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Den forbudte bog
I bryllupsgave har Orsina Riviera della Motta fået en yderst hemmelig og meget speciel udgave af en gammel og, der er fyldt med mystiske alkymistiske symboler.
Orsina tilkalder sin tidligere lærer og mentor Leo Kavenaugh for at få ham til at hjælpe sig med at tyde bogen. De kaster sig over opgaven med stor entusiasme, men da Orsinas onkel erfarer, at Orsina har vist bogen til Leo, bliver han rasende og forbyder Orsina at arbejde sammen med Leo. Kun medlemmer af familien må se bogens indhold.
Men Leo og Orsina fortsætter i al hemmelighed, og snart går det op for dem, at bogen rummer en kraft, der i de forkerte hænder kan misbruges med de mest katastrofale konsekvenser til følge.
Så begynder bomberne at sprænge i katolske katedraler, og kort tid senere forsvinder Orsinas søster sporløst...
Orsina tilkalder sin tidligere lærer og mentor Leo Kavenaugh for at få ham til at hjælpe sig med at tyde bogen. De kaster sig over opgaven med stor entusiasme, men da Orsinas onkel erfarer, at Orsina har vist bogen til Leo, bliver han rasende og forbyder Orsina at arbejde sammen med Leo. Kun medlemmer af familien må se bogens indhold.
Men Leo og Orsina fortsætter i al hemmelighed, og snart går det op for dem, at bogen rummer en kraft, der i de forkerte hænder kan misbruges med de mest katastrofale konsekvenser til følge.
Så begynder bomberne at sprænge i katolske katedraler, og kort tid senere forsvinder Orsinas søster sporløst...
344 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2007
11 people are currently reading
854 people want to read
About the author
Guido Mina di Sospiro
12 books4 followersGuido Mina de Sospiro is an award-winning, internationally published novelist born in Argentina, raised in Italy, and educated in the United States. A graduate of the University of Southern California, he lives in the Washington, DC, area with his wife and their three sons.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 12, 2020
Citind cateva recenzii, am avut impresia ca pun mana pe carte rara. Subiectul mi se pare interesant, doar ca stilul m-a dezamagit profund, extrem de copilaros, de superflu si de suprafata. Am un sentimen de dezamagire. Abia spre sfarsit cartea mi s-a parut mai bunicica, ceea ce m-a facut sa o ridic la 2,5 spre 3 stele.
Cred ca exista carti mult mai frumoase si mai interesante, mai complexe pe subiecte asemanatoare, astfel incat nu recomand cartea.
Cred ca exista carti mult mai frumoase si mai interesante, mai complexe pe subiecte asemanatoare, astfel incat nu recomand cartea.
May 14, 2013
A “Master Key” to understand our times
“The Forbidden Book” is one of those rare works of contemporary fiction that escape the compartimentalization of the literary market and delight both the imagination and the intellect. It’s based on a provocative premise: That the roots of violence and “evil” may be closer to “home” than we think, and that a “limping” power often shoots itself on the foot to remain standing.
The authors achieved a combination of masterful and inspiring storytelling with first-rate historical research about aspects which, although fundamental to the understanding of western history, politics and culture, are generally left outside the realm of mainstream academic or media research. By basing character construction and plot development on archetypes and metaphor, Godwin and Mina di Sospiro did more, much more than writing an excellent novel that builds factual historical knowledge into an exciting contemporary plot: They showed that Western Esotericism can be the subject of intelligent, non-escapist fiction. Besides, the authors did what can be called “public service” by providing the discerning reader with information than can be used to understand: 1) How culture, politics, religion and gender relations have been subliminally manipulated throughout history to promote and maintain a certain power structure; 2) The roots of the paradigmatic crisis that is currently affecting that power structure; 3) How a new paradigm of politics, gender relations, religion/spirituality and culture/conception of the self is emerging, despite the frantic efforts of the “old” paradigm to prevent itself from crumbling. “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi”. Congratulations, Joscelyn Godwin and Guido Mina di Sospiro!
“The Forbidden Book” is one of those rare works of contemporary fiction that escape the compartimentalization of the literary market and delight both the imagination and the intellect. It’s based on a provocative premise: That the roots of violence and “evil” may be closer to “home” than we think, and that a “limping” power often shoots itself on the foot to remain standing.
The authors achieved a combination of masterful and inspiring storytelling with first-rate historical research about aspects which, although fundamental to the understanding of western history, politics and culture, are generally left outside the realm of mainstream academic or media research. By basing character construction and plot development on archetypes and metaphor, Godwin and Mina di Sospiro did more, much more than writing an excellent novel that builds factual historical knowledge into an exciting contemporary plot: They showed that Western Esotericism can be the subject of intelligent, non-escapist fiction. Besides, the authors did what can be called “public service” by providing the discerning reader with information than can be used to understand: 1) How culture, politics, religion and gender relations have been subliminally manipulated throughout history to promote and maintain a certain power structure; 2) The roots of the paradigmatic crisis that is currently affecting that power structure; 3) How a new paradigm of politics, gender relations, religion/spirituality and culture/conception of the self is emerging, despite the frantic efforts of the “old” paradigm to prevent itself from crumbling. “Sic Transit Gloria Mundi”. Congratulations, Joscelyn Godwin and Guido Mina di Sospiro!
November 3, 2014
I won this as part of Goodreads' First Read program. Here is my honest review.
I really enjoyed and really disliked this book. I would yo-yo back and forth depending on what parts I read. Sure the book is well written and reads quickly, the story moves fast with plenty of twists and turns, it is rooted in actual history, and deals with the esoteric and occult. But the plot is predictable and thin, the characters are cliched, the bad guy is under-developed, and we are told something happened after that fact way too often rather than reading about it as it happens. At times it reads like a textbook (bound to happen when an actual textbook is quoted repeatedly). As an aside, when a word has multiple meanings and one of those meanings is widely known and the other isn't, go with the widely known definition. Therefore, protesting your innocence sounds like it means you are objecting to it, not that you are earnestly declaring your innocence. And when you protest your innocence a half dozen times, it just gets on my nerves. As a further aside, it got me wondering how many words are out there are their own antonym. They even have a word for that, it's called a contronym! Who knew?
Anyway, I give this book 3 stars as it kept my interest, but it was too cliched, dragged too often, and too much action happened off the pages for me to really enjoy the book.
I really enjoyed and really disliked this book. I would yo-yo back and forth depending on what parts I read. Sure the book is well written and reads quickly, the story moves fast with plenty of twists and turns, it is rooted in actual history, and deals with the esoteric and occult. But the plot is predictable and thin, the characters are cliched, the bad guy is under-developed, and we are told something happened after that fact way too often rather than reading about it as it happens. At times it reads like a textbook (bound to happen when an actual textbook is quoted repeatedly). As an aside, when a word has multiple meanings and one of those meanings is widely known and the other isn't, go with the widely known definition. Therefore, protesting your innocence sounds like it means you are objecting to it, not that you are earnestly declaring your innocence. And when you protest your innocence a half dozen times, it just gets on my nerves. As a further aside, it got me wondering how many words are out there are their own antonym. They even have a word for that, it's called a contronym! Who knew?
Anyway, I give this book 3 stars as it kept my interest, but it was too cliched, dragged too often, and too much action happened off the pages for me to really enjoy the book.
July 19, 2014
What initially strikes the reader of hermetic literature as a highly sought after premise for an exegesis on one of the most arcane and rare books of the Ars Regia variant of Renaissance Hermeticism (Il Mondo Magico degli Heroi)quickly becomes bogged down in a schlock parody of post-modern romance novels. Replete with banal and tin foil-like characters such as an evil Julius Evola-like Baron and a protagonist cum-do-gooder American priest who is torn between mundane love and the quest to unravel the mysteries underlying The Magical World of Heroes. Serious readers interested in the arcane variant of spiritual Hermeticism underlying this novel are better directed to check out the original works by Cesare Della Riviera, Julius Evola and Giuliano Kremmerz.
December 11, 2010
Efter at have kæmpet mig igennem de første 100 sider, indså jeg at denne bog bare ikke fængede mig, men heller ikke gjorde mig nysgerrig over slutningen, så den blev lagt til side.
November 26, 2017
Well, this one is unexpected, taking the reader deep into an esoteric world of subtleties and their dangerous, and often tragic influences. This is definitely not for you if you do not have a real open mind. It is however an extremely enjoyable read, with a multitude of unwritten warnings for those who dabble into some forgotten (and perhaps rightly so) arts.
December 20, 2019
I was surprised to have enjoyed this book and it was more extreme than I usually go... reminded me of an adult version of the davinci code... which is not a great comparison, I know, but it was an interesting read.
March 11, 2018
Bogged down in detail which is probably important to Jocelyn but creep and over dramatised.
December 4, 2013
[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the Goodreads Giveaway]
Overall, this book was just "okay" for me, but since it wasn't bad I didn't want to just give it two stars, so that's why it gets three.
Minor spoilers after this point.
I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the book, but felt that it was trying to go in three different directions, none of which matched up quite as well as it seems the authors had wanted. It's one part mystery - who killed Angela and kidnapped Orsina? - one part mysticism - the Baron's magical powers and those he is trying to pass to Orsina - and one part, well, just plain weird - the Baron's influence over his "students" in getting them to blow up monuments to make it look like the Muslims are behind it. I understand where the authors were trying to go with that last bit, but I really don't think they arrived.
Inspector Ghedina is a fool of a character, Orsina's weak, as is Angela, and Leo is the only one worth much of anything in the grand scheme of things.
The sexual aspect was... well, gross. Again, I get where the authors were going, and I see its relevance to the story, but it kind of grossed me out. Plus the fact that Orsina just kind of makes me feel like she's vapid and shallow, with no real emotions to speak of other than her love for Leo.
I guess if you were a fan of The DaVinci Code and other such nonsense, this book might appeal to you. I didn't mind it, it wasn't offensive, I just didn't really find it compelling. And there was so much Italian in it that even with translations it was distracting.
Overall, this book was just "okay" for me, but since it wasn't bad I didn't want to just give it two stars, so that's why it gets three.
Minor spoilers after this point.
I enjoyed the mystery aspect of the book, but felt that it was trying to go in three different directions, none of which matched up quite as well as it seems the authors had wanted. It's one part mystery - who killed Angela and kidnapped Orsina? - one part mysticism - the Baron's magical powers and those he is trying to pass to Orsina - and one part, well, just plain weird - the Baron's influence over his "students" in getting them to blow up monuments to make it look like the Muslims are behind it. I understand where the authors were trying to go with that last bit, but I really don't think they arrived.
Inspector Ghedina is a fool of a character, Orsina's weak, as is Angela, and Leo is the only one worth much of anything in the grand scheme of things.
The sexual aspect was... well, gross. Again, I get where the authors were going, and I see its relevance to the story, but it kind of grossed me out. Plus the fact that Orsina just kind of makes me feel like she's vapid and shallow, with no real emotions to speak of other than her love for Leo.
I guess if you were a fan of The DaVinci Code and other such nonsense, this book might appeal to you. I didn't mind it, it wasn't offensive, I just didn't really find it compelling. And there was so much Italian in it that even with translations it was distracting.
August 21, 2017
The Forbidden Book that has been on my bookshelf collecting dust for a quite a years now. I originally bought it in 2007, right around the time the hype surrounding "The Da Vinci Code" was reaching its zenith. Based on the positive blurbs from notable occult authors and esotericists, I was elated to dive into a conspiracy thriller centered around the subject matter of esoteric alchemy.
Sadly, I just… could not with this novel. So after approximately 100 pages of wishing and hoping it would get better, I decided to put it down when it didn't.
Fast-forward 10 years and I come across it again while decluttering my shelves and something possesses me to give it another try. I mean, the description still sounded promising and intriguing.
Certainly, I had evolved enough in ten years to be able to appreciate books that I didn't enjoy when I was younger, right? Oh, silly, silly me! How I wish I had trusted my initial instinct and just left it alone!
Remarkably, what made me dislike this book this time around, was the exact same thing that hindered me from finishing it way-back-when.
Yes, the esoteric content is well-researched, as is the exegesis of Il Mondo Magico degli Heroi but that's about as far as the praise goes. The story is thin and predictable, as well as replete with clichéd, characters lacking depth and development.
And while I understand certain taboo aspects are relevant to the story, I still found them unsavory and intrusive.
If you are interested in Hermetic literature, I sincerely suggest looking elsewhere.
Sadly, I just… could not with this novel. So after approximately 100 pages of wishing and hoping it would get better, I decided to put it down when it didn't.
Fast-forward 10 years and I come across it again while decluttering my shelves and something possesses me to give it another try. I mean, the description still sounded promising and intriguing.
Certainly, I had evolved enough in ten years to be able to appreciate books that I didn't enjoy when I was younger, right? Oh, silly, silly me! How I wish I had trusted my initial instinct and just left it alone!
Remarkably, what made me dislike this book this time around, was the exact same thing that hindered me from finishing it way-back-when.
Yes, the esoteric content is well-researched, as is the exegesis of Il Mondo Magico degli Heroi but that's about as far as the praise goes. The story is thin and predictable, as well as replete with clichéd, characters lacking depth and development.
And while I understand certain taboo aspects are relevant to the story, I still found them unsavory and intrusive.
If you are interested in Hermetic literature, I sincerely suggest looking elsewhere.
July 22, 2016
2.5 stars
This was a hard book for me, both to read and to review. If you want a light, fluffy read, please look elsewhere. Whatever else, this book is very deep and requires some thought to follow. Honestly, for me, it was a bit too much. I love a great mystery/conspiracy as much as the next person, but I just couldn't get into the story or the characters very easily.
The thing is, this is a beautifully crafted story. The writing is simply lovely, and the plot comes together so perfectly at the end. For me the plot didn't even start making sense until the last third of the book, so I was just relieved that it came together at all. So if you have the smarts and the willpower to pile through this book, you might enjoy it. Unfortunately, I really didn't.
[I received this book for free through First Reads and was not required to write a positive or any other type of review. All opinions stated herein are solely my own.]
This was a hard book for me, both to read and to review. If you want a light, fluffy read, please look elsewhere. Whatever else, this book is very deep and requires some thought to follow. Honestly, for me, it was a bit too much. I love a great mystery/conspiracy as much as the next person, but I just couldn't get into the story or the characters very easily.
The thing is, this is a beautifully crafted story. The writing is simply lovely, and the plot comes together so perfectly at the end. For me the plot didn't even start making sense until the last third of the book, so I was just relieved that it came together at all. So if you have the smarts and the willpower to pile through this book, you might enjoy it. Unfortunately, I really didn't.
[I received this book for free through First Reads and was not required to write a positive or any other type of review. All opinions stated herein are solely my own.]
September 21, 2011
What a waste of time... and I had actually looked forward to reading this. It sounded very promising... what a disappointment.
Next time when trying to write an exciting book with a thick plot and an eerie undertone of the occult, please try to actually make it exciting, the characters credible along with the story, and with a not so see through plot... oh and don't make the occult into some hippie mumbojumbo crap with a pedofile added to the mix for excitement and shock effect.. it certainly didn't work.
this book has only one good point.. religion is a whore
Next time when trying to write an exciting book with a thick plot and an eerie undertone of the occult, please try to actually make it exciting, the characters credible along with the story, and with a not so see through plot... oh and don't make the occult into some hippie mumbojumbo crap with a pedofile added to the mix for excitement and shock effect.. it certainly didn't work.
this book has only one good point.. religion is a whore
May 29, 2013
I received "The Forbidden Book" through the Goodreads' First Read program. Thanks Goodreads!
This was a fun, quick read that I enjoyed. Despite it's problems -- predictability & thin character development -- I finished the book. I usually have numerous books going at once, and jump around between them. This I finished without interruptions, a rarity.
I'll pass "The Forbidden Book" on to other fans of occult mystery, noting that it isn't the best written book you've ever read but it is entertaining and worth the time.
This was a fun, quick read that I enjoyed. Despite it's problems -- predictability & thin character development -- I finished the book. I usually have numerous books going at once, and jump around between them. This I finished without interruptions, a rarity.
I'll pass "The Forbidden Book" on to other fans of occult mystery, noting that it isn't the best written book you've ever read but it is entertaining and worth the time.
May 22, 2015
Pentru a tine cititorul interesat, autorii au recurs la tot felul de "socuri" (o carte interzisa "muritorilor de rand", magie neagra, incest, o iubire in suferinta, un complot la nivel inalt, cateva vise reale, scene pline de sange...). Pe mine nu a reusit sa ma convinga sa-i dau mai mult de doua stelute la notare, si asta pentru ca mi s-a parut o poveste fortata si neconvingatoare. Stiul de scris este voit greoi, pasaje intregi parca fiind copiate dintr-o carte pe care nu o intelege nimeni.
July 26, 2012
Δεν ήταν άσχημο έχει ενδιαφέρουσα πλοκή, μερικούς ίσως κουράσουν κάποια αποσπάσματα αλλά το όνομα του Joscelyn Godwin που συνυπογράφει το βιβλίο αποτελεί εγγύηση για την ακρίβεια και την εγκυρότητα όσων περιγράφονται. Διαβάζεται ευχάριστα σε 1-2 απογεύματα, αν το βρείτε σε καλή τιμή ή το δανεικό δοκιμάστε το.
November 17, 2013
Odd! Gripping but odd. It just kept going and going and I still couldn't put it down. By the end I hadn't decided if I really enjoyed it but I was relieved to have made it through to the end and was left with no nagging questions. What I did really enjoy was the beautiful descriptions of Italy. I was transported.
August 11, 2016
Sometimes, you are just not willing to endure the poor writing in order to discover the story. This was one of those times. I rarely abandon a book, but I am being to feel that if you are constantly annoyed or disappointed by cliches, lack of character depth, head swiveling transitions and predictable everything, just move on.
July 16, 2013
This book has numerous twists and the esoteric content is pretty fascinating. The plot is engaging although the romantic elements as well as the character development is pretty weak and often cliched.
June 13, 2013
I won this on GoodReads. I really enjoyed all the twists and turns. The authors did a lot of research in early occult books. A great read even though a few characters were predictable.
August 27, 2013
I kept hoping it would get better. It didn't.
Want to read
January 31, 2016SL
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews