Sterling Reviews

Cecily Thorndale has been engaged to Charles Worthington, Lord Silsbee, for four years. When she receives a letter from him postponing their wedding again, she decides the time has come to go see him. So, taking only two servants, she goes from England to Texas. Charles loves life in Texas. He has never felt so free. In Texas he is far away from his dominating father and the obligations involved with being an earl's heir. So when Cecily shows up, his responsibility to marry her puts a sudden pressure on him. Marrying her is the last thing he wants to do now that he is enjoying freedom so much. Thus starts Cecily's efforts to attract him. The conflict is a little weak, but the characters are all wonderful.

From Cecily, the strong, capable heroine, to Estelle and FiFi, the sensational "soiled doves," Sterling's characters in NOBILITY RANCH will resonate in your hearts. They absolutely shine. This book gives the discerning romance reader everything he or she could possibly want. A to-die-for hero, a heroine we can both relate to and root for, and a cast of secondary characters that absolutely breathes life into 19th century Texas. Snap this book up. While you're at it, do yourself a favor and get Sterling's backlist, too. Trust me, after reading NOBILITY RANCH, you're going to want all the rest.

This book should be regarded as a "textbook" of the rise of the American Mafia. Ms. Sterling has done an exhaustive research of the origins of the American Mafia from its roots in Sicily to its role in present day. The most memorable discovery in the book was the control the Sicilian Mafia had over its American "version". All in all, an extremely informative study of organized crime on an international scale.

Claire Sterlinsg's study of THE MAFIA has to be among the most comprehensive, sobering explorations of ORGANIZED CRIME ever written. The story begins with mythical genesis of a Sicilian political/criminal secret society around 1865. From legends emerges THE MAN of HONOR: blood-ritually ... baptism by murder...initiated, OMERTA bound Mafioso. Sterling jump-cuts to the 1957 gathering of preeminent Sicilian/Italian-American Mafia clans at The Grand Hotel des Palmes in Palermo; there establishing framework for an international drug smuggling cartel. The staggering operations of this "directorate of world drug trade" (p.37) are the focus of the book. Sterling dismissively chronicles maturation of Italo/American Black Hand terrorists to Cosa Nostra ((Our Thing: as American mob families reverence their branch/tentacle)) during PROHIBITION. Capone is a flamboyant anachronism. Even Lucky Luciano...founder of America's Mafia Commission and assassination arm, Murder Incorporated...is barely acknowleged. Why? Power. THE OCTOPUS, is Scilian. Names like Michele Greco; Luciano Leggio; Salvatore Riina; Tommaso Buscetta & Stefano Bonate blaze across the pages as arch-criminals in a war among themselves (1981-1983) and disorganzed...compromised/corrupted...forces of LAW for world domination defined as a multi, multi-BILLION dollar/year drug trade. ((Sterling's statistics assert drugs...cocaine & heroine... constitute the third most lucrative commodity in modern history: oil; weapons; stuff/ropa)) Heroic Judges Rocco Chinnici & Giovanni Falcone (Magistrates in suicidally dangerous Mafia maxi-trial, held in Italy/Sicily in the 80's;)are described. Americans named Rudolph Giuliani (former Gov.; would-be senator of New York) and Detective Douglas Le Vein are enemies of America's 5 Families and their multi-ethnic, politically correct allies across the USA. They are presented to remind that the WAR...while being lost...has not yet been abandoned... Chapters dealing with racketeer financier Michele Sindona's establishment of an international money laundering network; along with European trade agreements (like NAFTA?) allowing Mafia trafficers to smuggle with impugnity are incredible. Mafia mythology...romantic GODFATHER-type misconceptions...are destroyed. "Men of Honor" are murderers, brutality their political agenda. Claire Sterling has done a fine job on the subject of EVIL. The 5th Estate indisputably exists as " MAFIA without frontiers" (p.314), World Government of Crime. Like REVELATION, this book pronounces damning judgment on a damnable thing....

It's very good and keeps you in the plot but try not to judge it by today's standards. The language shows what we would call today bigotry, prejudice and racism

Edgar Rice Burroughs was less than impressed with Jane as the mate for Tarzan thinking that La, the High Priestess of Opar was a better match. With the Germans making themselves international bad guys by starting the First World War, ERB took advantage of their moving against British possessions in Africa to kill off Jane in this seventh novel in the Tarzan series. "Tarzan the Untamed" was first published as a six-part serial in "The Red Book Magazine" in 1919 with the story continued as "Tarzan and the Valley of Luna" in a five-part serial in "All-Story Weekly" in 1920. The result is one of the most atypical Burroughs pulp fiction yarns, in which the standard romantic adventure has the hero (whether he is Tarzan, Korak, John Carter, David Innes, etc.) pursuing his beloved (Jane, Miriam, Dejah Thoris, etc.) across a dangerous environment (darkest Africa, Barsoom, Pellucidar, etc.). But in "Tarzan the Untamed," the hero is out for revenge. The result is arguably ERB's best Tarzan novel, past paced and with a prose style that rises above his average effort.

This is amply proven in the opening chapter. Hauptmann Fritz Schneider and his men stumble upon the estate of John Clayton, Lord Greystoke, in British East Africa in the fall of 1914. Tarzan and his son, Korak, are away, and Lady Jane does not know that war has broken out between German and the British Empire, so she welcomes them to her home. Meanwhile, Tarzan learns of the war in Nairobi and hurries home only to find the smoking ruins of his estate when he returns. Wasimbu, the son of Muviro, has been crucified on the wall, and the rest of the natives are all dead. Tarzan also finds the charred body of his wife, recognizable only the rings on her fingers. Cursing the Germans, Tarzan swears vengeance and leaves behind the trappings of civilization. During a tremendous thunderstorm, Tarzan kills a leopard, symbolizing the return of the Lord of the Jungle--and this is just the first chapter.

Tarzan heads south into German East Africa and almost immediately begins wrecking havoc on the Germans, displaying same sort of animal cunning and creative cruelty that he displayed as a youth in "Tarzan of the Apes" (and covered a bit as well in "The Jungle Tales of Tarzan"). Even encountering an entrenched German army does not stop Tarzan from getting his revenge on his enemy. Eventually he finds an English flier, Lieutenant Harold Percy Smith-Oldwick, who is captured by cannibals and in need of rescue, and who becomes the character who argues, rather unconvincingly I might add, for Tarzan to be civilized in his one-man war against the Germans. But nothing is going to stop Tarzan from hunting down every last one of the invaders who destroyed his home and killed his wife. Of course, the circumstances of Jane's death lead us to suspect the surprise that awaits Tarzan at the end of this adventure and which sets up the next novel, "Tarzan the Terrible."

The Tarzan series does become extremely formulaic by the time you get halfway through the twenty-four volumes, but it is worthwhile to at least make you way through the first eight volumes (maybe a bit further, especially if you like lions). "Tarzan the Terrible" is perhaps the quintessential Tarzan novel and the original "Tarzan of the Apes" is the one essential ERB novel to read, but I would agree that "Tarzan the Untamed" is the best yarn in the bunch. Final Note: Not surprisingly, this Tarzan novel was not well received in post-war Germany and effectively ended the publication of Burroughs' work in that country.

I like this book alot and the guys who wrote it are super knowledgable. There is a fluorescent Mineral Museum on the net at Wordcraft.net. It mentions this book.

This is an excellent book, but Amazon's price seems bit extravagant. I've seen it listed elsewhere for $14.95, new.

The authors have spent years researching Will Rogers. In this book, they provide insight into the friendship of Will Rogers and Wiley Post. A friendship which ended in their untimely death when their plane crashed in Alaska. The book tells the biography of Rogers and Post. Will Rogers has been writtten about and spoken of often. However, it is hard to find articles about Wiley Post. This was what I was seeking when I read the book, as Wiley and I descended from the same Post family. The book contained articles which I'd never heard before. Very well written and interesting.

IF YOUR INTERESTS TEND TOWARD HISTORICAL FIGURES AND AVIATION, THIS IS AN INTENSELY INTERESTING BOOK. THIS IS NOT ANOTHER REHASH OF THE POST/ROGERS CRASH IN BARROW, BUT RATHER A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF ALL THE PERSONALITIES AND HISTORY BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER THE CRASH AS WELL AS HOW THEY ALL TIED INTO THE TRAGEDY. THE AUTHOR BUILDS A FASCINATING, FACTUAL RECONSTRUCTION OF THE ACCIDENT AND A CONVINCING CASE AS TO WHY IT HAPPENED---AND IT'S NOT WHAT THE AUTHORITIES OF THE TIME WOULD HAVE YOU BELIEVE.

This book deals with an area of relationships that I have not seen covered before. The authors present the information in a clear logical easy to follow format. This book is an easy read that gets your attention. These concepts are so simple that it makes you wonder why no one has covered this area before. I took it out of the library to read and am now purchasing it for my reference collection. I have recommeded it to other professionals in the field of Psychology.

This was an excellent read for what I've been going through with my relationship and I wished I had found it sooner. I don't know who's explored emotional debts first, Stephan Covey or Cohen, Sterling, but Cohen and Sterling give examples and actual cases, whereas Covey does not. If you're starting a new relationship, in one, or nearing the end of one, I strongly advise you pick this book up as soon as possible and find some quiet time.

Is a very good book, is comprensible and good ordered.

I would recommend this book for anyone that is taking the AMP test. All material is laid out very well and it goes over just about everything.

Like a true cookbook, this book gives you recipes for how to make certain meals. It doesn't explain every tool and ingredient in your kitchen: that information can be had anywhere.

The authors present several example projects, then go about solving them, introducing you to certain PHP fundementals (and not-so-fundamentals) along the way.

If you are trying to learn PHP from scratch, then maybe this isn't the book for you. This isn't "PHP Cooking for Dummies" ... and I, for one, am glad.

Having used PHP for about 2 years now, I was fairly comfortable with the language and originally bought the book because I saw Sterling at the PHP Conference and liked his attitude so I thought I'd buy his book. The approach of this book is far different from most of those lofty, heady books with their $foo after $foobar examples of basically useless coding ideas. Sterling takes real life needs and cooks them up with short, useable snippets of code. He says in the opening that, "This book is meant [to used over and over as a daily reference for problem solving]." Well, Sterling, you hit the mark. Another nice thing was that I started finding functions that I didn't even know existed and then started imagining uses for them to solve problems I hadn't thought of as problems!

There is only one shortcoming to this book (with the exception of Julie Meloni becoming Julie "Melon" in the opening section :P), the lack of source code availability. If you want to see the samples in action and play with them, start typing. That's not too bad for most of the 10-30 line snippets, but for things like the basic search-engine code, it's quite tedious. I OCR'd it... but not everyone has that ability. Hopefully SAMS will either get him a CD to include in his book next time or set up some web space for us to grab it.

Have any of you done Perl and worn the Perl Cookbook cover off? Then this is your book.

The layout and general concept of this book is very similar to that other beloved cookbook. Some entries are nearly identical. One feature I adore in particular is multiple recipes for one task, stating which is faster/more efficient, and then telling you why.

I have been scripting PHP for 2 years, mostly professionally, but many fun, personal projects as well. Not only do I wish I had this book, but I am gald that I have it now. I have been reading this thing randomly but voraciously, and I have found little gems even under the elementary topics.

I will be working on 2 major projects soon, the development stage of one has just begun. One is a massive intranet site, (authentication, sessions, customization, etc.) and the other is an ecommerce site/application. I will be using this book continuously as a: 1) code reminder 2) how-to resource 3) code-refiner 4) style-refiner.

I've already used it several times for custom classes - don't pass this one up!

Not checking the publish date, I bought "Hacker Crackdown" thinking it would be a high-tech dossier of a select group of computer hackers. Rather, this book, published in the early 90s, is more of a slice-in-time case study of what hackers really were, pre-internet era.

This book chronials the evolution of the hacker, from the antics of teenaged boys fooling with the now antique manual switchboard, to the 90s version of voice mail cracks and computer document theft. "Crackdown" also gives the reader an understanding of the disjointed law enforcement that fumbled it's way through the grey areas of the law to stop these hackers from electronic document and phone service theft.

The good point is the book is accurate, and does capture the mindset of actual hacking in the 80s and later, right at the dawn of home accessible PCs. However, consider this text a historical document that's a bit outdated by today's standards.

This is a fun read for geeks or anyone interested in hacker culture,or early internet culture. The book is published literally minutes before the internet explosion in the early 90's. So, most of the activity documented takes place on bbs's (bulletin boards) and not the actual internet. The internet is mentioned, but within its original academic/scientific context that we now think of as the roots of the internet.

Its interesting that this 'culture' had just reached the level of warranting an entire book right before it outgrew its own technology and expanded into the realm of the internet.

Don't expect any of Sterling's brilliant literary creativity in this one; just good journalism and documentation. He gives his rationalization for doing the project as his feeling threatened by the possiblity he would be targeted by frightened and misinformed federal agents, as was a fellow cyberpunk fiction writer and game-maker friend of his. All in all, its a fun read with a good punchline...

An exciting read - if you are in any way interested in the early development of the electronic side of our world, right the place were you read this now.

Hacking - OK, sounds like a good selling story.

But this is also about traditions of e-commerce: the phone companies. And about democracy: government vs. civil libertarians meeting on the electronic frontier, both exploring.

It is the history of the settling of cyberspace (how I hated this word until I read this book!).

Yes, history. Although it is less than a decade ago, the times of adventurous exploration are "long" ago, and books _have_ to be read about this.

Example: You read this book about people making their first unsecure steps into cyberspace, and then some day you recognize one of its main actors, Jerry Barlow, in the news speaking for the EFF, now an important organization in the world of civil liberties, but just in its early founding days, when mentioned in "The Hacker Crackdown"

Shurely our children will have excerpts from this in their history books at school :)

Too long, boring plot (near zero drama), peppered with numerous implausibilities from the school of sci-fi writing that thinks it can throw in whatever utopian, hair-brained idea it likes (almost at random) without regard to context or economic plausibility. Bleah. Three stars for concept, minus two for draining the life from it.

Holy Fire-
Is a book about age, and power. It is placed in the future and the elderly are in control. Mia Ziemann is one of these wealthy elderly people who control this society and have all the insight to the technology of the day. Mia is 94 years old and lives in the 21st century; she has lived her life very cautiously, never being too adventurous.
Mia meets an old friend/lover who is on his deathbed. This experience changed her outlook on life. Could there be a chance she could change who she is? How much would it cost her? This brings Mia to the realization that maybe she has been too careful, too unadventurous throughout her life. So now she must escape a team of medical keepers to the underground escaping her life. She then must go trough a very painful procedure that would make her young again. She will enter a false world, a false reality that is just hooked up to a network of computers, in this world is Holy Fire this is a drug that may change all human life forever.

The first rule of fiction is to be true to the characters and let the story flow from them. While a lot of science fiction focuses on ideas to the detriment of characterization, Holy Fire works really hard to be true to its characters, especially Mia/Maya. The ideas are there too, as they always are in Sterling, but the flow naturally from the story. A terrific book.