The Secret of Secrets released!

Finally, Dan Brown's latest novel, "The Secret of Secrets" has been released! After 8 years of waiting since his last novel, "Origin," I can now slip into his world of mystery, science and religion, and follow Robert Langdon once more, this time around Prague, where the novel begins.

No spoilers here, I'm just 6 chapters in, let me enjoy this novel and I'll post my review once I'm done.

What a beautiful looking novel, great jacket art, lovely black and white photos of Prague on the inside front and back cover, and a lovely front cover with Dan Brown's signature on it. This is the Bantam publishing copy of the novel.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

I have watched all the movies but amazingly, as yet, haven't read any of the books. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is the first in the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling.

It is great reading from cover to cover as we follow young Harry Potter discovering he's a wizard and immersing himself in his new school, Hogwarts, for wizards and witches.

I found Professor Snape to be the most fascinating of all the characters, and I look forward to see how he develops in the books as opposed to the movies.

For Teaser Tuesday, which is hosted by MizB, I have selected this paragraph near the end. Ok, it's more than two sentences, but it was the standout part of the book for me. I stopped reading to share it on facebook!

"Your mother died to save you. If there is one thing Voldemort cannot understand, it is love. He didn't realise that love as powerful as your mother's for you leaves its own mark. Not a scar, no visible sign ... to have been loved so deeply, even though the person who loved us is gone, will give us some protection forever. It is in your very skin. Quirrell, full of hatred, greed and ambition, sharing his soul with Voldemort, could not touch you for this reason. It was agony to touch a person marked by something so good."

Around the World in Eighty Days Book Review

I finished reading Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days"  around a week ago and so I've had some time to gather my thoughts on it. This is a REVIEW so if you don't want to know what generally goes down in this book, stop reading now.

Phileas Fogg is the lead character, the Englishman who sets off on a journey circumnavigating the globe after a bet with friends who suggested it was impossible to be done in 80 days. He is the sort of character who is not troubled by anything, remains unbelievably positive in every situation, and somehow always finds a way around the tightest circumstance.

Personally, I don't like such characters, they are almost too good to be true, and as you read on, you just know that whatever happens, Mr. Fogg will come up with something to continue his journey around the world on schedule.

On the contrary, I can much more relate to those who have their frailties and human pitfalls. Passepartout, Mr. Fogg's French servant, is by far and away the star of the novel for me. He demonstrates passion, fight, ecstasy and despair. The reader can understand his emotions and actions. It was Passepartout who came up with the genius idea that saved Mrs. Aouda from certain death, and ultimately, it was this servant who realised at the end that they were in fact, one day ahead of themselves, a result of their eastward trek around the globe.

Around the World in Eighty Days gave a couple of interesting insights into Indian culture (the train and elephant journey across the country) and the Mormon religion (the train ride across Utah and the Mormon missionary's discourse). However, there were many parts of the story that seemed to pass by in a blur, which could possibly have been described in a lot more detail. Mr. Fogg and his accomplices did move on from one country to the next, one continent to the next, with alarming rapidity.

The best part of the book, however, was saved for the end, and for the first time, it showed emotion in the cold Mr. Fogg. Mrs. Aouda asks his hand in marriage, to which he replies with these legendary words:

"I love you. Yes, in truth, by everything most sacred in the world, I love you, and I am entirely yours!"

To say that was unexpected would be a gross understatement! It was a little masterclass from Jules Verne. The journey around the world didn't make Mr. Fogg much money in the end, but it did open his heart and he found true happiness and love.

Book Review: "A Journey to the Centre of the Earth" by Jules Verne

SPOILER ALERT!!!

I thoroughly enjoyed the adventure of Jules Verne's "A Journey to the Centre of the Earth."

A very well-written book, told from the point of view of Henry, Professor Hardwigg's nephew. They embark on a journey which sees them enter the crater of Mount Sneffels in Iceland, roam around in the interior of the earth, before exiting out of another volcano crater in Italy.

The story revolves almost exclusively around three main characters: 1) Professor Hardwigg - mineralogist, obstinate, determined, maybe a little crazy but ultimately right; 2) Henry - the Professor's nephew, analytical, level-headed; 3) Hans, the Icelandic guide who accompanies the Professor and Henry on their journey. Hans is perfectly disciplined, reserved and an immaculate handyman.

The characters compliment each other nicely and the narrative and dialogue flows smoothly throughout the story.

The three characters endure a few fascinating encounters with different sorts of weather and environment conditions below the earth, along with huge plants and animals and seas. The most interesting part of the story for me also turned out to be the most frustrating. 

Professor Hardwigg and Henry discover a cemetery of human bones and see in the distance another HUMAN living in the interior of the earth. Disappointingly for the reader, they freaked out and ran away and nothing more was mentioned of this. It seems that Jules Verne had this immense idea and then kind of backed out of it, and didn't quite know what to do from henceforth.

After that encounter the story rapidly closed up right at the time when I was just getting in to it and expecting the three of them to find a way to the very centre of the earth.

One more thing that irritated me was their exit from underground to ground level. Henry kind of passed out as they were accelerating on a man-made raft balancing on rushing lava, so as he is the one telling the story, he wrote how he didn't remember anything after passing out until they were lying on the side of a volcano in Italy! Man, that frustrated me so bad!

But nevertheless, it was a great read, very worthwhile and I definitely recommend this classic if you haven't as yet opened up its pages and joined the great adventure it is.

Teaser Tuesday with Jules Verne

MizB hosts a pretty good book event called Teaser Tuesday. We simply choose a couple of sentences from our current read and tease you all into reading the book yourself! Let's hope this works, then . . . 

You really should pick up Jules Verne's "A Journey to the Centre of the Earth" and read it. Here's a teaser: 

"When I at last began to resign myself to the fact that no further aid was to be expected from man, and knowing that I was utterly powerless to do anything for my own salvation, I kneeled with earnest fervor and asked assistance from heaven."

Me with the subject of this week's Teaser Tuesday

A great teaser, don't you think? I'm relishing each page of this adventure. Click here to read my latest review of the book. 

Have I persuaded you to read it?!

Teaser Tuesday (Sept 25th)

Welcome to my blog, and this week's edition of Teaser Tuesday. Teaser Tuesday is hosted by MizB at Should Be Reading. It's a day late but anyway...

Rules:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

My teaser comes from Jules Verne's "A Journey to the 

Centre of the Earth"

"I wholly forgot who I was, and where I was. I became intoxicated with a sense of lofty sublimity, without thought of the abysses into which my daring was soon about to plunge me."

What are you reading?

Do you have any teasers worth sharing?

Dan Brown "Who Said That?" Challenge #2

I share a quote from a Dan Brown book. You have to tell me:

1. Which of Dan Brown's novels it is found in, and
2. Who said it?

Let's see how well you know Dan Brown's books! here's today's quote:


"I am walking out your door right now. I need clothes. I am going to Vatican City."


Good luck and leave your answers in a comment.

Dan Brown "Who Said That?" Challenge

Ok, so here is a new series on Dan Brown Portal. The "Who Said That?" challenge. It's very simple. I will share a quote from a Dan brown book, you have to tell me:

1. Which of Dan Brown's novels it is found in, and

2. Who said it?

Let's see how well you know Dan Brown's books! Here's today's quote:

"Set down your gun and radio...or I'll put my knee through this painting."

Good luck and leave your answers in a comment.

Transporter

Recently during a stay at a hotel I came across the movie entitled "Transporter 2" on the movie channel.

Unfortunately we had to check-out at the same time. So much was I enjoying Transporter 2 that we went to a shopping mall immediately to find the DVD. At the third shop we found it, went home, and watched both Transporter 1 and 2.

I absolutely loved it! Transporter is all about a guy who transports packages or people for large sums of money. He gets into all sorts of trouble and in these action-packed movies, he fights his way out of trouble, from beginning to end.

There is a lot of shooting, explosions and fight scenes. This is the type of movie I love. I could watch movies all day like this.

It's very similar to the type of books I like to read. All-action page turners like Dan Brown's works.

If you've not seen it yet, go and watch Transporter 1 and Transporter 2 . . . Now I'm off to find Transporter 3!

Off the boil

I must admit I've gone off the boil about Dan Brown.

Don't get me wrong, I haven't gone 'off' Dan Brown or his work. I just haven't picked up one of his books for a long time.

I guess I'm just eagerly, or impatiently, waiting for his next step, his next book, whatever it may be about. But I understand writing a novel of that quality is not a speedy process. Not with all the research that has to take place first.

Does anyone have any 'heads up' about any book that Dan Brown may be working on at the moment? I'd love to hear about it!

Book trumps movie

I'm sure there are many others who also think of Tom Hanks every time they read Dan Brown's works involving Robert Langdon. In fact, it can be at times a little confusing as to which character is copying the other. We know that Tom Hanks plays the role of Robert Langdon. But he seems so perfect for that role that whenever I read the Da Vinci Code, it appears that Robert Langdon is playing the role of Tom Hanks!

I must admit that I find the book a whole lot better than the movie. I would always take a book over a movie. Although Tom Hanks plays Robert Langdon so well, that partnership is etched in my mind so clearly that reading the book is like a constant movie playing in my head.

Dan Brown does a fantastic job at writing a story which allows the reader to clearly 'view' the action in their minds page by page. Watching the movie takes away some of those 'scenes' I so enjoy whilst reading it.

Give me The Da Vinci Code book and I'm in my element!