This review is not about a book. SHOCK!!!
I've been playing the new video game version of Dante's Inferno for the XBOX 360 for the last few days, and I must say I am pleasently surprised as well as horrified.
Let me be clear: I enjoy the game very much.
The reason I say I'm horrified is because the programmers acheived their goal of recreating Dante's version of Hell, with 9 circles, each housing a different variety of sinner from the Virtuous Pagans in Limbo to the Wrathful of the 9th circle.
The premise of the game is decidedly different from Dante's original intent, which was to paint a vivid picture of his fictional journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. Dante of course still journeys through each of the nine circles with the Roman poet Virgil as his guide, but for a much different reason. According to the story set by the game, Dante journeys through Hell to rescue his beloved wife, Beatrice, who was consigned their for succumbing to the sin of Lust after she and Dante got it on before he left for the Crusades, with the caveat that Dante would remain faithful. Well...he didn't. He gave himself to a slave girl and now he's every bit as guilty as her. The difference is that Dante is stil there in human form and has a whole host of supernatural powers at his disposal. Death's Scythe and a Holy Cross, used respectively for either damning or absolving the souls of demons and sinners you run across as you fight your way to Lucifer.
The game plays out smoothly, the controls working in perfect harmony to allow for involving combat sequences.
The graphics are beatifully dark and devilish, depictingn a truly horrifying picture of Satan's realm, with symbolism rampant throughout the scenery.
The story is very involving, with Dante being at once a sympathetic hero and a tragic villain who must seek redemption.
Most appealing about this game is that they do not shy away from mentioning anything resembling God. I have never seen a video game with this much appeal that has religious overtones so blatantly out there for all to see. At the same time, the game isn't all "in your face" about it's subject matter, providing a justification for using the power of the Holy Light of God to banish demons or absolve damned souls.
Virgil even shows up from time to time to provide exposition about the circles, even mentioning a few famous historical figures that were consigned to Satan's depths for whatever sin corresponds with their resident circle.
So play the game, and remember: Abandon all Hope, Ye Who Enter Here.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book Four: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Percy Jackson and The Olympians
By: Rick Riordan
pages 361
In the Fourth installment of this spell-bidingly great series, Percy Jackson comes one year closer to his 16th birthday and closer to the prophacy that is about him.
like the maze of the Labyrinth, this exciting chapter of the Percy Jackson saga is full of twists and turns and just as you think you figure out the prophacy, it turns out to be wrong.
You get to meet more of the Olympians, heroes, demigods, and monsters of greek myths that you grew up reading.
Riordan takes myths of old and gives them a modern twists in the Percy Jackson books, giving children a new way to look at the 'old boring myths'.
Be warned, this ends in a cliff hanger, so be ready to dash for book five, The Last Olympian. I know I can't wait to read it.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
The Angel of Death
A Forensic Mystery by Alane Ferguson
260 pages 2006
If you like CSI, NCIS or any other crime drama out there on the market today, then I believe you'll love this book by Alane Ferguson.
This is actually the second book of Cameryn Mahoney, but it stands alone as an excellent read of itself. Even though there are some parts that are slow, you'll find yourself turning the page, absorbed more and more, trying to figure out who the murderer is even before Cameryn does. In a bizar case, a man is found dead in his room, no evidence found to point towards a killer, and what else, the man's eyes are completely gone. Could this have been a 'Perfect Murder'?
In Nail-biting suspense, Ferguson keeps her readers hooked and it shows that she did her research, and a lot of it. I would remcomend this book for older teens and adults, and anyone interested in going into the forensic field as a profession. I can't wait to find out more about Cameryn Mahoney.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Simple is Best in all Things
And never did that have more truth to it than in the fictionalized account of Glenn Beck's last Christmas with his mother. I recently read "The Christmas Sweater", written by him recently, and now on the NYT best seller list, to the chagrine of all liberals everywhere.
The story revolves around a young boy named Edward Lee. (Edward Lee is Beck's middle name.) Eddie is a boy who doesn't have much in the way of material possessions, but is surrounded by love and family his entire life, making him, in my mind, the richest man in the world.
Many of the accounts in the story are real, such as the real life name of his childhood family business where his father worked both as baker and owner, City Bakery, and the fact that both Edward's and Beck's mothers both died at an early age. The main difference is that in the story, Eddie's mother dies in a car accident. In reality, Beck's mother committed suicide when he was just 12 or 13 years of age.
That final Christmas, before his mother took her own life, Beck was given a handmade sweater by his mother, it being the only gift she could afford that year. It wasn't until much later in his life that Beck realized the importance of such a gift.
I highly reccommend this book to any and all looking for a chance at redemption, because that's what this book is about at it's core. Eddie is given a second chance at the end of the story, just as we all are entitled to second chances if we only seek to take advantage of them.
This past year has been a roller coaster for me, and The Christmas Sweater was a definite must read, even though I didn't know it at the time. The line that stuck out for me most was "the hardest part of every journey is realizing that you are worthy of the trip."
I haven't felt worthy of much these days, but now I believe I've turned that line of thinking into something more positive.
The story revolves around a young boy named Edward Lee. (Edward Lee is Beck's middle name.) Eddie is a boy who doesn't have much in the way of material possessions, but is surrounded by love and family his entire life, making him, in my mind, the richest man in the world.
Many of the accounts in the story are real, such as the real life name of his childhood family business where his father worked both as baker and owner, City Bakery, and the fact that both Edward's and Beck's mothers both died at an early age. The main difference is that in the story, Eddie's mother dies in a car accident. In reality, Beck's mother committed suicide when he was just 12 or 13 years of age.
That final Christmas, before his mother took her own life, Beck was given a handmade sweater by his mother, it being the only gift she could afford that year. It wasn't until much later in his life that Beck realized the importance of such a gift.
I highly reccommend this book to any and all looking for a chance at redemption, because that's what this book is about at it's core. Eddie is given a second chance at the end of the story, just as we all are entitled to second chances if we only seek to take advantage of them.
This past year has been a roller coaster for me, and The Christmas Sweater was a definite must read, even though I didn't know it at the time. The line that stuck out for me most was "the hardest part of every journey is realizing that you are worthy of the trip."
I haven't felt worthy of much these days, but now I believe I've turned that line of thinking into something more positive.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Idiots and Rogues
Interesting title, huh? I thought so myself.
The "idiots" I refer to are the ones we all argue with every day, and the ones that Glenn Beck's book "Arguing with Idiots" refute every damn time with those annoying little things called "facts".
As for the book itself, it was a quick read. I read it in record time, three days to be exact. I also found it very informative and humorous to boot. Glenn's ADD moments were good for a few laughs, as well as his list of the Top Ten Bastards of all time, with President Woodrow Wilson topping the list.
The "idiots" I refer to are the ones we all argue with every day, and the ones that Glenn Beck's book "Arguing with Idiots" refute every damn time with those annoying little things called "facts".
As for the book itself, it was a quick read. I read it in record time, three days to be exact. I also found it very informative and humorous to boot. Glenn's ADD moments were good for a few laughs, as well as his list of the Top Ten Bastards of all time, with President Woodrow Wilson topping the list.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Books
I hope, with time, this blog will get better as I get more practice writing reviews. My mom, myself and for a while my fiance, are doing a read-a-thon between each other to see who reads the most, (at the moment, it seems my mom is in the lead with a LONG way to go to catch up with her.) At first it was just from June to September, but we were in the process of moving, and since my mom is disabled, she couldn't help much with the packing, so I asked to extend it though the holidays. then recently, I thought about it, and since my fiance is out (hopefully he comes back) I decided to find out how many books can one read in a year. so I'm still thinking, but I might extend it out till next June to see.
As a Kid, I participated in the book read-a-thons, both at school (the dinky metals to prove it) and during the summer at the library (God I loved those), I don't know of any for adults, since the ones at the library are for children under teenagers. I still enjoy reading, as does my fiance and mom, so I thought why the heck not, it would only be between the three of us, and if I were to do it again, I might ask others to join, like friends and what not.
After, Harry Potter series was becoming a smash hit across the world, I noticed that the fantasy genre exploded with fantasy authors targeting the young adult, books that I would have loved to read as a kid, suddenly showing up on the book shelves as I entered my adult years. needless to say, it was all overwhelming. Now that Twilight saga has made it big, I've noticed that there are more books out there about vampires aimed for the same age group as the Twilight fans. (I haven't read any of the twilight saga, and am unsure if I want to pick it up or not)
So during this read a thon, most of my books would be categorized as books for children and teens. I've become more 'critical' since my best friend just had their first child and soon she'll be reading (even though the dad gets frustrated with reading being dyslexic) and someday I hope to have kids, so I know if I give them one of these books, I know they'd be reading quality and if they have any questions I can answer them.
I've also been reading manga and comic books (helps that the fiance is a comic book geek and if I want to know who he's talking about I'd better read) since I think as a kid I never got into them, wanting to read stories about horses, wolves and fantasy, and needless to say, I think I deprived myself. some of these stories are good. eventually my fiance and I will do our own comic book, and I think reading these will help my drawing skills.
I hope with the use of this blog I will inspire you to read the books I review
As a Kid, I participated in the book read-a-thons, both at school (the dinky metals to prove it) and during the summer at the library (God I loved those), I don't know of any for adults, since the ones at the library are for children under teenagers. I still enjoy reading, as does my fiance and mom, so I thought why the heck not, it would only be between the three of us, and if I were to do it again, I might ask others to join, like friends and what not.
After, Harry Potter series was becoming a smash hit across the world, I noticed that the fantasy genre exploded with fantasy authors targeting the young adult, books that I would have loved to read as a kid, suddenly showing up on the book shelves as I entered my adult years. needless to say, it was all overwhelming. Now that Twilight saga has made it big, I've noticed that there are more books out there about vampires aimed for the same age group as the Twilight fans. (I haven't read any of the twilight saga, and am unsure if I want to pick it up or not)
So during this read a thon, most of my books would be categorized as books for children and teens. I've become more 'critical' since my best friend just had their first child and soon she'll be reading (even though the dad gets frustrated with reading being dyslexic) and someday I hope to have kids, so I know if I give them one of these books, I know they'd be reading quality and if they have any questions I can answer them.
I've also been reading manga and comic books (helps that the fiance is a comic book geek and if I want to know who he's talking about I'd better read) since I think as a kid I never got into them, wanting to read stories about horses, wolves and fantasy, and needless to say, I think I deprived myself. some of these stories are good. eventually my fiance and I will do our own comic book, and I think reading these will help my drawing skills.
I hope with the use of this blog I will inspire you to read the books I review
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