Other Worlds

Rating:
Summary: Get the Geist
Review: I had not read any of her works as either Barbara Michaels or Elizabeth Peters before, so this was my introduction to her work. This mystery is actually two stories in one, with each story around 100-120 pages long. I preferred the first to the second; both dealt with families being tormented by a spirit of some kind or poltergeist activity. At the close of each story, the ghostly gentleman's club - including Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - draw various conclusions. Thus there is not just one right answer, but instead various opinions and scenarios. Good work, quick read, fun for classic mystery / poltergeist fans.

Rating:
Summary: Dissapointed!
Review: I had waited sooo long for this novel to come out, and when its all been read and done, it was bad. boring and slow, with no intrest at all the novel just never hit it off. I love Barbara Michaels, but this just was not her.

Rating:
Summary: Nice example of critical thinking about the supernatural
Review: I've never read anything by Michaels (who also writes under the name Elizabth Peters), but this seemed mildly interesting (although I gather this book is nothing like her other works). The premise here is neat enough, we are taken to an old-fashioned gentlemen's club somehere in time and allowed to eavesdrop on a convocation of experts on trickery, pschology, and the paranormal, including Harry Houdini, Sir Arthur Conan-Doyle, a veiled Sigmind Freud, Nandor Fodor, and one or two others. They gather to share their research on unexplained paranormal events and propose solutions based on their own theories. The first tale is about the "Bell Witch" hauntings in Tennessee (which I had never heard of). The "ghost story" just barely maintained my interest, but when the sleuths started proposing their solutions, the writing got overly clever in trying to replicate the mannerisms of each. The second story "The Phelps Case" failed to hold my interest and I moved on to other things. If you're into ghost stories you might like this, but otherwise I'd suggest giving it a miss.

Rating:
Summary: disappointed
Review: Interesting retelling of the Bell Witch and the Phelps cases and fairly plausible and interesting theories of how these cases occured after each story. This book is not like any of the other works by Barbara Michaels and one should not draw conclusions on the rest of her books based on this one. However, while missing the usual pace and character development of her other books, Other Worlds is an entertaining read. Though the actual stories were interesting the use of the collection of characters who were telling the stories and discussing the theories added little to the book and the personalities were flat and colorless. Check this book out from the library or find it in paperback, entertaining but not worth the money for a hardback

Rating:
Summary: Paranormal parallelism
Review: Other Worlds is an interesting read and is a departure in style from Michael's normal prose style. It has two stories happening in parallel that are brought together through annecdote and seance. The narrative style took some getting used to even thought I've read lots of her books before.

Rating:
Summary: Barbara in a different light....
Review: The paranormal novel, Other Worlds, is a step away from what Barbara Michaels (Aka Elizabeth Peters) normally writes, which is romantic suspense, and maybe that's why it isn't up to her normal talented standards. Since I listened to the abridged audio, some of the Michaels drama may have been missing. I can't say for sure, but this may be why I came to this conclusion. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed it, but it just didn't have the Michaels suspense that her other titles are blessed with. Another attribute of Ms. Michaels that is missing is the romance, but I don't think it would have been appropriate anyway.

There is a meeting at an exclusive men's club. At this cozy get together is Frank Podmore of the Society for Psychical Research, magician Harry Houdini, Arthur Conan Doyle, Nandor Fodor, former director of the International Institute for Psychical Research. In this meeting, two stories are presented. One is a story of a witch ghost that haunts the Bell family of Tennessee for several years... As a supernatural ghost tale, the book held it's own, with the exception that the characters were not taking it seriously, and this seemed to keep me from taking it seriously. The analysis and criticism after each story didn't bothered me, but some of the individuals' opinions did. Maybe it's just me, but some of the attitude's came across more as sexist than actually debunking. But, all in all, because it is a Barbara Michaels work I would still recommend it to those who know her work and those who don't, after all it was an interesting concept.

When listening to an audio, I like to make mention on how it appealed to me. When I see Barbara Rosenblat's name as the narrator, I pretty much expect a good read, and this one was, but I wonder if the story would have been a little more engaging with a male narrator. Don't let my wonderings stop you from trying the audio or the book. It was an interesting paranormal read.

Rating:
Summary: Is it or isn't it....might be might not be.
Review: They meet after dark in an exclusive mens club. Amidst the swirling fog, they arrive wrapped tight in their cloaks, to tear apart the theories presented to them after much deliberation. They are the famous Harry Houdini, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle along with other prominent members of society who are interested in illusions and psychoanalysis. After being presented with strange stories, of what appears to be poltergeist or demonic activity, they present their analysis and conjectures.

It is an interesting concept for a book and it was an out of the ordinary read but the analysis left me wanting more of a concrete explanation. I would give this one 3.5 stars. It was a quick read and the two main stories held my interest. I found myself trying to figure out how the manipulations were taking place, but like magic tricks in Vegas it was shear speculation. Kelsana 11/03/01

Rating:
Summary: I can't believe she wrote this poorly
Review: This book was very disappointing, especially since I had waited so long for another Michaels' novel. I didn't mind the change in genres, but these stories didn't give me the chills the way all her others have. Not even one tiny goosebump. In addition, the second story was poorly edited, with the name of the little boy switching back and forth from Harry to Henry, sometimes even on the same page. I can't believe someone would recommend this book when such a distracting and confusing mistake pops up again and again. I couldn't bear to give it only one star, since I feel so loyal, but in my heart I know that I really think it deserved no star. Try one of her other books - you'll be much more pleased.