Book Review: The Hypnotist by M.J. Rose

Genre: Adventure/Thriller

Series: The Reincarnationist #3

Publisher: MIRA

Pub date: 1 May 2010

Source: From Author

Having read the first 2 books in The Reincarnationist series (read my reviews of The Reincarnationist and The Memorist), I was a fan, and was definitely going to continue reading this series. I was ecstatic when the author M.J. Rose contacted me about the review and sent me the third book. Addicted as I am to the series, I did some quick reshuffling to read this earlier than planned.

Synopsis

FBI agent Lucian Glass is plagued by a murder that occurred 20 years ago. He blames himself for the tragedy, and even after all this time, he hasn’t been able to get over the pain. He gave up a career as an artist and joined the FBI’s ACT helping to preserve and save art.

Glass has been investigating Malachai Samuels of the Phoenix Foundation, but has not found any tangible evidence to tie Samuels to anything. When a mysterious art collector begins to destroy prized masterworks, Glass gets something to go on. But is this connected to the Memory Tools? The case also involves an eight foot tall statue that is said to hold the key to unlock the powers of the mind. To get closer to Samuels, Glass goes undercover at the Phoenix Foundation and ends up making some surprising discoveries about himself.

Review

While I loved the first two books in The Reincarnationist series, I did wonder how this third book was going to be different from the first two. I needn’t have worried, for in this  third installment in the series, M.J Rose has brilliantly built on the theories that were established in the first two books. While the first two books can be read as standalones, this third one needs some groundwork and will be immensely more enjoyable when read in order.

While it does begin a little slowly, the pace is warranted while the many characters and their narrative threads are set up. Once this setup is done, the plot picked up speed and kept me up late into the night, racing on to find out how things resolve.

The story combines art theft, art history, ancient history, political intrigue and thrilling action in this page-turner.

Lucian Glass and Malachai Samuels keep crossing paths on the hunt for the Memory Tools. Glass has seen the effect the tools have on people’s memories, but this time, he has to dig into his own past to understand what is happening. Glass might just be my favorite character in the series so far!

Malachai Samuels plays an even bigger role in this story and I was thrilled with where he went in his quest to prove reincarnation. I’m waiting to see what lengths he goes to.

At the heart of it, the stories are about coming to terms with our own past lives and righting the wrongs we have done. While not everyone has access to their past life memories, many of us get clues to nudge us in the “right” direction to balance our karma.

From New York in present day to ancient Persia and ancient Greece in the characters travel far back in time to unravel the mysteries of their past lives and make sense of their present.

I enjoyed this third book in the series even more than the first two, and The Hypnotist is currently my favorite in this series.  I’m only impatient about the long wait for the next book in the series which is expected in May 2012!

Verdict

Highly recommended. If you’re interested in the concept of reincarnation and past lives, or thrillers with an art component, don’t hesitate to pick up this series. I do suggest reading them in order, but you can read The Hypnotist as a standalone.

Rating: 4.5*

*See my Rating policy

Many thanks to M.J Rose for sending me a review copy! Tomorrow I get the honor of welcoming M.J Rose to my blog. Come back tomorrow to read her guest post on how she came up with the idea for The Hypnotist.

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