For all the books I've read, there are a lot of authors who write one really good book. Mark E. Rogers is the author who consistently writes great books.
The dialog in Blood + Pearls kept me riveted, the characters flowing in the pages became real, and the nightmare that is Khymir took life. Blood + Pearls is filled with intelligent characters, gruesome acts, erotic images, and more imagination than several authors put together. The illustrations provided by the author feed his vision directly to you. There's no quibbling about what he means.
This isn't new; he's written 5 books in this universe before, books I am delighted to have read (there are a couple I've even re-read). If you're not familiar with his books you only cheat yourself. I suggest you pick up a copy of Zorachus and start reading. You've got some catching up to do.

"Blood & Pearls" is a prequel to the excellent two novel sequence, "Zorachus" and "the Nightmare of God." In "Blood & Pearls" we meet Zorachus' father and high priest of Tschonberg. The plot is tense and well-written. I couldn't put the book down once I started reading it.

I especially enjoy how the author wove a consistent cosmology and theology into the novel. In many ways, his writing style resembles C.S. Lewis' or J.R.R. Tolkien's. You can read Mark E. Roger's novel at multiple levels from a purely escapist to a deeply philosophical. The author went beyond his past efforts in this novel and explained how magic works and some of the hierchy of the infernal realms.

Look for reprints of his past works too, especially: "the Dead," "Zorachus," "the Nightmare of God," and the Blood of the Lamb triology.

My one caution -- these tales are definitely not for the kids. Reader maturity is a must for these novels.

Action, adventure, sex, violence, humor, philosophy. All the ingredients of a rousing fantasy novel are present here in perfect proportions. Master fantasy novelist Mark E. Rogers does it again with his latest book set in the world of Zorachus. Blood + Pearls tells the tale of Mancdaman Zancarthus, father of the (in)famous Zorachus. The decadent, depraved city of Khymir comes alive in this book, particularly in the descriptions of the Warrens and the Arena. The Childrens Hour in the Arena is an especially disturbing view of this truly evil place. The fight scenes are vividly described in gory detail, and play like a movie in the reader's mind. For a truly moving experience, read this novel to the soundtracks of 'Gladiator' or 'Conan the Barbarian'. Great work Mark! I can't wait for the next one to see print.

This is one of the most beautiful, enlightening and transporting books I have ever read. I am a housewife in Iowa and a contemporary of the author. I have never lived in a part of our country where man finds himself in the middle of the food chain. Mr. Spragg's essay's take me to that place in a way that my very senses become sotted with the sting of the Wyoming wind, the piercing cry of a horse's pain, the chaffing of a new pair of cowboy boots on a young boy's feet. His observations about the people in his life are precise, penetrating and without apology. I came to know the people in his world more intimately than I know friends and family in my own. It is amazing to me that the author lived the incredible life he has--in such an unforgiving, brutal, and spectacular environment as the Wyoming wilderness-- and yet retains the sensitivity to write about it with such clear, powerful, and poetic prose. This book cast a spell over me. I couldn't put it down and I didn't want it to end.

This memoir by Mark Spragg is one of the best books I've read in years. And I read a lot of books. His imagery and descriptive lines aren't just written. The words are sculpted into exquisite granite sentences like the mountains that surrounded him as he grew up on a dude ranch in Wyoming in the 1960s. I read the book two weeks ago and can still remember one or two, paraphrased here. He's shoeing a horse with John, one of the hands, and he gets put down a bit by a man he respects, perhaps, more than his father. He writes that he didn't mind being a boy, but didn't like being treated like one. Later, in describing his school, which had about 12 children, he says it was painted the color of an elk's eye. I mean, this is terrific stuff and there are lines like that on every page. The only other writers I've read who do this well are Barbara Kingsolver and Owen Parry. Sure, there may be others, but I've not read them yet. You have to read this book. It will make you laugh, perhaps cry, it will give you goose bumps and it will make you think. It is a gem.

As a person who also grew up in the NW part of Wyoming in the time period of this book there is much here that resonates. To me this was the journey of a young boy expected to be a man, perhaps sooner than he should, expected to be self sufficent, to put emotions aside and to deal with life at it's basic level-- in essence to grow up "cowboy". In that journey Mark could have turned hard and cold, instead he became introspective and uniquely sensitive to the world in which he lived. As an adult he examined in detail and with prose those relationships and rememberances and gave them to us. If you have ever wondered what happened to the cowboys of the long-ago-time they are here in this book. These days few people can live by or appreciate that philosophical outlook and even fewer try to maintain the effort. At times this was a hard read, often harsh and emotional, but an excellent trip. It was also a rememberance of wonderful Wyoming and home. Thanks Mark.

Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul: Journal, was one of the most moving books I have read. It's directed towards adolescents, and deals with issues every adolescent girl faces. It's a blend of stories, quotes, poems, and spaces to write your thoughts. This book has many different sections such as: family, love and kindness, learning lessons, and though stuff. My favorite section, however, is "loving yourself". This book gave me a chance to deal with issues and see that I'm not the only girl whom faces such issues. Chicken Soup is a book that I am able to pick up at any time if I need some inspiration on a situation, or some reassurance. Other issues helpful to me were on drinking, self-esteem, eating disorders, and how to deal with my past. The best part about this book is that a lot of it is compiled with texts written by teenage authors. There are spaces for friends to write about you, and spaces for you to express how you feel about certain things. Chicken Soup allowed me to realize I was not the only girl who had experienced some of the feelings that I did. After reading this book I knew I wasn't alone! I do highly reccomend this book to any teenage girl. Adolescence is a hard time to get through, and many girls need inspiration. You do not have to read the book cover to cover; you can pick it up any time and read whatever section you desire.

my mom bought me this a few christmas's ago. I wasnt really a diary type person so I figured I wouldnt like it. But one day when I was bored, I opened it up and looked and realized what I had been missing. this is definitly a great book for teenagers. Its not just a blank journal, it gives you lots of interesting ideas to write about and asks questions that make you think. I love writing in it if I'm bored. And it's big so it wont get used up fast. Also, even though there are sections, you dont have to do each one in order, you can just skip around if you want. the sections are similar to the ones in the chicken soup for the teenage soul books. and for some of the questions, they give alot of space to just write whatever you want. I especially liked the section where your friends, boyfriend, etc. could write to you and the part where you can put your pictures. I highly recommend this journal! its great! I hope they come out with a second one

Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul: Journal, was one of the most moving books I have read. It is directed towards adolescents, and deals with issues every adolescent girl faces. It's a blend of stories, quotes, poems, and spaces to write your thoughts. This book has many different sections such as: family, learning lessons, love and kindness, and tough stuff. My favorite section, however, is "loving yourself". This book gave me a chance to deal with issues and see that I am not the only girl whom faces such issues. Chicken Soup is a book that I am able to pick up and at any time if I need some inspiration, help, or reassurance. Other issues helpful to me were on drinking, self-esteem, eating disorders, and how to deal with my past. Another good part about this book is that a lot of it is compiled with texts written by teenage authors. There are spaces for friends to write about you, and spaces for you to express how you feel on certain issues. Chicken Soup allowed me to realize I was not the only girl who had experienced some of the feelings I did. After reading this book I knew I wasn't alone! I do highly recommend this book to any teenage girl. Adolescence is a hard time to get through, and many girls need inspiration. You do not have to read the book cover to cover; you can pick it up any time and read whatever section you desire.

I have been a dedicated Beatles fan for many years. The Beatles have been with me for years and have inspired many of my own works. Listening to the albums and watching the Beatles' movies has been a very important part in my life, and owning this book is the ultimate experience. I'm twenty-two and unlike my mother and father who were actually around to experience The Beatles, I have grown up only listening and watching everything about them. If you have ever wondered about the background of a certain song or the reasons behind certain lyrics, you need only turn this book. I bought this at a flea market when I was about twelve and I continue to pick it up and read or find about a certain song or recording day in the life of the amazing group that we call The Beatles. This book is a must have for the Beatles collector, and will be more valuable beyond its price.

Almost ten years ago I bought this book --hardcover-- in Mexico City, noy quite knowing its content. As a growing Beatles fan myself, I found it as a perfect guide to the group's development into studio techniques. If one wants to know how the Beatles turned the recording studio into an instrument in itself, one just has to read in detail: the 1962-1966 period (when the simplest, most straightforward music was composed) has only 60 pages, whereas the complex 1966-1970 period accumulates 120. One can know the origin of the backwards tapes, the tape edition (ie, at the end of "...Mr Kite!"), the outside musicians, the psdychedelic "sonic textures", the fundamental roles of producer George Martin and engineers Norman Smith and Geoff Emerick. One can even know the names of the orchestra performers. One can know the problematic "Get Back" sessions held in January 1969. This book opens a window to the landscape of the big experiments going on in Abbey Road studio two where the history of popular music changed. It's no surprise Paul McCartney calls this book "the bible".

I walked into my university bookstore years ago during a book sale and I spotted this book... "Some Beatle garbage" I said to myself. Then I found myself buying the book...!

Then I found myself buying all the Beatles CD so I could listen to the music that was described in the book...

I think the Beatles ARE BRILLIANT and I despair what to think my life would have been without the Beatles!! I just spent the whole day of New Year's Eve listening to various Beatle cds and other sources!! This is a great book! and it's not being published...! :(

I can't say enough good things about the book. I first bought a learning Access book (Step by Step), and of course you can grasp something from those books, but you never get to know the real concepts behind a database, or WHY are you doing some steps. This book throws light into those matters, and it's really easy to read, I had fun with it. I highly recomend to read THIS book before starting to work with relational databases such as Access, etc. First read this book, then go for a "how to use Access" book.

This is one of the best books I've read to get someone started in the world of relational databases. As a former software trainer, I've recommeded several database books to students. But I wish I had known about this one for my beginning students. Sure, there are the 800 page monsters out there, but if you want information that is straight to the point, well-written and user-friendly, this is the book to use. I'd also like to point out that the one time I had a question, I was able to contact Dr. Whitehorn and within an hour, I received a my answer. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know the basics about relational databases.

This is probably the only computer book that I have read that has been worth the money. The writing style is concise, clear, and to the point. Unlike most programming books that are filled with jargon, Whitehorn & Marklyn refrain from blatant attempts to impress the reader with "computer speak". Instead, they intelligently explain the history and benefits of relational database design. I have been creating databases for 2 years and I found this book to be a great resource.

This is a great little book that I am going to pass on to a friend and hope that she will then pass on to a friend of hers and so on and so on.

Barbara and Trudy do a great job of very simply outlining to us mere mortals how to talk to (and hear back from) angels. It's a nice little book, beautifully illustrated with angels and quotes about and by angels, and you could easily read it in one setting, one night perhaps when you're tucked into bed and need something light and uplifting to send you off to sleep. I found the book to be a bit too simple, as if the authors were talking down to me, and I plan to read another book on the same subject, called _Divine Guidance_, by Doreen Virtue, to hopefully glean a bit more information.

I recommend this book. Buy it for yourself, read it, and then pass it on to a good friend.

Right from the beginning I was hooked and read the book in one sitting. The text and style in which this book is written moved me to tears of revelation. Easy to read and easy to follow, this book will allow you to access inner peace and joy and heavenly knowledge. Truly know the meaning of a ripple effect, I plan on sharing this book with several of my friends so that they may know and share also. My heartfelt gratitude to Trudy and Barbara for following their angels direction and sharing it.

I bought Angelspeake about 4 years ago. At the time I read it but didn't think it would work for me. Little did I know by reading the 4 Fundamentals I started, with the help of my angels, to use them on a daily basis.

I now write to my angels every day and my life has taken a 180 degree turnaround. The angels love to be God's messengers and I find much comfort in talking to them daily. I thank this book and the authors for opening a new spiritual dimension to my life.

For a book to be even considered to a classic; then it, i.e., the book has to stand the test of time (and by so been read, pondered on and enjoy by several generations). The Decameron (Oxford World's Classics) by Giovanni Boccaccio, et al is one of these few books, e.g., The Odyssey, Thus Spoke Zarathustra et al. The story follows a plethora of storytellers whom all have gone to the countryside to escape the plague. The stories are filled with bravura, vigor, fortitude, a bit of sex and many other subjects (that are all written with an uncanny ability). If one considered oneself to be a scholar or a learned man then this book, i.e., The Decameron (Oxford World's Classics) by Giovanni Boccaccio, et al, is a must have; since not owning or having read it, then one as a person/scholar/learnedman must be considered less then civilized.

Any book defined as a true classic is likely to be thought of as stultifying and incomprehensible...at best. Yet, there are dozens and dozens of books that are true classics and still manage to speak to today's modern audience. Boccaccio's Decameron is one such book.

The Decameron was written around 1350 during an outbreak of plague in Florence. It is the fictional account of ten young people who flee the city to a country manor house and, in an effort to keep themselves occupied and diverted, begin telling stories.

Ten days pass in the pages of the Decameron (hence its name), and each person tells one story per day, making a total of one hundred stories. These are stories that explore a surprisingly wide range of moral, social and political issues whose wit and candor will probably surprise most modern readers. The topics explored include: problems of corruption in high political office, sexual jealousy and the class differences between the rich and the poor.

The titles themselves are both imaginative and fun. One story is titled, "Masetto da Lamporecchio Pretends to be Deaf and Dumb in Order to Become a Gardener to a Convent of Nuns, Where All the Women Eagerly Lie With Him." And, although the title, itself, is a pretty good summary of the story, even a title such as this cannot adequately convey Boccaccio's humor and wit.

Another story that seems surprisingly modern is, "Two Men are Close Friends, and One Lies With the Other's Wife. The Husband Finds it Out and Makes the Wife Shut Her Lover in a Chest, and While He is Inside, the Husband Lies With the Lover's Own Wife on the Chest." A bit long for today's modern world, perhaps, where popular books are dominated by titles such as John Grisham's The Firm, but the outcome of this story is as socially-relevant today as anything that happened in fourteenth-century Florence.

The Decameron, however, goes far beyond plain, bawdy fun and takes a close look at a society that is unraveling due to the devastating effects of the plague. The people in Boccaccio's time suffered terribly and the book's opening pages show this. The clergy was, at best, inept and, more often than not, corrupt. Those who had the misfortune to fall ill (and this includes just about everyone) were summarily abandoned by both their friends and family.

Those looking for something representative of the social ills of Boccaccio's day will find more than enough interesting tidbits and asides in these stories. Serious students of literature will find the ancestors of several great works of fiction in these pages and readers in general cannot fail to be entertained by the one hundred stories spun by these ten refugees on their ten lonely nights.

Giovanni Boccaccio THE DECAMERON. Second Edition. Translated with an Introduction and Notes by G. H. McWilliam. cli + 909 pages. Penguin Classics. London: Penguin Books, 1995. ISBN 0-14-044629-X (Pbk).

Second-hand opinions can do a lot of harm. Most of us have been given the impression that The Decameron is a lightweight collection of bawdy tales which, though it may appeal to the salacious, sober readers would do well to avoid. The more literate will probably be aware that the book is made up of one hundred stories told on ten consecutive days in 1348 by ten charming young Florentines who have fled to an amply stocked country villa to take refuge from the plague which is ravaging Florence.

Idle tales of love and adventure, then, told merely to pass the time by a group of pampered aristocrats, and written by an author who was quite without the technical equipment of a modern story-teller such as Flannery O'Connor. But how, one wonders, could it have survived for over six hundred years if that's all there were to it? And why has it so often been censored? Why have there always been those who don't want us to read it?

A puritan has been described as someone who has an awful feeling that somebody somewhere may be enjoying themselves, and since The Decameron offers the reader many pleasures it becomes automatically suspect to such minds. In the first place it is a comic masterpiece, a collection of entertaining tales many of which are as genuinely funny as Chaucer's, and it offers us the pleasure of savoring the witty, ironic, and highly refined sensibility of a writer who was also a bit of a rogue. It also provides us with an engaging portrait of the Middle Ages, and one in which we are pleasantly surprised to find that the people of those days were every bit as human as we are, and in some ways considerably more delicate.

We are also given an ongoing hilarious and devastating portrayal of the corruption and hypocrisy of the medieval Church. Another target of Boccaccio's satire is human gullibility in matters religious, since, then as now, most folks could be trusted to believe whatever they were told by authority figures. And for those who have always found Dante to be a crushing bore, the sheer good fun of The Decameron, as Human Comedy, becomes, by implication (since Boccaccio was a personal friend of Dante), a powerful and compassionate counterblast to the solemn and cruel anti-life nonsense of The Divine Comedy.

There is a pagan exuberance to Boccaccio, a frank and wholesome celebration of the flesh; in contrast to medieval Christianity's loathing of woman we find in him what David Denby beautifully describes as "a tribute to the deep-down lovableness of women" (Denby, p.249). And today, when so many women are being taught by anti-sex radical feminists to deny their own bodies and feelings, Boccaccio's celebration of the sexual avidity of the natural woman should come as a very welcome antidote. For Denby, who has written a superb essay on The Decameron that can be strongly recommended, Boccaccio's is a scandalous book, a book that liberates, a book that returns us to "the paradise from which, long ago, we had been expelled" (Denby, p.248).

The present Penguin Classics edition, besides containing Boccaccio's complete text, also includes a 122-page Introduction, a Select Bibliography, 67 pages of Notes, four excellent Maps and two Indexes. McWilliam, who is a Boccaccio scholar, writes in a supple, refined, elegant and truly impressive English which successfully captures the highly sophisticated sensibility of Boccaccio himself. His translation reads not so much as a translation as an original work, though his Introduction (which seems to cover everything except what is most important) should definitely be supplemented by Denby's wonderfully insightful and stimulating essay, details of which follow:

Chapter 17 - 'Boccaccio,' in 'GREAT BOOKS - My Adventures with Homer, Rousseau, Woolf, and Other Indestructible Writers of the Western World'
by David Denby. pp.241-249. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1997. ISBN 0-684-83533-9 (Pbk).

This book MUST be in a survivalist library! It is the authoritive guide to identifying, diagnosing and treating human illness. You'll find nearly all the collected current knowledge of modern medicine within these pages.

Along with the Bible, this book is the single most important literary resource you can own. The Merck Manual is broken up into sections categorized along types of afflictions and causes, followed by appropriate treatments. Sometimes the language is clinical and can be difficult to follow without an understanding of the terms but most laymen can grasp enough to administer correct emergency medical care when necessary.

The Merck manual also proves useful when confronting your doctor about your condition or that of a loved one, it enables you to understand the diagnosis and treatment sufficiently to determine if there may be a mistake or a possible side-effect your doctor might not be willing to admit to.

I also recommend "Where there is no Doctor" and "Where there is no Dentist" to accompany this great book.

In my country ( BRAZIL ) as in other parts of the world the Merck Manual is a standard of medical book.
Here in Brazil this books is used as a legal reference in cases of legal judgement of doctors by malpractice.The explanation for this : The Merck Manual has all of a good doctor must to know.
Merck Manual has chapters about every topic in medicine (except surgery).
I think this book very large and almost impossible to read until the end, word by word.But I think is a great book to read about a specific disease of a patient and so expand our compreention of that.
It is a great book to the resident doctor makes a first reading.
This book is very cheap too and I think it is a good acquisition to medical library of medical schools.
A final point : This book is easy to read and understand , a great feature for people of country where the official language is not the english.

My daughter bought me this book last year and I have updated the editions through the years. It has the latest information on medical conditions that can even help you to know if your doctor is keeping up with the latest in the field of knowledge he is supposed to be treating, for whatever condition you have to be managed. Not all doctors graduated in the top half of their class, patients need to keep in mind. It also helps a patient be knowledge to be able to speak better with their doctors, but please do not mention that you read the Merk Manual, he will think you are trying to diagnose yourself or be critical of him if he knows that he has not kept up with the latest information. It will help a knowledgeable patient to know when their doctor perhaps is not the doctor they should be seeing if the doctor always seems to midiagnose or order medications that make their conditions worse, but will not compromise or change how they treat them. I have a great deal of respect for doctors who have not forgotten that keeping patients well, the best that they can was the mission they were supposed to get into medicine for in the first place. If a doctor does not take the time to keep up with their field, it is time to find another doctor. Being upset with your medical care or lack of interest by the doctor is just going to make a patient sicker. It is true, if you have your health you have just about everything. Medicine is not an exact science as it is proven by the new additions of this book that are revised frequently. This edition has the "original" Merk Manual as a bonus to prove that point. Doctors are not infallible and many are very incompetent, while others are exceptional, and keep up with the latest. When a doctor states your medical is too complicated for him to treat, he does not want anything but assembly type simple patients, and earn the money as fast as he can. We need dedicated physicians, and I think most doctors are in the dark when they do not know, even without a medical degree, patients can tell when they truly do not care. Patients have the intelligence to get familar with the terminology in this book, and if my life depended on it I woould certainly purchase a book on medical terminology to get understanding. Ignorance is no excuse to allow a doctor to victimize your health. Mrs Symmington

I PICKED THIS BOOK UP AFTER SEEING CHIEF SHOEFOOT, GARY DAWSON AND MARK RITCHIE SPEAK AT OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY. SHOEFOOT WAS OBVIOUSLY QUITE INTELLIGENT. I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND AT THAT TIME WHY HE STRESSED OVER AND OVER THAT THE YANOMAMO ARE HUMAN, "JUST LIKE YOU." HE WAS INDIGNANT ABOUT THE WAY THEY HAVE BEEN PORTRAYED ON T.V. HE MADE IT CLEAR THAT THEY ARE NOT 'THE MISSING LINK' AS SOME ANTHROS HAVE ASSERTED. SHOEFOOT WAS FASCINATING AND SO IS THIS BOOK. A REAL EYE-OPENER ABOUT THE SPIRIT WORLD. IT MAKES ME WORRY FOR THE NEW-AGERS WHO ARE SEEKING THEIR OWN "SPIRIT GUIDES." IT IS A SURE INVITATION TO THE SAME MISERY THAT JUNGLEMAN DESCRIBES.

and turns it upside-down!

Who would you say is most believable concerning what is best for the Yanomamo People: a possibly biased, more "educated," but perhaps even less civilized anthropologist interpreting the Yanomamo, or the people themselves?

Jungleman, a former shaman, speaks for himself and his people and shows us the difference between the spirits of shamanism and the great spirit, the God of the Bible.

Of secondary importance, his verifiable exposure of the real nature of the anthropologists "studying" the Yanomamo for the past three decades should leave the "educated" world hanging its head in shame. To not see the dollar signs (plus much worse, that I'll leave the reader to discover) cloaked in their studies is to put our heads in the sand.

Jungleman has much to say that we should all listen to if we are to be intellectually honest in any study of the Yanomamo and other animistic groups. If you could only read one book on the Yanomamo, this would be it since it is direct from the source, and not an interpretation.

Mark Ritchie and translator/researcher Gary Dawson, should be commended for helping the Yanomamo tell their own story and, unlike others, to conduct their work gratuitously, with all royalties from the sale of this book going to the Yanomamo people.

I must admit I am a lousy reader. I just do not read a lot of books, much less finish them. But when I saw Chief Shoefoot and Mr.Ritchie speak at Santa Rosa Junior College in California. I was so taken back (hooked) by his speech I was compelled to buy Spirit Of The Rainforest right there on campus. I never buy books but this day changed all of that. I now vow to buy anymore books that are as worthy as this one! This particular book ought to receive a standing ovation for its portrayal of these hidden and much misunderstood people. I also think it should be a required textbook for classes pertaining to Culture at colleges all over the the United States and the world.

OK, I am a sucker for good dialog. I love puns. I love snappy comebacks. And this book is loaded with them. That's the good news. The bad news: the plot is thin, hard to follow. A few characters are fully fleshed out (as it were) but many are sketchy, and many are killed off before we get to know them. The motives can be confusing. Count Dracula isn't really Count Dracula, and we don't ever really find out who he is.

Nonetheless, it was so much fun to read. I kept quoting bits of the dialog to my significant other.

Some of BunRab's Standard Vampire Classification: -Series: if it is, it's the first one. -Significant genre it comes from: Fantasy/humor. -Does the vampire hold a job? Well sort of, although he loses it in the course of the book. -Do the vampires drink blood? Yes, though it can be animal instead of human. -Is drinking blood a metaphor for sex? No, although it can occur during sex. -Is there a lot of sex? Nope, and not much detail for what there is. -Are there other supernatural characters? Yup, and a few too many of them, if you ask me. Introducing umpteen different subspecies of elves was an unnecessary complication. -Is it deadly serious (pardon the pun)? Nope, I believe I've addressed that. I mean, we have vampires with library cards picking up girls at the research desk, for pete's sake. -Is it well written? Well, the dialogue is great, the plotting and resolution a little less great. But it's not hard to read, and it's acceptable for fantasy.

Incidentally, I worked for a department store credit department in a large city with lots of ethnic population, so I knew how to pronounce Csejthe right off the bat. The book finally does explain it after a bit.

I've read many different vampire myths, but this one is wittier and more intelligent by far. Told from the viewpoint of a man experiencing the change between humanity and vampirism, this novel makes the reader feel the impact of the shift from a mundane life to a supernatural undeath. The dialogue is splattered with allusions to literature, history, and most especially - movies and pop culture. The arguments on the question of free will between our hero and the vampire leader are like an episode of Politically Incorrect. This is a well-researched novel with enough fact included to make you wonder how much of it is fiction. The fight scenes are more than enough to slake any bloodthirst. Sardonic retorts, exasperated vampyr and a sexy wolfgirl make One Foot In The Grave an apetizing read!

Very little drives me crazier than authors who rely on literary convention, who are self-indulgent in any of the several ways possible for fiction (for example, if the main character is righteous, or if the author uses the book to promote his or her pet ideas, or if it's a historical makes the characters of the past have the sensibilities-- feminism, for example-- of the present). Wm. Mark Simmons does NONE of these things. One Foot belies its somewhat lurid cover art by asking the readers to believe only one thing-- these "supernatural" creatures do exist-- and goes on to tell a story that keeps my interest and never rings false to my internal B.S.-meter (and I read a lot, so it's finely tuned). The once-human "monsters" are still very human in their hearts and minds (which are sometimes monstrous, like those of some humans); their situations have scientific bases. Add to this "keeping-it-realism" a literate quality, thoughtfulness and a significant portion of humor, and you wind up with a work which is at the same time intelligent, funny, and very rereadable, which is my standard of measure for quality fiction. Or to put it another way, most of my paperbacks stay awhile and then get traded in. Not this one. I look forward to its sequel(ae).