AAII

I don't like mysteries series that are gimmicky, and Carolyn Hart is a find: classic and classy, a bright, articulate protagonist who brings emotion as well as intellect to the table. The characters are well drawn, the mystery nicely done, and the setting beautifully drawn. I'll be reading more Carolyn Hart

This was the first Henrie O book I've read. It won't be the last. I liked Henrie O. She is a strong character who can face her fears and do what needs to be done. In this case, she needs to begin to solve the mystery of her husband's death. So it's off to Hawaii to meet one of her husband's old friends, who is also a lady and thus begins her experience.

This is not like the Carolyn Hart mystery series Death on Demand. The characters are very different and the mystery a bit more dark. Also, she doesn't put in all the references to other mystery novels as she does in her Death on Demand books.

Enjoy.

doesn't mean you are dead - or worse, boring.

Carolyn Hart's series starring Henrietta O'Dwyer "Henrie O" Collins is an excellent and worthy read. Why?

This mystery series offer great characters with believeable dialogue, nice little plot twists, a kiss of humor, and a heroine - Henry O - who is NOT a gal in her 20's or 30's, with a fast mouth, a clumsy foot always determined to trip over one corpse after another, and a love interest that somehow always seems to elude the final stage of commitment - have any of you noticed just how many mystery novels seem to have this same type of heroine?!?

It is difficult to find truly good mysteries where the main character is actually a woman who is over 50, intelligent, clever, sometimes humorous, and even a little grouchy; yet if you are a true fan of mysteries you will know exactly how terrific it is to stumble across heroines like: Henri O, an Amelia Peabody, Mrs. Jeffries, Agatha Raisin, OR a Mrs. Polifax!!

ok, so this book is mainly about christy who is having her 16th birthday and her parents surprise her to a trip to Hawwii with her best friend from her old home in wisconsin. As they get there Paula is flirting with Todd(Christy's "boyfriend") and Christy gets very jellous.a lot of other things happen too but u have 2 read it to see what else! I love Robin jones Gunn!I have read all the christy miller books, and I love them all! I have actrually cried in every single one because they make you seem like you are Christy! They made me give my heart 2 the lord and they actrually make me feel jellous or happy or sad.

I think this is one of THE BEST Christy books in the series. In Volume 5, Christy's family surprise her with a trip to Hawaii for her 16th birthday, and bring along her old friend Paula from Wisconson. Todd's working with her Uncle Bob in Hawaii, and Christy's glad to see him. It seems the perfect summer trip...Christy, Todd, Hawaii...except Paula is always in the way, throwing herself on Todd in her barely-there swimsuit. Christy spends a lot of the trip worried she'll lose Todd, but towards the end of their stay there's a rainstorm..a bridge... This is an excellent book and I definitly reccomend the whole series to anyone.

This book is really awesome just like all of Robin's books. I have read all of the Christy Miller series from the church library and i am buying my own set now. I have read all the Sierra Jenson series and many other books by Robin Jones Gunn. I would recommend this book and all of her other books to anyone. They really help you in your walk with God and teach you many great lessons. I think it is amazing the way God is working in my life through this wonderful author. Thanks

This is a book to savor and let the information and feeling of real aloha sink in. After living in Hawaii for seven years this is the first book I've come across that catches the the magical, mystical essence of Hawaii accurately, and in true island style - with a balance of respect and humor.

Pila has his information down through study, homage to his teachers and direct experience. This is a book about much more than Hawaii for those that have eyes to see and perception to perceive beyond the words.

Pila brings the hidden stories of creation - ancient Hawaiian style - out for us to experience. Much of what he's talking about goes far beyond any particular race or place.

I have given this book as a gift and encouraged others to buy it, (I manage a bookstore). I've received wonderful feedback on same. It's deep, fun and interesting to read, the type of book one doesn't want to end.

This book is a blessing that can and should be read and experienced on many levels.

Aloha and blessings to you, Pila, for your gifts of Aloha and more.

Would you please tell Pila Chiles that his book "The Secrets and Mysteries of Hawaii" is a wonderful journey for the mind and spirit. It gives not only the Aloha flavor, but touches the soul. We have purchased 25 books to give to our relatives and friends. If you want to visit Hawaii, this little book is a MUST!

Pila's book is a real calling to the soul. I have owned this book for seven years and still refer to it often. Pila has a way of getting to your heart and reminding you of things and a culture long forgotten. I finished this book in one reading. It really helped me thru my healing process. I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in Hawaiian culture & history or anyone going thru their healing process. Although I have never been to Hawaii Pila has a way of making you think you have been there many times before. He also has a lot of insight into the human psyche. It's jsut such a great book I can't say enough about it.

Having never been to the island of Kauai before, Kauai Trailblazer was exactly the type of guidebook that I needed to help plan two weeks worth of adventure in the Garden Isle. My main desire was to snorkle the beautiful water. With it being my husband's first time in Hawaii, I wanted him to see all of the amazing fish that I had told him about. Kauai Trailblazer pointed us in the right direction and we ended up snorkling the most amazing coves! With the book in hand, we hiked beautiful trails that led right up the sides of cliffs to amazing waterfalls and romantic pools. Having an interest in history, Kauai Trailblazer was also able to direct me to museums, landmarks and ruins. Our time in Kauai would have been less fruitful without the help of this book.

I've lived on Kauai for thirteen years and consider myself a local. This is the only book I can really recommend to those who have never been here before. A testament to good travel writing. You can flip through the Best Of category, find somewhere you'd like to go and bam, hit the trail. When I'm stumped on where to take visitors, I always turn to this book. Mahalo to these adventure specialists who really know our island and portray it with so much aloha.

We made a great discovery, this book Kauai Trailblazer. We bought our copy at the airport when we arrived and it served us well. It was wet and soggy four out of the seven days so we gravitated to the dry side of the island as they recommended and stretched out walking long miles of beach. Right away we found out why this island is known for its rainbows.

Two must do's are kayaking the Wailua River and hiking the Black Pipe Trail in Waimea Canyon. The directions for the maze like trail to Waipio Falls were excellent. We were guided through all the paths twists and turns and ended up immersed in big open landscapes that are beyond words. We kept pinching ourselves. We've blown up many of the photos we took to preserve the memories. Our vacation was very energizing, a once in a lifetime experience.

My only advice is to read it before you go in order to strategize and prioritize. Over and over again it seemed nightfall came way too soon.

Freedom's Menace was a fast paced, exciting action thriller. This writer kept me up all night reading! The main character, Trevor Brice, was down to earth enough to relate to him, yet bold and smart. The ending didn't drop off into nothing as so many books do these days. This was by far the the best book I've read in years. I can't wait for the next Trevor Brice book to come out.

W. Laurence Willis' debut novel, Freedom's Menace is an action-packed adventure that pits heroic agent Trevor Brice against evil mastermind An Lolo. This Asian mastermind has secured the title of Chinese premier and wages a war of terror against the United States. The secret of Lolo's power lies hidden in the volcanic fires of Hawaii; Trevor Brice must brave the wrath of Pele the Fire Goddess and many more mundane dangers to uncover the truth and save America. Freedom's Menace is a fast-paced, vivacious read that can confidently be recommended for personal reading lists and community library collections.

I'm so excited to find a new advernture novelist. Where has this guy been?
Freedom's Menace is excellent! The story is well round and there is never a dull moment. The scene inside the volcano was so real, I stared to sweat.

I highly recommend this novel to anyone that like a good action novel.

W. Laurence Willis is destine to become a real force real in the book business.

This book is well written with lots of cultural and historical information as well as a lot of humorous comments that kept us laughing. The Volcano National Park quit selling this book because of all the "inside" information it reveals that they don't want travelers to know about. It took the authors over 2 years to put this book together, not 6 weeks like most other Travel Guides. These folks live here and know the ropes! The book has broken the Big Island down into geographic sections with sights, places to stay, dining(prices ranges and ONO recommendations), and beaches for each. It also includes sections on activities, and adventures such as snorkeling, scuba, whale watching, etc. We found that a lot of roads were not marked, but this book lays out "secret" beaches, how to get to them (mile markers), and even tunes you into how not to get "taken" by the locals. Example: When visiting the Green Sand Beach, the locals try to charge $5 for parking and make you walk the 2 1/2 hike. The authors tell you they do not work for the Dept. of Hawaiian Homelands and have no right to charge this fee (also, there was an incident where signs were posted to keep out-Private Property, but the book revealed that you CAN use the road to get to the beach. Without that information, we would have not ventured down that road!) They highly recommend that you rent a JEEP to get around the Island. Invaluable advice! Sure saved us a lot of walking! Throughout the book, there are sites marked with "A Real Gem" Icon, "Diversion Alert!" and "Not to be Missed!" signs. The maps are accurate, the pictures are plentiful and vivid; and we found the information true and accurate. The only thing we think needs updating is the section on Saddle Road. The authors make it sound like the road from Hell, and try to discourage you from using it. We found this road to be in better condition than most of the others and we found a few other "sights" along the route. We noticed a lot of other traveler's with this same book. Before going on our trip, we purchased Hawaii for Dummies and Hawaii the Big Island (and older version, of course!) This book blew them all away and was the one we referred to the whole trip. In our opinion, this book was "A Real Gem!!!" Now we are planning a trip to New Zealand and wish these authors had a "Revealed" book for it.

We can't thank you enough for our wonderful, informative trip to the Big Island. Your book was absolutely a "must" for us. Especially helpful were the use of mile markers and maps. We loved your humor while writing and appreciated your honest opinions. Volcano Nat'l. Park is doing a disservice to their visitors by not selling your book within the Park. However, I did notice that most places outside of the park had your book available.

It is hard to decide which one of your "must see" and "real gems" pleased us the most because we loved them all. However, I must mention the delight we discovered when we got to the Queen's Bath north of Ai'opio Beach. We thought we were in heaven when we found the "scads" of turtles you talked about at Ai'opio Beach and then we came to the Bath! We were the only ones there and since we had our bathing suits on we couldn't resist the opportunity to go into the refreshing cool water and enjoy the solitude.

On our next visit to Kauai we will definitely purchase your other book.

Your book never left our hands while sight-seeing. Thanks for all of the time and effort you put into publishing a book that is a "must" for anyone going to the Big Island. Your talent of writing was our gain and we applaud you.

It was amazing how many folks were carrying/reading this book on the Big Island! It is as simple as this: If you are going to the Big Island of Hawaii for an "active" vacation, get this book. Best 10 bucks I spent all vacation! Easy to use maps, tour operators, hikes, snorkels, food, its all here with a comical spin! There are so many things to do and see on the Big Island, this book is essential to get the most out of your personal holiday. They don't mess around with places to avoid either! This is a refined work, exceptionally written and organized, it was extremely helpful when weather conditions forced a change of plans.

Lepers are the shunned center of Brennert's Hawaiian novel. Protagonist Rachel Kalama is five when the story opens in 1891 Honolulu, the year the last Hawaiian king dies and its first and only queen ascends the throne for a brief reign. Rachel's uncle Pono is chased down by the Health Inspector and taken away - a leper - and Rachel is warned to tell no one. But soon a sore appears on Rachel's leg and then her foot. Though her mother desperately hides the signs for a year, the disease is discovered and Rachel, too, is snatched from her family.

Though reunited with her uncle, Rachel is subjected to dehumanizing medical examinations and can see her family only through a barrier. Pono is taken away again, this time to the leper colony of Kalaupappa on the island of Moloka'i. Rachel is only seven when she follows him, though their reunion is brief and she is sent to live in the Catholic dormitory with the other girls. The families left behind are also ostracized, for their association with lepers. Thus far the story is heartbreaking, and bewildering for Rachel, but slowly she begins to adapt to a new life.

Though every step forward seems accompanied by another catastrophe - the death of a playmate, loss of contact with her mother, more death - this is not a litany of woe. Brennert paints a vivid picture of a community struggling for normalcy, as people do. Rachel (who has the milder form of Hansen's disease, leaving her comparatively healthy for years) forms friendships, knows joy, marries.

Brennert's meticulous research charts the changes in the colony and in Hawaii, as the American presence grows larger. Improvements are made in living conditions and treatments; new experiments provide new hopes - usually dashed. Missionaries strive successfully against the old "pagan" ways while Rachel, brought up a Christian, learns about her own culture from Pono's new woman, who becomes a surrogate mother (though her influence is resisted by the colony's Catholic nuns).

This is a novel about life amidst overwhelming obstacles and a novel about the disease itself - its mythology, its mystery and the growing triumph of medical knowledge during the twentieth century. Its fascinating subject and sympathetic characters combine in a gripping story.

One day as a young adolescent, while browsing at the library, I came across the book Miracle at Carville by Betty Martin. This book, which told the story of the author's diagnosis of leprosy in her 20's, also described the years she spent receiving treatment for this disease at a hospital in Carville, Georgia. Of the many books I have read since then, few have made as much of an impression on me as this title. When I learned about the sequel, I immediately rushed to borrow No One Must Ever Know and felt the same way about this title too. Recently I chanced upon the book Moloka'i by Alan Brennert and recognized the name of this area in Hawaii that was a former leprosy colony. I immediately had to read this book, and while no longer impressionable adolescent who once read about leprosy, this book once again filled me with compassion and love for the people who lived and suffered from this dreaded and alienating disease.

In the late 19th century surrounded by the beauty of the islands of Hawaii, 7 year old Rachel Kalma lives an idyllic live surrounded by family members who adore her. While her father travels the world for his job, Rachel listens attentively to her father's stories and hopes one day to see the places her father vividly describes to her. Although there are some in their area who contract leprosy and are removed from the surroundings like Rachel's uncle, nobody ever thinks this disease will affect Rachel. Then she begins to show signs of a lesion which doesn't' respond to any of he mother's ministrations or medicine from the doctors. Eventually the authorities receive word that Rachel may have this disease and when they investigate Rachel, her families fears confirmed, she must leave her family to live among other lepers. Separated from her family except for occasional visits by her father and the company of her afflicted uncle, Rachel must make a new life for herself surrounded by an unusual cast of loving people. Adversity strengthens her as she comes to know the kind sister who cares for her, a fellow leper who hides a dark secret and the love of a good man whom she marries and even becomes a mother. By the end of this book, we weep with Rachel as friends die and cheer for her when she is able to fulfill some of her dreams. But the best part for me was that these were no longer characters in a book but people who I considered good friends, so vividly were they portrayed by the author.

Told over six decades, Moloka'i tells the gripping story of adversity and the triumph of the human spirit. As I neared the end of the book I couldn't help but think of how we once viewed AIDS sufferers isolating them in many of the same way lepers were also once isolated. The author has written a compelling book and one worthy to take its place among other titles on this subject like Betty Martin's books and The Samurai's Garden by Gail Tsukiyama.

A beautiful story, extremely well-written, filled with great historical information. A great read!

I was delighted to have more focus on Shiloh and his life. Will he ever tire of living his life for Cheney? For a man so smart and intuitive about so many things, will he ever see what is Cheney's priority? Shiloh's strong character and values once again lead him into danger and suspense, putting others well being first.

I have read all the Cheney Duvall books. Although I have been frustrated with how the series has gone along with Cheney's and Shiloh's relationship this book finally put an end to the question of how Cheney actually felt about Shiloh. This book takes place on an Hawaiin Island where Shiloh's family was supposed to have come from. He goes there to find out more. Cheney finds out some disturbing news about Bain Winslow the man who brought Shiloh to the Island. She goes trying to convince him to come back when a volcano thought to be dead errupts. They are caught on the Island trying to find a way off. At the end, Cheney finally decides that she really cares for Shiloh. I am looking forward to book eight coming out. I wrote Gilbert Morris when the series came out he said that there would be eight books in this particular series. I'm curious to see how they wrap this series up.

This was an awesome book. It had its shortcomings, but in general it was great. In this book, Shiloh Irons, Dr. Cheney Duvall's nurse and a former pugilistic champion, has sailed from San fransisco to Hawaii with a young man named Bain Winslow (sound familiar, diehard Morris fans??) to try and find out more about his family. (when he was an infant he was abondoned on the doorstep of an orphanage.) Cheney, still in Frisco, discovered disturbing facts about Winslow. So disturbing, in fact that she decides to sail to Hawaii herself to warn Shiloh, and ends up staying on the island. Then, a "dormant" volcano decides that naptime's over. Cheney and Shiloh, along with some friends, find themselves racing for their lives, trapped between a river of molten lava , a burning jungle, and shark-and-jellyfish-infested waters. Of course, through it all, Cheney depends on God for strength to make it through it all. I think that this is the most exciting book so far... Gilbert and Lynn Morris have that talent of writing that makes you feel like you are right there with the characters. I was screaming and sobbing and praying right along with Cheney. Anyway, it was a fantastic book, but who's with me in thinking that Gilbert Morris should hire a new editor??? And someone please, please tell the authors to hurry up and write the next book!!

I have or am getting everything that Serge King has written.

I re-read this book about once a month and gain new insights every time. He covers everything from making your own ceremonies to divination to distant healing to harnessing energies of unknown origin. Serge King has no secrets. Every suggestion works, or at least everything I've tried. Every page has valueble information.

He seems to give the message "this works for me and this is why I think it works. now you go with it and make it yours." Although there is tradition in what he says, it isn't a dogmatic tradition.

Huna isn't a religion. There should be no conflict with any religion.

_Urban Shaman_ is the first book I've read on Hawaiian shamanism; I'd never really even thought of it before. I picked up a copy because the artwork on the cover got my attention, and the cover summary hinted that he book might be interesting. What I found inside far surpassed my expectations. Rather than the usual "beliefs on how the universe works" and the same old meditation-for-beginners, it gives pratical insights, as well as exercises that prove their truth and exercises to put those truths to use. Instead of the usual untouchable, just-for-interest monologue, I found an interactive, useful practices that anyone can use to enhance their everyday lives. Though intrigued, I was a little skeptical, but the exercises give evidence of the truth of the wisdom shared. For example, did you know that it's nearly impossible to hold anger when you are completely physically relaxed? I didn't, and when I tried it, I found that the author was right. Okay, you have my attention:)

I recommend this book not only to readers interested in shamanism, but anyone interested in new perspectives that can improve their health and well-being. A lot of the content of the book can be easily merged with one's personal beliefs and practices, regardless of religious affiliation. An excellent read and reference!

This is an extremely well written book full of excellent material and techniques. I cannot recommend it enough! Easy to read, but thorough in covering the subjects. I found it a joy to read.

The Malinowskis are the real thing, divers we could count on for straight poop.

There were a few little rust spots here and there so we gave it a four.

We bought the Maui/Lanai version of the book and found it was the book we used most once we got to Maui. We spent 6 days snorkeling in the mornings and this book gave us exact information about where to go! Some of the sites were wonderful and off the beaten path.(None of the other books or the dive shops had ALL of this information.) Well worth the small investment!

After reading reviews from everyone about this book, I had to purchase it myself before a trip to Maui. This book was an indispensable guide! It offered great advice about snorkel equipment and safety which was VERY helpful for us beginners. The authors rate snorkeling places according to quality and difficulty. Maps and detailed information are provided so that even the most remote places are easy to find. We did the "'Ahihi-Kina'u unmarked trail" and loved it! It was amazing to have a beautiful cove all to ourselves. I definitely recommend it for anyone wanting to snorkel in Maui.