Customer Reviews

The Skin Map (Bright Empires)

5 star:		(68)
4 star:		(72)
3 star:		(47)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Sci-fi or fantasy? Adventure or suspense? The Skin Map is one of those special books that crosses genres. In a way, it's all of the above, which makes for a delightful reading stew. A novel that's been cooking in Stephen Lawhead's mind for over fifteen years, it was well worth the wait. Chapter One wastes no time in introducing us to main character Kit Livingstone, a man living a mundane existence who in the span of a few minutes finds himself embarking on the adventure of a lifetime. Make that multiple lifetimes. And dimensions. And countries.

From the moment he meets his long dead great-grandfather Cosimo (clearly alive and well) in a strange London alley, Kit is thrust into a web of intrigue that sets his mind spinning. Apparently Cosimo has discovered a way to travel through space, time, and alternate universes using ley lines, forces of energy that are intersections between worlds. But there are enemies of Cosimo and his cause that are bent on bringing him and his fellow Questors to ruin. All because one brave traveler tattooed on his body a map of these ley lines for future adventurers. It's this skin map everyone's after (yes, it was made from his skin after he died), and it's what Kit and Cosimo must find at all costs.

Mix in a detailed sub plot featuring Kit's girlfriend Wilhelmina who accidentally lands in 17th Century Austria, and there's something in The Skin Map for just about everyone. The adventure elements draw comparisons to Matt Bronleewe's August Adams series, minus the rare books. Aside from a few British swear words, Lawhead keeps things clean and in the vein of the great books and movies of yesteryear. Think National Treasure with a lot more depth and even some philosophical references to ponder.

Some Lawhead fans could find themselves missing his straight fantasy since the fantastical elements are limited to time travel, but I recommend having a little faith in Mr. Lawhead to spin a yarn worth reading no matter the genre. For those who enjoy tales of intrigue and who wonder how much changing the past can affect the future (a literal grandfather paradox in this book!), there's much to enjoy. Holding just enough clues close to his vest without frustrating the reader, Lawhead has penned an exhilarating start to an exciting new series.

--Reviewed by C.J. Darlington for TitleTrakk

Disclosure: This book was provided by Thomas Nelson for review purposes.

The Skin Map begins the story of Kit Livingstone's odd travels. His great-grandfather appears to him and tells him that all throughout Britian are 'ley-lines' which allow individuals to travel through both time and space. Kit is then invited to join in the quest to find the skin map, a parchment made from the skin of a man who learned much about these ley-lines, mapped them, and tatooed that information onto his body. Naturally, Kit and his great-grandfather are not the only ones looking for this map, so the race is on.

I have read Lawhead before and enjoyed his work. This book was no different. It was suspenseful and engaging, and with Lawhead's typical ability to write characters that are human and easy to relate to. The idea behind this story is interesting, and I found Lawhead's descriptions of the various ages/places visited to be quite well done. Lawhead also does very well in writing the confusion and displacement his characters experience in an easy-to-sympathize with manner. Unfortunately, in this particular book, you should not be surprised if you yourself become somewhat confused or displaced. His chapters jump erratically in terms of the character focus, place, and time with very few cues to inform the reader of where they are.

Overall, I enjoyed the book. I will look forward to the next one in the series. 4 of 5 Stars, Conditionally Recommended (do you like historical fiction/fantasy?).

This fast-paced book - the first of a three-part series - is sure to be another hit for Stephen Lawhead. As with the rest of his books, this one is well researched and put together in such a way that you are immediately drawn into the story. From the clever opening lines to the last sentence, this book kept me hooked. I'm reading it to my husband now!
The story is based around Kit Livingstone - a character with no life and less personality - who runs into his great-grandfather, Cosimo, during a freak thunderstorm. The old man appears, then promptly sweeps Kit into a world of ley lines, alternate universes, and a hunt for the "skin map" - the guide to the roads between worlds.
One explorer of these alternate worlds had discovered the secrets to traveling through the ley lines. Because of his fear of being unable to find his way, he tattooed a coded map into his skin. The map was eventually lost, and now there is a desperate competition to find it.
Think Narnia meets Wheel of Time and you'll have an idea of what this book consists of. Perhaps as a loyal Stephen Lawhead fan, I'm a little prejudiced, but I would highly recommend this book to others. It's a fascinating, thought-provoking read. My only complaint is that I have to wait a year for the next book!
Disclaimer: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their [...] book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

I have been an avid reader of Stephen Lawhead's books for about 20 years. It was with great anticipation that I opened Skin Map.

Reading the first few chapters of Stephen Lawhead's Skin Map left me disappointed and craving more of the writing I am familiar with. I was waiting for the change-point when the story line would explain or compensate for the terrible writing. I made the assumption the book would improve as I got further into it. It didn't.

The writing is not characteristic of Stephen Lawhead. There is no character development, the writing is flat, the book lacks emotion and has no redeeming factors in it at all. Having grown accustomed to Lawhead's writing in previous books, this one reads as if it has a completely different author and lends nothing of the personality readers would have come to expect.

If all those parts were missing, as they indeed are, I might have been able to tolerate it had the story contained a flow, readability and decent story line. Unfortunately, Skin Map is a jerky, jumpy story. Huge parts are left out, and few details are filled in. The story truly never ends.

Considering this is the first book in a series, I anticipated there would be some unresolved plots or situations within the complexity of the story. However, there really is just one story that does not end. There is a poor attempt to have more than one plot however, it is terribly done and those separate parts end up being jerky, jumpy parts of the original story.

Most books have a resolution of some kind, however Skin Map does not. The final chapters leave one wishing they'd never have read the book. There is nothing redemptive in the book or the writing.

The unfinished story does not call one to read Book 2, but rather to put the book down in frustration and wonder if Stephen Lawhead will ever again publish a book worth reading. Skin Map is a disappointment, and I cannot recommend this.

The concept for the book is great. The characters however really have no appeal. You want to root for them but its tough because you find yourself even 3/4 of the way through the book not really caring what happens to them so long as SOMETHING interesting happens. I feel like once the idea for the book was created that was the extent of the authors creativity. Were I you I would not bother with this upcoming series.

Bill

This is a guest post by Mason Ian Bundschuh. He is a great writer. Check him out at [...]
~ billie :)
[...]

A free copy of this book was provided to me by Thomas Nelson for review purposes.

I must admit, I am a huge fan of Stephen Lawhead's Arthurian series. They were one of my first independent fantasy reads when I was a youngster and remain monoliths of my formative reading years. So I was excited when Billie asked me to review Mr. Lawhead's newest release, The Skin Map.

The Skin Map is a Sci-Fi adventure book, first and foremost. In it, the main character the main character has the unique knack of slipping into alternate universes which on the surface seem like our own, but in fact are infinite possible alternative histories.

While I enjoyed the book it never quite reaches the resonance and compelling vigor of Lawhead's previous works. It's full of meticulous historical detail (and a surprisingly interesting sub-plot involving a coffeehouse in Prague), but by attempting a more casual, loose, commercial urban fantasy tone, the author, who is at his best when the scope is epic and the history sweeping, cannot keep the narrative from feeling somewhat telescoped.

It was a fast read, with Lawhead's historical research giving depth to the setting. But the stakes just aren't big enough. The main crisis for the protagonist is ostensibly to rescue his not-quite-likeable-and-admittedly-dull girlfriend who he managed to lose in a time/space rift. Why bother? He's a newly-minted time-traveler. Who has time to go find a girl who you wanted to dump a few chapters ago? I certainly wasn't satisfied with the clichéd sci-fi answer given: "If we don't find her, it could alter history!" (in an alternate universe whose history is already, by nature, altered).

Another critique is the somewhat 2 dimensional nature of his characters. Occasionally their motives and actions don't feel compelling because I don't have a strong enough sense of who they are (His ear for romantic frisson, in particular, is tin).

The Skin Map is the first in a new series and I will give the others a fair shot because me and Stephen have history together, and I want to see if the weak points of the first book are balanced or corrected by the grander story unfolding.

I think this book is one of the best books I've ever reviewed for Thomas Nelson's Booksneeze program. A solid mix of Indiana Jones, Dr. Who and Bourne Identity, The Skin Map keeps up a steady pace as Kit Livingstone discovers interdimensional time travel along "ley lines" (an actual physical phenomenon, by the way). In case you haven't already guessed, it's science fiction.

Here's the thing I LOVE about it though: it is the cleanest science fiction I've read (although I haven't read much because most of it tends to be so raunchy). If you're a science fiction fan, but avoid the books because of explicit content, then this is the book for you. Or if you're just a science fiction or fantasy fan in general. The Skin Map (review for its sequel, The Bone House coming soon!) introduces a cast of characters and a variety of settings that will make this series hit the bestseller list. Here's a quick cast intro (which is probably the best way to share a little bit without giving too much away!):

Kit Livingstone: the main character, whose long-lost (and supposedly dead) great-grandfather appears to him one dreary Sunday afternoon in London and introduces the idea of traveling between time and space.
Wilhelmina: Kit's girlfriend (in a very loose sense of the word) who gets dragged into ley travel because she won't accept Kit's excuse for missing their date, and shows considerable spunk in the situation she lands in
Cosmo Livingstone: Kit's great-grandfather, who went out for a loaf of bread 100ish years ago and never came back, a student of ley travel and Kit's self-imposed mentor
Archelaeus Burleigh: our villian - his "Burley men" chase Kit & Cosmo, searching for the elusive "skin map"
Arthur Flinders-Petrie: "The Man Who Is Map" - one of the "original" ley travelers, he preserves a map of ley travel, which becomes the "skin map"


From modern London to ancient China and Egypt, The Skin Map takes you on an incredible journey that will leave you waiting for more and ready to imagine the possibilities! To check out more from author Stephen Lawhead, visit his website.

I received a copy of this book for free to review for the Booksneeze program. This did not influence my opinions in any way.

My last foray into Stephen Lawhead territory was with The Pendragon Cycle. That was back in the early 90's, and it was quite an enjoyable experience. So it was with some anticipation that I opened The Skin Map, Lawhead's latest and the first of a series. Conceptually, the novel appeared to be a perfect vehicle for Lawhead, who excels at historical detail. But while the concept and the detail don't disappoint, I found myself struggling through both.

The Skin Map blends several genres, but is probably best described as time travel or urban fantasy. The story revolves around Kit, a 21st century Londoner who stumbles upon a portal between different universes within our multiverse (alternate universes with infinite possible histories). Along the way, he loses his girlfriend Wilhemina in 17th century Prague, and in an attempt to rescue her, finds himself in a quest for a map that details these universal portals (or ley lines). As such, the story shifts between numerous possible worlds, an 18th-century Chinese port, old England, ancient Egypt, just to name a few.

But what could be a wild ride was, for me, only marginally interesting. For the main characters who lead me on this fantastical journey are not very interesting. Kit and Wilhelmina's relationship, which becomes the dramatic hinge of The Skin Map, endeared me to neither. For instance, upon introduction, we learn that Kit believes "he simply had to get a new girlfriend at first opportunity" (pg. 29). After a rather unflattering description of Wilhelmina's features -- mousy hair, receding chin, spinster's hump, and dark-circled eyes -- it's no wonder he feels this way. She yawns a lot, is emotionally cold, even calls him a "dope." Thus, our protagonist concludes, "Wilhelmina was no catch" (pg. 30). To which the reader must surely agree. So when Kit leads Wilhelmina to the portal and they spiral into different histories, I almost wanted to say "Good riddance.'

Which creates a problem, because finding Wilhelmina becomes the springboard of the novel.

As compelling as the possibilities of inter-dimensional, alternate history jumping could be, Lawhead's characters seemed strangely un-incredulous, as if finding oneself in 17th century Prague was just a scheduling error. So when one of Kit's guides warns that Wilhemina "might cause unimaginable damage, unleashing catastrophe after catastrophe of unreckoned proportions" (pg. 125), I had to ponder what "unimaginable damage" that might involve. Time travel stories carry their own logical questions. Tweaking A affects B, which changes C and inevitably removes Z. Perhaps Lawhead will explore such possibilities in later installments. However, in The Skin Map, I was left with a lot of those questions.

Stephen Lawhead is adept at setting and historical details, and this is where The Skin Map excels. Descriptions of the Chinese port city and the bakery in old Prague are wonderful. And some of the physics and philosophical speculation are intriguing. (I especially liked Lawhead's short essay Afterword entitled The Ley of the Land, which outlines the realtime theories behind the story.) So as much as I felt a disconnect with the characters, Lawhead is a great writer and has proven his handle on tales of epic scope. For that reason, I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and the rest of the series a shot.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I'd like to thank Thomas Nelson Publishers for providing me this Book free as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Overall I found this to be an enjoyable read, but...

There were several different stories going on, which appear to be out of sequence chronologically (probably intentionally) and of differing durations.

Mina meets someone, travels to Prague, opens a bakery, then a coffee shop, meets the emperor, opens another coffee shop and (apparently) learns how to travel the leys herself.

Meanwhile, Kit goes to a lecture, has dinner, almost travels with Sir Henry and his great-gandfather, then travels with the servant and Niece only to be captured.

One story has to be at least a month, the other maybe 10 days.

We follow the tattooed guy around at the same time everyone is searching for the skin from his long-dead body, and end with his son (grandson? I forget now) stealing his skin/map - a theft which was discovered much earlier in the book.

In the end I was disappointed with the overall story. Two characters die without ever developing or passing on useful information. Maybe they will be re-born later? Too many lose ends, too many plot lines left undeveloped.

I'll read the next one in the series, I hope it leaves me with a better sense of closure!

I'm a big fan of Stephen Lawhead. I've read most, if not all, of his novels, and recommend him regularly over other, lower-quality Christian authors.

This time, not so much. Lawhead's newest release, The Skin Map, was disappointing. It's the story of a young man swept into an alternate universe, and the girlfriend he (literally) loses along the way. It's also the story of an ancient map, and heroes and villains out to find that map and the secrets it holds. It reads like time travel, since each universe is at a different point in history as the characters jump to and through them. We spend time in merry old England, an 18th-century Chinese port, and ancient Egypt. The primary characters are very much children of the 21st Century, but those they interact with include Bohemian royalty, salt-of-the-earth serving wenches, lords and ladies and footmen, priests and bakers and gentry.

And yet, it felt a little stifled. Colorless. More like random jumping from point-to-point than the grand, sweeping epics that Lawhead is known for. Many of the characters show great promise, yet come across as lifeless. Sometimes he paints vivid pictures of a particular scene, but create minimal action to fill that scene. And if there's one piece of fiction writing that irritates me, it's the over-use of exalted descriptives like "She was easily the most beautiful women in the world" and "It was the most beautiful scenery he'd ever laid eyes on" and "He was the most frightening-looking man in the world" (note: those are not exact quotes from the book, but there are enough of them in there). Because, really? How do you know she's the most beautiful woman in the world? And by whose standards? Far be it from me to criticize a master like Lawhead, but this is the sort of freshman-level writing employed by people who don't know how to write vivid descriptions, which Lawhead has already proven he knows very much how to do.

In some ways, it was just the book I needed right about now - a mindless adventure roaming across the centuries and continents. It did require a modicum of brainpower to follow the various subplots, not to mention understanding the physics behind the plot of ley lines and travel between multiple universes. Yet it spritely moved along from scene to scene, with just enough intrigue and action to keep the pages turning. There's enough here that I look forward to the next book in the series. In the end, though, I hope Lawhead isn't simply going through the motions now that he's an established writer. He's built up quite a reputation and fan following, and The Skin Map just doesn't live up to the standards he's already set.