Seamlessly imagined and very true.
595816
This book is good.  A lush read.  I knew who both the characters were, but not much about them.  What fascinated me about the book--besides the good writing and amazing descriptions was the way Shomer painted them in such detail.  We get all the details of their lives in Egypt, that's a matter of good research and lots of research (and Shomer sure did her homework in that area).  But their characters are also carefully crafted, vivid and distinct.  The book is full of rich details, both natural and historical.  The setting is practically a character in its own right.  The minor characters are pretty good, too.  I especially like the maid, Trout. And the book  really brings to light the constraints placed on women at that time.
This not a fast plot read.  It is a book to be savored. Like the place it describes and the "affair" between Flaubert and Nightingale, it is slow, delicious and rich.  Though once Flaubert and Nightingale  are onstage together it does turn into more of a page-turner.  I couldn't wait to see what they were going to say and do next.
 I thought it was amazing that Shomer  took two very  different people, two people about who so much is written and known, then created such a rich inner lives that seem so true to who they actually were.  They both seemed very new and newly imagined, yet exactly who they actually were.  I got a little impatient to see the two of them together, but I think the novel was stronger for the long lead-in to the time we see them onstage together.  More spark when they finally are alone.  By the end of the novel I felt that these two, though they did not end up together (no plot spoiler there, we all know that Flaubert and Nightingale did not ride off into the happily ever after with each other), their  fictional time together seemed like a catalyst that turned each of them from young failures into the historical figures they became.  Seamlessly imagined and very true.  And I really loved the fact that Shomer never tries to push the story toward sentimental, heart-wrenching romance.  Very earthy, and lots of sexual tension.  I was tempted to read Madame Bovary again to see if I see how it resonates with his fictional time with Nightingale.
This book is sold as historical fiction.  And I guess it is since it features two historical figures.  But I agree one of the other reviewers who said that the book is more art than history.  Even if we knew nothing about Flaubert and Nightingale, it would still be a great novel.  I really enjoyed it and I am not one who seeks out historical fiction.  I read it because I'd read Shomer's other books and I was sure that this one would be a well-written.  (She's got some amazing stories in "Tourist Season"  -- check it out.)
4073002
This little book is a total joy to read. I know that the author makes it very clear that one should not suppose that he is factually presenting details of the afterlife, yet, in the end he has created a most satisfying image of a plausible afterlife. As for the title, he is referring to the poet-mystic William Blake's  Marriage of Heaven and Hell. He points out that this is a synthesis that can never be, for to do so would compromise the absolute Goodness of Heaven, thereby making a Hell of both. Perhaps there can one day be a marriage of Heaven and Earth (thereby showing both to really have been Heaven all along), but never of Heaven and Hell.

I loved the imagery of Hell being very much like a never-ending city on Earth where it is always twilight and eternal night always on the verge. Yet, it is not a crowded city for people keep moving apart because they cannot stand each other's presence. That's just it. People dwell in Hell by their own choice. It is the obsessions that separate them from God and the highest reality that keep them from leaving. It is even shown that such higher impulses as love and pity, if unhealthily indulged in for their own sake and for nothing higher or transcendent, can keep you in Hell. Yet, this Hell is also Purgatory for those who workout their obsessions. In fact, there is a regular bus service to Heaven for fieldtrips that serve just that purpose (I always suspected that the omnibus originated in Hades.)

As for Heaven, it is perpetually just the moment before dawn and eternal day. The idea that Heaven is actually more substantial than Hell, or Earth, is reasonable, since it is after all the more Real of the two being closer to the Creator. Indeed, the visitors from Hell appear as pale and insubstantial deformed ghosts who find the adamantine hardness and density of the higher plane physically painful (even walking upon the grass.) The residents of the realm however are radiant spirits who do everything that they can to point out the mistakes and illusions that the ghostly visitors still cling to- and which are the only thing keeping them from traveling higher up and farther in to the one true goal. The most detailed and believable of these tutelary spirits is Lewis' own spriritual mentor, George Macdonald.
4483193
Intriguing, multiple perceptions were presented in very human terms.  At the same time keeping it all basically believable... and wanting to know more.
3840784
I liked the adventure, the character sketches, the historical facts, and the drama that held it all together.  The best thing was that it looked as if every word was written with love, and a true sense that nothing is impossible for God.
4433190
With elements of fantasy and history woven seamlessly together.
1067685
Paula Parker's imagination is incredible. Just as I enjoyed watching the TV show "Once Upon a Time" to dream about the motivations, background, and stories of beloved childhood characters, I enjoyed reading SISTERS OF LAZARUS. Parker weaves what we already know into a creative tale of the sisters Mary and Martha. Far from the sliver of story we capitalize on in church, this is a tale that breathes life into the sisters. Her imaginative choices are all the more admirable because they stay true to what we DO know of Mary and Martha. This makes it easier for the reader to sink into the story and consider the sisters as real people prodded by passions, dreams, goals, logic, community, custom and relationships. Set aside your Mary and Martha Bible studies for a bit and see the sisters as Paula Parker envisioned them. You'll be glad you did.
345597
As I read Yeshu'a Two, I found myself seeking and finding confirmation of different facets of Absolute Truth as I know and live and breathe It. It really didn't matter that I had little prior knowledge of the names, dates, places,  of facts woven throughout the book and the stories it tells. All that mattered was that I felt enveloped in a cocoon of caring, gentle, pure Love, from start to finish, and I emerged at the end with an even deeper sense of trust in the process of Life as it unfolds for and around and within me. I give heart and soul felt thanks to Pietro de la Luna for this immense gift of Spirit and am well aware that my own purification has intensified and quickened as a result of having received it.

Ancient memories
swiftly gain momentum as
cosmic cycles close

Opening to Truth
conspicuously concealed
through passage of time

Self recognition
regains a firm foothold in
conscious awareness

Crystallizing thoughts
as loving, swirling masses
of evolution.

E.R.Urabe
3235214
Nice imagination to reality transition, great stuff
2481067
Like any reflection, this story shimmers and distorts while still revealing a strong essence of truth. I think this is true in many of Margaret Atwood's great works. This fantastical tale fittingly knits together the lives of people easily immersed in their own fantasies and fears.

I recommend this book to people who pay some attention to the news and current events. I might recommend other Atwood favorites first, but the timeliness of her writing gives it an urgency best not postponed.
4561493
Sort of dreamy, sort of noir, all elements working very well together. Details are never unnecessary or overdone. The flow of the story is effortless. It is hard for me to pin down exactly why this struck such a chord with me, but it did, in a big way. Great stuff, recommended.
4467758
The description of the experience of "synching" helps you feel for the main character and what he goes through time and time again.  You can understand his family's reactions to the situation, even if you do not agree with how they handle it.  Every time he "wakes up" and you learn about all the changes in the world it is realistic that those changes could have occurred.  I would recommend Syncing Forward to anyone.  I personally am no a science fiction fan, but I truly enjoyed this book.
3817683
Set in 12,000 BC in West Africa, the authors encyclopedic use of flora and fauna makes each scene come alive with a sense of place that drips authenticity. The thread of one couples travails and separations ties the story togetherlike Huck and Jim rafting on the Mississippi.  Each episode reveals society and its perils and the parallels to today never stop.

The themes are universal as vying chiefs create networks of villages and of course the top man can never amass enough territory. I was reminded of Hitler making casual alliances with Italy, Russia and Japan.

The authors narrative hand is steady although at times prolix. Language is lucid at a time when the beauties of the English language seem to be relics; Rollins does a masterly job of creating a fantasy parallel world to our modern one. Effortlessly and simply, a credible world is limned in an era long, long ago.
1302594
It is very true to life, as I have experienced personally previously. It is also well written and quite compelling to read.
4328997
Dreamy and complex. The characters and images are extraordinary yet human in the space of hope and living dreams. Thoroughly enjoyed.
4743094
Flawlessly written, never got cliche or overwrought, I was overwhelmend by this book.  I could identify with the main character more than any other I have ever read.  She is real, and flawed, and unsure of herself, until her trials make her more.  This is a prefect parable for real life.  I was honestly shocked by turn after turn of events, things I never saw coming.  The character did what I hope I would have the courage to do in her situation.
The imagery is amazing and somehow familiar.  I just loved this book.
2146132
The imagination woven throughout this book pulls you into the heart of a wonderful story of life lived to the fullest with all its pros and cons, ups and downs, laughing and hurting with hardly N aspect missed. Presented in a way that leaves a lasting impression on the reader and occupies him fully. A joy for young and old!
1182223
This book felt so real to me and so full of beautiful imagination.  I have not felt so connected to a story in a long time.  I feel grateful to have read it.