My Review of The Forbidden Book by Godwin & Mina di Sospiro

I recently received a review copy of The Forbidden Book from the publisher, Disinformation, and I was very excited to dive right in. Its pedigree warranted my excitement: I’ve been a long time fan of Disinformation’s catalog of work, the authors – Joscelyn Godwin and Guido Mina di Sospiro – are both respected in their fields, and the positive blurbs that accompanied the book were from a virtual who’s who of notable esotericists, such as Mitch Horowitz, Gary Lachman, and Graham Hancock.

From the book description found on Amazon — A multi-faceted mystery that incorporates the most serious and sensitive issue of our time: religious extremism. The evocative setting of Venice and the Veneto dominates the action, supplemented by vivid scenes in Santiago de Compostela, Provence, Washington, and the Vatican. Occult beliefs and practices fuel the action as the main characters become embroiled in an aristocratic sex magick plot.

While on one level The Forbidden Book is a murder mystery set against the conflicts of Islam and the West, the book also delves deep into esoteric knowledge and practice, thanks to Guido Mina di Sospiro’s extensive knowledge of Catholicism and Joscelyn Godwin’s authoritative studies of the western esoteric tradition. Underlying the fast paced action, the reader will find a profound treatment of moral and political dilemmas, the conflict of religions, and the frightening possibilities of the occult.

Sounds like something right up my alley, doesn’t it? Believe me, I was immediately captivated by The Forbidden Book and was prepared to make favorable comparisons to novels such as Umberto Eco’s Foucault’s Pendulum, Arturo Pérez-Reverte’s El Club Dumas, and John Fowles’ The Magus. Unfortunately the work began to fall apart for me about 80 pages in as it began to mirror more the lesser writings of talespinners such as Dan Brown and Steve Berry than of the previously mentioned authors.

All of the novel’s promise evaporated for me as it dissolved into cliché after cliché, character development ground to a screeching halt, and coincidences began to pile up at an alarming rate. Never before has a novel offered so much but delivered so little. It was really quite maddening, especially given my initial enchantment.

There is so much untapped potential on the page. The bare bones are there, but the narrative becomes so stiff that it reads as rough translation from a foreign tongue. It’s like an intriguing first draft that begs to be revisited and fleshed out. It is so unfortunate, because I wanted to love this book. And I almost did.

The esoteric bits concerning sexual alchemy, ritual, and the Il Mondo magico de gli heroi are very well done, but the rest of the book is so reckless and poorly managed — littered as it is with cardboard characters, inept criminals, and the unconvincing insertion of the police procedural (whose most time honored tropes are mangled to an almost laughable level).

All that being said, there is an audience for this sort of thing. Millions of copies sold of The Da Vinci Code attests to the fact. I just expected something more than what I got. It was all there, begging to be delivered. The authors, in this instance, dropped the proverbial egg.

If you’d like to try it on for size, The Forbidden Book is available via download on Amazon.

My Review of The Master Game by Graham Hancock & Robert Bauval

I was thrilled to be given the opportunity to review The Master Game: Unmasking the Secret Rulers of the World by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval. I have been a fan of Hancock’s for several years. He thinks big and outside the box. He’s not afraid to voice his opinion nor to look behind the veil for a glimpse of the hidden mysteries and inner workings of this clockwork’s messy bits. Do I buy everything he’s selling? No, but I appreciate his conviction and often marvel at the way he connects the dots and patterns. A new Hancock work was just what the doctor ordered. Here are my thoughts on it.

The Master Game explores the possibility that there is a secret religion that has shaped the world we live in throughout history, culminating in the Renaissance, the birth of scientific rationalism, the French and American revolutions, and even the current, so called, War on Terror.

The Good — First, it’s a lovely package, this book. The cover is evocative and the overall design well thought out. Kudos to the publisher on that regard. As to the writing itself, it is crisp and sharp, with the sort of riveting narrative I’ve come to expect from both authors. I’ve read a bit of Bauval as well, being a bit of nutter when it comes to conspiracy theories, archaeoastronomy, secret societies, hidden history and the like. These gentlemen know their audience, know their subject matter, and are meticulous researchers. It was a rippingly good read that kept me guessing, thinking, and fact checking throughout.

The Bad — The Master Game, unfortunately, gets a bit bogged down in minutia at times and there are rabbit holes and land mines that distract frorm the authors’ intended purpose methinks. All in all, The Master Game would have benefited from a firmer editorial hand and more of a focused approach by the authors. That being said, much of the extraneous information was interesting, it just didn’t serve the overall purpose of the narrative well.

The Ugly — And here’s my major sticking point. I’d already read the lion’s share of this book before in an edition titled The Talisman (Element Books, 2004). Repackaging The Talisman as The Master Game is just bad form and deceptive. I consider this a black eye on the publisher and authors for this not so clever ruse. Of course, with The Talisman out of print, having a new edition is fantastic, but to not disclose that The Master Game is a revised and extended version of the earlier work is disappointing.

All that being said, The Master Game is a thrilling work and one I have no qualms with recommending. Even if you’ve already read this in its previous incarnation there are new kernels to chew on in the updated manuscript. I’m willing to forgive their oversight and non-disclosure for one simple reason: it’s a damn fine book that will keep you up into the wee hours questioning what’s really going on behind closed doors in the secret and not so secret places of power.

The Master Game is available wherever books are sold, which these days pretty much just means Amazon.com.