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Book reviews for "Stephens,_James" sorted by average review score:

Dark Ages: Mage
Published in Hardcover by White Wolf Publishing Inc. (2002)
Authors: Bill Bridges, Kraig Blackwelder, David Bolack, Stephen Michael Dipesa, Mur Lafferty, James Maliszewski, John Maurer, Tara Maurer, and Matthew McFarland
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Consider Alternatives!
Dark Ages Mage, or DAMage, is not a game for everyone. And before I get started, I want to make sure everyone knows: you need to have the Dark Ages Vampire core book to play it.

DAMage is not for me. Why? I'm a fan of the Mage: The Ascension game line, and my thoughts start from there. Your mileage may vary.

The game defines magic separately for each group. It defines four "pillars" for each group, each with five ranks. These serve (supposedly) to measure what a Mage can and cannot do. Like any good game mechanic?

A lot of people didn't like the ambiguity inherent in M:tA's description of spheres. If that's you, avoid DAMage like the plague-- DAMage mechanics for Magic are described totally from the in-character point-of-view of the individual paradigm. As a way to understand what each kind of magic can really do, or settle disputes about whether a given Mage has the right knowledge to attempt a casting, they're completely unplayable.

They are, however, creative, even sometimes inspiring. If they were presented as magical theory, rather than a game mechanic, they'd be alright.

They'll also be good for selling supplements. The pillars demand exhaustive lists of "rotes," concrete definitions of individual powers, to be playable, and STs and players will find themselves obliged to go buy the "tradition book" for all the groups they intend to portray.

Another thing that bugged people about Mage: The Ascension, was that the sphere system seems "homogenous." That is, the progression in various abilities is pretty arbitrary, and if it's seen as universal among all kinds of will-workers, it intrudes on the in-character integrity of that paradigm.

I think that's a reasonable objection-- the Mage line's approach to Magic is it's own scenario, and though people claim you can do "any kind" of magic with it, that's not entirely true.

And, I think this helps us see why DAMage was developed along these lines. People wanted each paradigm to make sense "unto itself." Unfortunately, they chose to carry baggage from M:tA over. (Why? In an attempt to sell copy to Mage players.)

Wary of alienating Mage players, they retained an analog to a "sphere system," and gave lip-service to the "dynamic" quality of magic as found in Mage. And the result is something that is a glorified freestyle role-playing of magic, based on flavor text, or, with the eventual publication of massive rote lists, will really boil down to spell lists.

What people don't realize is that M:tA's sphere system was *born* out of a desire for a playable compromise between the reliable klunkiness of spell-lists, and the flexibility, but potential twinkery, of free-form role-play. It's imperfect, but, taken as what it is, it's also superb.

DAMage could have used M:tA's finely-tuned compromise. Instead it tried to reinvent the wheel, moving in both directions, failing to do either justice. DAMage could have been Mage: the Ascension with really cool, useful material on RPing in the Dark Ages setting.

And by the way. The presentation of the setting is rather lackluster, in DAMage. Possibly this is because they expect you go out and pay more money for Dark Ages Vampire. But if you're an Order of Hermes fan, for example, prepare to be disappointed. (Moreover, personally, my mind boggles at the authors' encouragement to send Muslim sorcerers off with their Christian cabalmates to kill Muslims in the Crusades.)

Alternatives better than DAMage include Mage: the Sorcerer's Crusade, Mage: the Ascension, or Sorcerer, each already in White Wolf mechanics, and adaptable to the Dark Ages setting (DAMage expects you to have other books too!) If you're a vampire player, particularly, I would think Sorcerer would be the way to go. There're also Ars Magica and D&D. And GURPS puts out great supplements, including on the Middle Ages. Which, if you want setting and flavor, are far superior.

Good job... but did the writers even read what came before?
As a fan of mage the ascension, i bought this book hoping to get some more insight into the DA magical societies. This, of course, was in the book, but it also flips everything on its head. while the magic system is similar, the 9 spheres have been done away with in favor of a 4 pillar system which is more taylored to each society. THis, i actually like for the setting. On the othe hand they trampled all over one of the most interesting groups off the age, The Order of Hermes. While they are still depicted as powerful, and organized, their house system is nearly ignored. (check out Ars magica for more Order of Hermes data) ALso, the book tries to promote interfellowship cabals, which is absolutely absurd in an era where most mages would sooner kill a rival mage than work with him for the most part. Mage: The Sorcerer's Crusade makes it very clear that such cabals almost NEVER happened until the uniting of the Traditions, and the writers expect us to believe they already worked together happy and together 2-300 years previous? Please...

Not to say the book is bad, because for the most part it is rather good. For Storytelling material it is bad, but as setting information and rules it is excellent.

Oh, on a final note, i only gave it 3 stars because White wolf decided not to put any rules in it outside of magic rules simply to sell more copies of Dark Ages: Vampire. It desserves 4 in its own right.

Dark Ages: Mage, Before the Ascension
I must admit, I was waiting impatiently for this book more than even the new Dark Ages: Vampire that preceded it (and is necessary in order to make full use of Dark Ages: Mage). I love Mage: The Ascension, especially it's new incarnation in the Revised Edition of that game. This game however is not Mage: The Ascension.

The similarities are obvious and yes, it is the World of Darkness set back into the Dark Medieval, but the truth of the matter is that this is not the same game as it's predecessors, Mage: The Ascension or Mage: The Sorcerer's Crusade. There is no War for Reality, there is no competition. There is only magic. The opening chapter on medieval superstition gives a blanket feel of ambiguity to everything in the age and I think this is where the real strength of this game shines.

This book is not intended for first-time roleplayers. This book is advanced in every respect of the word. As a Storyteller for Dark Ages, having the rules to create and use Mage NPC's in my chronicles is outstanding and the rules for their creation, advancement, societies, everything... is right here. However, I was disappointed by the fact that although this game (and although it requires the use of Dark Ages: Vampire to use it, it -is- a separate and dinstinct game unto itself if allowed) has rules to actually play Mages, I can't say it's that easy. But then again, it obviously isn't supposed to be simple, after all these are willworkers, people whose expectations charge reality and force it to change. It's just not cut and dry.

The character creation is easy. The rules for advancement, simple enough. Unfortunately, it's the ambiguity of each of the pillars that catches me off guard, because, although we are playing these mages and their mindset is critical to their play, having the levels of power measured by interpretation is asking for complications. However, I believe now, after having re-read this book two times + since purchasing it, that it is SUPPOSED to be ambiguous and inexact, facilitating the person to person interpretation that was the rule of the day. After all, if someone easily adhere to exacting rules in the Dark Medieval, they were not Mages. Mages break the rules in every way, shape, and fashion and don't apologize for it; rather they take their success to mean that are due even more power. Enter hubris.

All in all, this is a great book and more visually stunning that I first imagined it would be. The spine, once again, is not attached to the book itself, but I'm beginning to suspect it's not supposed to. I gave this game 4 stars (instead of 3) because of the innate potential of such a game and the Dark Ages line. However, if you're are die hard fan of the Sphere system, I heartily recommend The Sorcerer's Crusade instead. This game is darker, more brutal, and more ambigious. These can be good things in the hands of the right people, but not for everyone.


Solving the Year 2000 Problem
Published in Hardcover by Morgan Kaufmann (1900)
Authors: James Edward Keogh, Stephen C. Ruten, and Jim Keogh
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Interesting but inaccurate
I agree with the reviews that mentioned that this book is simple and that it contains good anecdotes for presentations. But it is simple to a fault: when he actually starts trying to provide solutions like his "bridge program" on p170, most of them have terrible errors ("IF this two digit number is greater than 99, THEN...", etc). I recommend Ulrich and Hayes "The Year 2000 Software Crisis" instead.

A thoughtful introduction to Y2K, but little more.

As a Y2K professional, I had high hopes for this book - it was the first 'mass market' book that I had run across regarding the Year 2000 dilema. After reading nearly 100 pages of little but potential horror stories for January 1, 2000, I had no more Y2K project management insight than I could get (for free) from Peter DeJager's home page, www.year2000.com. I was, however, siezed by the urge to immediately clean out all of my bank accounts and hunker down in a remote wilderness cabin with a manual can opener (no damn computer chips in an electric can opener standing between me and my spagettio's) and my Y2K compliant shotgun.

"Solving the Year 2000 Problem" presents a plethora of fodder for marketing presentations. Anyone in the Y2K seminar business should be buying caseloads of this book and passing them out as freebies to potential clients. But don't be tempted to buy this book on the basis of constructing a Y2K project. It doesn't quite cut the mustard in that regard.

I would recommend the following book as a primer for Y2K project management:

"The Year 2000 Software Crisis: Challenge of the Century", by Wm. M. Ulrich and Ian S. Hayes, published by Yourden Press Computing Series.

tHE BEST BOOK FOR ANYONE WHO WANTS TO GRASP THE YR2K ISSUES.
I don't think there is any book that can match this in simplicity, clarity and professionalism. Jim keogh is the best writer on the subject.


Victory
Published in Hardcover by Forge (13 May, 2003)
Authors: Stephen Coonts, Ralph Peters, Harold Coyle, Harold Robbins, R. Pineiro, David Hagberg, Jim DeDelice, James Cobb, Barrett Tillman, and Dean Ing
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Uneven
This is a wildly uneven anthology of stories about WWII. The best of the stories are Stephen Coonts'"Sea Witch" and James Cobb's "Eyes of the Cat" oddly, both are about PBY planes, a definitely unique topic. Both deliver excitement and unpredictability and a unique perspective. Stories by Barrett Tillman and Harold Coyle are standard, well told combat tales. Stories by Harold Robbins and David Hagberg belong in a different espionage anthology and there is a truly boring and glaringly out of place story by Dean Ing, who is a much better writer than this. Ralph Peters does well with his tale of a German soldier's problems returning home.
Not up to the caliber of Combat, the earlier modern war anthology, this still offers enough diversion for those interested in WWII fiction if you're willing to accept the uneven nature of the stories.

Good World War II Coverage.
This book is in the same classification as the Combat book.In
this book you have ten authors write stories about World War II.
Stephen Coonts writes about a Catalina flying boatwho are doing battle with the Japanese in the Pacific.Harold Coyle does a story about the battle on Guadalcanal with the Japanese that earned this area the name of Bloody Ridge.Jim Defelice tells about an American pilot who parachutes into Germany to gather
intelligence and gets decieved.Harold Robbins tells a story about someone whi is sent to kill Hitler.Dean Ing tells a story about an effort to build an interceptor to stop a Nazi super weapon.Barrett Tillman tells of the role of a flamethrower operator in a battle at Tawara against the Japanese.James Cobb
tells of a Catalina searching for Japanese radar in the Pacific.
David Hagberg tells of allied agents trying to stop a Nazi superweapon that can cause havoc in the United States.R.J. Pineiro tells of an American pilot who trains Russian pilots in new Aircobras.Ralph Peters tells of a German soldier going home on foot after the war has ended.All in all this was an interesting book.It ranked as an equal to Combat.

Readers of any genre will find satisfaction from this volume
They really aren't around anymore, but from the 1930s through the 1970s, there was a proliferation of what became known in the trade as "adventure" magazines. These ranged in quality from the semi-respectable (Argosy) to the not so respectable (a veritable slew of titles, such as Stag and the right-out front For Men Only). They featured stories of spies, derring do and jungle intrigue, but they primarily contained war stories. Lots and lots of war stories. The covers often told the tale regarding the type of quality you could expect within; this was particularly true of Stag, which featured damsels who were either in distress (especially with respect to the state of their undergarments) or inflicting distress upon U.S. soldiers who were tied to chairs and doing their best to appear panic-stricken. All of these magazines, alas, are long gone, or at least don't seem to have the circulation they used to. I was reminded of them, however, by the publication of a mammoth volume of war fiction titled VICTORY.

VICTORY is a companion volume to COMBAT, both of which are edited by intrigue-meister Stephen Coonts. VICTORY is a doorstop of a volume, weighing in at well over 700 pages and consisting of ten previously unpublished pieces by masters of the war story. The stories in VICTORY range in length from fifty to over one hundred pages; if they had appeared in any of the adventure magazines, they would have been serialized. Most of the stories in VICTORY would or could have found a home in Argosy, though one --- "Blood Bond" by Harold Robbins --- is definitely Stag material. More on that in a minute.

The stories in VICTORY do not glorify war. Far from it. All of the stories are set during World War II, with the exception of "Honor" by Ralph Peters, set immediately thereafter. It is difficult to pick an immediate favorite; the average reader may have several, for different reasons. Coonts's own "The Sea Witch," which opens VICTORY, begins as a fairly predictable tale with an unpredictable ending and that utilizes an unexpected technique to catch the reader flatfooted.

"Blood Bond" is typical Robbins. It is a spy story, dealing with a plot to kill Hitler, and stands apart from the other tales due to its unrelenting scatological narrative. Robbins writes the way James Bond really thinks. Though Robbins, gone for several years now, had his share of detractors, he never inflicted boredom on his audience, and this previously unpublished work continues his streak, even in his absence.

David Hagberg's "V5" concerns the German rocket that could have turned the tide of World War II and the Allied military and espionage components that feverishly work together, though at some distance, to ensure that the project never makes it off the ground.

Peters's "Honor" deals not with Americans in the war but with a German officer in the war's aftermath, trudging through the nightmarish ruin that is postwar Germany as he tries to return home to his wife. The conclusion of "Honor" is predictable, almost from the first paragraph; it is the journey, not the close-to-foregone destination, that is important here.

The biggest surprise in VICTORY may be "The Eagle and the Cross" by R.J. Pineiro, a tale of an American pilot who is sent to the Eastern front to train Russian aviators during the final months of the Battle of Stalingrad. The bittersweet ending is perhaps the most haunting of any tale in the book.

With VICTORY Coonts again demonstrates that his talent as a writer is matched by his editorial abilities. While this volume is aimed at a more narrowly defined audience, the quality of the stories involved should, for the most part, satisfy the more discerning reader of any genre. Recommended.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub


Grampa-Lop
Published in Library Binding by Bt Bound (1999)
Authors: Stephen Cosgrove and Robin James
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disappointed
I was disappointed to discover this book is the same as Leo The Lop Tail Four.

Great children's book!
This was one of my favorite books when I was young. The Serendipity series are wonderful children's books, and I am so glad they are still available. Grampa-Lop is a great book for any child who has a close relationship with an grandparent. It teaches alot about respect for the elderly, and illustrations are whimsical and cute.


King James VI of Scotland & I of England Unjustly Accused?
Published in Paperback by Konigswort Inc (1996)
Authors: Stephen A. Coston, Wallace Clan Trust, John MacLennan, Stephen A., Sr. Coston, H. R. G., and Tenth Duke of Atholl
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Interesting premise, but poorly written and argued
The research and quotes used throughout this work seem well documented, and the premise seems sound...that James the VI and I was maligned due to the antagonism of court intriguers who were ousted as favorites with his reign, and who had strong prejudices against the "uncivilized Scots" Anyone with any experience of the literature and sensibilities of the times would recognize that the sentimentality and expressions of love that were purported to be the evidence of James' homosexuality were absolutely normal and common speech of the times. However, I object to the homophobic tone that the writer pursues, as if such accusations were the most evil thing one could say of another, and I find the organization and arguments to be rambling and excessively repetitious. The author could have used a strong editor with a red pencil. The theme could have been fully discussed in an article of magazine length, rather than a $15 book.

Excellent history of James as king, father, and man
While King James has often been accused by both secular and Christian history as a man of ill repute, little has been offered in his defense. However, Unjustly Accused? certainly has defended the honor of this king, central to both politics and religion, in a more than adequate manner. While admitting his flaws, the book also emphasizes his accomplishments as a king, as a father, and as a man.


No Tears for a Hero: The Stephen Mitchell Story
Published in Paperback by Dorrance Publishing Co (1994)
Author: Tracy James Jones
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Something Secret about this book!!!!
Stephen Mitchell has been scammed and is not receiveing any money from Dorance Publishing. So if you have any decency in the world and for people like him you will not buy this book. If you can help me help Stephen Mitchell please contact me at Stevejmil@Yahoo.com. Other than this Evil, unwritten chapter, this is a good book. I am only giving 0 stars to the publisher and 5 to the book. Thank You and God Bless you and him.

A Great Book
I have talked to Stephen Mithchell and we really feel like it is a good book. He trying to make a movie based on the book and buying tyhis book would really help on making the movie.


Social Psychology
Published in Hardcover by Wadsworth Publishing (20 September, 1999)
Authors: Stephen Worchel, Joel Cooper, George R. Goethals, and James M. Olson
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Understanding Social Psychology
This book for help in my job

Excellent book!
This book was great for my psych class, but I believe it would also be great as a refernce tool for either psych or sociology students. Clearly written, made my class a lot easier!!


Civil Procedure
Published in Hardcover by Little Brown & Company (1988)
Authors: Jonathan Landers, James A Martin, and Stephen C. Yeazell
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A Necessary Evil
When you first pick up the book, you feel exhilirated that you, too will be learning all about Civil Procedure. The case in the introduction is fun, but it is all down hill from there. The cases are important cases, but the editing took out parts of the opinions that should be there so you can understand the rest of the opinion (I could mention Erie, but nobody understands that on a good day either...). It is a necessary evil that we mut struggle through in our attempts at world domination...I mean our attempts to become lawyers...


Guess I'm Lucky! My Life in Horseracing
Published in Paperback by Select Penguin (1987)
Authors: Woody Stephen, James Brough, and Woody Stephens
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Donw-home ramblin'
One of the most successful horse trainers in history, and the only trainer to win the Belmont Stakes five times in a row, tells his own story. Its language is about what you'd expect from a horse trainer in his upper seventies (at the time the book was written-- Stephens is now deceased). It's laconic, plain, understated. Easy reading. Probably interesting, if you follow horse racing, and especially if you remember Woody's streak of Belont wins in the early to mid eighties. If not, it probably won't hold your interest.


The Ithaqua Cycle: The Wind-Walker of the Icy Wastes (Call of Cthulhu Fiction)
Published in Paperback by Chaosium (1999)
Authors: James Ambuehl, Blackwood Algernon, Joseph Payne Brennan, Pierre Comtois, August Derleth, George C., Ii Diezel, George Allen England, Gordon Linzner, Brian Lumley, and Randy Medoff
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i have seen the wind, and it's cold enough for me
this book opens with blackwood's great story: the wendigo. B is the master of the setting, noone can create the background and atmosphere like him. a very well written story from Brennan here. and Meloff's story is also an interesting read. derleth is at his best here. i don''t care that much for the guy, have never considered him to be HPL's great successor or anything, but he knows how to write, and i have always considered his story about Ithaqua to be his best contribution. the rest of the stories are well written. i don't think any of chaosium's anthologies contains of so much good writing than this. but good is not great. and the rest of the stories never turns out to be really good. the suspence killed by irrelevant writing going on for too long, mostly. sad. but the book is still wort reading


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