Kakaku：799 saved$7.99
Del Rey
Not yet published IPhone 3G used's review (What the?) 『First off let me say that I read the books one after the other. That made all the more evident the disjointed plot line and nonsensical twists.
And dues ex machina in droves. I don't think I've ever read a story that has so much 'get the character in trouble in every chapter' and then rescue him. Almost everyone in every chapter was rescued in the nick of time. Add to that the characters were for the most part, completely out of character. There is a difference between character development and personality changes on this scale.
Usually I enjoy books that make the conclusion hard to guess, but not this one. Events happened that made no sense and seemed to have no bearing on the story. The pacing was also too fast. It made one character blend into another because all they ever did was visit magic places, fight or flee.
The writing itself was good and the story had potential. (the world did as well despite essentially being a copy of the medieval Christian church, Scotland, England, Norway and Italy with only enough change in actual languages to make me wonder why Keyes thought a pretense language necessary. I mean wairwulf instead of werewolf? What's the point?
Add to all this the plotting and pace were terrible, wild and all over the place. You had so much to work with Greg, but I'm sorry, you blew it.』
(Good conclusion. Not great, but still entertaining) 『The Born Queen is the last of a four book high fantasy series by Greg Keyes. This series as with this book has been adult fiction and a little dark in areas which I have enjoyed. This book continues this trend. Anne the queen is learning magic so powerful she can kill thousands at will. The Hansans are attacking because of this ability, and so is the church. They are all trying to stop the queen from going out of control with all this new power, where she is aided by The Kept, the last of its kind who have vowed revenge on the humans when they were destroyed two thousand years ago.
The final book had a lot of twists in it that were surprising, a few main characters get killed off and it builds up to a nice conclusion. So everything was good up until the epilogue, where we find out that most everyone comes out ok. To me it was a little too cheesy, and I liked my thoughts about what happened before the epilogue, which changed some of my thinking as to what really happened. Anyway, I really enjoyed this series. It wasn't great, but then again it was a good adult fantasy series. 』
(Good most of the way through) 『I must say that when I started this book I was immediately entertained. There was action, intrigue, etc. It continued on this way and I enjoyed every moment, eagerly awaiting each new plot twist, and then ... the final section.
It's not that this is not a good, well-written book. For about 3/4 of the book it was great, but in the end I feel that there were many elements in this story that should have been foreshadowed earlier in the other novels. The fates of Stephen, Aspar, and Anne herself, were surprising, but (especially where Aspar is concerned) I felt that Keyes reached a dead end in his plot and did a quick fix. While this is probably not the case, the lack of previous foreshadowing did not make some of the plot points cohesive enough for the story being told. The result is that instead of being amazed and wowed by the surprises, I was left thinking, "WTH?" and wondering if anything was mentioned previously that made some of these things plausible. Instead of keeping me wrapped up in the story, I was pulled out of it as I tried to recall elements about Aspar and others from the previous novels. I also noticed that some of the characters (Anne and Austra) seemed completely out of character in this novel. It is a bit of a literary betrayal when we, the audience, are lead to expect certain behaviors from characters and then, suddenly, they change up. I will try not to post major spoilers, but Stephen's plot line made very little sense. I understand why a Stephen-like character was needed to advance the story (the thrones, etc.), but it did not blend well with the rest of the story. Another issue that I had is that Keyes seemed to be going for an "Absolute power corrupts absolutely" theme, but if that is the case I think it should have been weaved into the story in earlier volumes. Fend is another sore spot for me in this story. SLIGHT SPOILER WARNING. Fend takes the time to go into a story about how Aspar needs him, blah blah blah when he could have just taken Winna and did what he wanted. This made no sense to me either. Fend is the Blood Knight and he has Vaix, and sedmhari with him, he didn't need Aspar. His subterfuge was unnecessary and added nothing to the plot. There were several other cases similar to Fend's where characters did things that were completely unnecessary and their only motive was to advance the author's plot.
I think that Keyes is a better writer than the last 1/4 of this book shows. While it is not a bad book and if you've already read the other three you'll want to read this to conclude the series, be prepared for some plot twists that make you say, "WTH?"』
(The Born Queen) 『Woah, well I finished reading tis four weeks ago and I still get flashbacks, One of the best wind ups to a saga that I have read, enjoyed every page, another month and I'll probably reread. Every character comes across as a real person, what will Gregg deliver next. I rate Gregg at the same level as Donaldson and Fiest at their best.
Physical presentation, Hardcover, well bound, however pages were rough cut.
Shipping, exceeded expectations by over a month.』
(Final installment throws out character development) 『I was very dissappointed in this last installment of a series that I was greatly enjoying up to this point. My greatest objection was that all the painstaking character development accomplished in the other books was completely thrown out the window as many of the main characters were taken over by outside forces and acted completely out of character for the last several chapters of the book. The result was a head-scratching, eye-rolling last few chapters that made me set down the book at the end with very little regret, and very little desire to buy the author's next book.』 『In The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone, Greg Keyes has crafted a brilliant saga of magic, adventure, and love set against a backdrop of clashing empires and an ancient, reawakened evil. Now, with The Born Queen, Keyes brings his epic to a masterly close, gathering the strands of plot and character into a stunning climax that both completes and transcends all that has gone before.
The Briar King is dead, and the world itself follows him to ruin. Aspar White, wounded and tired, must embark on one last quest to save the forest and the people he loves, but he has little hope of success.
Anne Dare at last sits on the throne of Crotheny, but for how long? The Church, now led by the corrupt and powerful Marché Hespero, has declared a holy war against her, giving the king of Hansa the pretext he needs to unleash his vast might on the young queen and her unready army.
But Hansa is the least of Anne’s worries. The Hellrune, war seer of Hansa, strikes at her through vision and prophecy. The Kept–last of the elder Skasloi lords–weaves his own dark webs. Anne’s teacher and ally in the sedos world might also be her worst enemy, and Anne’s own mounting strength compels her toward madness.
Surviving these dangers and mastering her eldritch abilities are merely prelude to the real struggle. There are many–some with power matching or even exceeding Anne’s own–who are willing to kill in order to seize control. For whoever sits upon the throne will have the ultimate command to bring about the world’s salvation–or its apocalypse.
Kakaku：638 saved$6.38
Oni Press
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (More Queen&Country) 『I absolutely love this format. It's portable, and it's packed with stories. For a "Definitive" edition I would have liked some more behind the scenes work, concept art and the like, but it's good enough. The story is gripping as always. My only complaint is the art. While I like seeing the different artistic representations, and the art does always click, it's sometimes jarring to try to re acclimate yourself to the characters at the beginning of each arc. I finally do, and it only takes the end of the first issue now since I know the voices of the characters, but it can be annoying for new readers.』 『Queen&Country, the Eisner Award-winning and critically lauded espionage series from acclaimed novelist and comic book author Greg Rucka, is back in a new series of definitive editions collecting the entire classic series in just four affordable soft covers. In this second collection, SIS field agent Tara Chase is put through the ringer as she must contend with espionage of the industrial kind, ghosts from her director's past, and politicians eager to use the service to their own ends!』
Kakaku：935 saved$9.35
Basic Books
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (Better than Fiction) 『In our odd culture of changing values where truth is often misrepresented, it is no surprise that the commonly-accepted story of Cleopatra is so wrong. Based upon Hollywood's depiction of Roman historical drama, how could it possibly be otherwise?
Thankfully, Joyce Tyldesley combines her scholarly precision with a warmth and wit to tell the true tale of a really remarkable woman. Calculating and charming, sagacious and seductive, intellectual and ingenious, a mother and a monarch - all of these describe the fascinating character of a queen who was ahead of her time.
Dispelling the myths, mischaracterizations and motives attributed by Roman historians who were hostile to her influence on their home-grown heroes, Dr. Tyldesley's Cleopatra emerges as a more complete and admirable stateswoman who seems more modern than ancient. In this case, truth is not stranger than fiction, it is simply better.』
(Cleopatra from a Egyptologist's point of view) 『Joyce Ann Tyldesley is a lecturer of Egyptology at Liverpool University and the author of several books on ancient Egypt. She writes that most authors have written about Cleopatra either from a Roman perspective or from a popular culture perspective. She claims that most Egyptologists consider Cleopatra part of the 300 year Ptolemaic Empire, an Empire that is something of a footnote to true Egyptian history. Of course, Cleopatra VII is best known for her role in the Roman political battles between Julius Caesar and Pompey, and later between Octavian and Mark Antony.
Tyldesley is a terrific story teller and as Shakespeare and Elizabeth Taylor and a host of others have proven, Cleopatra's story is full of twists and turns and many wonders. Tyldesley fills her book with interesting Egyptian details, putting her a bit more firmly into ancient traditions. She argues against suicide by asp bite, for example, based on an ancient tradition of death by poisonous ointments.
By the end of the book, though, I didn't really see a Cleopatra very different from the one I found in Cleopatra by Michael Grant, a book I greatly admire. After all, almost all we know about Cleopatra was written by Roman authors, focused on the great battles over Egyptian riches and Imperial power. Moreover, Egypt itself had been ruled from time to time over 700 years by Libyans, Nubians and Persians before the arrival of Alexander the Great in 332 BCE. Finally, as Helen Brown points out in her review quoted in full in the first Comment: "After defeating the last queen of Egypt, Julius Caesar's adopted son was determined to destroy her reputation. He smashed the images made to glorify her and ensured his pocket historians cast her as a greedy, incestuous, adulterous whore who used her foreign, feminine wiles to emasculate the Roman Empire."
This is a terrific story, very well told by an excellent historian. But don't look for any new and ground breaking insights into Cleopatra's fascinating life.
Robert C. Ross 2008 』
(A little too scholarly for the general reader) 『Cloepatra: Last Queen of Egypt, falls somewhere between a scholarly book and a book for the general reader. The author, Joyce Tyldesley, is a lecturer of Biomedical Egyptology. It is clear the author want this book to be considered a "serious work" by other Egytopolgists. So at times, her level of attention to detail and background owerwhelmed this general reader.
Still, for the general reader, wanting something more than the Cleopatra of Hollywood (or Shakespeare) there is much worthwhile material. This re-telling of the Cleopatra story, adds depth and complexity. It shows that history is important, that the actions of a few (Cleopatra, Mark Anthony, Ceasar) can affect the course of history and the lives of millions.
I look forward to reading more books by Tyldesley, especially if they are written more with the general reader than fellow academics in mind.』
(A lively yet scholarly survey) 『Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley offers a new biographical treatment claiming that much of what we know about Cleopatra has been tainted by prejudice. Her studies of centuries of writings about the queen surveys myths, the sources of legends, and how Roman history and women's roles in Roman society have affected the history of Cleopatra. Hers is a lively yet scholarly survey that will appeal not only to general-interest libraries catering to history-loving patrons, but to college-level collections specializing in ancient history in general and Egypt in particular. 』
(Great book if you want to START learning about Cleopatra) 『As a starting point for learning about Cleopatra, this is a great book. However, if you want to go beyond the basics and what was reported by historians two thousand years ago, I would buy Cleopatra: A Biography by Michael Grant. Grant's book examines Cleopatra's life on a deeper level and with more speculation as to whether this and that might have happened, whereas Cleopatra: Last Queen of Egypt reports speculation as fact and doesn't examine all facets of disputed events (such as her suicide). Overall, a good book, although given my vast readings on ancient Rome, I do question some of the facts, such as what became of Cleopatra's two surviving sons with Mark Antony.』 『
The Romans regarded her as“fatale monstrum”—a fatal omen. Pascal said the shape of her nose changed the history of the world. Shakespeare portrayed her as an icon of tragic love. But who was Cleopatra, really?
Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Macedonian dynasty of Ptolemies. Highly intelligent, she spoke many languages and was rumored to be the only Ptolemy to read and speak Egyptian. Her famous liaisons with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony had as much to do with politics as the heart. Ruthless in dealing with her enemies, many within her own family, Cleopatra steered her kingdom through difficult times, and very nearly succeeded in creating an eastern empire to rival the growing might of Rome.
Her story was well documented by her near contemporaries, and the tragic tale of contrasts and oppositions—the seductive but failing power of ancient Egypt versus the virile strength of modern Rome—is so familiar we almost feel that we know Cleopatra. But our picture is highly distorted. Cleopatra is often portrayed as a woman ruled by emotion rather than reason; a queen hurtling towards inevitableself-destruction. But these tales of seduction, intrigue, and suicide by asp have obfuscated Cleopatra’s true political genius.
Stripping away our preconceptions, many of them as old as Egypt’s Roman conquerors, Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley offers a magnificent biography of a most extraordinary queen.
Kakaku：480 saved$4.80
Ballantine Books
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (Billy St John, 1%er) 『William Queen, ATF agent goes deep undercover into the Mongols motorcycle gang as Billy St John. Queen recounts his time as a prospect, getting full-patch in into the Mongols, holding Mongol officer status as secretary-treasurer and even vice-president of the San Fernando Valley Chapter. He does his best to steer away from committing crimes and has to come up with excuses on the fly as to why we can't participate so as not to jeopardize his standing as a federal agent. All the while putting up with early abuse and secretly recording conversations and gathering intel into the crimes committed by such clubs.
Queen becomes so entwined into the gang, that he begins having a hard time personally telling which life he wants, Billy St John or William Queen. After two and a half years, Queen finally has to drop the hammer to save his own descent. He's deeply touched by the events following his aunt's death in which the Mongols show more concern, condolensces, and care about Billy than any faction of his fellow ATF agents, even his partner Ciccone.
Unfortunately, while the book is very good, there is organization and topic coverage that is just too messy to warrant a higher rating. Do we really need to be inform that he "back his straight pipes up to the curb" every time he went somewhere? The first few chapters are just terribly disorganized and all over the place rather than using a better thought out background into the operation. You get tired of hearing him debate internally about throwing out the assignment when certain situations arise because it's a conflict of his law enforcement training (and rightly so).
Overall, this is a great story and should be read. However, the format of the book is low and needed better organization. I'd like to have learned more about certain gang friends of his and possibly more on the aftermath of the court cases on individuals like Red Dog and Evel. Great story, bad formatting. Good selection of photos included in the middle of the book too. Former Mongol member Ruben Cavazos' book Honor Few, Fear None: The Life and Times of a Mongol is easily counteracted by this telling of life as a Mongol.』
(A book you look forward to reading yet sad to finish) 『This book is a very gripping and compelling look at undercover law enforcement work. It outs you in the boots of a veteran ATF agent who sacrificed his family life for over 2 years to hang out with one of the most violent motorcycle gangs around.
His close calls of being found out and tests before being fully "patched in" will keep you on the edge of your seat. This shows an inside look at undercover work and how it can play with your emotions and second guess your true identity. The struggles of interacting with his family and regular society and other police looking like a gangster and trying to keep his true identity hidden from his own gang keeps this story intense emotionally.
I looked forward to reading this book and finishing it each day at lunch but at the end of the book I didn't want the action to end.』
(Great Story) 『This is a great story, what surprised me was that it was not one sided at all. He even recalls a time when police were, lets just say, not acting as they should be. Great read, took only a few days, I recommend it for anyone, law enforcement or not.』
(Awsome) 『I really enjoyed the book. Being a member of the law enforcement community and also a Harley rider, it was hard to put down. A good read. Buy it.』
(UNREAL) 『This is a story every bit as fascinating as Donnie Brasco. Should also be a movie. Living undercover as a Mongel member for two years with those dirty drunken drug users had to be an awful extistence. Or maybe it was fun. However it was, it is a great read.』 『In 1998, William Queen was a veteran law enforcement agent with a lifelong love of motorcycles and a lack of patience with paperwork. When a“confidential informant” made contact with his boss at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, offering to take an agent inside the San Fernando chapter of the Mongols (the scourge of Southern California, and one of the most dangerous gangs in America), Queen jumped at the chance, not realizing that he was kicking-starting the most extensive undercover operation inside an outlaw motorcycle gang in the history of American law enforcement.
Nor did Queen suspect that he would penetrate the gang so successfully that he would become a fully“patched-in” member, eventually rising through their ranks to the office of treasurer, where he had unprecedented access to evidence of their criminal activity. After Queen spent twenty-eight months as “Billy St. John,” the bearded, beer-swilling, Harley-riding gang-banger, the truth of hisidentity became blurry, even to himself.
During his initial“prospecting” phase, Queen was at the mercy of crank-fueled criminal psychopaths who sought to have him test his mettle and prove his fealty by any means necessary, from selling (and doing) drugs, to arms trafficking, stealing motorcycles, driving getaway cars, and, in one shocking instance, stitching up the face of a Mongol “ol’ lady” after a particularly brutal beating at the hands of her boyfriend.
Yet despite the constant criminality of the gang, for whom planning cop killings and gang rapes were business as usual, Queen also came to see the genuine camaraderie they shared. When his lengthy undercover work totally isolated Queen from family, his friends, and ATF colleagues, the Mongols felt like the only family he had left.“I had no doubt these guys genuinely loved Billy St. John and would have laid down their lives for him. But they wouldn’t hesitate to murder Billy Queen.”
From Queen’s first sleight of hand with a line of methamphetamine in front of him and a knife at his throat, to the fearsome face-off with their decades-old enemy, the Hell’s Angels (a brawl that left three bikers dead), to the heartbreaking scene of a father ostracized at Parents’ Night because his deranged-outlaw appearance precluded any interaction with regular citizens,Under and Aloneis a breathless, adrenaline-charged read that puts you on the street with some of the most dangerous men in America and with the law enforcement agents who risk everything to bring them in.
Kakaku：640 saved$6.40
Delta
Usually ships in 24 hours IPhone 3G used's review (Fantastic) 『This is the book that got me started reading about history in the first place, 10 years ago. It must be pretty good, at the time I was partying my butt off in SF and reading wasn't the first thing on my mind. I picked it up, couldn't put it down and haven't put down a book since. Read it, it rocks.』
(Well written and researched - but not objective) 『Overall, this is a well-written and well-researched biography, although not objective enough about its subject. I appreciated the beautiful writing and the thorough scholarship of this book, although in the end I could not share the author's unqualified admiration for Mary Queen of Scots.
Ms. Fraser presents enough evidence to convince me that Mary probably was not involved beforehand in her second husband Darnley's murder, and that the infamous Casket Letters were probably forgeries or interpolations of other letters. She was certainly not prepared by her French upbringing to deal with the problems she found in Scotland, and was very ill-served by the brutal Scottish lords there, including her own half-brother.
However, Mary apparently did willingly marry her husband's murderer, which cost her the love of her subjects; willingly fled to England even though she knew she was seen as a rival to Queen Elizabeth's throne; and later on became involved in conspiracies in England to overthrow Elizabeth, which virtually forced Elizabeth to have her executed. Even Ms. Fraser cannot explain away these naive and reckless actions, although she tries. Her bias towards her subject is rather obvious. I also shared other readers' frustration with the many untranslated French and Latin phrases, which slows down the reading for those of us not fluent in those languages.』
(exelant) 『amazing book makes you feel as if you want to be in that world most touching and amazingly well written with no bias and no dodgy facts very good choice of language』
(Over all very good, but definitely biased) 『Before this book, I'd only just gotten started on my Mary Stuart research, having only read two "semi-biographies"(Mary and Elizabeth by Jane Dunn&Mary Queen of Scots and the Murder of Darnley) of her. I was hesitant about buying the book because I read the reviews of it on here and it sounded ugly. But I'm very glad I did buy it, because now I am much, much better informed on the subject of Mary than before.
I'm an Antonia Fraser fan, and this book is written in her usual poetic and heart-warming style. She is, I'd have to say, among my favorite historical biographers. She is clearly very passionate about her subject and I was able to sympathize with Mary throughout. Likewise, she is very good about referencing unlike her counterpart Alison Weir.
I'd have to disagree with the reviewers who said this book made Mary out to be saintly. She is portrayed, in my opinion, as sweet and strong, but by no means perfect. There were times in the bio when I thought she was extremely foolish, and often times I was out and out annoyed by her. I agreed with Fraser's conclusion that Mary probably did not try kill her second husband, Henry Darnley and that it was a political set-up. I also agree with her about the Casket Letters. I'm on the fence about Bothwell. I think many of his actions are not at odds with a rapist and abductor. Likewise, I don't see how or why he would proceed to murder Darnley and just hope that Mary would marry him, which could mean prompt execution or life imprisonment. But I didn't mark this against Fraser, because I'm still trying to figure out what I feel on the subject, and also because she convincingly argued her side.
I do take issue with a few slender things in the book. For one, I love Fraser's style, but I did find her constant use of footnotes distracting*. And I definitely agree with the reviewers who said it was biased against Elizabeth. Some of the commentary, such as sharp jabs at Elizabeth's beauty and lifestyle, were entirely editorial and completely uncalled for. Fraser degraded Elizabeth so hard at times that I felt her case for Mary might have been a little too weak. I've read several books on Elizabeth and none so far have made petty, out of place remarks about Mary and rightly so. Both were interesting, incredible women and one need not be knocked down at the expense of the other. This bio would have gotten five stars had there been a little more objectivity.
*Most of them I felt could have been worked conveniently into the narrative.』
(Entertaining, but biased book about the Scottish Queen) 『Antonia Fraser's book, Mary Queen of Scots, is very readable and entertaining. However, the author's "hero-worship" of Mary and low opinion of English Queen Elizabeth I rings out loud and clear. Fraser makes history come alive; just be aware that this is her version of history.』 『Author ofMarie Antoinette
She was the quintessential queen: statuesque, regal, dazzlingly beautiful. Her royal birth gave her claim to the thrones of two nations; her marriage to the young French dauphin promised to place a third glorious crown on her noble head.
Instead, Mary Stuart became the victim of her own impulsive heart, scandalizing her world with a foolish passion that would lead to abduction, rape and even murder. Betrayed by those she most trusted, she would be lured into a deadly game of power, only to lose to her envious and unforgiving cousin, Elizabeth I.
Here is her story, a queen who lost a throne for love, a monarch pampered and adored even as she was led to her beheading, the unforgettable woman who became a legend for all time.』
IPhone 3G used's review (My Favorite!) 『This cookbook is Awesome! I have tried many of the recipes and a must have for every get-together is the Focaccia Bruschetta. Everyone wants the recipe. The cowboy cookies are my favorite, I make them all the time. Her other book is great as well, I did all my holiday baking from that one book and it was all Fabulous! I strongly recommend this Christmas cookbook.』
(Delicious Christmas Season Resource) 『I like this "rather" unique Christmas resource because: it has excellent recipes which are organized by the varying holiday events (Eve, Day, open house, brunch, tree trimming, NY) and it has wide variety of recipes for appetizer, salad, soup, desserts, etc. and not least, it features great color photos with fun-to-read text and it has some great shots of a Great Pyrenees named Beau (I'm a former owner of 2 and love this Gentle Giant breed)
Rather won me over in her first cookbook as being a passionate baker who ventured out into other foods in her biz and offered some in this first offering. She and her community have a great time at the Christmas Holidays and so she shares some of her favorites as well as some that others offered her, as well as some other's she invited to contribute, such as LBJ's former chef.
The excitement and passion she has (even as a busy chef) for these Holidays exhibits themselves in this fine array of recipes, illustrated by these examples: Warm Pear Ginger Upside Down Cake with Amaretto Whipped Cream; Creamy Chicken Lasagna; Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Quesadillas with Cranberry-Pecan Salsa; Glazed Chocolate Pave; Chocolate Cookie Crusted Eggnog Cheesecake; Texas Spice Rubbed Roast Pork.
These are not overfully difficult recipes with either ingredients or techniques, but will certainly test the uninitiated baker or cook. They definitely are delicious and creative and will bring smiles as gifts and servings at this festive time of the year.
Maybe she will do her third on Easter?』
(God bless Rebecca Rather and god bless apple spice cake!) 『Rebecca's recipes are always spot on and always delicious. Her last book was wonderful (Pastry Queen), and this book is no exception. I received a copy for Christmas, and have been wanting to try some of the recipes since then. I tried the first one today, and made the Apple Spice Cake -- INCREDIBLE! Rebecca, thanks for delivering again.』
(Reviewing: "The Pastry Queen Christmas: Big-Hearted Holiday Entertaining Texas Style") 『Fredericksburg, Texas area resident Rebecca Rather, owner of the "Sweet Bakery and Cafe" since 1999 has created a very good holiday book full of Texas color and recipes. After an acknowledgment that thanks her customers as well as many others who helped in some way with her writing career, and an introduction that gives personal background, it is time for the recipes.
Chapter One "Holiday Open House" starts with "Old-Fashioned Eggnog." Be warned, this isn't the kind of eggnog one buys in the grocery stores these days. Recipes for "Cranberry-Walnut Scones, Mustard Baked Ham, Green Chile and Cheddar Baking Powder Biscuits, Red Velvet Cupcakes with Mascarpone Cream Cheese Icing" are just a few of the delectable recipes in this chapter. Pictures are many and include not only the finished product but also often a picture at some point in the recipe before it is a finished product. "Tips" are many as well with various suggestions concerning adding other ingredients to the recipes mentioned. Along the way there is the occasional story about the recipe detailing the background of the dish.
A subsection of Chapter One begins on page 43 and is titled "Outdoor Tree Trimming" along with brief instructions on how to make "fresh fruit ornaments, dried fruit ornaments,"etc. there are the recipes. The recipes start with "In-The-Bag Chili Frito Pie," and move to "Rather Minty Brownies, My Mistake Cookies" and other treats. This is a very short section at six pages.
"Ranch Barn Brunch" is the title for Chapter Two beginning on page 51 and the Chapter works off the theme of the author's love of horses. Friends of the author provided the barn for the party pictures and she again explains about her love of horses and how the party was designed. The recipes begin with "Larry Doll's Famous Cranberry Margaritas" and include among other mouthwatering recipes "Seasonal Fruit Salad with Poppy Seed Dressing, Brown Sugar Bacon, Mexican Ranch Chilaquiles, Mexican Camp Bread" among many others. Like in Chapter One, there are numerous color photos of the meals as well as numerous tips along with personal stories about the history of the recipes and the people in the author's life.
Chapter 2 concludes with a section on "Making Gingerbread Houses." Templates for the houses are included in the appendix. As part of the making gingerbread houses, which is a kid involved activity, she makes a few other suggestions of what to make now that the kids are in the kitchen. "Sour Cream and Chicken Enchiladas" is one with "Torched S'mores" being another of the several possibilities.
"Christmas Eve" is Chapter Three (page 99) which kicks off with "LBJ Ranch Crown Roast of Lamb with Rice Stuffing and Jalapeño-Mint Sauce. If that doesn't strike your fancy, maybe "Blue Corn Blinis with Crab and Avocado Crema" will work for you. The recipe makes 28 servings which means since they are appetizers, you might need to double upon it. There is always "Green Olive Beef Tenderloin" as well as "Martha's Best -Ever Rolls. Save room for the "Christmas Coconut Cake." As in every chapter, there are far more recipes than I have mentioned here, along with color photographs, history and tips.
"Cookie Decorating" is a little section at the end of this chapter and is all about the kids and having fun. Pretty much self explanatory and this section begins on page 133.
"Christmas Day" marks Chapter Four in a chapter working around the theme of the day and beautiful Christmas dinners. It begins on page 143 and buffet is the order of the day in the author's house. One of the first dishes to be consumed is her "Green Bean Bundles." The "Texas Spice-Rubbed Roast Pork" sounds mighty good and looks good too. As does the "Cajun Roast Turkey" (no picture though) and numerous other dishes. Included are the usual photographs, tips, and personal history.
At the end of the Chapter is another small section titled "Wrapping Up the Holidays with Edible Gifts." Aptly titled and self explanatory, it covers little tasty treats such as "Denise's Vanilla Caramels, Lola's Sunday Fudge," among other items.
"New Year's Eve" is the title for Chapter Five and the final Chapter in this book which begins on page 183. Beyond the gorgeous photograph of a spinning windmill against a Texas sunset there are recipes such as "Wild Mushroom and Goat Cheese Quesadillas with Cranberry-Pecan Salsa, Mother's Lobster Bisque, Ken Hall's Standing Rib Roast" and many others with a distinctive Texas flavor. Of course, there are more photographs, tips and history here following the format used throughout the book. This chapter closes the book and is followed by the aforementioned templates for a gingerbread house and an index.
At 225 pages, this is a beautifully photographed book full of recipes, Texas history and culture and ways to do the season right. Written in a down home style, this is not a pretentious book and does not at any time talk down to readers. It provides easy clear instructions, something many cookbooks lack, along with pictures, to help you through the recipe process.
It does lack basic info on dietary issues. While it states how many servings a dish has, it doesn't make any mention of sodium counts, fats, sugars, etc. in regards to health, Granted, it is a book for the holiday season and many folks ignore such issues during that time, but for others such information is critically important year around.
That being said a lot of that sort of info can be determined by considering the recipe itself before making the item. Therefore, the lack of info is a minor quibble overall and one that can be ignored simply because this is such a beautifully done book full of mouth watering recipes. A book well worth your time and investment in and one sure to assist you for many holidays to come.
Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2008 』
(PASTRY QUEEN AWESOME!) 『ANYTHING FROM REBECCA IS GREAT! I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL SHE COMES OUT WITH ANOTHER BOOK!』 『The annual Fredericksburg Christmas parade marks the beginning of the Hill Country's holiday season, which means the Pastry Queen is kicking into high gear at her Rather Sweet Bakery and Caf?. As party invitations pile up in the mailbox, Rebecca Rather is up to her elbows in sticky meringue, gooey chocolate, and a sleigh's worth of savory indulgences to meet the Texas-sized entertaining-to-go orders of her neighbors. In THE PASTRY QUEEN CHRISTMAS, Rebecca shares nearly a hundred traditional recipes reflecting her made-with-love-from-scratch philosophy and the tastes of small-town Texas. Tree-trimming, open houses, cookie decorating, and Santas running down Main Street . . . Christmas time is here.』
Kakaku：1374 saved$13.74
Picador
Usually ships in 2 to 4 weeks IPhone 3G used's review (Unexpected, in a lot of ways) 『I have previously read "The Flanders Panel", "The Seville Communion", and "The Club Dumas" by Perez-Reverte. If you've read the three of them, and you haven't read this, you are in for a surprise.
As I began this book, I was wondering what, precisely, it was supposed to be. It is very different from the three books mentioned above, and I very much enjoyed them. I was hoping for another book in that vein.
I didn't get one. What I got instead was a novel about drug trafficking in Mexico and in the Mediterranean. Well researched and interesting, the book never failed to have important details and to leave out the unimportant ones. The plot was good, and traveled the course that it should. The characters seemed like real people (which made sense when I got to the end and found out that it was based on a true story and about true people).
But, I am left with questions. What happened to Theresa Mendoza? What happened to Don Epifanio? Etc. Were the Cesar Guemes mentioned in the book and that the book was dedicated to the same person, really? And why does Arturo Perez-Reverte, who seems so literate and complex, enjoy corridos, which are so often given over to the celebration of violence and illegal behavior?
There were parts of the book that disappointed me, and a short dictionary of Mexican slang at the back would have been helpful (or more lengthy translations).
Overall, though, it was very well written and an enjoyable read. I thought that the characters were complex and real. And they were both. I thought that the plot was good, and it was real, too. And I think that the writing was done well. The questions left in my mind were what really detracted from the book.
Recommended for those who want something a little different from their average reads.
B-
Harkius』
(It's Not A Pretty Book) 『Perez-Reverte was a reporter and a good one, and we know he's a superb novelist. In this book describing the international drug trade however he's both. He writes as a reporter interviewing people - some real, some fictitious, some a bit of both - and as a novelist about the career of Teresa Mendoza Chavez who rose in a few short years from obscurity in Culiacan on the eastern shore of the Gulf of California to Queen of the South, the undisputed and deadly efficient head and sole owner of the organization which, based on the Costa Del Sol, controlled for several years the transportation of all illegal drugs (except heroin) in the eastern Mediterranean.
It's not a pretty book. Nor is Teresa a pretty character, no matter how youthful, no matter how beautiful. At the age of 22 when her lover, the dashing, devil-may-care King of the Short Runway is assassinated by other drug people while he's landing a cargo of cocaine on a short runway, she grieves a moment and flees, sure she's next to be targeted. And she's right. She escapes to Spanish North Africa, however, and from there over the next 12 years establishes her network, a network over which she has absolute life or death control. Particularly death - because once you're in the business violent death seems to be the usual way out of it; and she has no qualms about making those arrangements for those who betray her or who might betray her. That includes her handsome, patrician Spanish lawyer who is the father of the unborn child she is carrying in her womb as the book ends.
Nor is the books is particularly well written or well organized. I think Perez-Reverte decided to do a serious number on the drug trade and got caught up in reporting on it vs. writing a novel on it. It needs editing. Perez-Reverte gets carried away by the sight of his own words. And I wish - Oh, how I wish! - that Spanish obscenities and Spanish slang would either be translated or omitted. It's aggravating for those of us who rely on a translator to be faced with unknowable Spanish phrases on every page and in every conversation.
I was particularly disappointed in the way Perez-Reverte handled the character of Teresa. After the death of her dashing aviator she seems to have annealed over her feelings with some kind of mental metal which not only prevented these human emotions - these feelings which we all have - from leaking out and which also prevented us from seeing them. She was a zombie with respect to love. She was a character needing redemption in the worst way, one who needed to regret, to come alive, to deal with a future - something she was certainly able to do. But Perez-Reverte denied all this to her, denied her redemption and left us at the end of the book watching her walk out the door of a government safe house in Culiacan midst gunfire and violence, walk out rich, famous completely alone and pregnant and walk out into her future, whatever it might be, leaving us to guess about it.
In short every story like this needs resolution, needs an ending, needs an emotional catharsis so we can put the book down and say either it was a good book or it didn't do the job and know why we say it. But I couldn't do this with this one. I was disappointed, left in the air at the end, wanting to know what happens or happened next. Here it was that the novelist failed; here it was that the reporter simply wrote finis.』
(The Queen of the South) 『I enjoyed this book, despite not wanting to read it originally as part of our book group. It was a bit slow at times but I couldn't wait to get to the end to see what happens to the protagonist!』
(Maybe it was better in Spanish. . .) 『If you can plod through the first half, the second half gets much better. After we meet Theresa Mendoza preparing to run for her life after the killing of her drug-runner boyfriend, the story continues as we follow her flight from Mexico to Southern Spain, new drug-runner boyfriend, prison time, etc. Finally, the second half improves as we see Theresa weave a complex web of corporate structures designed to cover her own drug transport business that would make any corporate tycoon proud. While there are some exciting moments, the story is mostly predictable and ends up an unsatisfying read. Put this at the bottom of the pile on your bedside table.』
(Not a queen) 『This is the first of Perez-Reverte's books that I have struggled to finish. The ham-handed interviewer slows the story down to a crawl every time he enters. And the story itself has none of the fascinating complications and turns that make the author's other novels (Club Dumas, Flanders Panel) so fascinating. No queen, just a lady in waiting. Disappointing.』 『Guero Davila is a pilot engaged in drug-smuggling for the local cartels. Teresa Mendoza is his girlfriend, a typical narco's morra, quiet, doting, submissive. But then Guero's caught playing both sides and in Sinaloa that means death. Teresa finds herself alone, terrified, friendless and running to save her life, carrying nothing but a gym bag containing a pistol and a notebook that she has been forbidden to read. Forced to leave Mexico, she flees to the Spanish city of Melilla where she meets Santiago Fisterra, a Galician involved in trafficking hashish across the Strait of Gibraltar. When Santiago's partner is captured, it is Teresa who steps in to take his place. Now Teresa has plunged into the dark and ugly world that once claimed Guero's life - and she's about to get in deeper...』
