Setken

A must read

Reviewed: 02-27-25

This book is as important to us in this era, as Communion was to the last century.

If you have been following the author's writing on this topic throughout his career as I have, it is clear that a pinnacle of understanding and clarity of thought has been reached by someone who is genuinely immersed in the phenomena.

The book discusses ideas found in a Reddit document of unknown authorship; Whitley Strieber is able to address the issues the document features, and interpret it in ways that make for truly fascinating reading / listening.

The issue now is, what will we do with this information? Can we get out of our soul blind predicament and survive? Are we going to be able to establish a fruitful relationship with these "midwives"?

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

A snapshot of the history of the mysterious deity

Reviewed: 01-15-25

It could be argued that this tome is long overdue, seeing how often Baphomet has featured in events in our world (mostly the US) recently.

But those with an interest in occult and magick will already be familiar with the deity, and this book provides a greater background that is not always apparent or discussed. I certainly enjoyed it.

There is an erratum: the author states that the Egyptian origins of the deity lay with Amun, when it is in fact Banebdjedet that has points in common with Baphomet, and may actually be His genesis. This is discussed in detail in Llewellyn's recent Encyclopedia Of Egyptian Deities by Dr. Tamara Suida.

The narrator is excellent.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

If you are an artist, you must listen to this

Reviewed: 12-31-24

I was unsure about getting this book at first. I was aware of the podcast but had not listened to it.

My trepidation was soon swept aside as I listened to - and resonated with - a story I was all too familiar with as a "poor artist" myself.

This is not a "how to" or an outright biography, but a clever work of art itself that really puts creativity and the need to be a genuine artist in in the spotlight.

I wish I heard this earlier in my career.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Great intro and re-intro to the world of art

Reviewed: 12-08-24

The next time someone tells me that they don't get art, don't understand it, feel like it's beyond them, or simply out of their league, I shall refer them to this book.

The two men have captured a sense of how the greater population feels out of touch with art and this is a great remedy and solution to fix that. I found it valuable as an artist and art lover, and learned a bit even though I am immersed in the art world of which they speak.

The positive references to Instagram aside (this may date the book and ultimately I wager will be edited out) this is a great starter book AND guide for those that have already commenced their art loving journey.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

An overlooked icon remembered

Reviewed: 12-03-24

This biography of a truly underrated genius and artist is delightful. Exhaustive and covering all aspects of Bel Geddes' career, it does not at any time lapse into a lull.

I am not always a fan of authors reading their own works for the audio version of their books, but this reading was superb and added more to the narrative. Highly recommended.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Primary school level narration let's it down

Reviewed: 11-15-24

The narration of this story is so bad that it renders writing an honest review impossible.

Horribly mispronounced words, irritating dialects, wandering voice characterizations and ultimately inexperienced renderings of the text (I am aware the narrator has multiple books to her credit on Audible) makes me doubt most will make it through to the end. Spoiler alert: if you do, you can enjoy the word deity being pronounced as diety (sic) numerous times.

I persisted because the germ of the idea that I think the author wanted to convey was intriguing. It sadly deteriorates into a manifesto for greening up our world, and the story idea becomes secondary. Childish names for characters (Kissweiner - are you kidding me?) do nothing in attempts to take the story seriously as a work of art.

The idea of world Pantheons making a comeback is an excellent one, and marrying it to an eco-consciousness message should work, but in this case it does not. Maybe a focused rewrite, restructure, and most definitely a competent narrator might make a future version palatable.

The survey at the end is ridiculous.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Another POV, and interesting at that

Reviewed: 11-07-24

This is a different perspective on LaVey and his circle of players that I found engaging and intriguing. There was a lot I had not heard before, and it captures a unique period in history that is not terribly well chronicled.

The narrator was great - unwavering, enthusiastic and didn't miss a beat.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

A powerful tale with powerful performances

Reviewed: 10-18-24

I saw the play ages ago in Adelaide, South Australia. I don't recall being as moved by it as I was by this production.

It's not easy going. Tragic, despairing and bleak at times, there is also joy and hope. But wonderful nonetheless.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

A mammoth tale befitting the sunset of Egypt

Reviewed: 09-27-24

This entertaining yet scholarly audiobook brings in to view the complex and extraordinary history of Egypt's last pharaonic dynasty, the Greek Ptolemies, with emphasis on its ruling queens.

There were 7 Cleopatras, and each is discussed along with the other queens (the Arsinoe's and Berinike's) as well as their Ptolemaic husbands / brothers / nephews.

The author takes the time to articulate which queen or king he is discussing throughout so as to avoid confusion, and let's us know the nicknames they were given by their Alexandrian subjects. Cleopatra Thea's is the best.

Read by the author with surprising vigour - it has been my experience that academics are not always brilliant storytellers / readers of their own works - this was a great ride through the final days of pharaonic history and the women who ruled.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

Compelling, engaging and scary

Reviewed: 09-03-24

The newly renamed UFO phenomena (now we say UAP) has had a resurgence of interest from the media owing to the events of 2017 when some New York Times reporters did stories on the topic. They were serious and matter of fact, sans the histrionics that usually go hand in hand with reports of the phenomenon.

The author of this book – a government employee with high level clearances who had been secretly dealing with the subject as part of his job – has now come forward with what he knows. The story is told in a surprisingly eloquent manner and read in a heart felt manner by the author himself in the audiobook.

Mr. Elizondo injects enough of himself into the narrative and the reasons he felt he needed to come forward so convincingly that it was almost a nonstop listen. So that covers the “compelling” and “engaging” part of my headline – what was scary?

The fact that something so important as this has been left in the hands of people that claim the secrecy is for “our benefit”, and who do not possess the tools to properly assess what is occurring. This self-appointed “elite”, untouchables in government who have all kinds of reasons for their position, do not seem to want to shed any light on what the phenomena is. The reasons for this are covered in the book.

Curiously, Mr. Elizondo criticizes other whistleblowers whilst making his own claims - and don’t get me wrong, I am glad he has done what he has – but I can’t help but get the feeling there is another narrative going on with him. Does he have a messiah complex? He did posit himself as an avenging angel at one point of the story.

The author is a soldier, and apparently a very good one. He is to be commended for this. But I don’ t think he has worked out that using army goggles to view the phenomena will yield nothing but the war / attack data that the lenses are attuned to. This is why we need anthropologists, all areas of physics, chemistry and the sciences as well as shaman, artists, and the group of people we call psychics, intuitives, and healers on the case too.

Don’t get me wrong, the threat assessment of UAP presented in the book is real I believe, based on his accounts and years of my own research. (Interestingly, he mentions the flat top mountain from “Close encounters” and it made me recall my own experience near a similar looking mountain close to Dalby in Queensland).

When I first learned about the To The Stars Academy when they began all those years ago (Elizondo was a member) I was not as impressed as I probably ought to have been. But the combination of privileged information from politicians and higher ups in the US Whitehouse, along with an ex-rock star and other rich folk was off putting. Even though I regard Luis Elizondo as a brave man and am truly grateful for his book, there was still the whiff of this even in his authentic storytelling of the whole affair.

Is it because he seemed dismissive of encounter witnesses? He did state he wanted the book to have a military focus, but by leaving the abductees / encounter witnesses out of the equation, I think he is missing a vital point. And after all, is he not a witness himself? He saw orbs in his own home.

Listen for the curious list he gives of the US presidents that he states have had briefings on UFO’s / UAP. There is also the report of how the government attempted cancelling him when he resigned his position. We should reexamine Bob Lazar’s claims in this light.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!