No one has done more than Renehan to explore and explain the Byzantine tale of abolitionist John Brown and his idealistic but confused (and sometimes absurd) northeastern bankers. This is a splendid story that, by polishing with his customary narrative excellence, Renehan has turned into a real gem.

THE SECRET SIX does a wonderful job of revealing the tangled web of intrigue that lay behind John Brown's 1859 incursion at Harpers Ferry. This is stunning stuff: six affluent northeasterners, one of them the husband of poetess Julia Ward Howe and another the leading Unitarian minister of his day, financing terrorism in slave states -- and going about it methodically, calmly, and deliberately. What a story. And so well told.

THE SECRET SIX paints a vivid portrait of the northeastern aristocrats who financed John Brown's infamous 1859 misadventure at Harpers Ferry. Renehan's elegant, complelling treatment of true historical facts reads like a novel. All the members of the Six -- Franklin Sanborn, Theodore Parker, Thomas Wentworth Higginson, Samuel Gridley Howe, George Luther Stearns and New York's Gerrit Smith -- are brilliantly sketched by Renehan, who also does a first-rate job rendering the unpredictable and unstable John Brown. Most importantly, Renehan proves expert in unscrambling the many Byzantine intrigues that combine to make up the story of Brown and his often-perplexed benefactors.

There are many touching, humorous, profound thoughts beings passed on in these letters between the 4 women. However, I had trouble following who was who. First, I went to the back and read each author's personal statement. Then I found myself going back again and again. It think it would be helpful to have a "time line" for each of the authors so their letters could be put in a better context.

This is a great read!! This book shows the value of long-time friendships and demonstrates how friends are fun during the good times, but are necessary to help get through the hard times.

These four women share their personal lives with us: their triumphs and their trials. A book that motivates you to call and connect with that close friend that you may not have found time for recently. This is a beautiful story of friendship and the value of sisterhood.

Keep us posted ladies!! We are waiting for Wearing Purple - the Sequel.

This book is a marvelous expression of the true love and support that comes only from having good friends. I initially purchased the book simply because I know one of the authors. I wanted to get an autographed copy for my sister. I naturally purchased one for myself as well. It has helped me to refocus on that which brings true happiness, the joy of having a very few good friends who accept you as you are and love you unconditionally.

In this book ashelys boyfriend Ross is in a play and he has to kiss MK in the play and he hasn't kissed Ashely yet so Ashely wants to kiss him. What will they do? Find out in this great book!

This book is all about a school play. A musical, to be specific. It was really good. Mary-Kate got the lead, and her understudy tried to make her get sick and mess stuff up for her. That's all I can tell you or else I would be spoiling the story for you!

This book was really good. It has a great plot and is interesting. This book is about when Mary-Kate tries out for a part in the play that they're performing at White Oak (Mary-Kate and Ashley's bording school). She tries out for a part that doesn't have many lines, but ends up getting the lead part! Ashley is incredibly happy for her sister even though Ashley tried out too, and didn't get a part. She's happy until she realizes Ross, Ashley's boyfriend is playing Mary-Kate's boyfriend in the play. And at the end Mary-Kate gets to kiss Ross. When Mary-Kate asks Ashley if it's all right that she kisses Ross, Ashley says yes. But when they're practicing Ashley does everything to stop Mary-Kate from kissing him!

I think War of the Wardrobes was a pretty good book. This is what it's about -- Ashley HATES school uniforms. But she wrote an article about dress codes for the school newspaper - and now everyone thinksn she likes them. Students at White Oak Academy might have to wear uniforms - and they're blaming Ashley!
Mary-Kate agrees to help Ashley ban uniforms forever. But they'll have to work fast-or face a fashionless future!
I found all of that information on the back of the book. It's a pretty good book. I have 17 two of a kind books, and this was a pretty good book. If you are an olsen fan, then I recommend that you read this book and all the other ones!!!

Ever been pushed to wear something you don't even like one bit? Mary- Kate and Ashley did by having to wear uniforms. But they are going to stop it. Mary-Kate and Ashley and their friends held up signs and made deals. One of them was that Ashley had to make a new design for the uniforms. What will happen?

I liked this book because they didn't just stand there and let something they didn't like happen. They didn't want uniforms! Even if they got in trouble they still didn't want uniforms.

I would suggest this book to people who are into fashion and wardrobes and chapter books. If you want to find out what happens read War of the Wardrobe. Have fun!

...this book is great,cool,amazing... this book is everything you are looking for!!!! Even if your not an Olsenfan you would love all TOAK books.. This book called "War of the wardrobes" has a great plot, You are gonna love reading about Mary-Kate and Ashley on White Oak... This book is about two teen girls having problems,liking boys and having fun in the end a great book 2 read, you could borrow it from a friend but better buy it because this is one of that great books you wanna read over and over again!!! buy it now!!

This was a good book...it was difficult getting past some of the terms used for objects. This sometimes required reading paragraphs a second time.

The story gives a satisfactory opening to the world of the Harpers. If you haven't read any of the 16 books in the Harpers series, start here.

I've read many of the novels set in the Forgotten Realms world. The books are usually hit-and-miss in terms of writing quality. (Ed Greenwood, the talented creator of the FR setting, doesn't seem to include fiction-writing among his talents.) "The Parched Sea," by Troy Denning is one of the better examples of the genre.

TPS has been amply summarized in past reviews. I just thought I'd point out several bright points in the book's favor:

* Well-researched. You can tell Denning did his homework in the Bedouin lifestyle. He sprinkles some loan-words from the language here-and-there in the text. The culture is fascinating, and a bit alien.

* The plot is anything but predictable. At several points, the plot seems headed for a cliché, but Denning deftly veers away. I'll avoid specifics here... no spoilers.

* The characters, especially Ruha and Lander, are well-developed. Ruha's stubborness and Lander's arrogance are not appealing at times... but all-too-human nonetheless. The minor characters, like Kadumi -- Ruha's 13 year old brother-in-law and protector -- are well-drawn.

* There is a scene near the end that brings tears to my eyes every time; and books don't normally move me.

Try out TPS, a great introduction to the Forgotten Realms!

Unlike many other Forgotten Realms titles, this one is not part of an ongoing series. Though it is considered the first book in 'The Harpers,' it doesn't carry on from anything and, at least so far, doesn't carry on to anything.

The setting is the Anauroch desert, and the Harper in question is not one of the usual suspects (Elminster, Alustriel, Arilyn, etc.) but a relative nobody. He is dispatched to gather information about rumored Zhentarim activities in the hostile land, but ends up doing far more than merely snooping around.

Though important, the Harper is really only a secondary character in the plot. The right of protagonist is reserved for an unlikely individual- an ostracized witch named Ruha. I suppose it just wouldn't be the Realms if there wasn't some good old-fashioned magic involved, and she is quite an interesting character to personify it.

Further details will be left to the reader to discover, but rest assured this tale is packed full of high adventure and plenty of Zhent-killing goodness. The setting is also unique, and Denning does an admirable job of portraying a much-overlooked portion of the Realms. The only problem about this novel is that it's old, and apparently hasn't been in print for a while. If you can find a copy, however, get it! You won't be disappointed.

Almost impossible at times to put down! A must read!

This is an excellent mystery novel with a twist! The characters were excellent! And the fact that the heroine has psychic abilities is done very tastefully. Phyllis Whitney is an excellent author! I could not put this book down, I didn't sleep for fear of missing some revelation in the story!! Read this book.

Rainbow In The Mist is written with a fine hand. Lili reminded me of a famous true life psychic. The characters were definitely developed to the point they interacted well together and complimented each character in turn. A real page turner, it was hard to put down and I finished it in one day. It holds a surprise ending. For once, this writer has written a book that I did not guess the ending or the coming events. Absolutely superb!

DAUGHTER OF THE STARS is the story of Lacey Elliot, and her search for answers about a family she knows nothing about. Her mother Amelia is recovering from cancer surgery when she receives a letter that Lacey intercepts. The letter is from a relative, Vinnie, who is the sister of Amelia's deceased mother Ida. From this letter, Lacey's search for her roots begins. She travels to Harper's Ferry where Vinnie and other family members reside, and soon Lacey finds out the many secrets that her mother kept all those years.

The main secret is a possible murder, the unsolved murder or disappearance of Lacey's father Brad. No one seems to know what really happened. Was he really murdered? Or did he just disappear without a trace? His involvement with Amelia's sister Ardra was what caused the disappearance, but no one wants to talk about it.

Lacey gets deeper and deeper involved, befriending a family friend and historian, Ryan, whom she falls in love with. Between the two of them they unravel the secrets that lie at Harper's Ferry.

I enjoyed this story a lot, but had a big problem with all the characters. I didnt' like any of them, except for the outsider Ryan. All the characters were either too uncaring, or too soft (no backbone) and I couldn't sympathiZe with any one, including the main character. The storyline however is what kept me reading, because I really DID want to know who killed Brad!

This book is about a young woman named Lacey Elliot whose mother Amelia tells her nothing about her father or family any of the time while she is growing up. She is now twenty- nine years old and her mother just had surgery for cancer. They receive a letter in the mail that says it is very urgent that Amelia comes home and it is signed by her Aunt Vinnie. When Lacey reads this she is happy to discover she has other family members. Her mother is too weak to go home; which is Harpers Ferry, Virginia. So Lacey returns and gets to discover somethings she wanted to know and things she didn't. I really enjoyed this novel. It wasn't as bad as I thought it was. The author could have made it a little more challenging though by not making it so obvious. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a little mystery.

A Review by Liz

Lacey Elliot has lived in Charlottesville, Virginia all her life. Her mother is recovering from breast cancer surgery and has never told Lacey anything about her Father. Lacey becomes curious about her family, which had only been, to her knowledge, her mother. Her mother receives and urgent letter that she can't handle so she asks Lacey to read it to her. To help out a mystery her mother isn't strong enough to solve, Lacey goes on a journey to her hometown she never knew of and starts finding interesting surprises about her family. Lacey has to deal throughout the story with being accused, protecting her mom and finding out the truth about what happened to her father.

This story is very hard to keep up with. I really liked the way the author ties in the history of Virginia(the civil war), her relatives of that time, with the present. When Lacey meets her Great-Great-Grandmother, she tells her about all her past relatives that had lived in the house is lives in now. She tells their stories and as the book progresses, their pasts tie into her present. Her great-great-grandmother is very controlling and always seems to only tell Lacey what she wants to and sometimes chooses to leave important information out. Lacey's relationship with her mother also makes it seem like no one wants to let her in on her family's past and history. Her mother says, "I'm only trying to protect you" but doesn't realize how important it is to lacey to know about her family. When Lacey leaves Charlottesville to seek for answers, she learns many things about her mother that she didn't know which made Lacey feel more alone, thinking she doesn't even know her own mother. This story has bits and pieces of the Civil War and provides you with a bit of history along the way with a wonderful mystery. You never want to put the book down because surprising things just keep happening to keep the story alive.

I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who would enjoy a good mystery and who would like to know a little about the history of Virginia. It reads pretty easy but it really makes you think.

I am not like the others here who seem to know a lot about reviewing dictionaries. I just know and love Portuguese, and have found this book to contain about 96% percent of the words I look up (I look up a lot of computing technology words that still aren't there). My Brazilian friends have been impressed with the accuracy of the definitions in it, if that counts for anything.

I've been using this dictionary for about 6 months and have found it invaluable in my communications with friends in Brasil. It's very rare that a word cannot be found, or its meaning be off the mark. It's even rather up-to-date with common technical terms. I agree with other reviews that the quality of the binding is poor. I'm not hard on the book and already the binding is breaking apart in two or three places. Although it's not a grammar study book, some of the basic verb conjugations are given in a list in the front of the book. Every dictionary editor seems to have their own proprietary scheme of showing how a word should be pronounced. It always takes a bit of study to figure this out with a new dictionary. This book is no exception. All in all, I think it's an excellent resource and I recommend it highly. I'm even going to take a copy to Brasil with me as a gift to my friend there who wants to improve her English.

A great dictionary but like most Portuguese reference books, it is behind its French and Spanish counterparts. True to its cover, it does have a lot of contemporary words and meanings. It's easy to use but lacks the grammar sections the Harper Collins Spanish and French Concise dictionaries have. My dicionary fell apart at the binding too. The adhesive isn't very durable. I also wonder why the English-Portuguese section comes first while in the Harper Collins Spanish and French dictionaries the Spanish-English and French-English sections come first respectively. This dictionary is worth the money but future editions should be better.

This book was pretty disappointing. Mrs. Harper had a tendency of repeating information pertaining to the characters in the novel almost word for word every few chapters. It felt as if she wanted to be sure that even the basest of readers would internalize certain facts and never forget them. In addition, while the book appears to be fictional, at the very end of the novel she begins to refer to the crisis of September 11th. This really detracted from the story. Instead of making the work become more alive by tieing it into modern day occurences she widened the gap between a badly writen novel and real life events. To all those considering reading this book it is highly probable that you will be able to locate a better read that at the end you wont feel like the hours you spent reading the book were a waste.

When Claire's husband turns up dead- an apparent suicide- she refuses to accept the medical examiner's conclusion. She knows that he was murdered and she enlists the help of the only person she can truly trust- the Sheriff. Together, she and Nick (the Sheriff), work together to bring down a killer and on the way find love and adventure.

I did like this book! There were moments of cheesyness but that was mostly at the end. The book had a lot of twists and turns and the WHY was even more intriguing than the WHO. I definitely recommend this book.

Great plot, fascinating action. A great read.

I would have definitely given this 5 stars if there were a bit more on ODBC/RDO and ADO; nonetheless, I have gotten a lot of mileage out of the book. Definitely a recommended read.

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This book is truly excellent, it covers everything that you ever have to do when working with VB and databases. It has very many examples, which are included on the CD and do really work!! These examples are very clearly explained and help a great deal in understanding some of the more complex topics. I would recommend this book to everyone who uses VB.