Retailers Books

What I like about Banks' stories is that we not only find engaging and interesting characters that have tension between and within them, but the colorings each has also creates its own dynamic. Banks' characters are never neat and perfect and they have their own demons to fight, even as they are discovering that the world is not even what that character thought it was (and not what we thought it was, seen through their eyes and memories).
The same goes for the characters in this story. We are rooting for them to go one way or another, for it all to resolve in a particular fashion when Banks pulls the rug from under both our and the central character's feet with revelations that twist the picture and alters the interpretation of the past and present.
I agree with another reviewer that Banks can interject political overtones into his modern characters that seem out of place or just a bit much, but it doesn't kill what is an interesting story with some great scenes and situations in it.
Overall a good read, but not one of my top ten books by IB, which continue to be mostly his "skiffies" (Sci-Fi).

"The Steep Approach to Garbadale" is the latest literary novel by Iain Banks. Alban, exiled son of the wealthy Wopuld family, has been invited back into the fold for a crucial meeting at the family's Highland retreat (the Garbadale of the title). For several generations the Wopulds have made their fortune in producing the boardgame "Empire!", but now an American corporation wants to buy them out. Alban plans to attend this meeting, not only to voice his opposition to the sale, but also because at this congregation - perhaps the last which will involve the whole family - he may be able to find from them answers to questions he has held long in his mind. What is the truth behind his mother's suicide over thirty years ago? And what are his true feelings for Sophie, his cousin and first love?

The story is divided between two main timeframes, through which Banks explores the complex web of characters - each one colourful and many of them eccentric - which make up the far-flung Wopuld family. The first of these timeframes takes place in the present, as Alban attempts to rally the family against the American takeover bid. The second takes the reader through various episodes from Alban's past, including his teenage tryst with Sophie. Both are woven together seamlessly and skillfully, in a way which does not disrupt the narrative.

Indeed on the whole Banks' style flows well and is easy to read. His command of detail in each scene is excellent and it is possible for the reader to feel fully immersed in every new setting - and there are many, from Alban's childhood home at Lydcombe, Somerset, to exotic Hong Kong, sweltering Singapore, and the hilly environs of Garbadale House. In addition, Banks is expert at capturing on page the raw emotion and humanity of his characters (the intensity of Alban's summer affair with Sophie stands out in particular) but is also able to do humour at the same time, something which is evident in the fast-paced and consistently good dialogue.

This is not to say that the book is without its faults. Firstly, the resolution feels somewhat rushed and in many ways too neat for the complicated network of familial relationships that Banks spends the book depicting. Also, though the majority of the book is narrated in the third person, there is also, confusingly, an occasional first-person narrator known as 'Tango', who appears in only three short sections and has apparently very little relevance to the story.

These small points aside, however, "The Steep Approach to Garbadale" is a very good and engaging book, and one that I can easily recommend.

Generally agree with points raised by Nef below, where we part ways is that I think that the book's flaws are critical. I didn't really identify with the main character (which is who I assume we are supposed to like as readers), and his out-of-character rants at the end of the book didn't help matters. That fact that he is a stock character (disillusioned black sheep etc.) didn't help matters for me. I found the plot "twist" at the end of the story predictable, strange and erratic first-person narrative by a character that is mostly non-impactful,....I could go on but whatever. No need to restate Nef's well written review.

The only other book of Banks' that I have read is "Wasp Factory", and I thought it was pretty cutting edge, utterly unpredictable with bizarre and well fleshed out characters. Hoping to find some more of Banks' stuff that is cut from this mold.

I did enjoy a lot of the imagery, however, as I have traveled to many of the locales in the book. Banks does have a gift for descriptive imagery.

Another good book from Mr Banks. This book isn't really anything new for the author, but an ongoing refinement of his style. Broad, complex setting, lots of inner dialog, motivated characters and a dash of perversion.

This books reminded me of both "The Business", "Complicity", and "The Bridge". I think it was better than "The Business" - the setting is similarly set amongst some very wealthy people, but the scope of the events in the book is more in keeping to the scope of the setting.

Worth reading.

I've been a long time fan of Banks, but always more drawn to his science fiction work, which has been consistent and powerful. In "The Steep Approach to Garbadale", he has created a highly sympathetic character, and a richly neurotic family as backdrop. The snapshot storytelling, a difficult skill to master, was used to great effect to illustrate the deep conflict driving the protagonist's actions. While far from "morally traditional", Bank's portrayal of teenage love, as well as modern, disjointed relationships is spot on, and touching.

I tremendously enjoyed this book, and would recommend it heartily for new and old Banks fans alike.

"Our Fathers" tells the story of the last few weeks in the life of Hugh Bawn, a once-powerful local politician. Bawn, an idealistic Socialist, was during the fifties, sixties and early seventies, the chairman of Glasgow City Council's Housing Committee, and was responsible for building the tower blocks which at the time were seen as the answer to the city's perennial housing problems. At the time when the book is set (the mid-nineties), however, Bawn is a sick and dying old man, living in a flat in one of his own blocks. He is visited by Jamie, his grandson whom he has not seen for many years. Ironically Jamie, who now lives in England, is a demolition contractor who makes his living by demolishing blocks of the type that his grandfather was instrumental in building. The story is mostly told from Jamie's viewpoint, although there are also passages of third-person narrative filling in the details of Hugh's past life. Besides narrating what occurs during the three months or so that he spends in Scotland with his grandparents, Jamie also tells of his own past, particularly his miserable childhood at the hands of his brutal, alcoholic father, Hugh's son Robert.

The book raises a number of interlinked questions concerning the conflict between idealism and pragmatism, the conflict between the desire for change and the desire to preserve the past and the conflict between the generations. Building, of course, is frequently used, especially by the political Left, as a metaphor for effecting social or political change, in phrases such as "building the future" or "building a new society". Hugh sees himself as a builder in both the literal and the metaphorical senses of the word. His quarrel with Jamie's generation is that they are, both literally and metaphorically, demolishing what his generation built. In Hugh's eyes modern politicians, both Conservative and New Labour, are undoing the social reforms of the past.

There is no doubting the sincerity of Hugh's desire for social reform, rooted in his own impoverished Glaswegian childhood. Nevertheless, his plans to improve the world have proved less successful than he hoped. The buildings he constructed are unpopular with those who have to live in them and with the wider public who regard them as eyesores. At the end of his life, he finds himself under attack, accused of cutting corners and using cheap materials in his zeal to build as many housing units as quickly and as cheaply as possible. It always struck me that the attraction of the high-rise tower block to the planners, architects and housing officials of the third quarter of the twentieth century stemmed less from a sober calculation of its benefits and disadvantages than from an emotional commitment to "modernity" for its own sake. From their perspective, the main advantage of the tower-block was precisely that it was radically different from any form of housing that had preceded it. Today, it is the tower blocks themselves that look like outdated relics of a bygone age, far more than do conventional houses built during the same period. Nothing dates more quickly than yesterday's view of tomorrow.

As one might expect with a book dealing with the dying days of an old man, there is little in the way of dramatic action. Mr O'Hagan's main concern is with his characters'- especially Jamie's- thoughts and feelings. In some ways it struck me, despite its length of nearly three hundred pages, as being closer to a long short story than to a traditional novel. In places it can seem static, but overall there is, nevertheless, a sense of movement, as Jamie comes closer to reconciliation with his grandfather and a partial understanding of what the old man and his contemporaries were trying to achieve. There is also a sense that Jamie is moving closer to forgiving his own father, whom he meets again at Hugh's funeral.

The writing struck me as uneven. Mr O'Hagan has a good eye for the details of modern urban life, and conveys the beauty of the Scottish landscape in some of the finest passages in the book. On the other hand, some of the lengthy dialogues tended to drag, as did passages such as the description of Hugh's funeral. I was both fascinated and frustrated by the characters, especially the flawed idealist Hugh- frustrated in that I found myself wanting to know much more about his previous life than I was actually told. I wanted to know more about his childhood, his time as Glasgow's "Mr Housing" and his relationship with his own son Robert. I wanted to know why the son of an idealistic reformer should have become a cynical, drunken ne'er-do-well. (There is a hint, not fully developed, that Hugh was too preoccupied with political affairs to have much time for his family). If Mr O'Hagan is considering writing a sequel, there is certainly enough material here for a second novel.

Although this is not a great novel, it is both a readable and an interesting one, introducing an fascinating character and touching upon such major topics as religion (Hugh and his wife are devout Catholics), the decline of traditional Socialism, the clash between ideals and reality, the Scottish national identity, the relationship between the generations and the burden of inheritance.

"Our Fathers", by Mr. Andrew O'Hagan is a piece about a Grandfather, a Father, and one Son who has gone to great lengths to prevent becoming the third Parent in the generational series. Readers can judge his reluctance, or possibly fear, to become a Father, however if he were to approach his predecessors in conduct, the world has more Fathers from this type as is. Granted this is a novel, but as they often do, this story is and has been played out forever.

Scotland is the locale and three generations are the subject. This story is well written; it is also brutal physically as well as emotionally. If you are offended if an institution you may cherish is portrayed in very poor light, even in a work of fiction, this book may not be for you.

The issues dealt with in this book are unfortunately not unusual, however the number of books written portraying domestic brutality, and conduct bordering on heinous, seem to abound. It is the exception that we read of a Family that is not the victim of many or all of what this book contains. I do not doubt these situations exist; I do question the need for bookshelves upon bookshelves documenting them.

As a comparison, for those who have read, "Angela's Ashes", you will possibly find that memoir lighter by several degrees than this novel. There is misery and suffering everywhere in the world; it is not exclusive to the Northern areas of Great Britain. However if one were to read much of the newer works about Ireland, and in this case Scotland, you would have to wonder if there is a happy, contented Family in either Country. There are of course many such Families, perhaps they just choose not to write, or publishers not to publish.

Many of the books I refer to and have commented upon have used humor however dark to break the misery of the lives of their characters, real or imagined. Mr. O'Hagan has written a very good book deserving of great praise, however be prepared for unbroken emotion that is uniformly negative, and conduct that at times is repugnant.

With "Our Fathers," rookie novelist Andrew O'Hagan announces his entry into the foray of 21st-century writers with great promise. His first novel is as much a test as it is a book.

O'Hagan hasn't written the greatest first novel ever written, in "Our Fathers." He has, however, written a sublimely adequate novel that should leave readers wondering what the author has in store. For a first novel, "Our Fathers," is, perhaps, technically unsurpassed. It's structure, language, and plot are all expertly presented and well recieved. O'Hagan's fault is in his commitment to his characters, all of whom seem superficially created. His is a great story, well told, with characters in whom we never really trust or believe.

Interestingly, the same could be said of early James Joyce, or even Ernest Hemingway. I would place O'Hagan's potential somewhere between the two of those giants; not quite as intelectually distancing as Joyce, not quite as forceful as Hemingway.

O'Hagan is, no doubt, a gifted writer. This book is fun to read, if only to imagine what it might precede in this genuinely talented writer's career.

Here's hoping he continues...

i spent tweleve hours reading this book...though in the beginning, i wouldn't really say this was a page turner...some parts of this book really disturbed me: jamie's encounter with the priest; his father,robert, the vicious savage that he is, and just the overall tone of the book, which is extremely bleak( i can handle grim, but this was extremely grim for my tastes)... i once lived with a scottish woman, and she never liked to talked about her family, or about her life back in scotland, but when she spoke of it, it was always with reverence; and unlike the character hugh, she hated the irish... what liked most about book, was although, o'hagan showed his family's dysfunctions, he also showed the love that existed between them,that gives the book its soul...

The beauty of the language and the young man's feelings for his father and his grandfather, and the astonishing resolution tucked in a few lines like one beautiful pebble on a great shoreline. He writes of the heart. I could not put it down and missed it awfully when it was over.

This book came out in September 2001 and the author predicted that Mickey Drexler had to go. Then yesterday Mickey Drexler resigns! He saw this coming months before anyone on Wall Street did - I was blown away. This shows what a thorough analysis of the Gap, how it started with one store and grew to more than 4,200, and how it changed merchandising in America. This is a compelling book -- good luck to the Gap. They should hire the author to replace Mickey Drexler.

When I bought this book I was afraid that it would be gossipy like THE RISE AND FALL OF THE HOUSE OF BARNEYS. But what a delight! Not only does this book tell the history of Gap, Banana Republic and Old Navy, but it does so through the telling of the social history of America. How pop culture revolutionized retailing is a tremendous context. The author takes the work of Alison Lurie and Paco Underhill and shows how Donald Fisher used the meaning of dress and "retail anthropology" to go from one store to more than 4,000. And that Donald Fisher had to rise above antisemitism in American retailing is compelling reading. I mentioned this book to my sister who told me it was required reading in her MBA course -- this book may be academic but it's for everyone.

This book made me remember what [was] explained to me once years back. That fashion reflects society's mindset. This book does a brilliant job telling the business story of the Gap while helping explaining what was going on in American society at the same time. When we become used to something, we forget what it was like without it: before ATMs were introduced in the mid-1980s, we had to think about how much cash we'd need for that week, then go to the bank and cash a check. It seems so archaic now the ubiquitous nature of ATMs. But the changes that the Gap wrought -- music in the stores, being able to help yourself (and not having a sales clerk show items behind cases), and incorporating elements of pop culture's sensibilities revolutionized merchandising. How ATMs changed the way we bank, the Gap changed the way we shop ... and this book is the authoritative business story of that seismic mindset in American retail.

INTO does a terrific job of explaining how Don Fisher at the Gap pioneered using pop culture in retailing. It often takes someone who's not in a given feel to "break out of the box." Fisher, a real estate developer by profession, had no background in merchandising. That's probably why he "revolutionized" retailing -- first by modeling the Gap stores on the Sonny & Cher show, and then by co-opting pop culture. But as we know, Gap's done poorly -- and INTO explains where it lost its focus in the 1990s. This is a fascinating discussion.

I honestly believe that either the previous reviewers are family members of mr. nevaer or they didn't read beyond the jacket flap copy.

I did.

mr. nevaer essentially attributes gap's challenges
to gay people. I'm not kidding. with prose pearls such as "flaming queens" and "twinkies", he makes some of the most preposterous claims ever to be found in an allegedly serious business publication. not to mention using
some of the most offensive language and thinking to be found

in anything published since 1957.

the great majority of quotes from his anonymous sources ring incredibly false -- people don't talk like he writes -- and his theses are largely presented without support other than... um... that's what he thinks.

mr. nevaer is, of course, free to hold whatever prejudices
he likes. you, however, shouldn't pay to endorse them.
and you can find much more serious and balanced consideration
of the gap and its recent stumbles elsewhere.

Panic! Alert! Paradigm shift! "E-shock" originates from that obnoxious time period when everyone with a mouth, pen or posterior spouted Darwinist warnings of extinction for any business that failed to embrace the Internet and its associated New Economy. "The new game in town means some of the traditional barriers are breaking down and new ones are taking their place," de Kare-Silver states. "Understand these new rules and win. Ignore them and die."

DIE!

"E-shock" is clearly intended to arouse Joe Businessman's survival instincts. For a college geography student like me, it fails to get the adrenaline pumping. Fortunately, it is a quick read. De Kare-Silver writes about modern consumer time poverty -- one of the reasons you're reading this may very well be that you're too busy and pressured to bother making it to the bookstore -- and the book is thus written for the person on the go. Its never ending bullets, lists and overviews would tidily transfer to a PowerPoint presentation. In fact, I think I would rather have received the book in such a form.

Without going into gruesome detail, "E-shock" is concerned with the implications of the e-commerce revolution for the retailer, manufacturer and business in general. The Internet has spawned a New Economy and with it come all sorts of changes that you'd better consider. You need to change your operations. You need to rethink your strategies. But don't worry; consultants such as De Kare-Silver are out there to help you.

You need to realize that E-commerce investments can actually be earnings diluting. You should forget PE ratios when evaluating an e-business. You should consider internet flotations as part of the formula for delivering shareholder value.

You should also do away with commas.

"E-shock" finds this form of punctuation antiquated in the context of the new business-writing environment. When I read sentences such as, "Bursting onto the scene in 1994 it has caused a major rethink on how to sell products and services to consumers," I can't go any further without penciling in a comma between '1994' and 'it.'

But I'm just a stodgy old dinosaur lumbering along shackled to the Old Punctuation. If I had an ounce of self-preservation, I would adapt and invest in the New Punctuation, which I suspect goes something like this:

1) Because they take up time and space do not bother with commas and in order to remain competitive you may have to do away with semicolons hyphens and 10% of your periods.

2) Not only is "e-" an acceptable prefix to any word, concept or phrase, it is the New Prefix. It is the e-new e-way of e-doing e-things so e-get e-with e-the e-program e-.

3) A major issue will be punctuation distribution. In a virtual sentence, how do you deliver your periods, semicolons and exclamation points to the sentence's consumer? You may have to try novel approaches such as starting sentences with ampersands or centralizing all of your paragraph's periods next to one word with a high demand, such as "the."

4) Some forms of punctuation will be easier to adapt to the virtual environment than others. A big factor is familiarity. Consumers will be quite willing to see periods, commas and question marks in their virtual sentences, but more obscure things like tildes (~) will seem less trustworthy to online readers.

5) Accept the fact that cannibalisation will occur. For example, semicolons may be used in many instances in which a period would suffice instead. You may not use as many periods as you used to, but that's simply part of the New Punctuation.

I hope you invest in this book so that you'll be more prepared for these sort of changes. As de Kare-Silver says, "It's a bit like staking out the ground for the future and the market recognises to survive ... [one must] do that and to do it now. Like the gold rush, there is only going to be so much territory, so ... [one must] stake out [one's] share."

Of course, the gold rush only lasted a few years. This book is already in its second edition and I wouldn't be e-shocked if it needs updating again soon.

In the book, E-Shock: The New Rules ¡V Internet Strategies for Retailers & Manufacturers, the author, Michael de Kare-Silver, not only presents a lot of e-commerce pioneer¡¦s examples, but also quotes data (from leading journals and newspapers) and interviews (from business executives and think tanks) to help answer those questions. As a whole, the book is not a theoretical but practical, up-to-date volume and, especially, will help retailers and manufactures answer whether their companies are ready for virtual selling and how to proceed opportunities for e-commerce.

De Kare-Silver acknowledges that forecasting future market development can never be an exact science, but he argues that he has been enormously encouraged in his conclusions and convictions by a number of people. In the first part of the book, de Kare-Silver cites a bunch of reports from newspapers and magazines (e.g. Business Week, Reuter News Service, etc), interviews of CEOs (e.g. Bill Gates) and research or report (e.g. A.C. Nielsen research) to support his assertions. For example, he quotes Gate¡¦s words: ¡§The internet is a tidal wave. It will wash over nearly all industries drowning those who don¡¦t learn to swim in its wave¡¨ (p. 40). Moreover, Jagadish Sheth, professor of marketing in Goizueta business school, indicates that ¡§the combination of technology sophistication, equipment power and ease of use plus the supporting infrastructure will make electronic purchasing widespread in the U.S. by the year 2005¡¨ (P. 42). Those consolidated assertions give de Kare-Silver a stronger ground to say that it¡¦s time to go shopping on line.

Also, de Kare-Silver believes, ¡§survival of the fittest.¡¨ Timing, keen observation and real-time decisions decide if you will be a winner or a loser in the future e-shopping competition. So he also gives the readers some innovative companies (e.g. 1-800-FLOWER, First Direct, Levi Strauss) that pioneered changes in the electronic selling arena. They have a history of innovation and they are learning on e-commerce at every step. He strongly recommends that it is important to be at the forefront as the internet develops. That is to say, you lose one minute, and you may lose forever in the e-shopping era.

Then, he tries to analyze the far-reaching impacts of the e-commerce revolution and provides essential survival rules for retailers and manufacturers. Facing up to the skyrocketing growth in online shopping, he argues that some of old business administration models are no longer applicable, and as a result, winners in the future need to learn new rules early and learn to play by them. The soaring growth in e-shopping has generated a new set of survival rules for retailers and manufacturers. De Kare-Silver tries to pinpoint some rules and strategies for those who are interested in e-shopping to abide by. Some of these new rules include ¡§be ready to cannibalize,¡¨ ¡§be prepared to become a multi-channel operator,¡¨ ¡§get on interactive TV,¡¨ ¡§think in terms of convenience, convenience, convenience,¡¨ ¡§create a sense of community service¡¨ and the like, is a blueprint for the retailers doing business in the 21st century. Indeed, he tells retailers and manufacturers how to seize the competitive edge in time to help their business.

De Kare-Silver highly recommends retailers and manufactures take ES (electronic shopping) TEST into account when propelling e-shopping. The ES TEST, which provides simple step approaches (including product characteristics, familiarity and confidence, and consumer attributes) will help the retailers and manufactures to evaluate products and services best suited for online selling. As De Kare-Silver put it, ¡§the marketplace is dynamic, things are changing rapidly¡K, those who watch their marketplaces carefully and evaluate the trends rigorously can put themselves in the best possible position to respond electronically if and when demand
grow¡¨ (p. 117).

The book¡¦s most intriguing chapter is ¡§ the next wave in e-shopping.¡¨ De Kare-Silver reminds us of thinking about the next wave in e-shopping in the last part of the book. In addition to sophisticated consumer demand, rapidly improving technologies are the key forces driving the changes in shopping habits and the arrival of new wave in e-shopping.

With the development of digital TV, de Kare-Silver wonders if this new technology will be the winner of e-shopping in the future. Consequently, he interviews leading experts and commentators including Curtis Kopf ... Mike Nevin (from Dixons), Bruce Lynn (from Microsoft¡¦s Web TV), and James Ackerman & Julian Eccles (From BiB TV) to help answer the question. They dare not disagree that the wave of the future in e-shopping is digital TV because many large corporations are investing heavily in TV interactive shopping channel. Digital TV, undoubtedly, will become omnipresent quickly and play a significant role in e-shopping in the future.

By and large, the author prefers giving empirical cases to building theories, so it is easy to read even though your background is not related to business. The rules or strategies previously mentioned teach retailers and manufactures how to respond to changes and competition. This book targets retailers and manufactures: how to make profits and survive in the changing market. These are the important issues the author discusses, but I think the author can do more. I suggest that the author can mention the issue of business ethics. Are there any new strategies or rules that may invade consumer¡¦s privacy? Should retailers and manufactures adapt all the data of consumers they get on line for any purpose? These questions are needed to discuss more for developing a sound e-shopping environment. Business rules and strategies are necessary, however, business ethics cannot be neglected, either.

The author also mentions a bunch of examples from the UK, U.S., and some from Japan. However, people in different countries, of course, do not share the same attributes. Undoubtedly, you cannot assure if the rules and strategies workable in the western world will fit in the rest of the world. If the author can compare the differences of e-shopping experiences in different countries and create some alternative rules and strategies, I would be further likely to back him up.

I could picture Mr. Segel and Mr. Shay sitting around a table one evening (alright, maybe two) as they jotted down whatever thoughts that came to mind, no matter how trivial or irrelevant those thoughts were and inserted them in their manuscript. To say that both authors have a knack for stating the obvious would be an understatement. The 47 pages they spent on Trade Shows was absolutely amateurish. For example, strategy 154 - "Dress in a Costume." Being the clown of the booth is probably not such a great idea unless you're at a circus. Moreover, when was the last time you heard a buyer say "I hated their line, but the M&M's were great."

This book is definitely gospel for sales reps like myself who sell multiple lines of product to independent, mom and pop retailers. Segel and Shay have done a great job keeping this book simple. The format makes it a quick reference to use and re-use over time and the tips all highlight what I believe is the most important principle of sales: building strong, personal relationships with the people you are selling to. As retailers themselves, Segel and Shay know what independent retailers want and need most and they have created a book that allows sales people like myself to make better offers to them. I would have to say that the greatest benefit of this book is the almost limitless supply of creative promotional tactics one can use on even the tiniest of budgets. I recommend this book wholeheartedly to any wholesaler, manufacturer, or sales rep looking to build long-term relationships with retailers.

This book reads like an extended high school term paper. Some of the biographies could qualify for an entry to the wikipedia- others barely merit an entry in a bibliography...for a high school term paper. The illustrations are inked by the same undistinctive hand- which is rather sad and occasionally pathetic. The absence of context- the absence of variety, the absence of flavor all make for a very dull and uniforming "encyclopedia" indeed. I shudder to think of the school papers that will be written using this book as source material.
Are the authors and editors that worked on this project so uninspired by this field?

In An Influential Fashion isn't for your casual home or art library collection, but will delight collections solid in fashion history and design. Over a hundred sixty fashion designers and retailers from many countries are profiled in entries that cover the personality's lasting influence on the industry. Commercial fashion, licensing agreements, and marketing are all explored in an exciting survey.

picked up this book in Stockholm airpot and couldn't put it down. Fascinating history. Wish map was more detailed

Back & forth 800 years difference,but still the story line sucked. The ending was impossibly stupid.
Nuff said.

Just finished reading this rather voluminous book. Let's face it - it was OK, leaning towards good. Here's how.

The basic premise of the book is the search for the Grail (yes, another one!). Of course all ideas are original, just that some are rather less original than others. Keeping snide remarks aside, the book does have its strong points, and one must give credit where it deserves.

Kate Mosse has dexterously managed to weave a yarn, stretching (quite thin at times, if you ask me!) over more than 800 years, involving some rather exotic themes and preparing a broth that at times looks like overkill. The story revolves around Alais who, towards the beginning of the 13th century gets involved in the safekeeping of the Grail, and Alice, who in the early part of the 21st century, stumbles (literally!) across the same.

While the plot might look convoluted to many if not most readers, it certainly does manage to hold attention for a majority of the book's 500+ pages. But there are times when the author's attention to detail just doesn't sell. Also, the fact that the story involves latent memory, and some really long-living characters doesn't help either.

All said and done, I would have loved this book if it had:
- been about 300-odd pages in length,
- avoided the 800-year time-span OR at least not drawn (unneccesary)parallels in the characters in the two eras

Be that as it may, the description of France of the 13th century is quite beautiful, and this is one aspect where the use of ten words instead of five (as the Mosse is sometimes prone to using) indeed does justice to the reading pleasure. Also, character development is good and coherent. The war scenes are also well-written and tempered.

The weakest link - the love story of Alice. I was taken off-guard when it happened.

Go ahead - judge for yourself. It's worth at least one read.

This book starts out good but just fizzles out. It didn't hold my interest at all. Too dry. I like to be inside a story, not outside looking from a distance.

it's rare for me, but I couldn't finish this book. by page 150, I simply did not care at all about the characters or what was going to happen to them. I actually bought the book for my husband, who asked for it for his birthday, even though all I had to do was read the cover and realize he'd hate it. which he did--he stopped at page 150 too. Everything was incredibly predictable, the characters were one-dimensional (at best), and completely unsympathetic. The heroine(s) were the kind of women who only exist in ridiculous bodice-ripping romances, and, apparently, this book. typos were way too frequent, which makes me think they rushed this book out to ride on the coattails of the Da Vinci Code. Just bad. Don't waste your time or your money.

I saw someone else's review mention the crux of what you need to know here, that is unlike River God this book is far more fantasy (magic, etc...) than historical fiction. If you can handle that fact then you are in for a great ride. I couldn't put the book down and read the 720 + pages in a few days. The only reason I can't give it 5 stars is because it could be viewed a bit as a "bait and switch" for those expecting strong historical fiction but getting mostly fantasy. However, the book was such good reading to me I didn't mind, though if you had told me the fantasy and magic story lines I might not have read it. This is great summer reading if you aren't looking to gain deeper knowledge but are looking for great fun and harrowing escapism from normal life, if you're up for that, this is a great book to read.

I am a Wilbur Smith fan and have read all his novels. This story tries to continue a fanciful tale from three prior books. The first, "The River God," was terrific. The third, "The Seventh Scroll," was excellent. "Warlock" was good and this one is Egyptian sci-fie with an improbable plot line.

I was very disturbed after reading this novel. Wilbur Smith robbed Taita of his dignity!!!! He could have died with grace and been a great character in literature. Making Taita young again and running off with Fenn, i.e. Lostris may be the author's way of avoiding death. This was not the ending that the series deserved.

I've been catching Wilbur Smith's ancient Egypt series at my local library, where they only have the first three books. Saw this paperback at the grocery store and snapped it up, thinking, "Great! What's that rascal Taita up to now?"

Well, seems that even Smith doesn't know. What WAS this drivel? What were the editors thinking? This is New Age salad, with holey plot and graphic sex without any reason for it... this was the first book I have ever -- EVER -- thrown in the trash without finishing it. (Before you think I'm a prude, it wasn't the sex that did me in, it was that Taita is unrecognizable to me as the old clever vainglorious mischief-maker I was missing.)

Don't bother.

Wilbur Smith is without a doubt one of the best story tellers I've read. His characters are so real and personal that yo are right there with them sharing their thoughts and feelings. Also his descriptions of the time, place, and surroundings are exceptional......(my wife thinks that his explainations of the mating habits of the African elephant in one of his novels was a bit over the top!) I liked it myself!

Keep it up Mr. Smith

Gary Cox

I thought the book was extremely well written. James Wilson did not made the error to give his people a modern outlook on life and social problems within a Victorian period. But I was disappointed by the ending. Somehow, I got the feeling that in the last 80 pages, Turner disappeared, no real ending displayed, the scene between Marianne and James (basically a rape) sounded contrite. It is a shame really but compared to most of the same fiction, this is outstanding achievement from a literay perspective. The man can write.

This is a blot on the literary landscape in general, and the fiction of Wilkie Collins in particular.

If you enjoy seeing characters you liked in previous books SLIMED, then by all means ... forge ahead.

Quite enjoyed this book but it is a bit longer than it needs be. Good plot and characterisation.

This is a good book. You need to know that. Otherwise the relatively slow pace will deeply frustrate you and may cause you to quit reading. Don't quit. The payoff is rewarding. The answers and new questions that slowly surface are intriguing...the inner character struggles are haunting. Thank you Mr. Wilson for allowing loose ends...it's so much more enjoyable to be left with more questions than neatly wrapped overly predictable endings.

I enjoy novels set in 19th century England and I have read Turners biography so I assumed I would find this an interesting story.While the author is a good writer and his descriptions of Turners paintings are at times breathtaking ,the book was very dark and slow moving.Eventually I lost interest in what the dark clue was and I was unable to make it to the end of the novel.Instead I took out my book of Turners paintings and spent an enjoyable afternoon admiring his work.

This book is a must read for any retailer or wholesaler needing to re-envent themselves regarding understanding how the consumer buys and what they must do to grab the consumers attention. It is not all about price. The shopping habits are changing and the retailer needs to understand that they must also change in order to survive todays business environment. Pam has really nailed this one from all angles and support comes from her complete research findings. Great Job and REMARKABLE INFORMATION.

This book is terrible - based on a "formula" that is pure conjecture and intuitively incorrect: Your likelihood of buying something is equal to (Need + Feature set + Affordability) x Emotion^2.

To suggest that your propensity (to use her word) to buy something will always increase with each additional feature is obviously wrong. Too many features kills a product.

To suggest that your propensity is affected by the square of your emotional response (to the retail store you are in or something else) is completely without evidence. At best, the idea that emotion has more impact than the other terms is argueable. To couch that idea in a mathematical "formula" suggests the author is a charlatan.

Furthermore, the book interrupts the flow of text with magazine style "sound bites", which gives the impression the author either believes that a) the reader is skimming and needs to be prompted to stop and read this section, or b) the author is in such love with her prose it needs to be repeated a second time in larger font.

Don't waste your time (let alone your money) with this book.