Fallon Books

This is an excellent book. It's evident by their case studies and stories that Fallon is relentless at their research and getting into the heart of a business problem and using creativity, advertising and promotion to address it head on. Their work on campaigns such as the Holiday Inn Express ('...but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night'), BMW Films, CitiBank and others shows that advertising not only benefits any business but can also help grow a business when a business problem presents itself. If there is anyone that is challenged as to the importance of advertising or marketing, this book will be your guide in demonstrating how, when executed properly, it's a true business advantage.

Great book and fun to read.

The book is well written, but I agree with some of the other reviewers that it needs more "how." The first nine chapters read like a corporate speech recaping great business victories and thanking supporters (by name). Not that each client example is not interesting, just that not enough time is spent on the details of how Fallon came up with the big idea.

The last couple of chapters make the read worthwhile, maybe their next book should expand on the last chapter "Lessons Learned" as I found it very insightful.

the best advertising book since the book by mary wells.
at that quite an achivement.

I read a book recently called, Juicing the Orange, How to Turn Creativity into Powerful Business Advantage, by Fallon Senn. Of course it is about marketing.

This is a book by people for ad agencies and engages in a lot of self-congratulations about the brilliant marketing they have done. (although I have to admit, some of it is brilliant). Most books written by ad agency people have a degree of this.

One suggestion they make that is totally valid is hit the road with customers. That is not only to visit customers but to look how customers use your specific products.

Senn tells the story of how BMW put on a mini-Utube type video on the internet that ended up with thousands of downloads and had huge impact.

A good read if marketing interests you.

This book is full of great marketing campaigns and the strategies behind them. Any person passionate about marketing and creative thinking should read this book. I've given a breif description of some of the things I've taken away from this book.

Always start from scratch. "...we often gain more by taking a deep breath and rethinking a marketing problem from the beginning," a direct quote from Juicing the Orange. Starting from scratch brings you fresh research and approaches to a marketing problem. If you use what is currently there, you will most likely repeat previous failed attempts and will always be gunning for second best. The best way to approach marketing is to look at what "the other guys" are doing as an example of what not to do.

Discover an emotional truth about your product. Once you discover an emotional truth about the product, you can use that as the center of your marketing strategy. However, discovering the truth isn't enough, once the discovery is made, you must verify the truth and establish the existence of the market that holds this truth. Second, you must generate an idea that connects the truth with the market.

Make new discoveries about the target market. Don't give up on finding new advantages in a market that haven't been hit on by others. Be relentless about your search and interrogate the market until you find that special niche.

The target segment isn't always dominant. It is important to remember that the segment of the market that matters the most to a brand isn't always the segment that spends the most money or uses the product more than others--the target segment is the influencers. Influencers can be a small part of an audience, but their behavior drives the rest of the market. Influencers are critical to any marketing effort.

Choose a larger presence in fewer places. By choosing a larger presence in fewer places as opposed to a smaller presence in multiple places, you look like a big fish in a little pond instead of one among many. The trick is to pick your marketing avenues with precision--avenues that are directly intertwined with your target market. The theory is that if you market the right avenues to the right people, you will double or triple the impressions your brand has for free. For example, if a commercial is aired on two TV stations, you would measure the effectiveness by how many people viewed. But, if Oprah or Jay Leno mentions the spot, there are additional impressions made that give a campaign more exposure. If it's picked up by You Tube, there are additional impressions and pretty soon it becomes part of popular media, just like the Holiday Inn Express campaign. Everyone is familiar with the phrase "No, but I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express Last Night." This commercial was originally aired on ESPN, CNN and the Weather Channel, but it became part of popular media.

Don't let creative thinking overtake strategy. "The door to most business people's right brain is through their left brain," a direct quote from Juicing the Orange. Creative thinking can be fun, but you can't let the fun overtake the need for strategy behind the creative. With business folk, you must first sell smart and then funny--a challenge sometimes since consumers need it the other way around.

Collaboration is important. Collaboration gets people excited and raises the level of importance each team member feels to the task, which in turn increases productivity and makes many things possible in a short amount of time.

The France guide went with me a few months ago, and it was great as always. No matter what my travel destination is, I try to take a Lonely Planet guide. I like the commentary and recommendations. I trust the lodging recommendations when I want to make reservations.

I like the Lonely Planet Series very much. It is candid, charming, lotsa tidbits and enjoyable read. I am going to Paris and bought this and the Paris one. My only criticism is that some of the hotels are on the low end, I not sure I would stay in. This series takes a fresh look at Europe and is very up to date enconomically, socially and politically. I found other travel books like reading those translators of literature using British accents for all novels regardless if they are French or Russian or whatever!

Up to date 2007 edition. Extremely informative about every corner of the country. A must have reference book if you are going to travel to France.

Lonely Planet guidebooks range from excellent (Thailand) to less than mediocre (France). I found the France guide to fall short, especially because there is no section on what constitutes an appropriate tip or gratuity at a restaurant. While there were many useful and interesting tidbits of information (the text box on Cemetaire Pere la Chaise for example) the absence of any mention of tipping jaded me against this particular guidebook.

What I liked best about this book was the overview of the country. It gave history of the country and then also gave ideas on what to see and do if you want to enjoy learning the history of the country. If you aren't into that sort of thing this book offers the traveler ideas of places to go and things to see that are more modern and not necessarily educational/historic. This book also offers time and money saving tips and off the beaten path places to see and experience while you travel. If one is interested in doing specific tours or seeing certian things the book offers different tour packages in terms of what one might want to see or experience while in France. It is a great way to help narrow down and/or increase the amount of things to do or see when you visit France.

The lonely planet was adequate, but not great. It overemphasizes certain sites at the expense of others and conjures a narrow view of the city in question. It is hard to find specific examples, only that I found I used the guide less and less in favor of simply exploring on my own.

This book contains 99.9% you need to travel in Germany and it also tells you where to find the last 0.1%. You cannot leave for Germany without it. Especially, you are the first time be there.

This book is full of useful information, maps and tips on traveling to Germany. If you are even thinking about visiting Germany this is a good read, and it well organized. It is mostly in black and white and the print is a little small, other then that it is a wonderful guide.

This guide is very helpful. I like the way the authors discuss everything in brutal honesty. It seems more like they are giving you the opinion of a friend rather than a boring textbook description!

Found this travel guide to be incredibly helpful for the novice traveler. In depth information covering all the regions of Germany, including great recommendations on places to stay and some incredible museums. I even found the section with general travel advice helpful, with some good tips on how to save some Euros whether you are traveling by train, bus, or car through the country. And personally, I don't know if I would have found out about so many things to do in Cologne without this guide =)

Paris is a fascinating city. As a traveler familiar with Lonely Planet's format, the Paris guide was very helpful, particularly with the walking tour and excursion descriptions. I found the maps easy to use and there was a ton of information. Unfortunately, there isn't anything inexpensive about Paris, but public transportation is reasonable and accessible. Thank you, Lonely Planet, for continuing to put out a great travel guide.

I've used Lonely Planet guides before, and this is the second Paris edition I've used. The book is structured in very logical way, by arrondissements. Descriptions, directions, addresses, and maps are excellent. The walking tours are particularly good - very descriptive with little to no back-tracking. I appreciate that prices and hours of operation are updated and spelled out clearly.

The book (more specific the maps)was very helpful in picking the area we want to stay when in Paris.
I looked alot about the different areas and how to organize my trip to the city.

I enjoyed this guide. I found it helpful for differnt sites to see and places to go. Of course you have your big hitters such as The Arc de Triumph, Eiffle Tower, Notre Dame, Louvre, Sacre Coure etc but it gave ideas of other places to go as well that some people wouldn't think of. I will be traveling with a small child and having places to go that would be interesting and fun to them was a help as well. I liked that it gave different discount ideas. I like the maps and other little secrets that are enclosed to not only save time and money but ensure safety and piece of mind as well!

. The information about the history of Paris was Ok.
. Ok with the walking tour
. All the highlights and backdoor are inside this guide

BUT...looking with a backpacker eyes..

. They should reduce the big restaurant list and make a better explanation of the highlights is the sight section.

Just for your information, I love Lonely Planet...this is a constructive recommendation that I give to all the city guides...

Another important thing, specially for what they call "A city guide"...they should give more information (map and path) of the buses. I found it difficult to understand which bus is convenient to go from one place to another.
I wanted to use the bus in Paris intead of metro to see the beautifull places, but I couldn't. And I will not mention how difficult is the way back to the hotel using the night transportation.

So, I think, less restaurant and better transport and sight information. Yes, I know that you can buy maps and whatever...but...I am paying more that US$15 for a city guide, man...

I was so disappointed with this book. My husband is an avid fan of Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series so I decided to read this novel (because I love historical fiction) to see if I liked his writing style. This book was obviously written by a man and it reads more like a bad romance or porn novel, than historical fiction. I had to quit after about 1/3 of the book because I couldn't stand the lack of storyline development and the constant sex. The pages were either filled with extremely boring political accounts(reads like a history book) or extremely immoral behavior. There is sex on almost every page-- it's not romantic or realistic. Nothing leads up to the intimacy described and it is not moving in any way-- the character just has women throwing themselves at him (hence why I said it must be written by a man-- who is living in a fantasy world!!) The characters are shallow and unlikeable and the rest of the story is boring. I threw this book away and don't recommend it to anyone. My husband swears that the Wheel of Time series is written completely different, but now that I've read this (...) I'm not certain I even want to begin the Wheel of Time series.

After reading the Wheel of Time Series, I started to think that Robert Jordan was one of my favorite authors, but I thought I should take a look at some of his other works. So far Fallon Blood is the only other book I got to, but after I read it I have decided that Robert Jordan is my favorite author...or whatever his real name is (it's not Robert Jordan). I didn't finish the book, but that was because I moved and had to return it to the place I was borrowing from. Otherwise I wouldn't have put it down. His villians are truly evil and the hero very impressive. The book is more about family fued than war, but for the war fanatics, there's definately plenty of it. As much as I know of history, it's accurate but there are still plenty of fine details that only a scholar would know presented in this book. And for those of you who like WoT, there are some similarities in his writing. The woman are all still very strong characters, and the hotels are an awful lot like the ones in the fantasy series, plus there is a lot to do with travel. I would recomend this book to anyone. (As long as they are teen and older).

Michael Fallon, in the Fallon Blood, is one of the most interesting and believable characters I have found. This book covers his trials and his successes over an extended period of time that covers the American Revolution. I found the book to be very exciting and dramatic, while at the same time historically accurate and educational. I would reccomend this book to anyone. A very enjoyable read. What is Robert Jordan's real name??

I have read all of the wheel of time books, and RJ places second on my favorite authors list. I had no idea that he even wrote these Fallon books until I happened upon this one. I must say that I have never even had a slight interest in historical fiction, or what actually happened to gain us our independance, but after reading this book I found that it is quite fasinating. This book really helped expand my interests to more than just fantasy novels. I would never have opened it if had not had RJ's name on it.

Reading this book reminded me of something that Orson Scott Card wrote once about how he bought back the rights to his first novel, just to make sure that no one would go back and reprint it on the merits of his later books. This novel shows the weakness that a new writer brings to a novel. The story is too plot driven, the villians have weak motivation, and the use of point of view was simply baffeling. There were times when I completely lost track of who the point of veiw was following. This novel also shows Jordan's often odd and what I find highly unlikely veiw of how women see the world. And while I could keep this list going, for all of that he managed to write a fairly compelling story. His historical backgroud was interesting, if for nothing else but for the southern bias that it takes.

While there are far to many mistakes to call this a great novel, and any of Jordan's wheel of time novels are far better. This was an entertaining read that can show how much a writer can improve.

For such great reviews I was pretty let down. Like another reviewer, I found too much info about stuff that has nothing to do with the crime or story. And ALOT and WAY too much info about knots. If you buy it you'll know what I mean. Started out very Promising....got half way thru and it fell apart. I can assure Patricia Cornwell she has NOTHING to worry about!!

Someone should buy the rights to this book and plan to turn it into a movie. Diane Fallon, forensic anthropologist, gets out of her car at a crime scene and presents her credentials to a patrolman, who says (nodding toward the two men who reported the crime) "They say it's not normal." Diane muses "Not normal. The kind of death they called her out for usually wasn't." If you like CSI, complete with the forensic analysis, study of bugs, and yes, evidence in the form of knots, you'll be fascinated. There's even a subplot with a mummy. If you're looking for a nice, cozy, "everyone-snowed-in-at-the-manor-house" story, this is probably not for you. I've become a big fan of this series and will eagerly look forward to more works from this writer.

The explanations which bring to light the forensic process are excellent in this book, but the mystery surrounding them relies on hyperbole of several forms. First, the lead character is a superwoman who seems determined to beat us over the head with feminist and liberal attitudes of the author in such a ham-handed way that even if you agree with her you wish she'd stop being so obviously manipulative. It's like a terrible kindergarten teacher. I don't like propaganda of any form in my literature, and while it's present in most of the genre in varying degrees, this book was truly horrible in this regard. While I like Ms. Fallon, the lead character, she is a collection of traits with no unifying concept to her; I end up feeling like I've interviewed an actor and seen only what they were trained to show me. Finally, the mystery is slightly weak. The responsible parties are not introduced through a chain of clues, but are mentioned incidentally, and hidden, then brought out suddenly. This requires that their personalities be as outrageously, one-dimensionally "bad" as Fallon's is "good." Clearly the author has talent in the forensics area, as I was fascinated by these details, but the rest of the book is frothily vapid attempts at mind control. I would not recommend this book to anyone I like.

Following the discovery of the first three bodies in this case, the deaths come thick and fast. It's not as tight as the first mystery in this series and the author does a real no-no in the introduction of one of her villaims but it is fair to say that she definitely gave hints that there was another one skulking around.

The introduction of Diane Fallon as also a knot expert allowed some different forensic techniques to be discussed, add to that the mummy inherited by the museum and the contents of the Victorian pickle jar that came with it, and there's lots here to keep the biggest forensic mystery junkie interested.

While you don't have to have read the first book in the series I would definitely suggest it. Connor has a habit of continuing small threads from book to book. Besides the first book is also a good read.

I (finally) finished this book. I struggled through to the end, each page an investment of time I didn't want to go totally to waste.

I'm disappointed. Plain and simple, it could have been better.

So what did I like and what did I not like? Let's start with the positive:

First, the murders which kick off the story are interesting, and the investigation that follows was well-described.

Second, like Dick Francis, Connor includes lots of information about subjects not directly related to the crimes being committed.

Sadly, that second item leads into the list of things I did not like:

Where Francis wove other subjects into his mysteries, Connor grafts her digressions onto the story in a ham-handed fashion. In addition, she goes on at great length, almost like a textbook, as if she wants to impress the reader with her research. Not very artful.

Second, the writing is clumsy and needs editing. Chapters end in the middle of conversations; people do NOT talk the way she writes dialog; and she repeats conversations between the main character and others at the expense of pages of worthless rambling.

Third, the murders start to pile up beyond all reason. Just not realistic, sorry.

Fourth, there is a holdover subplot from the first novel in the series, about why-people-hate-Diane, which just gets stale. Enough!

Finally, the villain is introduced right at the end, out of the blue. Not fair! Nuff said.

I gave it three stars because it kept me wanting to know what happened, but this writer needs an editor who can chop a 380+ page book into the 220 pages it deserved.

This is defiantly one of the more better written stargate sg1 books out there could see it as one of those straight to dvd movies.

Absolutely amazing book. PERFECT characterizations, highly engaging plot, interesting ideas. It really feels like SG-1, with humor and peril spread all through. It's something you wouldn't be surprised to see if you tuned into the show one night, and that's the highest praise I can give it.

Sonny Whitelaw has done another great job of writing a Stargate novel. This book is action-packed, with a time-travel story line that rivals the TV episodes with the quantum mirror. Lots of twists and turns, excellent dialog that captures the voices of the characters, and a nice wrapup with just a touch of a mind twist to it. There are a few typos and a few editing mistakes, but they didn't drip me out of the story too much. This story line includes Jack O'Neill, Sam Carter, Daniel Jackson, Teal'c, Vala Mal Doran, and Cam Mitchell as active participants on the adventure. The authors includes some really neat tie-ins to actual events, making this a fun read.

The plot of Roswell sounded intriguing, but I was disappointed to find the writing mediocre and the pace slow. Typos aren't the only reason this book needs an editor - in several places the writing is unclear due to questionable grammar and poor organization. The characterization is (as is rarely the case in these tie-ins) fairly accurate, but rather uninspired. I have read a great deal of fanfic that's better written than this book. Worth buying if you find it on the 50 cent shelf at your library, but I wouldn't pay full price. Mine was a present, and if I'd know ahead of time what a slow read it would be, I'd have asked for something more exciting... socks, maybe.

This book has Jack, Sam x 2, Daniel, Teal'c, Cam, Vala, the Asgard, the Goa'uld, H.P. Lovecraft, Howard Carter, baseball stats, H.G. Wells, time travel, alternate time lines, and, as promised by the title, the Roswell incident. It is packed full of stuff -- but not high-quality stuff, unfortunately. It is a grab-bag of disjointed subplots, none of them developed in a very satisfying way. And, though the characters aren't grossly misdrawn, there's no real depth to their reactions.

There were some spots near the beginning where I was enthused about the story and wanted to know what happened next, but it wasn't long before I was feeling annoyed by it all. Adding to my annoyance were the amazing number of typos. This book is just riddled with them, and I can't see any excuse for it.

Sonny Whitelaw has written or co-written a number of other books for Fandemonium, but I don't know why, because the comments I've seen from fans tend to be lukewarm at best. This is the first Whitelaw book that I've read, and I think it will be the last.

As I sat and started to read this book, I found myself snuggling deeper into my comfy chair, asking my husband for a glass of wine and happy that the kids were occupied elsewhere. This is one of those fantasy books that is like comfort food. It is familiar, yummy, satisfying without being too heavy, and yet too much of it may not be very good for you.

It takes place in a typical fantasy setting, namely a vaguely medieval setting with royalty, sorcerers and a recognizable caste system. The ...more As I sat and started to read this book, I found myself snuggling deeper into my comfy chair, asking my husband for a glass of wine and happy that the kids were occupied elsewhere. This is one of those fantasy books that is like comfort food. It is familiar, yummy, satisfying without being too heavy, and yet too much of it may not be very good for you.

It takes place in a typical fantasy setting, namely a vaguely medieval setting with royalty, sorcerers and a recognizable caste system. The cast of characters are very approachable with cool names life Wolfblade, Lionsclaw, Ravenspear etc. There are a few plot surprises, plus some great moments of understated humor to keep the story moving along.

The main protagonist, Marla Wolfblade, is quite a nitwit in the beginning, but she is gifted with a calculating slave who wants to survive at all costs. He believes that making sure she learns political craft is the answer to both their continued survival. It is nice to see Marla's growing and learning process. Until the end where the reader sees how very much Marla has learned about the politics of survival.

And even though, Marla is clearly the main character, she doesn't carry the bulk of the book. The book boasts a large cast of characters who all plot for gain or survival. Even the main villain has a reason for the things they do that isn't necessarily all evil. I always like it when a villain isn't just there for the sake of villainy.

As i was reading the book, I couldn't help but be reminded of Raymond Feist/Janny Wurts' Empire trilogy that featured a character named Mara. The plot of a young member of a ruling house have to learn deadly state craft in order to survive runs strongly through both series. And I think that anyone who liked that one would like this one too.

The infamous "Marla Wolfbane" had some very humble beginnings (other than being the high prince's sister).

again it started out a little slow but it kept my intrest. it is a little annoying in some area of the book, but i never lost interest, so that is why i gave it a 5 star.

So I just discovered Jennifer Fallon with this being her first book that I have ever read. Found it enjoyable---nice mix of fantasy and treachory with just a touch of the erotic thrown in here and there. I enjoyed it so much that I bought the second book in the triology the day after---which I found to be even better than the first but you do need this one for background of the second. For an entertaining read, I would definitely reccomend.

I'm disappointed with the reviewers who demonstrated little ability to appreciate good writing. This novel is just as good as all of Ms. Fallon's other titles. There is more political machinations than in her previous series, but it's just as absorbing. And frankly, comparing Lackey and Fallon is like apples and oranges. Both have their strong points. I think Fallon's work is deeper and the characters are more enmeshed in their worlds. Don't turn away from this book because of the rating. It is a fantastic book. All of Fallon's work shines above and beyond the typical fare of most fantasy out there. Fallon does an amazing job of surprising the reader.

If you read Medalon and Treason Keep you have to read this one... otherwise how will y ou know how it ends? It's up to par with the first two books of the series.

I liked this series and burned through it in about 5 days, the author has a knack for moving things along quickly which I really enjoyed and find lacking in a lot of other authors. I give it 2.5 stars but rounded up because of the entertaining value of the book. The reason I write this review is because I found few reviews on this book that actually told me what I was getting into, so hopefully you can get a bit from these points.

Pros:
-Very unique ideas in this novel, the concept of the Harshini and the demons, and how God's worked especially, were very entertaining, and sparked some actual real world thought about the nature of religion and God. The way she included dragons was interesting as well. I liked how they were melds and not "real," but the author never really told us how they got the idea of dragons in the first place, so they didn't really fit the story.
-As mentioned above, the book is not lacking action and it moves quickly, the story is intriguing and keeps your attention. I would say that I only found my attention falling about 3-4 times in each book of the series.

Cons
-Many people on here acclaim her character development but I never really saw it. Their depth really wasn't there. For example, Tarja, hes a defender, believes what is right and wrong, and does that exclusively and by almost any means. You never really get a feel for him. The author treats the main characters almost as literary tools at times which tended to annoy me.
-The way events happen in the book rarely have much to do with the characters actually being smart, and more with luck, or a God coming in to help. The blatant use of a Deus Ex Machina in the form of one of the Gods OVER AND OVER again really starts to grate on you.
-Predictability is a major issue, the author leaves "hints" of the futures that end up coming across as beacons for what will happen. A good example is when Adrina is kidnapped. Right before hand, Damin mentions that he feels something important was unsaid, but then to add more insult to the readers intelligence, Adrina thinks something to the extent of "I'll tell him about the baby and blah blah as soon as I see him next" Or something to that extent. Its not hard for the reader to figure out, hmm, I think just maybe, she might be STOPPED from going through with her simple plan that she would not even need to mention in the first place unless something were going to stop her.
-The Author is obsessed with torture. In some form or another, there is someone constantly being administered pain throughout the whole novel. The amount of times that the main characters are captured and then inevitably rescued by something that doesn't make sense at all, but which is proceeded by a large amount of pain or torture happens almost too many times to count. The author simply loves administering pain, but while it may be RARELY entertaining it ends up doing really nothing. The author has no knack for describing torture, I was simply annoyed by it, I never felt the characters' pain. Even after R'shiel was raped (in the first book), she doesn't show much change in character and it is simply used so that the reader will hate Loclon more. Its a pity that the author obviously has never known a rape victim, they tend to be quite different after the fact. Even if you like books where the characters go through plenty of hardship and pain to get their goal, this author doesnt even do it well.
-The last chapter (no spoilers) easily proves that the author has no concept of personal growth and leaves a lingering taste in your mouth that the main female character isnt really much more grown up then she was in the first book, despite being raped, beaten, humiliated, had a terrible childhood, killed a god, killed people, lost loved ones, started a rebellion, had her brother pretty much feel total apathy for her in the end, have no purpose, etc. I'm sorry, these books just didnt seem to recieve the amount of time they should have deserved.


There are a few other things, but other then a lot of editing errors (sceptical=skeptical?) that covers the main things you should know before purchase. Don't let this scare you off from the series though, its quite entertaining and I really enjoyed reading it. Just know that if you just finished a very well written book, you may be disappointed in that aspect with this one.

This is a tragically bittersweet story. I absolutely hated what the author did to the main character. She doesn't get the guy, she doesn't get a "place in the world", nada. If you prefer stories with a happy ending, this is not for you. If that isn't so necessary, then this book might be for you. The characters are fleshed out and the story line is engaging.

Jennifer Fallon ends this trilogy with a HUGE bang! I can't wait to continue with the rest of the Hythrun Chronicles.

Excellent read, extremely hard to put down, leaves you wanting to start the next book immeadiately!

Ms. Fallon needs to keep writing! Her characters continue on like the great charachters of Ludlum or Clancy!

Timothy Leary

This is the kind of book that gives LP the great reputation that it deserves. The guide was generally helpful for both Budapest and Eger, and we used it religiously for our one-week visit to the country.

However, it would have been useful to have translations of the phrase "Is service included in the bill" (I have also found many other LP guides also omit this useful phrase). We would have also appreciated a more in-depth historical background. The historical description between the 1960s-90s was a little light.

This is a far cry from LP's Romania book, which was decent at best.

Lonely Planet books are always fairly well organized and this edition of Hungary is no exception. The information is current and doesn't neglect any corner of this very interesting and beautiful country. The book contains information to satisfy a wide range of interests; everything from those interested in winery tours to those looking for a relaxing beach vacation at Europe's largest lake, Lake Balaton. Likewise, the book nicely balances the needs of those who travel by rail, bus or by their own rented car, as we did. One small complaint, not the author's fault, is Lonely Planet's editorial decision to omit good photos, other than the few esoteric token photos near the center of the book. I suppose there is an editorial struggle between pretty pictures versus content, but it can be frustrating if tackling a country such as Hungary where you have no apriori knowledge of the various landscapes in different regions of the country. A picture is in fact worth a thousand words, but Lonely Planet simply does not see it that way. Perhaps pick up the DK guide for photos to inspire and guide your trip planning for Hungary.

I have visited Budapest and more than five towns around it last summer, and have used this book extensively as my only guide to the country.
It was of great help, in it you can find everything you will need to get the full experience of the country, including historical informations, sites to visit, maps, well choosed recommendations of restaurants and bars, informations about accommodation, transport and people.
I can recommend this book to everyone who wants to visit and learn about Hungary.

Although this edition was only published 2 years ago, the accomodation sections in various towns is already quite out of date . I suppose the accomodation situation changes quite rapidly in Hungary, even the 2005 edition of LP Eastern Europe has much more up to date accomodation info for Hungary, altough as a whole it has less info on Hungary of course.

I lived in Hungary for a while, and this is a great resource for traveling around the country. The author captures the Hungarian spirit and quirkiness quite well, and the reviews of the restaurants, hotels, and attractions are usually accurate.

I do caution people that the information isn't as accurate if you're traveling to any of the minor cities. I lived in Szombathely, and many of the hotels and restaurants don't exist any more, and the attractions are rather... er, not quite as they are portrayed.

Also be aware that the train schedules change every January, so even if the guide says a certain leaves from Keleti or Deli, this may not be the case. Verify everything before you can make travel arrangements.