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Rating: 
Summary: My personal favorite of this series
Review: Moving back and forth in time and yet appearing timeless, this chapter in the world of Paradys has Jewish exorcism, sex-incarnate beasts, Romans and doomed lovers. Every element is precise and every part connects to the other parts with a beautiful serendipity. If you noticed that the other reviews of this book are brimming with fantastic prose and wonderous metaphors, it is because the fairy-tale inspired style of Tanith Lee inspires her readers to greater heights of passion than other novelists. I also like the fact that the Jewish scholar saves the day. Why should the priests have all the fun in exorcisms? Jewish mysticism is much more fun than Catholic mysticism any day.
Rating:
Summary: The Book of the Beast
Review: Much better than the first book, this one is coherent and riveting. Told out of sequence, yet in perfect logical order, this is the tale of a family haunted by a tragic demonic curse. There are enough shivers and surprises to satisfy even a long time fantasy/horror fan. Tanith Lee has found a theme in the twisting of sex and horror, so the book not for the innocent or prudish, but there's less emphasis on shock value than the previous book in the series (The Book of the Damned). What is emphasized is good storytelling - few can touch her when she's at her best.
Rating:
Summary: The Book of the Beast
Review: Much better than the first book, this one is coherent and riveting. Told out of sequence, yet in perfect logical order, this is the tale of a family haunted by a tragic demonic curse. There are enough shivers and surprises to satisfy even a long time fantasy/horror fan. Tanith Lee has found a theme in the twisting of sex and horror, so the book not for the innocent or prudish, but there's less emphasis on shock value than the previous book in the series (The Book of the Damned). What is emphasized is good storytelling - few can touch her when she's at her best.
Rating:
Summary: a dark fairytale
Review: The story begins with Raolin Darksbane. He is staying in a haunted house, and he meets the ghost and learns her story and then becomes infected himself with the curse. The story then follows the exploits of a jewish exorcist and goes back to Roman Paradys where the curse begins. The story goes forward and then it goes back. I liked the story of the "doomed" Heloise and her strange destiny, intricately linked with the story of cupid and Physche and what happens if you look closer at things that you are not supposed to look at. I also liked the story of the roman soldier, his dilemma between looking life and destroying the curse once and for all. Great descriptions, you could almost hear the trumpets at the roman fort as the Roman soldier stayed up and awake to await the beast. The ending seemed rushed to me, the exorcism seemed like the easy way out and the spirituality of it left me tired and lost. But a good story.
Rating:
Summary: ..., Sultry, Vibrant
Review: There is something about the prose of Tanith Lee. You are swept into what ever world she feels like showing you. THe narrators and/or central characters seem alive. So much so, you can feel there is something they are keeping back, some vital clue, some revelation of soul. It's nearly palatable.
She sets depth of place, there is a real sense of being there. I felt like I was in Florence, in the midst of some twisted Carnivall. Or maybe in the mirror of one of the great European Palaces, seeing it from inside the flame of a candle.
The stories warrant being read several times, to absorb the majesty.
Rating:
Summary: ..., Sultry, Vibrant
Review: There is something about the prose of Tanith Lee. You are swept into what ever world she feels like showing you. THe narrators and/or central characters seem alive. So much so, you can feel there is something they are keeping back, some vital clue, some revelation of soul. It's nearly palatable.
She sets depth of place, there is a real sense of being there. I felt like I was in Florence, in the midst of some twisted Carnivall. Or maybe in the mirror of one of the great European Palaces, seeing it from inside the flame of a candle.
The stories warrant being read several times, to absorb the majesty.
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