Hellenic Immortal

Posted on May 2, 2012 by astrid

Book Review and Interview with the Author, Gene Doucette

Hellenic Immortal by Gene Doucette

Hellenic Immortal, written by Gene Doucette, is a sequel to Immortal. I have reviewed Immortal, with an interview with Gene Doucette here. It’s one my favorite book from last year, as you could see from the my Goodreads rating here.

About Hellenic Immortal

An oracle has predicted the sojourner’s end, which is a problem for Adam insofar as he has never encountered an oracular prediction that didn’t come true . . . and he is the sojourner. To survive, he’s going to have to figure out what a beautiful ex-government analyst, an eco-terrorist, a rogue FBI agent, and the world’s oldest religious cult all want with him, and fast.

And all he wanted when he came to Vegas was to forget about a girl. And maybe have a drink or two.

“I am probably not the best source when it comes to who invented what. For a long time I thought I invented the wheel.”

–Adam the Immortal

My Review

I am always a bit skeptical about sequels. Especially if it’s the second book. Most times, it failed my expectation by either being a preamble to the amazing conclusion for the third book, or just plain boring. I am happy to report this is definitely not the case with Hellenic Immortal.

It continues on the adventures of Adam, some years after Immortal. It follows a Greek cult and mythology background, some crazy environmentalist, packs a lot of action and a little bit of romance.

The beginning sold me right to it. Adam is as sarcastic as ever. He said the craziest things that made me laughing out loud:

“… instead I was drinking in Las Vegas and quietly wishing for a nice plague or two to make the planet a bit less crowded.”

It just shows how honest he is. He definitely says what he thinks, and when you are sixty thousand years old or something, I do believe you would have such confidence. I would be lying if I said I never had any bad thoughts crossing my mind when I came across annoying people, so I find this part very refreshing.

The story picks up nicely after that. I especially love the Greek cult background to this book. It ties the story very well and it gives a nice blend of historical and current events. It also adds a sense of realness to it, making Adam’s character felt very present. It seems like he could be the next guy you saw in a bar. (No, please don’t try to pretend you’re Adam when you met me.)

Continue reading →

Giving Me the Permission To Read

Posted on February 22, 2010 by astrid

I know it sounded silly, I mean, I LOVE to read. It is my hobby. And as I writer I could even categorize it under research. BUT lately I haven’t been able to do it. I get a somehow guilty feeling when I got lost in a book. Perhaps because I didn’t feel I have done enough work in that day, or perhaps I was thinking that reading is somewhat an indulgence.

It is quite scary for me when I realized that I haven’t been reading that much last year!

Lucky for me, a couple of weeks back, Amle came up with an idea to read a book every week. I’m thinking, this was probably the kind of motivation I have been looking for!!! So I joined her, along with some friends from my Plurk circle, and now I can proudly say: I’m right back on track with my reading *happydance*.

It’s not that hard to do, given that I could actually read the thickest Harry Potter book in a day. It’s just lately I have been hesitating to get immersed in a book. Now I have another reason to do it. A permission, that it was something I had to do, with a deadline set in my head.

Along the way, I also became more motivated to write and edit (even more reason to do a happydance ). I used to find it funny when someone had to give themselves permission to do ‘fun’ things. But, you know what, sometimes that’s exactly what we need. Not a kick in a back to force me to move forward, but a gentle helping hand to motivate me .

A Certain Slant of Light

Posted on January 30, 2010 by astrid

A Certain Slant of Light, by Laura Whitcomb.

I love the story idea of this book. It was told by Helen, a Light, a soul who can’t pass to the next world. Helen had been cleaving hosts, the Quick, for over a hundred year. The story started when she met a Quick teenager who could see her. Never in her Light years any Quick could see her. Later on she found out that the Quick turned out to be a former Light, James, who possessed a human body whose soul had left it. The conflict arises when they fall in love but they can’t exactly touch each other, being in a different state.

I like how she come up with a new definition of Light, which didn’t put it into something that was scary or weird… In another tale, the Light would be ghost or spirit, but ghost and spirit have an emotion attached to them, and Light is neutral.

Also, the book started with one of the best opening sentence I’ve ever read:

Someone was looking at me, a disturbing sensation if you’re dead.

I can feel the story unravels just from the first sentence. I wish I could write something like that . I find the storytelling goes on smoothly throughout the pages, making it a book I couldn’t put down. However, I was a bit disappointed near the end, because I felt it was somewhat rushed, as if it was sprinting when it saw the finish line. But maybe it could be also me, disappointed that the book was almost finished.

I think it’s a good book, the story is intriguing and different from what I usually come across. I would recommend it for people who like romance stories with a twist, or stories with more spiritual depth.

15 Books I'll Always Remember

Posted on January 18, 2010 by astrid

It’s originally a facebook note. Was tagged there by Ambu Dian. I decided to post it here too.

Make a list of the 15 books that you’ll always remember. Don’t think too hard. Choose the first 15 books that you’ll be able to remember in 15 minutes.

St. Clare series by Enid Blyton. It made me want to live in a girls’ boarding school when I was a kid. But yeah, I changed my mind when I was older.
The Secret Garden by by Frances Hodgson Burnett. The idea of having a secluded spot in my garden where nobody can find me fascinates me for years!
Matilda by Roald Dahl. I want to lift chalks with my mind power too!
Harry Potter series by JK Rowling. Nuff said.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. Perhaps it’s because I’m writing a book with a similar setting, but I think this one is brilliant.
The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella. There’s a piece of me in there somewhere… I won’t tell where
Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. Like it or not, I will always remember the sparkling vampires!
Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. It changed my perspective on money.
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. When you want something, the whole Universe conspires to help you realize your desire.
Pippi Långstrump series by Astrid Lindgren. I read this one in three languages .
Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Never stop being a child at heart.
On Writing by Stephen King. Best writer’s memoir.
Being Happy! by Andrew Matthews. This one changed my view on life. Be happy, now. Don’t wait until tomorrow.
Gede Prama’s book. [note for non Indonesian reader: he's an Indonesian philosophical, spiritual writer]
A Chance of Sunshine by Jimmy Liao. A lovely illustrated book about love at first sight.

Feel free to do your own, in the comments or a link back on your blog. I’d love to know which books you remembered most!

Ayat-Ayat Cinta (Love Verses)

Posted on February 21, 2007 by astrid

Cover Ayat Ayat Cinta

Author : Habiburrahman El Shirazy

Published : December 2004, 406 pages

Genre : Fiction, Islamic, Indonesian

Lina recommended this book; she said it gave her mixed beautiful feelings. I peeked inside and I remember reading parts of this in a continuous story part in Republika newspaper about three years ago. Sadly, I did not know the ending because that was the time I went to Germany. I remember that it was beautifully written, especially for people who adores Islam or who wanted to learn and adore it and I was curious about the ending, so I bought the book.

The main character is an Indonesian student in Egypt. He was an exceptional student, with an exceptional akhlak (mentality?), a very kind person who always do the right thing according to the guidance of Islam, Al-Qur’an, and the Prophet Muhammad. He must be good looking as well (at least presentable enough), considering all the girls that was mentioned in this story fell in love with him (there are four of them, from different nationality and background).

It is a love story, but it was a love story written in a perspective of an Islamic scholar. True love between a man and a woman only comes after marriage. It is a guidance of how to love (and how to be loved) in ways that did not collide with the teachings of the Prophet. It is a book about Islam teaching, because it has explanations of Qur’an and Hadits. It is an idealistic portrayal of how a guy should react (and how a good moslem girl should act).

I kind of find it hard to swallow that the author made it that all the girls love the main character. But then again, it is a romance novel where everything is allowed to be over the top. The main character is totally flawless guy, a perfect person. A dream guy for a moslem woman.

In the end, I believe this book is only for those who love Islam or try to love it. For those who don’t it is probably too idealistic and unreal. The Qur’an and Hadits was a little bit too much and sometimes a bit forced upon. For me it is a bit boring to read all the quotes (*devil wink*)

Final rating:

9/10, if you’re a good moslem or would like to know/be one.

5/10, if you’re easily bored with preaching or you don’t believe in Islam that much.

(Bought: Gramedia Paris Van Java, Bandung on 1 February 2007, Read: 1-2 February 2007 (around 8 hours))

astrid paramita

writer, designer, and a (slight) narcissist

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