The Coffin Dancer (A Lincoln Rhyme Novel)

Amazon.com

This return engagement for quadriplegic criminologist Lincoln Rhyme is strong on forensic details as Rhyme tracks an elusive assassin known only by the tattoo that gives this fast-paced thriller its title.

Three witnesses to a murder could put a millionaire arms dealer behind bars for good. When one of them, the co-owner of Hudson Air, is blown up in a plane bombing with the Dancer's fingerprints all over it, the FBI takes the other witnesses into protective custody. Only Rhyme can decipher a crime scene, read the residue of a bombing, or identify a handful of dirt well enough to keep up with the killer. Helped by Amelia Sachs, his brilliant and able-bodied assistant, Rhyme traces the Dancer through Manhattan streets, airports, and subways. The psychological tension builds rapidly from page one all the way to the stunning and unexpected denouement. At the same time, Jeffery Deaver slowly develops the against-all-odds love affair between Rhyme and Sachs. Fans of Patricia Cornwell and others in the growing subgenre of forensic thrillers will find a lot to enjoy in Deaver's latest. --Jane Adams

Book Description

NYPD criminalist Lincoln Rhyme joins his beautiful protégé, Amelia Sachs, in the hunt for the Coffin Dancer -- an ingenious killer who changes appearance even faster than he adds to his trail of victims. They have only one clue: the madman has a tattoo of the Grim Reaper waltzing with a woman. Rhyme must rely on his wits and intuition to track the elusive murderer through New York City -- knowing they have only forty-eight hours before the Coffin Dancer strikes again.

Download Description

Detective Lincoln Rhymes, the foremost criminalist in the NYPD, is put on the trail of the Coffin Dancer, a cunning professional killer who has continually alluded the police. Rhymes - -a quadriplegic since a line-of-duty accident -- must use his wits to track this brilliant killer who's been hired to eliminate three witnesses in the last hours before their grand jury testimony. Rhyme works with his eyes and ears, New York cop Amelia Sachs, to gather information from trace evidence at the crime scene (for a start, scrapings from the tires of the emergency vehicles that responded to the Chicago crash) to nail him, or at least to predict his next move and head him off. In the resulting game of cat-and- mouse, both Rhyme and the Dancer are constantly subject to unbelievably timely hunches and brain waves that keep their deadly shuttlecock in play down to the wire. Fair warning to newcomers: Author Deaver is just as cunning and deceptive as his killer; don't assume he's run out of tricks until you've run out of pages. By the author of "The Bone Collector."

Customer Reviews:

You will not see what's coming in the end. I promise........2007-01-31

No spoilers

The Coffin Dancer is a pretty good follow up to Bone Collector, but it's definitely not as good. Actually the path of the books is very different. In Bone Collector, it's all about the antagonist leaving all sorts of crazy evidence just waiting to see if the law can put it all together and get on his trail. However, in Coffin Dancer there is almost no evidence whatsoever and Rhyme is having a tought time catching a break on getting a lead on the antagonist.

As I was reading, I kept thinking that Bone Collector was better and that while this book was good, it wasn't all that great, but at the end there are two huge twists that you will not at all see coming. I promise you. If you see these coming... well you won't and if you say you did then you're a liar. If you're thinking of continuing the Rhyme series, I definitely suggest you do so, because I am.

The Coffin Dancer.......2006-11-02

I have read a number of Deavers books and he always keeps me in suspense until the end of the book. I would definitely recommend this book and put it up there with Michael Connely, James Patterson and other such authors. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

Excellent twisted story and superb reader of the book on tape.......2006-08-29

Alexander Adams did a marvelous job of reading this book on tape. It was a really great mystery novel with Lincoln and Sachs doing their best to catch the culprit(s). If you watched the movie, the BONE COLLECTOR with Denzel Washington and Angelina Jolie, you know the characters and these Lincoln Rhyme novels are excellent. I picked up another book on tape by Deaver, PRAYING FOR SLEEP, read by Connor O'Brien and the reader is really not high quality. If you've listened to books on tape and heard readings by the likes of Frank Muller or George Guidall or the reader of the Stuart Woods novels, then you know what great readers are like. When you get a dud reader, it destroys the books. Although I've become a fan of Deaver's with this book and the Bone Collector movie, I'm afraid I'll have to bypass any "listening" of these books read by O'Brien.

Having said that, this is a great story of a very perverse and brilliant villain and a woman who loses nearly everything dear in her life because she's on the assassin's list. You'll love it, Deaver's done a great job with this one!

Not the Prime of Rhyme!.......2006-08-21

I've been following the Lincoln Rhyme series out of order. My first book was "The Stone Monkey"(my favorite), and I've since gone backwards to read "The Empty Chair"(mediocre) and "The Vanished Man"(much better). I have yet to read "The Twelfth Card" or "Cold Moon", but I'm confident I'll like those better.
As for "Coffin Dancer", I just didn't like it as much as the books that followed it. Although the "Master criminologist vs. hired assassin/serial killer" premise was solid, the plot was a bit contrived, and a few of the twists that were so vital to the story just didn't work. A large part of the story is the development of the relationship between Stephen and Jodie, but the huge plot twist spoils what could have been an interesting development of both characters.
The 'aviator' supporting characters, particularly 'The Wife', were either unsympathetic of just plain dull, and seemed to exist only to spout off about aviation procedures and terminology wgich might turn off readers who are not that interested in the subject. Rather than giving readers enough information about the subject to understand it, we are deluged with too much information!
And the "Denver" reference during a tense moment in the book is just a cop-out that destroys the tension.
The book does have its good points, especially in fleshing out Lincoln and Amelia's relationship(although that leads to the also less-than satisfactory "Empty Chair").
I've found that only like Deaver's Lincoln Rhyme books, and that I have no use for his 'off-topic' novels. The biggest gripe I have with "Coffin Dancer" is that, until the second half of the book, Rhyme is too much of a minor character. The charter-air side of the story would have been better off in one of Deaver's unrelated novels.
Worth reading if you're into the Rhyme series, but not recommended as a stand-alone effort.

A real treat for "CSI" fans.......2006-04-03

This book is fast paced and packed with ample twists and turns and unexpected developments up to its very last page. It is a pleasure to witness Lincoln Rhyme and the Coffin Dancer outguessing and outsmarting each other constantly throughout the book. On top it features interesting details about the work of crime scene investigation which should be a real treat for fans of the "CSI"TV shows.
Well worth reading!

The Coffin Dancer: A Novel (Lincoln Rhyme Novels)

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Good book

The Coffin Dancer: A Novel (Lincoln Rhyme Novels)
Jeffery Deaver
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster Audio
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0743565401

Book Description

Customer Reviews:

Good book.......2007-01-09

We have always enjoyed Jeffery Deaver and I think we have read all the Lincoln Rhyme novels. I wish they would come out even faster. I would recommend this book to all Deaver fans and to anyone looking for a new mystery writer to follow.

The Coffin Dancer: A Lincoln Rhyme Novel

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The Coffin Dancer: A Lincoln Rhyme Novel

Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0743499891

4 Titles By Jeffery Deaver Lincoln Rhyme Series (1-4) : 1. The Bone Collector 2. The Coffin Dancer 3. The Empty Chair 4. The Stone Monkey

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4 Titles By Jeffery Deaver Lincoln Rhyme Series (1-4) : 1. The Bone Collector 2. The Coffin Dancer 3. The Empty Chair 4. The Stone Monkey
Jeffery Deaver
Manufacturer: various
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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multiple books ship as one item. save on shipping/handling charges.

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THE BONE COLLECTOR / THE COFFIN DANCER
JEFFERY DEAVER
Manufacturer: WHS
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000S6DIXM

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The Coffin Dancer
Jeffrey Deaver
Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IN8CJ0

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The Coffin Dancer
Jeffery Deaver
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0582401755

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The Coffin Dancer
Jeffery Deaver
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0340712503

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The Coffin Dancer
Jeffery Deaver
Manufacturer: Coronet Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0340729147

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The Coffin Dancer

Manufacturer: Pocer Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0743474139

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Best of the series

the power of music [no spoilers]

A great sequel and preursor of better things to come.

Don't miss this great follow-up to part 1!!!

Adventures Abound, The best of the Spellsinger series
Spellsinger : Book 2: The Hour of The Gate (The Spellsinger Saga)
Alan Dean Foster
Manufacturer: I Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Foster, Alan Dean | ( F ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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The Moment of the Magician

Son of Spellsinger

ASIN: 0743498291

Book Description

Accompanying the wizard Clothahump to try and mount a defense against the invasion of the monstrous insectoid Plated Folk, Jon-Tom and his otter companion Mudge find themselves faced with ever more serious obstacles-from an underground river that leads to the four waterfalls known as The Earth's Throat, to the spider-silk city of the wary Weavers and their horrifically attractive arachnid queen.

Customer Reviews:

Best of the series.......2005-06-06

This isn't so much the second Spellsinger book as the second half of the first one -- it starts minutes after the first book ends, and presents the second half of the quest.

While Spellsinger was about the experience of ordinary life in the Wizards' World, Hour of the Gate shows us the extraordinary -- having crossed the Warmlands on their quest to prevent the Plated Folk from conquering the world, the heroes now set off through legendary lands in search of allies in the coming war. What they find is by turns awe-inspiring and terrifying, and Foster shows a great talent for minimal descriptions that evoke strong images.

As before, we're primarily seeing Clothahump's mighty deeds through Jon-Tom's eyes, and as such there isn't much actual spellsinging. Nevertheless, this book strongly captures the power and majesty that fantasy worlds can have.

As I noted in my review of Spellsinger, though, this is the last time that Foster takes his world seriously. As the series progresses, it shifts from being dark fantasy with a light touch to, by the end, the level of a knock-knock joke. If you're a completist who must read every book in a series, you may not want to get started on this one -- it's too depressing seeing where it goes.

the power of music [no spoilers].......2004-03-16

"The Hour of the Gate" is the second volume in the Spellsinger adventure about Jon-Tom, summoned to another world to help fight a growing threat to the lives of all sentient animals and possibly his own world.

Back cover of book:

Invasion of the Plated Folk!

The elders of Polastrindu watched in horror as Clothahump, wizard and turtle, spun visions of the coming invasion. Finally the Plated Folk had a magic potent enough to penetrate Zaryt's Teeth and the warmlands, igniting a devastating war between the species. The wizard and his earthly helper, Jonathan Thomas Meriweather, grad student and rock guitarist, must undertake the voyage into enemy territory in search of allies against the evil hordes from beyond.

So Jon-Tom, Clothahump, Mudge the Otter, flame-haired Talea and their motley crew set sail on a suicide mission down the treacherous river that winds through the subterranean lair of Massawrath, Mother of Nightmares, across Helldrink through a tunnel of cold flame to the center of the earth. It is a perilous journey few have attempted, and none have ever survived.

Now the peace-loving student must become a soldier and crusader, fighting with sword and song. For strumming his otherworldly duar, he is the maker of magic, his music conjuring configurations, transforming Jon Meriweather into the

Spellsinger

End back cover of book.

Since the story picks up where the prior volume ended, combining the two would be welcome. The earthly education in an alien landscape fashions a fun fantasy hero of Jon-Tom. The battles and descriptions aren't deep but friendly for younger readers with some of the creatures encountered as rather creative. The characters aren't limited to unaccented English but have a range including Australian and Brooklyn, New York. Understanding a written accent can be more difficult than hearing it and the rare vulgar word (not beyond a modern schoolyard) should be noted.

As a fan of the classical, rock, and heavy metal music genres, I find the magic Jon-Tom creates with his duar exciting since I believe a well-constructed song can affect people with its intensity and power in a primal aspect.

Thank you.

A great sequel and preursor of better things to come........2004-01-27

Having delivered there message of impending doom to the mammals of the world, now Jon-tom and his friends seek out the help of the weavers. along the way Jon-tom begins to learn about his new found talent of spellsinging, making magic through music. He also pygmies with that wnat to sacrifice him, a river thats more than it seems, and an elder god from the edge of the universe. A thoourghly enjoyable read, ending in a climactic battle and Jon-Tom's awakening to great power.

Don't miss this great follow-up to part 1!!!.......2002-07-06

I recently decided to rekindle my LOVE for Alan Dean Foster's Spellsinger series and have been blasted back 20 years to when I first read them!! It took me on a wonderful adventure as a teen and has taken me back on that journey again. This is an AWESOME trilogy and I would HIGHLY recommend it to anybody who would enjoy a fun, easy reading series with interesting places that only Foster could paint a picture of in your mind!! You'll find yourself cheering for Jon-Tom and Crying for Talea. I actually called out "Falameezar" when he returned!!! (You'll have to read the book)

If you don't have time for all 6 Spellsingers (sorry, I don't consider books 7-8 part of the trilogy) DON'T miss the chance to at least read the 1st (Spellsinger) to meet the characters and this one to enjoy the war, as only Foster could tell!!

Believe me, once you read the first 2, you'll want to keep going, to see what other adventures Jon-Tom and Mudge embark on! THEY ARE A BLAST!!!

Adventures Abound, The best of the Spellsinger series.......1997-06-26

Beyond doubt the best of Foster's Spellsinger Series. It brings together some of the most memorable characters you could hope to meet in any Science fiction or fantasy novel and mixes them all together in a story that takes your breath away.

Magic and mayhem,fire-breathing marxist dragons and a voyage into the very mouth of hell itself lead you gently (!) toward a finaly that culminates with an almighty war.

Journey along with Jon-Tom, Mudge, Talea and others as they are forced to take a journey from which they may not return!

Despite being part of the Spellsinger series, this novel could quite possibly be a book unto it own. Enough action and adventure to fill any palatte, this is one book you MUST read.

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SPELLSINGER BOOK 2: THE HOUR OF THE GATE
ALAN DEAN FOSTER
Manufacturer: ibooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IF9U1W

Book Description

The Song of Power opened the gateway to the Realm of the Sidhe, allowing young Michael Perrin to slip through. Now Michael faces years of captivity and deadly struggles for the future of the Realm and of Earth--leading finally to a terrible confrontation on the streets of Los Angeles, with the soul of humanity at stake.Weaving the power of music, poetry, and myth into a headlong narrative of nearly overwhelming intensity, Song of Earth and Power is one of the most original fantasy epics of our time, a vast tapestry of relentless suspense, terrible beauty, and brilliant imagination. Originally published years ago in two parts, it now returns in a new edition rewritten by the author and published in a single volume as he originally intended. Wrote Analog on its original appearance: "A delight......A vision of Faery that may owe a bit to a wish to do it right. Read it."

Customer Reviews:

Strongly written, new creation mythos, intricate new world.......2007-09-03

"The Infinity Concerto" - Book One in the Songs of Earth and Power omnibus - is multi-layered and textured. I believe it will likely take me several readings to find all the meanings that are embedded in this story. The basic storyline revolves around Michael Perrin, a thoughtful young man who wants to be a poet. He befriends a composer named Arno Waltiri, who it is said wrote a concerto called The Infinity Concerto that was so unusual that it not only drove its listeners mad but also that many of those listeners disappeared. Waltiri claims that the concerto was primarily inspired by a man called David Clarkham, who subsequently disappeared; Arno gives Michael a key and a piece of paper with directions to follow, that should lead him to Clarkham. Waltiri dies soon thereafter. Despite warnings from Waltiri's wife Golda that Waltiri repented of his choice to give these to him, Michael decides to go ahead and follow the directions - and ends up somewhere . . . that is not Earth anymore. Forced to learn to survive, Michael has to grow up and grow strong very quickly - but is he just a pawn in some hidden power struggle? Or is he something else altogether?

Some sections of this part of the text seemed rather slow moving, but everything was necessary for the plot. Because the plot is so intricate, at times ponderous prose is necessary to bring about all the necessary information. All-in-all, I found book one quite enjoyable.

The Serpent Mage" - book two - picks up shortly after Infinity Concerto leaves off. Michael Perrin is back home, living with his parents and continuing his training. Arno Waltiri has left his estate and the disposition of his papers and recordings to Michael. Waltiri has also left his house to Michael and eventually Michael moves in and begins to go through the papers.

Michael's desires for normality are shattered, however, when he reads a news story about strange bodies discovered in a nearby hotel - one grossly obese, one strangely mummified and in a party dress. Other news stories speak of "hauntings" around the world - Michael suspects that the Sidhe are coming to Earth. If that isn't enough, he is contacted by a musical faculty member from UCLA named Kristine Pendeers who is looking for the Infinity Concerto - Opus 45. She wants to discover and perform it; and she has a friend who, with the help of letters and papers they hope to discover in Waltiri's estate, hopes to finish Mahler's unfinished Symphony. And they then plan play the two pieces together. Once the decision is made to start looking for these materials, Michael begins to fall under various attacks to stop him from completing these tasks.

Hopefully the bits of plot I outlined above don't spoil the book for anyone - I could hardly outline less without being so vague about the basic plot of the book as to be basically providing you with a meaningless synopsis; however, there is so much more to this book than the above. Greg Bear weaves throughout this story a fascinating new mythos about the creation and evolution, de-evolution and re-evolution of man and the universe that I found to be quite astonishing in its depth and breadth. He weaves in references to several world religions and ties them in to his mythos, showing how the original truth was "twisted" over the years to conform to what would best serve those in power. It's a really interesting device and I enjoyed the way it was woven in throughout the story. You may also look at vegetarianism in a whole new light.

There was only one thing about the story that bothered me and I'm not sure if it was because I misinterpreted what I was reading or if it is because of some sort of misogyny on the part of the author. It is mentioned several times throughout the course of the book that "magic is carried by the woman." However, not one single mage shown is a woman. If women carry the magic, why aren't there any female mages? Or, as I said, perhaps I am misinterpreting it, and by "carry" they mean like a recessive gene - they carry the magic, but cannot use it.

Those who are fans of epic fantasy, magical realism, stories of the Sidhe (especially of the darker natures thereof) or simply well-crafted alternate realities, please do not miss this one.

Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

The fantasy here is by way of horror. A human that ends up in this world, after crossing over from our own is basically then stuck in a Clive Barker book, a very nasty and horrific situation. A similar feel to Mark Chadbourn's World's End, or Sean Williams Crooked Letter.

Humans affected by the supernatural powers around them struggle greatly with the concept, apart from the actual basic facts of survival.

old-style Greg Bear.......2006-12-05

Short summary: this is the coming of age of a californian teenager captured in a beautiful (my opinion) and dark fantasy world that has little respect for nonsense. It takes too long a while for the kid to grow up. In the meantime, there are too many, too wordy description of too many unessential details that muddle a very inventive imaginary universe. The book would have been much better it it had been 1/3 shorter.

Some books by Greg Bear I've read fairly recently I also liked a lot, so why not trying some of his older writing. Hmmm. Think again. This one I wanted to put down for good after fifty pages, but on the merit of previous reads I persisted, and thank heavens it got better. But not that much . . ..

The fundamental ideas are original and refreshing, but it took me 150 pages to begin to care for Michael, the protagonist. At page 50 or so, when yet another creative calamity was just about to get him, I found myself rooting for the calamity.

I plodded on, for Bear's sake. Michael grows up, fortunately, but the process is annoying to the reader (me) rather than inspiring. The narrative is fine, yet Mr. Bear gets lost in many winded descriptions that stall the action and add only marginal detail to otherwise very good world-building. More often than not I ended up reading the first sentence and the last sentence of, or just scanning through, too many paragraphs without dialog.

Mr. Bear's writing gets better with time. This early novel of his is not quite ripe yet. The absorption value (how much I get lost in the story) is uneven. Your mileage as a reader will vary--a lot. I cannot really recommend this title, sorry. Three stars because the world is original and crafty, I did finish the book, and there are some good moments :)

How fantasy should be........2005-05-21

Originally two separate books, Greg Bear's `Infinity Concerto' and `The Serpent Mage' are brought together in one volume renamed `Songs of Earth and Power'.
The story revolves around Michael Perrin, a young poet who is searching for meaning in his life but with no direction. When he befriends Arno Waltiri an elderly neighbour who is also artistic (a composer), it is a meeting of minds and Michaels life changes forever. Unfortunately Arno dies soon after meeting Michael but leaves him a key to an old abandoned house. What Michael is about to discover is that this house is a gateway to another realm, the Realm of the Sidhe, a realm that is both compelling and dangerous, a realm that is difficult to escape from.
Greg Bear's land of elves is not the pretty, enchanted place of so many fantasy novels but is an oppressive, menacing land of cruelty and fear, ruled by the unfeeling Sidhe. His brilliantly descriptive narrative draws the reader in until you feel part of this world. It is a difficult book to put down. Songs of Earth and Power isn't an easy or comfortable read but it is one that is well worth the effort. It's definitely one of the better novels in the fantasy genre and it's a great addition to the bookshelf of any lover of fantasy.

This book outdoes everything else in its genre..........2003-03-28

I have a confession to make. Before I read Songs of Earth and Power by Greg Bear, I was a fan of the SciFi/Fantasy genre. Now, nothing can satisfy me. In his spectacular book, Bear more than raises the bar for his fellow writers. As for his supposed "blasphemous" writing: Bear is taking creative license. I am a very religious person, and I beleive wholeheartedly in God. Yet I am openminded, and can read a novel that questions God and the story of creation and take it for what it truly is -- a story, nothing more. If you cannot be open minded and take offense at "blasphemous" writing in a fiction novel, then you probably shouldn't read this book.

This is the most imaginative, original, and creative book I have ever read (and I read quite a lot); now, every other SciFi/Fantasy book on the shelf just seems like another brainless, cookie cutter novel complete with dragons, magic, and the like.

So, if you want to experience an intellectual, thought-provoking, and entertaining Fantasy (which seems like an oxymoron to me now), RUN not walk to read this book.

However, if you want to continue reading and enjoying other SciFi/Fantasy novels, I would recommend that you avoid this one. It'll spoil everything else for you.

Average customer rating:

Complex and intriguing work

If only Bear would write more like these

A slow but compelling start to a very complex fantasy series

A very complex and detailed land of magic

The Infinity Concerto
Greg Bear
Manufacturer: Ace Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Science Fiction | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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The Serpent Mage

ASIN: 0441370594

Customer Reviews:

Complex and intriguing work.......2007-08-30

"The Infinity Concerto" - Book One of Songs of Earth and Power - is a very deep book; multi-layered and textured. I believe it will likely take me several readings to find all the meanings that are embedded in the story. The basic storyline revolves around Michael Perrin, a thoughtful young man who wants to be a poet. He befriends a composer named Arno Waltiri, who it is said wrote a concerto called The Infinity Concerto that was so unusual that it drove its listeners mad - and many of those listeners disappeared. Waltiri claims that the concerto was primarily inspired by a man called David Clarkham, who subsequently disappeared; Arno gives Michael a key and a piece of paper with directions to follow, that should lead him to Clarkham. Waltiri dies soon thereafter. Despite warnings from Waltiri's wife Golda that Waltiri repented of his choice to give these to him, Michael decides to go ahead and follow the directions - and ends up somewhere . . . that is not Earth anymore. Forced to learn to survive, Michael has to grow up and grow strong very quickly - but is he just a pawn in some hidden power struggle? Or is he something else altogether?

Some sections of this book seemed rather slow moving, but everything was necessary for the plot. Because the plot is so intricate, at times ponderous prose is necessary to bring about all the necessary information. All-in-all, I found the story quite enjoyable and I am also enjoying the beginning of the sequel, The Serpent Mage.

Those who are fans of epic fantasy, stories of the Sidhe (especially of the darker natures thereof) or simply well-crafted alternate realities, please do not miss this one. I do not know how easy it is to pick these books up separately - I have the omnibus edition of the series, as noted above (Songs of Earth and Power). A recommend from me!

If only Bear would write more like these.......2003-11-23

This story takes fantasy out of the usual dragon, unicorn, and magic users arena. The rewrite of the Serpent Mage in the combined stories of Songs of Earth and Power does full justice to the tale begun by this book. A great read!

A slow but compelling start to a very complex fantasy series.......2000-04-08

This is the 1st book of a 2 book series. The last is The Serpent Mage. Both books have also been combined as another title, "Songs of Earth & Power." My detailed rating would be 4.1 for this book. The essential story of this book is very simple. The main character (Michael) is forcibly drafted by the Elves (Sidhe) to learn magic. It's a traumatic experience. But that's not the strength of the book. Bear generally writes fairly hard SF. The magic here has some interesting physics to it! But the best thing is the history. Bear provides a detailed history starting at the beginning of time. Not exactly with quarks either. This extremely complex history of the 5+ sentient races on Earth drives the whole story, and you learn that history a piece at a time through the two books. Why is Michael drafted by the elves? You find out by the middle of the second book. This first book would not be satisfying all by itself. You need the second also. If you like friendly elves, this is not the series for you. Most of the elves here are cold, cruel, and callous. Why? That's part of the history!

A very complex and detailed land of magic.......2000-03-30

This is the 1st book of a 2 book series. The last is The Serpent Mage. My detailed rating would be 4.1 for this book. The essential story of this book is very simple. The main character (Michael) is forcibly drafted by the Elves (Sidhe) to learn magic. It's a traumatic experience. But that's not the strength of the book. Bear generally writes fairly hard SF. The magic here has some interesting physics to it! But the best thing is the history. Bear provides a detailed history starting at the beginning of time. Not exactly with quarks either. This extremely complex history of the 5+ sentient races on Earth drives the whole story, and you learn that history a piece at a time through the two books. Why is Michael drafted by the elves? You find out by the middle of the second book. This first book would not be satisfying all by itself. You need the second also. If you like friendly elves, this is not the series for you. Most of the elves here are cold, cruel, and callous. Why? That's part of the history!

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The Infinity Concerto

Manufacturer: Berkley Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000HJK8J2

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The Infinity Concerto
Greg Bear
Manufacturer: Ace Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000P0WPZI

Songs of Earth & Power: The Infinity Concerto and the Serpent Mage

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Songs of Earth & Power: The Infinity Concerto and the Serpent Mage
Greg Bear
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTN9E6

Book Description

At last, what every Westerner in a Japanese restaurant or market needs: the first truly comprehensive dictionary of Japanese food and ingredients. Standard dictionaries can often mislead us--with akebia for akebi, sea cucumber for namako, plum for ume. Hosking's dictionary includes not only dishes and ingredients, everything from the delicate mitsuba leaf to the dreadful okoze fish: colorful appendices disclose such aspects of Japanese culture as the making of miso to the tea ceremony and the influence of vegetarianism.
With Japanese-English and English-Japanese sections, A Dictionary of Japanese Food explains the nuances and eliminates the mysteries of Japanese food.

Customer Reviews:

A valueable pocket guide to take shopping.......2006-11-26

This ten-year old dictionary remains unsurpassed
as a guide to the ingredients, methods and utensils
used in japanese cooking. It is a portable volume
with romanized, kana and kanji versions of all the
names and so is ideal for a trip to the market
where many unfamilar ingredients may be presented
to the english--speaking food lover.

There are seventeen useful appendices that cover
topics like:
Chopsticks
Katsuoboshi
The kitchen and its utensils
Kombu
The Meal
Miso
Sake
Salt
Sansai
Soy sauce
Sushi
Tea
The tea ceremony
Umami and Flavor
Vegetarianism
Wasabi
Wasabon Sugar

In addition, many of the entries have enough
detail to be useful to the Western chef who
wants to incorporate Japanese ideas into his
or her cooking. Hoskins is an admirably concise
writer who packs a lot of information into a
small amount of graceful prose.

Be aware that this is not an encyclopedia. If
you use the English-Japanese section to look
up `mushroom' for instance, you'll find the
translation `kinoko' but not a comprehensive
list of Japanese mushrooms or techniques for
cooking them.

So leave the browsing to other books and keep
this one for trips to the market You'll be glad
to have it.

--Lynn Hoffman, author of THE NEW SHORT COURSE IN WINE and the forthcoming novel bang-BANG from Kunati Books. ISBN 9781601640005

Very useful book.......2006-10-29

I recently spent a month in Tokyo and I enjoy cooking. I found this book along with a good Japanese cookbook to be very useful both in the market and the kitchen. I would have like it to included a kana (Japanese syllabic writing) to English section, but understand most English speakers are not familiar with this Japanese syllabic writing. Luckily all Japanese know our alphabet and my fellow shoppers were always happy to help me find what I wanted. In fact, I believe they appreciated my interest in their food and culture.

Essential if you plan to shop in oriental markets.......2006-03-17

This book was the connection I needed between the recipes in my Japanese cookbooks and the local Asian market. Many of the packages have no English word on the package. I have used this book every time I have shopped; when I can't figure out what I am looking for, I take the Japanese word (the book cross references in English and Japanese) to the service desk. The young Japanese woman takes me to exactly what I am looking for. It has saved hours of decoding the ingredients.

This is great for descriptions and translations, not for cooking assistance; it discusses pairings of flavors for ingredients you look up. It is the perfect dictionary to keep close to the Asian cookbooks.

Super Tool for Japanese Food Lovers.......2006-01-20

For those people who love Japanese cuisine but don't know much about the Japanese language, this pocket size dictionary is a wonderful tool. It focuses on most terms and words used in Japanese cuisine including drinks, entrees, ingredients, food terms, even some cooking and food container names. The dictionary allows readers easy to look up information. It is arranged in three sections: Japanese-English, English-Japanese, and Appendices with some interesting topics in Japanese cuisine. Each entry in the Japanese-English section provides the Japanese term in Roman script, Japanese character, as well as Kanji, along with the English definition details and possibly some additional culture notes. Truly, this dictionary is a MUST!

(Reviewed by Otto Yuen, 19-Jan-2006)

Authentic, resourceful, handy and enjoyable.......2005-12-03

As a Japanese native and a food enthusiast, I first approached this book skeptically. I must say that I am impressed. Another reviewer says that this book does not contain everything, but hey, it covers much more than I expected. I keep it handy when I cook Japanese food for guests, so I can answer questions without guessing all the time. Finding books like this one --straightforward and packed with trustworthy, interesting information -- is a joy.

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