The Dark Is Rising

Soon to be released as a movie (I just saw the trailer today, thus encouraged to get the books), here's what it basically is about:

"Will Stanton discovers on his 11th birthday that he is no mere boy. He is the Sign-Seeker, last of the immortal Old Ones, destined to battle the powers of evil that trouble the land. His task is monumental: he must find and guard the six great Signs of the Light, which, when joined, will create a force strong enough to match and perhaps overcome that of the Dark. Embarking on this endeavor is dangerous as well as deeply rewarding; Will must work within a continuum of time and space much broader than he ever imagined."

Looks like a good series, but you gotta get yourself a .LIT reader to find out more here...

O.J. Simpson - If I Did It

In 1995, O.J. Simpson, a famous NFL player who achieved many honours, was acquitted of a double murder of his ex-wife and her friend, but found financially liable in a civil wrongful death trial. This book was written by him as a hypothetical account of the whole incident on the basis that if he were to have done it. Controversy surrounded the release of this book and the whole shipment was recalled, but that did not stop it from being leaked. A new version of the book will be released soon (supposedly Aug 2007) after rights to the book were judged to belong to the Goldman family. That new version will include comments from the Goldman family.

But before that, read the original version of the book, written in chillingly realistic and detailed account, of the murder case that gripped a whole nation.

William Gibson - Spook Country

Was quite surprised that quite a number of people were actually looking for William Gibson's Spook Country. I've got a HTML copy here so hope this will satisfy some of you out there. Should be a pretty good read. I'll know when I'm actually done with it.

Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows (Pt 2)

I've had a few requests for this Harry Potter ebook. I believe it is not out yet, but there have been quite a number of transcribed copies floating around. For those who can't wait, you may get a nice clean copy here that I've managed to find so far. If you like what you read, remember always to support the artist's work, buy the book and spread the word.

Spook Country - William Gibson

Book Description
Tito is in his early twenties. Born in Cuba, he speaks fluent Russian, lives in one room in a NoLita warehouse, and does delicate jobs involving information transfer.

Hollis Henry is an investigative journalist, on assignment from a magazine called Node. Node doesn't exist yet, which is fine; she's used to that. But it seems to be actively blocking the kind of buzz that magazines normally cultivate before they start up. Really actively blocking it. It's odd, even a little scary, if Hollis lets herself think about it much. Which she doesn't; she can't afford to.

Milgrim is a junkie. A high-end junkie, hooked on prescription antianxiety drugs. Milgrim figures he wouldn't survive twenty-four hours if Brown, the mystery man who saved him from a misunderstanding with his dealer, ever stopped supplying those little bubble packs. What exactly Brown is up to Milgrim can't say, but it seems to be military in nature. At least, Milgrim's very nuanced Russian would seem to be a big part of it, as would breaking into locked rooms.

Bobby Chombo is a "producer," and an enigma. In his day job, Bobby is a troubleshooter for manufacturers of military navigation equipment. He refuses to sleep in the same place twice. He meets no one. Hollis Henry has been told to find him.

Pattern Recognition was a bestseller on every list of every major newspaper in the country, reaching #4 on the New York Times list. It was also a BookSense top ten pick, a WordStock bestseller, a best book of the year for Publishers Weekly, the Los Angeles Times, Newsday, and the Economist, and a Washington Post "rave."

Spook Country is the perfect follow-up to Pattern Recognition, which was called by The Washington Post (among many glowing reviews), "One of the first authentic and vital novels of the twenty-first century."

William Gibson's Neuromancer Audio Book Part 1
William Gibson's Neuromancer Audio Book Part 2

Does Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Live Up To The Hype?

With all the media circus and secrecy surrounding the development and eventual release of the last instalment in the series, this was a question on many people's lips. To a certain extent for me, the huge book (all 784 pages of it!) certainly pulls no punches.

***Spoiler alert***

From the beginning, as Voldemort grows in power and sends the world into darkness as a result of taking over the Ministry of Magic, there is widespread oppression of both Muggles and Mugbloods. Voldemort and his merry band, known as the Death Eaters, stop at nothing to destroy all non pure-blooded witch or wizard.

At the same time, Harry's friends conspire to save him from Privet Drive, which would no longer provide him a safe haven as the spell would dissipate on his 17th birthday. Throughout the book, the author, J.K. Rowling, has laid a cloak of impending doom and dread over the proceedings - in the process, you will see the deaths of quite a number of characters.

Harry, Hermione and Ron set out on a quest to locate the Horcruxes, after dropping out of Hogwarts. This journey is filled with the trials and tribulations which not only continue to build the characters, but also serve to make the readers love and adore them so much more. The adventure never fails to delight, in much part due to Rowling's uncanny ability for suspense-building and pacing.

Another facet of the Harry Potter series which have personally mesmerised me, is that while the bad characters are essentially bad, the good ones are never totally pure. Weaknesses abound in men, and the very human traits of cowardice and foolishness is also evident in the series. In this book, a book released by Rita Skeeter reveals the dirty secrets of a well-loved character.

Of course, the glorious moments of friendship and love, bravey and loyalty, abound as the book climaxes to an astounding, if not totally unexpected, ending. You can feel Rowlings love for her own characters, which brought a tear to my eyes with the tender and poignant close to an exhausting, but just as exhiliarating ride with Harry Potter over the 7 books and many years.

And what of The Deathly Hallows? The author somehow manages to slip it into the book very elegantly, despite it having caused minor confusion when the book title was first announced.