Amazon.com
Edinburgh police inspector John Rebus's obsession--rock & roll--seems odd for a man whose dark, depressed side is so central to his character, but Ian Rankin always manages to work it gracefully into his noirish novels featuring Rebus. In Set in Darkness, Rebus has a fling with Lorna Grieve, a faded rock muse who's the sister of Roddy Grieve, an up-and-coming politico who turns up dead on the grounds of the boarded-up hospital that's being torn down to make way for the new Scottish Parliament. Grieve's body is the second in the space of days found at Queensberry House; the first was a skeleton bricked up in the fireplace. That decades-old murder seems to be tied to the suicide of a mysterious homeless man whose hefty bank balance is revealed well before his true identity.
'So what's the story with Mr Supertramp anyway?'
'He had all this money he either couldn't spend or didn't want to. He took on a new identity. My theory is that he was hiding.'
'Maybe.' He was rifling through the scraps on the desk. She folded her arms, gave him a hard look which he failed to notice. He opened the bread bag and shook out the contents: disposable razor, a sliver of soap, toothbrush. 'An organized mind,' he said. 'Makes himself a wash bag. Doesn't like being dirty.'
'It's like he was acting the part,' she said.
There are always plenty of subplots in a Rankin mystery. This time he adds a stalker who happens to be one of Rebus's colleagues, a couple of toughs who hang out in singles clubs and finish their evenings with a rape or two, and the ongoing story of Rebus's tortured past--a bitter divorce, a daughter still recovering from a terrible accident, and a drinking problem. Set in Darkness hit the bestseller list in Great Britain and should enjoy the same success in its U.S. edition. Rankin's ability to keep finding new dimensions in Rebus, handle intricate plot details brilliantly, and evoke the gloom and darkness of his setting keep winning him new admirers, with just cause. --Jane Adams
Book Description
On the eve of the first Scottish parliament in three hundred years, Edinburgh is a city rife with political passions and expectations. Queensbury House, the home of Scotland's new rulers, falls in the middle of John Rebus' turf, keeping him busy with ceremonial tasks. That quickly changes, however, when a long-dead body is discovered in a Queensbury House fireplace, a homeless man throws himself off a bridge - leaving behind a suitcase full of cash - and an up-and-coming politician is found murdered. The links between the three deaths lead Rebus to a confrontation with one of Edinburgh's most notorious criminals, a man he thought he'd put in jail for life. Someone's going to make a lot of money out of Scotland's independence - and, as Rebus knows all too well, where there's big money at stake, darkness gathers.
Customer Reviews:
I Was A Little Disappointed.......2007-07-04
This was my first Ian Rankin novel. There are three investigations going on in this novel and at the end they all tie in together. John Rebus is well drawn and is interesting. I found the story dragging at times. It's a complex crime novel. I rate this a A-.
A long and slow spiral .......2007-06-30
I have been reading this series in sequence, so I have been entertained by how Rankin is getting better at creating complex and convoluted plot twists and marveled at how refined his character development has become.
I believe this book marked a turning point. Rebus' drinking had always been a continuous and important sidebar of the story, it got relief earlier in the series. But when Rebus'friend Jack Morton was killed, Rebus fell off the wagon hard, and it really and truly made the character all the more complex and interesting. The drinking is now front and center and ruling his life and his work. Rebus can be seen to be in a slow death spiral towards uncontrollable depression, or does it? This is the beauty of the Inspector Rebus series, you begin to care about Rebus, no matter how bad he is with truth, women, relationships, and rules. As in a relation ship with real people, no one starts being completely hateful, but over the series of 12 books, I have come to know the character, I feel I know his history, and despite his odious state of de-evolution, I still care about the character because of the history that Rankin built up over the 12 books. I can't wait to read the rest of the series just for the Rebus development.
The mystery part involves three seemingly disparate deaths, one of a tramp, the second of a up and coming politician, and the third of a man whose death went unnoticed 20 years ago but he jumped back into the public consciousness in a very notable way. At first blush, I didn't think Rankin would be able to pull all this together into one story arc, but he did. I really should stop doubting his ability to do this. The procedure and methodology that Rankin uses to progress his story is once again, very enlightening. Mix in his accounting of the Scottish government and history, the history of 60's and 70's rock and roll, as well as his understated sarcastic asides makes this a very complex and enjoyable read, if you like life complicated, real, and not easily categorized nor understood. The story comes to an end, a very conclusive end, but also with a very depressing twist which sets Rebus up with a very difficult reality. You may not like it, but it is definitely a juicy beginning for the rest of the series.
Alfred Hitchcock would have loved John Rebus' Character.......2006-06-11
Once again (it's so repetitious) Ian Rankin has written a novel that is almost perfect in every way. The story just seems to grow as it goes along, and the characters appear as if this is just a narrative of some tragedy that actually happened and Rankin is just the reporter.
A murder (of a man of a well known family who is standing for the Scottish Parliment and brother of an MP), a suicide (by a man we would call a street person) and a dead body (murdered twenty years ago and wall up in a building under renovation. All this is happening around and in the new Scottish Parliment building and John and Siobhan are off on the most interesting story so far (until the next one).
With the imminent retirement of the Chief Super, Farmer Watson, we know that John is in for trouble with whoever becomes his next boss. It's nice to see Watson get in a few good licks before he leaves the scene. Another DI (the blue eyed boy), is sent by Fettes to watch over this case which they feel is too high profile for a maverick like Rebus.
Of course Rebus gets on his bad side immediately, not to mention everyone else. But with the tenacity that he brings to everything his does, Rebus will find out the truth in the end. What he's not expecting is how. Once again a great read.
It's a stretch to tie this all together........2006-03-08
A body found in a bricked up fireplace after twenty years, a murdered candidate for Scottish parliament, and a suicide with a big secret and it all ties together? Well, it's a bit of a stretch in this one. Renkin works hard and it shows. This is a disparate lot of puzzles, and it is really reaching to work them together. Without the deus ex machina in the form of Rebus's favorite foe, Big Ger it wouldn't really happen at all. It is this occasional dependence on the Scottish crime lord that often works against the series, sometimes it seems an easy way out when Rebus needs something done, either directly or indirectly, and in pops Cafferty. This is a solid outing, but too many characters pop in and out without real purpose making the novel probably 100 pages more than it needs to be.
A Book that is Dark, Brooding and Forbidding and Very Alive.......2004-04-04
Hard-drinking, hard-smoking, divorced Edinburgh cop DI John Rebus is a man who does things his way as he moves through the brooding city of Edinburgh, searching for both his own lost soul and the criminals who lurk in its dark places. DI Derek Linford, in contrast, does things the boss's way, much to Rebus's chagrin.
Both are seconded to the police liaison team for the new Scottish Parliament at Queensberry House when a corpse is found hidden behind a fireplace in one of the parliament buildings. From the condition of the body, it appears that it's been there a long time, years, decades.
A few days later the body of Roddy Grieve, a Labor Party candidate for a seat in the new parliament, is found on the grounds. Grieve comes from a well-known Scottish family. His mother is a famous artist, his brother is a Tory MP, his sister is an ex-supermodel married to an ageing rock star and there is another brother who went missing 20 years ago. Sniffing about for clues as only he can, Rebus comes to suspect the body in the fireplace may be connected to Grieve's murder.
Meanwhile, Rebus's former partner, Detective Sergeant Siobhan Clarke, is driving home one evening when she happens to see a homeless man leap to his death from a bridge. Following up, she discovers that the supposedly poor and destitute man had over £400,000 in a building society account. He also had the same name as the man whose remains were found behind that fireplace.
Add to the above the escalating violence of a serial rapist who targets women in singles clubs and, as if that isn't enough, Rebus must face the unexpected prison release of his old nemesis, Edinburgh crime boss Big Ger Cafferty, whose interest in Rebus isn't exactly friendly. And through all this, Rebus has to work alongside Linford, a paper pusher on the fast track to promotion.
Little of modern Edinburgh has escaped Rankin's attention here. In fact, one might mistake this excellent novel as a travel guide about where not to go when visiting there. However, there is hope in this book, too. It's just that sometimes it's just a little hard to find, especially when Rankin writes about, corruption, homelessness and despair as if he's been there and seen it all. Yes, this is a dark book. It's also a book that stands apart from others in the genre. It's the kind of book the others aspire to.
Haley Lawford, SV Cheerleader Too
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Wizards: Stories of Magic, Mischief and Mayhem
Manufacturer: Thunder's Mouth, Balliett & Fitzgerald
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
 Science Fiction, Fantasy, & Magic | Science Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Horror | Literature | Children's Books | Subjects | Books
Anthologies | Horror | Genre Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Anthologies | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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The Book of Wizards: Stories of Enchantment From Near and Far
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Wizard's Hall
ASIN: 1560253207 |
Book Description
Before the kids sit down at the computer or turn on the television, hand them Wizards, where they can spend the night next door to a man-eating troll, accompany a boy on his first day at wizard school, or take a ride on the North Wind. The Harry Potter series has created a hunger for great fantasy literature amongst children and their parents, many of whom have never read such masters of the medium as C. S. Lewis, T. H. White, Roald Dahl, or E. Nesbit. Now the editors of the Adrenaline series have moved into a new genre with the same attention to great stories, great characters, and great writing that has made Adrenaline the most successful series of its kind. In addition to the above writers, Wizards draws upon a rich load of forgotten classics (without which there would be no Harry Potter) by such authors as Jane Yolen, George MacDonald, Frances Hodgson Burnett, A. Philippa Pearce, Nicholas Stuart Gray, John Bellairs, and Edward Eager.
Customer Reviews:
Good starters.......2001-10-09
I love wizards, be they the unusual, young ones or the old gray-bearded Gandalf/Merlin types. But I and many others Iove wizards. As the title suggests, this is a collection of some of the best wizard stories out there, by some of the best writers of fantasy ever, including but not limited to: Jane Yolen, Ursula Le Guin, T.H. White, C.S. Lewis, George MacDonald, and so on.
Much of this material is excerpted from other books, such as Le Guin's story ("Wizard of Earthsea"), George MacDonald's ("At the Back of the North Wind") and several others. While readers may have heard of some of the books ("Wizard of Earthsea," "Wizard's Hall," the Narnia Books) this is a good introduction to other works by older authors, like T.H. White's excerpt from "Once and Future King," Phillippa Pearce, George MacDonald (who died before Tolkien!), Beowulf (the one excerpt that may be beyond the average 9-12 reader); and a few of those who are simply obscure like Mark Helprin and Nikolai Gogol. (Not all the excerpts are from wizard-related books, tho)
On a non-reading level, this book is beautifully bound with a gorgeous cover, though a little pricey for a paperback, in my humble opinion. Nevertheless, if you are not acquainted with some or all of the authors inside and/or are looking for good wizard stories, look no further. It's a good way to kick off your fantasy reading.
Book Description
Todd Haynes has emerged from the trenches of independent American film in the 1990s to become one of the twenty-first century's most audacious filmmakers. In a series of smart, informative essays, this book traces his career from its roots in New Queer Cinema to the Oscar-nominated Far from Heaven (2002). Along the way, it covers such landmark films as Poison (1991), Safe (1995), and Velvet Goldmine (1998). Contributors look at these films from a variety of angles, including his debts to the avant-garde and such noted precursors as Rainer Werner Fassbinder; his adventurous uses of melodrama; and his incisive portrayals of contemporary life.
Customer Reviews:
Fantastic!.......2005-11-12
This short book was absolutely enchanting to me. I read it twice non-stop. I have read SF most of my life, and ones that I call extra good are a treat. I liked Dune so well that I had to try other Herbert books. I'm not going to spoil it for anyone by giving any details, but it's a great story.
Metaphysical navel gazing and UFOs........1999-10-29
Frank Herbert produced a number of pot boilers, such as the "Whipping Star" series, before creating "Dune" which, excluding some of its sequels, must rank as the definitive alterntaive future history with a unique depth of characterisation and "world building". This book has a couple of gimmicks to it, some salacious imagery, but the metaphysical value of it all escapes this reviewer (apologies to our Dutch contributor). There is a good point about the comparative difference between human/organic potentials and closed, mechanistic systems, but that isn't enough to sustain the read. Read "Dune" or "Dragon under the Sea" (a.k.a "Under Pressure") for better Frank Herbert.
another fascinating novel from the science fiction master!.......1999-09-17
The feel to "Heaven makers" is similar to that of "Godmakers" and "Whipping Star". Herbert again manages to bring to life a complete future world. In true Herbert fashion, he continues to surprise and fascinate as you try to get your mind around his wonderful, amazing ideas. The Chem are an immortal species, whose greatest fear is boredom. The story focuses on one of their ways to amuse themselves by "experiencing stories", a sf- version of watching movies. Only these stories are the real lives of people, who are being manipulated by the Chem to provide a good "movie". One of the countless people manipulated in this fashion are humans on Earth... As the story unfolds around these main ingredients, Herbert manages to put forward some fascinating, mindboggling views on life, deah and immortality, as well as creating a great deal of suspense. If you like Herbert, you will like this book the same way you liked his others, although still nothing tops "Dune". If you don't know Hebert, here's an excellent way of making your acquaintance.
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Anchor Books
Langdon Brown Gilkey
Manufacturer: DoubleDay
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Creationism
| Theology
| Christianity
| Religion & Spirituality
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: B0007DSQEC |
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THE HEAVEN MAKERS
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000GQVQNS |
Average customer rating:
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The Heaven Makers
Frank Herbert
Manufacturer: Ace
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
General
| Herbert, Frank
| ( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
Paperback
| Herbert, Frank
| ( H )
| Authors, A-Z
| Science Fiction & Fantasy
| Subjects
| Books
ASIN: B000GYCRXI |
Product Description
Weird dwellers in a timeless world. Avon Original. PBO.
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- A Planet of Playthings...
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The Heaven Makers
Frank Herbert
Manufacturer: Avon Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000QAY7Z8 |
Customer Reviews:
A Planet of Playthings..........2007-05-10
Have you ever seen someone do something senseless, and then heard them say "What made me do that?" Have you ever seen something you couldn't explain, and wondered if you were the only one who saw it? Have you ever felt like fate was toying with you, even tormenting you? In this Nebula Award-winning scifi story, the immortal Chem are the cause of these troubles that afflict humanity. Desperate for amusement to soothe their troubled minds and hold off boredom, the Chem use the Earth as their movie set, and humans as their unwitting and unfortunate reality-show actors. Anyone who understands the idea and purpose of the Prime Directive in Star Trek would be horrified at what the Chem do. They don't just ruin lives; they create lives for their own use. The story centers around an investigator sent by the Chem collective authority (Primacy) to a storyship making movies on Earth, where 6 previous investigators have been lost. Even the Chem have laws, and a popular storyship producer, Fraffin, is suspected of being involved in illegal activities. What price will Kelexel, the investigator, pay to discover the truth? And what will humans do if they find out that they are only pawns of these powerful beings?
This is a quick read, and an excellent story; highly recommended.
The Dosadi Experiment
Heretics of Dune
The Road to Dune
The White Plague
The Green Brain
Eyes Of Heisenberg
Destination: Void (Berkley SF, S1864)Under Pressure
Man of Two Worlds
Santaroga Barrier
Amazon.com
Cooking for Mr. Latte is a delightfully modern dating story, recipes included. It's the true story of the courtship between Amanda Hesser, a food writer for The New York Times and author of the award-winning cookbook The Cook and the Gardener, and writer Tad Friend, the titular Mr. Latte. Most of the book was written in installments for the New York Times Magazine, but fans of Hesser's writing will be happy to know that there are plenty of new stories and recipes to justify picking up the book version. Her tale ends happily ever after, but has enough ups and downs to keep it interesting. And it's not all about Mr. Latte. Ever wonder what it's like to eat out with foodie guru Jeffrey Steingarten? Chances are you guessed wrong.
Food is an important aspect of Hesser's life (though it wasn't for Mr. Latte when they met, making for some of the downs in the ups and downs), but it's not until you notice how seamlessly Hesser weaves her meals into her story that you realize how much of our lives and our memories revolve around food. By the time you get to the recipes, you've already salivated over the dishes and become emotionally attached to them. From her mother's Chocolate Dump-It Cake to the Ginger Duck her future mother-in-law made the first time they met, you'll love that Hesser pays such close attention and generously shares the recipes. Filled with everything from old-fashioned treats from her grandmother's kitchen to dishes from some of New York's hottest dining spots, this is one entertaining read that is sure to end up in your kitchen. --Leora Y. Bloom
Book Description
"Tender, wry, passionate, truthful. To read Hesser's prose is to hunger for more."—Nigella Lawson
Life in the city, love, and unforgettable meals—can a food writer find happiness with a man who has an empty refrigerator? Amanda Hesser's irresistible book is the tale of a romance where food is the source of discovery, discord, and delight—a story of universal desires: good food, great company, and a mate.
At each stage of her courtship—from her first date with "Mr. Latte" (a near-disaster) to her first uneasy dinner at his parents' home, from intimate suppers in her Upper West Side apartment to his first attempt at cooking for her—Amanda supplies menus for the meals they share: more than one hundred well-balanced and well-seasoned recipes that will leave you satisfied yet wanting more.
With warmth and honesty, Amanda shares her feasts and foibles, triumphs and near-misses, tense encounters and good times in the kitchen and beyond. Her humorous, sensuous tale leads us date by date, recipe by recipe, to a jubilant conclusion. 42 b/w illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
good recipes.......2007-10-06
Most people might pick this book up to reread Amanda Hesser's New York Times "Mr. Latte" columns, or because they're curious about the book's concept, but I want to first call attention to the recipes. Namely that they're very good ones. I prefer the recipes in this book to most recipes in proper cookbooks, as Hesser is an excellent recipe writer. The peach tart recipe is great to have when you're on the road or in an unfamiliar kitchen, and it produces a surprisingly impressive dessert with very little equipment, time, or effort.
Notably, this book also includes a recipe for the vanilla cake from Cambridge's justly famous Hi-Rise Bakery. (The secret to Hi-Rise's recipe, if there is a secret, is to "use as many vanilla beans as you can afford.") To my knowledge, Hi-Rise hasn't put out a book (and why not, I'd like to know?), so the recipe in this book is the is the only authentic way to recreate that intensely-flavored, pebbly-textured vanilla loaf, if you're a fan.
Hesser's account of her courtship with her then-boyfriend now-husband is a fun read. Though its manner is quite winsome and fluffy, Hesser's account has teeth, because at its core, it is a touchstone for anyone wondering about a long-term relationship. In other words, Hesser's overarching theme is compatibility - about the conflicts that play out as two people figure out what is congruent and complementary between them. It's about the drive towards "improvement" versus the desire for acceptance, both within and without.
What goes better together than food and life? Nothing!.......2007-03-18
I'm sure we all have those memories, the ones that are tied to food. People, places, things... all have the ability to remind us of something culinary. I really enjoyed this book. This book is full of many practical and classic dishes. The stories truly tie in with the menus and with current events. Give it and some of the recipes a try! You will not regret this book.
A good read.......2007-02-06
While it may strike some as self-indulgent (turning 9/11 into a food event struck me as odd) this is nonetheless a very entertaining book. The recipes that accompany it are well worth trying and are written so that even less accomplished cooks can have success. Even if New York foodies are a turn off for you, you will enjoy this book.
Great recipes, entertaining story.......2007-01-08
I think the best thing about this book is the recipes at the end of each chapter! Every single one that I have tried has become a household favorite and my friends demand copies of the recipe.
The story is fairly entertaining with some nice anecdotes. I was especially interested to learn about the life of a food critic, which was completely new to me. However, if you're looking for great literature, this isn't it.
Well, she admits to being a snob...........2006-12-30
... which doesn't justify her snotty attitude, but it certainly makes me less likely to want to hunt her down and push her little barette-clad head into the roasted vegetables in the 'gourmet' salad bar in Brooklyn Height's (where I also dwell) Garden of Eden.
I liked the book. I thought it was a clever and elegant idea. I just didn't like her. This summer I will be on the look-out for those stupid 70's barettes at the 'greenmarket' and will be sure to snatch up the last of the Meyer lemons before she can get her self-described 'delicate', Prada-wearing paws on them.
Books:
- Sherlock Holmes in New York: The Adventure of the New York Ripper
- Shroud for a Nightingale
- Sick of Shadows: An Edwardian Murder Mystery (Edwardian Murder Mysteries)
- Silence of the Grave: A Thriller (Reykjavik Thriller)
- Sleep, Pale Sister (P.S.)
- Sleeper Vol. 3: A Crooked Line
- Smilla's Sense of Snow
- Snobbery with Violence: An Edwardian Murder Mystery (Edwardian Murder Mysteries)
- Social Work Treatment 4th Edition
- Some Like it Lethal: A Blackbird Sisters Mystery
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Get Your Ship Together: Be The Captain of Your Subconscious Mind!
- Black Mass: The True Story of an Unholy Alliance Between the FBI and the Irish Mob
- Vitruvius: 'Ten Books on Architecture'
- Adhesion Molecules and the Lung
- Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach, Eighth Edition
- Bringing Out the Best in Yourself at Work: How to Use the Enneagram System for Success
- Agatha Raisin and the Haunted House
- Recipes and Ideas: Lighting: Simple Solutions for the Home
- Watercolor: You Can Do It!
- Other Sorrows, Other Joys: The Marriage of Catherine Sophia Boucher and William Blake
The Hanging Garden (An Inspector Rebus Novel)
The Falls: An Inspector Rebus Novel
Dead Souls: An Inspector Rebus Novel (Inspector Rebus Novels)
Black and Blue: An Inspector Rebus Mystery (Inspector Rebus Novels)
Let It Bleed (An Inspector Rebus Novel)
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