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Bantam, May 2004, 22.00, 324 pp. ISBN 0553380314X In 1919 London, a car full of young people runs over an old man and with his dying breath he says “He's in my mind” and then says Arcanum. The Ministry of Munitions Winston Churchill notifies Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that Konstantin Duvall is dead. Duvall was a mage and a mystic, an explorer and collector of all things occult. He kept many secrets one of which, The Book of Enoch, the third part of the Bible that was thought to be erased from existence in the first century, was stolen from its hiding place by a practitioner of the dark arts. Doyle goes to America where he brings together the rest of the members of THE ARCANUM, Harry Houdini, H.P. Lovecraft and the powerful voodoo priestess Marie Laveau. They must find the missing book and the killer. The perpetrator is a powerful mage who practices the black arts and is able to elude THE ARCANUM. He is able to spring a trap that has Houdini in jail and the rest of the group running from the law while guarding an Angel who doesn't know how to get home. Harriet Klausner | ||
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Plot & Themes Tone of book - suspenseful (sophisticated fear) FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy story on current Earth Tech./$$$/Info hunt Yes Stealing/recovering/destroying Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book Religious overtones? Yes Descript. of chases or violence - 10 % planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40 % Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 40 % Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10 % Main Character Identity: - Male Profession/status: Age: - 60's-90's Main Adversary Identity: - Male Age: - 20's-30's Profession/status: How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a moderate amount How sensitive is this character? Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters Setting Earth setting: - 20th century Takes place on Earth? Yes Writing Style Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript |
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