Mom's House, Dad's House: Making Two Homes for Your Child

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According to the Stepfamily Association of America, 60 percent of all families are breaking up, and custody and visitation issues loom large in the lives of many parents. Isolina Ricci's Mom's House, Dad's House guides separated, divorced, and remarried parents through the hassles and confusions of setting up a strong, working relationship with the ex-spouse in order to make two loving homes for the kids. This expanded and revised edition (the book was originally published in 1980) includes emotional and legal tools, as well as many reference materials and resources. As one parent said of the first edition, "This book is my friend."

Customer Reviews:

Unnecessary for divorced parents who already get along.......2007-05-31

My five-year-old daughter's dad and I have joint custody and joint placement. Therefore, my daughter travels between our houses (about 8 blocks apart) every few days. I was hoping this book would help her dad and I make the most of our daughter's situation, but it seems to focus on parents who do not get along. Perhaps, because my daughter does not remember ever having two parents in the same home, this book isn't as relevant to her as it may be for some. The book seemed to focus on picking up the pieces, rather than just growing as a nontraditional family. I will say one positive thing: the book stresses avoiding the use of "ex husband" and "ex wife" and replacing with "my daughter's dad". I feel that makes for a better situation.

Seems biased toward the mother.......2007-05-06

I realize that I have only read a couple chapters so far, but I see an extreme bias that paints the father as the parent that only gets visitation rights and has no interest in his children. This is just my opinion, but every story in the beginning of the book came across this way to me.

Hopefully further reading will offer some advice to something similar to my situation - a father that has custody of his daughters after his ex decided that she was gay after a happy 14 year marriage and asked for a divorce. Times have changed, it isn't always the mother that has primary custody anymore.

Mom's House, Dad's House.......2007-01-05

I tell everyone of my client's to get this book and follow the advice of Dr. Ricci to establish a co-parenting relationship after the divorce.

Excellent resource for some, maybe not for others.......2006-09-19

When my wife told me she wanted a divorce, I almost immediately grabbed every book I could find on resurrecting a marriage and handling a breakup with kids. I had plenty of time to read suddenly, after all. I found this book to be not only the most effective in handling kidds, but probably contained the best advice on keeping the marriage together. Alas, it was not meant to be.

A key thing: my children's mother and I have always wanted to be civil with one another. I recognize that many relationships do not end this way, and many parents are abusive or neglectful. There are other books that are better for handling those types of situations. For example, "Where's Daddy?" by Jill Curtis is likely to be helpful for a mother dealing with an absent or abusive father; for me it was not very helpful.

This book can be key in helping a couple that doesn't want their divorce to turn so sour that they can't stand each other's sight. It is helpful in handling each parent's relationship with their children, and their relationship with each other.

If you are already hunkered down in the middle of a war, this book may not be right for you; if you are trying to avoid getting into that situation in the first place, this book should be at the top of your list.

Susan Ashley, Ph.D. Author of The ADD and ADHD Answer Book.......2005-10-13

This is my first choice for book recommendations in my practice for divorcing families. It is a blueprint for how to raise a well adjusted child in two homes. If divorced parents only followed the advice in this book divorce would not be so tragic for children. This book advocates putting the child first and tells parent how to behave civilly and work co-operatively with the other parent for the sake of the child, telling parents what to do and what to say that keeps your child out of the middle of the anger between former spouses. This book is for every divorcing family regardless of your unique circumstances.

Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids: Feeling at Home in One Home or Two

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Great book for kids
So kids not only survive, but thrive
Understanding My Parent's Divorce

Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids: Feeling at Home in One Home or Two
Isolina Ricci
Manufacturer: Fireside
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Divorce | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Family Relationships | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

School-Age Children | Parenting | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Parenting & Families | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0743277120

Book Description

How kids can stay strong and succeed in life when parents separate, divorce, or get married again.

Isolina Ricci's Mom's House, Dad's House has been the gold standard for inspiring and supporting divorcing and remarrying parents for more than twenty-five years. With her new book, Dr. Isa adapts her time-tested advice on maneuvering the emotional, logistical, and legal realities of separation, divorce, and stepfamilies to speak directly to children. Alongside practical ways to cope with big changes she offers older children and their families key resiliency tools that kids can use now and the rest of their lives. Kids and families are encouraged to believe in themselves, to take heart, and to plan for their lives ahead.

Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids is packed with practical tips, frank answers, easy-to-use lists, "train your brain" ideas, reproducible worksheets, and things to try when words just won't come out right. Kids will learn how to:

Deal with parents living apart, schedules, and dueling house rules

Settle comfortably in one home or two

Stay out of the "miserable middle" when parents fight

Manage stress, guilt, change, fear, and other feelings

Stay connected with parents, relatives, and the "right" friends

Appreciate the gifts (and deal with the gripes) of their new version of family

Feel better FAST!

Kids can't get their parents back together, but they can help themselves get stronger and go on to succeed in life. This book shows them how.

Customer Reviews:

Great book for kids.......2006-05-25

Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids is terrific! The author knows how to speak to kids in a way that helps them understand and cope with the changes that come with separation, divorce, and remarriage. The focus is positive and proactive: things kids can do to feel better, tips on how to talk to parents about problems, strategies for addressing and resolving problems, a framework for exploring consequences when making choices, answers to kids' unasked questions, and more. There's even a section giving answers to the questions that kids hesitate to ask. The book doesn't end with the divorce, but continues with what to expect and how to cope when the family changes once again into a stepfamily. The tone, the format, and the content are super child-friendly. A must-read for kids whose parents are separating, divorcing, dating, or remarrying.

So kids not only survive, but thrive.......2006-05-07

This book can be a young person's full-time guide not just to the logistics, emotions, and decisions that arise during parents' divorce, but also to growing up strong under any conditions. As a mother whose daughter was 9 at the time of divorce (or until she turned 18 or so - she's an adult now), I would have bought two copies - one for me and one for her - so that each of us could have it handy 24/7 and write our own marginal notes. Three copies. One for dad, too. Arguments may be commonplace during and after divorce, but no one could argue with the solid foundation and practical value of Dr. Ricci's ideas or her profound love of children and families. It should be in the waiting room of every therapist, as well.

Understanding My Parent's Divorce.......2006-04-03

When I was 7, my parents got divorced. I am now 18, and looking back I realize how confused I was about the breakup. Recently, my dad gave me an advanced copy of Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids, and asked for my opinion on the book. With the intention of only skimming a few pages, I found myself unable to put it down, and read the book in its entirety. I was amazed at the clear, simple, and compassionate way Dr. Ricci answered questions about divorce that baffled me in the past. The thing that impressed me most about Mom's House, Dad's House for Kids was the consistent positive message it conveyed. Without preaching, the book encourages children to make and fulfill positive goals, respect themselves and others, and above all come to acceptance about their parent's divorce. I know this book would have helped me in the past, and I would highly recommend it to any child going through divorce.

Academia Lunfarda: Lo Que Va De Ayer A Hoy De Mi Buenos Aires Querido; Del Jailafe a La Zofaifa; De Que Ruza La Merluza; Isolina La Corvina. La Gualen De La Yeca Posta, Versos Rantifusos

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Academia Lunfarda: Lo Que Va De Ayer A Hoy De Mi Buenos Aires Querido; Del Jailafe a La Zofaifa; De Que Ruza La Merluza; Isolina La Corvina. La Gualen De La Yeca Posta, Versos Rantifusos
Julio Ravazzano Sanmartino
Manufacturer: Julio Ravazzano Sanmartino
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Spanish | Poetry | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Spanish | Foreign Language Fiction | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Product Description

Book is in the Spanish language. Signed by author on second page in book, following brief biographical essay but preceding poems. Date of signature is 1984. Book itself is undated, a privately printed edition by Sanmartino himself. Publication date of 1975 is approximate. Poetry by Argentinian writer Julio Ravazzano Sanmartino (1914-).

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Inspirational Writing by a Puerto Rican Legend
Inspirational Writing by a Puerto Rican Legend

In Quest for a Vision
Maria Isolina Sr. Ferre
Manufacturer: Paulist Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Religious | Leaders & Notable People | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Inspirational | Spirituality | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0809136929

Customer Reviews:

Inspirational Writing by a Puerto Rican Legend.......2000-08-06

I write this review 24 hours after the death of Sor Isolina Ferre, one of Puerto Rico's greatest humanitarians. Born to a prominent family on the island (her brother, Luis, was a former governor of the island; niece, Rosario, is a popular author) Sor Isolina became an ordained nun after a visit to Cuba in 1935. Unlike wacky members of her clan who favor the island's annexation to the United States, Sor was an apolitical figure in Puerto Rican society, who used her celebrity standing to help those who most needed help.

In this book, Sister Sor Isolina talks about her work mediating disputes between rival Puerto Rican street gangs in New York, and her work with the poor of Appalachia. Her lack of fear and her drive to help the less fortunate made her somewhat of an inspiration to those wanting to help their communities through service.

Inspirational Writing by a Puerto Rican Legend.......2000-08-06

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Anales de la Literatura Española Contemporánea, published by Society of Spanish and Spanish American Studies on January 1, 2004. The length of the article is 1626 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Isolina Ballesteros, Cine (ins)urgente. Textos fílmicos y contextos culturales de la España postfranquista.(Reseña de libro)
Author: Isabel Estrada
Publication: Anales de la Literatura Española Contemporánea (Refereed)
Date: January 1, 2004
Publisher: Society of Spanish and Spanish American Studies
Volume: 29 Issue: 1 Page: 321(4)

Article Type: Reseña de libro

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Chaos is everywhere as the Lord of the Nexus orders his servant Haplo and the human child known as Bane to further their master's work on Arianus, the realm of air. But their one time companion Alfred has been cast into the deadly Labyrinth. And somehow the assassin Hugh the Hand has been resurrected to complete his dark mission. More important, the evil force that Haplo and Alfred discovered on Arianus has escaped. As Haplo's doubts about his master grow deeper, he must decide whether to obey the Lord of the Nexus or betray the powerful Patryn...and endeavor to bring peace to the universe.

Customer Reviews:

The Hand of Chaos - clever title now that I think about it...........2006-03-19

The Hand of Chaos - Book Five of Seven in the Death Gate Cycle series. This book is another excellent addition to the series, and also necessary to read, no matter what other people say. It is very action packed, and brings back some of my favorite characters (Ex: Bane, Hugh the Hand (shocker...I know!)and Iridal). The book does have its shortcomings, but otherwise it is very good.

This installment starts off right where Serpent Mage ended, with Haplo trapped in the room and the water starting to flood the Sartan City. Haplo escapes (without magic) and heads through Death's Gate, but not before finding out that the evil dragon-snakes have also headed through. He heads to the Nexus, but is beaten there by the Dragon-Snakes, who have already found Xar and pledged their allegience to him. Xar says he is happy to have them on his side. Haplo comes and tries to convince Xar that they are evil, but Xar doesn't believe him. Haplo leaves for a walk as Bane (remember him from Dragon Wing?) walks in and begins chatting to his adopted "grandfather". Meanwhile, as Haplo accidentally meanders infront of the Final Gate, Zifnab comes. Zifnab, while rambling, tells Haplo that he is Sartan, and that his "wife" never died and is still in the Labyrinth, with his child. Haplo is startled by this news, but what is even more startling is that Bane overheard this all.He reports back to Xar, who tells Bane that he is sending him to Arianus with Haplo to continue stirring up unrest and to activate the Kicksey-Winsey. As soon as this task is accomplished, he is to kill Haplo. Bane agrees, and the both of them leave.

Thus the plot is set for The Hand of Chaos, along the way, Hugh the Hand comes back from the dead, We learn a LOT more about the Brotherhood of the Hand, and more about King Stephan's empire. This is a very good book, with only one major shortcoming, Alfred's disappearance. At the end of Serpent Mage, Alfred was being cast into the Labyrinth, yet in "Chaos", we have no news of what is going on with him. This is the only real shortcoming of the book, and it is an excellent, fast paced read. Pick up and read it now!

Totally not necessary.......2005-07-30

First, I will tell you how to get the most enjoyment out of this series. Start with going to the library and renting all of these books. Do not buy them as they are not worth it. Then read books 1, 3, 4, 6 and 7 without reading the footnotes or the appendixes. You have the option of reading books 2 and 5 if you are really enjoying the series, but they are only filler and do not even need to be skimmed. Finally, accept the fact that Weis and Hickman may only be one hit wonders and move on.

Second, I write reviews for those who seek good fantasy and not for the zealots who hang on every Weis and Hickman word. You would think from some of the reviews of this series that these books were greater than War and Peace and written by Bronte and Conrad. In reality, this series is not very good. I am not trying to trash Weis and Hickman, I found the Dragon Lance series to be extremely enjoyable and would give at least the first two series of that line four stars. This series deserves no more than 2 stars. The books are incomplete thoughts that may have been much better had the authors taken more time to flesh out the story. Beware of fantasy books that contain footnotes and appendixes. Usually, these are the telltale signs of poor writing. Having said that, I did manage to read most of these seven books and here are some thoughts.

Many reviewers have made a lot of the fact that Xar is actually tsar or czar. I fail to see the significance here. Xar is a ruler and a tsar is a ruler. So what? What I found to be much more interesting and ultimately distracting was the use, by the authors, of the word mensch. Mensch is a Hebrew word. It is not close to a Hebrew word, it is a Hebrew word. If you look it up, mensch means a person of integrity and honor. What are the authors trying to say here? That all people without ambition or power are full of integrity and honor. I read all seven books trying to understand the use of this word to no avail.

Not surprising considering the books are filled with errors and inconsistencies. Some of these errors and inconsistencies are no doubt addressed in the footnotes and appendixes, but it would take an additional seven books to address all the problems. I believe that most of these problems occurred because the authors did not take the time to complete their work. Perhaps they were pressured by their publisher.

Most of the characters are thinly veiled shadows of those characters from the Dragon Lance series. Only, these characters are not as interesting or as engaging. Part of the problem is that Weis and Hickman never determine where they want the story to go. They blur the line between good and evil, then they erase the line, then they re-draw the line in bold. In Dragon Lance, it was intriguing to see how the characters dealt with the discovery of the duality of their own nature. In this book it is just confusing.

SO REAL! (Is it prophecy?Historical fiction?).......2004-06-23

This is probably the best series of books I have ever read (I haven't read Tolkien yet. I KNOW, I'm sorry!). I just cannot say enough good things about this book series. I literally read it 3 times through, and each time I can relate to a different character and come to see it from their perspective.

The way that Tracy and Margaret bring the characters to life significantly contributes to the reason this series of books is so great. By the end of the 1st book, Hugh the Hand (Best Assassin in the world), Alfred(Sartan Mage), Haplo(Patryn Mage), Bane(son of most powerful human mage alive), and the rest of the characters have almost come to life in your mind.

If you're going to read Fantasy(Or SciFi) start with this! The sense of depth these books have to them makes you wonder if it's actually historical fiction that Margaret and Tracy are writing about and the index each book has is absolutely amazing. Whenever you're confused about something the characters are making reference to (or if you 'missed' [skipped, lol] the part when the character's were discussing it) you can simply look it up in the back index and you'll understand it better than you would have just reading straight through. (THEY EVEN HAVE DIAGRAMS OF EVERYTHING!)

Margaret and Tracy together are unparalleled writers equal to only a few such as Tolkien, Piers Anthony, Knaak, Louis Lamour(SP?) and the like.

I won't be suprised when this series becomes the next movie series. Except for the fact that since the book's environs are so diverse (they 'literally' create whole worlds with flora and fauna and a whole system of language [actually I think it might be latin]) the movie industry right now might not be up to it.

Finally, if you're worried about it being too advanced or too intellectual, don't. The characters are incredably deep, but like real people, are revealed to you slowly through the actions they take and throughout the series, so you're not overwhelmed all at once.

All the books are great, and I will read the series a 4th, 5th, and maybe a 6th time. Although one of the middle books does drag a little because it's mostly about the humans, dwarves, and elves (Mensch: Patryn/Sartan(Magus) word for humans, dwarves, and elves or anyone else who doesn't live thousands of years).

5th Book in a Very Good Series.......2004-05-24

In all probability, people who read the first of the Death Gate Cycle books and like it, are going to want to read all of the books in the series (regardless of any flucutation in the individual books' ratings). Ditto for the reverse: if people don't like the first book, then they're probably not going to want to read any of the other books in the series. Thus, instead of individual book ratings, I've rated the whole series and given a short blurb on any specifics for each book.

Overall, this is a very good series. The authors were amazingly creative in coming up with this concept and the books are well-written, extremely interesting, and internally consistent (mostly -- see below for some exceptions). I highly recommend this series of books for everyone. My comments for the indidual books follow:

Vol. 1 -- Dragon Wing: This book covers the exploration of Arianus: the realm of Air. It introduces us to the two main characters (Haplo and Alfred) and many of the recurring characters throughout the series. It's a well-paced, well-written book that's an excellent reresentation of what to expect in most of the rest of the series. Essentially, if you like this book, you'll like the other six books. If you don't like this book, then there's no sense in reading any of the others.

Vol. 2 -- Elven Star: This book covers the exploration of Pryan: the realm of Fire. Alfred is entirely missing from this book, and Haplo isn't really the centerpiece. Instead, the book is mostly written from the perspective of the mensch and of the newly introduced (and recurring) Zifnab. The one possible weakness in the book is that Weis/Hickman wrote it such that the structure of Pryan itself is more of a mystery than Arianus was in the first book.

Vol. 3 -- Fire Sea: This book covers the exploration of Abarrach: the realm of Stone. Once again, both Haplo and Alfred are present. The characters and areas presented in this book are key elements for the entire series. An interesting book, but not a very happy one at all.

Vol. 4 -- Serpent Mage: This book covers the exploration of Chelestra: the realm of Water. Both Alfred and Haplo are on this world. But, for the most part, they follow separate plot lines. There's a lot of action taking place throughout the book and Weis/Hickman introduce some actual Sartan (besides Alfred). They also bring in an ancient evil to balance the ancient good introduced in the previous book. The most irritating thing about this book is that it ends in a cliff-hanger. The previous books tied up their worlds' activities fairly nicely. Not so in this book. It ends at a very inconvenient spot.

Vol. 5 -- Hand of Chaos: This book returns Haplo to Arianus and the people he met there earlier. Whereas the first four books of the series cover the exploration of the four realms, this book starts the synthesis of the various threads from those books into a movement towards closure. It's a good book, but, unfortunately, it doesn't do anything with Alfred. The previous book left Alfred heading towards a bad end. This book doesn't do anything with that. So, while reading the book, you constantly have this little voice in the back of your mind going "what's happening with Alfred?" Irritating.

Vol. 6 -- Into the Labyrinth: This book ranges across just about all of the worlds of the Death Gate. It brings all of the various threads from the other books to a head. Most importantly, it finally does something with Alfred. The unfortunate thing about this book is that it contains a lot of technical errors (or, more specifically, contradictions). For instance, in Dragon Wing, we're told that a person needs to be familiar with an area to use a transportation spell to get to that area. Yet, very close to the beginning of the book, one of the characters uses such a spell without ever having been to her target location. There are also several instances where the characters COULD have used such a spell, but don't. Likewise, there are problems with replication spells. In Fire Sea, Haplo and Alfred use such a spell to replicate enough food for a large group of people. Yet, in this book, no one seems to consider using a replication spell to produce more of some food. But, later on, those same people are using that same spell to replicate weapons. Plus, at one point, Xar uses a spell to just materialize both food and drink for a party. But, if such a thing is possible, why do the Patryns hunt and, apparently, farm in the Labyrinth? Also, the size of the Labyrinth seems wrong. From the previous books, it's taken hundreds (if not thousands) of years for various Patryns to traverse the hundreds of Gates in the Labryrinth. Yet, in this book, from the very beginning of the Labyrinth they can see the results of things happening at the Final Gate. There's also the problem of how people at the center of the Labyrinth would know anything about the Final Gate.

Vol. 7 -- Seventh Gate: This is the conclusion of the Death Gate series. Unforunately, I didn't much care for it. Basically, it comes across as being pretty sappy. All of a sudden, Haplo and Alfred are best buds and want to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony. Most of the various threads are tied up adequately (if not very satifyingly). But, the sudden push towards liberal "peace, love, and harmony" is trite. Of the seven books in this series, this one is the least good. Once again, I didn't much care for the tone of this book. But, since it adequatly ties up most everything that needed tying up, I'm not going to downgrade the whole series because of that.

Chelestra, the Water World.......2003-11-08

I liked this book because I got a close up look at the Sartans who had sundered the world and enjoyed the character development of the dwarven main characters, Grundle the tough female dwarf being my favorite.

The giant dragon-snakes were introduced here and it was in this world that Alfred showed some potential as the Serpent Mage.

Chelestra's realms are now being flooded by the dragon-snakes who wish to escape Chelestra through the Death Gate to reek havoc in the other realms as they have done in Chelestra. Haplo has been imprisoned by the Sartans but because of the flood can now escape and travel back through the Death Gate, hopefully to convince Xar that he is not a trader and to warn him about the dragon-snakes. He also has a desire to find and help Alfred some how.

Alfred and his lover had been at first imprisoned by Samah in Chelestra because Alfred had found out Samah had lied about being aware of the higher power that could have prevented the sundering of their world, and feeling threatened that Alfred had this knowledge, had thrown Alfred and Orla into the Labyrinth.

The strange properties of the water in Chelestra canceled out Patryn rune magic and Sartan mind magic which I found an interesting development.

We also look in on Bane, the nasty widdle kid Xar found potential in and who now calls Xar Grandfather and Hugh the Hand, an assisin hired to kill Bane. Hugh now only wants his own true death and is looking for the only one who can give it to him, Alfred, an exceptional necromancer who had raised him from the dead giving him a strange and intolerable kind of immortality; he could die in a sense, feeling all the pain and suffering of his death only to be ressurected and with an added, sneaky twist...he can no longer kill. "A hell of a note for an assisin" he said. Things get complicated when Bane's mother, Iridal, and the woman Hugh loves, shows up wanting to hire him to find Bane who is being held by the elves.

Product Description

The Silver Key of Reason, the Golden Heart of Courage, and the Iron Hammer of Strength--these three talismans were used to lock the Gates of Chaos a thousand years before. Now the spell that binds the Gates is crumbling, Heldra the Dragon Queen is awake a|nd her Demons are once more loose in the Realm. Heldra has sent them to destroy the talismans and kill the One True King who might use the talismans together to re-lock the Gates.

DECEIVER, THE (Chaos Gate Triology, Book 1)

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the deceiver

DECEIVER, THE (Chaos Gate Triology, Book 1)
Louise Cooper
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0553288210
Release Date: 1990-12-01

Customer Reviews:

the deceiver.......2001-02-15

this book continues the time master trilogy saga. its the story of Narid na gost a demon of chaos.He upsets the balance of order and chaos by conceving a child with a human woman in hopes of ruling chaos. a great story line and fast paced i gave this book 5 stars.

The Chaos Gate (The Bard's Tale, Book 4)

Average customer rating:

A wonderful continuation of the Bard's Tale

The Chaos Gate (The Bard's Tale, Book 4)
Josepha Sherman
Manufacturer: Baen
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0671875973

Customer Reviews:

A wonderful continuation of the Bard's Tale.......1999-06-11

Still filled with black elves, white elves, betrayal, magic, and yes - love, this story is one of my new favorites. It does get a little complicated, but that only makes it even more fun. And this time, Lydia gets some romance as does Kevin!

The Pretender (The Chaos Gate Trilogy, Book 2)

Average customer rating:

The best book of the trilogy

The Pretender (The Chaos Gate Trilogy, Book 2)
Louise Cooper
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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ASIN: 0553289772
Release Date: 1991-04-01

Customer Reviews:

The best book of the trilogy.......2000-07-11

This book is one of the few 'middle books' I've ever read that hasn't dropped the pace from the first book or served only as a mildly interesting prelude to the third. Fantasy trilogies tend to have a certain pace, I think, that I've gotten used to: setting the stage in the first book, holding it or slipping a little in the middle, and then bringing it all up fast and furious in the end. So I started _The Pretender_ with fairly high expectations- I'd loved everything else by Louise Cooper that I'd read, and _The Deceiver_, the first book, was very good- but thinking that it would follow the same pattern as most everything else.

I've never been so glad to be wrong.

_The Pretender_ has two main plots- one focused on happenings in the Star Peninsula and the Circle, the other on the Summer Isle in the south. Both have excellent scenes- especially near the end- and both are resolved (as much as plots in a middle book of a trilogy get resolved) beautifully. Without giving too much away, there are scenes where both the main characters in the book are in contact with more-than-mortal powers. Those scenes were the best, played out with awe and reverence as if the author had been there and wanted the audience to feel what she did.

The writing maintains a level just below this for the rest of the book, and the character development fits the writing style extraordinarily well. At times- especially, it seems, in middle books of trilogies- I have had the feeling that the style the author uses for one character has influenced the style he or she uses for another, and they don't seem like separate people. In this case, they were. Every character had his or her own means of telling the story, dealing with fears and concerns (even when those concerns were similiar), and growing and building on what they were in _The Deceiver_ to what they must become.

I didn't give this book five stars only because it isn't the best book by Louise Cooper that I've read. (That's _Star Ascendant_). But don't let that discourage you from reading it, or the rest of the trilogy. High marks, very much so.

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AVENGER, THE (Chaos Gate, No 3)
Louise Cooper
Manufacturer: Spectra
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
Cooper, Louise | ( C ) | Authors, A-Z | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
General | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books
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DECEIVER, THE (Chaos Gate Triology, Book 1)

The Master: The Time Master #3

The Initiate (Time Master Trilogy, Book 1)

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ASIN: 0553291114
Release Date: 1992-01-01

Average customer rating:
The Adventurers: Quest One - The Chaos Gate

Manufacturer: Malibu Graphics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0944735487

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The Avenger (The Chaos Gate Trilogy, Book III)
Louise Cooper
Manufacturer: Bantam Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KIBK2E

Product Description

The demon sorceress bids for godhood. Author Louise Cooper

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The Hand of Chaos (Death Gate Cycle)
Margaret Weis , and Tracy Hickman
Manufacturer: Bantam Books Ltd
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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