Bean Books

I just finished the trilogy, so I am gonna review the books as a whole for this.
The series is good. The first book has a pace and characters that you could grow to love and hate. It is a little angering because the whole time its a game of catch-up. That comes to an end in book 2 (thankfully). The 3rd book is also worth reading and only gets better. It worked like good fiction ought to.
I would have to rate this series as a 4 star. The characters are decent and the plot, although cliche' is still intriguing to read. You will find that it has some cinematic qualities to it which makes a great read to get lost in.

As these things go, Marked for Death is a solid introduction to the intriguing world of Eberron and Matt Forbeck admirably maintains a tricky balance between establishing a coherent narrative while serving the marketing purposes these efforts more typically represent. The plot hinges on the appearance of a lost dragonmark, the Mark of Death, one of the thirteen powerful birthmarks which themselves represent one of the primary concepts that sets Eberron apart from Forgotten Realms and other more familiar fantasy settings. Forbeck does a good job of streamlining the many expository asides while keeping the action-oriented story moving forward at a steady pace.

The large cast of characters is an engaging bunch with plenty of grey area between the "good" and "bad" guys that gives the story an extra bit of dramatic weight. Some of the action gets a little repetitive towards the end as the bearer of the lost mark finds herself in and out and in and out and in and out of jeopardy, but Forbeck ultimately makes it work on the strength of his characters and the strong appeal of the Eberron setting itself.

I'm an avid forgotten realms reader, and recently started purchasing novels from the Eberron world. The concept of the world is very different from FR and I must say it's a very refreshing change. I have purchased every Eberron book published to date and am looking forward to finding the time to catch up on my reading.

Marked for Death is the first book in The Lost Mark trilogy and the premise of the story is the lost 13th dragonmark, the Mark of Death. The 2nd and 3rd books are titled The Road to Death and The Queen of Death.

I just finished reading the first book, and found that it was very attention grabbing from start to finish. This is probably in no small part due to the short chapters in the book (the book has 64 chapters with an average of about 6 pages per chapter). The chapters usually end with a cliffhanger that makes you want to continue reading the next chapter. I'm usually very busy with my job, and only have about an hour to read at night if I'm lucky, but I found that I did not want to put this book down (at the expense of my sleep).

The story itself is action packed and introduces many of the special features of Eberron without becoming overly drawn out due to excess detail placed on these features. The journey through the Mournland also gives readers who are new to Eberron some insight to that area of the world, as well as introducing the concept of the warforged. The characters are also very diverse, with some undead, knights of the Silver Flame, the changeling, shifter, warforged etc etc. We also get to see clashes of character and principles among the characters, which is nice. The action and battles are also well written, and the reader can easily follow action that is taking place in multiple locations at the same time (ie. the arena scene towards the end of the book). Another great plus point is that the main characters are actually vulnerable and a few of them actually meet their end in the course of the story, unlike certain series' where main characters dying take a number of chapters, and then other characters keep thinking of them etc etc.

On the minus side, a couple of things irritated me slightly. Firstly, as most reviews have pointed out, the repetition of the kidnapping got a bit boring after a while, but I believe the circumstances were reasonable and fairly well written. Secondly, there are quite a large number of grammatical errors/typos which takes a bit away from the enjoyment of the story, but these are few and far between when compared to those in the City of Towers (the first Eberron book published). And finally, I notice the writer refers to warforged as 'it' rather than 'he' or 'she', and while this is a perfectly reasonable classification given that the warforged are basically machines, the concept of warforged gender had been introduced in the Dreaming Dark trilogy (Pierce and the other warforged) and I feel a maniacal overlord with the name 'Ba*****' should be referred to in a particular gender rather than as an 'it'.

Forbek's first attempt at the Eberron campaign setting was pleasing. The plot line is great and should lead to highly pleasing follow-up novels. The characters are very entertaining, and while they are extremely stubborn (and frustrating), you'll find yourself really getting to know them and caring about what happens to them. The fight scenes are intense and well-done, with brutal injuries being handed out left and right in realistic and gory detail. While many of the previous reviewers have complained about the repetitious nature of the plot, with Espre being captured time and again, it actually worked rather well for this novel. Warforged followers of the Lord of Blades (who we met in the Dreaming Dark trilogy) play a large part in this novel. They take on a much more human aspect, with emotions and sensitivity to pain, that they lacked in Keith Baker's trilogy.

***spoilers***

Kandler's step daughter, an elf named Espre, turns out to be a very special (and highly sought-after) girl because of the appearance of the lost 'Mark of Death' on her back. The plot gets going when forces from Karrnath appear to capture her out from under the noses of Kandler and a group of knights of the silver flame (who were also out to find her). As Kandler, his shifter friend Burch, and the knights set out to rescue her, they end up trekking through the Mournland and encountering all kinds of foes. They are able to track down and overwhelm their enemies time and again only to have a sneaking shifter named Te'oma re-kidnap her every time. It is sort of funny how every time Kandler has Espre in his arms once again and you think he surely won't allow her to be captured again, something bizare happens and Te'oma is there to take advantage. Frustrating at times, but it keeps the story going at a very quick pace.

The cover art is somewhat confusing, displaying blatant inaccuracies about the characters and their roles, but that shouldn't really bother anyone.

Overall, I really liked this book and look forward to reading the next.

There are some redeeming parts, the action is fast paced and the descriptions are usually well written, but it's all down hill from there.

I made it about 100 pages into this book before putting it down in frustration. The authors tendency to have completely ridiculous and forced dialog drove me batty. I kept thinking "Now why would they say that? This makes no sense." For example, in the middle of life or death situation when asked a question a Vampire exclaims "ah straight to the point, refreshing!". What? Refreshing?! You wonder if maybe he expected small talk.

In another, after a large battle in a village where a group of vampires kidnaps a mans daughter one of the vampires waits around just to tell the heroes not to follow. As if the man isn't going to pursue his daughter? What in the hell? There is no situation I can imagine where this would be a reasonable expectation. I could almost see the villain holding up his pinky Dr. Evil style.

each book out does the last one Lisa Jackson writes..look forward to each and every one and they are all keepers.

I have always been a Lisa Jackson fan, and eagerly paid top dollar at the airport for this book. I was disappointed and felt I had been cheated out of an ending. Since when are these novels "to be continued"??? Yes, it was tense and kept you guessing who the bad guy really was; but come on ... why leave me hung out to dry waiting for an ending that is expected in August 2009? What a dirty trick. I won't so quickly buy the next one.

I was shocked at how poorly written Lost Souls was I remember reading Shiver and how I couldn't put it down so engrossing were the lead characters but this book I was bored so quickly just couldn't get invested in the lead characters.

I think a big part of the problem for Lisa Jackson is that she is pushing out books so quickly she is passing up her writing talent just to get the books to reach the publishing deadline.

SUMMARY: The latest in Jackson's series revolving around the ever-expanding family of tragic heroine Faith Daniels finds Kristi Bentz, a secondary character from the previous installments, at the forefront. Recovered from a previous attack, Kristi decides to re-enroll at her alma mater, All Souls College, to further her aspirations of becoming a true crime writer. The fact that several female students have gone missing from the campus only intrigues her more.

WHY YOU'LL LIKE IT: Jackson has a knack for creating and developing likable heroines, and Kristi Bentz no different. As she was established in other books, it's nice to see her get a turn as a main character. Jackson endeavors to capture the gothic allure of New Orleans in these epic potboilers, and adequately succeeds.

WHY YOU WON'T: Despite the potential of this series, the plots have become formulaic and often ludicrous. How many serial killers can one family, disjointed or not, attract? Jackson's antagonists have become predictable and boring, whispering their bland threats into the ears of the reader, usually mixed with laughable profanity about his desire to violate sexually the protagonist; the killers are no longer distinguishable from each other and it's frankly impossible to care what their motives are or what drives them; it has become simply a matter of counting the bodies they leave in their wake until the inevitable concluding showdown. The romance scenes are pedantic and pejorative, and it's offensive to read the women of Jackson's novels become so besotted with their paramours that they become caricatures of themselves, not to mention the predilection the author has of shining the light of suspicion on said suitors, making her heroines' eventual submission all the more pathetic. Most aggravating is the heroines' penchant for putting themselves in harm's way (often planned) while not having taken the necessary precautions and thus requiring a man to ride to their rescue; regardless of self-defense training or that can of mace for which they never reach in time, it would be nice to see one of these women let someone know what they're up to and where they're going prior to racing off on a half-cocked 'mission'. The plotting is haphazard and shoddy, and the novel runs about one hundred-fifty pages too long with several redundant passages.

BOTTOM LINE: Jackson is a talented author with many illustrious works to her credit; this is not one of them. She's in danger of becoming generic in a genre in which she was once a leader.

I think this was quite a good book, it kept you guessing on who the killer was. I like Kristi and her Dad, New Orleans Dectective Rick Bentz and I enjoyed how Kristi hooked up with a former boyfriend, Jay. All of the characters held my interest. I thought the book had a lot of twists and turns. I am going to search out more of Lisa Jackson's books.

I have read quite a few Marcia Muller's Sharon McCone books lately, and have enjoyed them all. But overall, A Walk Through the Fire is not as good as some of the previous books that I've read. While it gets off to a good start, I think Muller has just way too much going on in terms of plot in the second half the book.

Private investigator, Sharon McCone, gets a call from a professional neighbor who is working in Hawaii. Glenna Stanleigh is a documentary filmmaker and calls McCone in a panic when it appears that someone is trying to sabotage her present project. She convinces McCone and McCone's boyfriend, Hy Ripinsky, to leave San Francisco to provide her with some security and to discover who and why someone wants the film halted. McCone finds herself embroiled in a family feud with the rich and spoiled Wellbright family--Hawaiian natives for many years.

In the course of A Walk Through the Fire, McCone must deal with missing Wellbright family members, a suicide, drug dealers, kidnappings, a romantic love interest, massive cover-ups and of course, Hawaiian spirits. The plot is unwieldy and terribly convoluted. I wonder where her editor was on this one.

Overall, I did enjoy the change of locations from San Francisco to Hawaii. Muller has an obvious love of these islands and it shows in her writing. I just wish the plot was a little more believable.

This installment in Muller's Sharon McCone series takes our heroine to Hawaii. Office neighbor Glenna Stanleigh is attempting to film a documentary on Kauai, but filming has been plagued by a series of "accidents" that may not have been very accidental. Overall, the plot of this story is pretty good. There are some pretty transparent aspects to it, and not too many big surprises, but it kept me turning pages right up to the end.

As I write this, the average rating among reviewers here for A WALK THROUGH THE FIRE is below average for the books in the series. While I agree that this isn't one of the best McCone mysteries I've read, I also don't think it's as much of a letdown as others have indicated. I have just two criticisms. First, the attempt to inject additional melodrama into the story through the invocation of the mystical "spell" of the islands and through the romantic entanglement with the helicopter pilot really didn't work for me. Second, Ms. Muller took up flying some years back and since flying has become a significant element in every McCone mystery. Ms. Muller apparently likes flying. Great, but give it a rest in the stories. Sometimes is OK, but it's gotten overworked. Once in a while it would be nice to get a story that stays on the ground. I always thought that her use of San Francisco as her setting was part of the charm of the McCone mysteries. A return to that sometimes would be welcome.

A WALK THROUGH THE FIRE isn't the best McCone mystery I've encountered, but it kept me turning the pages to the end. My routine rating for books in the series is four stars and that's what this one is getting, as well.
Casual readers may not be greatly impressed, but most fans will find this another enjoyable episode in the on-going saga.

Most of the other reviewers have said what needs to be said concerning this book. It's a good read for the beach, yet that in itself is a bit of criticism because most fine authors want to be better than that (I would think). This genre is supposed to be entertaining, and this book is exactly that. No less worthy of spending your time then sitting in front of the boob-tube for hours at a time!

It's hard, I'm sure, to continue writing about a single protagonist all the time. And it's difficult to ask readers to suspend belief over certain things happening constantly to one person (though I can testify that bad things do happen constantly to good persons). Not enough effort put into the plot, and newcomers to Muller's books usually get a better introduction into the characters, and so the characters seem rather cardboardish at this point.

Karen Sadler

Private Investigator Sharon McCone gets tough duty in this 20th. book of the series when she is asked to go to Kauai. Glenna Stanleigh, a friend from San Francisco, has asked Sharon to investigate the strange happenings on the set of the documentary she is filming in Hawaii. Sharon takes the job and flies over with her significant other, Hy Ripinsky. When she arrives, she begins investigating the family whose patriarch is at the center of the film. Glenna has used his notes and research about some of the folk tales of the native Hawaiins as a starting point for her documentary. As Sharon's investigation proceeds, several skeletons begin to come out of the closet and family secrets are revealed. At the same time, Sharon is being romanced by a local helicoptor pilot and Hy leaves the island in order to give Sharon some time and room to consider her relationships with the two men. The plot has some intriguing twists and turns and at last all of the secrets are revealed. Marcia Muller and her heroine have matured over the 20-plus years that this series has been written, and this book does not disappoint.

Amateurish, stiff, thin, contrived--these are the adjectives I can think of to describe the novel best. Although I might add one more: disappointing. This is my first Marcia Muller mystery, and I expected more from a seasoned writer--too much, as it turned out. After reading Steve Hamilton, Bill Pronzini, Andrew Greeley, Tony Hillerman, Stuart Kaminsky, Les Roberts, and others of that level, this seems stale as yesterday's gruel.

There's no point in reviewing the plot details. Other reviewers have commented adequately on those. So I'll proceed to the other two major points of any mystery--atmosphere and characters. Set in Hawaii, for the most part, I just never quite got there, despite all the green vegetation, flowers and fiery volcanoes. Beautiful, beautiful, so what? The characters are pretty much standard fare for mysteries--too rich, too spoiled, too much alcohol and drugs. As for love affairs, mystery writers might do well to heed S.S. Van Dine's rule from decades ago and leave sex out of the work. If the mystery is thin, the romance won't thicken it. The murder and the detection are, after all, why we read crime fiction. If I want romance, I'll go with Bertrice Small.

In short, I doubt that I'll try another Marcia Muller book, at least, not for a long, long time. Sorry.

A partir principalmente de los libros de Samuel, se hace una recreación lineal de la vida de David con inclusiones esporádicas de ciertos relatos contenidos en estos. Básicamente tenemos aquí los libros de Samuel explicados. No tiene, como el título sugiere, ningún aporte de alguna otra fuente o de algún hallazgo contemporáneo, solo la narración de quien se estudió estos libros.

No obstante lo anterior, el libro es muy ameno y sirve para lo que los libros deben servir: entretener y enseñar. Y el autor evita a toda costa ofender a los lectores y mas bien intenta explicar las contradicciones encontradas a lo largo de la narración original

"King David" introduces the reader to the most central figure of the Old Testament. Author Jonathan Kirsch does an excellent job of fleshing out this legendary figure from the sketchy stories recorded in the Bible. Kirsch follows the biblical writings very closely, unlike other tomes on Biblical subjects which tend to discount the Scriptural accounts. Kirsch starts out with the Scriptural texts and then explains them in light of scholarship concerning the identity and purpose of the various sources and how each may have influenced the final draft of the story. He talks often of the Court Historian, believed to be the primary author, along with later editors who may have supplemented or altered the original text.

This book does a good job at exploring how King David, with all his faults, could be "A man after God's own heart." It tries to part the mists of history to find the flesh and blood man behind the ancient legend. It weaves the scattered Biblical accounts together to form a biography. It explains how David is central to all Biblical characters who follow him.

One standard by which I measure a book is whether it wets my appetite to read more on the subject. I am now reading the David narratives in the Bible. By this measure it passes with flying colors.

"Wanna read a bad book?" my friend asked. I wished I had had the foresight to answer "no." Unfortunately, I didn't, and I read all of Jonathan Kirsch's King David. This book is worse than bad, it's an embarrassment. If there's an original idea in the book, Kirsch does an incredible job of hiding it among his numerous quotations or, I should say, "adaptations" from Samuel. The scholarship is paper thin; Kirsch slavishly relies upon the work of others and offers nothing new himself. Basically, Kirsch takes the magnificent KJV translation of the story in I and II Samuel and "punches it up" with Newsweek style. Kirsch appears to pride himself on reading the stories skeptically, as one would hope of any modern journalist reading Samuel, and peppers his comments with phrases such as "as the biblical authors wished to remember him [David]," "so it would seem," and "theological spin." However, except for questions raised by others, Kirsch is one of the most credulous readers of this story I've ever met. He buys almost everything the author tells us about David and the others in this story. As just one example, Kirsch dutifully reports the description in I Samuel 13:3 of Amnon's cousin, Jonadab, as "a very subtle man." And what incredibly subtle advice to Jonadab give his cousin? That Amnon should rape his half-sister Tamar in his own bedroom after setting up the meeting in such a way that all the royal family would know what was going on. If this is "subtlety," then Micky Spillane is John LeCarre! Now of course, it is subtle if Jonadab were in cahoots with someone else in order to destroy Amnon, but Kirsch hasn't the imagination to explore that possibility - or even the possibility that the rape never occurred but its report was concocted for other reasons. On the other hand, if Jonadab was actually trying to help Amnon, then to buy Samuel's description of him as "subtle" is the apex of naivete. Indeed, you'd think Kirsch would ask: is the author being ironic? But no, that would be to expect too much from Kirsch.

Rather than waste your time on this book, let me suggest two others. If you want to accompany a masterful literary scholar reading the story of David, buy Robert Alter's illuminating The David Story. If you want to examine the story of David from the perspective of a modern, secular historian at the top of his craft, buy Baruch Halpern's David's Secret Demons. These are two very different books, and many who like one of them won't like the other. But happy is the reader who can appreciate both. If you choose to read neither Alter nor Halpern, don't waste your time on Kirsch. Just go get a copy of the KJV at your local motel and read Samuel for yourself.

I listened to this book on tape as read by the author himself.

This is one of what appears to be a significantly developing genre of books in the area of theology and Biblical History, designed to be read by the general populace to put in their hands what modern scholarship is saying.

This book does this reasonably well for anyone who is unfamiliar with such terms as Modern Bibical Criticism, J theory, Court Historian etc.

What is not so clear to the average listener is that the primary sources drawn from such as Howard Bloom, Wellhausen and company are considerably from the more liberal and secular camps and that there exists a large body of more conservative material that deals with thses issues with somewhat different conclusions.

There's nothing wrong with that in and of itself. What I find distrubing in these types of Historical Overviews - turned novel is that the hybrid product, while purporting to be factual, uses the change in genre to present the material as somehow more certain or less controversial than is really the case. What's wrong with being a little more deliberate in making the source literature drawn upon a little more diverse and truly allowing the reader to enter into the dialogue and interact with the issues, rather than being led to believe that things are as neat and tidy as a reading of this book would seem to indicate to a reader otherwise unfamiliar with the field?

Those concerns expressed, I did find this to be an interesting and worthwhile listen (read). Old Testament history has been a weakness for me and this did help to fill in some gaps in terms of the what some of the modern scholarship has been giving. In addition, it did present David in terms that helped to place him historically and, as much as the author's approach could allow for with all of its provisos and doubts, somewhat personally.

Listen critically to this work. It seeks, in my opinion, to gloss over some of the ommissions in terms of conflicting material, by making the format flow like a historical novel and a reader can be carried away with that and walk away feeling they have a strong grasp on all that is available in this field. They will not.

Life of David by Arthur Pink would be a good contrast work to see some of the other camp and provide some balance.

Interesting read, but again, read criticically and ask yourself what you're not being told in the midst of it.

Kirsch's account of King David's life is highly questionable to say the least. The book is full of conjecture. The flaws in the author's reasoning are apparent on the face of every page. His perception of King David's relationship with God and country is severely unschooled and a danger to follow. Anyone interested in appreciating the true story of "The man after God's heart" would be better off reading the Biblical accounts. Don't waste your money on this quack historian who seems committed to justifying base persuits with the flaws of the great men and women of Biblical antiquity.

Veteran narrator Joyce Bean spices A TREASURE WORTH SEEKING: a thought-provoking audio story of Erin, who has searched for the brother she'd never known and at last finds some clues to his whereabouts - only to find herself confronting family lies, secrets, and even new romance. Her love and discoveries about her family will shake her world and change her life in a moving romance which comes alive in audio under Bean's practiced voice.

This was an excellent suspense story about a missing person and bank embezzelment. I was spellbound to learn what happened to Ken and the money. The friendship that developed between Ken's wife Melanie and his long-lost sister Erin was very endearing, as they comforted and supported each other through the crisis. These storylines should have been better developed as the main focus of the story.

However, as a romance novel, there was nothing romantic at all about the male protagonist. Upon first encountering Erin, Lance treated her with such brute force that it crossed the line into to abuse of his power as a law enforcement official. The way he interrogated her, spoke down to her, searched her personal property without a warrant, physically man-handled her, and held her against her will was surely a violation of her civil rights (I kept wondering why she didn't insist on having a lawyer or other advocate present.) He also forced himself upon her in more intimate ways, in almost rapist fashion. I was repulsed to read about Erin's physical attraction to him in spite of his abusive man-handling of her. Yes, Lance did have moments of tenderness in the second half of the novel, alternating with obnoxious behavior, but it was impossible to imagine that Erin would even consider entering into a relationship with him, regardless of how sexy and attractive he was. Yuck!

Like other reviewers, I thought the romance in this one was too little and too late. The mystery was never really explained and had an unpleasant resolution. Not exactly what I'm looking for in a book primarily marketed as a romance book. But Brown's later suspense/romance novels Chill Factor, Envy, Slow Heat in Heaven, and White Hot are unsurpassed.

This storyline was really lame! I can't even say anything good about the characters because they were all really annoying! I am a huge Sandra Brown fan, but this one is one I wish I had skipped!

First off what man in their right mind kiss someone only minutes after you meet them, oh wait what am I talking about? Besides that further into the story Erin needs help zipping up her dress and of course Lance is the only one around to help her. He does more then zip up her dress he fondles and gropes her and then comes to his senses and helps her with her dress.
He knew pretty much from the beginning that she wasnt helping her long lost brother with the robbery yet he keeps her around to mess with her sexually.
The end of the book was even worse. Lance comes to see her at her office and she doesnt even bother to tell him she is pregnant with his child. Then of course some who they live happily ever after. blah blah blah
dont waste your time

I like the book itself. I agree with what others have said regarding being comprehensive and a good beginning German book. However, the CD leaves a bit to be desired and although the book offers a "key code" from the publisher in order for you to access an online help site affiliated with the book, you would not know this until you open the book and have thrown away the packaging. I tried to get the key code and could not get it. Therefore, although I purchased a new book, the 8th edition thru Amazon, I am unable to access a premium componenet of the book that I should have been able to use...thus...caveat emptor!

WAIT until the class begins. I bought this book via Amazon a few weeks before my courses began. Once I received the syllabus, I was told that I had to have a shrink-wrapped version that includes a "key-code". This is for accesing an online workbook and other accompanying material-which my professor does use/grade.

I ended up purchasing another copy of this book (for $200) from the bookstore, with the key code. So I've spent $300+ on two books and one key-code...now I have an extra German book. I'm hesitant to sell it too, 'cause I don't want to put someone in the same position I was in.

The site that uses the key-code and provides the online material (Quia) is not very clear on what you need to purchase if you have the book already...if it even sells that. I e-mailed them, and it's equally vague. Most of my classmates and I who were in this situation just avoided the headache by buying from the bookstore instead of trying the online site. Of those who did buy from the site, most ended up purchasing the wrong package, and getting either another book anyway or only part of the online sections, for more money.

I've also done some searching, and have found this to be a problem with many students, in many language courses. (I guess the bookstores aren't done figuring out how to put us father in debt...joy...)

So my advice:
Save your money and talk to your professor before purchasing from a non-academic site. Or just eat the cost and use the bookstore. $200 is a LOT cheaper than $300+.

It is a good book, though. (Which is why it's received 3 stars.) The info seems practical and handy. :-)

Just don't let 'em screw over any more students!

It wasn't what I thought it was. The way it was listed I thought it was the book and the workbook, but it was just the workbook.

This is a good book for those who want to teach themselves about the german language. also i belive it allows for good insite into the german culture and customs. Maybe not the best book for practical german language, but for the beginner its great!

I used this book for two semesters of German language courses in college. While its not a bad book, the memorization of tables and stuff can be daunting. I thought the descriptions were precise and clear, and the grammar exercises were okay. The problem was the application of grammar was too 'precise'. Ie. there was the constant memorization of tables. This book is ideal for an engineer. Overall, its also a good reference book and is well laid out. A nice touch was the culture topics; however, I would have liked to see something focusing a bit more on conversational practice.

I have been a fan of Sean Bean for some time - from the first time I saw the Sharpe series through the Robert Lovelace/Clarissa role and the odd villainous appearances. I don't generally read biographies of actors but thought since he'd portrayed such an interesting variety of characters that there would be an interesting person behind them. However, I wouldn't know if there was or not. He seems to have led an interesting life but there really isn't a shred of the man himself in this book.

Maybe it's too much to expect - I wasn't looking for dirt but I was certainly looking for substance and found nothing. "Everyone likes him, he's a man's man, he's a great actor". The book leads you to believe that he had about as much depth as a cereal bowl and I tend to think that there's more to this actor than that. I found it very vacuous.

Laura Jackson does get some of the details wrong, like stating that Sean Bean divorced his first wife after moving to London to attend at RADA. In reality, they split before. However, she provides an overall well-rounded portrait of the actor, which makes for an interesting if rather quick read. There are several pages of colour photos as well, an added point of interest, and fascinating details about several of Sean Bean's projects. How many people know that several of the cast of Sharpe got very ill from the Ukraine catering?

If you're looking for a book to fill in the gaps on your knowledge of this actor, or just something to while away a lazy summer afternoon, this one will do quite nicely. And the cover alone is gorgeous - surely Sean Bean should get an award for Best Smile of the Year?

I read this book because I ordered it from an inter library loan. It is not for sale through Amazon much to my disappointment. The book is a good overview of Mr.Bean's work in films. It does not offer anything else.

There isn't any really deep analysis of Sean Bean as a person. Next to nothing about his childhood is in the book, nor any photos of him as a kid. The author had no access to his relatives, and only interviewed a teacher of his from primary school and his drama teacher from Sheffield.

Primarily this is a good book for his devoted fans who want a good chronological account of his acting work and very superficial details about his life. The author was not granted an interivew with Sean Bean,nor any of his relatives or very close friends. It's not an official biography. Jackson interviewed people who worked with Bean, and slight acquaintances, but none of his close friends gave her quotes. Bean is well known for being absolutely silent about his personal life which he assiduously guards.....and that's part of his charisma. What Bean holds back is what makes him so fascinating. He gives 1,000% in performances, and really that is ALL he owes the public.

The photo section is very skimpy, you can get much better pictures of Bean online at various fan sites such as "The Compleat Bean". Reading this book made me convinced the author simply sat down and read every article, website and watched taped interviews of the star to compile her book because she was denied interviews with those people closest to her subject. Because she doesn't have the astuteness to extrapolate all those sources and create a psychological profile - you finish reading the book wondering....great actor - but what is he REALLY like?

Nearly every single interview of people who worked with Bean all say the same thing, namely that he is shy, soft spoken, has genuine humility, extremely polite, good hearted, a little awkward with people he doesn't know well, really a sweetheart of a guy, loves beer, football, smoking and he doesn't emotionally bond well with women....it's his male friends he's closest to....an adoring father who was forced to be separated from his wives and three adorable daughters for long periods of time while filming movies. Hence, his three divorces.

He's had a terrible personal price to pay for his success as an actor, yet the author doesn't even write about this which is a major factor in his life. I didn't want her to slink to the level of tabloid gossip and "dish dirt" I just wanted some semblance of an anyalsyis of the man as a person. The book reads more like a resume of his work......without much "meat" about him as a person to fill in the blanks.

Well, you can get that same information from just going online and reading media/magazine/newspaper archives at "The Compleat Bean" and save yourself the cost of the book. For goodnss sake, don't pay $80.00 for it! It's also posted as selling for over $200.00!

The back of the book has an excellent very detailed index and an accurate precise listing of all his films, narration work, television and theatre performances. I've been a great admirer of his work for 20 years, dating back to 1986 when I first saw him perform as an unknown in the film "Caravaggio". Although I know nearly everything ever written about him, reading this book actually did fill in some bits and pieces of information about him. No earth shattering revelations - but a nice, easy read.

A very kind British friend gave me this book as a gift because I had such a hard time locating it online in the USA and didn't want to pay a fortune for it. It's out of print and very hard to find. I've seen it sell in the USA for $40.00 to $80.00 and consider myself a very lucky lass to receive it free. Depending on if you are bonkers for Bean-o would determine how much you're willing to pay for the book.

The author doesn't really dig too deep and only has flattering postive things to say about the star, she comes fairly close to crossing the line into a pure "gush-fest". The book makes you believe he is just nearly perfect. He's only human and everyone has positive and negative aspects to their nature. I wish this book had more substance and gave me a more authentic portrait of him.

On the other hand, "Sharpe Cut - The Making of Sharpe's Challenge" published in 2006, by Linda Blandford skewers Bean to bits. That author doesn't like him one little bit, she makes this quite clear to the reader. Blandford nitpicks about trivial things she views as huge character flaws of Bean's and spends most of the book "Bean Bashing" then 3/4 through the book admits he's won her over, sheerly on the professionalism and devotion to his craft he exhibits on the set. Known for his introverted reticence and ability to completely avoid answering personal questions he doesn't want to reveal about himself.....Bean more or less didn't trust Linda Blandford because she had written a previous article him that was quite cruel, negative and hurt his feelings deeply. Yet, his tremendous charm and personal warmth eventually wins Blandford over and she almost begrudgingly admits she likes him at the close of the book.

I wish that a really skilled writer would create a book somewhere in the middle between these two books about Sean Bean. Not a "gushfest" nor a hatchet job......but a work that would give the public a genuine understanding of what makes him tick and his interior dialogue.....he's almost Garboesque in his need for absolute privacy about his personal life, which is what makes Sean Bean so refreshing - unlike some of the publicity hounds that are celebrity actors - he comes across as a pretty normal bloke, who just happens to be a world class actor. He's got no interest in "making the scene" or having a flashy, glitzy high profile life....this is not an actor pursuing the "Bling Bling" lifesytle. He enjoys being an internationally known star and the perks that come with it, but seems to have a good head on his shoulders and keeps things in perspective. Probably this accounts for how Bean's been able to maintain a solid career as a working actor in a very ruthless, competitive industry for well over 25 years.

Blandford book and Jackson's book are both flawed - but both are a good read for true Bean Buffs. "Sharpe Cut" has more facts about filmaking/television industry which give you a really strong background and she really makes a point of criticizing Bean - Jackson's book is more a chronological citation of the work of the star - with very little personal insight into his personality. Read both books and come to your own conclusions.

Best thing about this book.......well it would have to be Sean Bean's wicked sexy smile on the cover in the sepia tinted photograph. I've been dying to find a copy of that photo that doesn't chop off part of his face....anybody know where to find it online? I've been searching for ages to get a full version of the book cover photograph! This guy has definitely got sex appeal galore........I call him "Lord Sexitude" and he can knock on my box any day of the week.......the only middle-aged guy with lots of wrinkles I am bonkers about!

As I am a relatively new devotee to the works of Sean Bean (FOTR), I found this a wonderful guide to his past roles. Although it does not delve very deeply into Sean as a person, it is a very useful travel guide to the World Of Bean. Also very nice to know that there are some actors who like "real" women & not skeletons!

I used this as a text book in a history of California class several years ago. It was an interesting read and I did not notice any obvious mistakes or ommissions. He covers California history very well and includes the history of the original peoples, women and a variety of minority groups. It is a social and a political history of California.

I felt compelled to write a quick review of this book in response to the harsh ratings it has been given. Any history is going to miss out some things that some people find extremely important. At least this book acknowledges as much - even in the title!

I found this book a surprisingly easy read. I work in the cultural resource industry, writing reports etc., and I have found it extremely useful as a general text on California history. I have also seen it widely used in reports authored by other professionals.

I have yet to come across a better book for a comprehensive introduction to California history.

It is true that UC Berkeley is a top ranked school for History. Sadly, this UC Professor misses the mark. This interpretive history does do many aspects of California History justice, but it completely neglects or distorts certain other facts in Early Californian History. The men who wrote it would do well to get a hold of some primary source martial of the earlier times they write about (journals of pioneers and settlers, for example.) But they probably won't, not even for future editions... If they did so, they might find out how wrong they are on a few of their topics and views held by some 19th century Californians immigrants. Also, it seems that they fail to emphasize the dubious nature of some of the late land grants & claims on the verge of the American take over from Mexico. Perhaps I am too harsh and they will consider the impact of the "Mormon Battalion" or the impact of the ship "Brooklyn". Or Inland Empire farming by Sikhs.

In an effort to paint an "inclusive" history (where only the Anglo is the bad guy,) the authors focus on discriminatory practices by whites against Chinese immigrants; yet neglect to take a hard look at graft and oppression Chinese immigrants faced at the hands of other Chinese. While the whites were certainly discriminatory, the Chinese immigrant was harmed and taken advantage of other Chinese immigrants as well. But it's less glamorous to take on those issues and much more self-righteous to point a finger by playing a race card. (If one human harms another, I guess it only matters if they are of different ethnicities...)

The authors also point to the racist-supremacist view of the Anglo-Saxon Republic but fail to point out that the same was true of the Mexican-Catholic government. When Mexico held California, non-Catholics could not own property (which is why the Scotsman, Gilroy converted.) Furthermore, the decline of Native American inhabitants of California under the Spanish & Mexican regimes could be more strongly articulated... but that's not popular to talk about. Lastly, while I am pleased that they did an adequate job of covering the earlier discrimination against Japanese immigrants, the Japanese internment, and Korematsu v. US, they completely neglect the Sikhs, and a landmark case of U.S. v. Bhagat Sign Thind. Obviously, this book is written for the current vogue in History etiquette. Rather than trying for circumspection and providing a durable history based on objectivity, they settle for current interpretation... which leads makes one feel history is not compelling or relevant if it simply changes with the modern political mood.

Last semester I took history of california, and I had to use this book. Overall it was a desent book, eccept I like shee photos of the historic sites, and this book gave very few.

I am presently taking "California History" at the College of San Mateo and our professor is utilizing this text. This book is a real "sleeper." It is one of the most uninspiring history books I have ever read. Very dull!

This book is somewhere between the slave training guides by "Miss Abernathy" and the idealized multitude of "first-person" stories you can find anywhere. This is not a how-to manual. This is instead a look at relationships and how they might actually work or not work using one man's life as the basis. He covers about every topic I can think of that a gay master-slave couple might encounter but there are no how-to details here as he states in his introduction. Frankly given the personal nature of the book I wish the stories could have continued, often we just see snippets that left me wanting to know more especially on the slave side of the relationship. If you are looking for someone to give you the "one true path/method" look elsewhere. Looking to think more and be reassured that yes, love can equal ownership; this is a good book to start with.

There should be more, much much more, material about the sublime nuances of the Master and slave dynamic than what there is presented in this work. Instead the author provides the audience with material that can be easily found at any community mental health organization that sponsors courses on intimate relationships. Instead of reading about these issues it would be time better served to attend community mental health establishments to get the hands on assistance about intimate relationships -- at least there would be one on one help with the issues this author writes about. There is little to no real application much needed for the subtleties of the Master and slave dynamic. Nice try but no cigar. This author doesn't seem to be getting it and to use an old English term to suggest that Compleat is suggestive of possessing awesome insight into this topic is quite misleading to the literary public -- nothing more than a lackluster etymological word-play game. Disappointing is the best term that I can manage to evoke to describe this work but then again what could anyone expect from the author of The Master's Manual (should be entitled A Master's Manual).

This jack rinella character not only seems to have limited experience in BDSM, but his writing style and ability is not above fifth-grade level. His paragraphs are one long, "Lost in his own self-importance" sentence. He seems to have no idea how to use punctuation and worse, he has misspelled words throughout his self-aggrandizing, shallow, uninformative, lackluster, run on, two-sentence chapters.

He seems to see himself as some sort of pimp daddy. He might be in his little mind, but he is not someone that should be taken seriously as an author let alone a dominant. Stay clear of his tripe.

From the back cover of the book: "Whether you are a novice D/s player or an experienced Master or slave, this insightful and forthright volume will prove to be a great read and a valuable reference guide." NOT.

This was a disappointing read, given that it purports to be about creating and living an erotic dominant/submissive lifestyle. It is certainly about how Rinella does/did it, but as he points out again and again throughout the book, all relationships are different, as are the people in them. Anyone who's already started down the path to making their own D/s relationship work won't find much of use here, unless they happen to be very Rinella-like in their views and preferences. We learn an awful lot about Rinella and what he likes, and almost nothing is mentioned about the slave and how he handles being a slave, overcomes challenges, finds satisfaction in his choices, etc. Shouldn't a book called "The Compleat Slave" be about *slaves*?

As a guide for newbies to coming out into the leather scene, it's probably pretty good, but that's not what the book is supposed to be about, according to the title and jacket blurb.

There is no soul to this writing; if you're actually interested in living the slave lifestyle, you won't find much of use here. Rinella does say that to be a good slave you must be obedient and worshipful, but then gets bogged down in details of how to use personal ads and leather bars to find a partner, how to negotiate scenes, how to [satisfy], etc. All good information for some people, but not what I was expecting when I bought the book...

The subtitle says it all: "Creating and Living an Erotic Dominant/submissive Lifestyle" The book takes the reader through practical steps and gives experience-based examples. Chapter 10, "How to Give Oral-Genital Pleasure" by itself is worth the cost of the whole book! It describes in the best detail I've ever come across how a person can give oral-genital pleasure. It was really wonderfully sensuous to read. Woof.

The FBI needs the help of Sarah Lovett's most popular Forensic Psychologist, Dr. Sylvia Strange, in this latest psychological mystery. There has been a slew of unsolved deaths, all of which have been researchers in different labs all over the world.

The FBI suspects Dr. Christine Palmer and there is a lot of evidence. But nothing concrete.

The FBI seeks out the help of Dr. Strange and her expertise. Sylvia has enough on her mind with trying to plan her wedding and mend a few bumps in the relationship between her and her fiancé. But she also takes on this case to figure out how this beautiful, confident, world-renowned toxicologist is using neurotoxins to kill off others and how she has gotten away with it - until now.

Sylvia is on a mission to crack this case, get the evidence needed and get back to her wedding plans when another death occurs. She joins forces with counter-terrorism expert Edmond Sweetheart and they begin to link evidence together. But is Edmond on her side or is he withholding the evidence that could crack this case wide open for them?

Lovett uses a lot of forensic and scientific lingo heavily throughout the book. But the action page after page will still hold the readers attention till the very end with it's various plot twists.

This tale of the crazy serial poisoner, with a strong, heroic Dr. Strange hot on her tail, is a nail-biting page turner.

I loved her first Dr. Strange books but have been disappointed in the last two. I thought the storyline was unrealistic and confusing. The end felt forced and and tied up to easily.
Sylvia's relationship issues were just brushed away. I felt this wasn't much of a mystery nor did it have any psychological insight or suspense.

This author seems to be on a downward trend. I have read all the books in this series. The first ones were enjoyable. The last one before this was disappointing. This is a dud. The story does not hang together. The plot is inadequate, parts of it are far fetched, and the ending does not work. She neglects the personal relationships which were interesting in the earlier books.

Dr. Sylvia Strange is about to marry the love of her life, Matt England, and she should be in a state of prenuptial bliss. Instead, Sylvia is goaded into taking one last case before her wedding. "Dark Alchemy" is the story of a serial killer who uses sophisticated neurotoxins to murder fellow scientists. The FBI suspects Dr. Christine Palmer, the world's foremost expert on these deadly poisons. Since all the evidence against Dr. Palmer is circumstantial, the authorities need more information to move the investigation forward.

Counterterrorism expert Edmond Sweetheart has been asked by the FBI to step in, and he in turn recruits Dr. Strange to help him construct a psychological profile of the killer. Sylvia would prefer to immerse herself in her wedding plans, but the case interests her and she decides to lend her expertise to the investigation.

The book starts out promisingly. Lovett piques the reader's interest with her arcane information on neurotoxins and their deadly effects. Dr. Palmer is an intriguing character. She is beautiful, brilliant and egotistical, but is she also a killer? To make matters more complicated, Sylvia's personal problems keep distracting her. Although she and Matt truly love one another, they still have some unresolved issues that may disrupt their wedding plans.

Unfortunately, after a strong opening, "Dark Alchemy" unravels in the second half of the book. Various suspects are dangled before the reader, and the plot becomes more and more illogical as the book progresses. The ending is rushed and the conclusion is unsatisfying. Had Lovett taken the time to develop her plot with more care, "Dark Alchemy" would have been a much better novel.

Her scientific peers consider Dr. Christine Palmer the world's foremost expert on neurotoxins. She knows how to make them and how to make antidotes for them. However, law enforcement officials believe that the beautiful, brilliant scientist is also a sociopath serial poisoner though no clear evidence proves the contention. Still Christine remains the prime suspect in the murders of her father, her fiancé and some of her co-workers.

Counterterrorist expert Edmond Sweetheart asks forensic psychologist Dr. Sylvia Strange to work up a profile of Dr. Christine Palmer so when the authorities bring her in for questioning, they will know how to interrogate this one-of-a kind woman. Sylvia agrees to a meeting with Dr. Palmer knowing she is being used as bait and walks away from the encounter a very sick person. Ironically, the only person who can help her is Dr. Palmer if she obtains what she wants from Sylvia.

There is much more to DARK ALCHEMY than a serial poisoner novel. The heroine's partner has his own agenda and is willing to sacrifice anyone including her to make sure a spy/mole doesn't get away with espionage. Sarah Lovett writes an exhilarating, enthralling crime thriller that will keep readers turning the pages until the end because it is not until the climax that the audience finds out whether Dr. Palmer is a sinister villain or a brilliant victim.

Harriet Klausner