Talisman Books

Rick, his friend Scotty, and in their first active parts Rick's sister Barby and her friend Jan, use infrared detectors to find a "ghost" and discover that Jan is an empath. All four finally realize after 25 years of this fine adventure series that they are no longer 18 years old (!), and discover adult relationships.

This book amazingly ends the sensational Rick Brant series. This series within itself deserves five stars. This book is written just like the others with the usual amount of suspense and intrigue. However, Blain takes a step away from his usual strictly scientific fare with a look into the paranormal. This new approach keeps the readers on their toes until the very end. This end in itself leaves the reader happy about the future of the well loved Rick and Scotty.

This book was first written in 1946 but has been reprinted several times and revised by the author. However, it is as apt today as when it was first written almost half a century ago. As its title suggests, the book is about the renewal of civilisation and it is about the renewal of religion --the two go hand in hand. It is also a book about the Baha'i Faith whose purpose is none other than the creation of a new world civilisation.

It is easy to read (138 pages of text). The reader first learns a little of the origins and history of the Baha'i Faith in mid 19th century Persia. At that time there was an expectation, both amongst the followers of Christianity and Islam, of a time when there would be a spiritual rebirth of religion.

The author describes the conditions whereby civilisations have risen and fallen at different times in different parts of the world. Great Souls (Messengers of God) have inspired the onward movement of mankind and determined phases of human progress and enlightenment. They are the Revealers of Religion and the Founders of Civilisation.

Christendom was built on the spiritual teachings of Christ, Islam was the civilisation impelled by Muhammad. The great Israelitish culture arose from the revelation of Moses. Through Zoroaster came the spiritual force which founded the Persian era of Cyrus and Darius. Krishna and Buddha were the inspiration uniting millions in the Orient under common codes of morals and behaviour. The founder of every world religion has also been a founder of a past civilisation.

So it appears that Civilisation has arisen upon the spiritual impulse imparted by the revealer of a religion - a divine messenger or manifestation of God. The author goes on to tell of how the founder of the Baha'i Faith, Baha'u'llah, is one and the same as these former founders of religion. The specific mission of Baha'u'llah is to create civilisation anew. He is the focal point from which emanates a new spirit for the times in which we live. His message is for the whole world, based on the oneness of religion and the love and unity of the human race.

A most valuable book and one which I have read more than once.

This is the book that changed my life! Although some of the information in it is now in need of updating, it remains a singularly readable and concise introduction to the basic tenets of the Bahá'í Faith, and also provides an outline of its history and development. I would especially recommend it to new Bahá'ís as an excellent book to give to friends and relatives. It explains clearly the teachings of the faith, and its small size makes it less intimidating than some other introductory texts. All in all, a great way to introduce someone to the Mission of Bahá'u'lláh.

This book is simply a must read. Discover for yourself.

This book is simply a must read. Discover for yourself.

Unmasked warlords and almost dead cities.


A Baen ebook reprint in their very cool recent Brackett/Hamilton megapack.

With a lot of sword, spear and axe work in between, the book gets more interesting after Stark unmasks a war leader of his opposition after a good belt to the helmet is delivered. Both he and her followers are rather suprised to discover she is not a man.

More fighting of course ensues, but the aforementioned pair are forced to work together against strange aliens in an unfortunately not deserted city, to ensure things do not go badly wrong.


3.5 out of 5

This is a good first go-around. The finished product will most likely be a excellent read.

I just got this audio tape yesterday and while I've never been a "no kill" advocate, Robert Morgan opened my mind to new ideas about the Bigfoot phenomena. The tape really is an adventure, taking you into the bush with Morgan as he and a friend track and find a group of elusive mountain giants. Robert provides details for seeking the creatures and for staying alive in the woods. He is very much against violence towards these creatures and he draws on his experiences with Native American tribes to help in his search. Overall, I would reccomend this tape for anyone interested in Bigfoot.

Bloodline review

"Reading Ecclesiastes & O dear what can the matter be. A sky populated with migrating pink birds. Such pinkness! "popsickles & gasoline" #10 The Sasha Poems

Jazz riffs and prophecy, fairy tales and dialogues with angels, this poetry has much in common with music and prayer. Images of burnt angels,monasteries, birds, lakes, snow: set in the here and now, in Russia, in America but nowhere in particular. John High's selected writings appeal to the right brain where love and loss and grief are registered as feelings not only symbols.

Nothing is explained. The voice addresses , the child, our sister,Jimmy, Charlie. The voices of poets past, Rilke, Mandelstam, Goethe,Lorca, outside time, echo from across space like a longing for home, the return of angels to their bright place, a touch of mysticism grounded in the senses and the mud of sex. "She reminded me. Dark shore of her shoulders like the muddy bank of nowhere left to run. When she buckled her legs around my waist, I just wanted to die there, let the wind carry our shadows." Sometimes, like the language of children, the words seem pulled out of the subconscious, illogical, birds and moon colliding because itappears that way. Are they parables or fables? "The smoke and fish and living, are they not the same, papa?" A child's voice but not a child's questions. So much of this writing is like a vision of the burning bush,there is no point of reference that says, this is god's voice speaking but
you feel moved by it. How to read these signs?

High parts the curtains of the concrete world to reveal a Mad Hatters vision, a speaking in tongues not always comprehensible, but on rereading,words leap like sparks in a brush fire, illuminating briefly the world he sees, the dead and the living in conversation. A bit like the Little Prince discussing pictures of sheep in boxes or elephants inside of boa constrictors, with grownups. It depends on the construct you bring to it,how you look at it, what you see. This book demands you leave the boundaries behind. Its uniqueness requires fresh eyes, and open heart. It will surprise you.

Jennifer Boire >>

The poems and bits of prose in this book are from the early 20th, late 19th century and I must say there are very few here that I've ever read. Defininetly for you if you like rare or unusual books :o)

While the series is good it screams for more development near the end of each book. The author spends half of the book setting up the story, the next third on some plot, and then just wraps the book up like a half hour tv program that needs to be finished immediately. I was very disappointed to find several that the editor did not catch. The character Jonathan starts out 24 years old in the first two books, in the third book he is 22, and in the fourth book he is 21. Also, in the last book, Natasha Welles talks of making the finding of the talismen into a movie and tells of "finding the mooncake of Chang-O in a hidden city in the volcano". While this is true, the only two characters that know that information are Josh and Ollie, and they have been sworn to secrecy. While my school children have enjoyed the books, they were disappointed in the lack of consistancy within the books.

This trilogy, in Louise Cooper style, are the story of a young school age girl who goes to live with her father's mother for a year in Cornwall by the sea. She discovers a mysterious family heirloom that leads to adventures and a good tale of good vs. evil. This series is engaging enough for an adult, but is even more so for pre-teen and teen children who love fantasy and horses. I plan to pass these treasures along to my 10 year old granddaughter.