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Inara

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Books can change your life - if only you let them!

I´m Inara (Austria) at Goodreads and decided it wouldn´t hurt to have a back-up booksite - just in case...

The Ancient Secret of the Flower of Life: Volume 1 by Drunvalo Melchizedek

The Ancient Secret of the Flower of Life: Volume 1 - Drunvalo Melchizedek, Margaret Pinyan

When I´m honest I have to admit I don´t understand everything Drunvalo writes about Sacred Geometry. I´m not a genius at mathematics and I had to struggle to comprehend some of his hypothesis, explanations and theories. Nonetheless it is a very interesting book and surely only appropriate for people who are willing to look beyond their own noses and to accept that there are diffierent views of reality. I can´t say I agree to everything Drunvalo says some of his theories seemed too unbelievable to me but this is apparently his personal sight of reality and who can tell for sure which reality is the right one? Don´t we create all our own realities?
It´s an excellent book to expand your mental horizon and you should read it it unprejudiced and with an open mind. It will give you some fascinating insights into hidden dimensions, Sacred Geometry, the MerKaBa, Atlantis, Egypt and much more..

Black Sun Rising by C.S. Friedman

Black Sun Rising - C.S. Friedman

May be a bit spoilerish

 

 

Twelve centuries ago the planet Erna was colonized by mankind what was a big mistake as it turned out later. First the colonists didn´t know about the many earth-quakes and the "fae", an energy which materializes human emotions to demons. The starship was destroyed as were all technical ressources and the descendants of survivors are living now in a world similar the middle-ages. Some people learned to manipulate the fae (the socerers) some special people know how to use the fae from birth on (the adepts). And there is the church which rejects any contact with the fae. Nonetheless there is a special order which trains its members to socerers to fight the demons with their own weapons.

Damian Vryce is such a warrior-priest and is sent to Jaggonath to train young members of the church in socery. There he meets the adept Ciani and falls in love with her. Near Jaggonath there is an extreme dangerous forest the home of the Hunter a vampire-like demon who feds on human fear and blood. One night Ciani is attacked and robbed of her memories and all abilities to manipulate the fae. A terrible disaster for an adept. The only way to get her powers and memories back is to kill the assailants. So Ciani, Damien and Senzei, Ciani´s business partner are leaving Jaggonath to follow them. On the way they meet a mysterious man who seems to have the same destination and becomes their ally. Soon a strong suspicion arouses in Damien who their newfound ally in fact really is…

I admit first I had to struggle through this book and found it hard to read and I wanted to cast it aside more than once. The "love-story" between Damien and Ciani wasn´t very believable to me and I think it was just thrown into the plot to give Damien a reason to go on this quest. What made me going on reading was the evil demon Gerald Tarrant, the Hunter. He is pure evil without any humanity left in him and I would not want to meet him in the dark… But the differences between the demon and the rightous priest and how his evil begins to corrupt Damien it´s worth the read. And Damien is realizing he´s made his own devil´s bargain..

The author had very good ideas for this book a mixture of Sifi and fantasy but sometimes there are boring passages above all when Damien again and again has second thoughts about his morality. And I really don´t know why Ms. Friedman uses the word "whisper" constantly. I thought I´d start to scream if I had to read one more time "Ciani whispered".

Reviews here and there

I´m reading through my old reviews at Goodreads and decided I will not post everything I have ever written here because my first tries at reviewing are - to put it mildly - not very good or thoughtful. I think I´ll let them stay where they are - perfectly hidden in a mass of other and better reviews.

I´m trying to get back on track with writing new ones - I was very very lazy lately.... but I feel inspired now :)

Omm Sety´s Egypt by Hanny el Zeini & Catherine Dees

Omm Sety's Egypt: A Story of Ancient Mysteries, Secret Lives, and the Lost History of the Pharaohs - Hanny El Zeini, Catherine Dees

Omm Sety

True-of-Voice

Maat-Kheru

that her name may be remembered

 

"What if, one day, you fell down and lost consciousness, and when you woke up you found strange memories in your head? And what if you pursued those memories, only to discover that they had instead been pursuing you?"

With these words begins one of the most fascinating books I´ve ever read. It´s the story of Omm Sety, an English woman who lived and died in her beloved Egypt.

Dorothy Eady was born 1904 in London. At the age of three little Dorothy fell down the staircase and was unsconscious. The immediately called for family doctor thought her dead but Dorothy regained consciouness again. But she was changed. She suddenly had paranormal experiences and visions she nobody told about. She started to remember her former life in ancient Egypt as a young virgin priestess of Isis and Osiris in Abydos. Her name was Bentreshyt (Harp-of-Joy). One day she met the pharaoh Sety I and a forbidden love began which ended with Bentreshyt´s death. Millenia long Sety searched for his beloved till he found her again in Dorothy so that both could make amends of their sin against the gods…

When Dorothy was grown-up she went to Egypt where she was called Omm Sety and she lived and died in Abydos at the temple where her story as Bentreshyt began.

She talked with Sety about many things regarding ancient Egypt and this book is filled with interesting information about his time and of the 19th Dynasty e.g. where the tomb of Nefertiti could be found, about a great Hall of Records in Luxor or the afterlife in Amenti. She kept a diary where she wrote down his answers and after her death these diaries where given to her friend Dr. Hany el Zeini, one of the authors of this book.

I found the concept of rebirth Sety told her about very intriguing. It´s a different point of view to our belief of continued rebirth. When they talked about a person Sety knew from his past and who had come back to earth again Omm Sety wanted to know if that person had been reborn as a baby but Sety replied no. He told her that people are sent back usually for two reasons, to pay for some sin or to fulfill some important work in the world. For the first reason they were usually sent into a body very closely resembling their original one. They would enter the new body at the very moment of its death, or at a time when it was deeply unconscious. "This is what happened to you.." he said. Furthermore she told him that people believed that everyone returned to earth until they became perfect and sinless. Sety answered: "If they believe this, perhaps it happens for them. But for us, it is not so."

That let me think about the so-called "walk-ins" I´ve read about – another being taking over a dying body, the original soul leaves and makes room for a new soul. But that always happens by mutual agreement I´ve read, no other being could take over someone´s body who didn´t give his or her consent. (Another book of a walk-in story is "Athor" by Evelyn Fuqua, a therapist). It would explain the long time Sety searched for Bentreshyt, maybe a fitting body wasn´t found before.. but that is only my speculation..

And it let me think about creating our own reality, when we think we will return again and again – it happens. What Sety thinks about Amenti is also true for himsef – and happens because it is his belief. I´m sure I will be mulling this concept over and over in my mind for the next time!

It´s a very recommendable book to everybody who loves to read about the Black Lands and its mysteries. As for me I wish that Sety ad Bentreshyt were forgiven by their gods and are living happily together in Amenti now!

The Blood Books Vol. I by Tanya Huff

The Blood Books, Volume I - Tanya Huff

Blood Price

Vicky Nelson, a former police-woman, now private investigator becomes witness of a terrible murder in a Toronto subway station. The victim has severe throat injuries and the body is drained of blood. When other murders happen in the exactly same way the media start to conjure up the picture of a vampire dealing out death and destruction.

Henry Fitzroy is a vampire and not happy at all about the suspicion against his kind. He lives unrecognized between people and he wants it to stay that way. He decides to stop the killer who is threatening to uncover that vampires really exist.

Eventually Vicky and Henry met and after he has convinced Vicky of the existence of vampires they join forces to clear up the murders…

 

Blood Trail

 

In the second book Vicky and Henry are investigating who is killing Henry´s werewolf friends. Mike Celluci, Vicky´s ex-colleague and time and again lover is – driven by jealousy – looking into Henry´s past and comes as well to the werewolves´ farm to confront Vicky with something he thought to have found out about Henry…

 

Both stories were entertaining but not really captivating. Too soon we learn – long before our investigators – who the villain is and for this reason I didn´t follow their investigations with bated breath. I couldn´t really connect with Vicky´s character I admit and although I liked her permanent banter with ex-colleague Mike Celluci it was getting sometimes really too much. The beginning "lovestory" between Henry and Vicky is boring, I never could comprehend the supposed attraction between the two. I´m sorry but Henry isn´t the epitome of a seductive vampire to me, I´ve already read about others who apply much better to my imagination what a "hot" and seductive vampire has to look like. The Mike/Vicky relationship is far more interesting in my opinion. What was annoying me after reading it for twentyfifth time was that Vicky constantly had to "push her glasses up her nose". Girl, go to your optician to get yourself better fitting glasses for heavens sake!

Although I enjoyed reading this book and I will definitely read the next volumes in this series I wasn´t really impressed. It´s a wonderful read for in between but I couldn´t indulge in my hot and sexy vampire attraction, sigh!

The Nymph King by Gena Showalter

The Nymph King  - Gena Showalter

Valerian the nymph king of Atlantis has a problem. To strengthen his men after a war against the dragons they need sex. A lot of sex. But their own females aren´t available and so Valerian plans to go to the surface (Atlantis is situated beneath the ocean) to get human females for his nymph warriors. Shaye Holling is at her mother´s wedding at a Florida beach when suddenly warriors emerge out of the water, kidnap every single woman and take them back to Atlantis. While every woman is delighted by the beauty and sensuality of the nymphs and can´t get quick enough into their beds only Shaye and an other girl aren´t happy to be held prisoner and resist their kidnapper. Valerian who has at once recognized Shaye as his mate is confused – it has never happened before that a woman did not want him at first sight..

If you like a cynical heroine, an irresistible nymph king who wants nothing more than to show a girl with a fear of relationships the joys of sex and a girl who fights her would-be seducer with all her might and very suddenly gives in – that is the book for you. The plot made me yawn even the supposed villains the dragons are a pathetic lot and have no chance at all against the powerful king. Perfection is boring, let me tell you.

My needs of sappy romances is satisfied for while…

A Secret History by Mary Gentle

Ash: A Secret History - Mary Gentle

The historian Pierce Ratcliff discovers long lost manuscripts about Ash a female captain of mercenaries in the late 15th century Europe. The more he translates this work from Latin to today´s English the more he gets convinced that the history of this time period wasn´t like our established records suggests. What if there could be found evidence of this alternate history? The subplot in this novel is Ratcliff´s e-mail correspondence with his editor Anna Longman about his search for (archaeological) truth of his documents. The story of Ash herself is exciting and shows much of the hard life of mercenaries – dirt, angst, gore, death, violence – and their fight to live through the battles unharmed and see the next day. Everyone who has an idealized view about the existence of a soldier in the Middle Ages should read this book – the wake-up call will leave you disenchanted for sure. The main plot is Ash´ fight against the Visigoths who are threatening to destroy Europe and spreading darkness all over their conquered countries only Burgundy is the last bastion against the mighty army. This army is also led by a woman "the Faris" who is Ashs "sister" but I don´t want to give too much away from the plot.
It´s a fascinating book although there are many disgusting scenes and foul language but I was very intrigued by the storyline nonetheless. Ash is a strong but also vulnerable woman marked but not destroyed by her bad orphaned childhood in the midst of the baggage of a mercenary troop and I liked her and her own motley crew of mercenaries.
This book is remarkable by the author´s great knowledge of armors, battles and the history of the Middle Ages, it´s a combination of realism, fantasy and scifi elements. It´s an excellent and original novel in my opinion and worth the time you spend reading it (and in time you get used to the vulgar language of the mercenaries, believe me..lol).

Working for the Devil by Lilith Saintcrow

Working for the Devil  - Lilith Saintcrow

What would be your answer when Lucifer, Prince of Hell would offer you a job and you get two options: if you don´t take it you would be killed or if you take it you could be killed? Right! Dante Valentine a necromance and bounty hunter chooses the second possiblity at least she´d have a chance to survive. An important artifact the "Egg" has been stolen by the demon Vardimal Santino from Hell and Dante´s task is to hunt Santino down, kill him, grab the Egg and bring it back to Lucifer. Seems easy enough but of course there´s a catch – two in fact – Santino can´t be killed neither by a human nor by a demon and Lucifer forces her to accept the help of his assassin demon Japhrimel to increase her chances of success. And that Santino killed Dante´s best friend Doreen five years ago makes this job even a personal vendetta..
First I wasn´t impressed with Dante´s characterization. Usually I´m not really fond of snappish and headstrong women who don´t listen to other opinions and are determined not to accept help just to prove a point. But Danny has friends who are also as determined to accompany her and finally she has reluctantly and with much bickering to accept that a demon is following her every step. When Jace Monroe Dante´s ex-lover appears on the scene things are starting to heat up in the romance department because Japhrimel isn´t so immune to Dante´s charms as a demon is supposed to be. The story takes place in a futuristic world – glimpes of what happened in the past are mentioned throughout the book, ancient Gods seem to have returned and have their worshippers again and the devil is playing around with science and genetic engineering..Alltogether it was a good mixture of action, suspense and romance and I have to read the second volume soonest to find out what will happen next... (because the end wasn´t really satisfying for me)!

Archangel by Sharon Shinn

Archangel - Sharon Shinn

Angel Gabriel, being next in the line to become Archangel and lead the annual Gloria to assure God everything is in harmony has a problem. He needs to find his chosen bride by God – the Angelica – within six months to assist him with the Gloria or desaster will strike. He isn´t happy about Rachel being a farmer´s daughter und probably untutored to lead the Gloria with him. But God´s will has to be obeyed. When Gabriel arrives at the village where Rachel is supposed to live he finds everything is destroyed and there´s no trace of his future wife. Where should be start searching for her now?
I´m absolutely enthusiastic about this book, the confrontations between Rachel and Gabriel are a demonstration of misunderstandings between man and woman. Gabriel doesn´t always show much sensibility (e.g. one of his wedding gifts) in dealing with his wife and hurts Rachel´s feelings and Rachel is more than once only stubborn to have her own way because for the sake of stubbornness. The plot is exciting, the environment unique, the characters likeable and the romance is heartwarming. Furthermore the difficulties of transition between old (Raphael) and new (Gabriel) Archangel shows how hard it is for a longstanding leader to give up privileges, power and leadership to a younger generation when the time has come. Raphael stops at nothing to prolong his reign and to hinder Gabriel to sing the Gloria.
I was really entchanted by this book!

Kriegsklingen (The Blade Itself) by Joe Abercrombie

Kriegsklingen. First Law 01. - Joe Abercrombie

This is the story of Logen Ninefinger a warrior of the north, Inquisitor Sand dan Glokta a former brilliant young swordsman now a torturer, Captain Jezal dan Luthar a vain and self-obsessed nobleman, Bayaz the first of the Magi, Bethod King of the Northmen, Collum West, an armyofficer, Ardee West his sister, Ferro Maljinn and some more...
To give a proper synopsis of this book is difficult, many characters are introduced in this first installment of the "First Law"-Series and if I really think about it – not much essential happens it´s more a setting for the story to come. But it isn´t boring at all – on the contrary! I´ve read the book in a very short time because I wanted to learn more about the interesting main characters who are real "anti-heroes" only brought together by Bayaz the Magi to save the world. The characters are well-drawn never only good or bad, the plot is interesting, the writing style is humorous and you get insight into the characters and their train of thoughts. Nearly every protagonist has his fav. saying, I liked Logen´s "You have to be realistic about these things" best.
All in all I can highly recommend this book if you´re interested to read an exceptional fantasy book!

Star ratings

Can someone please tell me the definition of star ratings?

I´m using my ratings from Goodreads because I´m familiar with it, but I´m not sure they have the same meaning here on Booklikes? Is there a definition at all?

But there is half star rating, how cool is that  !!

 

Geist by Philippa Ballantine

Geist - Philippa Ballantine

I have to admit it was the title of this book which caught my eye and influenced my decision to read it. "Geist" means in German ghost and after reading the blurb I knew I would be interested in reading the whole book. I didn´t regret it although at first the concept of a Bond between Guardian and Sensitive reminded me of the Heroes-Series by Moira J. Moore. But thankfully Ms. Ballantine´s execution of this storyline is different and original. I also liked that the heroine of this book Sorcha Faris is married to her Sensitive Kolya but because he was hurt in a battle she gets a new partner, Merrick Chambers who´s young but very powerful and a bit freightened by Sorcha´s forceful nature. The new partners are sent to the little town of Ulrich to investigate the growing geist activities in this area. After a shipwreck they´re rescued by Raed Syndar Rossim, a pirate with royal blood who is also on his way to Ulrich. Arrived there they are at once in danger to lose their lives and have to join forces to resolve the strange events...
The book is a mixture of paranormal fantasy, steampunk, mystery and a bit of romance but it worked very well for me. Although I have to admit the heroine is a bit too cold for my taste and it took me quite some time to warm up to her but the storyline was intriguing and so I could cope with her not so likeable character traits. What I really didn´t like was Sorcha´s addiction to cigars, sorry, when I´m imagining her bad breath... eww .. but that´s probably just me being a non-smoker all my life.

Everything is new to me...

I try to figure out how to use this site but at the moment I´m still at a loss. It will take some time becoming acquainted with everything I fear...