in the Final Days of the American Century

ASIN: 0743240995
Release Date: 2002-12-03

Book Description

First published in 1990, Songs of the Doomed is back in print -- by popular demand! In this third and most extraordinary volume of the Gonzo Papers, Dr. Hunter S. Thompson recalls high and hideous moments in his thirty years in the Passing Lane -- and no one is safe from his hilarious, remarkably astute social commentary.

With Thompson's trademark insight and passion about the state of American politics and culture, Songs of the Doomed charts the long, strange trip from Kennedy to Quayle in Thompson's freewheeling, inimitable style. Spanning four decades -- 1950 to 1990 -- Thompson is at the top of his form while fleeing New York for Puerto Rico, riding with the Hell's Angels, investigating Las Vegas sleaze, grappling with the "Dukakis problem," and finally, detailing his infamous lifestyle bust, trial documents, and Fourth Amendment battle with the Law. These tales -- often sleazy, brutal, and crude -- are only the tip of what Jack Nicholson called "the most baffling human iceberg of our time."

Songs of the Doomed is vintage Thompson -- a brilliant, brazen, bawdy compilation of the greatest sound bites of Gonzo journalism from the past thirty years.

Customer Reviews:

The Search for the Brown Buffalo.......2006-02-25

Generally the most the trenchant social criticism, commentary and analysis complete with a prescriptive social program ripe for implementation has been done by thinkers and writers who work outside the realm of bourgeois society, notably socialists and other progressive thinkers. Bourgeois society rarely allows itself, in self defense, to be skewered by trenchant criticism from within. This is particularly true when it comes from a known dope fiend, gun freak and all-around lifestyle addict like the late, lamented Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. Nevertheless, although he was far from any thought of a socialist solution and would reject such a designation we could travel part of the way with him. We saw him as a kindred spirit. He was not one of us- but he was one of us. All honor to him for pushing the envelope of journalism in new directions and for his pinpricks at the hypocrisy of bourgeois society. Such men are dangerous.

I am not sure whether at the end of the day Hunter Thompson saw himself or wanted to been seen as a voice, or the voice, of his generation but he would not be an unworthy candidate. In any case, his was not the voice of the generation of 1968 being just enough older to have been formed by an earlier, less forgiving milieu of the 1950's. His earlier writings shows that effect. Nevertheless, only a few, and with time it seems fewer in each generation, allow themselves to search for some kind of truth even if they cannot go the whole distance. This compilation under review is a hodgepodge of articles over the best part of Thompson's career. As with all journalists, as indeed with all writers especially those who are writing under the gun and for mass circulation media these works show an uneven quality. However the total effect is to blast old bourgeois society almost to its foundations. Others will have to push on further.

One should note that `gonzo' journalism is quite compatible with socialist materialism. That is, the writer is not precluded from interpreting the events described within himself/herself as an actor in the story. The worst swindle in journalism, fostered by the formal journalism schools, as well as in other disciplines like history and political science is that somehow one must be `objective'. Reality is better served if the writer puts his/her analysis correctly and then gets out of the way. In his best work that was Hunter's way.

As a member of the generation of 1968 I would note that this was a period of particular importance which won Hunter his spurs as a journalist. Hunter, like many of us, cut his political teeth on one Richard Milhous Nixon, at one time President of the United States and all- around political chameleon. Thompson went way out of his way, and with pleasure, skewering that man when he was riding high. He was moreover just as happy to kick him when he was down, just for good measure. Nixon represented the `dark side' of the American spirit- the side that appears today as the bully boy of the world and as craven brute. Sound familar? If for nothing else Brother Thompson deserves a place in the pantheon of journalistic heroes for this exercise in elementary hygiene. Anyone who wants to rehabilitate THAT man before history please consult Thompson's work. Hunter, I hope you find the Brown Buffalo wherever you are. Read this book. Read all his books.

Excellent Sampler.......2002-12-24

This is an excellent introduction to the range of Thompson's writings though the early 1990's. It includes samples of his two early novels (Prince Jellyfish, The Rum Diary) and articles and excerpts from his later journalism and fiction ("Let The Trials Begin" is worth the price of the book).No duplication of material fromThe Great Shark Hunt, his earlier collection. An excellent audio version was realeased when the book was first published.
This book gives you some idea of what he was up to during the time covered by the two volumes of letters he's published and shows that his humor and sense of outrage have matured better than, say, Mark Twain's during a comparable stretch of his writing career.

Average customer rating:

Really, really great epic fantasy
Eh . .
One of the best fantasies out there
Wrapping up the duology, but with more to come...
One of the most beautiful stories ever

Hunter's Death
Michelle West
Manufacturer: DAW
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0886777062

Customer Reviews:

Really, really great epic fantasy.......2007-07-11

Often when I begin sequels I always have that faint thought nudging at the back of my mind: Will it be as good as the first? Or will it fail to live up to what came before it? What surprised me here is that I didn't even bother to think that. I just assumed that it would live up to expectations - which shows the quality of West's writing as a whole - and indeed, it was just as good, if not better.

The first book, HUNTER'S OATH, had revolved around things I don't usually find "appetizing" in novels - dogs, hunting, medieval-style fealty don't particularly interest me - although I had allowed it to pull me in all the same. But this time, it's got that same delicious sense of intrigue and suspense, all set in a much more fascinating place - the courts of Averalaan. Court intrigue is what I live for, and this book had more than enough to pull me in and keep me there.

Hunter Lord Gilliam and Huntbrother Stephen are the lone Breodani bumbling their ways through the capital Averlaan, a city unlike anything they've ever known. There are mages there, Artisans, nobles, Queens - and demons. For Averlaan, and the whole Empire, are no longer safe; demons are infiltrating the city, intent on doing - what? No one knows - but Gilliam and Stephen may prove by the end to be the keys needed to save everyone.

There is so much going on in this novel that I'm not even sure if you could call Stephen of Elseth the main character. There's Jewel, the poor girl who steals off the streets but can sense the future; Kallandras, an assassin-turned-bard; Evayne, the time-traveler - and many more. Each and every character with even the smallest part in the plot gets a full canvas upon which to sketch their lives and thoughts and motives. It's all done carefully, building up to the main battle, but each part leading you there is also fascinating. A lot can be read into the character's actions: while West describes everyone in exhaustive detail, she leaves it open in such a way that guessing at character relationships is really quite enjoyable.

The result of all this build-up, perspective-switching, and analyzing of motives and ambitions is an epic tale with characters you really care about. By the time the climactic events happen, all those characters are firmly and solidly real - so real that the book became, to me at least, really powerful. West is an amazingly skilled writer, and I applaud her careful attention to the fostering of each subplot, character quirk, and historical reference. She manages to pull everything together thoroughly. HUNTER'S DEATH does not disappoint. I loved it!

Eh . ........2006-07-19

I don't know why everyone else gave this more stars. Perhaps I wasn't in a mood to read this particular genre. West is a beautiful writer, her characters have depth, but good grief, I ended up wishing it would end. I loved Hunter's Death. I couldn't get through Hunter's Oath. I desperately tried, too. I'm going to try again someday since I own the books.

One of the best fantasies out there.......2005-08-02

I found West's Hunter's Death, and its prequel Hunter's Oath, to be two of the best books around. They had solid settings, and in depth characters--without needing 10+ books to accomplish it in. The only reason I gave it four stars is because I thought that Stephen's Hunter, Gilliam, was a fascinating character and deserved more pages for his POV. Evayne, too, was a hit--simply because she tends to lose her mysterious airs in the Sunsword books, which is disappointing. All West's books are worth reading, but HO and HD are definitely more enthralling and well-written than any of her later 6 books.

Wrapping up the duology, but with more to come..........2003-11-12

This novel attempts to wrap up the major plots in this part of the fantasy world, leaving open several strands the author may choose to revisit later. I thought it was better than the first book, with the shift in location from the small, forested country of Breodanir to the large metropolis of Averalaan in Essaylien. This book introduces one of my favorite fantasy characters of all time: Jewel, a 15 year old leader of a band of street urchins. Jewel has a rare and untrained power to "see" certain events before they occur, and to "know" a lie from truth. The mysterious Evayne, Kallandras, and of course, Stephan and Gilliam advance the story to its conclusion, with the addition of a whole new cast of characters. It is both a great conclusion to the first book and a preparation by the author for the Sun Sword series. I could hardly wait for The Broken Crown to come out!

One of the most beautiful stories ever.......2001-08-28

Hunter's Death has been nothing short of one of the best stories I've ever read. A constant page turner, yet a dramatic tear-jerker. The cast is one of the best ever, and everytime I think of this book a tear comes to my eye (or a big smile stretches from ear to ear). If I were to count how many nights of 5 1/2 hours to 6 hours worth of sleep I got just b/c I couldn't put this book down, well, you'd be amazed I could have functioned throughout the entire week I spent mostly reading this book. But if you love a phenomenal storyline, an excellent plot, an unforgetable (in a good way) cast of characters, and to be touched emotionally like no other story has ever or could ever do to you, then this book is a must read. I recommend it to everyone that likes to read, PERIOD.

The Death of Character: Moral Education in an Age Without Good or Evil

Average customer rating:

Is a credible read
Thoughful, clear, and enjoyable.
Thoughful, clear, and enjoyable.
Glad it's over
Interesting; more about problems than solutions; tough read

The Death of Character: Moral Education in an Age Without Good or Evil
James Davison Hunter , and James Hunter
Manufacturer: Basic Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Bringing in a New Era in Character Education
Diminishing Divide: Religion's Changing Role in American Politics
Tradition in a Rootless World: Women Turn to Orthodox Judaism
American Evangelicalism: Embattled and Thriving
Acts of Faith: Explaining the Human Side of Religion

ASIN: 0465047300

Amazon.com

For sociologist James Davison Hunter, the defining problem of contemporary society is moral education and character formation--or, rather, the lack of meaningful moral education and real character development. In Hunter's view, the titular death of character is a result of the disappearance of the conditions that make moral education possible in the first place. It is a consequence of overwhelming historical forces that defy individual moral agency; multinational capitalism, pluralism, social mobility, contemporary media, and popular culture all play a role.

Hunter understands the roots of moral education and character to be essentially social--involving the complex weave of social, familial, and institutional relationships that are the fabric of culture--and embedded in historical understanding, in shared traditions, and in collective memories. He is skeptical of current agents for moral education who come in the guise of developmental psychologists, neoclassical advocates (traditionalists), and communitarians. Arguing that contemporary American society is unwilling to pay the price associated with meaningful character renewal, he writes, "To have a renewal of character is to have a renewal of a creedal order that constrains, limits, binds, obligates, and compels.... We want character but without unyielding conviction.... We want virtue but without particular moral justifications that invariably offend.... We want decency without the authority to insist upon it." --Eric de Place

Book Description

A landmark study of the roots of the values debate, by the distinguished author of Culture Wars.

The Death of Character is a broad historical, sociological, and cultural inquiry into the moral life and education of young Americans. Neither lament nor celebration, it is based on an empirical study of the children themselves and the effort of Americans to make our children good.

The socialization of our children is a keen concern, but, Hunter argues, the tools of socialization, our schools, have become part of the problem. Rather than develop moral character and teach ethical ideals, our schools are complicit in destroying them. An unintended consequence of the education establishment is the cultivation not of character but of a sort of nihilism that leaves the young with few if any moral resources. Hunter's work is bound to be controversial in that it blames schools and psychologists for replacing the foundation of values with issues of self-esteem.

Customer Reviews:

Is a credible read.......2005-05-27

Hunter blames the problems in modern society on a lack of moral education, which he says results from multinational capitalism, pluralism, social mobility, contemporary media, popular culture, and the changing nature of relationships in America. The scope of this book is broad but worthwhile.

Thoughful, clear, and enjoyable........2005-03-14

While I did not agree with all of Hunter's arguments, I highly reccommend this book. Hunter provides a thoughtful examination of the history of moral education and how contemporary character education, although well-intentioned, does little to improve the morality of youth. Character, as defined by Aristotle, requires not only knowing the good but being able to reason about it. This wisdom, or what Aristotle called phronesis, is something that is overlooked in our modern climate of fast, easy, and scientifically "proven" methods. Hunter makes a profound argument as to how both character education and psychological approaches perpetuate, rather than ameliorate the problem of thin and narrow moral understandings. However, disagree with Hunter's sentiment that the problem is unsolvable (as is clearly suggested by his title). ...but that is another issue altogether. Don't get me started!

Thoughful, clear, and enjoyable........2005-02-23

Glad it's over.......2003-05-23

Most of Hunter's writing, with it's cumbersome, lengthy sentences full of sociological jargon, is hard to read, and the tiny type (10 point?) doesn't help. The section on the history of the techniques used for the moral education of our children, from the 18th century forward, is more straightforward. In the U.S., we started with commonly-held morals based on biblical commands and progressed to each of us making up his own individual set of values. The author is pessimistic about things getting any better. Don't look for solutions to the problems he enumerates. Rather, he sees us sliding down a slippery slope of disintegrating morals into eventual chaos. Honestly, if I'd known what the book would be like, I wouldn't have bought it. Having bought it, if someone had told me what it would be like, I wouldn't have read it. On the other hand, it was fascinating to see, from the history he details, just how we got from there to here.

Interesting; more about problems than solutions; tough read.......2002-07-08

Author James Davison Hunter is a very smart man who does a great job of tracing the changes in moral and social temperament over the years to show how weakened values and ideals have made their way into today's youth. "The Death of Character" has lots of important things to say about the "transformation of moral education" (the title of the book's largest part), and though Mr. Hunter's views are erudite, his writing is really hard to absorb. I'd be inclined to rate this more highly were it not for the fact that it took me forever to read. This book would be great as a university text.

Much of what is explained about how our children are turning out revolves around three strategies for moral education: psychological, neoclassical, and communitarian. I learned quite a bit reading about these approaches and their influence on not only "why Johnny can't read," but more importantly, "why Johnny lacks character." There's some good stuff to contemplate, and I found myself comparing my formative educational years with those of today's school kids. Yep, big difference. What Mr. Hunter has to say about the state of our youngsters must certainly be frustrating to the typical parent; however, there's not much in this book that addresses what to do about it. Disappointing in that regard.

Each page of "The Death of Character" is chock full of well-referenced, expository writing: full of discussion, argument and expanded viewpoints. Although truly interested in grasping all that Mr. Hunter had to convey, I found myself getting bogged down amidst cumbersome wording within too many long sentences that had me reading them over and over again to zero in on the point. My mind wandered frequently. The more than sixty(!) pages of notes were occasionally intimidating (some notes cover multiple pages of even tinier type).

Overall, the importance of the topics covered were outweighed by the low "readability factor." I'd have to tackle this book again to get out of it what I'd expected.

The Orchid Shroud: A Novel of Death in the Dordogne
Average customer rating:

Super characters in a well-told tale

"Blood Is My Right!"
The Orchid Shroud: A Novel of Death in the Dordogne
Michelle Wan
Manufacturer: Doubleday
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Women Sleuths | Mystery | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
Suspense | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
General | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0385514581
Release Date: 2006-07-11

Book Description

“Not since Nero Wolfe has such a fragrant combination of orchid lore and suspense found its way into a mystery novel,” Booklist trumpeted upon the publication of Michelle Wan’s Deadly Slipper. In THE ORCHID SHROUD, Wan weaves another tale abounding in mystery and orchids as interior decorator Mara Dunn and orchidologist Julian Wood team up to solve two murders: one dating back to the 1870s; the other occurring almost right before their eyes.

Mara is renovating the manor house of Julian’s friend, the wealthy and socially prominent Christophe de Bonfond, when she discovers the body of a murdered infant. The body, concealed for more than a century, brings to light unexpected and critical information on an elusive Lady’s Slipper orchid that Julian avidly seeks. Christophe hires genealogist Jean-Claude Fournier to exonerate his ancestors of infanticide, only to have the expert unleash even more terrifying suspicions about who the de Bonfonds really were and their possible links with the mystery orchid. When violent death strikes in the present day, Mara and Julian begin an investigation of their own that leads them to uncover a trail of murder spanning many decades. As they unearth a past filled with hatred, greed, and treacherous manipulations, they must also unmask a present-day killer—before they become the next victims.

Customer Reviews:

Super characters in a well-told tale.......2007-08-29

Mara, Julian and their friends return in Wan's sequel to Deadly Slipper.

Mara, a Canadian who has been living in the Dordogne region for the past 19 years, is an interior decorator. Julian is a landscaper who also studies and collects orchids. They first met in Deadly Slipper and are now in a relationship (although it's going through a rocky patch).

Mara is overseeing renovations for Christophe de Bonfond's manor. When the workers tear down a wall, they discover a body. The murdered infant was wrapped in a blue shawl. Mara wants to know who would do such a horrific thing. Julian becomes interested in the mystery because the baby's shawl is embroidered with an orchid. He realizes that this is the elusive Slipper Orchid he tried to find in Deadly Slipper. If he can find out who made the baby's shawl, perhaps he'll discover where the Slipper Orchid was grown. Interviews with jealous cousins, diary entries and flashbacks to the past reveal that the de Bonfond family has a few skeletons in their closets. Will the baby's identity be revealed?

There is also something savage hunting in the valley. A hunter's body, mutilated chickens and slaughtered lambs have been discovered. Is it a pack of wolves, a feral dog, or, as some whisper, the return of a werewolf?

I really enjoyed the pacing and plot of this book. Wan has created some great quirky characters, and she has a good ear for dialogue. Her dry sense of humor made me laugh, "Pierre shouted to no one in particular, revealing a wet, purple expanse of gums that Julian, despite his dislike of the man, found momentarily fascinating." (p.76).

This book is also a treat for the senses, whether I was reading about the picturesque surroundings or the meals that the characters enjoy. This does not distract from the main mystery, it helped build the tension. I knew that the characters were enjoying normal moments not realizing that soon something bad was going to happen.

Whether you want to solve the mystery or just sit back and enjoy a well-written story,

The Orchid Shroud is highly recommended!

Armchair Interviews says: Strange things are happening in southwestern France.

"Blood Is My Right!".......2006-09-04

French Canadian interior designer Mara Dunn and orchidologist Julian Wood are back in another complex and multifaceted mystery that involves mysterious orchids, legendary werewolves, and feuding branches of an ancient French aristocratic family. Author Michelle Wan once again immerses the reader in bucolic landscape of the Dordogne region of France, its quaint villages, serene farms and flourishing wineries.

While employed to renovate the upper floor of Chistophe de Bonford's Aurillac Manor, Mara and her workmen stumble upon a human baby, preserved for a hundred years by the cold, airless environment of wall and swaddled in a covering of faded blue silk. Its arms are outside the covering and crossed upon its [...], clutching a rosary as if suspended in prayer.

Chistophe de Bonford is appalled at the discovery, mainly because he is about to publish a glorious family history. With a dead baby turning up to be explained, the scandal is no doubt going to rock Chistophe's world and severely tarnish the reputation of his ancient, aristocratic family.

Nicknamed named "Baby Blue," Mara - with the help of Julian is determined to unravel the mystery of who the child actually is. Most strange is that the baby seemed to have been smothered with unnecessary violence. But the biggest surprise is that an image of Julian's elusive Lady Slipper orchid; a flower of the most sinister beauty, the orchid that Bedie, Mara's sister had photographed before she was killed, has been intricately woven into the baby's silk covering.

The discovery astounds Julian, proving yet again that the orchid at one time grew in the surrounding area. Enthused by the discovery, the two amateur sleuths start to unravel the mystery of the baffling orchid and the arcane flesh of the de Bonfords. As the clues gradually disentangle, Mara and Julian discover the brittle bones of old money that embody this house, and learn of the stiffened sinews of class and privilege date back centuries.

In an effort to lean more, Mara turns to historian-genealogist Jean-Claude Fournier who helped Chistophe with the research for his book. But Jean-Claude is also not all that he seems, and when he turns up murdered, the poor Mara becomes the prime suspect. Things become even more frenetic when a sanglier-baiter is killed and half eaten by some kind of wild animal. Perhaps it was a dog, or a wolf or as some would have it, a loup-garou, a legendary werewolf that has reportedly lived in the valley for centuries.

Again, Wan has meticulously researched her novel, not just the complex discipline of orchidology, but also the science of lycanthropy, a rare disease in which individuals exhibit the bizarre behaviour of werewolves. Although, at times the novel is a bit too heavily plotted, the story is always engaging and the tension is effectively maintained throughout. And the descriptions of the beautiful and varied landscape of southwestern France are always a delight.

Mara ultimately finds herself framed for Jean-Claude's murder, Chistophe goes into hiding, and then there are the rumors of the return of the Sigoulane Beast, the legendary werewolf that allegedly terrorized the area during the 1700's and 1800's. Julian and Mara are certain all the nefarious doings are all somehow linked to the de Bonford family; with their history mired in extra-marital affairs, incest and sordid family secrets stretching all the way back to the 1770's, where "all legends have their roots in the reality of a people." Mike Leonard September 06.

Songs of the Doomed: More Notes on the Death of the American Dream Gonzo Papers

Average customer rating:

Songs of the Doomed
Listening To The Good Doctor
Songs of the Doomed
What can I say, it's Hunter!!
When the going gets weird, it's never any better than this

Songs of the Doomed: More Notes on the Death of the American Dream Gonzo Papers
Hunter S. Thompson
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0671420186

Customer Reviews:

Songs of the Doomed.......2004-04-28

The Grateful Dead coined the phrase, "what a long strange trip it's been." This has been oh so true for Dr. Thompson throughout his writing career, so his book Songs of the Damned, goes to show. A collection of writings done by Thompson giving glimpses, grim memories and bad flash backs, into an eventful and often intoxicated career.
This book stands as a time line for Thompson's literary career. With excerpts from almost all of his books, there is a little bit of something for all of his many different fans. From the Rum Diary, to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, which are two of my personal favorites, to Washington politics from the 70's to the 90's. With this book you get little parts of all his books, as well as his letters to editors, and others of numerous magazines. There are a few letters to Colonel Giang of the North Vietnamese PRG, in 1975, in which Dr. Thompson wanted to meet with the Col. I would suggest this book for the die-hard Thompson fan as well as someone who has never read a book by him before, It's full of Thompson's ravings, and the Gonzo journalism that he is known for.

Listening To The Good Doctor.......2000-03-18

I've been digging the audiobooks version of this book for several years now.Dr.T. is a man who knows his limitations, and so most of the readings are done by people who by standards of technique might be considered better.His own sections are thereby thrown into relief. Repeated listenings of the "Cherokee Park" segment of "Prince Jellyfish" continue to be a revelation of fictional technique. Makes you want to read the whole book."Let The Trials Begin" is primo Thompson.

Songs of the Doomed.......2000-02-09

Follow Dr. Hunter S. Thompson on his manic trail of drugs, degeneracy, and discovery through the sixties, seventies, and into the eighties, a decade he has labeled the "Generation of Swine." The good Doctor is at it once again, and no one is safe from his hilarious yet amazingly accurate social commentary. Relax and let Thompson fill your body and soul with horrible tales from the death of the American Dream and other demoralizing corners of modern life.

Songs of the Doomed contains Thompson's famous article about the Pulitzer divorce trial, "Bad Craziness in Palm Beach: I Told Her it Was Wrong," which is the summit of ths poignant book. Dr. Thompson delves into a life reserved for the seriously rich. A place where "price tags mean nothing and pampered animals are worshiped openly in churches...the rules are different here, and the people seem to like it that way...there are bizarre trials over money occasionally and hideous scandals like a half-mad 80 year-old heiress trying to marry her teenage Cuban butler."

So relax, enjoy and "Let the good times roll!"

What can I say, it's Hunter!!.......1999-04-08

Great overview of all his work. Mike should buy it now and never look back!

When the going gets weird, it's never any better than this.......1998-10-19

HST never ceases to amaze me - since being introduced to the man's work by Warren Ellis' TRANSMETROPOLITAN I have eagerly devoured the good doctor's many works. Yet none of them can hold a candle to "Songs of the Doomed". If HST were a musician (and he is, on occasion, but I digress) then this book would be his greatest hits: an easily accessible compliation of the greatest "bits" of Gonzo from the past thirty years. Excerpts from "The Rum Diary", all the Fear and Loathing books, his short stories, his journalistic pieces from South America... even Hunter's fourth amendment battle with the sherrif of Pitkin County (which delayed "Better than Sex" for some time) is mentioned, showing that the Doctor has no shame, nothing to hide but a hell of a lot to tell anyone intelligent enough to listen.

Average customer rating:

Twenty-seven dollars for 3 pieces of one book?
Compelling and Intriguing
Timeless Tales review

Death Row: The Hunter
Jaid Black
Manufacturer: Ellora's Cave
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Adult Fiction | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Erotica | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 1843603683

Book Description

The United Americas of Earth: 2250 A.D. On the eve of his execution, Death Row inmate Kerick Riley overpowers the guard and escapes the violent penal colony that has been his prison for over fifteen years. On the run to find the answers he seeks, the grim-faced, grey-eyed Kerick has two things on his mind: revenge and woman... Scientist Nellie Kan has spent the last several years researching a frightening disorder that has developed in certain populations of humans. On the verge of developing a serum, Dr. Kan is kidnapped by an escaped Death Row inmate and claimed as his personal sexual property. Is her captor the key to the answer she seeks, or a lunatic who will destroy them both? In this installment: Kerick recaptures Nellie in a reunion you won't soon forget; Elijah, Xavier, and Kerick plot the demise of the Hierarchy; Kieran begins to suspect there is more to the woman he claimed than meets the eye. Publisher's Note: DEATH ROW is a three-part erotic suspense serial consisting of the following titles: The Fugitive, The Hunter, and The Avenger. It is necessary to read the previous installment before attempting to read this one.

Customer Reviews:

Twenty-seven dollars for 3 pieces of one book?.......2003-09-16

This futuristic story is one of Jaid Black's best works, but I am irritated by the fact that in order to get the whole story I will have to spend $27 dollars (the book is in three separate parts). I bought the first two, but it has taken so long for the third part to come out that I have lost interest and I don't want to pay another nine dollars. If Ms Black is going to continue to write her books in this manner, I will no longer purchase them.

Compelling and Intriguing.......2003-09-15

Death Row: The Hunter begins where The Fugitive left off. Dr. Nellie Kan, the scientist, has slipped her bonds from Kerick, the escaped inmate, and is resuming her quest for the illusive serum that will save mankind from an infection that turns him into a cannibalistic beast with serrated teeth and claws that slice and dice without remorse.
Nellie is roaming through the jungle headed for a network of underground caves where she believes the journal of Margaret Riley has directed her to find the Xilbalba or the entrance to the Underworld.
Kerick is not about to let his chosen one escape unchallenged and follows Nellie's tracks, vowing to find her and make her sorry she ever ran from him. He will master her if itýs the last thing he ever does!
Nellie has found the caves but three cave dwellers have also found her. With women being in short supply all over the planet, the three, uneducated buffoons, cannot believe their luck in capturing a female and they quickly subdue Nellie, preparing to take her as their own chattel.
Lucky for Nellie, Kerick intercedes and quickly dispatches the cave dwellers. But his own fate for Nellie is torturous as he uses her own traitorous body against her and teaches her a lesson she will never forget.
Unfortunately Kerick drags Nellie back to the catacombs and away from her goal of finding the Xilbalba. But Kerick is not listening to reason and Nellie knows she must escape again or the world is doomed to infection and sub-human domination.
And so the books ends with a startling discovery that changes everything and the reader must wait for the next installment to satisfy their curiosity and hunger on what will happen next.

Death Row: The Hunter revisits earth in the future, giving a stark outlook for mankind and the role of women in society. Through genetic manipulation man has doomed his race to either extinction or evolution at its worse. Chilling in its context, nonetheless this installment is entertaining and provocative. The sex is sensual and powerful, both raw and compelling as Ms. Black takes readers on another ride through sexual fantasia.

Timeless Tales review.......2003-09-15

By TT reviewer Brenda Edde

In the sequel to Death Row: The Fugitive, Ms Black has continued the riveting story of Dr. Nellie Kan and Kerick Riley. Kerick has escaped the Kong Penal colony along with his friends Xavier and Elijah; they are living in the jungle with Kerick's brother, Kieran, and his new bride Karen. Nellie was captured by Kerick shortly after his escape and held captive. Kerick had plans to make Nellie his wife, but in his arrogance, didn't tell her. Nellie has escaped Kerick and is on the run, braving the dangerous jungle outside the biosphere. Hiding from not only her own attraction to Kerick, who only wants to protect her, but also from men who will do their best to claim her in this world where women are in very short supply. Nellie is determined to make her way to Xibalba, a mythical haven for women deep in the jungle, where she believes she'll find answers and the time to finish the serum. Kerick, devastated by her escape, is right on her heels, desperate to save her from danger and get her back in his arms where she belongs. Meanwhile Xavier and Elijah are busy planning the downfall of the Hierarchy that kept the three of them in prison for over 15 years. The hunt is on.

Ms Black has continued the compelling story of what our future could be like if genetics take a wrong turn. Her lush sensuality adds a special level to the danger stalking Nellie. The twists and turns of her story are well paced. The relationships between Kerick and his brother, friends and Nellie are well developed and better explained in The Hunter. I read thru this story in one sitting and was truly upset when I read the last surprising twist that the end of the book. Now I'm waiting impatiently for the final story of the Death Row trilogy.

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