History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Calculations are only as good as your numbers.......2007-08-03

Yes, we can all agree that mainstream history is nearly 100% BS due to politics, economics, ego, problems with dating techniques, and various conspiracies. Agreed. But, I've been researching the distinct possibility that human history (in terms of civilizations) are much more ancient than we've been told, so coming across this book was very interesting to me. I wondered how Fomenko could be wrong (if at all) because he is very persuasive in his presentations. Then it dawned on me. If at previous times in prehistory, due to the various catastrophies that are well documented (comets, asteroids, planetary disruptions, plasma discharge, pole reversals, etc) the Earth was in a different position in relation to the sun, different tilt on its axis, different orbit, different rotation (in terms of velocity and DIRECTION), and the continents were in different positions, then would this not cause the ancients to see the sky (constellations) differently? In other words, is Fomenko making erronious assumptions about the physics of the Earth in pre-history, which then corrupt his data with regards to dating the relevant astrology? The last event to seriously disrupt our planet occured roughly 3500 years ago, according to other good researchers, so is it possible Fomenko has been confused by this? The vastly different physics of our planet in the not so distant past may explain this confusion, which is not to say the "mainstream" version of history is correct; on the contrary. I am not an expert in these fields, but wanted to see if this idea could spark discussion.

Pants on fire?.......2007-07-19

Will people ever read before spamming? Yes, Jesuits could not rewrite world history alone, they had help. Anyway, Dr Prof Acad A.Fomenko does not point to jesuits as the driving force of world wide history manipulation in published volumes 1,2,3;, actually he barely mentions the poor devils. Check it with 'Search inside' feature, please. China is rarely mentioned either, in fact, Dr Fomenko is completely eurocentric. Right, his theory contradicts all mainstream schools of history, because in their actual state they are all built on blatantly erroneus chronology. You don't need a mysterious cabal (conspiracy) to falsify history, the falsification is its modus operandi. It is inherent to history(ians) to falsify (distort) events, as it is inherent to humans to boast as it is inherent to power (authority) to legimize itself by referrring to glorious past made to its own order. Dr Prof Fomenko and team have identified scores of instances of such manipulation in Russian, European, etc.. history, and delivered valid statistical proof thereof. His own 'reconstruction' is completely another story. Forget c14 as a valid method of dating. W.Libby has initially discovered a brilliant method of INDEPENDENT dating. Too bad, c14 method has become a joke after a forced marrige with dendrochronology with consensual chronological scale inbuilt. Radiocarbon method can't stand blind tests, but is so very productive as a rubberstamp.

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

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I can write!
I failed at Nanowrimo so I learnt more

Understanding Writing Blocks
Keith Hjortshoj
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0195141369

Book Description

Why do capable students and scholars fail to complete writing projects? What are "writing blocks," and how can writers overcome them? Why are writing blocks more common for advanced and experienced writers who are not supposed to need help? And why are they more common in the humanities than in the sciences? Keith Hjortshoj answers these and other questions in Understanding Writing Blocks. This book demystifies the causes of writing blocks, which are often ignored, misunderstood, or attributed to obscure psychological disorders. Hjortshoj examines blocks instead as real writing problems arising from specific misconceptions, writing behaviors, and rhetorical factors present at different stages of the writing process. In a lively and informative style, he defines the nature of writing blocks, examines their causes, and offers advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professional writers the diagnostic tools and strategies necessary for getting their work done. Although appropriate for any writing course, Understanding Writing Blocks targets advanced composition students and graduate writers who are most likely to encounter immobilizing obstacles, and whose experience supports the author's assertion that a writing block is usually "an affliction of the good writer." Hjortshoj draws his material and evidence from extensive research, interviews, and consultations with blocked writers from his twenty-five years of teaching. Especially helpful to students working on dissertations and other complex projects, Understanding Writing Blocks illuminates the factors that undermine writing ability in a wide range of endeavors.

Customer Reviews:

I can write!.......2007-02-23

I found this book to be extremely helpful in overcoming my frequent issues with writing blocks. The book really helped me to consider the ways that I think about and approach writing which enabled me to better understand why I often find myself unable to write and gave me the tools to develop a new mindset in regards to writing. This isn't a feel good self-help book with lots of specific techniques for overcoming writing difficulties so if that's what you're looking for, then you will probably find this book to be a bit of a bore. But if you are interested in approaching the topic from a more theoretical perspective, you will gain a lot of useful wisdom from this book. This book also focuses primarily on academic writing, which is great for college or grad students or professors, but probably not so beneficial to an aspiring fiction writing (though I may be wrong). If this book could help me after all of the desperate struggles that I've had with writing, then it's bound to be useful to many others as well.

I failed at Nanowrimo so I learnt more.......2006-08-28

I did not really fail. Last year, my first, I completed the assignment, but it was a horrid first novel, so bad as to be shelved rather quickly by me. I was depressed. Honestly, this really got to me. But I tend to want to discover what happened and in the next year, this one, I have read all that I could get my hands on so that led to me reading more and more about the writing process so as to see what i did wrong, why my first novel, well thanks to Keith Hjortshoj (this is a difficult last name) I realise now it was just my first composition, was such a dud.

Keith claims that this book is geared towards academic writers. Well quiet honestly, my academic career is long over, but perhaps it wouldn't have been had I met him earlier, but that's another story. What this review is about is The Best Manual on the market on Writing Blocks. I found his help incredible and his massive bibliography and citation of other books, Peter Elbow, Bonnie Friendman, Victoria Nelson (which is how I found this) Daniel Murray and then John Steinbeck, Georges Simeonon John Irving, and F. M. Alexander of the Alexander technique incredibly helpful.

I was stunned to see how much of my writing suffered from not as i thought one problem but a myraid of problems, lack of focus, no attention span, too judgemental,fidgetiness and his chock-a-block how-to manual really hit all my bugaboos chapter after chapter after chapter. I took prodigious notes. I found the Elbow Freewriting exercise to be the most helpful and that got me just writing, but I needed more, as I saw that was not the only problem I had. I was rather stunned and so I read on and saw more and more problems, gee I was rather surprised, how many do I have ?

First time, I chucked the book. I got depressed and read the Van Gogh Blues and the Artists Quest for Inspiration, which basically hinted at the same issues, though in a much milder tone, and finally returned and re-read the whole thing. This time i was totally immersed and read thorughly, interestingly and took better notes. Midway through I wanted to chuck it and start on my next composition, but like an over eager patient, I realised I needed to read the whole thing first to make sure that I had gotten the whole thing...and I was glad I did.

This is a great manual, well written and spot on. I think I've read everyone on creativity and blocks since last November and this is the literally the best out there. Good luck to you, you blocked writer, for Keith Hjortshoj is here to help, and I for one am sure glad he's there. This book really is gold. Remy.

Understanding Writer's Block: A Therapist's Guide to Diagnosis and Treatment

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Understanding Writer's Block: A Therapist's Guide to Diagnosis and Treatment
Martin Kantor
Manufacturer: Praeger Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0275949052

Book Description

This innovative book explains writer's block (and other creative blocks) as a symptom of a larger disorder. These disorders can affect all creative and would-be creative people. This book is the first to treat writer's block from a classic, DSM-IV diagnostic perspective. Kantor identifies 10 kinds of writer's block, classified according to the underlying disorder that causes that block. Included in the text is a discussion of the general characteristics of blockage and how the therapist can distinguish between acute and chronic forms of block, as well as an exploration into the causes of block. With this book, Kantor has laid the foundation for the development of a successful treatment approach. Throughout the text, case studies drawn from historical sources and the author's patients illustrate the various kinds of block.

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UNDERSTANDING WRITING BLOCKS
HJORTSHOJ
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OKQ3O8

Book Description

England in the sixteenth century: a nation at a fatal fork in time, leading to two possible futures forseen by the Sidhe of Elfhame Avalon. Either an evil queen will join forces with the Inquisition and rule with a blood-spattered iron hand, threatening humans and elves alike¿or a benevolent, red-haired queen named Elizabeth will rule wisely and well. But the evil Unseleighe Sidhe, who feed on human suffering and dark emotions, are determined that the little girl Elizabeth shall never grow up to take the throne. Opposing them are the good Sidhe of elfland, who have so far managed to protect the young girl. Denoriel had foiled one attempt to kidnap both Elizabeth and her half-brother and replace them with changelings, almost at the cost of his own life. But a few years have passed, and Denoriel has healed and returned to guard the young princess, now all of eight years old, secure in the knowledge that his enemy Vidal, leader of the evil Unseleighe, is dead, killed with an iron bolt fired from a primitive gun. Unfortunately, he is wrong: Vidal¿s armor was far stronger than any of the good elves realized. Though the wound was deep and Vidal was forced to bide his time in his own slow healing, his recovery is complete, his determination to hurl England into a new dark age is as strong as ever, and he has set in motion a plan to achieve this end of which Denoriel and his comrades are dangerously unaware. . . .

Customer Reviews:

Elizabeth in Underhill.......2007-06-03

Ill Met by Moonlight (2005) is the second novel in the Scepter'd Isle series, following This Scepter'd Isle. In the previous volume, the child Elizabeth was born of Anne Boleyn and King Henry VIII. When the child was presented to the court, Harry Fitzhugh was transfixed by her semblance. Surely this child would become the red-haired queen that he had seen within the Great Lens in Underhill. He decided to present her with his cold iron cross to protect her from the Unseleighe.

Denoriel Silverhair and his sister Aleneil kept close watch on the child and foiled one attempt by Pasgen, their Unseleighe half-brother, to replace her with a changeling. Then Prince Vidal Dhu, with his consort Aurilia, led the next attack. The Unseleighe attacked the child in her quarters, but Denoriel and his fellow protectors were already in the rooms and prepared for the intruders.

In this novel, Pasgen subdues an imp who carries a summons from Prince Vidal Dhu. But how has the creature found him? Under questioning, the imp coughs up a Token made from Pasgen's flesh. Temporarily ignoring the summons, Pasgen hurries to find Rhoslyn and tell her of his discovery.

After finding Rhoslyn at the Empty House, Pasgen discovers that his mother had provided a Token from each of them to Vidal Dhu at the time of their birth. The Prince probably still has one for Rhoslyn, but may not know where it is. Pasgen leaves his Token with his sister to investigate and hurries off to answer the summons.

Vidal Dhu has spent the previous four years being treated for iron poisoning. Some of his healers have died while taking the poison from his body. Now the Unseleighe Prince has mostly recovered from his injuries and thinks to take back his place in court.

During the past two years, Oberon forced Pasgen to take responsibility for the Unseleighe Court after several raids against the humans. Pasgen definitely hasn't liked having these responsibilities, but he has managed to control most of the monsters in his charge. Now that Vidal is back, Pasgen wants to position him firmly as the ruler, so that Pasgen himself can do something else -- anything else -- other than continue in charge of these unruly Unseleighe.

Vidal Dhu isn't aware of just how long he has been gone and just how weak he is. However, Pasgen acts timid and subservient to bolster Vidal's reputation in the Unseleighe Court. Some times Rhoslyn has to remind him not to strike down Vidal, but Pasgen gradually removes himself from the court.

Rhoslyn is pleased that Pasgen is no longer trying to kill Elizabeth. She would rather join the Seleighe Court than continue to treat with Prince Vidal and has gradually weaned herself from dependence on the Unseleighe habit of feeding on pain and suffering. Yet she is unsure of her reception and believes Pasgen would prefer to remain in the Unseleighe Lands.

Denoriel has also been undergoing treatment for the last four years. He almost burned out his magical power by channeling lightning in the mortal realms. He still has only weak magical abilities, but can do passive magic such as gating. Now he is ready to return to the mortal realms to resume his relationship with Elizabeth.

In this story, Pasgen is not longer trying to abduct or kill Elizabeth and believes that over time the succession problem will resolve itself. Since Prince Vidal is still insisting of taking Elizabeth out of the picture, however, Pasgen starts looking into ways of discrediting her. Still, he takes an unhurried approach and spends much more time doing other things, such as studying the mists of the Unformed Lands.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth is upset with Lord Denno and still believes that he is lying about Harry being alive. Denoriel takes some chances to let Elizabeth meet Harry in the mortal realms and almost gets Elizabeth caught by Mary and her retinue. Afterward, Elizabeth becomes more cooperative, especially after being allowed into Underhill.

This story covers the latter years of Henry VIII's reign through his wedding to Catherine Parr. As usual, King Henry is having problems with the Scots and the French and spends a great deal of effort keeping them apart from each other. He has a temporary alliance with the Holy Roman Emperor, but that turns out badly. Of course, Vidal Dhu is trying to stir up conflicts wherever he can.

Highly recommended for Lackey and Gellis fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of the Tudor monarchy, English politics and the precocious brilliance of young Elizabeth within the fantastic context of sidhe magics.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Another Hit!.......2007-05-13

Mercedes Lackey is second to only to MZB in her writing. She caputers your imagination and holds it for the entire book! When your done, you want the next one!

For avid fans of fantasy .......2007-03-05

Mercedes Lackey and Roberta Gellis' ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT is for avid fans of fantasy and tells of an aging king and a struggle for a throne. Elfland becomes involved in human endeavors in this thriller.

For readers who are into 16th C history of England.......2007-02-25

Others might find it long and slow. I am into 16th C England and loved the book.

Too quick ending.......2006-10-07

This book, and its prequel, This Scepter'd Isle, are both books that are well worth the time to read.

Only 4 stars because the ending left me wanting to know more, and feeling that there were other threads of the story that hadn't been woven back into the "Deus ex Oberon".

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MOONSTRUCK!
A Gentleman at War
Rip roaring wartime yarn...not yawn
Fun to Read True Life Adventure
You won't put it down once you start.

Ill Met by Moonlight (Classics of War)
W. Stanley Moss
Manufacturer: Burford Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1580800602

Book Description

In 1944 British commando W. Stanley Moss hatches his most daring adventure of all: to kidnap the Nazi General Kriepe, commander of the Sevastopol Division in Crete, and spirit him back to British-occupied Egypt. This is his story.

Customer Reviews:

MOONSTRUCK!.......2006-12-24

'Courage, mes braves!' We've travelled this road before. But if there are any new recruits in the ranks, let me reassure them from the outset that once the title's been tackled (a clumsy Shakespearean reference), we're over the worst of it. Because the rest of this book is a rollicking read from start to finish, dealing as it does with the true story of the kidnap during WWII of the German General Kreipe by a group of Cretan partisans under the leadership of two British commandos, William Stanley Moss, our narrator, and Patrick Leigh-Fermor - widely believed to be the blueprint upon which Ian Fleming based his James Bond character.

ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT is better known as a film in which the young Dirk Bogarde defeats the Wehrmacht with a withering glance that predated Roger Moore's raised eyebrow by twenty years or more. By way of contrast, though, W. Stanley Moss and Paddy Leigh-Fermor are tough as old boots and utterly fearless. But even so, they leave us with the distinct impression that they bring to their particular field of irregular martial endeavour the benefits of a liberal education - which makes a very refreshing change from reading about SAS hooligans, the sum total of whose emotions might be tattooed in their entirety (all eight letters of them!) on the knuckles of each hand. Similarly, there is in MOONLIGHT a sort of bubbly undercurrent which suggests that, though these two young men are at present totally immersed in WWII, this is not what they are really and truly about. What they really want to be doing is getting on with their lives and doing whatever it is that young men want to be doing. (Nowadays they'd be taking a year out and bumming around Oz perhaps.)

There are, be it noted, some absolutely mind-boggling statistics attached to this tale of German deviltry and British derring-do. In the film version one of the characters comes by water, the other by air; whereas in real life the one who comes by air has to make as many as fourteen sorties before encountering weather conditions suitable to a parachute jump. Then, with General Kreipe their prisoner at last, our heroes drive unscathed, albeit at a fair lick, through as many as 37 German checkpoints assisted by just two words of German, authoritatively spoken. (`General Wagen!' is the password that is repeatedly proclaimed thus.) And, with the sounds of battle raging all around them, there is just one killing in the entire story: that of the General's driver, unwisely left to the undisciplined attentions of the partisans - with whom our boys are very far from pleased when they get to hear of it.

General Kreipe's capture may well have saved the man's life. Because his superior officer, General Mueller, was sentenced to death and shot when hostilities ceased. There is, too, a very moving part of the story where the General expresses his regret that his capture bodes ill for his extended family for whom, risen above his station in life, he has been the breadwinner. And there is humour not less than crazy when the BBC World Service boasts about the kidnapping on air, blithely broadcasting the fact that our heroes will presently be leaving the island, which quite naturally results in re-doubled efforts to capture them on the part of their German pursuers - and when, with Moss and Leigh-Fermor, needing just two letters of Morse code with which to signal a British submarine and so effect their escape, they find they know only one of those letters between them, which necessitates their having to hang about on the beach until another party of Allied interlopers just happens to turn up and makes good the deficit.

So in a kind of a way ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT is reminiscent of the Peter Cook/Dudley Moore sketch that begins: `The war's going badly, Carruthers - what we need is a futile gesture!' Yet, in another sense it's much more unsettling. Because a moment's reflection on the contrasting fates of Generals Kreipe and Mueller would tend to suggest that the real purpose of this madcap mission (the hidden agenda, as it were) is not to deprive General Kreipe of his freedom (welcome bonus though this may well have been), but rather is it to goad the Germans into visiting stern reprisals upon the populace which will so alienate the islanders that they will not hesitate to throw themselves with renewed vigour into guerrilla activity in support of the Allied war effort.

`C'est la guerre, mes braves!' And it is only the thought of this highly probable (and horrendous) hidden agenda that prevents me from adding: `Et c'est magnifique!' So permit me instead to praise to high heaven two heroes without parallel and (with the exception of the title) a thoroughly rewarding read.

A Gentleman at War.......2006-02-27

W. Stanley Moss's World War II memoir, ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT is an exciting, thoughtful and surprisingly beautiful book. Most of it is taken directly from Moss's diary during a campaign in which he, Patrick Leigh-Fermor (Paddy) and a small band of Cretans kidnap the Nazi General Kreipe and abduct him to British-occupied Egypt. A great deal of the book tells of hiding in caves and slogging up and down mountains. But what made this story especially interesting for me was the character of the men involved. Moss and Leigh-Fermor are extraordinary young men who speak several languages fluently (Paddy passes as a German among Germans). They are athletic and have strategic and intellectual minds. But Moss basically comes across as unexpectedly humble and rather sweet. Here's a short passage from Moss's diary written on the morning of the day of the abduction. He and his comrades have just spent the night in a cave.

"Paddy and I spent the morning reading short stories aloud to each other-this because we have only one book left between the two of us. Stevenson's Markheim, King Arthur and the Green Knight, Saki's wonderful The Interlopers...it was all rather fun. Then Paddy recited snippets from Shakespeare in German, at which he is adept; and we talked of mythology and lore and wondered if General Kreipe would look anything like Erich von Stroheim. Minotaurs, bull-men, nymphs of Ariadne, kings of Minos, and German generals-a splendid cocktail!"

They are civilized men engaged in that most uncivilized act of all. There is violence in this book. Then there's the terrible (and uncommented upon) knowledge that the blow on the head that Moss gave to the General's chauffeur during the abduction later caused his death. Moss is not unaware of this. That knowledge colors what he has written.

Moss was a fine writer. He manages to make the book suspenseful even though one knows at the outset that the mission was successful. The book is also poetic with sensual descriptions of the sights, sounds and smells of Crete. His character sketches of the Cretans, the escaped Russian POWs, and especially of General Kreipe are exceptionally vivid. The portrait of Kreipe, once-powerful, but now a prisoner, as he silently assesses his life and career and questions choices he has made is really fascinating. Moss feels compassion for the mental anguish the general is going through. The contrast between the Cretans' reaction to the Germans and to the Allies is really well done, as General Kreipe is amazed to see what mutual respect that the Allies and the Cretans have for each other. The Germans had only contempt for the Cretans. Moss's book is a paean to what the Allies were fighting for. I had a lump in my throat at the end.

Rip roaring wartime yarn...not yawn.......2005-08-06

I read this when I was, like, 10, in about 4 hours. That should be enough to suggest its page-turnability. I also read it on Crete while on holiday which was unsurpassable. Even if you head to Crete now, and read it there, i still did it first.

For the mature, thoughtfull reader, pair this with one of Michael Herzfeld's first two monographs about the place of the peasanttry in the cultural nation of Greece, and competing notions of masculinity bound up with these questions.

Fun to Read True Life Adventure.......2004-06-05

This is a really fun to read book. Its about an actual behind the lines mission carried out by the author of this book. It is about a mission to capture a Nazi general and deliver him to captivity. The story of how they captured the general and then evaded the efforts of the German occupational forces to find them makes for thrilling reading. This is a book that is very hard to put down and as such is heartily recommended.

You won't put it down once you start........2002-12-24

This book is a really fun read. It's all a bit mysterious, but it tells a classic tale of the British upper class at war. It's kind of a cross between "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Guns of Navarone", but with a lot less violence. Exactly what organization the author works for, and what context it all takes place in is lacking. But the chase across Crete and the author's insights into the locals kept me glued to my chair reading until I had read from front to back. See also the 1957 movie of the same name with Dirk Bogarde. For another book in the same vein find a copy of F.S. Chapman's "The Jungle is Neutral". Another WW2 "way behind the lines" story, this time in Malaya.

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Cute
Shakespeare's Dark Lady Revealed
An aural pleasure
NOVEL PREMISE, MILDLY INTERESTING
Quicksilver!

Ill Met by Moonlight
Sarah A. Hoyt
Manufacturer: Ace
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0441009832

Amazon.com

It takes a lot of guts to write a novel about William Shakespeare, and Sarah A. Hoyt has what it takes. The deed inherently invites comparison, and of course Ill Met by Moonlight falls short of the work of the greatest writer in the English language. However, the prose is solid; the story lines are involving, tough-minded, and sexually charged; the characters are interesting and sympathetic; and echoes of Shakespeare's work ring through the novel. If you like good fantastic fiction, you will enjoy Hoyt's debut novel. If the idea of turning Shakespeare into a character in a book bothers you, or if you don't like fictional explanations of where a real person got his inspiration or ideas, then steer clear.

Young schoolteacher Will Shakespeare, struggling to support his new wife and baby daughter, is not entirely surprised to come home and discover they are missing. Believing his wife has returned to her family, he ventures into Arden Forest, heading for her village--and beholds a fine palace where no dwelling should be, with dancing lords and ladies of unearthly beauty, and his own dear wife dancing with them. He believes he is dreaming, until an impossibly beautiful young noblewoman steps forth to converse with him--and kiss him. The Dark Lady will help Will rescue his captive wife and child--if he will aid her in a soul-damning plot to kill the fairy king. --Cynthia Ward

Book Description

A brilliant and enchanting debut novel of the love that set young Shakespeare's heart ablaze-and aroused the greatness within him.

Download Description

A brilliant and enchanting debut novel of the love that set young Shakespeare's heart ablaze-and aroused the greatness within him.

Customer Reviews:

Cute.......2005-11-02

I thought this to be a magical little story. Who wouldn't find a tale with fairies and elves fun??

Shakespeare's Dark Lady Revealed.......2005-06-18

Quicksilver, youngest child of Titania and Oberon, was to be the heir to their kingdom. On their disappearance, however, his older brother, Sylvanus, stole the throne and Quicksilver became immersed in bitterness and hatred. He would do anything to regain his rightful place, regardless of the hurt he might cause to others.

Sylvanus, fancier of mortal women, has just lost his wife to childbirth. He takes a solid, and to him immeasurably attractive, country woman, nursing her own child, to be nursemaid to his motherless child-with the intent of making her much more than just a nursemaid.

Will Shakespeare comes come from work one evening to find his wife and infant daughter missing, replaced by sticks of wood. Sick with worry, he sets out on the long walk to Nan's family, in hopes she has been called there to attend a pregnant relative. While passing through Arden Forrest he sees the most bizarre vision: his wife, Nan, dressed in courtly clothing dancing with royalty in a castle set in air that Will cannot penetrate. Quicksilver involves Will in his plot for the throne, throwing the four of them-five if you count Quicksilver's spurned lover-into a plot worthy of the bard himself.

Sarah Hoyt's interpretation of Will Shakespeare's past is novel and enjoyable, with both humor and seriousness. As Shakespeare often did , Hoyt gives the comedy some tragic turns-some, however, that I felt weren't well enough resolved. I would be interested to hear what other readers have to say as well. She gives another nod to Shakespeare by throwing in quotes, tongue in cheek, in a mostly amusing way. Some seemed to forced, but they often brought a grin.

I enjoyed seeing the young, tentative Will who was very much in love with his older wife Nan. He proves himself to be very much the nineteen-year-old boy, who loves both with his heart and with his-well, his other parts. He was no match for the wiles of Quicksilver or for the beautiful mysterious woman. It is said that mortals who have been loved by an elf go crazy-Hoyt points out Kit Marlow and then shows Will following that same path, a nice wink toward his greatness and it's source.

I also enjoyed seeing Anne Hathaway Shakespeare in another role than that of shrew, as so many portray her. In Ill Met By Moonlight, Nan has a strong (though not shrewish) character, both standing up to Sylvanus and looking out for Will's best interest; it is she that I was the most fond of by the end of the book.

Overall, this was a fresh take on an old subject and I found it, if not engrossing, generally delightful. Of all the Shakespeare-as-hero-fiction I've read thus far, this is by far my favorite.

An aural pleasure.......2005-03-15

This is a fabulous audio. Sara Hoyt manages something that I didn't think was possible. A new view of the life an work of William Shakespeare. She brings him together with the world of the Fae and it makes for a surprisingly good fit. Jason Carter is best known for acting in the television series Babylon 5. Who would have guessed that he could bring this world to life ? He does it with gusto and as he speaks I can hear a your Will longing for his love. A faerie princeling in the throws of plots, politics and adolescence. A woman who is thrust into terrible choices. And that's just the beginning.

NOVEL PREMISE, MILDLY INTERESTING.......2004-01-27

It is a bold endeavor using the best-known figure in English literature as your main foil in a light hearted fantasy concerning men and fairies. Ms. Hoyt has taken William Shakespeare as a very young newlywed and enveloped him in a plot that has the usurper fairy king kidnapping his wife and child, first as a wet nurse and then maybe as a wife. Coming to his unlikely aid is the rightful king, who just happens to be able to change from male to female, and in a tale of mismatched love and lust plots to retrieve Will's wife Nan.

An interesting premise and actually not a bad little story. Some may be put off by the use of such a famous persona in such a light fantasy but as it happens I'm not one of them. I'd be willing to bet the old Bard wouldn't care all that much either, anything for a good story I'm sure. The biggest problem I had with the whole thing is the rationalization of why Will's wife Nan was picked by the usurper Sylvanus to be his wife. She was a self admitted `old maid' and a bit of a shrew who married a much younger William out of, oh I don't know, desperation? Certainly if she were a raving beauty she would have been snapped up long before Will came along, regardless of any possible personality flaws. So why did a centuries old fairy, with all the beauty and power of his enchanted position precipitate his own ruin by kidnapping this rather ordinary human woman? Beats me, I can't figure it out. To be honest it is easier to accept the existence of fairies than this plot twist.

I will say one thing of Ms. Hoyt, she certainly knows Shakespeare's works, at least the more well know ones anyway. Inter-dispersed with almost every spoken line is a hint, and sometimes a bit more than a hint, of some famous quote from one of the Bards plays. It's actually interesting trying to place some of the more paraphrased ones with their original.

As a romance it's only fair and as a fantasy it's good. All in all I would RECOMMEND it. It garnered just enough interest from me to proceed onto the next one, from there we will see.

Quicksilver!.......2003-11-14

To tell the truth I probably would've walked by the display of "Ill met by moonlight" in a bookstore, ignoring its colourful cover or flashing title. Fantasy and fairy tales are not really my cup of tea. However, it was the prospect of listening to audio book version read by Jason Carter that made me buy the tale. Fans do some crazy stuff that is for sure.

Now, after listening to eight hours of adventure, love and magic, I have to admit that I would've truly missed a fantastic novel if I hadn't bought it when I did. The first few minutes, the prologue to be exact, sounded strange to my ears. Then the story started and I was pulled into the magical world of Will Shakespeare and Prince Quicksilver.

English is not my first language so I have to say that I did not understand all words of this very colourful story. I learned to love and hate the characters and when the story moved on I was eager to see what would happen in the next scene, the next paragraph, yes, the next sentence. I fell in love with Quicksilver just as Lady Ariel did - and yet hoped for the dark Lady Silver to show Will the pleasures of love and passion. Sometimes my breath would catch in my throat when the unexpected happened. The Hunter's evil herd of wolves, or Will's attempt to capture Lady Silver by iron chains made me gasp in surprise and I hoped and feared for my favourite character.

In the end I was sad that the tale ended so soon but it was a good end, a happy end of a fairy tale.

This was only the second audio book I've ever "read". I was very pleased with the reading by Jason Carter who breathed vivid life into each character.

Average customer rating:
Ill Met By Moonlight
Leslie Ford
Manufacturer: Holt , Rinehart and Winston, Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IZPYEY

Product Description

She was a dangerous female, beautiful, cold-blooded, predatory.The people she lived among were the very nicest sort. Yet, strange to say, it was she who was found dead. And she was only the first victim..."Exciting" - The New Statesman"Excellent...Leslie Ford at top form" - New York Herald Tribune

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ILL MET BY MOONLIGHT

Manufacturer: Farrar & Rinehart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000I8A4N2

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ILL Met By Moonlight
Leslie Ford
Manufacturer: Popular Library
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000IW9L96

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Ill Met By Moonlight
Leslie Ford
Manufacturer: Farrar & Rinehart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000O93M2K

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Ill Met By Moonlight
Leslie Ford
Manufacturer: Dell
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000L2HE3I

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Ill Met By Moonlight
W. Stanley Moss
Manufacturer: The Folio Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000GYT042

Product Description

214 p., frontis, photos, maps, glossary, decorated 8vo cloth in slipcase

Average customer rating:

Ill Met By Moonlight
Leslie Ford
Manufacturer: Farrar & Rinehart
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SAUFC0

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