L. J. Smith Books

I read The Forbidden Game series as a teenager and since have read it a dozen times at least. I cannot begin to tell you how amazing this series is. Vampire Diaries by LJ Smith was recently re-released and I must say as good as that series is this one is 10 times better. I really hope it gets released again for a new generation. This story is so unique, based around a girl who buys a game from a strange store. Her and her friends end up opening up a veil that has kept a demon in the shadows who has just happened to have been in love with her for years. He brings her and her friends into the game to relive their worst fears. Even as a teen I fell in love with Julian, the shadow demon. He is absolutely breathtaking and everyone who reads this series will fall in love with this tragic character. Don't just listen to me, read it for yourself. If you like: Vampire Diaries, Twilight, Vampire Academy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Tithe, or any other book similar to these you will love this one!

Who's this mysterous man, well who ever he is, he can have me any time. Very good book to read and can get addictive in the world of L J Smith.

like the other reviewers, i've read this book when i was 16. now at the age of 21, i still find this book captivating and have reread the series a dozen times over the years. the ending always makes me cry. the characters are memorable especially julian. this is a book you'll treasure and reread no matter how old you get.

This is the most awesome book in the WORLD!!! It's so sad that it is going out of print! I found this book last year while looking for a scary book to read and I found this! I have re-read and re-read it so many times that it's almost falling apart not to mention the times i have let MANY other people borrow it!!! Everyone LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!! Julian is like OH MY GOD HOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!!!!!!!! I totally fell in love with the Prince of Shadows... I recommend it!!! HOpefully you'll get it before it's too late... Almost all L.J. Smith's book are going out of print!! Especially the NIGHT WORLD series that are awesome!!! Tells you of how when someone breaks the rules of the Night World they have to Pay!!!!!! Forbidden Game is a page turner and so romantic, courageous, loyal, evil, good, betrayal and everything!!!!!!!! READ IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This entire Trilogy is just amazing. I was given a present of the first book when I was about 7 (10 years ago), and I immediately wanted the next two! I fell in love with Julian there and then, and was never able to understand why Jenny didn't just choose him! I've read these books over 20 times, and they're all falling apart. Everybody in the entire world should read them, because you're missing out if you don't. I highly recommend them. The last book is a nice finish, but it's incredibly sad. I wish it had ended differently! Anyone who would like to discuss these books, I've set up a Yahoo! group for it called theforbiddengame. Please join, I really like to talk about these books!

I have read this book so many time and it still doesn't get old.

I have always been an avid fan of LJ Smith, so I was not surprised that this series was awesome. Her descriptions are always so clear (and so strange) that you can almost envision the people and things in front of you (unlike everyone else though I loved Rob more than Gabriel). As an adult now, I still read her books (although I have yet to find the last book of the Nightworld Series). A great read for anyone!!!!!!!

Whilst LJ Smith's books are a good read, I do get narked with the characters sometimes. Most of the lead characters are too nice and any 'bad' characters are always gothy and into heavy metal. Goodie is sickly sweet and oh so nice blonde, baddie is hot but very nasty brunette (see how easy it is to follow the plot read the secret circle if you don't believe me) But back to this, this had a great starting point, but lost the plot slighty. LJS seemed to be really hitting us on the head with how 'bad' Gabriel was and how nice everyone else was, and of course the main female is so understanding and desired by all. Liked it but not as much as the Forbidden Game.

I had read several of L.J.Smith's Nightworld series when I read Dark Visions, and I was immediately spellbound. The characters were all well-developed and very appealing - you cared what happened to them. Of course, Gabriel was my favorite. There's something so appealing about a bad boy in need of salvation. I read the whole thing through in one sitting and then sat down and read it through again. I would recommend it for anyone interested in the unknown, in coming-of-age books, or just interested in a good read.

This book is by FAR my favorite book of all time. Kaitlyn Fairchild is my new favorite female character. Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings... Yeah, they don't hold a candle to L.J. Smith's Dark Visions Collector's Edition.
Personally, I am AMAZED that this book doesn't get more recognition than it currently does. I would enjoy it more than life itself if this book became a movie. I'm actually telling all my friends about it.
I am not much of a reader... at all... But this book... This book made me cry, made me laugh, made me think hard on certain subjects... everything. I loaned my copy to a friend in hopes of getting her hooked on it too.
I have read and re-read this book, time and time again, for years. It never gets old. Smith's vivid descriptions of surroundings and characteristics give me a good mental image of all her characters.
I am seriously thinking about getting her other books. In fact, I will.
Read this book. If you think you knew what a good book is... you haven't read anything until you read this.

This was actually my first L. J. Smith book ever. My roommate was reading it when I was 14 and so I picked it up. It wasn't until I was finished that I realized it was a trilogy so it definitely can stand alone but is much better if read last.
The first one was awesome because it introduced the characters and each of the characters got a chance to really show through their true personalities. Except for discovering Gabriel's weakness as a result of over exposure to the large crystal from Book One I really thought #2 was boring.
But #3 was just the best. Kaitlynn has always seen guys look at her w/ desire b/c she's so beautiful but she'd never admitt that she was beautiful b/c others always feared her at the same time due to her visions. It's totally understandable that she'd then hook up w/ the first boy who ever gave her notice w/o fear or any hidden intentions. However, there's always this pull between her and "the bad boy". Lisa Jane does such a great job of showing how we all feel at that point in our lives. When we don't know what we're feeling or what's right. And you fall in love w/ "the bad boy" because you realize the pain and betrayal he experienced that made him who he is but that he's still basically good. And then Rob is like a perfect gentleman, the nice one, the reliable one - but no passion. So it raises the question can you truly be "in love" with someone whom you have no passion for?
This book had a perfect blend of action, danger, suspense and guilt-wrenching plessure so that anyone can enjoy it.

Kait decides to go against her friends and pretend to be a memeber of the dark psychics. Lying to Gabriel, and telling him that she came back for HIM and HIM alone, she begins to get more than she bargained for. And that includes the fact that she begins to fall...for Gabriel. So, when the end comes, which will she choose, Rob or Gabriel? Light hottie, or dark hottie?

Okay, okay, so the fact that Gabriel is totally hot spiced this book up A LOT! But, it WAS a great book. See? Look up top...FIVE stars. THAT is NOT what this book deserved. If i could give this book 10 stars i would do so in a heartbeat.

Gosh Lisa has done it again! This is the third of the Dark Visions Trilogy.

Gabriel has left the group and teamed with Mr.Z. When Gabriel fails to claim the crystal from the group Kaitlyn senses his weakness torwards her. So Kaitlyn takes it upon herself to destroy the evil crystal and help him at the same time. SO she heads off and pretends to team with Mr.Z as well. But what she didnt expect were the new house guests occupying the old house and her newly discovered love for Gabriel....you do the math!
This book was SO good I cant even explain it in words. I mean this book had my heart racing at times. And the ending was absolutely PERFECT I couldnt have asked for a better book!!!!!!!..... Oh yea Kaitlyn's big DECISION was ummm...well I think Kaitlyn's choice was pretty uh......interesting.

I mean the character Gabriel alone is more than enough reasons to buy this book! Only in my dreams would I EVER encounter someone half his character!
So PLEASE buy the book, buy the trilogy. But no dont stop there buy ALL her trilogies. No as a matter of fact buy ALL of L.J Smith books she's brilliant! Trust me Im pretty picky about my authors And she's at the very TOP of my list!!!

'The Passion' is the conclusion to L. J. Smith's 'Dark Visions' trilogy that began with 'The Strange Power' which introduced us to five teenagers brought to the Zetes Institute to enhance their psychic abilities only to find that the man in charge has plans to change them into a psychic 'swat team'. The trilogy continued with 'The Possessed' in which the five of them (Kaitlyn, Gabriel, Rob, Lewis and Anna) were on the run from Mr Zetes in their search to find a mysterious house from their dreams where the Fellowship lived, a passive Utopian society rich in psychic powers thanks to the power of a large perfect crystal. However, their strict rules of conduct meant that one of their numbers - Gabriel - was forbidden to enter their dwelling-place. Blinded by their goodness and ridgid purity Gabriel summoned Mr Zetes and his band of 'dark psychics' that had dogged the teens on their road trip across the country, and together they destroyed the great crystal, leaving only a shard that was placed in Kaitlyn's care. With the Fellowship disbanded and Gabriel reverted to the 'bad guys', the teenagers only hope seemed to be to destroy the Institute from the inside - by using their crystal shard to destroy Mr Zetes own crystal.

As you can see it is impossible to read any of the books out of order as 'The Passion' starts right where the last one ended. Kaitlyn decides to abandon her boyfriend Rob and best friends Anna and Lewis to return to the Institute, in the attempt to both convert Gabriel back to the white hats and find the dark crystal in order to destroy it. She successfully infilterates the Institute and finds herself surrounded by enemies - not only is Gabriel a tad suspicious of her, but there is also her ex-mentor Joyce Piper who betrayed them, Mr Zetes's daughter Lydia, and the malevolent Mr Zetes himself. As well as this are the 'dark psychics' of Mr Zetes former group: John 'Jackal Mac' MacCorkendale, Laurie Frost, Paul 'Renny' Renfrew and Sabrina 'Bri' Jessica Gallo (where does she get these names?!) Along with the new faces comes a new range of psychic abilities such as astral projection, psychometry and dowsing.

Other plot strands include the love triangle between Kaitlyn, Rob and Gabriel; the continuing destruction of the Fellowship; Rob, Anna and Lewis's quest to help both Kaitlyn and the comatosed Marisol of book one; Kaitlyn's struggle to find acceptance among the dark psychics; the dark psychic's deadly missions, and of finding Mr Zetes's very first students...

A fault however, is that L. J. is far too preoccupied with looks - so much so that it begins to get ridiculous, as are her long-winded descriptions on how beautiful Kaitlyn is; silly descriptions such as "a medieval witch princess against the dawn" and "eyes that people called witchy, smoky blue with darker blue rings in them". At one point Kaitlyn actually stands in front of the mirror and thinks to herself - "I look extremely witchy. Like someone who might go walking down the street like this, barefoot, hair wild in the breeze, singing strange songs." Please! It's a bit much. Likewise the simile for Rob as a 'golden, avenging angel' is too overused.

All in all, fans of L. J. Smith should be satisfied with this concluding novel to the trilogy. Unlike her other books it does not deal as much with supernatural qualities (such as vampires and witches) but many of her trademark features are there such as her famous love triangles. For once her heroine chooses the 'bad boy' - quite unprecedented in L. J.'s history (Cassie chooses Adam over Nick, Elena chooses Stefan over Damon and Jenny chooses Tom over Julian). The dark psychics were interesting despite their wackiness - I hope everybody noticed they were symbolic opposites of the original five (two boys, two girls in each group with Gabriel as the fifth member of both). The story wraps up quite quickly for a swift happy ending, but all loose ends are tied up and readers get the standard happily ever after they were hoping for.

In this excitiong conclusion to The Dark Visions Trilogy Gabriel has left and joined up with Mr. Zetes. But Kait knows this isn't the real Gabriel. So she decides to save him. She leaves the group and pretends to team up with Zetes. But while there Kait starts exploring her feelings and realizes she is crazy in love and holds a deep burning passion for...Gabriel. Can Kait save the day? And who will she chose? Rob or Gabriel? The light or the dark?

Kaitlyn definately made the right choice!!! This was my favorite of the trilogy. It was AWESOME! Make sure you read this and all of L.J.'s other books.

Leaving off from The Strange Power (Dark Visions, Book 1) Kait & Co. must escape from the Psychic Enemies Network. The posse must literally follow their dreams to a mysterious house.
Problems are:
Rob and Gabriel still hate each other
Gabriel and Kait realize their feelings for each other
Thanks to Mr. Zetes, they are now fugitives...
Then there's the whole "psychic vampire" thing.
I love this book.
Kait is a strong capable heroine who inspires loyalty and trust.
Gabriel becomes a more sympathetic character and Mr. Zetes true insidiousness is revealed
Followed by:
The PASSION (DARK VISIONS 3): THE PASSION

Living in england I have been trying to but this series, when I eventually bought this book I wasn't disappionted what a brillient series shame though that L.J. Smith hasn't continued writing romance horror and supernatual. I enjoyed reading the book and have read them several times.

i thought his was the best of the dark visions trilogy by far.. which really is saying a lot because it is a great series. i love the friendship and attraction between kaitlyn and gabriel that develops in this book.. their chemistry kept me interested and in suspense to see who she picked.

She's done vampires, witches and shadow-creatures, and in this trilogy L. J. Smith tackles psychics, namely five psychics in particular - Kaitlyn Fairchild, Rob Kessler, Gabriel Wolfe, Anna Whiteraven and Lewis Chao (where does she get these names?)
In the first book 'The Strange Power' the five teenagers were united by Emmanuel Zetes and his lackey Joyce Piper under the pretence of helping them control and understand their individual psychic abilities whilst also educating them and supplying them with scholarships for university. However, the teens found out eventually that this was not the case - what Mr Zetes was really up to was to change them into a 'psychic swat-team' and sell their psychic services off to the highest bidder. Horrified, the teens flee the house, which is where 'The Possession' picks up, but with a few differences: all five of them are telepathically linked with each other, and one of their members - Gabriel - is now forced to feed off other people's energy in order to survive.

So where 'The Strange Power' was an introduction to the teens and their powers (which include healing abilities, animal communication, telepathy, future divination and telekinesis) and 'The Passion' is Kaitlyn's infilteration back into the Zetes Institute, 'The Possession' is the journey of the five runaways to find the mysterious house that they have all dreamt of - a white house over a strech of water where voices call out to them.

On their road-trip however, they have to deal with the continuous presence of each other in their minds, the police, their parents, the mysterious location of their white house, Gabriel's need for human substanence, a new arrival, and an onslaught of attacks from Mr Zetes and his 'dark psychics' - those students who had come before them under Mr Zetes's tutorledge. However they are not without their own resources - their own powers guide and substain them, and they find allies in Anna's parents, Tony - the brother of Marisol (who had been a helper at the Zetes Institute and purposely put in a coma by Mr Zetes), an intriguing newcomer by the name of Lydia, and of course the mysterious beings of the white house - a climax that does not disappoint.

L. J. Smith again creates good, solid, interesting characters - especially those of the psychics and their individual talents - and she is a master of creating the 'bad boy', in this case Gabriel Wolfe. You only need to have a look at some of the other reviews to see how he effects pre-teens. Likewise Kaitlyn is a strong heroine, though L. J. spends a bit too much time describing her appearance and how beautiful she is (just once I'd like to see an unattractive L. J. Smith heroine!) and backup characters are likewise interesting and realistic. I especially appreciated the 'shades of grey' L. J. places within the books - there are not simply black and white/good and evil characters but rather those that hover on the boundries such as Lydia, Gabriel, and even to some extent Kaitlyn herself. Gabriel's revelation at the climax of the books when he is faced with pure (though ridgid) goodness and realises he can never become part of it is especially thought-provoking.

There are a few faults however - all her descriptions of psychic phenomena (such the feelings the psychics experience, the power of the crystal, the psychic attacks, the 'third eye' business and the transfering of people's energy into Gabriel) are rather difficult to grasp. Gabriel's description as a 'psychic vampire' I felt was a bit much, especially since L. J. Smith conveniantly makes the neck the best transfer place for energy and it was only young women that Gabriel 'feasted' on - it got a little too vampiric for me, and I thought these books were to be about *psychics*, not drawing out ideas from her previous books.
Likewise, the teenagers never seem to actually *use* their psychic abilities - Kaitlyn draws pictures, but essentially her premonitions are useless as she can never stop what they show her is to pass. On the other hand Lewis and Anna seem to have extrodinarily useful powers, but they use them only once each on the entire journey.

But anyway, if you are an L. J. Smith fan, then these books shouldn't disappoint. As usual, you have to get all three of them and read them in order to get the full benefit of them, but once again L. J. delievers what she promises with her token mystery, suspence, love triangle, teenage protaginists, 'bad boy' and touches of the supernatural.

The Kaitlyn and company are on the run from Mr. Zetes. They go in search of the house in Kait's dreams. But they aren't alone. Zetes sends these ghostly figures after them. In the end we find out who the figures are and trust me, it's a surprise. While this is going on Gabriel was turned into a psychic vampire by the crystal. But Kait finds out and she decides to help him out by giving him her energy. But one time during the process Kait goes deep into Gabriel's mind and finds out that he loves her. What will happen to all of them?

GABRIEL IS HOTT! KAIT IS LUCKY! L.J. writes another hit!

What a page turner! In a prose style that bops along like riffs floating out of a Central Avenue nightclub, RJ Smith's book The Great Black Way: L.A. in the 1940s and the Lost African-American Renaissance sheds long overdue light on the history Black Los Angeles. I was prepared to learn more about the fabled music scene on Central Avenue during the 1940's, but there is so much more to this story. The unsubtle ways in which race has shaped life in Los Angeles are fleshed out with sketches of Central Avenue's leading cultural, religious and political leaders; some familiar, others undeservedly obscure. Although the focus is on African-Americans, racist events like the forced internment of Japanese Americans and the Zoot Suit Riots intersected life on Central Avenue and readers will gain a nuanced vision of what this fabled multicultural city looked like sixty years ago (not a pretty picture at all.) The standard narrative of the civil rights movement tends to locate all the action in the south, but LA's home grown struggles to end segregation in the wartime defense industry and post war housing boom deserve a place in schools' curriculums and popular culture. And for anyone interested in the survival strategy known as "passing", or for anyone with more than a "passing" interest in the musical/cultural genre known as "exotica", the chapter on Korla Pandit is a must! Thanks RJ, for one of the best books I've ever read on the city we call home. As a postscript I'd like to add that a great book to fill out the "overlooked history" niche of your library is Whitewashed Adobe: The Rise and Los Angeles and the Remaking of its Mexican Past by William Deverell.

If you love Los Angeles and L.A. history, this book is a fantastic read. It both honors the African-American community's struggles for justice and respect in the city and introduces the reader to an extraordinary range of people-artists, journalists, civil rights leaders- who were indispendable to the development of black life and culture in Los Angeles.

Mr. Smith also does a superb job in communicating a sense of place and time, namely the sights and sounds of L.A.'s African-American neighborhoods in the 1940s.

No matter what your color or background, if you live in L.A.'s city's limits, reading this book wil make you proud to be an Angelino.

The ghosts and shadows, spirits and voices long since quieted are awakened, resurrected and put on display for all to see. This is quite simply an excellent book. What the author captures is the pride and determination, intelligence and ignorance, the creative genius and social failures of a street which became an area and an area which became a neighborhood and a neighborhood and its cultures. Cultures and counter-cultures, the civic minded hustlers, businnessmen, club owners, jazz musicians, lawyers, spiritualists, con-men, pimps and whores, atheletes and common folk. Those who endured racial taunts only to serve up taunts of their own, thumbing their nose at society while making plans to kick down the door of barriers constructed to keep them in their place. The sights and sounds of black Los Angeles, the birth place of attitudes which prevail to this day. Rarely has the spirit of urban Los Angeles been captured so completely.

The recollections gathered from old newspapers, cards, letters and the fading memories of those still around leave the reader enraptured. Every page is a treat. The fantastic stories coupled with the brilliant personalities make this an enjoyable historic voyage. To understand the roots is to understand the fruit and the subject of this book is definately a root to be studied and enjoyed by all with an interest in urban Los Angeles.

The history of our Los Angeles African-American roots have finally been given long overdue mention. With all the attention paid to Harlem, you'd think L.A.'s contributions to black American culture, civil rights, and religion pales in comparision. Hardly true!

Azusa Street, was literally the birthplace of the modern Pentocostal movement. And with certain recent documentaries on Jazz, it seemed no one had ever heard of Central Avenue's Club Alabam, or the hot and swingin' Bronzeville district of Downtown.

There was the still standing Dunbar Hotel, a black oasis for many of the well known, and not so famous, to find shelter while visiting the "City of Angels." Not to mention black L.A.'s major contributions to standup comedy, and as much as anyplace else, the jumpstart for R&B music.

Checkout the early civil rights movement here that foreshadowed such major figures as Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks, or the black literary community of Los Angeles. A powerful reminder of the huge and highly forgotten contributions of the black Los Angeles community, to the African-American struggles in America. R.J. Smith should receive an honorary medal of human brotherhood.

I loved these books when they were single stories, and love them just as much now. The stories, though shorter than I would like, were way too good to leave at their previous "Out-of-Print" status. I literally leapt for joy when hearing they were reprinting them!
In this first installment of the Night World, you follow three very different tales. Full of drama and intense touches of romance (under 18 friendly) that leave you breathless and dying for more! As I said previously, they are a little short, ~200 pages each, but they're still well worth it.
If you like drama, fantasy, danger, vampires, witches, werewolves, shapeshifters, and tales of forbidden love that you just CAN'T put down until its over, I suggest Nightworld.

Allow me to date myself and say that I first read this series back in the day when they were initially published (okay, it was during the 90's, not THAT long ago). L.J. Smith was one of my very favorite authors then, and I'm happy to say that her work truly stands the test of time. If you share the same sweet tooth for teen supernatural fiction that I do, you'll definitely enjoy this book.

Actually, L.J. Smith's stories have a surprising depth and complexity buried within them that is NOT typical of teen fiction. Each book reads very quickly, but it's not the usual throw-away characters and teen drama that you find in most books of the genre. Her characters are vivid and definitely memorable...LJS has a true knack for taking what *should* be a cliche (the devil-may-care "Bad Boy", the "Angsty Vampire", the "Good Girl" witch, etc.) and turning it into something three dimensional and alive. You *know* it should be cheesey and completely unbelievable, but somehow it's just...not. She has that undeniable magic to her writing that makes it shine - even to a 27 year-old that first read it at 15 (I was almost embarassingly excited to see her stuff being reprinted).

So, to all the other long-standing LJS fans out there, pick this one up again. It's still awesome. ;) And to potential *new* fans, definitely check it out! This is only the beginning of a dark, complicated supernatural world that *introduced* many of us to the concept. They're fun, irresistable reads that draw you in further with each story. And it only gets better.

After waiting years for the series to finally be rereleased, it's good to see that L.J. Smith has returned with the reprinting of the Night World series. I am looking forward to picking up a copy of the first set.

The second set that contains The Chosen, Soulmate, and Huntress should be released in December. For those of you who enjoys the Twilight series, I recommend picking up and reading this fantastic series.

And for the fans, Strange Fate should finally be released sometime next summer.

Fans have been waiting, and those unfamiliar should be curious to pick up this novel. HarperTeen has decided to republish L.J. Smith's infamous "Night World" series.

This volume contains the first three novels. At first glance they are stand-alone stories within the same society, but the further you get into it, the more you see familiar characters popping up. This is just the start of a brilliant, intricately woven series of the supernatural.

In Secret Vampire, Poppy learns she's dying of pancreatic cancer. Her best friend, James, figures the only way to help her is to turn her into a vampire. The problem is, the Night World forbids the telling of humans about their society... and especially forbids falling in love with them. The consequence is death. You think that would be bad enough, but interestingly, the conflict comes from Poppy's twin brother, Phillip, and James' reckless cousin. This is a fascinating peek into the series--and if you take note, you'll find at least four characters who will reappear in later novels.

Daughters of Darkness is the second tale. Three beautiful young girls have moved to the desolate town of Briar Creek, Oregon. When Mary-Lynnette discovers they buried something large and disturbingly body-like in the back yard of her next-door neighbor, she's determined to find out who and why. But it ends up dragging her and her younger brother, Mark, in over their heads... especially when the sisters' brother, Ash, shows up and turns Mary-Lynnette's world upside down. The mystery is a little rushed in this one, with not too much suspense, but the ending should surprise you at least a little bit.

Spellbinder is about two witch sisters who have been ordered to live with their grandmother, a high-ranking magic-practitioner in the Night World. Blaise likes to toy with the hearts of human boys, and Thea can't help but try to protect her when she gets in trouble. Things start to get interesting when Thea finds herself involved with a human boy named Eric, and Blaise seems determined to make him her next plaything. But when Thea takes measures to protect Eric, a spell goes wrong and a spirit begins to brutally murder people at the high school.

L.J. Smith introduces readers to not just a new type of vampire, but (especially when it was first published over a decade ago) new kinds of witches, werewolves, and shapeshifters. And love has a whole new meaning in these novels--the concept of soulmates is introduced late in the first book, but carries a strong presence from thereon out.

The stories are short, but the images are vivid, the characters are strong and likeable, and you just can't help falling in love with this mysterious "world within a world." Highly recommended, even after all this time. And old fans should take heart--the final installment has finally, OFFICIALLY from L.J. Smith herself, been promised sometime in 2009.

Exceedingly well written, concise, interesting, perhaps life-changing, this book makes the science seem less complex and easier to comprehend. A great study companion for my human physiology course, a major aid to my exam scores. Highly recommended for serious or casual studies, or even anyone with interest in the human body at all. I would even read this on my free time; in fact, Im going to go explore the unassigned chapters...

Excellent as an introductory text. Everything is thoroughly explained and the software provided is a great studying tool as well.

Great book to read for better understanding of human body functions. There are good and colorful illustrations in it. Through the guided illustrations and simplified physiological explanations, it makes easier to connect the function of one part of the body to the other.
Well I made good grade on my exam in anatomy and physiology anyhow ... so I can say that this book helped me a lot.

Dr Joseph Topping is a fabulous teacher so it is no surprise that his textbook is equally amazing. I highly recommend this book!

Dr Joseph Topping is a fabulous teacher so it is no surprise that his textbook is equally amazing. I highly recommend this book!

Divided into two parts (Exegetical Methods and Procedures, and Exegetical Examples and Reflections), this book is a great tool for learning how to do exegesis.

Well worth the money spent!

Interpreting the New Testament Text: Introduction to the Art and Science of Exegesis edited by Darrell Bock and Buist Fanning is divided into two parts. The first deals with methodology. This section travels from defining "Exegesis" through 13 chapters to application, ethics, and preaching.

In between the authors survey and explain textual criticism, grammatical analysis, diagramming, lexical analysis, exegetical problem solving (validation), background studies, genre studies (narrative, epistolary, apocalyptic), the Old Testament in the New, and theological analysis. All of this covers just over 300 pages.

The second section of the book provides 150 pages of exegetical examples of these activities written by some big name scholars such as I Howard Marshall and Edwin Yamauchi and many other lesser known but still excellent scholars.

The book as a whole is extremely well organized and has the wonderful benefit of bibliographies at the end of each section.

Overall the book is an excellent introduction for those who are just beginning to study New Testament Interpretation. For more indepth study Stanley Porter's Handbook to Exegesis of the New Testament is a more advanced level book, but even still don't loose Bock and Fanning, it has made a valuable contribution to the field.

Also unlike some similar books, Bock and Fannings's book is a hardback which will last longer.

Finally, the book is a Festschriften (a sort of tribute) to Harold Hoehner, who had a major impact on how exegesis was done at Dallas Theological Seminary.

Quality text, quality workmanship, five stars.

The author of this book, Larry McCabe, is re-releasing books that have gone out of print for one reason or another. This particular book is an old friend. After I received it, I went into my library and found a copy. It has been in print in one form or another for 25 years. Most instruction books don't last anywhere near that long. First, this book (as the author warns) is not for beginners. You need to be familiar with the movable blues scales we all use. If you are playing out, and feel comfortable with the whole neck, get this book. The style of lead is closer to Gatemouth Brown and Freddie King than anyone else. If you don't know who these men are, buy their CDs. You are in for a treat. Please read the author's introduction. There is a lot of good info there. The Tab system is the older style. It should take about 30 seconds to adjust. It's actually easier to read than the current form. If you consider yourself a Rock guitarist instead of Blues, you really could use this book. If you use these solos as a "how to", instead of just memorizing them, they will give you some new weapons. You know, for scaring the heck out of other guitarists.