Bartholomew Books

I was blindsided by this latest McGarr mystery (I`ve read all the others). I`m not sure why Gill decided to smear the Roman Catholic Faith along with the soon to be Saint Escrivo!! He must not believe he will be judged someday. He makes the Opus Dei ,its founder and,by inference the Pope (see Frontispiece) appear to be the Mafioso arm of the Catholic faith.He even took a swipe at Pope Pius XII with the false accusations concerning the Holocaust (I guess the estimate by Jewish scholars the he saved over 800,000 Jews during the Second World War doesn`t impress Gill). I recommend the book to Catholic-bashing bigots. He`s lost me as a fan and reader.

Meet Chief Superintendent Peter McGarr for the first or the fifteenth time. Bartholomew Gill is the author of fifteen Peter McGarr mysteries. But "Death of an Ardent Bibliophile" is my favorite. All of Gill's stories have increase my awareness of things Irish, the landscape, the authors, the idiomatic language among other bits and pieces.
This story is high on my list of favorites. The returning characters McGarr's staff and family are in full form. Gill continues to develop the personality of each character, so we feel like we would know them if we were to meet.
The plot involves the death of Mary-Jo Stanton supposedly the natural daughter of a priest. A poor Spanish priest who founded Opus Dei, Jose Maria Escriva. Opus Dei is an organization of ultra conservative Catholics.
Mary-Jo's death is only the first in a number of murders that McGarr and his team investigate. Powerful people continue to thwart the investigation in order to protect secrets. This is nothing new to McGarr who deals effectively with the bureaucrats in most stories, sometimes keeping his own secrets.
I wonder if the typical Irish cop drinks on the job and displays brutality such as McGarr portrays.

As an avid fan of Bartholomew Gill, I eagerly awaited the new Peter McGarr novel. I was not disappointed; this is Gill's best work. As a librarian, I read extensively--this is one of the top novels I have read this year. Not to be missed.

The author hits on Opus Dei. He hits so hard that one might think that he wants to settle a score. After all, Opus Dei is the major order in today's Roman Catholic church, having supplanted the Jesuits. And its founder, Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer, will be pronounced to be a saint of the church any day now. While I am familiar with some of the tenets Mr. Gill mentions, others have to be taken on faith or as exaggerations.

The book, as a mystery, has a tendency to move slowly and in convoluted ways. Every one of the main characters could be the culprit, and the process of elimination is none too swift. But, if you are interested in learning about Opus Dei, then this book is an easy to read introduction.

With the untimely death of Mark McGarrity (pen name, Bartholomew Gill) this is, unfortunately, the last McGarr.

Fortunately, it was one of his best.

This is certainly the darkest of the McGarr series. The characters are ageing, and all not gracefully; their foibles and weaknesses laid bare in sharp focus. McGarr wonders if he has held on too long, if the price he has paid now too dear.

The murder of a wealthy religious biographer, and member of the Catholic secret society Opus Dei, begins a whirlwind plot that embroils all of the characters. Not much of a "who-dun-it", why and how the more fascinating questions.

The end of the book is a shock for all long-time followers of the head of Dublin's "Murder Squad."

The book has a nearly palpable sense of mortality that resonates even more given McGarrity/Gill's accidental death...

Ah, lad, we'll miss ya!

One reads a detective story for the mystery, yes, but also for ambience and for the peculiar collection of people that a good author typically assembles as suspects and others touched by the crime. These are the particular strengths of this novel. The setting is Dublin: the very real modern city and the almost mythical version of it that has grown up over a century or more or literary history and national struggle. The mythic element is enhanced in this case by the fact that the murdered man is the leading Joyce scholar of his generation, and the colorful cast of characters (ranging from rival academics to decidedly liberated women plus the odd urban punk) all seem to know their Joyce also. Not only know him, but live him: the novel is colorful, exuberant, erotic, but also quietly insightful.

It becomes clear that the murder, which happens on Bloomsday -- the day portrayed by Joyce in his great novel ULYSSES -- is closely tied to events in that book; but fortunately I could still enjoy Gill with only a cursory knowledge of the Joyce. While this book did not particularly grip me as a mystery, it did send me out to buy a copy of ULYSSES, and give me not only the inspiration to read it properly, but also quite a few clues on how to do it.

Superintendent Peter McGarr, one of Dublin's senior policemen, is confronted by a lady with a problem. Her husband's gone missing. Why then, instead of going to Missing Persons, has she sought out the Chief of the Murder Squad? It turns out that Kevin Coyle isn't truly "missing". He simply hadn't made it home without assistance. The help was needed because Kevin's heart had taken a knife. And Katie Coyle, with some help, fetched him to his bed. Dublin, however, was suffering an unusual heat wave. The unusual wake would have to close and the murder, after three days, finally be reported. Kevin, it seems "is going off now in the heat"!

This bizarre opening typifies the remainder of a story of a quietly dedicated Dublin copper. Peter McGarr, who starts his office mornings with a strong tot in his coffee, is compelled to deal with Katie Coyle, her unusual cronies, and Kevin Coyle's former role as a "Joyce Scholar". Joyce's magnum opus, "Ulysses", which McGarr pitched into a corner the first time he attempted it, figures large in this story. Not least because one of Coyle's tasks was acting as a "Joyce Tour Guide" for his colleague's tourist business. If the world needs yet another analysis of "Ulysses", Coyle has just completed one. It was to be launched just after he was murdered. Publishers being what they are, the release goes ahead on time, accompanied by the usual fanfare and parties.

McGarr, not being a "private eye", has a team of his own colleagues. Working, as they do, in Dublin provides both flavour and spirit to this narrative. Hughie Ward, a boxer on the side, is a young policeman with ambition. A detective "as soon as was possible", Ward is a notable figure in many ways. But when he slips up, the result is almost as devastating as the figure he cuts. The most interesting member of McGarr's team, however, is its "token" woman. "Rut'ie" Bresnahan is an ample country girl who knows that to rise in the Garda Siochana, she must be better than the men. Since she believes she's better than the men, this should pose no problem. However, her respect for McGarr still leads her to bring his coffee during Squad meetings. Rut'ie is confronted with a string of challenges in proving her worth. How she meets these makes for wonderful reading. Her shopping expedition provides a delightful image of the "new" Dublin compared with Rut'ie's rural origins and the older Ireland they represent. None of Gill's characterisations are flawed. Encountering them is a treat in each circumstance.

The "Ulysses" connection pervades this story, but Gill, a reasonable man, makes no assumptions of his readers. You needn't have read Joyce to follow McGarr as he copes with the many ties between this murder investigation and the classic. In many ways, of course, this story provides a reflection of Joyce's, as Gill intends it to be. Both are, after all, reflections of the Dublin of their time. Gill's superior handling of these ties as we progress through the mystery demonstrate his prose skills and dedicated scholarship. This book might actually prompt me to start Joyce's classic again. If I can find which corner I pitched it into . . . [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

I have a prejudice toward Bartholomew Gill's "The Death of a Joyce Scholar": having done my master's thesis on a section of "Ulysses", this is my favorite in the Peter McGarr series. This doesn't mean, of course, that you have to be well-versed in James Joyce's writing (although it helps a bit). Gill spells out enough about Joyce's works to keep the reader going. It's a marvelous mystery set in the same streets that Joyce walked along and wrote about. And while most mysteries work toward establishing a surprise ending, "The Death of a Joyce Scholar" has an ending that will have the reader shaking his head and saying "How didn't I see that coming?" Treat yourself to a different kind of mystery! Treat yourself to this!

I liked the book, as a dilettante Joyce scholar myself. I also liked the atmosphere of Dublin on the brink of changing from the destitute town of the Sixties to the capital of the only European tiger. But I was perplexed by the reference to Kinch (the nickname of Kevin Coyle and of Stephen Dedalus) as meaning a noose, when Bock Mulligan himself clarifies its meaning: Kinch, the knife-blade (Ulysses, ch. 1)

This was my second selection in the long list of Mr. Gill's books. I started with his next to last book and now know some things about his characters that I would not have found out going in the opposite direction. But even with that said, I find myself entranced by the characterizations in these two books. I have become quite comfortable with the repeating case of characters and I enjoy my time with them. The murder being handled sometimes seems secondary to other issues in their lives. While I did have some trouble keeping the three potentially villainous women in this novel clear in my mind, it was nevertheless a fun read. I have always avoided the reading of Joyce's Ullyses, but Gill makes an excellent case for my reconsideration of that decision. He also brings me back, clearly and strongly, to all my memories of my one trip to Dublin and certainly encourages me to return. All in all this is a fine story, well-researched and with characters well worth remembering.

A very scholarly yet readable book that was brilliantly crafted to give us a picture of the story of God and where we are in it. I came across this book after reading somewhere that Rob Bell uses it in his church in Michigan.

This book is fantastic and will paint a picture of our role as Christ followers and what we can hope for in Christ's return.

I highly recommend this book.

This book rocks! I found very little in it that I could even disagree with a little... and I'm quite contrary! It is completely Scriptural and gives such a wonderful framework for looking at all of life and all of Scripture. Biblical Theology at its best!

By the way, the "fantasy" tag listed below is garbage. This book is utterly and totally TRUE!

The book begins by claiming to tell the "biblical story of redemption as a unified, coherent narrative of God's ongoing work within his kingdom" (pg 11). Telling the story of the Bible as such requires unifying themes from which each subsequent story can be told, lest God's story appear fragmented and purposeless. The themes posited by Bartholomew and Goheen are thus "covenant" (Old Testament) and "the kingdom of God" (New Testament) (pg 24). The biblical portrait they develop is therefore theme specific, told in relative terms to what they consider "the main door through which we can begin to enter the Bible and to see it as one whole and vast structure" (pg 24). In this review, at risk of failing to adequately summarize the book, I will argue that these themes are at least in need of more qualification, and perhaps even misleading, considering the fact that they serve as the basic premise to most the book's conclusions.
Bartholomew and Goheen seem to do little to qualify their position other than cite a few passages of scripture (all within one paragraph, pg 24) and briefly disqualify other themes as side entrances (within the same paragraph!). The very foundation of the book thus bears very little propositional qualification. The theme of "covenant" for the Old Testament seems more self-evident than does the "kingdom of God" theme for the New Testament. Though the ministry of Jesus was clearly focused on the theme of the kingdom of God, yet eighty-three of the ninety-seven occurrences of the phrase / (kingdom of God/heaven) occur in the Gospel narratives. That includes all the occurrences that could be eliminated as unoriginal through a synopsis of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Considering also that the Church has largely relied on Paul for its Christology and Soteriology--its interpretation of the Gospel--quickly disqualifying the "presence" theme of the New Testament seems precarious: "...entrances such as `promise' and `presence'...are helpful, but they are a bit like side chapels or side entrances rather than the main entrance" (pg 24). In fact, Paul uses the phrase "kingdom of God" a total of nine times in the New Testament, whereas his use of the phrase "in Christ" occurs an overwhelming eighty-eight times, which is indeed a strong case for the "presence" theme that Bartholomew and Goheen so readily dismiss.
If time and space permitted, it would be a worthy argument to challenge "presence" versus "kingdom of God" in vying for the theme of the New Testament. Suffice it here to address these themes with regard to their ends, for the purpose of, at least, gaining perspective and, at best, sobering the assumption that the "kingdom of God" is indisputably the central theme of the New Testament. Simply put, the argument of the quintessential New Testament theme being "kingdom of God" could very well fall into an "anthropo-centric" focus rather than a "Christo-centric" focus.
First, following the line of the "covenant" theme of the Old Testament, it is Christ himself, not the kingdom of God, who fulfills the Old Covenant and becomes, in effect, the New Covenant (Lk 22:20). The kingdom of God may perhaps be the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant (2 Sam 7), but it is only such insofar as Christ is the King of that fulfillment. Thus the nuance between King and kingdom need be distinguished. If one were to argue for the "presence" theme instead of the "kingdom of God," what might the case look like and what would its end be?
The "presence" as a theme for the New Testament encompasses the presence of God in Jesus Christ--Emmanuel--and the presence of God in the Holy Spirit. The "presence" theme centralizes God in Christ and God in the Holy Spirit not only as the main character, but also the main plot of the New Testament. Paul's tireless usage of "in Christ" (not to mention the author of Acts pressing insistence that everything the early church did was through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit) further supports the presence theme as the necessary theme around which the New Testament is built. As such, the kingdom of God is a byproduct of the advent of Jesus Christ, and Christians exist in and live by the kingdom of God as a byproduct of the presence of the Holy Spirit.
The "presence" theme as primary seems to draw attention "God-ward," whereas the "kingdom of God" theme as primary tends to draw the attention "human-ward," e.g. much of the rhetoric of the kingdom of God today uses language like "do" and "be" the "kingdom," rather than focusing on Christ himself as King, proclaiming the Kingdom through Christ, and following the King's servant example. In the presence theme one must interpret the kingdom of God through the lens of Jesus Christ; in the kingdom of God theme one must interpret Jesus Christ through the kingdom of God. Jesus becomes a means to an end, the King subject to His own kingdom.
This is not to imply that the kingdom of God is not a critically important theme of the New Testament, but rather that it does not seem to readily merit the status of The New Testament theme without proper qualification. Perhaps the safest assumption for The New Testament theme is the theme of "Jesus Christ." Christ Himself as the essential theme of the New Testament may seem like a simplistic treatment of the biblical story, but it is certainly the safest. By focusing on Christ as the theme the biblical story still has a focus on the kingdom of God (with Christ as King), the salvation of man (with Christ as Savior), the aid to the needy (with Christ as exemplar), covenants fulfilled (with Christ as the fulfillment), prophecies fulfilled (with Christ as the fulfillment), the role of the Church (with Christ as the Head), and the coming judgment (with Christ as the Judge). Christ-the-theme ties all the subsequent themes together. The kingdom of God theme does not seem adequate for the task.
(I wonder if their choice of the kingdom of God theme is based more on popular contemporary theology and today's trendiness as regards the kingdom of God than it is an attempt at an unbiased, agenda-less account of the biblical story.)

If you want a good summary of the bible (including the intertestamental period), this book may be good for you. If you already have a good understanding of the biblical time-line, you may find this book redundant. If you have a "kingdom of God" agenda, and are looking for a book to support your opinions, you may also find this book helpful.

I'm not sure what other reviewers are so ecstatic about, but this book is decent. It certainly serves as good introduction to the Bible's own story. The authors come from a perspective whose assumptions I don't share as they leaves more questions unanswered than they answer. Given the value of the book, I would point out that the authors do not deal with the Mosaic covenant well. It seems that may be because of the goal of the authors--they want to introduce readers to the biblical narrative without diving deeply into its theology. Nonetheless, what they do choose to address concerning the Mosaic covenant is how all of Israel's life was supposed to reflect the character of God. Like one reviewer mentioned, these authors have a missional agenda; this is clearly reflected in what they choose to cover (and they choose not to) and how they frame things. This left me disappointed, for example, of how they address the covenants of Scripture (and election). The reader may find Michael Horton's God of Promise an ideal way to follow this one.

The Drama of Scripture provides a big-picture look at God's relationship to humanity as the creation and dream of God. The authors analogize the Biblical story to a 6 act play consisting of the following acts: Creation, Fall, God Chooses Israel, Coming of the King, Spreading the News (Church), The Return of the King.

The theme running through the book is God's desire and commitment to his original creation idea and his willingness to restore the fallen world through a personal sacrifice.

The authors follow the narrative of scripture from Genesis to Revelation with the addition of the Maccabee story in Israel's history. They offer some in depth writing on few topics while offering a comprehensive survey of the story promoted as the metanarrative for all people. They tie in the events to the theme of God's mission for humanity.

This overview of scripture would be helpful to readers trying to see the story of the Bible in a more condensed form. It reminded me of the mission of the church today, as the authors stress the unfinished business of the church and God's Spirit on earth. The chapters on the church's mission are most creative and enthusiastic; however, the authors zip through the concluding chapter on The Return of the King and the discussion of Revelation and end times.

The authors stress that God's plan is for total restoration of creation not partial restoration. They identify areas where Israel went astray from its mission and where the church may be missing the mark today.

Overall, a very helpful book but one that may be too elemental for mature students of the Bible.

Shakespeare On Spirituality: Life-Changing Wisdom from Shakespeare's Plays

First of all, the Kindle French-language edition seems okay at first glance: the French accents are correctly placed, which is not true of the French accents in Christie's MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD. There it's a minor annoyance because there's little French in the book; here it would be devastating, but the French seems perfect.

Dumas fans know that he wrote four great books OR SERIES: The Count of Monte Cristo, a stand-alone; The Three Musketeers series, of which Twenty Years After is actually the best, though lots of readers don't get to it; The Reine Margot series, whose great character Chicot the Jester has a book of his own which is also better than the first book in the series, La Reine Margot; and The Memoirs of a Physician series. These series are gigantic. Dumas himself said The Three Musketeers was the best, and The Count of Monte Cristo didn't quite live up to it. Most readers think they're equally good. The other two series are of similar excellence, and Dumas fans know it.

Dumas worked with collaborators who did ninety percent of the writing. This kind of writing factory is still in existence today, of course. It matters how good his collaborators were, and in these four series they were all excellent. His other 400 (!!!) volumes are not as good -- but the four top series alone add up to about fifty modern novels in length.

This is a lesser known Dumas novel than, say, the Count of Monte Christo. But it is just as good as the others he did: vivid personalities, attention to detail, and fabulously intricate plots. It tells the story of Margot and her marriage to the King of Navarre, an ambitious Hugenot in constant danger of assassination. With the backdrop of the religious wars, she finds love in a knight that she attempts to cloister from the dangers of court intrigue. It ends in tragedy, hope, and the promise of further adventure.

Based on available historical sources at the time and embellished with Dumas' unique sense of drama, it is a spectacular read, full of danger, sudden developments, and psychological depth. While it may not be as deep as Stendhal's best works, it is absolutely first rate as a historical novel, a genre that Dumas helped to develop. It stimulates the reader's desire to plung more deeply into French history as well.

High recommendation.

This is Dumas at his almost-finest, very vivid and exciting, great characters and plot, even Nostradamus! As fine as Sir Walter Scott's Kenilworth. The reason that the title is given in French is because it would translate as Queen Madge, which doesn't sound so good.

La Reine Margot was, in my opinion, a pretty good story. There is lots of deception on the part of the Queen de Medicis, one of the more fascinating characters in the story. The book gives a glimpse of France during the Huguenot/Catholic struggle for power. The beginning is slow, but the story is good. I found it difficult (not being familiar with the history) to learn the characters' names. The first chapter is particularly trying, but I pressed on and the book seemed to ease up a LOT and give way to a story of plotted murders, backstabbing, a little superstition/witchcraft, and many close calls. La Reine Margot wasn't nearly as good as The Count of Monte Cristo (if you have not read this, it is definitely a page turner!), but it was a good story that gives a little insight into history while livening it up with Dumas's sword-fighting, heroic style. Notice that I tend to be a little harsh by granting it three stars, but this is only because The Count of Monte Cristo was truly his best work and must be set apart from his others.

This is a Historical novel that takes place in France, in the XVIth century. There's a very very bad black widow -as a matter of fact, black mother as well this is Catherine of Médicis-, a beautiful and amorous young queen married to somebody she does not love but with whom she forms an alliance just in order not to be a widow herself and go to a convent, a romantic heroe, his true friend -who sometimes loves him a little bit too much and a bunch of intriguers. Alexandre Dumas, in his newspaper serial style - this novel was first published that way-, interweave different stories aboiding boring descriptions and getting to the point: quick dialogue, short chapters, attractive characters, and everything to catch you from the first page, which he achieves. It really is a page turner, with several love stories that never goes with marriage and several marriages that never goes with love but with alliances. I have read that some United States reviewers are a bit confused because of the historical part and that's a problem unless you know European History or have a book with comments and notes. If you end the book and want to know what happened afterwards, read British Enciclopedia or something like that, because all characters are historical, even the Romantic hero La Mole and his friend. To those that have seen the 1990s French movie, you have the advantage of imagining the whole story with the beautiful faces of Isabelle Adjani and Vincent Perez, and the great soundtrack and spectacular staging from his director, which reminds of an opera. To those who doesn't I'd say go to your videoclub and try to find it!! It's not a substitute but a perfect complement.

I was excited to find this book. I had not heard of it before but "The Count of Monte Christo" is one of my all time favorites. Then seeing all of these positive reviews, and since the subject matter is of interest, I couldn't wait to dig in. I can still say that the subject is interesting. And I tried plugging along with it - the reason it gets 2 stars instead of 1 is that the story moves along quickly enough to hold one's interest. However, after about 150 pages I just couldn't go on.

This has got to be one of the worst translations ever! I don't know if all of these positive reviews are for this particular edition, but there is no credit for translation, and it's easy to see why. I don't speak French, but it seems as if someone who is not a writer did a straight translation from the French, without taking into account any of the idiom or sentence structure differences. And the constant repetition is soy annoying: everyone is always saying "ah, ah" at the beginning of their sentences. Another character says "mordi", whatever that means, at the beginning of everything he says. And words repeated as a sentence introduction, apparently to convey emphasis and excitement: "Well! Well!" "Go! Go!""Kill! Kill!" and so on, are just too annoying.

I don't have a problem with period dialog, especialy in a book written 150 years ago. But a translation needs to convey the intent and style of the writer, while making it understandable, and readable, in the language, and period, it is being translanted into. And it should be consistent with the period. Characters saying "thanks", mixed in with very archaic language forms everywhere else, just makes no sense.

It was all just too irritating and I didn't feel like I was reading something by Dumas. There are just too many great books out there - don't waste your time on this one.

I bought this book because I enjoyed Dumas' other works. Although "Queen Margot" certainly has much to recommend it: intrigue, romance, action, I did not enjoy it as much as "Three Muskateers" or "Count." The ending is especially unsatisfying.

Queen Margot is missing nothing. I read it after falling in love with the musketeer series, and was overjoyed to find that it was as good as the others.

When I started reading this book I thought it would be classic, boring, long story about some french queen - I was wrong. I could not stop reading it before I finishad. In my opinion every one who likes interesting books should read it. I am sure he will not regret it.

Alexandre Dumas pere was a master of story telling. If he was still living today he would definitely write some of the most popular television series. This is how this novel reads, as a TV series, and this is also how it was written, since it was first released in 2 page instalements in 19th century french daily newspapers. Every page ends in some sort of dillema or with an item a suspense. There is never a boring moment. Of course, even if this book is based on actual historical events, it cannot be considered a true rendition of what really happened. Nevertheless, Dumas succeeds in making his characters so alive, that you feel you are living through the intrigues with them. You feel what they feel. A true masterpiece of literature, in any language; and by the way, the book is a thousand times better than the movie.

This book is a treat. Very reasonably priced, and it's all there. The plays sweep you along (I always envision darkening Puccini-like chords in the background) images and crackling dialogue abounds. My problem is: 1) I have never seen the plays produced. This is *such* a handicap. I actually yawned through Shakepeare's "Tempest" until I saw a fine production. Now it is hands-down my favorite play and 2)I have to get in the swing of reading Elizabethan English for every reading. Therefore, I do not recommend reading in short snippets if you are also dialect challenged.

Do keep in mind Marlowe (as Shakespeare) was trying to make a living, not write for the ages. He's trying to entice you to buy a ticket and be charmed. He succeeds admirably. There is something for everyone: action, derring do, comedy, and sharp insights.

Marlowe is your mysterious, wild, sometimes trecherous friend; brilliant, but can you trust him? Probably not. If he was a vintage southern American, he might say "I didn't take you to raise." Would he lie to you? mislead you? Of course. But in everything I have read of Marlowe's I hear his voice; he is *there.* With Shakespeare, I do not have that certainty.

Recommend reading "The Reckoning" by Charles Nicholl for an excellent biography on Marlowe. It reads like an excellent mystery, which he was.

This is a generally good and easily available, inexpensive edition of Marlowe's plays. My only reservation about it is Steane's edition of Dr. Faustus. He makes the worst of both major texts, taking the general outline from the 1616 text but throwing in a lot of corrupt scraps from the 1604 edition for the clown scenes. I would advise anyone who wants to read Dr. Faustus to look elsewhere. I'm convinced that the 1604 version is on the whole a corrupt and truncated version of the play, but if you prefer it you might look into the Folger Library edition. If on the other hand you would rather read the play more or less as I think Marlowe wrote it, try the Signet edition edited by Sylvan Barnet.

The other plays present no major textual problems (except for The Massacre at Paris, which is pretty hopeless) and this is a fine place to meet them.

The Complete Plays includes all of Marlowe's plays (well, obviously.) As a bonus it includes the rather fragmentory Massacre at Paris (which many critics theorize is a corupt, unfinished, or damaged text) in a scene division only format and both editions of Doctor Faustus.

Marlowe's plays, while not on the same level as Shakespeare's best, are far and away superior to any other Renaisance era dramatist (See also, Thomas Kyd, Ben Johnson, or Richard Wharfinger--if you can find him hehe.)

The best thing about Marlowe's plays is the level of respect for the audience. Judgement of the characters is (for the most part) left to the reader. Tamburlaine can be viewed as hero and/or villian.

And, it being Renaisance drama, there are some spectacular death scenes--Edward II's anal cruxifiction, Brabas's boiling alive, Faustus's dismemberment, and the Admiral's hanging/shooting to name a few.

One complaint, and this is really more of a preference, but the textual notes are in endnote format, rather than footnote format, and they're not numbered notes--all of which makes finding latin translations a little more time consuming.
But, for fans of the genre, this is the way to go.

I just had a brief comment. I don't consider myself an expert on Elizabethan era literature, but I've read a fair amount of Shakespeare and a number of the other authors of the period, and I have to say I was quite impressed with Marlowe. He certainly deserves to be better appreciated than he is. One of the lines from Edward II has stuck with me. I think I have it more or less correct, which was: "...and as for the multitude, they are like sparks--caught up in the embers of their poverty." You have to like an author who can write like that, but unfortunately he's been so overshadowed by the great Will that he doesn't get as much attention as he should. Anyway, by way of doing what I can, however, modest, to increase Marlowe's popularity, I'd like to say he's a damn good playwright, and that I have no qualms about throwing my own not inconsiderable bulk behind his reputation.

The Complete Plays includes all of Marlowe's plays (well, obviously.) As a bonus it includes the rather fragmentory Massacre at Paris (which many critics theorize is a corupt, unfinished, or damaged text) in a scene division only format and both editions of Doctor Faustus.

Marlowe's plays, while not on the same level as Shakespeare's best, are far and away superior to any other Renaisance era dramatist (See also, Thomas Kyd, Ben Johnson, or Richard Wharfinger--if you can find him hehe.)

The best thing about Marlowe's plays is the level of respect for the audience. Judgement of the characters is (for the most part) left to the reader. Tamburlaine can be viewed as hero and/or villian.

And, it being Renaisance drama, there are some spectacular death scenes--Edward II's anal cruxifiction, Brabas's boiling alive, Faustus's dismemberment, and the Admiral's hanging/shooting to name a few.

One complaint, and this is really more of a preference, but the textual notes are in endnote format, rather than footnote format, and they're not numbered notes--all of which makes finding latin translations a little more time consuming.
But, for fans of the genre, this is the way to go.

Having grown up in Massachusetts, I can appreciate an author like this one who can bring Cape Cod to life. Less than a decade ago, a mystery writer relayed that her publisher had two taboos about the genre: no kids get killed and no animals. This one violates one of these. I think you are apt to identify the culprit well before the authorities do, and there's a rather unsatisfying, over-the-top coda to the book before the arrest occurs. But with the setting and many of the recurring characters so satisfyingly introduced, you will probably enjoy it. I've read the next two entries in the series as well, and they are very much of the same character: a little over-the-top, and especially in the third adventure, not quite enough sleuthing by the central character, a monk in an ecumenical Cape Cod abbey. These books are somewhat better as novels than as mysteries.

A MATTER OF ROSES is wonderful stuff--a multidimensional mystery that grips even non-mystery buffs. Following Peter Ellis' Brother Cadfael tradition, the book features as sleuth Brother Bartholomew, a monk at Faith Abbey.

The story opens with Green Beret Mac Curtis'love for Nurse Susan, a love engendered principally by her recognition of the hurt boy beneath Curtis' macho veneer. Sue rejects his advances and falls in love with Maurice Thomlinson, a frail, idealistic botanist who health and career are wrecked because of the "witches brew" he was ordered to concoct to defoliate the Vietnamese.

After the war, these three end up on Cape Cod. In an inherited cottage, Susan is nursing Maurice, her invalid husband. Mac Curtis, now married to the dynamic Allison, is planning a real estate development, Teal Pond. Other characters in the seaside town include eccentrics such as a commodore whose cannon the sheriff locks up because of the naval officer's inappropriate firings and a failed writer turned recluse and radical ecologist.

Mac Curis contrives a rose contest and a party to obtain backers for Teal Pond. When Sue again rejects him, Curtis drinks, turns ugly, then frightens his guests with a vicious description of how to gut a person with a kinfe. His indiscretion costs him financial backing for Teal Pond, and the project flops. Never the nice guy, Mac Curtis' partners, Tobin and Cal, are stunned to learn that although they are ruined, Curtis is not. Through a slight of hand involving fine print in the contract his partners signed, Mac Curtis has protected himself at their expense.

When Curtis turns up dead in a marsh, no one is sorry, and everyone is suspect. When his wife, Allison, is also murdered, the town becomes frantic. The sheriff informally enlists Brother Barholomew in the investigation, a welcome distraction for the monk torn between his vows of celibacy and the sudden reappearance of a lost love. The superbly crafted plot keeps the reader on edge right up to its explosive climax and poetic denouement.

What makes A MATTER OF ROSES much better than an ordinary mystery is the way Manuel describes the settings--the coffee shop, the dunes, the abbey's Fourth of July celebration--and the characters' battles. Brother Bartholomew struggles with his soul; the sheriff fends off a coup in the police department. Tobin deals with his disturbing marriage, Cal's wife with sudden loss and alcholism. The reader becomes involved with these conficts as well as with Brother Bartholomew and the sheriff's quest for the killer. A MATTER OF ROSES is that rare find--a wonderful present for almost everyone on your gift list, including yourself. Don't miss it.

If you love Cape Cod, a Matter of Roses is for you. Manuel's style and voice feel like your most comfortable and cherished moccasins. Add to that a stimulating and fun, first rate mystery, and you have a must read novel.

David Mauel should stick to writing about the natural world instead of trying to add his feelings and opinions onto a murder story. The action doesn't occur until so far into the book that one is left wondering what the mystery is. Then he spends so much time going through all the details it gets tiresome. The descriptions are fine, although I am not familiar with Cape Cod, but his writing style would be more fitted to a document in a magazine. There was so much opportunity to make the love between Andrew and Laurel beautiful, but he just dropped it in. Read it if nothing better is handy. I read it only because I agreed to give a report on it for our book club.

The town of Eastport has just had its' first murder in 47 years. The most hated man on the island, a developer naturally, Mac Curtis is found dead by Teal Pond. The murder weapon, a custom made knife he used in Vietnam, is missing, and the trouble has only just begun. There are innumerable suspects, from his wife and partners to a local enviromentalist. The Chief of Police needs help he can't get from his own department, his second in command is a raving egomaniac without the intelligence to match his ego. So, the Chief turns to his childhood friend, the monk, Brother Bartholomew, to help him. Brother Bartholomew has problems of his own, from the past and present, but he agrees to help his old friend.

This was a very suspenseful mystery. You never knew the killer's indentity until the author wanted you to know. There was plenty of action in between. A very fast and enjoyable read.

Sierra Lavotini is an exotic dancer "living large" in Panama City Florida. Sierra is the headliner at the Vinny Gambuzzo's Tiffany Gentleman's Club. She and her friend, fellow dancer Ruby Diamond, are asked to make a special appearance at a nearby race track, the Dead Lakes Motor Speedway. When Ruby is found dead behind a dumpster at the raceway, Sierra kicks her investigation skills into high gear to find out who has murdered her friend.

The back of this book compares Sierra Lavotini to Stephanie Plum, Janet Evanovich's feisty New Jersey bounty hunter. I have usually found books that compare themselves to the Stephanie Plum books to fall short, but that is not the case with this book! The characters are funny and unique. Readers get to know Vinny, Sierra's smarmy boss at the club, as well as her borderline-wacko neighbor Raydean.

This hilarious mystery was the first one I have read by Nancy Bartholomew, but it certainly won't be my last! I highlly recommend this entertaining story to all mystery fans.

I've read both The Miracle Strip and Drag Strip, and I am hooked on these books. The characters come to life more in each book, the sleuthing gets more sophisticated, the plots better and better. Sierra is someone that I would never know in real life, but would want to be friends with if I happened across her. Her "take no prisoners" attitude combines with an un-apologetic love for exotic dancing. Her large Italian family Philadelphia upbringing offers good comic contrast, but also shows how she is so well grounded in her life. No victim, Sierra. Throw in a handsome single cop and you've got a great, fun read.

Sierra Lavotini is the headliner of the Tiffany Gentlemen's Club in Panama City, Florida. After her debut in Nancy Bartholomew's MIRACLE MILE, she is back to make us laugh and smile in her latest mystery. In DRAG STRIP, Ruby Lee Diamond has recently moved out of her parent's house in Wewahitchka to work at Panama City. Sierra takes Ruby under her wing and shows her the ropes of her profession.

In order to promote his gentleman's club, Vincent Gambuzzo sends Sierra and Ruby to the local drag strip to pose with the drivers competing at the day's races. While working there Sierra sees Detective John Nailor in the hands of another woman (the nerve!) and he is doing everything he can to avoid bumping into her. During that same day she overhears Ruby arguing with someone and then being beaten to death. Sierra arrives too late to stop it and the killer manages to escape. It affects her really hard because she saw Ruby as a friend and she is unable to confide in John Nailor since he is on the run from the cops. Lavotini is not going to take it sitting down and she will do what it takes to find out the truth. In the end she will be involved with religious zealots, organized crime and family secrets.

Ms. Bartholomew has another winner with this second book in the Strip series. Sierra is a likeable character who is smart, resourceful and is grounded by the unconditional love given to her by her friends and family. There is a lot of humor written in this book that does not divert from the main storyline. An exotic dancer was murdered and there is a killer tracking Sierra to try and find out what she knows. Several scenes could have been insulting if written by other authors but Nancy Bartholomew is a class act. She never belittles her characters and her books are a joy to read. It will be a pleasure to continue reading her next book in the series, FILM STRIP. She writes good and light books meant to be enjoyed and not taken seriously.

In this, the 2nd of the Sierra Lavotini mystery series, we find our intrepid exotic dancer/amateur sleuth with another dead body on her hands and herself just a tad bit closer to snagging Det.John Nailor.

Sierra still can outdance the best of them and still has a penchant for getting herself involved in murder investigations. This time, her protégée Ruby Diamond meets a heinous death at the local drag strip. Fingers point to several of the drag strip regulars, Sierra's boss insists she call in her pseudo-uncle Moose, Ma & brother Al show up to lend a hand and Raydean continues in her ongoing paranoia against Flemish aliens. And what, Sierra wants to know, was Det. Nailor doing standing over the body of Ruby?

As things start to get heavy, Sierra knows she's in big trouble, but risks her life and her heart to help solve Ruby's murder and get John out of the mess he's gotten himself into.

The one recurring character I despise, is Carla - Nailor's ex. One of these times I'd really like to see this nasty human get what's coming to her and I'd sure like it to be Sierra who dishes it out.

The author's next book in this series, Film Strip, is in my short stack on-deck circle of books to read. I only hope Ms.Bartholomew doesn't end the series before Sierra and John reach nirvana.

I loved this book! I read it in one day. Drag Strip offered non-stop action, crazy, lovable characters, mystery, romance and a gutsy heroine with a unique career. 'Just one more chapter'is something you can't do with this author's books. Each chapter ends with action that means you have to read the next and the next until you find yourself closing the back cover with a smile on your face. I am eagerly waiting for the third book in the Sierra Lavotini series to arrive from Amazon. Nancy Bartholomew is already good and with each book she gets better. I'm sure by her fourth book, she will surpass Evanovich - at least in my opinion. So if you have already read Evanovich's last book and you are looking for something to pass the time until her next one comes out, pick up any of Nancy Bartholomew's books. Guaranteed if Evanovich and Bartholomew's next books come out at the same time, you'll read Nancy Bartholomew's book first!

My daughter and I stumbled upon this book when she was about 9 months old and it's been our favorite ever since! She loves to mimic Bartholomew- it was the first book (and one of the few books) that actually holds her attention all the way through. I love it, too! The story line and the illustrations are absolutely adorable!

We love these books. This is a wonderfully simple book. Ba is having a grumpy, cranky, hate-myself day. But no matter what George loves him. A true family love.

Grumpy. Stumpy. Lumpy. Plumpy. Little Bartholomew wakes up on the wrong side of his toddler bear bed. But a big gentle bear named George loves him just the way he is. George thaws out Bartholomew with a cozy scarf, a steaming bowl of porridge, a warm bath, and finally gentle words. Author illustrator Virginia Miller wrote this after her first book about the little bear with the big name, On Your Potty, grew in popularity. She enhances her spare text (only 109 words) with illustrations outlined in wide pencil and colored with soft, earth-toned markers. Ba is now out of diapers, but does not seem to be out of his �Terrible Two� stage. This tender tale of unconditional love is sure to warm your own heart. If you�d like to read more about this adorable bear, I recommend the book Bartholomew Bear, a collection of five toddler tales at a great price.

My toddler (18 months) adores this book. He loves to yell "nah!" along with Bartholomew, and whenever he hears phrases from the book (e.g. "are you grumpy?") he responds just like Ba. Cute illustrations, a solid boardbook and just the right length for a fidgety toddler.

My two year old has tons of books, but this is by far his favorite! We read it two or three times each night. Every parent can identify with George and every toddler has a little ba in them! Heartwarming and Brilliant! Hooray for Virginia Miller!

As always, Gregory's stories are generally interesting. However, an economy of words would often help at times so that the story line does not become overly tedious. Yet, I always come back for more as I like the good
doctor and his cohort.

This book was read by Andrew Wincott, a British actor on stage, television and radio. He has a nice flexible voice and handles the various characters in this book with ease. It wasn't his fault that I ended this book feeling vaguely dissatisfied because I've had this problem with other books in this series by this author.

While I feel that the author, Susanna Gregory, has a fairly reliable grasp of Cambridge history the plot seemed to rely overly on coincidence. And sometimes she shows then tells again as though the reader might not be relied upon to catch on without one of the characters explaining things to us.

For instance, the portly Brother Michael, Proctor, has been eating too much. Matthew, the doctor, encourages him to eat less for the sake of his health. Matthew also muses to himself that if he were involved in a fracas where Michael was his backup while they were solving a crime that Michael might not be able come to his aid if Michael was too overweight. So of course a fracas occurs and Michael cannot come to his aid. Next thing we know Michael is cutting down on his food intake. Enough said, right? No, Matthew has to muse to himself again that Michael is dieting in because he found out that he would not be able to help his friend if he were too much overweight.

When the plot isn't being driven by coincidence it's being pushed by Matthew's not very good judgment when it comes to the character of others.

It probably sounds like I do not like this book, but that is not true. I did enjoy the 16 or so hours I spent in 14th century Cambridge but I wish Ms Gregory would hone her mystery skills a bit to equal her historical skills.

I am an admirer of Gregory's Chronicles of Matthew Bartholomew series but this one falls short of her usual standard. The historical background to the story is, as one expects from this author, well researched and written about with authority. The basic plot centres on a riot in Oxford after which a number of scholars flee to Cambridge. Along with them go a small group of men from the town who are investigating a murder that took place during the rioting.
At the same time there is a subplot centred on a Cambridge lecturer who appears to be manifesting symptoms of insanity. A local prostitute with whom Matthew has become overly familiar, at least to those who do not know what they are really doing, has a part to play in the mystery. As do two men associated with an Oxford owned manor in Cambridge. Then there is an old feud plus an old friend now so altered by time and age that Matthew wonders if he was mistaken in his admiration as a youth, bodies galore and a plot that gets more and more entangled as the story progresses.
The plot plods along as Matthew and Michael discover body after body until the lists of corpses and suspects reaches an almost ridiculous length. The solving of the crime is more likely to be done by the reader well before the end of the book simply because of the repetition of the main clue to the point where the reader may well wonder why the editor of the book did not call a halt to its appearance.
In the end the murderers are exposed and the corpses buried while the Archbishop of Canterbury starts his visit to the town. A neat but not very satisfying ending left me hoping that the next book from Miss Gregory will be more like the others in the series.

Susanna Gregory is not as prolific a writer as many of the authors who write this style of book and the anticipation of waiting for a new title can be quite frustrating for the reader. However the wait is always worthwhile.

I am not sure whether it is Matthew Bartholomew himself, or the setting of Cambridge in the mid-fourteenth century but Miss Gregory's books seem to carry an aura all of their own. Certainly for me and hopefully for other readers as well.

It is St. Scholastic's and Oxford is embroiled in one of the most serious riots in it history. Fearing for their lives many of the scholars flee from the city, some choosing to travel to Cambridge in the belief that the murderer of one of their colleagues may well be found in town that rival them for scholastic endeavour.

Brother Michael is furious that anyone else should try to search for the killer and is dismissive of the insistence of these upstarts that Cambridge is harbouring the murderer.

He is also annoyed that Matthew Bartholomew appears to more interested in the town's leading prostitute than the murder that has taken place.

It eventually becomes clear that the riot was not a case of random violence but part of a carefully orchestrated plot . . .

This eleventh book in the Matthew Bartholomew series is a real page-turner. I have been enjoying reading this series for a number of years now, and look forward to each new installment. Ms. Gregory writes in a complex and vivid manner that demonstrates her intimate knowledge with the time frame that she is writing in, while treating her readers to wonderful characters, tightly knit plots and intricate murders and murderers. This book uses the historcal Oxford riots of 1355 to build a story around. Everyone in Cambridge is aware of the devastating riots in Oxford, and they want to make sure that the same thing doesn't happen in their city. Especially because they are planning for a celebratory visitation from the Archbishop of Canterbury. But people keep turning up dead and Michael and Matthew are hard-pressed to sort it all out in time. This is another totally satisfying medieval mystery. Bring on the next one.